Gross

We're gross, ya'll.  Green, snotty noses.  Low grade fevers.  Red eyes.  Yesterday morning, I would've told you we were all A-OK, but apparently 24 hours is all it takes for us to disintegrate.  We discovered yesterday afternoon that Emily has another double ear infection.  Between that and the new tooth that just popped up yesterday, my littlest girl has been in a sad state.  

This morning Ben slept in.  That may seem like a simple statement for those of you who don't live with Ben.  For those of us in this house, that's a "WHOA! NO WAY!" thing.  Ben gets up every morning around 6:45 a.m.  Even if he's tired and grumpy, he hauls his crabby self out of bed.  We have no clue why this is.  Help.  But today I had to wake him up at 8:30 to go get new orthodic braces for his shoes.  He could barely open his eyes and begged to go back to bed.  Further research revealed a low-grade fever and a really gross runny nose.  Fabulous.  

Also, we know something is up with Laura because she is LETHARGIC!  I mean it.  She hasn't bodyslammed anyone today so I am pretty confidant that her body is battling something as well.  All in all, I'm calling it.  We're not going to the Brain Balance Center today.

Can I just say... I've never been happier to have sick kids IN MY LIFE!  We added another trip to Fort Wayne yesterday when Ben's allergist called and reminded us that we had an annual recheck appointment (which I had made a year ago).  Yay.  Another trip to Fort Wayne.  However now, due to illness and a school program for my biggest boy, I won't have to drive to Fort Wayne for almost a week!  Hurray!!!!  And as sad as I am to be administering acetaminophen, antibiotics, and juice; it is a well-timed breather for me and for the kids.

Ben has really had a hard few days.  He ate some gluten (by accident) over the weekend which has caused his digestive system to go haywire.  It's been awful and has felt like we're back to where we started, but I know he'll just need a few days to detox. Obviously gluten is a bigger issue than we'd ever realized.  Got it.  

Our appointment with the allergist yesterday also revealed that Ben is probably borderline asthmatic so we've got a new action plan for the congestion he's dealing with today.  They also did a HUGE panel of bloodwork, including testing for celiac's, environmental allergies, and food allergies.  We've never had these particular tests done before, and I'm interested to see what shows up.  Ben was a boss when they took his blood.  Sadly, bloodwork is becoming more and more routine for this crazy puzzle of a kid. 

While he's sick, we're sticking especially close to the diet recommendation from the Center, and we're going to try to get in one exercise session every day.  However, I'm pretty sure the screen time is going to break the boundaries since he looks (and probably feels) like the undead.  I'm also going to do a bit more research on the supplements that the Center has recommended.  I'm sure some extra nutrients as well as the probiotic wouldn't hurt right now, and they might just help us avoid more illness in the future.

But for today, I am home.  I've changed into my comfy pants (WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN ALL MY LIFE?????), and I'm working on a stack of projects and planning that I need to do.  No huge breakthrough moments.  Nothing earth-shattering.  Just our family being human and needing rest and healing.

So until further notice, please know that if you don't see us, it's because we're at home keeping our grossness to ourselves... and probably watching A Very Monkey Christmas for the 214th time.