...to show the things my children

...pretend (because they are in a military family).

A month isn't a long time in the grand scheme of...well anything.

But for the Crow family it was:

• a trip to Virginia
• several soccer games
• a couple of piano lessons
• some really cold soccer practices
• several Sunday mornings drinking coffee alone
• a trip to the hospital with a sick little girl
• more rounds of Tylenol and Motrin than I can even begin to count
• and a clean bill of health for this household as of 20:00 this evening!

Seemed like a long time to us.

Anyway, today we had to bring Mark's truck back to his office so he can come home from work tomorrow afternoon.

Here is a snippet of my children enacting tomorrow's anticipation...

The only prop...

Mark's cover.

Looking forward to tomorrow.

I think they are too.

...really wanted

...the fog over my home to lift.

I pretended it did.

I had a shower.  Put on clothing that I had to both button and zip (i.e., good bye-yoga pants and hooded sweatshirt) and I even used the roller brush on my hair this morning.

Had I added a little lip gloss and mascara, Abbey might have thought I was headed 'out for coffee'.

I wasn't.

My schedule for the day still mostly included:

• several administrations of Tylenol and Motrin at four-hour intervals
• reading a few extra chapters of Harry Potter and The Order of the Phoenix
• and...I hate to admit it, but I have even learned to play Super Mario Brothers on the Wii.

Oh...the things a parent will do to make their children at least feel better.

And they ARE feeling better.

We are finally on the road to recovery...

#4 returned to daycare for a few hours this morning.
#3 returned to school today.
#2 will return to school tomorrow.
#1 is improving.  Hopefully, she'll return to school on Wednesday.

Maybe this all means I'll get some uninterrupted sleep tonight?

No matter.  Sleep is overrated.

Here is some more proof they are recovering...

Will running around with Katie and John for a bit during Abbey's soccer game...

Abbey at her last soccer game this evening...

so happy to be running around!

She even kicked a goal!

Taken after this said Kodak moment...very proud of herself!

(which of course I missed physically seeing because at this particular moment in time I was trying to bribe, threaten and cajole Audrey to stop crying (for heaven's sake..&%&)...apparently she wanted to go home...)!

Abbey and her coach

Though we aren't quite back to our normal crazy...I am thankful the chaos is beginning to return.

...to write a note

...about my thoughts:

Dear Brutal Virus,

You win.

You have stuck three out of four of my children so far this week.

Plaguing them with this horrible virus of terrible stomach cramps and super, super high fevers for an unprecedented five days each.

I have endured night after night of sleeplessness.  Time I have spent crying over my babies...so scared for them while I held them and rubbed their tummies, their backs, anything to try to give them some comfort.

Can I ask...

Is there a particular reason why you must show your nastiest symptoms in the middle of the night?  Is there something you have against daylight?  You know, the time when I have my wits about me and I am less likely to imagine worst case scenarios.

Two a.m. is when my judgement is most impaired.  How do I know I am making the right choice to not rush my baby to the hospital when she is having trouble breathing, sleeping, and even lying still because her fever is so high, beyond 104, she cannot get comfortable?

I am so much more cognizant at 6 a.m.

Can you strike at  6 a.m. next time please?

My next beef...

It is not fair to change the rules of this illness that you have plagued my family with.  You cannot just add the symptom of vomiting on day seven of this virus!

And in the mini-van.  Did it have to occur on...the only, very small patch of visible carpet, in my recently detailed swagger wagon?

Really?

As I write this, the last of my kiddos (#1) is beginning to develop a fever.

If this fever persists in her, I think I'll take the four of my cherubs and drop them off at a local safe house.  Perhaps four different ones...

And officially admit defeat.

Cause this momma is done.

I give up.

OR...

I have another idea...can you please strike me next?

I would trade places with each of them in a moment.

I will take their pain.  Their aches.  Their fevers.

I don't want them to hurt anymore.

Virus...go away.

Or take me as your next victim.

Please.

Sincerely,

One tired momma.

...to drink a lot of coffee

...and watch a lot of TV.

#2 joined the stay-at-home-party today.

Poor little man.

I spent most of my day doing:

In no particular order...

Drinking cup after cup of coffee

Holding kiddos

Rubbing backs

Sitting on the couch

Watching television show after television show

Handing out Gatorade 

Insisting on my children eating popsicle after popsicle

If it wasn't for the photos as evidence, the activities I noted sound as if it was the first day of vacation.

I can assure you...it is not.

...to work

...but I had to cancel all of my clients again

#3 is finally on the mend.  After a super rough night last night (her fever peaked at 104.1) I decided that we both certainly needed another day of rest.

Its a good thing I did, because shortly before we headed off to a follow-up appointment for her, #4 began exhibiting all of the symptoms Abbey started with on Sunday.

At least now I know what to expect...and can tell myself things like,

No...her appendix is not going to burst.
No...this is not a weird case of strep.
And definitely no, in spite of the neck pain, it is not meningitis.

A momma's mind sure can race when she is so worried in the middle of the night...

I am thankful for my kind friends again...

Emily for providing dinner and dessert.  She made these amazing meatballs and sauce as well as some pumpkin cookies that the kids have been gobbling up!

Luke, for making sure his best girl-friend has proven-sure-to-cure-you-Dora-popsicles!

And Heather, for this deliciousness,

and especially this one...

Night-cap.

...to manage

...Abbey's fever throughout the day

Just a little update on my sweet little girl.

I set my alarm through the night last night to make sure she didn't miss a dose of her Tylenol or Ibuprofen.  By morning her fever was much better at 100.7.

Throughout the day she really appeared to feel better.  We had a very low-key day.  We read books, did puzzles, played board games, and watched TV.

When she was feeling her best she asked to help me make some pumpkin scones.  The kids have been asking for the past few weeks for them.

I convinced her to take a nap when we were finished.

Thank goodness this little one took one as well.  Although, she required me to lie down with her to fall asleep.

I was happy to 'take-one-for-the-team' for an hour.  This allowed us all to get some much needed rest!

nappy time

After her nap she was ready to play again...Rested and refreshed she was feeling like she needed a mani and a pedi from her friend Katie!

looking pretty happy...

Unfortunately, as the day has progressed I have had more and more trouble keeping little one's fever down.  I'll set my alarm a few times this evening again...and say a few prayers that tomorrow is a better day for her.

Sleep well sweet girl.

...to be so thankful

...for Amy

#3 was sick today.

Really sick.

The kind of sick that makes a momma panic.

I understand that colds, fevers, and flus typically have to just run their course.

I think that ibuprofen and tylenol can cure just-about-any-ache-or-pain and I usually administer it promptly to my children when they are feeling under the weather.  This, in my opinion, helps the said colds, fevers, and flus, run their course less painfully.

Today was different.

Abbey woke up weepy.  Complaining of her back hurting and a stomach ache.  I dismissed this.  Then came the fever.  I gave her Tylenol.  Then came the writhing pain.  She said she couldn't breathe.  She couldn't lay down.  She couldn't sit up.  She couldn't catch her breath to breathe.  I began to cry with her.

I called my friend to come right away.

Of course she did.

She calmed me down.

#3 settled down and promptly fell asleep.

My mind was racing with all of the things that could be wrong; but over and over I thought it might be appendicitis and decided it needed to be ruled out.

Amy is such a blessing to me and to my children.  When I told her I needed to take Abbey in, she said of course you do.  No questions asked.  She dropped everything she was doing and dragged her own crew over to my home to come over and stay with #1, 2, & 4.

When Abbey and I got back late this evening Amy had the house tidy, the cherubs fed, and all of them dressed and ready for bed.

The beautiful thing about my friendship with her is I didn't worry once about imposing on her.  Because it wasn't an imposition.

She just stepped in to take care of my family when I needed her.

And for that I am so very thankful.

________________________

The doctor's diagnosis for Abbey is a UTI that may already be migrating to her kidneys.  Thus, his explanation for her back pain (she says there is no pain when she urinates).