Staying healthy with three little boys in two different schools (read: germ pools) is a crap-shoot at best. We live in the world, touch stuff, and do things. We are bound to get sick this winter even if it effs with my plans.
I am an obsessive hand-washer, but any one of my little guys is just as likely to drink bathwater or lick a bike rack as follow my lead on hygiene.
Another big difference between me and the littles? I try to control my kids sugar-eating. While I know from experience that I am fully capable of eating three desserts after dinner, I’ve convinced my gullible children that if they eat more than their small dessert quotient — AKA sometimes-food — they will definitely get sick.
So, how am I supposed to know if holiday vomiting is caused by a bug or bad choices? Either way, I try to keep them comforted, cuddled, and hydrated until their normal selves return. Being sick is also license for extra screen time and naps. And we get to wash our hands a little more as a bonus!
For hydration, a cold & flu hydration product for children is a much better alternative to sports drinks or juice for replacing lost fluid and electrolytes. I also like to serve warm water with a squeeze of lemon and glob of honey; we pretend it’s tea. If you have a fever in my house, you can have a frozen fruit-sicle.
Do you have any sick day protocols that I can steal use next time?
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When we have sickness in the house, I put a pot of water on the stove, throw slices of lemon(or lemon juice from a bottle if I’m not lucky enough to have the real thing) and slices of fresh ginger in and let it steep all day long. I add more water and lemon as needed and we add honey to our mug. It really helps sick ones feel better and helps give those not sick a little boost.
I also throw a few slices of ginger into the pot of chicken noodle soup I crave when we are sick.
And I try to wipe down the door knobs and other touched a lot stuff often.
Forgot the most important part! Every night, I have a final mug of our “tea”, and add a shot of whiskey to it…..extra kick to tha cold for mom and dad and I swear it works better than NyQuil….
@Kristal, I love it! I better go find some fresh ginger and whiskey for next time.
I also recite the mantra “We don’t let you eat to many sweets because your tummy will get upset,” though I only believe it a little because, like you, I can eat a whole lot of dessert in one day. But today I attended both of my kids holiday parties without a lot of protein or fiber in advance (“growing food, ftw”) and I truly felt sick from all the cookies I ate. Scarlett also ate next nothing from her lunch box and a crap load of holiday party treats, all topped with icing. She’s been in the bathroom four times in the past hour. Time for Pediacare, or just an “I told you so” speech?
I wish I could get Baguette to drink Pedialyte when she’s sick! She used to, but somewhere along the way she started refusing it, even the flavored kind. Sometimes I can get a mix of water, Pedialyte, and apple juice into her, but only in small amounts (she’s not really a juice drinker, either).
We mostly focus on getting water into her during bouts of nausea or fever, and fortunately we haven’t had to deal with either for long stretches, although there’s no way to know what the future holds.
@Tragic Sandwich, Have you tried making it into a popsicle-like frozen treat? Just a thought…