Labor Day Lock Down

Well the week ended as it began...with another sick out from our little girl. I got a call on Friday afternoon from her teacher telling me that she was complaining of a headache but didn't have a fever and would be resting in the library until pick up time. I hurried myself to school but didn't make it sooner than the normal pick up time to see Carolina all full of tears and ready to get out of there. Poor baby. We got outside and I thought perhaps an ice cream treat would cheer her up (it certainly did Elisa) but no sooner had we stopped by the pushcart than Carolina threw up in the grass. Oh yeah. This was going to be a fun weekend. We made it home without further incident and she immediately collapsed into her bed for a rest. Still no fever but obviously something was wrong and she didn't even want to sit on the couch and watch TV. That's when you know they are really feeling bad. Dinner at the park with friends was cancelled. Oh yes, we were off to a good start. 

But thankfully, the mystery ailment that felled Carolina on her first day of Kindergarten and reappeared on Friday was finally unmasked this morning. Yes, we have a double dose of strep on our hands. Elisa decided to join her sister in the sick department waking up on Saturday with a headache and low grade fever so we made the trek into Manhattan for an urgent Saturday appointment to get this all checked out. As groggy as they were at home, they more than made up for it at the office, springing to life with all the energy and silliness of healthy kids. Making me look like a damn fool until the doctor returned with the positive strep cultures and I breathed an almost audible sigh of relief. Validation. Yes, sad to admit but seeing them bouncing off the walls in front of the doctor I'd dragged into work on a Saturday morning was a little unnerving. So I was happy to hear her say that this was good we came in. And even better was the fact that with some meds they would rapidly improve. See strep, you aren't that bad after all. I opted for the slow route home after our visit, walking leisurely through Madison Square Park and taking the subway instead of another cab. The girls held on to their improved moods just long enough to get back to Sunnyside, pick up meds and get home. The first dose down, Elisa crashed out for an afternoon nap and Carolina kept me company  on my big bed while I tried to relax and read for a while.  Yes, it was going to be a long weekend on lockdown but we at least knew what we were dealing with. I tried to keep that in mind while thinking of Nacho tooling around Stockholm alone on his first 48 hour layover in Europe. What I wouldn't give...but nevermind.  Nurse mom is on duty. All is well.