The Flu: Weeks 2 and 3

So things have been winding down here with The Illness. One by one the troops began to revive, the fevers lifted (with Cecilia’s squeezing every last bit out) and then we settled into the cough-that-portends-death and the snotty-nose-that-portends-the-snot-covered-shoulder. So here we were - all energized and wanting to explode out of the house but knowing that we sound like the Band of Death coming to infect the masses. We stayed home another few days. Doing…

 

 

Lots and lots of dressup.

“C’mon, Thomas. We can be ladies.”

“OK Rosie!”

 

 

 

Flying a dragon kite.
Having tea…with the queen.

Generally taking out our energies on Mom. Yes that is four sticks of butter on my coffee table.

We began our foray into polite society at the Saturday night Vigil Mass. Which was packed. So we had to sit in the front. BAD NEWS. CeCe and Thomas just couldn’t contain their enthusiasm at seeing people other then the 6 of us and there was a slightly unsavory character taking up the crynook/room so we just did our best to stay cool under pressure and fed CeCe as many pamphlets as she could handle. Thomas we just…I honestly don’t remember. It wasn’t good though so I guess I just blocked it out. Sometimes I thank God that I have no braincells left.
Sunday we were led astray by ambitious weather-men who wanted to promised lovely Spring-like weather. We travelled an hour and half to a beautiful national park only to play for 10 minutes in a subdivision playground and decide that it was way too cold. Luckily we came up with a plan to meet some great friends at the Air and Space Museum. So the day was saved after all.

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Valentine’s made it in there too with a pretty amazing dinner and dessert prepared at home AFTER the kiddos were in bed

 

 

We’ve been bopping along all blissfully healthy since Sunday and I have repeatedly said that it’s truly amazing how much more productive the family can be when our bodies are on our side. We went from working at about 85% efficiency before the flu to – no joke – about 7% efficiency during it. Monday and Tuesday we were climbing our way back up and I’d say we were approaching 80% when BAM! The flu got it’s last word in (please, please be the last word). We’ve got a couple double ear infection patients bringing us down to about 50%. Darn kids. Don’t they know we’ve got a family to run? A home to keep? Memories to make?

Ten days of antibiotics and all the lovely benefits to the digestion that it will bring will bring us up to a total of 4 flu-ridden weeks. But this is the last woe-is-me post that I will share about it. Unless of course (and the likelihood of this happening is quite high) that we get a story out of it worthy of the title, Poop Chronicles. Only time will tell.