Our January started out really nice!
Bobby loved on the poor cat some more …
Temperatures did drop to below zero for a few days, so my van gave up its spot in the garage for the bunnies. This set up worked until one (Patch – mostly white, bottom right) figured out that she could hop out! Then she’d explore the garage and forget how to hop back in!
We finally found the features we were looking for in a newer SUV at a price we were willing to pay. When we first went to test drive this GMC Yukon XL, the owner had tried to wash it before we came … in below freezing temperatures! The poor car was completely iced over!!
And then I got the phone call. Tommy’s teacher, my good friend, called to say that he just didn’t feel well and she could tell by his eyes that it was serious. The school nurse was there when I picked him up, another good friend, and she told me to get him checked out because his chest sounded way tight and his fever was way high. I listened and took him in. We saw a PA that I won’t be going back to. She told me his chest wasn’t tight at all and it was just a high temp virus with a cough that was going around and he’d start feeling better in 3-5 days. I could do that. We went home. It was a Thursday.
That poor Tommy had a fever around 103-104 all weekend. I couldn’t get it down very far with Tylenol or Advil and he was pretty miserable. Bobby did his best to entertain him…
Until Saturday, when Bobby got a fever, too. The meds would give a short period of relief and then they both would crash.
I was waiting it out, just like the PA said. I tried to make them comfortable and keep them hydrated. It wasn’t all that much fun.
Rusty and Billy both stayed home from school with a comparably minor illnesses, but both were able to go back to school after a day or two (they were home different days). On Wednesday, nearly a full week after the initial visit, I took both Bobby and Tommy in to see a different PA that I like. When we walked in and they handed us masks and suggested that we not sit by the other patients, I knew it was bad.
And it kind of was. This PA was alarmed at how sick the boys were. Both of their chests were super tight. Both had ear infections. Both were diagnosed with “pre-pneumonia” and put on antibiotics, steroids, and breathing treatments! There was so much going on that I had to make a chart just to keep track of who got what when! Add in Rusty and Billy’s minor illnesses that same week and I was a flurry of thermometers and chest rubs and “take this medicine!” We thought Ricky had made it through just fine, but his hit a couple weeks later. His was more minor but bad enough that he missed his honors skiing trip that he’d been looking forward to. Kevin and I both got “stuff” but as parents with sick kids, you just muscle through. January was not nice to us!
In between sick kids, I did try to do some deep cleaning. I stumbled upon this treasured book created by Ricky (I think. I just realized I never did ask and there wasn’t a name on it)
During the illness, we had a super scary event with Tommy. Or super funny – depending on which side of the room you were on. The boys were in bed and Kevin heard one of them get up and go into the bathroom. He went to check and heard Tommy screaming! I missed that part because I was in the back of the house, but I did get an urgent text, “Get up here now!”
Tommy had a bloody nose. He didn’t know that when he woke up and found out when he flipped on the bathroom light – hence, the scream. Kevin then ran up to find Tommy bleeding all over the bathroom and I couldn’t hear them, so I got the urgent text. I got upstairs to find Tommy in the tub, bleeding, and Kevin running the shower on him! I was hit with questions about taking him to the ER and what to do! I kind of chuckled. Our boys don’t get bloody noses often, but I have friends whose children do.
I told him to undress him and keep him warm in the shower, blow his nose to get the clot out, keep his head tilted forward, and it would stop. I used some essential oils on him and went to clean up the bedroom and hallway. I think Kevin was more traumatized than Tommy (sorry, dear!). The bleeding stopped and Tommy went peacefully back to bed. However, the next day a beautiful shiner showed up! This picture doesn’t even do it justice and it lasted for a good 2 weeks! He was so sick that he actually looks really good in this picture! He lost about 5 pounds in a week during this ordeal. Poor kiddo!
Rusty did a puzzle on his sick day…
Ricky finally had a piano recital! He’s always taken lessons from a different teacher than the other boys and his first teacher stopped doing lessons and his new teacher hadn’t done a recital before. But in January, he finally got to show off his skills.
My favorite was his “Pink Panther” number where he even included the snaps at the beginning. I love seeing this boy succeed!
I had the opportunity to teach Billy’s class the “7 Habits of Highly Effective Kids” this winter. I loved being able to go in and talk to them about relationships and taking responsibility for themselves. I showed them the Jars of Life when we were talking about Putting First Things First. Those big balls are the important things in our lives and if we make sure we do them, all the little stuff will fit in too. It was a good reminder for me … what’s my big, important stuff? Am I putting it first?
Sometimes, after a month like January, we just need to snuggle with the big man on the couch … even if his computer is in the way!
