Notes from the Sickroom

I take back all my jokes about the epidemic. M and E have the flu, influenza, the real thing, the one you're supposed to get your kids shots to avoid, confirmed by some kind of test at the pediatrician's office, only I wasn't there so I can't tell you about it. S was home yesterday morning, so he went to the pediatrician while I was at work being incredibly efficient. Same plan today, without the pediatrician.

M is actually a bit better: she ate, she smiled, she didn't even need Advil all afternoon, though she had a wild tantrum around six when her fever rose again and she clearly needed Advil but refused to take it. E always refuses Advil, and we don't push it, since when she's sick she never gets as demented and miserable as M does. But E was prescribed some anti-flu drug that only works if you start taking it within the first 24 hours, which is why M isn't taking it, and getting that into her is quite a process: tears, running away, marshmallows, chocolate chips, the works.

(OK, here's something I don't understand: parents who don't give their kids anything for fevers because they think the fever is essential for the body to heal itself. I don't give my kids anything till they get miserable, which is usually around 101, but once they're miserable, I just can't bear not to make them feel better. Then Advil it is, whatever the theoretical benefits of fever.)

As for the television, we went by half hours: M chose, then E chose, then M, and so on. There was a fair amount of Food Network, which seems to feature Rachael Ray at least once an hour, and quite a bit of PBS, especially Arthur and Buster. We also played some Old Maid and Chutes and Ladders, and read a bunch of books. And E napped, which is another reason she's an easier patient than M, who refuses to nap unless she passes out.

There's actually something peaceful about hanging out with sick kids, so long as you're not truly worried about them. Once I gave up on everything else in my week, it's just been TV and books and games and naps and pancakes and snuggling and watching the snow fall. If it weren't for the fevers, headaches, coughs, sore throats, Advil, tissues, flu medicine, and tears, it would be positively idyllic.