Germy Kid Season
It has been my biggest fear. Since the moment I had children. The dreaded illness. Specifically, stomach bugs. The thought of dealing with sick kids while I was sick myself terrified me. Even though I am perfectly aware that children carry all sorts of germs. I am so fully aware that I am a bit of a germaphobe. The mere thought scared me.
Well…it happened. All four of us. One week. Sick…sick and sick some more.
It wasn’t pretty, I’m not going to lie. Our house was not exactly the most fun place to be for the week.
But I’m writing this so there is only one thing this can mean…we survived!!
I learned a few things throughout the whole terrifying ordeal.
Firstly, the whole germaphobe thing isn’t doing anything for me. Kids carry germs. There is nowhere to hide from them, especially when they are little. We wash our hands and don’t accept playdate invites from someone who is just getting over the flu but what else can we really do? They crawl in bed beside me in the middle of the night and cough right in my mouth. They sneeze on me and wipe things on me and there is just no escaping it. We are all going to catch things and while it’s unpleasant we will get through it. I don’t need to waste my energy worrying about germs floating around and possibly infecting me.
Secondly, I’m actually a little tougher than I thought. I am capable of spending the day throwing up and then holding my daughters hair back while she throws up. Did I gag? Yes. Did I throw up? NO! I did it!
Thirdly, when my family works together we can get through anything. Each of us plays our role. When one needs help there is always someone to step in. When I couldn’t get out of bed to deal with my broken down car, my husband stepped in and handled it. When he couldn’t leave the house to pick up his car from the dealer, I went. When Mr. T was hungry for breakfast it was little Ms. J who spread a little PB&J on a piece of bread for him and poured him a glass of apple juice. We are a family and the only way we get through difficult times is to get through them together.
It’s the struggles in life that teach us the most about ourselves. It may have just been a week of the flu, but it was a tough long week. And we survived it! Not only did we survive it but I think we came out a little bit stronger and a whole lot closer.
I, for one, am so proud of us! And I am so very glad it’s over.
