March 29, 2024

Dreaming of warmer weather

Editor's Note: This column original ran Feb. 27, 2018.

Having been a citizen of Iowa my entire life, I know the weather can change from day to day or even hour to hour. With one of the more extreme winters hopefully wrapping up soon, I am more than ready to welcome spring, even if it means my allergies will start acting up.

Pre-Christmas everyone is wishing for snow and waiting for the fluffy white snowflakes to accumulate on the ground for a picture perfect holiday. I also like the scenery and this year we got our wish with a quite flurry coming through a couple of days before Dec. 25.

Because of my two girls, I also hope that we will have at least one measurable snow so they can get their snow pants on and sled down the hill by our house, make a snow angel and snowman and have a fun snowball fight. With the season going by as it had in years past, when the first few inches fell, we threw on our gear and headed out, not knowing if it would be our only opportunity.

Several snow storms later and the girls have been able to play in the snow more times than I can count and I am dreaming of sunshine and green grass. The cold weather has brought along another not-so-friendly guest, the flu.

We made it almost to the end of February before my youngest started showing signs fatigue and not too long after, spiked a fever. I wasn’t sure if it was the “real deal” because the next day the fever was gone and she acted like herself.

I guess I counted my chickens too soon because the next day the fever was back and after a trip to the doctor we got an influenza B diagnosis. Externally I was cool as a cucumber but my thoughts were going to scary places of kids being hospitalized and some even dying from the flu. The doctor didn’t seem overly concerned with her case as she had no other ailments to compound the flu, but I kept on top of the fluids and medicine like a hawk. I may have also slept a little less making sure she was OK throughout the night.

It didn’t take too long for her to start feeling better during the day with the fever only showing up at night. She also picked a good week to go down since there was already no school on Monday and classes were canceled on Tuesday. Even with that, she was out of school for the entire week, finally returning on Monday.

Hopefully, that will be our only time dealing with the flu this season since my oldest daughter took the preventative dose of medicine. Having a kiddo down and out makes me want to believe the 50s forecasted for the coming days will stick around, even if I did see snow on deck for Thursday. Only in Iowa.

Contact Jamee A. Pierson at 641-792-3121 ext. 6534 or jpierson@newtondailynews.com