Sick and tired of being sick

This has been one of the longest weeks ever and we're just finally starting to see the light--the light of wellness. We've been sick. Well, Lucas has been sick all week and since yesterday Abel and I have been feeling pretty lousy, too. Last night we all, finally, got a good night's sleep and so far this morning there's been a lot of playing and no TV, a huge improvement over past days which included Lucas laying on the guest bed or couch and watching TV, basically all day. As far as I can remember, this is the sickest Lucas has ever been. He's on his nebulizer and an antibiotic and prednisone. He's been totally pathetic and we've catered to his every need. I mean, that's what you do when your kid is sick, right? Yeah, but in the back of my head, I'm really worried we've created a monster. We've broken so many of our long-standing rules and I'm so worried that once he's well, we won't be able to put Pandora back in the box. For example:

1) Lucas never sleeps with us. He really never has, even as an infant (we did have his bassinet right next to our bed, though). But, since Sunday night, Lucas and 1 parent have slept in our bed while the other one of us slept in the guest bed. We did this because he was waking up many, many times a night with major coughing fits (often so bad he'd vomit) and so it just made sense to be near one of us. And, at least one parent got a good night's sleep in the guestroom. I can't tell you the joy/excitement this has bought to his life. He's going to freak when we make him sleep in his own bed again.

2) TV. Oh the TV. He's been feeling so terrible that he hasn't had any desire to play. We've done a few other activities and have read lots of books, but come on, don't we all just want to veg out in front of the TV when we're sick? So far this morning we've managed to keep it off (yeah, big feat as it's only 9am!) but we'll see how the rest of today goes.

3) Whining. So much whiiiiiniiiiing. And the tantrums. And we've been giving in, every single time. He whines for apple juice. Well, the Dr. said to push fluids (he's barely eaten all week) so of course we'll give him apple juice. He whines to be held. Well, the poor little guy feels horrible so of course we'll drop everything (not that much anything else is getting done anyway) and cuddle. Lesson: whine or throw a tantrum and you'll get your way. We've worked really hard not to give in to whining and tantrums for the past almost-3 years. Now, after 1 week is everything down the drain?

It's been a rough week so far, but I have a feeling re-establishing our rules will be tough, too.

One bright spot in this entire week is that I won! I won Tech Savvy Mama's Year Long membership to SitterCity. I can not tell you how excited I am about this. The second Lucas is better, we're hiring a sitter and running for the hills going out to dinner. Two always has been my luck number!

Thanks Tech Savvy Mama!