Are you sick too?

It all started with a runny nose...Rachel's.  It poured down for a solid week.  That was back in November, before Thanksgiving.  We have not been well since.

Before Rachel's nose stopped running Tyler and I started with a cough. Several days after Rachel got over her cold she started running a low grade fever and threw up several times.  I also noticed she was cutting her two bottom molars.  Poor girl!  Rachel and Tyler got better, but I kept coughing.  Jeff decided to join the fun and starts with chills, headaches, stomach pains, and a cough.  It turned into what Jeff calls the 7 plagues. Each day he was tortured with a new symptom: severe throat pain, coughing up bloody sputum, ear pain, sleeplessness, killer headaches, and last of all goopy red eyes.  He went to the doctor and was diagnosed with pink eye and pharyngitis with possible strep (which later came back negative).  They gave him oral antibiotics and drops for his eyes. Next Rachel got a horrible diaper rash.  She SCREAMED every time we wiped her.  :(  I started with a headache and increased cough.  I had a coughing fit that must have strained my vocal cords because I lost my voice for a week.  All the coughing must have strained my muscles too because it hurt to cough, laugh, and move certain ways for a week.

Jeff's plagues dwindle to a nighttime cough, sore throat, and sleeplessness that lasts for a couple weeks.  Then Tyler complains of a headache, throat pain, cough, runny nose and ear pain, but luckily symptoms were mild.   Rachel starts with her own cough, and followed later by a runny nose.  A week later the cough sounded barky and the runny nose was worse.  I watched her for a few days and then took her to the doctor since Christmas was 2 days away and only the hospital would be open. They diagnosed her with a sinus infection and gave her oral antibiotics. 

Thankfully Jeff and I are mostly better now, but I wonder if Rachel and Tyler will get over their sicknesses before we catch something else.

Happy will be the day when we are not a coughing, sneezing, sniffling, medicine taking, sickly little family.

Hopefully the new year will bring good health!