Illness. A major virus recently invaded our house and caught the attention of my 20 month old daughter, my 4 year old son and myself. This intruder brought along a terrible cough, fevers and wheezing for the kids, and a whole lot of runny noses and snotty tissues. Not only did our illness bring all of these lovely symptoms, but he also decided that he wanted to stay a week plus. It’s been a pretty rough week for everyone involved, with lack of sleep, some crazy moods due to steroids, and lucky for us (NOT), my husband was gone for the weekend.
I thought it might be helpful to leave some tips for how I have survived (barely) this germ infested week:
- Call your family for help: I was lucky enough to have my Mom come and stay a night with us, while my husband was gone to help me take care of the kids. My daughter wasn’t napping all week and thankfully, my mom, was able to entertain her while my son and I were able to rest. My son hasn’t napped since he was about 2.5 years old and I have never been a napper…so it was obviously needed! Don’t be afraid to ask for help, especially from family! Sometimes we need it and they are usually more than happy to help.
- Always have Motrin on hand: my house will never be without, from now on. Oh, and if you’ve never used Boogie Wipes, pick up a bulk pack of those, while you’re at it. My poor daughter’s nose was so raw from tissues, that these were all that she would tolerate.
- Utilize emailing your child’s pediatrician: This came in so handy, since there were 3 of us that weren’t feeling well. My Dr. responded within hours of me sending him a message and it was super helpful rather than calling or making an appointment. I’d imagine that most offices have this feature, and if you don’t think they do, ask because they probably do 😉
- Netflix and ONDemand will save your soul: Towards the end of the day when the kids were getting restless but it was too early for bed, we rented a movie. Actually, I only had to rent one movie because my kids will watch the same movie 14,000 times and be ok with it 🙂 I was tired, they were tired, and trying to get a 20 month old to take a breating treatment is torture in itself….so movie time it was.
- Let the housework go: Taking care of the kids and/or yourself is the only priority you need to focus on. The laundry and dirty toilets can wait.
- Hydrate, hydrate, hydrate: Did I mention hydrate? Making sure everyone is drinking water is so very important! We’ve had a run in with dehydration in the past when my son was sick, and let me tell you…it is ZERO fun! So, keep those fluids readily available and keep telling your kids to take some sips 🙂
- You can survive on toast, oatmeal, and peanut butter: Of course, healthy eating is important, but just getting something in those little bellies is the main thing. I am almost positive that your kids won’t complain about having toast, peanut butter sandwiches, and waffles for every meal!
I am seeing the light at the end of the tunnel with getting rid of this virus in our house. I hope this is somewhat helpful and I hope you all are able to stay as healthy and germ-free as possible!
