As a storm blows through the Northeast, I feel like a storm just hit my house over the weekend. I definitely had a long weekend, and it wasn’t the good kind.
It started with a call from my babysitter on Wednesday telling me her son woke up with the stomach flu, and I needed to pick up my daughters as soon as possible. Normally, I would be concerned they were exposed because they only go to the sitter three days a week. It just so happens the two days they go in a row are Tuesday and Wednesday, which meant they had been exposed the whole day before.
As luck would have it, Thursday came and we had our first victim, my youngest. She made it through about half of the day, but was sick most of the rest of the day, which is extra fun because she drinks a lot of milk. After a good night of sleep and no sick to be seen, the girls headed to the sitter.
I got several updates from my sitter, and after I decided to pick them up a little early, we had our second victim, my oldest. We were almost home when I heard a cough coming from the back seat and knew we were in trouble. She was a real trooper, learning to use a bowl and letting us know when her tummy was extra upset. The next day came and she told me her nausea was gone and not coming back.
It didn’t come back, but decided to travel to my husband. In the early hours of Saturday morning he headed to the bathroom and didn’t come out. I didn’t entirely escape it myself, unfortunately, but thankfully got the abbreviated version.
Before I started feeling any signs of the flu, I headed to Walmart to stock up on Gatorade, Sprite, disinfectant and paper towels. I sprayed down the house, scrubbed the floors and did several loads of laundry before the bed called my name. Sunday was pretty rough for my husband, and I didn’t want to move from the bed. I think age is starting to catch up with me more than I would like to admit.
Thankfully, the weekend storm has passed and Monday brought hungry kiddos and working parents. I’m hoping we’ve seen the worst of what winter illnesses have to offer, but I’m still going to keep my doctor on speed dial.
Contact Jamee A. Pierson at
641-792-3121 ext. 6534
or jpierson@newtondailynews.com