Oh what a weekend...

Note to self: Never brag that one of your children has only been sick once or twice - it will bite you in the butt...HARD.

Friday evening I arrived home to an Ethan I'd been previously warned was whiney and didn't feel well. He'd been getting hoarse for a couple of days and apparently Friday is when it hit full force. What I wasn't forewarned of was that he had a slight fever as well. He didn't want to eat dinner and since he was coughing a bit and I happen to know he has a bad gag reflex and didn't want to clean up dinner from the floor, I didn't make him eat (sorry for that visual guys and a little warning, there will be more of that in this post). Instead, as Steve left for work for the night (not due back home until 3:00 or later), I proceed to look for a thermometer, Ethan sits in "my" chair watching Phineas & Ferb (or however you spell it) & Alex proceeded to antagonize his ailing big brother. I can't tell you how many times I heard, "No, Owix...Mamaaaaa" in a very whiney tone this weekend followed by a whiney cry.

Thermometer found - very low grade temp - 99.5. OK - no problem, "Ethan, you want a popsicle?" E: "Uh-huh." Excellent. Alex gets a cookie & Ethan gets a popsicle and we sit down to watch A Charlie Brown Christmas special that Daddy bought last week for the boys. I call Steve to let him know that Ethan does have a fever, even if low, to which he responds something to the effect of "Oh." - Note the lack of concern at this point in his voice. That will change as the weekend progresses.

Alex, after passing out in my arms while we watched Charlie Brown, happily went back to sleep in his crib without a care in the world. Ethan, on the other hand, had proceeded to get hotter as we watched the movie so he got the special treat of sleeping with Mama. This had the bonus impact of waking Mama up at 12:00, 1:00, 2:00, 3:00 & 4:00am with coughing fits and whining "I'm have to puke...No, I don't want to puke...No, I'm ok...I'm ok, Mama" (note: puke is pronounced more like poo-k than pew-k). But at 4:00, I realized that the fact that I was sweating profusely with the bedroom fan on was an indication that Ethan was in fact roasting and therefore the equivalent of sleeping with the furnace. I came downstairs where Steve was sleeping on the couch (he'd only gotten home a little bit ago - less than an hour likely) where he thought he'd have more success getting sleep than if he tried to get in bed with me & a sick Ethan. Smart thinking but no such luck cause I woke him up to find out where the baby Motrin was as it wasn't where I thought - the window sill or medicine cabinet. Nope - it was on the bookshelf, covered in crap - should have thought of that since it's a favorite catch all, but oh well - quicker to wake Steve. I got Ethan another cup of flattened ginger ale with ice, a popsicle and the Motrin & left Steve to go back to sleep. Ethan happily took the Motrin (he actually wanted medicine which to him is Tylenol usually) and then chomped down on the popsicle while I took his temp which was now 102. Then he got a burst of energy and at now 4:15, we turned on Disney as he had no interest in going back to sleep (we DID go to bed at about 7:30 but still) and he kept coughing and telling me "I'm ok, Mama."

At 7:30 as the sun started streaming in, we could see outside and realized that it had snowed last night - he's still hotter than...well...you know and I wanted to take him outside but he, smart boy that he is, said "No Mama - it's snowing, it's cold." I tried to go back to sleep but was awaken roughly every 15 minutes by Ethan telling me either than he "wuves" me or that he was ok - very sweet but I could have waited a bit to hear this as we'd been up most of the night and solid since 4:00. At 8:30, I went to check on Alex who doesn't usually sleep this long - except of course, if I can't - Murphy’s law. Alex was snoozing happily so I adjusted his bottle which was still good and only half empty so he could finish it off and keep sleeping. That actually worked cause he slept till 10:00 for maybe the first time in his life - it's the first time he's done it that I've been home anyway and of course, he'd do it on the day Ethan gets up at 4:00. Being a mom is just not fair sometimes.

We head downstairs to wake Daddy at 10:00 - cause it's Mama's turn to rest. But first, I get Alex some juice & Ethan more ginger ale and proceeded to make some hot chocolate because it was cold & snowy & I'd been up for 6 hours by 10:00am so I wanted a treat. Back in the living room, I change Alex and proceed to check furnace-boy's temp again....Oh goodie - 103.5 now. Isn't Motrin and popsicles supposed to bring a fever DOWN, not make it go up? Come on now...give me a break. There's a party today with homemade pizza that I was looking forward to, I can't do that with a fever in tow. Sheesh - oh well. Now we'll just wait till noon so I can call the doctor's office and get Ethan an appointment with the Twilight Clinic. Wonder of wonders, Ethan agrees to take a shower with Mama to try to cool off. Since I have to get ready in case they say, "bring him in now," I'll just bite the bullet and do a cold/cool shower to try to break the fever a bit. Ethan doesn't catch on to this, in fact, he thought it was too hot at first, an indication of just how hot his little brain was at this point. I got out as quickly as possible and let him play in a coldish bubble bath for about 15 more minutes then we got him out and, since it's 11:30 now and he's been up almost a full day's worth of time by now, he lays down to take a nap. Luckily the doctor's office said to bring him at 2:00 - this is lucky because it means he gets a nap first. I used the break to go pick up our Christmas pictures at Penney's.

After cutting out the pictures to at least accomplish something on this day, Alex woke up and Steve brought him down. Alex proceeded to scurry about checking everything out and seeing what all he could get into before I'd pick him up (which was his ultimate goal). At 1:30, Steve got Ethan up and shoes & coat on, Ethan & I headed to the doctor where we learned he has a sinus infection and the cough is sinus drainage (excuse me "post nasal drip") but at least his ears are clear. The doctor gave us a script for antibiotic and cough medicine and we headed home because Daddy has to be at work at 4:00 and it's now 3:00 so we need to pick up Alex before getting scripts filled...well that WAS the plan anyway. The doctor left the room and we started to put Ethan's coat on when he started coughing and this time wasn't able to stop the gag reflex so he puked - partly in the trashcan but partly on the floor. I let them know and the doctor told me they'd get it (as I had already started to clean it up). So out the door we go, halfway to the parking garage, he starts again, we went towards the trash can, but he puked all the way there....he's not eaten since lunch Friday so all he is puking is clear and flem...lovely, right? "Ok, Ethan. Are you done? Are you ok?" "Uh-huh Mama, I'm done now. I'm not gonna puke anymore now." "OK - can you make it to the parking lot?" "Uh-huh, Mama - I'm really done now." And he really was, we got all the way home before the next episode hit. I was comforted by the fact that he coughed and puked at the doctor's office so they won't think I just made that part up as until that point, he'd not even coughed in the hour we'd been there.

We're home, I'm trying to get Alex ready to go and he's harassing his brother (so helpful, really....Alex, you couldn't give him a break right now, could you? Please?) This makes Ethan start to cry & whine which brings on the cough and....that's right, more puke. I've got a puke bucket (basin) ready but somehow he still pukes on my pants. Steve, who is about to walk out the door for work anyway, says while gagging, "sorry. I really am. Bye. If it gets too bad, just call work and tell them to send me home." To which I replied, "why, so I can clean up your puke, too?" Still gagging, he says, "no, but I could take care of this one." Pointing to Alex who was still trying to take the puke bucket Ethan was trying to use at the moment despite my attempts to pull him away.

OK - puke cleaned up, both boys’ shoes & coats on, we head to Wal-mart so we can get the scripts and diapers, too. I did remember to ask that they please flavor the cough medicine if it isn't pre-flavored cause there will be no getting him to take it otherwise. They did flavor it which only slightly improved the scent of this really nasty Robitussin AC cough medicine ... & I do mean REALLY nasty. But we got it, we got the diapers and we head to McD's drive through for chicken nuggets and fries which Alex will eat and I'm hopeful I can get Ethan to eat one nugget so this medicine doesn't have to hit an empty stomach. That was actually successful. However, I mistakenly gave the cough medicine first which was nasty and made him fight and scream and beg not to take anymore. I did get him to take the antibiotic and then wash it down with ginger ale to get the taste to go away. He only puked about 2 or 3 more times that night and other than when he puked on me & the couch before we went to get the scripts filled, he managed to get the rest of it in the toilet or a puke bucket. He slept with me again this night with the antagonist (his brother) comfortably oblivious in his own bed resting up to cause more mayhem today (Sunday).

Ethan's fever did break during the night and he was feeling much better - thankfully. Alex & Ethan & I headed downstairs at about 8:00 and put another Christmas movie in so Steve, who got home late again from work, could sleep some more. Since we are all a bit tired still and Ethan wasn't by any stretch of the imagination, well, we skipped church and Steve made a good breakfast after our movie was over. Ethan ate a little - the first real food in roughly 48 hours other than 1 lone chicken nugget. After breakfast, Ethan started to get a little whiney again and, yep, started getting warm again. When Alex stopped antagonizing Ethan and got whiney, too, it was naptime. Steve took the boys up and when an hour later, Ethan, who was in bed with Steve, was still talking, I headed up to join them and make Ethan nap. Steve gave up on having space in the bed (& likely left also because Ethan was again hot and Steve can't sleep if he's hot) and Ethan & I proceeded to go to sleep. A half hour later, Alex woke up...since Steve played around and prevented us from going to sleep sooner, I took Alex down to him so Ethan & I could sleep more. I get back in bed with Ethan right about the time he starts crying and coughing and saying he doesn't want to puke but he has to puke. Off to the bathroom we go and he puked up what was left of breakfast and then proceeded to puke up more of the flem. At this point, he's refusing the Motrin which he'd normally take fine but is leery of because I tricked him 2 hours before this into taking more cough medicine and that is really gross so he doesn't believe me that this one is good. Since I can't force him as that just gets him worked up into a coughing fit, which brings on the puking, I give up and resign myself to just having him sleep with no blankets and the fans blowing on him. His statements of "I'm cold" get the response of "I know, honey but you need to be right now so you can cool off some." I told him at one point that he was so hot, it was cooking his little brain. So when I told him he needed to cool off some, he said "so I don't cook my widdle bwain?" Such a sweet boy.

After naptime, Ethan was hungry so he got some applesauce (it's cold and it's somewhat clear) - he's now refusing to chew ice (a favorite of his) or to eat another popsicle so I'll take what I can get. He's VERY whiney cause he's now so hot that he has hives on the upper part of his chest - not raised hives but he's flush, I guess I should say. Alex was filthy at this point as he'd been enjoying the freedom he got because his brother was demanding constant attention by getting into everything imaginable. So I took him up for a bath with me because at this point I felt like I couldn't possible be any grosser having sweated profusely all day because Ethan insisted on being glued to my hip or snuggled up close and he was a boiling furnace. Alex & I got dressed and Ethan came up for a bath (that his daddy talked him into finally). It was way colder than he expected so he wouldn't sit all the way down but I was able to pour water over him several times to "wash off the bubbles" from the bubble bath. Of course, I washing them off with more bubble water so had to do it more often - he's a crafty boy so I had to think of some valid reason to get the cold water on him. Total bath time = 7 minutes. Back downstairs, he let me hold a cold rag on his head and/or chest as long as I lay with him. When I left him on the couch to try to make some candy in the kitchen, Alex started up again - trying to take Ethan's blanket. Rotten child - totally rotten. He did also try to lay his head on Ethan to console him though when he cried so he's not totally rotten I guess...there's a grain or 2 of sweet in there, too. When Alex gives up on taunting his brother and again gets whiney, Steve takes him up to bed. Ethan is going to stay downstairs with Mama....until Mama gets the medicine. Steve comes back downstairs just at the right (or wrong) time. I gave Ethan the antibiotic and then the cough medicine - despite his tears and then got the Motrin. He was so done with medicine after the cough medicine that he worked himself up to puke all of it back out again. Steve got the lucky job of getting me wipes and stuff to clean him up while I held the puke bucket which now has all the medicine and half the applesauce he'd had so far. I promise Ethan I won't make him take the cough medicine again but he needs to take the Motrin and antibiotic so he can get better. When he's still working himself up and crying, Steve calms him down by telling him that we need him to take the medicine because if he doesn't, he won't get better and he might have to go to the hospital and if that happens, he may not be home for Christmas and Santa can't come to the hospital because he doesn't want to get sick. He said this is a very nice, calming way and while it sounds awful, it did the trick - Ethan agreed and took the medicine and has also agreed to take Motrin tomorrow when he needs to. That's definitely a step in the right direction. Ethan whined some more but went upstairs and is now safely asleep with his Daddy and so far not coughing. However, since I spent all weekend with him (because he didn't want Daddy and wouldn't stay with him and asked for me even during naptime & again tonight for bed but thinks I'm coming up later), I am now still awake having just finished the stuff I needed to accomplish this weekend.

Since I've been fairly stressed all weekend about this fever because it's really high, I was too tense to sleep and thought if I updated everyone, I could wind down. I think it's helped so will now try to get some sleep in hope the fever which broke about 11:30 tonight stays down through the night and doesn't come back (I'll credit Katie's suggestion of putting Vicks on his feet and socks on over it to make his head sweat for breaking this fever if that is the case and will forever remember this for next time).

So to recap - when Alex is sick (& he's been sick a lot), you can't tell it by his actions; usually the only indication is that he's hoarse - ONE time it was a fever that tipped us off, but that fever was nowhere near as high as Ethan's has been this weekend and it went down quickly. Alex handles being sick very well - then again, he doesn't have a strong gag reflex at all. Ethan, on the other hand, wants constant consoling - whines, is very needy & has a very strong gag reflex & the best part is that puking a little, makes him puke more because the idea that he's just puked, gags him enough that he pukes harder...it's a lovely cycle that only ends when his belly is empty - this usually means he pukes until he pukes clear - I love being a mom, I love being a mom (convincing myself). When Alex is sick, he is actually a little more lovey, wanting to be held a little more but still gets down and plays and acts fine and when he does want to be held, will settle for anyone. When Ethan is sick - he 99% of the time wants Mama and Daddy is an unacceptable alternative. I credit this with the fact that when he pukes, Steve pukes and Steve can't clean Ethan up without gagging himself which makes Ethan gag and it's an endless cycle all over again whereas Mama will let him puke on her, in her hand, whatever and then clean it up, clean him up and start all over again.

This has really been a fantastic weekend - and now 2 more days before I get 12 days off in a row....I can make it - I really can....I'm thinking positively - the fever is now gone for good and we're on the mend and by Christmas, he'll be healthy and only have a few days left of antibiotic so we can enjoy the holiday with family rather than staying home with our germs :).