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You know the saying about a string of Christmas lights: "When one goes out, they all go out!" How aggravatingly true this is! Finally, you figure out to check all the lights before putting them on the tree to make sure they work. But, then, with all the jostling that happens while stringing them up, inevitably one will work loose and then one by one they all need to be wiggled until the culprit is found.
About two weeks ago, Kaylee had a pretty bad cough and a fever over night. I can tell she's growing up because she didn't try to get out of going to school even one day. She didn't want to miss Basketball practice.
Then last Sunday night, about an hour after getting the girls to bed, I heard the pitter patter of little feet coming through the house and into our bedroom. It was Laken wanting to sleep with us. She has been doing really well at sleeping either in her bed or in with Kaylee so we gave in for one night.
Sometime during that night, I felt her little foot creep over onto my leg. I groaned, because it was a little fireball of a foot. When my girls have fevers, their hands and feet get so hot! I knew then that we were probably in for a rough couple of days.
My mommy instincts kicked in and I immediately felt her forehead while still half-asleep. Yes, I confirmed, she had a fever. I didn't sleep well the rest of the night. I constantly woke to check to see how warm she was feeling. Since she was sleeping soundly, I didn't wake her.
For days, we doctored her with Children's Tylenol and fluids. Doug was on 3rd shift the rest of the week, so Laken slept with me. I just couldn't tell my sick little girl no.
Most parents know how it goes when their little ones are sick. They sneeze on you. They come up and cough right in your face. They leave dirty Kleenex laying all over. They drink out of your cup when you're not looking. The joy!
The next to go out was Daddy. He pushed through the rest of his work week and then crashed into the weekend.
Friday evening, my throat felt a little scratchy, but I was in denial. I had too many things to do and no time to get sick! I forced myself to do the grocery shopping on Saturday afternoon. Then aches started and the mucous came. They're still hanging around but I'm on the mend.
I mentioned groaning when I felt that hot little foot hit me the first time. I knew that meant we would all go down, one by one. I guess the intelligent thing would have been to quarantine my 5-year-old to her room.
But who can say "No" when your sick little girl wants to sleep with Mommy. Not me. I still remember crawling in bed with my Mommy when I was little and sick. Something about "Mommy's Bed" held comfort. I knew that my Mom would take care of everything.
I now know that mommies don't have the power to take care of everything, but I can give my babies the comfort of having me close. Even if that means knowing I'll be sneezed and coughed on and be down for the count long after they are well again.
That is what mommies, and daddies, are for.
I'm in my 30s now, and I still want my mom when I get sick! Mom's make everything so much better. :)
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