Sick Days

Sick, crusty eyed Luke.

Sick, crusty eyed and eared Jules.

Sick siblings.

After reading 30 or 40 books a day, markers, crayons, puzzles and daytime TV watching (which never happens in our house) we resort to homemade games like "Ghost". This is Jules being the Ghost. She chases Luke and I around the house until she is laughing so hard she cannot go on. Then we switch roles. Not complicated, but worth at least 30 minutes of entertainment.

Animal Mountain. Another sick day fun staple.

So.

It's been a housebound week. Which makes sense, because we had the entire week planned full of fun activities with my girlfriends. So endless cancellations later, home we sat. The kids caught something on Sunday at Church. By Monday afternoon the 4 hour nap was in full force, which, as usual ended with the kids waking up with 103.5 fevers. Nate was out of town, and that night Luke slept in my bed ~ sleeping with a creature with a body temp of 103 is much like having your very own personal electric blanket. I use the term "sleeping" loosely however, as there was much coughing and tossing and turning. We have spent the last three days in the house.

Fall/winter is hard. Between school, the gym, church, play dates, parks etc life is a veritable festival of swapped germs and traded ailments. I feel like having two young kids increases your likelihood of illness fivefold, rather than just doubling it. I have no idea why. Luckily Nate and I have remained healthy, but I won't lie ~ being stuck inside of the house can feel like the pits. The days get long. I miss my friends and the welcome break of adult conversation terribly. Talking on the phone just isn't the same, especially as it is usually punctuated with interruptions from their kids or my kids. I miss going to the gym ~ the break of having the kids playing in childcare while I work out or do yoga is one that I treasure and miss terribly when I am not able to go. Luke missed pre school for the first time this year. I start to lose my mind when I am cleaning up the animals for the 37th time that day. (I know, I know ~ Don't clean up the animals until the end of the day........but they drive me crazy. I suck at mess).

The great thing is that the kids have been in fantastic spirits. Though snotty and relatively gross to look at or to touch, they are very snuggly and sweet and warm and generally as happy as usual. I have gotten a nap each day, and barring Monday night I have even gotten more sleep at night as one or the other has slept until 8 each day. The TV has been on during the day, which is a big NYET in our house, but you do what you have to do in crisis. The fevers have been gone since Tuesday, but the lingering mucous madness is keeping us housebound so that we don't get our friends sick. A big pot of homemade soup is keeping our bellies full, and Nate and I even got out last night for date night as usual. All in all, it could be a lot worse. I would feel like an ass to complain about a few days stuck in our warm house surrounded by food and TV and toys and the ability to connect with my friends via the telephone and the computer, so I won't even bother complaining. I am lucky that we are dealing with runny noses and crusty eyes, not leukemia or cancer or other atrocities. I feel like I have read too many stories lately of children, young children, with terminal or life threatening diseases, and my heart just breaks for their families.

So today I feel grateful for bodies that know how to fight the inevitable germs that we encounter, and the means to rest and relax when sick days are needed.