Vomit anyone????

OK, first of all this post is not for those with a weak stomach. I was trying to remain positive and not talk about all the yuk in the house and stay all christmasy but I have decided today I am going to use my blog as a therapy tool and vent. (sorry guys)

This all started last week with Greg and I having a sore throat. Sore throat I can handle, a little bit of a nuisance, but doable. Greg then went down hill on Tuesday with the chills, aching, coughing, stuffy head so you can't rest illness. He was miserable poor guy and still went to work. Then Wednesday night I was hit hard with vomiting, aching, and chills. I haven't felt that bad since high school. We both were down and out on Thursday and stayed in bed all day long. Thank goodness for having older kids who can help get themselves off to school and make their own dinner. Greg and I took the weekend to relax and recoup and by Monday morning we were feeling more like ourselves.

This week I had two little ones here with me... one 2 year old and one 7 month old. Tuesday afternoon after lunch the 2 year old didn't look quite right..... he was clingy and he wasn't interested in playing with any of his toys. As he was getting off the couch he turned to me and I noticed he had thrown up a little on his shirt. Having the motherly quick reflex that I have I quickly swooped him up and ran to the kitchen. I knew some had hit the carpet on my way there but I was focused on getting to the sink before more came up. We made it to the sink in time for what I thought was the worst. My daughter Leslie was home early that day due to having an ortho appointment (lucky her) she stood in the kitchen traumatized by all the vomit. I asked her to please go into the front room and see how much was on the carpet and to see if anything got on the couch. As I am holding this sweet little boy who is now shaking after getting sick I can hear Les in the other room say " Oh my gosh.... there is A LOT on the couch... I mean A LOT!" I proceeded to clean up the little guy and get him into clean clothes and wrapped in a warm blanket before tackling the mound of vomit on the couch. Les was not kidding... it was a lot! How could so much come out of such a small belly??? He didn't throw up any more that day or any other day this week... I was blessed to experience the one and only vomit fit. :)

Then there is the 7 month old, he is as cute as a button and always has a smile on his face. I fed him lunch yesterday and he was all smiles. I finished giving him his bottle and then sat him in his little seat while I went into the kitchen to wash out his bottle and get something to wipe his face. As I came back into the front room I looked at him and from his waist down he was covered in vomit. It was like I sat him in a bucket full of vomit I kid you not. I looked at him and said out loud.... seriously??? Now it gets worse... like I said if you have a weak stomach stop reading now. I bent down to pick up this little one and get him out of his pool of vomit and as I picked him up he took his little hand (which was immersed in vomit) and put it on my mouth. Yes, my MOUTH!!! We ran to the kitchen (again) ... no time to clean my mouth so I did the 4 year old move wipe my mouth with my sleeve and kept moving. This little guy was still smiling ... he thought I was funny running around getting clean clothes, throwing dirty clothes and blankets into the washer machine and spraying out his seat. Here is the really gross part.... he threw up soooo much that the vomit actually started oozing out of the seat onto the carpet through the holes where the straps come out. I thought I had it all contained in the seat but when I went back out to the front room there were two large piles of vomit where it had oozed out. He too only threw up the one time so I guess I should feel honored they chose me to share in their experience.

At the end of the day I am standing in the kitchen talking to the mother of the little one who threw up and I received a phone call from a good friend who is also one of my son's teachers and she said " I have your son here in my room and he is sick, he is sitting next to the trash can. I am going to drive him home for you." I thought I was going to cry, NO MORE VOMIT PLEASE!!!

Nick came home and he was green, he had dark circles under his eyes and I knew it was just a matter of time. Sure enough he did get sick but the nice thing about older kids is they know when it is coming and most of the time they make it to the toilet. :)

After my vomit clean up duty yesterday I was blessed with the opportunity to serve the adopt a family program through Centerville Schools. I spent my time handing out gifts to families who were adopted by generous families and organizations within the community. It was so rewarding; moms who came to pick up their children's gifts were so appreciative and some were speechless and were brought to tears.

I am not sure if you noticed the sunset last night... It was incredible... so many shades of orange and red; not something you see in our state very often. I was speaking with another volunteer last night and she told me as she watched the colors change in the sky about a dear friend she had lost to breast cancer. She said while her friend fought the cancer she took notice some of the things she had taken for granted during her life, such as the sunrise and sunset. Her house was positioned where she could witness both the rise and fall of the sun each day. She painted her room all the colors of the sunset so when she was too weak to make it over to the window she could see them from her bed. The woman's daughter asked her mother how she would know she was still with her after her passing and she told her to look at the sky and she would see her. We all stood with tears in our eyes watching the sunset last night after hearing this story. I again realized how fortunate I am..... I stood watching the beautiful colors of the sun set behind the trees and I was healthy, my kids were healthy, (except for a little vomiting) I had presents wrapped and under the tree waiting for my kids to open them. I had a home to go home to and a man waiting there for me who is a saint and who loves me with all his heart. I do not feel worthy for all the gifts God has given me... I thanked God last night as the last little bit of red faded away from the sky, I thanked Him for loving me, for blessing me and for giving me grace. For without His grace I am nothing.

God always has a way of putting things into perspective for me. Vomit didn't seem so bad after coming home last night... Vomit I can handle... Vomit is doable. :)