1 Mother 2 Another

Maddie gradually got better last week,
attending school for a half day on Thursday and all day Friday. My
stomach bug morphed into a wicked sore throat, which has turned out
to be a combination of a tonsil/sinus/ear infection and some virus
called the Adenovirus. So my health has been limping along, and I
finally began to feel a bit better yesterday.


But Friday morning, Cora came down with a fever.


Yep.

Saturday wasn’t too bad –
copious videos and lots of time lying motionless on the couch. She
didn’t eat much and wanted to be held, but doable. Then
Saturday night hit, and Cora’s usual modus operandi for
sickness kicked in – throwing up.


Cora was throwing up every twenty minutes ALL NIGHT Saturday night.
On the plus side, Cora’s learned to recognize the signs of
imminent reverse peristalsis, and can grab a bowl we keep by her
side for just such occasions. So the entire night, while sleepless,
did not involve any dirty laundry.


On the down side, of course, she was miserable, repeatedly vomiting
an empty stomach. And of course, we were pretty miserable too.


Sunday morning Cora spent the whole time in our arms whimpering,
“Mommy, I’m thirsty, I’m hungry, I’m
tired.” I felt like the Worst Mommy Ever, refusing to give
her water, but it’s the only thing that works for her. We had
her on a timer, and every fifteen minutes she could have one whole
tablespoon of Pedialyte. This sounds horrible, I know, but
it’s what has to happen with her.


And then a miracle occurred – Cora fell asleep. My child
slept for five and a half hours, waking twice to ask for more
“medicine drink” before conking back out again. I
finally woke her just a couple hours before her bedtime, and she
spent the rest of the evening whining for food and water and
gradually taking in more. By the end of the evening she’d
eaten three saltines (count them! Three!) and not thrown up at all.


Fingers crossed.