Being Sick is A W E S O M E .

So this week has been filled with tons of drama.

Who loves drama raise your hand?

No one. Really?

Ugh, me neither, but apparently medical drama is what the Robinson children do best. This we have known for a long time, but now all their friends are in on the drama.

As of right now I am at home *shocking* and haven't left the house except to go to the doctor since the weekend. Can you say cabin fever?

So the drama began when Misa Misa came down with a high fever Saturday evening. Didn't think much of it and just assumed it was a cold coming on since the rest of Wake County is sick!

Well then we got the call from our friend Jodie telling us that her youngest son has been confirmed with the chicken pox and to watch signs for it. Signs like a high fever. Sweet.

So I called the pediatrician and they told me to bring both kids in just in case. Misa Misa has been vaccinated once already for the chicken pox, but it was more Queen B they were worried about.

While all this was going on my dear friend Stephanie was living her own personal nightmare. Her husband was in the ER for chest pains and he poor little daughter had been continuously vomiting and not eating or drinking for almost five days! She ended up taking her poor little girl to the ER to get IV fluids and some anti-nausea medication. She is on the mend, as is her husband as we speak, but needless to say, the virus drama spilled over into their house as well.

Our trip to the pediatrician office was uneventful. They said that they both had red throats and a fever, but everything else looked fine. They can't say it is the chicken pox until you have the rash/ spots. This still means that Queen B may or may not get the chicken pox, but they can't confirm anything until the rash/ spots appear and even then, there is nothing they can do for it anyway. I asked the pediatrician what to do if they show up and all she said was to bring her in so they can have it documented that she had the chicken pox so she wouldn't have to get her vaccine at her one year appointment.

So we went home only to have one of the worst evenings of our lives. My throat started to hurt and I felt really run down, but I figured it was due to the fact that I had two sick kids in my face all day and night and hadn't had a full night's sleep in almost a week. So I just ignored it and carried on...like all moms do.

The kids on the other hand, cannot ignore when they feel sick. The evenings got worse and worse. Poor Queen B would scream bloody murder on and off all night and eventually Misa Misa was up getting in on the screaming. It was becoming way more than I could take, something was definitely wrong.

So off we went to the pediatrician’s office again. (Story of my life.)

While all this was going on my poor friend Ha Ha was dealing with a crisis of her own. Her poor son was confirmed to have the swine flu.

Yes folks, that's right, the swine flu. Yuck. She was in and out of the same pediatricians office as well. They gave him a prescription for Tamiflu and said that he would be feeling better in a couple of days.

So let's add this up. (And no dear sister, this does not mean you can't come here for Halloween. You won't get sick!)In the span of five days we had chest pains in the ER, vomiting in the ER, chicken pox, the swine flu and...

Strep throat.

Yep, that's right. The second trip to the pediatricians office confirmed that both my kids have strep throat and poor little Queen B has a double ear infection on top of that. No wonder she was screaming for her life. I can only imagine what kind of pain she was/is in.

This confirmation made me think. "Great, my throat hurts. Do I have strep throat too?"

So I whisked the kids off to my doctor to get a flu and strep test for myself.

Yep, I had it too. So as of right now Misa Misa, Queen B and I are all home sick on antibiotics. That leaves my husband and the dog as the only well ones in the house. My poor husband said that he was going to "try to dodge this one" and has been locking himself in the office at night and wearing a mask. He cracks me up.

All this sickness drama made me start thinking, "Am I not doing enough to protect my kids?" I did a little research and found some helpful tips from the CDC on protecting our kids during this flu season:

"What is the flu? The flu (influenza) is an infection of the nose, throat, and lungs caused by influenza viruses. Flu viruses cause illness, hospital stays and deaths in the US each year. There are many different flu viruses and sometimes a new flu virus emerges to make people sick.

What is novel H1N1 flu? Novel H1N1 flu is a new and very different influenza virus that is spreading worldwide among people. This new virus was called the "swine flu" at first because it has pieces of flu viruses found in pigs in the past. However, novel H1N1 virus has not been detected in US pigs.

How do these flu viruses spread? All flu viruses are thought to spread mostly from person to person through the coughs and sneezes of people who are sick with a flu virus already. People may also get sick by touching something with flu viruses on it and then touching their mouth or nose.

How can I protect my child? First and foremost, get a seasonal flu vaccine for yourself and your child. Then take everyday steps to prevent the spread of all flu viruses:

- Cover you nose and mouth with a tissue when you cough or sneeze

- Wash your hands thourghouly and often

- Avoid touching your eyes, nose and mouth

- Try to keep your child from having close contact with sick people

- Keep household surfaces clean and disinfected"

*For more information, visit www.cdc.gov or www.flu.gov or call 1.800.CDC.INFO

*In other words...use common sense and don't be stupid!

I know this post is long, but bare with me for one more thing.

Thinking about all things flu, strep and chicken pox lead me to this video. What do you think?

This discussion came up once my moms group thought we had been

exposed to the chicken pox. On one hand, I think “Sure, get it out

of the way and then at least we can all hang out quarantined

together.”

On the other hand, I agree with the mom that says

exposing our children to a horrible and uncomfortable virus just

to “get it out of the way” seems mean.

What do you think?

Would you attend/throw a chicken pox party?