Watching your child feel sick is never easy.  Having a baby or toddler who doesn’t understand illness is even worse.  Having a toddler sick with both flu and strep throat while trying to shield a newborn from the same disease is just torture.  We recently endured the flu-strepocalypse, and this is what I learned:

 

1. Be grateful for what is annoying you. One day, it might not be.

 

Our toddler is like a fairy godmother of toy distribution.  I think she just walks around the house and strategically places toys.  Kitchen chair? You need a toy.  How about really far under the table so that people will bang their head when they come out? Three toys!  On any given day, I could pick up toys all day long, and she would somehow find a way to take out more than I had put up.  I start to feel like Sisyphus who was condemned to rolling a boulder up a hill every day, only to see it roll back down again.  It is extremely annoying to have toys everywhere and no order in your house, but you know what is worse?  Not having toys everywhere.  On Saturday night, I walked through the living room, and it was completely clear.  The kitchen was also toy-free.  And I was sad.  Yeah, this is what I dream of every day, but the reason was because my dear daughter had been sick for two days and didn’t feel good enough to do her normal toy-spraying duties.  So maybe having toys on the floor isn’t so bad after all.

 

2.  Show grace to others. They may be “sick”, too.

 

When kids are sick, you give them extra grace.  “You want ice cream for dinner?” Well, after two days of not eating because of a sore throat, you are happy to give them anything that they can eat.  You let them whine more than usual.  You give more hugs and less spankings.  How many times in life do we think to give extra grace to others who may be sick?  Maybe they are physically fine, but they just lost a loved one, or they are in a difficult relationship or seemingly hopeless situation.  We should treat others with extra grace because we never know what is truly going on inside.

 

3.  Don’t be a jerk when someone else is being awesome.

 

My husband made a delicious steak dinner for me in the midst of the craziness.  He prepared steak, mashed potatoes and broccoli and cheese (Yes, I know, he’s amazing…and he’s taken!).  Anyway, I looked at my plate, and all I saw was some pink juice running from the steak to the mashed potatoes.  I didn’t say anything.  I didn’t have to.  I had already made a face.  The face said, “I am displeased.”  He asked what was wrong, and I mentioned that the plate looked bloody, but it was “probably fine.”  Well, it was delicious, but I managed to absolutely ruin something awesome that my husband did for me by focusing on the negative instead of the positive.  So when someone does something really nice for you, try not to reject it because of something minor.  Be grateful!

 

4.  Play in the bathtub more often.

 

As my daughter was feeling better, we decided to give her a bath.  I climbed in the tub with her, and she dumped an entire cup of water on my head, right on top of the hair that was pulled up in a bun so that it wouldn’t get wet.  And you know what?  I didn’t care one bit!  I was so happy that she felt enough energy to play in the bathtub.  I realized that I don’t do that very often.  She had a blast pouring cup after cup of water on me.  I should play in the bathtub with her more often!

5.  Love is messy

 

A lot of people want a picture-perfect life, but the truth is, love is messy.  Love is cleaning up puke in the middle of the night and smelling gross because you are holding onto a loved one instead of showering.  The messy moments are what unite us.  I think about my grandpa who is a WWII veteran.  His fellow soldiers were like family to him, and he continued to meet with them regularly until he could no longer travel.  What was so special about those men?  Well, nothing in particular.  They weren’t all from the same place, and they didn’t have the same hobbies or religious beliefs, but fighting through messy situations united them.  Yes, it’s fun to go on vacations and dates, but the times that will make you stick together like glue are the moments when you are in the trenches with your partner.

 

I also learned some practical lessons for dealing with sick kiddos :

 

1. Have a trashcan nearby at all times, even if you don’t think they are having stomach problems.

 

Even if you think you don’t need it, you’ll be glad you have it there.

 

2.  Give medicine in half-doses if possible.

 

If you give a half-dose of medicine and they throw up, you can still give them the other half without having to wait another 4-6 hours.

 

3.  Don’t get caught with one episode of Little Einstein’s and 14 seasons of Lost. You will regret it.

 

Make sure that you have sufficient “material” for a sick day.  I can’t tell you how many times I heard the “We’re going on a trip in our favorite rocket ship…”, but at least I didn’t have to watch the same thing over and over again.  So whether you prefer tv shows, movies, or some other form of entertainment, make sure you have enough to get through the sick time without going crazy.