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Sick Babies and Super Heroes

by Deborah Cruz

My little apparently has the flu. It started with a sore throat and headache, quickly followed by a high fever and chills, add to that projectile vomiting of one big breakfast all over my freshly shampooed carpets and it’s been a banner week thus far. I’m not complaining. My heart is breaking for my Bella. There is simply very few things worse in the world than having to see your child sick. I cleared my schedule and have been dutifully wiping noses, administering ibuprofen and Tylenol, cleaning eye boogers out ( do you know why they are called that? Because it is actually excess snot that has no place else to go. Yeah, I just learned that today.EWWW), incessantly pushing the fluids, and enforcing nap time like I’m the Gestapo. I will do whatever it takes to get these littles well again.

We all know how hard it is when our babies are sick.Sleep is basically non existent for me this week. The hardest part has been keeping the two apart. Bella has pretty much been lying around the house like a limp rag with that glazed over sick look that kids get when they are almost completely out of their head with fever. But Gabs, that firecracker has not gotten this variety of cootie yet and so she soldiers on…right into the cootie infested waters of her sister’s room. I run back and forth rerouting her all day long. It’s become a full time job this week. And since I have been waiting on Bella hand and foot because she is so ill and I am trying to conserve her energy as well as contain her germs, Gabs feels that she should receive equal treatment. So , yesterday, every time Bella called for water, a blanky, a fallen lovey..Gabs called out immediately after for the pillow to be fluffed, her water on the nightstand next to her to be lifted to her lip, or to tell me that I don’t love her as much as I love her sister because I took her temperature first ( you know because the fact that her sister was running a temp of 104 was obsolete and she had none).

Bella is so sick that I can’t even leave my house to go to store to replenish my diminishing supply of Tylenol, Ibuprofen and chicken noodle soup. I was feeling literally at my wits end, and on top of that, I was feeling trapped. Trapped in my house about to lose my ever loving mind. I was so desperate that I had to breakdown and ask the Big Guy to take a personal day and come home as soon as he could. I was desperate! Then it happened, a little ray of sunshine into my day ..actually it was three rays of sunshine.

First, my friend Nicole, called and we talked. We caught up. It was the first real catch up conversation that we’ve been able to have since the holidays and it was needed and rejuvenating. You know how some people’s voices are calming and make you feel easy and relaxed. That is Nicole. She is laid back and awesome. Put it this way, when I am in full on crisis mode ( as I tend to be a lot these days) she is my voice of reason. She reminds me that I am more than just a Mommy,that I am a person, that she is my friend.That this craziness, whatever ledge I happen to be on on any given day, is temporary and it will pass. She also tends to agree with me that I am mostly right and the rest of the world is wrong. For that, I will always love this girl. Her call made me get out of my head and think of more enjoyable things. Thank you, sister!

Then, my friend Sarah called and we spoke. Sarah is one of my closest friends and like one of my little sisters. She is also my neighbor and she is the kind of Mom that I wish I was in many ways. She is the Mommy who can take a knee and a soft voice and meet chaos and tantrums with grace and understanding. I’m serious, I’ve seen her do it. Me on the other hand, I have to make a conscious choice not  to roar, and sometimes I still end up doing it. She is one of the kindest and sweetest women I know. She is the friend who I can talk to about everything marriage and Mommy and she meets it with complete understanding and never any judgment. She probably has no idea what that means to me. She reminds me that it’s OK not to be a perfect Mommy, as long as I love my children and do my best by them. On top of all that, she is that friend who knew I couldn’t leave the house and picked up meds and goodies for my girls, just to make them feel better. She’s about 31 flavors of amazing.Thank you, girl!

Then, as I was cleaning the never ending supply of eye boogers out of Bella’s eyes for the Umpteenth time yesterday, the phone rang. I ran to answer it because I thought for certain it was the Big Guy telling me that he would be able to come to my rescue. I looked at the phone and I did not recognize the number AT ALL but I answered it anyway. Words can not describe how happy I am that I did. On the other end of the line, came a voice of a good friend that I’ve never actually talked to in real life..it was Naomi @OrganicMotherhoodwithCoolwhip. We have “known” each other for quite some time and we speak online all the time. I feel like she is an old friend but we’ve never actually met. She called just to say hi because we’ve both been so busy and have not chatted in awhile. She totally made my day. At the minute in my day, when I was literally up to Bella’s eyeballs in eye boogers, Naomi came in and took me away from it. She was like a sweet little dose of Calgon, right there in my cootified, snot inundated, germ infested nightmare. We immediately fell right into a comfortable conversation,like to old friends. Thank you for once again brightening my day,girl!Love you in a big way!

Then, last but certainly not least, the Big Guy called to inform me that he was coming home to help with the sickness duty.My day was made! It’s the little things that add up to mean so much. On a day when I wanted nothing more than to throw in my Mommy towel,  three fabulous ladies and one Big Guy became my super heroes. I’m sure they have no idea what they did yesterday, but the reality is that their words, kindness, time, concern, friendship and love…saved my life.

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7 comments

Jess@Straight Talk 2011/02/10 - 1:20 pm

Pobre nina. That makes me sad. I’m glad you had some people to talk to. And the big guy, most of all. xoxo hope she gets better soon!

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Truthful Mommy 2011/02/10 - 2:56 pm

Me too! Those girls pulled me off my ledge yesterday and the Big Guy, well, that man can always make my bad days good!I’m always better with him. Bella seems to have some more energy today but now Gabs is getting the eye boogers! It should be a fabulous weekend. Well, at least I have the Big Guy to snuggle in between booger cleanings and medication administrations:)Life is good!Thank you for the concern Mama & for your friendship, you’ve been there to brighten my day many a time as well.

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Jess@Straight Talk 2011/02/10 - 3:48 pm

Aww honey anytime. I wish I could do more! I figured Gabs was next…lol. I was trying not to jinx it.

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Mommy Nani Booboo 2011/02/10 - 1:25 pm

Oh, I’m so glad you have some love around you… and yay for the Big Guy coming home!
I am flu-like right now… perhaps once the big guy gets home you can come over to my house and take care of me? You sound pretty good at it.

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Truthful Mommy 2011/02/10 - 2:59 pm

Jenni,
I’m sorry that you are feeling fluish:( That bites. But if it makes you feel any better, and I know you ..I won’t, I will probably be sick this weekend. Hopefully, I escaped the cootie infestation but I’m not usually that lucky. If I lived closer, girl you know I’d come and take care of you.I’d remove all eye boogers and administer meds. Hell, I like you so much, I’d probably even clean up any big breakfast puke that you needed cleaned up. Get some rest and push those fluids Mama!*HUGS & Healthy vibes coming your way*

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Krysta MacGray 2011/02/10 - 6:40 pm

So great to have such good friends!

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