The Joys of a Sick Kiddo

Happy Friday! Aren't children amazing?! God has designed our bodies, especially healthy kid bodies, so intricately, it astounds me. Psalm 139:13 says,

"For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother's womb."

While a bad fever may seem scary, and it is, it's actually God's design of our miraculous bodies fighting off germs that shouldn't be there. I had to keep reminding myself of this as I was cooling down my son in a bath, pouring smoothies down his throat, flip-flopping Tylenol and ibuprofen, and laying cold wash cloths across his head. When I got nervous and worried, I really tried to remember the way our bodies fight. Thank God that our children can get fevers, right?

And, thank God that they bounce back so quickly. My little tornado has been up and going since 6:30 this morning, leaving a trail of debris behind him, and now he's down for a morning nap. While I'm not feeling my finest, it sure helps to know that he is on the way back to his crazy self :-)

My SAHM joy for today is lengthy, but very appropriate!

As I was drinking my coffee in a haze yesterday morning, I was talking to a friend on the phone. She said something to the effect of, isn't it great you can sit there and have coffee while Caleb is resting? A lot of moms are scrambling around in a sleepy stupor trying to get ready for work. She was so right! And, she gave me the inspiration for my post today. Though it is often 24/7 work when our children are sick, at least we have some luxuries to enjoy during this hard time. Have I lost it from lack of sleep? You decide! Here are ten things to find joy in when you have a sick munchkin, and you are a SAHM:

1. No need to freak about emergency child care...you are the child care!
2. No need to frantically get to work while sleep deprived...your child is your work!
3. Typically, children sleep more when they are sick...you can also take a nap!
4. Usually, they don't want to play as much...you aren't chasing a Tasmanian devil around the house!
5. You can check on them as often as you want...even if it's every 10 minutes!
6. When you're home, your mommy-alarm bells are more likely to go off sooner rather than later...meaning? You aren't depending on someone else for an assessment of your child's sickness.
7. You get to wash all of those things that never get washed...due to bodily fluids and germs!
8. You get to experiment with smoothie concoctions to bring down a fever...and they are yummy!
9. You know your baby feels the most comfortable when you are there.
10. And finally...sick babies love to be cuddled.

Now, please don't think I'm a crazy person who wishes sickness on my son. Quite the opposite. My heart broke for him for two nights and a day, but if I didn't find some calm in the whole thing, I would have been (unnecessarily) first in line at the E.R. begging them to fix my child. I prayed for the Lord to keep me calm but alert to my son. To do everything he needed, but not to overreact and make the situation worse. Because He is faithful, we made it through our first bad sickness bout with flying colors, or so I like to think :-)

As we go into the weekend, I pray health over each of you and your families. As always, thank you for reading, and I'm looking forward to a variety of new topics to discuss next week. In the mean time, enjoy this funny Friday picture. I sure do love those solo Target trips. Be blessed, mommies!

MMSM #28

Don't have the extra funds to support a gym membership? Remember to ask if you can swap childcare for a free/discounted membership! If that's not an option, start a stroller brigade! Plan one day per week (or a few days), a time, and a place for you and other mommies to get together and walk or jog with your little ones in tow. Make it a standing appointment, and invite lots of others mommies to join. It turns into great social time for you, good exercise to look forward to, and it's a free way to get your kiddos out to the great outdoors! Happy strollering :-)...yes, I made up that word.


Tip #16


Because I'm in garage sale mode for this weekend, I have another tip. If you're like me, you HATE rummaging through knotted up necklaces trying to find a fun piece of jewelry at sales. While I love a good deal on cute things, I hate sorting through unorganized messes. Try this tip! If you're selling jewelry at a garage sale, put each piece in it's own snack bag (a Ziploc bag this is about half the size of a regular bag). It makes things look nicer, they won't get tangled, and hopefully, people will acknowledge the effort you put towards organization with a purchase!