Thursday, November 29, 2012

stomach flu {sunny side up}


Our baby girl is under the weather. Nothing catastrophic, just a little bout with stomach flu.

She'll survive, and so will my laundry room (that's the hope anyway).

And with all of life's inconveniences, both big and small, we get to decide whether to look for the good in it or simply see the bad. So while the last 24 hours were not in the original plan (and we feel so bad for our sad, sick little girl), I keep coming across little bright spots.

You can blame it on Ann Voskamp.

Stomach flu, sunny side up, if you will.

Here are some gifts moments among the "Clean up on Aisle Five!" moments:

I am thankful that our schedule was clear yesterday and today.

I am thankful I am able to stay home with her on the days when she's healthy, and when she's not.

I am thankful for washing machines. (Oh man, am I ever.)

I am thankful for a husband who hops out of bed at the first sound of trouble before I have one eye open, strips sheets off the bed with the best of them, and sets up temporary sleeping solutions without complaint.

I am thankful we have enough extra blankets, sheets, towels, and sleeping bags for 1am, 3am, and 5am bedding changes.

I am thankful for a doctor we trust, and medical care we can afford. (Coincidentally, Mady's 3 year well-child visit was scheduled a year ago for this morning. Pop quiz: what do you call a well-child appointment when your child isn't well? I don't know either.)

I am thankful God wired us Mommies not to shirk away from our germ-laden, little vomit volcanoes but instead to cuddle them a little closer and tackle clean-up jobs bravely and head-on.

I am thankful for texts from friends who check in on us, offer to bring me a latte, act interested in the status of my laundry mound, and generally commiserate (because we've all been there, haven't we?)

I am thankful God chose me to be her mama - to be the one to comfort her, to tell her it's OK, to make her world as right as it can be when you're three years old and feeling yucky.


Now if the rest of us catch this bug, I might be singing a different tune....but for now, I'm choosing joy.

15 comments:

  1. Hope she is feeling better. And I am impressed (and inspired) by your ability to find the 'sunny side' of this situation.

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  2. Too sweet! I recently posted a similar blog for ParentSociety and a guide to vomit on my own blog! Must be that time of year! Hope everyone else stayed healthy and that she's feeling better! Found you through Two In Diapers' hop.

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  3. Isn't it true? Because situations are all relative...we must choose joy if we are to overcome the "yuck" Praying you all stay healthy! And use some lotion on those hands...if yours are anything like mine, with all the washing that comes during this kind of thing...my hands get really dry :)

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  4. Hope she feels better soon!

    Found you via Mommy Moments.
    http://musingsofamommabear.blogspot.com/

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  5. Aww poor thing! I'll be praying that none else in your family gets infected!! Thank you for showing us how to choose Joy and Thankfulness even in the yuckie times of parenting!!
    Blessings,
    Stacey
    aspenbergfam.blogspot.com

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  6. aww, hope she feels better soon. I smiled when you said you have such great supportive friends to check on you and offer to help. Then I chuckled when you referred to kids as vomit volcanos :P

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  7. Awe!!! Poor baby! This is an awesome post even if it is about vomit volcanos..or maybe because of it! Haha! :)

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  8. Awesome! You are becoming a master of hard eucharisteo. "One nail drives out another..."

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  9. Hope she feels better soon, Katie!

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  10. Hi Katie, I’m Anne from Life on the Funny Farm (http://annesfunnyfarm.blogspot.com), and I’m visiting from the Mommy Brain Mixer.

    What a beautiful family you have! Hope everyone is feeling better real soon. "Vomit volcanos". Love it!

    Anyway, thanks for posting this. If you’ve never visited yet, I hope you can pop by my blog sometime to say hi…

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  11. Ugh, hate it when kiddos get sick! We're battling baby fevers in our house this week, too :( But you're right, so many things to be grateful for still. We have no idea. Appreciate your recent comment at mercy ink. thanks for linking too :)
    hope you're well this weekend!
    blessings,
    lauren
    http://www.mercyinkblog.com

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  12. I absolutely loved reading your post and I couldn’t agree more about everything you’ve said, especially the part about us mommies being wired differently to handle vomit volcanoes head on. For someone who feels queasy about clearing up vomit I can recall not feeling one bit nauseous when my son was little. It does help though to think about being grateful for all of the things you’ve mentioned instead of lamenting about your lack of sleep when your child is ill. Thank you for putting it into words and I hope many other stressed out mommies are lucky enough to read it too. Stomach Flu

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