Open Letter Campaign

Check out Traded Dreams for the details on the Open Letter Campaign.

I didn't intend to participate this week because our entire family has been SO sick for the past 24 hours that truly, there were several times I thought we were going to all end up in the ER.  Then, this morning, we all woke up feeling like we just might survive, so I decided to make the best of it, in a letter to the culprit.....

Dear Norovirus,

I hope you know that you completely ruined our week.  You got the baby first - he likely picked it up at the church nursery on Sunday and then by Monday night his little tummy was rumbling like crazy.  Then the vomiting started, followed soon after by the diarrhea.  If it wasn't sad enough for you to pick on a two year old, then you decided that our 11 year old needed to go a round - on his birthday, no less!  No mercy from you, I guess. You hit him on Wednesday night, followed literally within minutes by our 14 year old daughter and me.  Yes, you hit a really low blow and got Mom, too.  Don't you know that Moms are not allowed to get sick?

Meanwhile, Dad was at the airport picking up our oldest daughter who has been in Europe for three weeks.  Welcome home, right??

They got home from the airport just in time for Dad and our oldest son to hit the bathroom.  Yes, you hit six of our seven member family in a 24 hour period!  Never in the history of our family has this ever happened.  Also, never in the history of my life have I ever felt this horrible.  I had a clear vision of why people "back then" died of things like this.  I had to lie there and listen to my poor children retching their guts up and I couldn't even move to lay a cool cloth on their heads.  The stomach cramps and flu-like feel of achy muscles and headache were constant and painful.  There was a point when we all thought we should head to the ER - but wait, none of us could drive!!  Well, except our daughter, newly arrived from Europe - jet lag and all, who was struggling to keep her eyes open to drive 1/2 mile to the grocery store for Ginger Ale.

Then, in an almost laughable twist, the baby got well first.  Expected, I guess, since he started the whole thing (well, YOU, norovirus, started the whole thing, but whatever).  However, a well two year old in a house full of older children and adults who literally can not move, is a recipe for disaster.  Now, our house looks like a war zone.  If it wasn't bad enough that we used every available large stainless bowl and mini-trash can for puking, every clean towel for cleaning up puke that "missed" the bowl, and dirtied every cup in the house trying to keep down our ginger ale - then the baby, who was feeling better, decided to tear through the house, dragging out toys, and other miscellaneous things and generally making a huge mess in every single room in the house.  Even with permission to watch as many episodes of Curious George as his little heart desired - he just couldn't sit still all day long.  As I type he is running in circles like a mini tornado throwing random objects in the air, much to the aggravation of his siblings who, though much better, still would like a few more hours in bed.  Yeah, so would I, but we all know that Moms just have to suck it up - except when we can't.  Yesterday, I literally couldn't.  Today, I must carry own.  I have an entire house to sanitize.

Do they make Clorox bombs???  Because that's what I need to feel like we got rid of you.  I don't want even one of your nasty Norovirus germs left anywhere in my house!

Good riddance.  You are not welcome here ever, ever again!!