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  • Sick Kids with Vicks #BehindEar thermometer

    Sick Kids with Vicks #BehindEar thermometer

    I had the most interesting weekend.

    It began Thursday afternoon when Mark left for a 2 day Music Educators Conference. In the past we’ve packed up the kids and made it a family trip. With Princess V in school now, and the amazing school district seeing the conference benefits (read – they paid for the whole trip), it just wasn’t possible this year.  (Also sad, because my favorite Food Blogger, Baking with Blondie was there!)

    After a very rough night trying to get 4 kids to bed on my lonesome, and taking care of a dog, I was pooped. Prince L then woke up in the night with a raging fever. I kid you not, it felt like putting a hot iron on my skin holding him. I popped out the Infant’s Tylenol, just hoping it would calm the fever and allow Prince L to sleep. Friday’s mail couldn’t have come at a better time, since it brought my new Vick’s Behind the Ear Thermometer. I was just having a discussion with another friend on how we didn’t trust our temporal thermometers anymore. They worked great until we put in new batteries, and then they just didn’t seem right. I’m hoping we don’t experience the same case here. So this beauty is pretty easy to use, as long as you get it in the right spot behind the ear. My favorite feature though, is the memory! It stores the last 8 temperatures you take, making it easy to keep track of your child’s temp. let’s face it, I have a really bad memory when it comes to numbers all close together.

    So Poor kid had a mild fever, and by the afternoon, he couldn’t keep anything down, and was having a terrible time getting any rest. So basically a rough day. I knew I needed to approach bedtime differently this night for peace of mind. To my astonishment, the girls were extremely well behaved and after we sang a few songs together they all dropped off peacefully before 9pm. Bliss, I tell you!

    The poor boy was still feverish through the day on Saturday, but was keeping food down at least. He just wasn’t eating as much either. His fever broke during the night Saturday, but Sunday he woke up with a rash. Dealing with this before, I self diagnosed him with Roseola. Gosh I hate this rash though.

    It began just on his tummy, but this morning I found it has crept across his back, up his neck, across one cheek and is headed down his arms. But hey, the fever is gone, he’s eating and back to his very happy self.
     
    

    On another note, I was also left with the dog for the first time on my own. Meaning I had to get him up and out first thing in the morning, feed him, and basically make sure he’s doing alright. Plus, Mark upgraded his 30 gallon fish tank to a 50 gallon tank, and added about 8 more fish. Friday morning comes along, I’ve let the dog out, fed the kids breakfast, and am finally getting myself ready before Kindergarten drop off, when the kids tell me Tank (the dog) has pooped in the baby’s room, and a fish has jumped out of the tank. A conversation on facebook led me to creating this poem for your enjoyment

    By the time Mark made it home, 2 more fish had died (they did not commit suicide like the first), and Tank had once again pooped in the house. I think we’ve got things mostly back to normal now.  I sure hope the rest of you had an entertaining weekend, that did not include sick kids, poop or dead animals.

    *I received a Vick’s Thermometer for free from Klout perks. I was under no obligation to mention them. All thoughts and opinions are 100% honest and my own.

  • 5 Sick Day Essentials

    5 Sick Day Essentials

    We have been terribly sick with colds this week. It’s passed through all the kids, and has left Mark and I a bit drained every day.  As I was trying to get some kind of sleep, I started thinking about the essentials my kids need to start getting better.  So of course I had to compile it into a fun pin-able post for you.




    Warmth 

    When you’re kids are sick, one essential you’ll want to have on hand is blankets. Besides helping keep from a chill on cold days, there is something comforting about being wrapped in a blanket.  Also have a favorite toy nearby for extra loves for the little ones. Add in cuddles from you, and all the love is sure to help your child feel slightly better.  If not it will at least keep you smiling with your kids.

    Entertainment 

    Movies, Books, and board games.  Grab a pile of your child’s favorite stories, and put them within easy reach. I don’t know about other moms, but I still feel guilty sitting them in front of the tv for the day, even when sick. We do watch more tv when sick, but I like to add in books, and simple board games we can play on the couch.  It keeps their minds active, while their bodies can’t be.

    Medicine 

    There’s only so much misery I can see my kids going through before resorting to tylenol and ibuprofen. When a fever spikes though, I don’t mess around, so I try to keep well stocked on childrens and infants ibuprofen.  I keep cough drops, like Pine Bros, on hand to help soothe the throat. Mostly though I like to rely on my rainmate with essential oils and steaming showers.  I also just came across this DIY shower vapor discs I want to try now too.

    Comfort Foods 

    Chicken Noodle Soup, Ramen, water bottles, and lots of Vitamin C. I have a recipe I’ll have to pull out for you, but it uses a lot of Tang, sugar, and cloves to up your Vitamin C. When I don’t have my mix for this handy, I pull out our herbal teas and honey for a soothing drink.  Don’t forget yourself either. Keep some chocolate nearby to keep you sane during those long nights of coughing fits, and 2 year olds sleeping on your  head.

    Rest  

    Lastly, on any sick day, everyone needs to get lots of rest. Especially mom! If you run yourself into the ground taking care of everyone else, you won’t be well enough to care for yourself, and be more prone to catching whatever is spreading. So do the necessities, and then take your rest with your kids. You’ll all get better faster.

  • She Couldn’t Breathe

    She Couldn’t Breathe

    What a long weekend! I don’t remember what we did on Saturday.

    Saturday night, however, is a night I will never forget.

    I was struggling to sleep, and just starting to doze off, when Prince L (9 months) woke up. While I was settling him back down, Princess V (6) came running up the stairs – she had just thrown up all over her bed, with a little splattering onto Princess R’s blanket.  Mark is amazing with these things, and he got right up and cleaned her off, then took to stripping her bed and sisters, and getting her settled in on the couch with towels and a bowl. 

    I was once again on the verge of dozing, possibly even halfway to dream land, when we hear her calling from the couch. Again, Mark got up and went to her, and I was gone to dreamland – trusting in his ability to care for her, and my need of sleep.

    I was woken suddenly to “I need you. Mom I need you to come help. Quickly.”  Mark was calling. Weird I thought, but I jumped and ran to do whatever I could. What I faced that night, was something I never expected. Princess V was all cleaned up, but Princess C (4) was sitting on the bathroom floor, shaking, and coughing and struggling to breathe. I thought she was going to throw up, so I sat next to her and rubbed her back and held her hair out of her face. After a few attempts, I knew she didn’t need to. Something else was seriously wrong. I called for Mark to get me a blanket because she was shivering and shaking, I was hoping from the cold bathroom floor, but in hindsight I think it was that coupled with trying to get air into her body. Mark turned the shower on high heat, and then left to finish cleaning the couch.

    I sat there rocking my girl on that bathroom floor wrapped in a blanket, looking into her eyes, listening to her struggle to breathe, and trying to understand what she was trying to tell me. My face was dripping with tears, because the worst fears were going through my head. We had never lived so far from a hospital, or even a late night urgent care. We are a good 20-30 minutes away. Plus we have 3 other kids, that would mean I or Mark would have to stay home if we went to the hospital, and when it comes to our kids in pain/sickness we both want to be right there with them.

    As Princess C got one word out at a labored time, this is what she told me “it’s. my. black. hair.”
    I almost laughed. Princess C has had beautiful blond hair since birth. Earlier that evening, while combing her hair, I found a solitary black hair. She had been distraught over this black hair on her “yellow” hair. I told her it was unique. My little 4 year old had decided that that black hair must be the problem.

    Through all the commotion Princess R (3) woke up and began crying. Princess V, even though sick, was a big help and took her back to bed and laid with her until she fell asleep again, so we could take care of Princess C. 

    Mark finished up the couch, and when he returned he was carrying Prince L again. Thankfully the steam worked, and Princess C was able to breathe a little better….by which I mean she could actually breathe without struggle…it was still labored. We exchanged children, and while I fed Prince L, Mark blessed Princess C.  For which I am ever grateful that he holds the priesthood and can bless our children when the need is there.

    The rest of that night and Sunday night, I spent sleeping on the floor. Too worried that she would struggle for breath and I not know, I needed to be there next to her.

    This morning I called our local doctor, who got us in before lunch. She has a cold. She will be fine (though a simple call will send a prescription out if needed). The kids are once again all in their own beds, with clean sheets and blankets. Before falling asleep though, all 4 began coughing at one point this evening. I feel the bug has spread.

    ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

    But hey, I still managed to make a menu plan!  Everyone chose one meal, so we will all get a comforting meal this week.  It could all quickly turn into chicken noodle soup though.

    Monday – hot dogs and corn
    Tuesday – Lasagna
    Wednesday – Chicken Cordon Bleu
    Thursday – Gumbo and Rice Casserole
    Friday – leftovers
    Saturday – Bean and Cheese Quesadillas
    Sunday – Pizza

    And at some point this week, Princess C has requested a cake be made.

  • Facebooking Diagnosies – Think About It

    Facebooking Diagnosies – Think About It

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    What is on your mind? Tell us about it, and then link up at the bottom of this post!
    Yestrday Prince L woke up with a puffy eye.  I assumed he was just really tired, as he hadn’t been sleeping as well lately.  Then he started acting just odd. He didn’t really want to open his eyes, almost as if the lights hurt. He became extremely cuddly, and just wanted me to hold him all day long, wrapped in a blanket. Unless he’s sleeping, he never closes his eyes, or lets me hold him for long. He would rather be looking at everything and moving around as best he can. So I started thinking maybe these symptoms were in relation to his puffy eye.  Since Mark and I had both been suffering allergies on and off, I chalked it up to that. 
    To be safe though, I posted about it on facebook, and even added a cute picture.

    Not looking for a diagnosis exactly, I just wanted to share my cute cuddly guy with his puffy eye. Well, a number of my friends immediately got on and said it looked like pink eye! I was feeling so lucky that after 4 kids we had never experienced this awful sounding virus. So pink eye hadn’t even crossed my mind before it was mentioned on facebook.  I started looking up the signs and symptoms of Pink Eye on google, and told Mark our weekend plans might be canceled because of it. 
    Mark called his brother, who happens to work in the medical field. He said looking at the picture it didn’t look like Pink Eye. He’s almost always been right when we call him. So I pushed my worries aside, and decided to wait it out. Then I decided maybe I should play it safe. We haven’t been to a doctor since moving, and Prince L needed his 6 month check anyways. So off I went to find a doctor.

    We have 1 doctor in our small town, and he was gone for the weekend (It’s fall break here).  On to the next town over. I found one that could see us before we left for our vacation, and got in to see him this morning as we headed out of town. I am so glad I didn’t wait!

    Although it is NOT pink eye, it is a bacterial infection, and needs some eye drops. Although it’s not going to be fun putting these eye drops into a 6 month old, it will be much better than watching his puffy red eye, an worrying that it hurts him.
    So thanks Facebook Friends for sending me in a mild panic, but also for putting the worry there, because something was wrong.
    Have you ever Facebook Diagnosed yourself or kids? Were they right? Did you send yourself into a panic with all the possibilities of what could be wrong? I’d love to hear about it!
    Don’t forget, you can link up any random post! We love meeting other bloggers, and reading what you’re thinking about. All we ask is that you grab our button and place it on your blog, so we can get more people involved!

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