Celebrating the good, the bad, and the ugly…

So…I guess that no matter how red your hands are from washing them, you can still get  H1N1…unfortunately, I am living proof. I am now on Day 4 and the aches and pains and general fatigue are slowly but surely leaving my “I can’t take this anymore I said I wanted normal again!” body, leaving me with a cough, a headache, and a stuffy/runny/red/very sensitive nose.

The good news is that even if the girls also still have a lingering cough the flu clinic and my thousands of internet searches confirm that they are no longer contagious (they are on day 12) so they are back in school. At least, I think that it is a good thing…I am so scared that their immune systems are weak and they will come down with something else!

 My babygirl went back on Tuesday and, although she did come back tired, she also came back with the idea that all the boys in her (kindergarten) class love her. So…it seems that her biggest problem now is having to choose just one since, as she very seriously states, she doesn’t have enough hands to hold all the boys’ hands!

My biggirl went back on Monday, driven by her own elementary school love…for her laptop! Yes, you read correctly. Our school has an incredibly cool program which allows for every child from grade 3 on to have his or her own laptop. And…this is where it gets really interesting, starting in grade 4 (my daughter’s level), they can bring them home. Sadly, my daughter was well aware that the week she missed school was the week her class was finally allowed to take their “babies” home.

I was a little worried about her having access to a computer in her room but tonight she was actually reasearching the statue of liberty and preparing Powerpoint slides for a presentation for her class.

She also made me laugh because she said that just today she discovered that people actually hold beauty pageants (…). She went on to show me pictures of Miss Canada and said that it’s too bad that most of them are pictures of girls in bikinis… Naturally, I impressed her with the fact that they have to be smart and beautiful to win because they have to be able to speak well in front of lots of people and answer questions spontaneously.

Anyways…she loves this computer and it motivates her sooooo much! Computers make school rock for my very own Little Miss Canada and I am so very thankful for it!

Today being the sixth day my babygirl (5 yrs old) had a fever, my husband put a mask on himself and our daughter and went to the scary “flu clinic” which is set up especially for H1N1 cases. Since no testing is done there is no absolute confirmation that the virus is the H1N1 virus (although everything points to it), we were however reassured to find out that the fever really can last 7-10 days…wow!

 On top of everything, she has what looks like the beginning of an ear infection…can you imagine? Hit us while we’re down why don’t you!

 Then, I leave the house for the first time in days to pick up extra Tylenol and Motrin at the drugstore. Upon exiting the drugstore, which is just as infested as the scary flu clinic, my car will not start….nothing, not one sound, not one ounce of hope.

 Luckily, this was the THE one day my husband was in town this week so he “fetched me” like the knight in shining armour he is, and we later returned and got my car to start (with a boost)…ahhhhh…my hero! Only thing is, we don’t know what happened so I am terrified it will happen again when he is NOT in town to save me!

 The fever has gone down as the day progressed so hopefully…we are approaching the end of this miserable episode.

I have to say, I am soooooo looking forward to getting back to our normal life, normal schedule ! I can’t wait to drive the girls to skating and gymnastics, and wait for the school bus in the cold November morning once again! Funny how a little taste of the flu can help you appreciate the normal hustle and bustle of your chaotic world isn’t it?

The best part about being a WAHM is not having to tell your boss you won’t be in for the next 7 days because your children have what could, maybe, possibly, kindof, be H1N1. That is the reality we’re facing this week. The girls both came down with a fever on the weekend and it has stayed with us with (rocket-high) fever and coughing since.

 The school and sports clubs are clear: they do not want to see us for 7 whole days…just in case.

 So the good news is (from their point of view)…they get so much more TV time that I would normally allow for just so I can get some work done, oh and of course, the fact that I, myself, have not come down with it (yet!)…there is something to celebrate!

I’ll let you know in my next post if washing our hands can really keep the virus away…so far so good!