Everyone in the country seems to be sick.

A boogery, sick Piper

This has been a sick winter for so many people.  Our family has had our fair share of sickness this past month.  Mike is still holding out strong.  He is stuffy but doesn't appear to have any other ailment.  I'm hoping it stays that way.  Neither he nor I got the flu shot this year and while we hear that the flu shot isn't very effective this year, we also hear that it lessons the symptoms for those that did get the shot and still get the flu.  I'm holding my breath, hoping it passes by us this year.

Coughing, fevers, drainage, sore throats, and sinus pressure have been going through us one by one (though the fever mostly stayed with the boys).  We got back from Maryland and I thought I was beginning to turn a corner of my sickness when my thumb began to swell.  Within a few hours both of my hands were swollen.  The next morning I took a Sudafed and within ten minutes had huge, hot welts on my arms, knees, and legs.  I got into urgent care and was given some steroids and an antibiotic to knock out the cough and drainage.  My hands were so swollen that even the pressure of the steering wheel on my palms was super painful.  The steroids helped to reduce some of the swelling but by the end of the night I had welts in other areas of my legs, around my eye, and on my feet.  Even my tongue felt swollen.  I worried I was going to end up in the emergency room but Mike had given me a blessing the night before telling my not to worry too much about the rash so I went to bed and woke up in the morning mostly recovered from the rashes.  The antibiotic has started to help with the sickness and I am feeling now just sick, not like I want to die.  It's amazing how bad I felt!  The steroids make me feel a little dizzy and sick to my stomach as well as give me a horrible headache so last night I took a caffeine pill and was up past midnight but thankfully had no headache anymore.  So, I guess I've had some bad luck with sickness and reactions to medicines lately.  It hasn't been fun but thankfully I am almost done with the steroids and I am feeling better each day--no sore throat, less coughing, less drainage, etc.

The boys all seem on the mend as well.  After missing church three weeks in a row from coughing Eli is finally back today.  Piper is pretty boogery but doesn't have much of a cough and seems to be handling the cold much better than previous colds.  I think the boys will be well enough to go back to school when the break is over on Tuesday.

I am hoping for a healthy year for us all this year!