Christmas Festivities and Everything Else

Our Christmas season was much lower key than in years past.

Our planning and preparation really began in September and a nice gift was given via a Google+ hangout over Thanksgiving.  Although we were in 3 different states at 4 locations, all 8 of my sibling and parents were able to take part.  Pretty amazing day.

Jenna, Brianna, Sydney & Devin watching an aunt & uncle unsuspectingly read their Christmas poem/gift notice.  Happy, loving tears were shed.

Randy's parents were visiting in early December, so we had an early Christmas dinner with them.

Randy took a sales trip to Arizona during December.  Unfortunately, our minivan didn't come home with him.  We have really missed it, and can't wait until he is able to go get it later this month.

We took our traditional drive through our town's Festival of Lights.

I was able to help a family member out and was richly rewarded with Father Christmas from the Netherlands, as well as two huge king-sized chocolate bars from Norway--with instructions that they were only for ME.  (It is possible to both enjoy them alone and share.)

Randy started feeling sick the week before Christmas.  He pushed forward and we still went to his Chipman Cousin Christmas dinner at Aunt Susan's house.  We are super glad that we didn't come home with a real-live hamster (white elephant gift), although our girls were begging us for it.

The next morning, Sydney woke up not feeling well.  She missed the last day of school before Christmas break.  By the next day, she was sleeping way too much, even for a sickie.  I took her into the doctor and she was admitted to the hospital for dehydration.  We weren't sure exactly what was wrong, until her test results came back in the wee hours of the morning confirming that she was positive for Influenza A.

Although she was treated royally (two huge thumbs up for the Pediatric Unit at UVRMC!), we were ready to come home.  Luckily, the admitting doctor noticed how much better she was doing after the IV fluids, and she was able to come home after spending 24 hours.

By the time Sydney and I got home from the hospital, Bryn and Jenna had been sick all day with the same thing.  Bryn had been unable to hold anything down all day & was throwing up with nothing in her system.  I called the after-hours number for our pediatric office, and was called back within a minute of the doctor being paged.  He met Bryn and I (and other sick patients) at 8pm on a Sunday night!  (Two huge thumbs up for Dr. Knochel!!)  I had packed my bags and was planning to spend another night in the hospital with another child, but Bryn wasn't nearly as dehydrated as Sydney was.  The doctor gave her an anti-nausea pill and Motrin before observing her for an hour to make sure her heart rate when down (from the fever).  We left for home at 10:15pm, and I was so happy to be able to unpack my bag!  We still had to re-hydrate Bryn with Pedialyte, but she fought our every-5-minutes regimen, so we eventually all went to bed, knowing that as long as she could hold things down, she would be okay.

Oh, and Tamaflu?  Crazy expensive.  So expensive that out of the 3 prescriptions we were given, we only filled Bryn's because it was the cheapest and she was most at-risk.  I'm sure the other girls would thank us...I'm pretty sure it tasted horrible.

We spent most of our Christmas break quarantined at home.  Here Sydney and Jenna are on Christmas morning before opening presents.  I'm sure they were excited, but I think being sick had taken it's toll.  Bryn was left to continue sleeping for a while longer.

Jenna was no longer contagious and wanted to go to church with Randy and Sydney, but I think she still needed some extra rest.

Of course, if 4 of the family had Influenza  I needed to get it, right?  I felt a little off on Christmas day, but by the day after, it hit me hard.  I spent the next few days wishing I could die.  After the first few days, I improved a lot each each & was feeling better by New Year's Eve.

New Year's Eve was complete at our friend's home with their famous chicken wings.  Randy went home early, but the girls and I stayed all night...pretty much because I couldn't stop talking.  I blame it on being quarantined in my house for the last 8+ days.  Our friends are moving tomorrow and will be missed.  :(

And last, but not least, I now own my first pair of skinny jeans.  Super, duper comfortable...I want more!

Oh, and I've lost 22.5 pounds since August.  Not as fast as I'd like, but who's counting anyway?