The week from down under (and I don't mean Australia)

This has been a very rough week (to say the least) at the Martin household.

Let's start on Monday evening when we discovered our heat was not working, and we needed a new part, but it was too late in the day to get it. So the next morning, a plumber came and "fixed" our heat, and then I discovered two hours later that it still wasn't on and another guy had to come back out and fix it again.

So we finally had heat, but then John-Paul started throwing up. It seemed he finally came down with the stomach virus that Phil, Andrew, Eamon, and Maggie had over Christmas break. He stayed home from school and I took care of him, all the while praying that I wouldn't get it.

In the meantime, Eamon and Maggie had colds, and Maggie had started coughing and was very clingy. By the time Wednesday rolled around, she was wheezing a lot and I called the doctor who said to bring her in later that day. I had to go to work that afternoon, so Phil took Maggie and the other kids to the doctor's appointment.

As soon as the nurses saw Maggie, they rushed her back into the doctor's office and realized she was in distress and started a nebulizer treatment on her to open up her bronchial tubes so she could breathe easier. They had to do three treatments at the doctor's office and then finally decided that she still wasn't getting better fast enough, so they wanted to admit her to the hospital.

I rushed out to the doctor's office and took the three boys home to get them to bed while Phil took Maggie to the hospital. After I got the boys to bed, our friends S and K stayed home while I drove back out to the hospital with clothes and dinner for Phil and Maggie. Phil decided to sleep at the hospital so I came home and slept here. Maggie got the treatments all night long, and her oxygen levels had fallen low, so they had to give her oxygen in her tented crib.

In the morning, I got the boys ready and brought John-Paul and Andrew to school, then went to the hospital with Eamon. We stayed at the hospital, waiting for the news about Maggie, when they said she would have to stay ANOTHER night there because she was still in distress. So, Phil brought Eamon home and picked up the boys from school, went to the dentist appointment, and to swimming lessons, got them to bed and then came out to the hospital to relieve me.

I went home Thursday night and fell exhausted into bed. At 3 am, John-Paul was in my face telling me he had just thrown up in the upstairs toilet...and on the seat of the toilet...and on the floor...and on the shelves, you get the idea. I got up and cleaned all of that, then settled him down in my bed, where he proceeded to throw up every 15 minutes for 2.5 hours. So we were awake from 3 to 5:30 am. Andrew and Eamon were awake and ready for the day at 6:30, so I got Andrew ready for school and his Uncle picked him up and brought him for me.

Phil had to go into work on Friday afternoon to prepare his students for midterms, so my sister came over and stayed with John-Paul and Eamon while I went to the hospital to be with Maggie. They finally discharged Mags about 4 pm and our family was finally all home together Friday night. Phew...it's over, we thought. Not quite.

Friday night around 10, Eamon vomited in his bed. Aaargh, we just cannot catch a break from this awful virus!! On Saturday morning, I wasn't feeling too good, but decided to go to the gym anyway since I hadn't been in three days. I ran 3 miles on the treadmill, then headed over to a weight lifting/toning class, but about halfway through felt very nauseous. I left and picked up the cake for my goddaughter's Baptism that day, and when I got home I fell into bed, sick to my stomach.

I began throwing up and had to miss the Baptism, luckily my mom stood in for me as the Godmother proxy. I continued getting sick for about 5 hours until Phil called my brother, the ER doctor, and he prescribed an anti-nausea medication that really worked wonders. Last night I was crampy and I tossed and turned in bed, but at least had some relief from the nausea. Today I am resting and trying to get some strength back. I have managed to keep down half a piece of toast and some fluids.

Let's hope this next week is much better . At least now I can say I have learned to never take my family's health for granted.