The Pukes

It has felt like a very long time since the Molloy household was plagued with illness. It probably hasn't even really been that long, but with daycare and high school germs running rampant around our house, it seems like we're always getting or getting over something. We made it through most of the summer and fall here relatively unscathed. Sure, we've had a cold here and there but nothing debilitating. On Monday morning, however, as we rushed the kids to the car to get to daycare, Lucas stopped abruptly and threw up. All over himself. It was as though it took him completely by surprise and had no idea what to do, so he just stood there, completely still, opened his mouth and let it come. We all hustled back into the house to begin the clean up process and Marty and I started do-we-or-don't-we-take-him-to-school debate.

As a child with a sensitive stomach, I regularly threw up and then got on the bus to go to school. If my parents didn't send me to school every time I vomited I would have missed about 80% of the school year. Therefore, I was firmly in the send-him-to-school camp. He seemed like he was feeling completely fine after the up-chuck incident, and had shown no signs of illness all morning, so he probably just ate something funny. Marty was firmly in the keep-him-home camp, and eventually convinced me that it was better to keep him home in case he was sick and would get kids at school sick (we would hope to have a similar courtesy).

Anyway, turned out that it was a good thing that we kept him home because he did actually continue to throw up about six more times that morning. Each time it completely surprised him, but he really never seemed like he didn't feel well. He would play, throw up, come tell me, and then go back to playing. I went through quite a lot of carpet cleaner Monday morning. He continued to randomly throw up a few more times over the next few days but we all felt pretty sure that we were safe from the bug because certainly someone else would have picked it up through all of this random throwing up all over the place.

But alas, a few days later, I woke up feeling pretty queasy and spent the day battling with it. Then the next morning as we got ready for school, Elise ran into the kitchen to - you guessed it - throw up. The only positive about this was that it seems that somehow Elise has reached the age where she inherently knows to throw up in a trash can or toilet. What a life changer! This one small blessing made it a much more pleasant day for the Molloy household. Turns out Aunt Lauren was also miserably sick that day, so the girls spent the morning on the couch cuddling and feeling ill together.

Thinking he'd somehow escaped the illness, Marty woke up on Sunday feeling ill and realizing that he was not immune. But now that everyone in the house has been sick, we're hoping the plague is over. And hopefully this is not just the beginning of a long, sickly winter - but rather us getting our illness out of the way nice and early. A girl can dream, right?!
Lucas and neighbor Elias, randomly dressed like lions (no, not on Halloween)