Miriam fell asleep in the stroller on the way to pick Luke up from school. When we got home, she had been attacked by some kind of biting, flying insect. She had all these welted bites on her leg. Poor Miriam. Thank goodness for Benadryl anti-itch cream!
After 2 weeks, the bites are almost completely gone. Miriam must have the sweetest blood! She seems to attract all the bloodsucking insects.
The kids in their "Cars" party hats
I wish for....
As Luke and I were on our way home today, he realized that he had left some papers at school. Luke started crying and was so upset. I kept telling him that it would be OK and that we could get them tomorrow. Nothing soothed him. Once we got in the apartment, he was in complete hysterics. He was crying so hard that he started throwing up! Man, those must be very important papers!
Morgan helped to calm him down and get him cleaned up. I think that Luke was just so tired from school that these forgotten papers was all that it took to send him over the edge. After his nap he was more rational and willing to wait until the morning to go back to school and find the papers. Otherwise I was going to have to find a way to climb in through the windows at school in order to get a moment of peace.
Luke likes to show me his papers each day when he gets home from school. Yesterday he came home with a toilet paper tube craft of Goldilocks. He was so proud of it! He really likes to do dot-to-dots now and he is trying to color more. Coloring is not his favorite activity! He would rather peel the paper off of the crayons or turn them into lightsabers. However he is trying now to color more of the object and even use different colors. He is also starting to write his name. I am so proud of him!
We have had a rough week now with our children. Here's a brief rundown of what's been going on. Sorry that I haven't posted in awhile, as you are about to see, I have had my hands full...
We woke up at 1:00 a.m. last Wednesday night when Miriam started crying. Usually this isn't a big deal. We slid the wicker couch into our bedroom and put Luke to sleep there while I tried to help Miriam settle down. When I picked her up, she was burning hot with a fever. I gave her Tylenol and some juice and just laid next to her. Moments later, she vomited everywhere in bed. After cleaning her up, washing the sheets out, and changing the bedding, I was finally able to get her to go back to sleep.
In the morning I sent Luke and Morgan to school. Since Miriam wasn't feeling well, I just laid her on my chest while I laid on the couch. We were doing OK watching Curious George and lying there, when Miriam emptied her stomach again. However this time, there wasn't any bedding to catch the vomit, only my chest and part of my face. Good times. So I rush Miriam into our bathroom and turn the water on. But guess what...NO FREAKING WATER!!!! Can you believe it? We have been getting a lot of rain lately and they shut the water off to help keep the filters from getting backed up with dirt. Good thing we have 2 55-gallon barrels of stored water in our apartment for emergencies like this!
I put two pots of water on the stove to heat up some water to bathe Miriam and myself. In the meantime, I had taken off all of Miriam's clothes and diaper since they were puked on. Just as the water was finally warm enough to bathe with, I noticed that not only has Miriam an upset stomach but she also diarrhea since there are trails of it all over the bedroom, even with little footprints in it. What a morning (it wasn't even 9:15 yet)!
Once everything and everyone was cleaned up, I had to take a taxi to our laundry service and drop off all the icky bedding and clothes. What I wouldn't have given for my own washer and dryer on a day like this!
Later that day I was holding Miriam and I just happened to look at her scalp. When we were at Grandma's House a few weeks earlier, we found a tick attached to Miriam's head. Morgan removed it and we cleaned the area with rubbing alcohol. She had not shown any other symptoms associated with getting bit, so we thought that she was not affected by the bite.
The spot where Miriam had gotten bit, was now red it was raised...a possible indicator for lyme disease. The clinic was unable to see Miriam that afternoon but she was seen the next day (Friday).
When I showed up at 8:00 a.m. they said that I should return at 9:20 for an appointment with the doctor. I asked if I could just wait in the waiting room since it was a rainy day. They said "no" because they would need it for all the other walk in patients. So Miriam and I headed out to find a place to chill for an hour and 20 minutes. While waiting for our appointment, Miriam threw up again. Luckily it was only Gatorade and a few pieces of crackers. Finally when it was time for our appointment, the doctor seemed very concerned for Miriam. They went ahead and prescribed penicillin for the tick bite which she will be taking for the next 2 weeks. By the way, Friday was a research day at school and there was absolutely no one on campus, and for that matter, no one else went to the clinic. So glad that I didn't take up all that space that they needed in the waiting room.
Anyway, Saturday brought on a whole new set of problems. By this point we were pretty used to Miriam vomiting but now Luke was getting sick. He had several diarrhea explosions, and yes, explosions is the most accurate word to describe them. Luke is a fast runner, but even he couldn't outrun a few of those blasts. Needless to say, we stayed home from Church on Sunday.
Everyone was doing better until Monday night. We were sitting down at the dinner table and Luke said that he didn't feel well. He went and laid down on the couch. I just happened to look over at Miriam and she looked a little pale. I said, "Miriam, do you feel OK?" Just then, and I do mean, just then, she puked all over the table. Good. I wasn't hungry anyway. I have been wondering why I haven't had much of an appetite lately. Now I know why. Puke destroys any desire I have for food. Luckily Morgan was home and cleaned the table while I cleaned the small one up. Morgan is truly the best husband and father. He has cleaned more diarrhea underwear and puke filled sheets and clothes than anyone I know. Plus, he always jumps in to help clean. No begging for help on my part. Can't find a better man than that.
OK so by Wednesday, Miriam is doing tons better. She has stopped puking and seems to be happier. Luke had stayed home on Tuesday and Wednesday because of a fever and cough, but he too seemed to be better. Thursday he went to school, but by the evening he was just miserable. He had a fever again and his cough was so harsh sounding.
Now that it is Friday the kids are both sick again. Miriam is getting what Luke has. They both just laid around today and Miriam wanted to be held for most of the afternoon. So sad. When I put Luke to bed tonight, I asked if he wanted me to read some stories to him. He said, "Let's just go to bed." That never happens. Usually if I read 10 books and sing for half and hour he still wants to delay bedtime. Maybe a good night's rest will do everyone some good.
Hope you and your families are doing well. Just keep our little ones in your prayers for the next couple of days.
