He's Ready to Go Back!

Carrie and I opted to hold Shane home Monday just in case he was contagious. He doesn't miss much school and Carrie and I don't wish the flu upon anyone.

Carrie sent me a video while I was at work. She pulled something heavy in from the garage and put it to use.

Shane's energy level is back! He's going back first thing Tuesday morning!

My kid is cute, but the second video was even cuter.

Yes, I showed both of those videos to my students. They wanted to know why I laughed out loud and it was too good not to share.

Valentine's Day 2020 + Lovefest

Valentine's Day was "Lovefest" at my school.

I can't say I'm a fan.

It was an excuse for kids to run a little wild. The day started with a mandatory survey in place of clubs, so all the kids were annoyed to start class and then it was a challenge getting anything done as they all tried to leave.

The rest of the day went well, but that first period of the day was rough.

Originally, I was going to try to plan a "Lovefest Recovery" party with Scott, but due to Shane being sick I went straight home for horse chores.

Shane was much more mobile and on Prodigy and Poki.io when I got home.

Carrie was mad because I ruined the surprise she'd planned. I didn't do it on purpose!

Carrie bought a small card game for us to play as a family. I found it on Thursday night and ruined the surprise.

I wasn't trying to find it! Carrie's backpack was in this chair underneath my work backpack.

I agreed to let Shane have half an hour on my computer, and I decided to sit close by (Partly to monitor, partly because he kept calling me over to see things). I moved my pack and when I moved Carrie's open backpack I saw the box. I thought it was one of my games and was like, "When did I leave a box in....oh."

If there'd been another chair for me to sit in on that side of the table or her backpack had been zipped I would have remained in the dark! It wasn't my fault! I'm supposed to be observant!

Anyway, it was a low key sick/recovery day. Happy Valentine's Day to all.

Flu 2020

The coronavirus is in the world news, but the flu is around the homestead.

The school sent out multiple alerts and Shane's classroom has had upwards of a third of the kids out each week.

It was his turn this week.

Shane had a small cough Wednesday morning. He seemed fine, got on the bus, and went to school.

Carrie got a call from the nurse around noon. There was no fever, but Shane had visited her twice and felt ill. We scheduled a doctor's appointment (4 PM) just in case it was the flu and to try out a practice closer to home. Then it was decided Carrie would pick Shane up at the final bell instead of sending him to after school. 

Carrie said Shane was in the nurse's office in tears when she arrived. She asked me to come home a little early to help with the appointment. 

I found Shane curled up on the couch when I got home around 3:45 PM.

We went to the practice just inside of town. From what I've read, it's been around since the late 80s or early 90s with the same doctor in charge (Aka - A long time!).

Shane kept wanting to lay down on the floor, but we made him sit in a chair. He semi-laid as best he could.

I would have hoped some of this didn't need to be spelled out.

We had to wait for a little bit, but it wasn't too bad (We arrived 10  minutes early for paperwork and waited around 15-20 total).

Doctor J took us back for the examination. Shane complained his side and his legs ached, so Dr J felt around. Then he had Shane jump up and down and ruled out appendicitis. The first signs of a fever were now appearing (100.4 F) and the doctor forewent a flu test called it like he saw it.

Two notes: 

1) The decor was very old and the poster (partly seen above) of Cold War era fighter planes amused me.

2) The doctor didn't use gloves. He was 'old fashioned' and just spritzed some sanitizer on afterwards.

There was a small, local pharmacy next door, but they were out of Tamiflu. We got Shane some motrin and I drove us up to Wegman's instead. Shane slept.

The pharmacist at Wegman's was concerned that the doctor wrote the prescription for a half-dose of Tamiflu. She called and talked to him, but he said he'd had good results with the half-dose and didn't see a need for anything else. It had Carrie a little worried, but I figured we'd take it as information and see what the results were (Tamiflu has a mixed reputation and there is such a thing as over-medicating). She choose tutti-fruitti for the flavoring.

Shane threw up the first dose of medicine in a neat pile on the counter. It wasn't tutti-fruitti enough to keep down.

The first night was rough. Carrie had crashed on the couch. Shane woke her up in the middle of the night with a 105.1 F fever. She gave him some medicine and then woke me to let me know. "Now, I've got to go back out there and pretend not to be worried!" They made it through the night, but she didn't get much sleep. 

Carrie took charge of the home front, so that I could keep teaching. She and Loki kept an eye on Shane as he watched Pokemon.

Thursday, I got a few texts during the day with pictures and updates. The highest his fever hit was 104 F.

I was smarter about things Thursday night. Instead of letting Shane's medicine run out in the middle of the night, I set an alarm for the middle of the night. I got up and gave him another dose to help manage the fever and let him sleep sounder (He wasn't happy about being woken!). That kept Carrie asleep, too.

Friday was more of the same. The fever stayed lower and I don't think it crept out of the 101 F range.

Shane was still sleeping when I got home right after work on Friday.

Carrie was a silent sentinel keeping an eye on her boy.

Carrie didn't do much with the horses either day. She said that when she ran out to feed them quickly on Thursday, Shane started to cry and look for her.

That left a lot of poop for me. I came home shortly after work each day to do the extra barn chores while there was still daylight.

It put me a little behind on the school work, but everything at the barn goes faster when you can see what you're doing.

I was groggy enough I misplaced a pair of scissors for a couple of days. I couldn't figure out where they were for the life of me! I searched around the boys hay feeder by flashlight while they ate and checked their hay bags the next morning. Carrie found them safely out of the way on a stall wall that I swore I checked.

Shane stayed sick through the weekend, but the fever was gone by midday Saturday. We still gave him a dose of Motrin Saturday night just in case, but he went all Sunday without. Shane kept complaining his feet hurt and walked like someone taped tacks to the bottom of them. Honestly, he seemed to be trying to milk things, but we weren't buying it. His energy level was still low, so we kept him home Monday before sending him back to school.

Funny side story:

By buying our first prescription at Wegmans, Carrie got a $10 credit for groceries. "It was meant to be," she declared and bought a cherry pie!

"Cherry?" I asked. "Did it have to be cherry?" I'm not a fan of tart. "Why not something good like apple?"

I got hushed and a little later Shane woke up. Carrie told him about the pie.

"I like cherry," Shane started. Carrie beamed...., but then she almost shushed him when he continued. "...but if cherry is level 1 good, apple is level 3 good."

Like father, like son! I laughed!

I can't remember Shane's exact words, but I remember it started to sound in cherry/Carrie's favor until Shane let it be known apple was much better!

Williamsburg to Richmond

Our health insurance ran out today, so Carrie bit the bullet and agreed to go to a doctor. She's had a sore throat and lost her voice all week. The nearest Urgent Care was in Williamsburg. Carrie made the appointment Saturday night, but when the alarm went off Sunday morning she was groggy and didn't seem safe to drive.

Naturally, Shane and I escorted her. We made the 8 AM appointment and dropped her off. Shane and I picked up bagels while we waited for Carrie to get done. Then we all had breakfast while we waited for the pharmacy to open (The doctor thought it was viral, but gave us a prescription "just in case" in morphed into something more). 

We had planned to go to the church in Providence Forge we've made our "New Kent Church," but we were now leagues away. Ironically, we stopped at a church between services that was a Pokemon gym.

Shane noticed it at breakfast and it was on the way to the pharmacy.

We took Carrie home to rest, but then Shane and I hit the road again! This time we drove west to Richmond!

Kim and Ryan had just gotten back from a vacation. They'd celebrated their anniversary on the west coast. We had lunch at Wendy's and Ryan showed Shane his Pokemon Go collection and taught him how to play the Harry Potter follow-up.

We went to Wal-Mart on the way home (That's a lot of W's.....West....Wendy's...Wal-Mart...). Ryan and Shane led the charge, while Kim and I talked and spotted some oddities.

I started to send pictures back to Carrie.

A certain movie always comes to mind...

We discovered a robot while picking around.

The name triggered an Ouran reference I knew Carrie would enjoy.

It seemed to be built for scanning the shelves.

Shane followed it around for an aisle or two before we made him move along.

When we got back to Ryan and Kim's house, Ryan was eager to mow. Shane was eager to help....drive.

But before that there was a moment. Ryan was outside. Kim and I were talking and Shane ran into the bathroom. There was a thud, but I didn't think much of it.

Shane ran out of the bathroom and said, "DAD! I had a pee accident! I was peeing and I slipped and fell and couldn't stop!"

I couldn't keep a straight face. I couldn't breathe I was laughing so hard. The image of Shane slipping on his back and peeing straight up into the air! You can't make this stuff up.

I know it embarrassed him, but once I was done laughing we took off his shirt, put it on the front porch to dry, and got some paper towels to clean up. I'm sure Shane learned a lesson! He shrugged it off and he'll laugh about this at some point (I'm still laughing as I write this!).

I got to pitch in for a moment before Ryan and Shane started to mow. Ryan's got a bad back, so I climbed into the crawlspace to turn on the water for the sprinkler system.

Which Shane ran straight into after I told him not to. Thankfully, it's hot enough to quickly dry off t-shirts and little boys.

Shane took a break from running around to show Ryan and Kim's neighbor the wart on his foot.

Ryan and Shane had fun mowing. That tone may change when it's Shane's job to mow our farm, but it's a delight right now!

Kim had work Monday and they still needed to unpack, so Shane and I left around dinner time.

Today was a perfect example of how I don't feel like there needs to be a special activity to visit people. It's fun just to be around and live life with them. We ate, talked, shopped for groceries, and did yardwork....and it was fun! 

Moving and Bronchitis Suck

Carrie's finally feeling better and in move mode. She's a phenom.

Which is great, because I can't shake this cough and packing up depresses me. 

I enjoy travelling and moving in somewhere new. That's exciting! The never-ending to do list of selling preparation and pulling up roots is the opposite.

The lack of sleep from the congestion and coughing up phlegm don't help, either. I joke about my allergies being like a common cold, but after this I'll be happy to only have allergies again! 

There's no fever, so I go in to work each day. I hope that my showing up teaches the kids a lesson about how to keep a job, but I'd settle for them getting their learn on.

An "Incredible' End Two the Week

It's been a week. The kids at work have been crazy. The car broke. I'm tired and I have a cold.

It was a little awkward when I called the shop to ask if they've looked at the car yet and they said, "It's done." I was part annoyed they never called to give us a quote, and part relieved the car was available. They said it was just the battery. The AAA technician didn't have the right gear to check a Swedish car's electronics.

Thankfully, it had an incredible ending. Incredibles 2 to be exact. Carrie picked up Shane and we watched the movie for our Friday night.

All's well that ends well.

Carrie's Turn to be Sick

Carrie's been feeling ill for a couple of days. She bit the bullet and went to the urgent care first thing Sunday morning (They open at 8 AM).

Diagnosis: Strep throat with a possible recent recovery from the flu.

The pharmacy wasn't open, so I drove to get her medicine at 10 AM while she rested.

I amused myself by comparing shampoo prices at Food Lion...,

...and CVS.

I found some Suave 3-in-1 on sale at CVS that was a good deal, but Food Lion clearly had better prices overall.

Carrie got her meds and then Shane and I went to church. Normally, meds ease strep symtpoms quickly, so we hope she feels better soon!

Stay at home

Random picture of Carrie with the cat on the couch.

I took these Monday night after Shane went to bed.

Carrie thought Bucket was being cute. Both the cats will force themselves onto her lap.

What Carrie didn't know was that she would be spending a lot of time on that couch with the cats and Shane.

Shane had a fever for the next five days. He stayed home from school all week. Saturday morning was the first day he didn't have a fever and his energy level came back. Sunday was 24 hours fever clear and Shane was allowed to re-integrate with society from quarantine.

The new question is how long until Carrie gets sick from spending so much time with Shane...

Side note: Apparently, Patrick and Shelby got sick, too. Then Cole and Tenley had fevers in South Carolina. Coincidence? John McG had strep, as well, but he wasn't at the funeral, so that had to be bad luck.

Sick Day

It started with a low grade fever and Shane trying to milk it for extra electronic time. 

It progressed to an urgent care center visit and a visit to the pharmacy. 

We spent over two hours at the urgent care and Shane started complaining his stomach hurt. Since he hadn't eaten much all day, we went through the drive-through at CFA while we waited for our prescription to be filled.

When we parked back at the CVS, Shane switched from "stomach pain" to "about to throw up."

He filled the CFA bag and it started to drip out the bottom. After a moment of panic, reach back across and opened his car door, so he could continue to puke "chicken noodle soup" down the side of the car.

We had a quick discussion on what "stomach pain" meant vs "nausea." Then we ate the chicken nuggets I'd rescued from the bag before I'd given it to Shane to 'blarf' in (His word, not mine).

Shane was feeling pretty puny by the time we got home. The strep test was negative and the flu test was negative, but Shane full on panicked when they tried to get a sample. I held his arms and legs, but he spooked the nurse holding his head. The probe never made it up where it needed to be and the doctor prescribed us Tamiflu based on his symptoms.

There was no school due to the snow, but Shane's going to stay home tomorrow whether they cancel school or not.

Shane skips out

Shane missed his first day of school. He was sick, but sick enough to miss school. Carrie was the one who was really sick! She was going to take him to school. However, she felt like crap, started to get a headache, felt dizzy, and opted to keep Shane home instead of driving.

I didn't know this, because I'd left early to get my allergy shot before school. I was in the car with the counselor taking a kid to get a TB test for his first day of work when the school's automated attendance system called to tell me Shane was MIA.

Sick Start to Small Group

Carrie and I signed up for a small group. It had free childcare! I've been wanting to get involved in another group for a while. I hope to find people in our church for Carrie and I to be friends with AND to find some other kids for Shane to play with.

It didn't go as planned. Carrie got sick for the first day introductions.

Shane and I still went. He was the oldest kid there and had to help babysit a handful of babies and toddlers. I heard he was a big help, so I'm more eager for him to go back than he is! We'll see how it goes next week for Carrie.

Sick Dayze

Shane likes to climb every tree he sees. Don't tell, Carrie. She'd worry even if he wasn't "sick."

We've spent most of our time inside. Shane has five tasks every day he has to accomplish before he can have electronics: Verse of the Day, Reading, Writing, Exercise, and Housework. Housework is usually scooping the cat pot. Exercise has been his TKD form or yoga with Mommy mostly.

If Shane didn't procrastinate so much, he'd get a lot more electronics time. It's in the 90s and humid, so we've spent most of our sick days inside.

I asked Shane what was one thing he wanted to do with me inside and one thing to do outside. First, he asked "Monopoly?" After I shot that down, he wanted me to watch him play Sonic upstairs.

Tuesday, I went upstairs to read. Shane came up to tell me how much he'd read. I told him that he could skip writing for the day if he read the whole Magic School Bus chapter book.

His reading became reading out loud, walking on the bed, and then hanging on the bed frame.

Which progressed into building a massive fort in my bedroom.

The kid took over.

I'd have been more annoyed about the skipping his tasks if he wasn't creative and funny.

Shane brought toys, pillows, paper, pens, and everything he needed to camp out. Carrie took a nap and he managed to play in there throughout a chunk of it without waking her!

Quiet and pretty uneventful days. I finished reading Jurassic Park. Carrie has been playing a Sword Art Online video game that Shane wants to watch. She'll wake up in the morning and Shane will say, "Good morning! Do you want to play Sword Art?"

Summer Sicko

I took Shane to the doctor instead of church this morning.

He first complained about a sore throat Friday. No fever.

Then he continued to mention it Saturday. Towards the evening he started to run a low fever (100.3 F). He didn't act particularly sick, but his skin felt warm and I decided to take him to a doctor in the morning if he still ran a temp.

Sunday morning, Shane's temp was 100.0 F. 

We showed up a little after 8 AM. I had Shane bring books to entertain himself, but he wanted me to look at everything he was reading.

Shane enjoyed giving the nurses his symptom history, self-diagnosis, and explaining what strep throat was. They were amused.

Have I mentioned Shane likes to hear himself?

Honestly, the constant noise drives me bonkers sometimes. I find I'm trying to be quiet to show him it can be done. Then I wonder if he starts the humming and singing, because I'm quiet. That'd be ironic.

Shane's curiosity also helps keep him entertained. The doctor's chair was "so cool!"

The test came back positive. Shane certainly didn't act like he had strep. He kept head-butting me in the back while I was trying to get the prescription from the doctor.

Some of the cousins had strep at the beach, but this feels like it may have come afterward. The incubation period of strep is normally 2-7 days and the cousins were on antibiotics early on. Maybe at the library? I'll never know, but it's kind of fun to try and figure it out.

We got the meds when CVS opened and it was a quiet day after that. Can't go anywhere crazy with a contagious strep kiddo.