Oh, What A Week!

I know it's been a while since I've last posted. I've even wanted to respond privately to some of the nice comments I've received. Didn't happen, though, thanks to the flu virus. Lambchop #1 seems to have brought it home from school, and we've had quite a dramatic week. It all started with her complaining of being tired on Saturday evening. We fed her and sent her off to bed, but the damage was apparently already done. The virus was just waiting for the right moment to pop up and show its real strength. That moment came on Sunday. Things have been quite ugly around here since.

Her fever has reached as high as 103.3 F. Too high for my tastes, though I know a low one can help fight off infection. So, we decided to medicate for her comfort. That's how we learned that she's allergic to children's Advil. Here, doctors often recommend alternating between a Tylenol-like product and Advil so as not to cause liver damage by accidentally overdoing it on the Tylenol. So, we followed that advice, and she broke out in hives. Since I had given her American Tylenol and not the French equivalent, the doctor asked me to switch, thinking that some ingredient unknown to him in the American version was causing the trouble. So, it was Advil's turn late Monday evening before bed. I dutifully examined her to see how the previous rash was doing. Almost gone. Good deal. So, I administered her meds. Within minutes she was broken out again. That pretty much ruled out the Tylenol. And, seeing that the reaction was worse than the previous ones, I called the medical emergency line to see which doctor was on call in our area.

This is how we came to have our very first house call. They still do that here in France. Not a bad deal, really. The doctor gets paid more for it (almost 3 times as much), and you don't have to run around town at night with a sick child (or adult, I guess). Everybody's happy, except maybe the daddy you had to wake from a comfy slumber to go down our long dirt road in the rain at 11 pm to guide the doctor here. He's was pretty irked at what, in his groggy state, seemed to be my motherly overreaction. When he got back with the doc, though, and saw his daughter's swollen lips, eyes and nose, he seemed alright with the idea, afterall.

After all that drama, we haven't had any more allergic reactions, though the flu has a pretty good hold on her. She's been pretty much knocked out since Sunday, voluntarily taking naps and suffering through hard-to-control fevers. Surprisingly, she's been a pretty good sport. She just wants a little more comfort than usual. Her brother, on the other hand, isn't liking it one bit. He's been whiny for days, not understanding what's makes her so special. Why does she get to take all the yummy fake-strawberry meds? So, he's been pretty demanding and generally hard to deal with. The past couple of days, I think it went from being a bad case of jealousy to illness, though, so we're in for a bit more fun. So far, he's only had the crankiness and a slight fever. I'm hoping it'll stay that way, but it's made for a rough first week for my brother's visit. Not having kids of his own has not prepared him for the constant whine around the house. I can't say that I blame him for hating it. I'm more immune after years of dealing with them, but it has been especially difficult these past few days. He's even having trouble believing me when I tell him they aren't usually like this. That's what they all say, right?

So, as a result of all the fun, I have neither knit nor cleaned like I'd like for days. The Dyson was a wonderful help in preparing the house for my brother's visit, though I didn't get the whole place done. My plan to continue on this week was pretty well thwarted by that nasty flu. I've barely even found the time to cook and maintain some semblance of dishwashing. Hopefully Lambchop #1 will soon feel better, and I'll be able to get back on things a bit more.

I'm now realizing what an extremely long post this is, when the entire point seems to be just to say that I've gotten no knitting done. That's pretty sad, really. Maybe I could have skipped all the drama and gotten right to the point. Nah. That just wouldn't be like me, would it?