On Feb 26, Jason and Ava went to North Carolina to visit Aunt Karen, Grandma and the great grand-parents for the weekend. Rachel and I were left home for 3 full days of Mommy and Rachel time. We had a terrific time. It seemed very easy to just take care of one child and focus on only her needs and her schedule. She seemed pretty happy about it, too. Sat was busy: a birthday party in the morning and trampoline jumping playdate with a friend. Sat night we both felt tired and Rachel seemed a little off.
Sunday morning we had planned to go skiing together at Eldora. But a) it was very cold up there and b) Rachel didn't seem to be quite herself, so we stuck close to home. By Sunday afternoon, it was clear that Rachel was sick. I spent an hour with her at night rocking her as she cried and coughed and screamed and fell asleep before coughing and waking and crying again. She did well to go to the airport in the middle of the night and get Ava and Jason home, but Jason stayed home with her Monday morning.
Tuesday morning she woke up, ready to go to school and happy. So we sent her to school, and she did well. Until 3:30pm, when her teacher called and said she had a temp of 103.8F.
Off to the doctors for the Oliver family, to learn that Rachel had a confirmed case of the flu. We did all have flu shots this year, but apparently it wasn't a good year for the vaccine. I spent lots of Tues night up with Rachel alternating medicine, rocking her as she cried out in discomfort. Jason worked Wed and Thurs mornings and I worked Wed and Thurs afternoons. We sent Ava to school in hopes to keep her healthy. By Thurs afternoon, Rachel was a whole different kid. A bounce back in her step, she went swimming that evening. Back to school Friday. A little cough and a little bit of a runny nose, but a happy girl.
At work on Friday, a few people asked me about my own sniffles but I didn't think much of it. I feel like I've been fighting off the girls' runny noses for weeks. Friday after work we drove to Breckenridge, to stay in our very own condo! But I coughed and coughed and didn't sleep well at all. Perhaps the altitude - I never sleep well the first night up high.
Sat morning Jason took off to go ski Talons Challenge all day. I did my best to take care of the girls. We enjoyed the Mountain Top Children's Museum, which was excellent, but I didn't have it in me to take them to the pool or sledding. I even napped in the afternoon while Ava did and plugged Rachel into a movie just so I could rest.
Sat evening our cousin India made it to Breckenridge to start her college Spring Break with us. She was treating me to a day of skiing on Sunday so she could have someone to ski with.
Sat night I slept much better, so I was stoked and convinced I'd be good to go.
The weather Sunday was great and the snow was nice. It was fun to just ski and ski without time restrictions and without holding on to Rachel. India was an awesome ski partner. But by lunch time I could feel my eyes swelling and my throat hurting and I wasn't sure how long I'd make it. I was pretty thankful when we were done, even though I'd had a really fun day, because my head felt very full.
The traffic coming home was terrible and we were all pretty tired and grumpy Sunday night by the time we got home. But I got dizzy, weak, and my fever and chills started. My body shut down - big time.
I called in sick Monday, and hoped I'd be better Tues. But Tues was a no-go as my fever was still bad and my headache significant. By Tues night I was sure I'd make it in Wed, although I hadn't eaten much since Sunday at lunch time and still didn't like being upright.
Wed morning I got up after a good night's sleep, got in the shower, and fell over.
I called in sick Wed and went back to bed. But Wed was much better. I felt more like myself all day and went outside for a little walk and cooked the family dinner. I did some work and a little cleaning. I coughed a lot and still stayed horizontal quite a bit. I didn't have a fever all day.
I'm definitely going back to work Thurs. I've rarely called in sick in my whole life for my own illness, and I'm certain I've never missed 3 whole work days before. I've canceled on way too many patients lately and it's very stressful financially to miss this much work.
Jason's also been pulling his extra load at home, with the girls, at work, and he has to run 62 miles this week.
What do we have to look forward to next? Apparently I can expect to keep up the coughing fits for another 2-4 weeks. I'm not sure how to treat patients through that! And will Jason and Ava stay safe? Did they escape by being in North Carolina? Or did they have different flu shots at different times that were more successful?
The snow is melting, the warm beautiful weather is here. The weeds are out, the strawberries are trying to grow. Is it really Spring? Is flu season ending?
Let's hope so! I'm ready for health, for energy, for play time, for fun, for warmth, for health!
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