the worst week: a 3am upchucking

A few weeks ago, we had one of those weeks that in the grand scheme of things, was nothing.  There are problems all over the world, the county and our town that deserve a look before listening to the $ Family whine and moan about our five days of Hades... but it's worth a mention, nonetheless.

In fact, The Lovely Steph Leann called the week, once it was completed, "the most asinine week we've had in a long time."  I thought about calling this post "the most asinine week", but I wasn't sure how the word "asinine" would play in any blogrolls that I'm privileged enough to be a part of.  Heck, in that one sentence, I've just used the word "asinine" more than the entire history of the blog.

SUNDAY
Campbell wasn't feeling good.  We knew this.  He was warm much of Sunday evening, somewhat fever like, and we hoped that some fever remedy and sleep would help him.  Because we wanted to make sure that he was okay before letting him leave the house on Monday, The Lovely Steph Leann stayed with him Monday morning, going into work at lunch.

MONDAY
For summer school, he would normally go Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, while staying with the grandparents, Pops and GG on Monday and Friday.   The Lovely Steph Leann let Campbell sleep in, then got him up, bathed him, dressed him, fed him, and took him to the grandparents around noon, so she could head onto work. 

I pick him up in the afternoon, and though he seemed to be feeling better, we were very cautious.  The last thing we wanted to do was send him to school the next day at less than 100%, because aren't not going to be those parents who send their kid to school sick, giving everyone fever or asthma or Ebola or whatever he might have. 

He ate a decent dinner of English peas and carrots and some fruit, drank lots of liquids, meaning lots of wet diapers, played accordingly, and finally we took him upstairs to put him to bed.  If I remember correctly, The Lovely Steph Leann had rocked him to sleep, but when she lay him down onto the bed, he woke up.  She laid beside him, and he wouldn't go back to sleep.

I came to bed, laid on the other side of him to try to get him to sleep... and nothing.  We dozed, he dozed, he would wake up, waking us up.  We'd get him back to sleep, we'd go back to sleep, he would wake, we would wake...

1am... then 2am... by 230, I had already sent a text to work saying I wouldn't be in until between 10 and 11am...

At 3am, Campbell began to cry nearly uncontrollably.  I held him, sitting on our bed, legs crossed "Indian style", calming him down.  He quieted a little, and I thought perhaps this might when he sleeps...

...every parent knows that all children are different.  Even if you have multiple children, they are different in little ways as well as their overall uniqueness... and so when your child is sick, you know "the gurgle", or the little cough sound, or burp-like sound that is made right before it is about to get messy.  And many children put very little time between that sound and what's to come.  Perhaps just enough time to make you aware that it's about to get real up this piece... and Campbell is the same way...

...he gurgled.  Slightly, just a little, quietly, but I heard it.  I had just enough time for my brain to formulate the words, "Hey, The Lovely Steph Leann, he's about to..." before it happened.  Campbell threw up.  Gobs of half digested peas and carrots came streaming out of his mouth and nose, in large clunky chunks... in big chunky clunks... it dripped down my shirt, it coated his front, it went down my arm, and a large portion fell directly into my lap.  It was wet and warm and disgusting.  The stench hit me like a blast, both from the pile in my lap, the chunks that were on my shirt and arm, and from him, who had it all over his face and now hands, as he tried to wipe it away.  Scared, he began to cry even more, with his hot little breath in my face.  I'm someone with a strong stomach, always have been, but I immediately threw my hand to my own mouth, held my nose, closed my eyes and held my breath until the sensation passed. 

The Lovely Steph Leann, in the bathroom trying to get something for him, ran in quickly, and threw a towel over to both of us just in time to catch a little amount of the second wave of Campbell. While it was only a little this time, it was still enough to send the toddler over the edge in the scared department, as he wailed.  The towel, actually on the bed in case this happened, was out of my reach, and so when The Lovely Steph Leann tossed it to me, it made no difference, getting only a corner and a small spot elsewhere infected with digestion.

She picked him up, and after catching my breath, I set about the task of clean up.  Stripping the bed, changing clothes, washing off chunks from everything, tossing everything into the washer, going back and remaking the bed... The Lovely Steph Leann took Campbell into his bathroom, ran him a bath, calmed him down and slowly and gently bathed him.  She was a pro, keeping him calm, making him feel safe and secure...

By 345 or so, it was all over.  Fresh sheets, fresh clothes, freshly washed baby, washed off Mommy and Daddy... about 430, we all three fell asleep, finally.

TUESDAY
I got up a few hours later, showered and made it to work around 1130, just exhausted.  When I got home, The Lovely Steph Leann was resting on the couch, while Campbell played in the floor.  She said he had been sleepy and sluggish all day too, to no one's surprise there.

WEDNESDAY
We made the decision for The Lovely Steph Leann to keep him home one more day to ensure that he was feeling good.  And he was.  Whatever it was that hit him had seemingly passed through... literally, as he still had diarrhea on Tuesday, but it had mostly run its course on Wednesday.

All signs pointed to Campbell returning to school on Thursday, and The Lovely Steph Leann returning to work.   Of course, after we had dinner, I didn't think much of her saying her stomach felt kinda weird... she wasn't feeling bad, it was more of a throbbing pain of sorts. 

She used some Essential Oils, took some vitamins and we all went to bed, still-tired Campbell sleeping like a rock.

Surely, this is the end of the troubled week, no?  The kid better, we are rested, things are looking up, right? Right? 

If that was the case, we'd have called this post "The Worst 1/2 Week". 

Tomorrow... in The Worst Week Part II... the hospital... the waiting... the cutting... the shower...