Double Jeopardy

Three weeks ago Jake had a very bad night. I was up late and I heard a noise in his room so I went in to investigate. He handed me his favorite blankie and asked me to wash it. I took the blankie and noticed two things: it was really smelly and it was slimy. I quickly got my flashlight and investigated the situation. It was so not good. He had been throwing up, repeatedly. I had to wash all his bedding, both pillows (we threw one in the garbage), three stuffed animals, the wall near his bed, the carpet under his bed (we had to move the bed), and his father had to help Jake take a shower. It was awful for Jake and awful for me.

Jake was feeling fine twenty-four hours later. No one else got sick...for two weeks. That night Matt was up late with Lincoln and heard a noise. It was pretty much a repeat of the Jake incident, but Bentley confined his mess to a tighter area and it was easier to clean up. Bentley didn't bounce back quickly like Jake. He was on bed rest for two days and a week later he still isn't eating well.

Four days after Bentley got sick, I got sick. Yuck! Yuck! Yuck! I've had to keep my distance from the babies so they don't get it from me. Really young children are so vulnerable to dehydration. That's the reason I had the fun chore of cleaning up after the boys. We couldn't risk Kara getting sick when she was pregnant and now that Evan's born, she still has to be careful.

We are now three weeks after Jake's illness and guess who gets sick tonight?! Poor Jake AGAIN! That's just not right. At least tonight he made it to the bathroom before losing his supper. Unfortunately, he didn't use the toilet, but it's still easier to clean up a tile floor than a bed and carpet. (You know it's bad when you think cleaning puke off a tile floor is a blessing.)

Update: Shortly after breakfast this morning, Lincoln joined the party. He doesn’t seem to have a bad case and he's been a really good sport about it. He went down for his nap without his bottle in a crib that we had stripped of the bumper, half the blankets, the stuffed animals and his music toy. He's a real trooper.