I Want My Mommy!
I’m pretty obsessive about making sure that hands get washed regularly; I try to minimize our exposure to other sick people; and of course the #1 defense is to eat a healthy diet full of ‘whole’ and ‘raw’ foods… but inevitably, everybody gets sick sometimes. Especially children who lack the judgment not to put their hands in their mouth… Or in my son’s case; lick the counter at the post office. Eeewww! It must be a boy thing?
In my opinion, the biggest thing that taxes a mother’s emotions, energy, sanity, and just about everything else is: sick kids.
Well, it was our turn last week. We had just brought home our newborn son from the ICU – where they drilled into us the importance of not exposing him to ANYTHING for the next 6 weeks (is that even possible without a bubble?) – and especially a fever! We weren’t home three days when my oldest son woke up from his nap with a 105.5 degree fever! He was so sick that he kept saying to my mom ‘I see two of you Grandma!’ Then the throwing up started.
At this point, I’m already running on fumes from the lack of sleep – but now I’m torn between caring for my oldest son and comforting him – while being gravely concerned for our newborn who has now been exposed to this flu. I knew there would be days like this, but didn’t expect to jump two feet in my first week as a mommy of 2!
Immediately we bowed our heads and prayed, sincerely asking the Lord to heal our son and supernaturally protect the baby. With a strength that comes only from the Lord (and from an amazing family), we kicked into high gear and began to clean, wash, launder, and sanitize everything in the house. We quarantined the baby in an entirely different area of the house and nobody could enter it without changing their clothes and scrubbing up to their armpits!
It lasted 48 hours, generated 31 loads of laundry, used up 2 bottles of Purell, filled 4 full garbage cans, cost $84 in supplies/medicine, and I’m not sure I ate or slept the entire time. Yet somehow, by the grace of God, he completely protected us from it – especially the baby. And we survived to talk about it… Nothing short of a miracle in my book!
And although we’re over the flu for now, we’ve moved on to an infected belly button (the umbilical cord fell off too early), two eye infections, a sensitive circumcision, angry diaper rash, and a switch in formula (since the last one was too gassy).
Yet one look into my children’s eyes, and I’d do it all over again if I had to… which will probably come sooner than later.
God Bless!
~ Erika
