For some of you the words Large Family and Illness together in a sentence may make you want to run screaming. For those of us with a large family, it is a reality~~that makes us want to run screaming!! This week our family had the stomach flu make a brief but very noticeable stop at our house. While I promise no pictures of what we all looked like, here's how we dealt with the stomach bug.
- We have a "sick room"~usually our living room. We line the floor with blankets or beach towels and the sickies stay in this room. No healthy person is allowed in and no sick person is allowed out. This is just easier than always running to bedrooms, trying to anticipate needs, or finding alternative beds for the healthy siblings who share a room with a sick one.
- We use buckets. Yes, I know that means hubby or I have to empty and take care of them! Little kids are just not good at making it to the bathroom in time and it is just easier to take care of a bucket than it is to clean carpet. We save ice cream buckets and use them~~then throw them away when we are done.
- Nothing to eat or drink! I know that may seem obvious, or it may sound strange since we want them to stay hydrated, but we also don't want them to continue vomiting. We wait until their tummies can handle something, then very s.l.o.w.l.y add sips of water or 7Up. If that stays down we add a few crackers, and then toast.
- We all pitch in. This time around 5 of us went down within 8 hours~~including myself. Poor hubby {who stayed healthy!} was the one taking care of everyone!
- Disinfect, Disinfect, and then Disinfect!! I am not usually a germ freak, but when the flu is in the house, I can't seem to get the Clorox wipes or Lysol out fast enough!
- Give thanks for the fact that the stomach bug usually departs as quickly as it entered our lives!!
Dealing with illness is something we all have to deal with. Having a large family just makes it seem worse. We've learned what works for our family and even though it is never welcomed we know sooner or later bugs show up and we'll have to deal with them!
Have a healthy weekend!!
Blessings,
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