It’s Been One Damn Thing After Another Around Here

I wanted to check in with all of you and let you know what’s been going on. So far, December has totally kicked our collective asses here at the Edwards house, and we are trying valiantly to salvage what’s left of the Christmas season.

The month started out with Ryan coming down with one of those mystery illnesses that just knocks you out completely for about a day or so. Once he was better, Kaitlyn did that thing for a two days where she can’t keep anything down at all, even water, and we have to keep her hydrated by giving her water from a teaspoon. She also came down with an earache, but fortunately it passed on it’s own.

Then it was Chris’ elbow. He has an old injury to his left elbow, he doesn’t even remember how it happened, but every few years or so it will get sore and swell up around the bone a little. Only this time, it swelled up huge, like he had a lemon sticking out under his skin. It got red, hot, and swollen, so I made him go to the doctor. She looked at it and basically said “huh. no clue”. She sent him to the hospital for an x-ray, which also revealed nothing. She put him on a course of 150 mg Amoxicillin, which did absolutely no good. Now almost two weeks later, his elbow is still swollen and hot, although not as red. The doctor’s diagnosis? It will swell up once in a while and there’s nothing they can do. Peachy.

Meanwhile, while he was still dealing with the worst of the elbow problem, Chris came down with the stomach flu. He spent two days puking violently (I know, eww), and then I spent one day doing it. He got better for a day, then developed severe stomach cramping. Like, the moaning in his sleep all night long kind of cramping. At that point I had slept maybe three full nights out of the first ten of the month.

And then, Friday night he went to bed early with a bad sore throat. Saturday morning when he woke up, he says to me, ‘my throat really hurts, how does it look?’ so I look, and his tongue was completely coated with thrush. I made him drive immediately to Lansing Urgent Care, where he was diagnosed with – you guessed it – STREP THROAT. Extremely contagious strep throat. I mean, seriously.

So it’s December 16th, and so far, I’ve spent the month cleaning up puke, wiping hot foreheads, taking temperatures, cooking dinner for any random number of people since on a daily basis we never know who will feel well enough to eat, grabbing three or four hours of sleep where I can, and trying not to lose my mind. Chris got another Amoxicillin prescription only this one is 500 mg, and after two doses yesterday, he felt well enough today to take us to Horrock’s to pick out our Christmas tree. I even had the tree lot attendant take what’s become our traditional Christmas photo – one of us posing in front of a tree in the lot, casual, no posing, no primping, just how we look at that moment.

You’d never guess how sick Chris really is by that nice smile on his face So anyway, that’s what’s been going on with me and my family. I announced in the car on the way to Horrock’s that there were nine days left until Christmas, and dammit, I was going to enjoy them. The boys are of course, too grown up now to enjoy silly things like singing along to Christmas carols in the car or watching Christmas movies at home, but they were warned not to make any sarcastic or snarky comments about MY Christmas stuff.

I want to watch feel-good Christmas movies and sing the alto parts of Christmas carols. I want to walk around the mall and look at the store decorations and admire the huge tree that goes up near Barnes & Noble every year. I want to drive around some evening drinking peppermint Mochas and hot chocolate while searching for the houses with the best decorations. I want to sit here in the living room with all the lights off and just gaze at the tree with the decorations and the lights glowing.

I want to get out my Dickens village and my snowmen collection and see Christmas everywhere I look. I might only have nine days, but I am going to enjoy them all! And no one, NO ONE in this family is allowed to get sick (or any sicker than they already are) because we have had quite enough of that, thank you.

Elizabeth (1812 Posts)

I'm Elizabeth, a 40-something Michigan wife and mother of three. I created Table for Five in 2005 as a way to connect with other Moms, and I've been blogging ever since. Please click the About tab at the top of the page to read more about me and my family! email: table4five@gmail.com