THE FLU HAS DESCENDED

Greetings from our sick little corner of the world! Actually, I think we are all finally on the mend. I knew it was coming. Everyone was tweeting and blogging about their sick families right before and during Christmas. I had a feeling it might be our turn soon. And, then, for a split second, I thought maybe we would make it out unscathed. Not so much.

It started with me having bronchitis on New Year’s Eve. Then, New Year’s Day, it was William’s turn with strep. Three days later, it was Ayden with the flu. The next day, Chelsea had the flu too.

I have known for a long time that Brooklyn is tough. This girl can smash her face into a wall and walk off like nothing happened. She can be bleeding and not even notice. Often, she will jerk her head back while sitting in my lap and nearly break my nose and think nothing of it. So, why should I be surprised that she has been the only one to remain healthy during this crazy week?! She really is something else. (Watch, as soon as I say this, she will get it now…)

But, through it all our God is faithful and good.

This is me at 8:00 a.m. NYE on my way to the Doctor. This is my “Seriously?! Here we go…” face.

Friday at the Dr. with Ayden. He was SO sad. ALL he wanted to do was snuggle. No complaints there. Just hard to see him so miserable.

Saturday. Ayden called this his “sick couch.” We had sort of quarantined him to one side of the living room. (When you have 3 under 3, and both mom and dad are sick, you do everything you can to keep it from spreading.) This was in the morning before we knew Chelsea had it. Then we just said ‘to heck with it’ and let them have the whole living room.

Ok, this is Chelsea with a RAGING fever in her high chair trying to get some meds and hydrate. Pulled out my iPhone to snap a pic of her pitiful, sick face, and she gives me this smile. Seriously. She and her sister are the most beautiful little ladies I’ve ever seen.

This one is from yesterday. William worked from home and hired himself an assistant. Isn’t she the cutest?

Also from last night, Ayden feeling well enough to help with some dishes. To be honest, this was the first time we’d ever done this together. He was so excited to help. Hoping that sweet spirit will just continue to grow as he does. I really love this little guy.

And…this is definitely one key to not being completely miserable while you’re sick and caring for sick little ones (& one sick big one) all at the same time. Introducing: the heavenly scent of a vanilla latte constantly permeating your kitchen. You’re welcome. Here’s what you do. Head over to Target & pick out a cheap hurricane, a bag of coffee beans, and a vanilla (or whatever) scented clearance candle left over from Christmas. I cannot take credit for this ingenious idea — totally stole it from my mother-in-law. But, it definitely made me happy every time I walked into the kitchen to refill a sippy cup or grab the Tamiflu out of the fridge.

As much as I hated having 4 out of the 5 of us sick at one time, it was kind of nice to all be miserable together (with the exception of Brooklyn who still has no clue what just happened). We are slowly ‘reassimilating’ back into normal life and the real world. Thankful that He provides what we need when we need it.