Nov. 26-- The last time I remember being ill this much was back in high school.
I seemed to be a magnet for disease back then, never going any winters more than a day between the next round of colds and flus and fevers, or just annoying coughs and sneezes.
And now that my own daughter is in school (Daycare is like a school for babies, right?), she is often sharing what her classmates shared with her.
Even when we aren't getting ill afterward, handling a child's illness is exhausting:
The kid: Slight fever, lots of vomiting (4 months old)
The parent: Fortunately no vomiting or fever for us, but extreme exhaustion from a night of trying to keep her hydrated and keeping food down.
The kid: Pink eye (5 months old)
The parent: A newfound supply of hand sanitizer and tissue boxes everywhere. Everything she touched or wore was washed and sanitized, and every crumb that appeared in our eyes was cause for concern that we were next. Fortunately, our eyes stayed clean.
The kid: Very high fever for a week until antibiotics (6 months old)
The parents: Both of us caught strep throat and we took a few trips to the pediatrician for her, and a few trips to the doctor for ourselves. Most inconvenient and exhausting of all was that she was completely recovered by the time we first began antibiotics ourselves. So, tired and sick parents were watching a lively baby (that had spent a week mostly sleeping, so she was ready to bounce off the walls) goo endlessly. Goo, baby. Goo.
The kid: A fever, with a hint of coughs and sneezes (7 months old)
The parents: Congestion that we blame on the weather ... and our own set of fevers. Recovery was fairly quick for both parents and baby, but she continues to cough in the middle of the night ... which wakes her up. And then, she wakes us up.
I really think that we're doing everything we can to keep her healthy:
1- Doing laundry regularly. Sheets, cloth toys and clothes get about a weekly (or bi-weekly) washing.
2- Hand sanitizer and tissues nearby throughout the house, especially now that it's fall/winter!
3- A clean house. Vacuuming every weekend. Clean dishes as often as possible (usually nightly, or at least loading them into the dishwasher). Disinfecting surfaces. You name it!
Should I be doing anything else? Thoughts?
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