the silver lining

Well, the past few weeks have been a whirlwind of sickness around our home.  It started with Avery and an ear infection 2 weeks ago.  She had to miss a day of school for that one.  It ruptured the next morning before we made it to the doctor.  Then on her ninth day of antibiotics, she broke out in a rash over her entire body.  We already knew she was allergic to penicillin but now we add sulfa to the list.

Then Violet had her first fever that was accompanied by a horrible cold with congestion and cough.  It's bad.  She can't eat very well and the humidifier is our only saving grace at bedtime.

Then as if that wasn't enough, I got sick.  Now we all know that when Mommy gets sick, the whole house is turned upside down.  I had a major sore throat and no voice.  The no voice part makes the day to day of being a Mom very interesting.

Then on Monday Jason even began to feel sick with a head cold.  It seemed there was no hope.

However, during this time of sickness, some super good things were going on too that made it all seem okay...

Thank goodness my husband is awesome and has no problem stepping up to the plate.  He told me on Sunday night as we sat like zombies on the couch starting at the television, "I got a dose of what your days are like today and that was even without being up in the night with Violet and nursing her throughout the day.  Your job is hard, really hard".  He has told me that before and is always so appreciative of what I do.  He gets it and that is music to this Momma's ears.

And then there was more goodness to be thankful for when my in-laws offered to come on Monday to care for the kids while my voice was still absent.  They fed the kids lunch and then prepared dinner for us.  They even stayed to hold Violet while we ate that dinner.  They are awesome.

Also during the madness, my Grandma Smith, my precious 91-year old Grandma got really, really sick.  It was complicated and kind of confusing but it started with bronchitis and then turned into low sodium levels which left her in ICU in a very confused state.  It was really scary.  They almost lost her one night at the hospital, but in the words of my Aunt Rachel, "Wanza (my Grandma's very fun and unique name) made a mighty comeback."  Praise the Lord!

Another blessing occured when Avery's school called for a 90-minute delay this morning due to the cold.  This allowed the kids to relax and play this morning instead of me hurrying them out the door to get Avery to school.  Whew.

Despite Violet's crazy cold, she decided to sleep through the night on Sunday for the first time since before Christmas.  I think it was a mix of the humidifier and the fact that she was completely exhausted.  Actually, it probably didn't have anything to do with either.  I think somebody was praying for us to get some sleep.

And then there was the vanilla milkshake and french fries Jason got me from McDonald's when my throat couldn't take much of anything.  It's the little things.

Oh, and there was the awesome visit we had from good friends on Saturday right before I got really sick.  It was a breath of fresh air for all of us.

Then I joined Instagram, thanks to a friend's recommendation.  I love pictures.  Pictures are my favorite and Instagram is my new friend!

Now Avery is back to school, Mia and Tyson are healthy, my throat is better and my voice is half back.  Violet is still struggling with her cold but it is manageable.

 So much goodness to be found during all the sickness.  God is good.

And because pictures make every post better, here is one for the road...