We have had yet another week of illness and mishaps. We just can't seem to get our immune systems in gear this year. I once took pride in being one of those calm, cool, collected moms who doesn't take the kids to the doctor at the first sign of a sniffle, but I must say we have been literally throwing money at the pediatric clinic this month.
It all started with Eli's poor ears. For over eight weeks he has had ear infections. My sweet little boy probably can't remember what its like to hear clearly. We have been through four sick doctors visits, four antibiotics, 3 aweful diaper rashes, 2 bottles of ear numbing drops and 2 "recheck" visits. I have to admit I am a pro at administering drug dosages now. I have it down to an art, once a day, twice a day, three times daily, every 4-6 hours with a small amount of food... The problem with ear infections is that you can never be sure. He's pulling at his ear: is it an infection, is he tired, is it a quirky habit he's had since the womb? At one of the recheck appointments the doctor insisted we make, I actually waited over an hour and a half for the nurse practitioner to come in look in his ears and say, "All clear!" Don't get me wrong, I was excited to get the good news, but how expensive can an otoscope really be. Surely I could look in Eli's ears and compare it to examples on the internet. I have seriously contemplated the idea. It would most likely be cheaper in the long run...less accurate perhaps.
For the time being Eli's ears are "All clear!" But, like I said before, that was just the beginning. Being healthy was just too boring for the Brown's; we needed a little more excitement than that.
On Sunday, Nate's parents offered to keep the kids so Nate and I could go out for Valentine's day. We dropped them off and proceeded to dinner and an early movie. We got back around nine and walked in the door to the smell of soured milk and Lysol. Apparently, Eli had been throwing up from the time we left until 30 minutes before we got back. I felt awful for them; they looked exhausted. He must have gotten it out of his system at their house because he didn't get sick once after we got back. I stayed home with him Monday just to be sure and went to work Tuesday like normal...until it hit me. While sitting at lunch with a customer in Fort Smith, I started to feel lightheaded and woozy. When I got home that evening, I became quite intimate with our porcelain throne(luckly it had been cleaned recently-often a hit or a miss chore at our house!). I stayed home Wednesday to catch up on the sleep I had missed the night before and got a call from my mom around noon saying Will was laying lethargic on the couch complaining that his tummy hurt really bad--note: he had been complaining off and on about his tummy for the last two weeks. Nate picked him up and brought him home. He looked so pathetic. He wouldn't eat or drink. He just kept saying, "I'm sorry my tummy hurts. I'm sorry I don't feel better." (Will is my sensitive and sweet child, especially when he is sick.)I called the doctor and an hour later the nurse called to say we should bring him in. As it turns out, Will has not been using the restroom. Ever since he had the 24 hour bug, his body has been trying to retain fluids and has made him severely constipated. I felt like a terrible mom. I didn't have a clue that he had not been going #2. He's such a big boy now and he takes care of everything on his own (which is wonderful by the way!). The doctor gave us some dietary ways to help him and prescribed a special laxative for him to take three times daily, of course.
By the time we left the doctor's office, it was time to pick up Kate and Eli. I walked up to mom's house and could hear crying...better yet, screaming coming from inside. Kate's eye was watery and swollen. Her "gurls" (aka Barbies) had poked her in the eye while she was playing. Mom said she had been sporadically screaming since it had happened. That night Will cryed at various times about his tummy hurting, Kate screamed because she scratched her eye, Eli whined and whimpered because his teeth hurt (he's finally getting his first two teeth!) and Mommy and Daddy prayed to make it until 730...BEDTIME! I honestly felt like we were falling apart.
On weeks like this, I am reminded that the beauty of life in Christ is that each day can be new, clean, unwritten and untainted. Regardless of all the chaos the day, week or month before, a new day can bring a refreshed spirit, new health and a new hope that what was previously broken can be mended, what was sick can be healed, what was lost can be found and what was out of reach can be obtained. We are truly blessed.
