Beware the germs of March

Six years ago, I would have proclaimed that the hardest part of being a parent is surviving a night with a sleepless baby. This week I discovered that those sleepless nights of early momhood were nothing compared to night after night after night of tending the needs of three sick children. Erik is recovering from a cold and only woke up once  last night from a bad dream. The younger two, however, are testing my physical endurance with their nighttime woes. William has been battling a cold for at least two weeks and a cough for several weeks prior to that. On Thursday he was diagnosed with RSV. Previously I thought that it was only something preemies and sickly children caught, but not this year and not in this house. It seems like half the families we know have been battling some respiratory problem. Fortunately, William is generally fairly healthy. That didn't stop us from taking a trip to the ER Thursday to get his breathing under control. Anna has a nasty cold, too, and a fever that spiked dramatically late yesterday afternoon. I've been up with all the kids on and off all week, but last night I just seemed to go from room to room all night. Coffee is my very, very best friend.

The good news is that everyone seems to be much more like themselves this morning. The fevers are breaking. The coughing is still rather unpleasant but it hasn't brought anyone to hysterics today yet. I'm grateful for the tools we have for dealing with these illnesses, but I'm amazed at how much medical junk I'm wielding right now: ibuprofen, acetaminophen, Benadryll, nebulizer, inhaler, oximeter. My personal favorite: the Snot Sucker -- yet another leap past the icky frontier of stuff a person will do only because they are a parent.

I'm also beyond grateful for the local friends who have been so helpful and encouraging as we try to mend. Sure, this isn't the worst illness we could be battling, but it's been a bit scary and a lot exhausting. So, thank you to everyone who's kind words have done wonders to keep me sane.

And now, to have more coffee.