Long time no blog. I should post more often and boy do I think about it, every time I'm away from the computer.But ya' see the boys got sick. First The O during a day trip to the Field Museum over spring break. No yakking, but he crashed in the stroller after 20 minutes and that kicked the Happy Elf out of the stroller. Trooper that the Elf is, he walked the next two hours through the museum. And so ended the great debate: With a 2 and 4 year old do you take the double or single stroller on such an outing? The 2-seater seemed excessive. We figured both boys would be out exploring through the exhibits . . . barring illness. Needless to say we will be packing the 2-seater stroller and whatever contraption we purchase for baby girl Dragon.
So The O was down (this was Thursday) and by Saturday the Happy Elf punched his ticket for Fluville. By Sugarpop's and my ciphering, the Crud ran through them in about eight days.
Sugarpop's mom is still suffering some two weeks later. I contracted the Crud last Saturday, but soldiered on through the week (thank you new private office). Sugarpop felt it coming on Wednesday night, but with her built-in prego-super-immunity she woke up Thursday morning and felt OK. Sleep-deprived crazy? Yes! But CrudFree at least.
Several questions arose during The Seige on the Crud. Normally we try to limit TV time to 20 minutes, er 30, well maybe 1 hour, OK less than a couple of hours a day, but all the boys wanted to do was curl up on the couch and zone out. My own childhood, as best I recollect, involved the couch and TV--and this was with only 3 channels (How else can I explain my in-depth knowledge of "Dark Shadows"?). So thank you multi-channel digital TV of the present and special shout-outs to PBS Sprout and Noggin.
It seems we have settled on a policy that sick kids get all the TV they want. Standard Parenting procedure? Bueller?
Halfway through the Crud we also introduced small cups of Sprite. We figured they needed to stay hydrated and they were rejecting water, milk, and juice, as well as most medicines (thank you Triaminic Strips). The Sprite seemed to gladden their hearts a little and I remember when sick as a child that besides the couch and TV there was also 7-Up. "Just sip it." mom would say. And so those were the orders to the boys. Again it seemed to make things just a little better for them.
So we have become rule-benders when it comes to the kids and illness. What rules go out the window when your kids are sick?
Another issue that came up for the first time was: What does a parent do when they are sick? As grownups the flu would send us to our beds or couches with TV and Sprite. There we would lay and nap, maybe yak, and then nap some more. This was the first time I had been sick since the O was born. By the time I started illin' the boys were well onto recovery and back to pre-school and grandparents' child care. But the house schedule has me out the door by 5:30; "Emaw" or Grandpa Coach coming over around 8; the O and Sugarpop head off for preschool drop-off shortly after; and then Happy Elf and grandparent hang out in the house until noonish when they head over to "Emaw's" house until I pick up the boys there around 3:30. I guess normally the sick parent could just stay in bed until the house emptied, but my "parent-guilt" tells me if I was staying home shouldn't the kids be here too and give the grandparents a day off?
My own memory of my parents being ill involves dad in his chair with a migraine for an evening and in 20+ years living under my parents' roof I recall mom going up to bed before 8 pm twice. Once was after a Memorial Day cookout when after feeding our brood and cleaning up the kitchen she disappeared upstairs. I remember quietly going upstairs and cracking her door open. "Mom? Are you OK?"
"Yes. Just a little tired." she sighed.
The other instance was a Thanksgiving when, after hosting 26 people, serving pie, cleaning up, and wishing guests safe travels, she promptly went upstairs, threw-up, and went to bed. Next day? Right as rain baby, right as rain.
Maybe as parents we get a little tougher with common illnesses and are able to resist a total collapse of our health in order to take care of the kids. Here's hoping at least.
Anyway. Thank you moms everywhere--in our pasts, presents, and futures--who, even while prone over the toilet, want only to assure their kids that the world is safe, stable, and OK.
3 comments:
In our family, TV rules are out the window with a sick kid. As adults, we are content (happy) to lay in bed alone, but young children can't really keep themselves quiet in bed alone. I think it's better to let them snuggle in on the couch and watch TV calmly and rest.
I even remember one time when our daughter was probably 18 months. She woke with a high fever in the middle of the night. She was so restless and wouldn't stay still. As I was on hold with the dial-a-nurse, I turned on Piglet's Big Movie. She instantly stopped squirming and crying and I was able to take her temperature. She eventually fell asleep with my on the recliner watching the movie as the Tylenol kicked in.
Well, the only way to keep the boy in bed during daylight hours is to let him watch his TV. Usually, he's up and going and going and going so the TV is one of the things that helps him get his rest.
And...with the soda...my mom was a nurse and she *always* gave us 7Up when we were sick. Or Fresca. No caffeine and the carbonated sugar water was supposed to help you when you are yakking.
It's definitely tougher as an adult to rest when you have kidlets to attend to, but it's just as important for mommies and daddies to rest...so a day in bed with the TV machine and some 7Up isn't all that bad for them either.
:)
Sounds like perfect sick routine to me. Thanks for the fabulous post, we've missed you. Nice to see a man who appreciates mothers!
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