Stomach Flu

I have a confession.  My family has never had the stomach flu.  Like ever.  I don't know how this is possible.  We have watched it go through friends, classmates, neighbors, family, and somehow it has passed us by without a second glance.  I have never told anyone or said it out loud for fear of jinxing myself.  Not that I actually believe in jinxes, but really, not experiencing the flu in the 10 years we have had children seems a bit unreal.  I also find it a bit odd that I, personally, have not experienced the stomach flu since I was a little girl.  Now, that's not to say I haven't experienced my fair share of puking.  I have.  As my 4 pregnancies can attest!

Well, our 10-year streak was broken at the end of August.  Porter went to school on his first day of school and that night at 1:00am he was in our room crying after puking everywhere in his room.  He puked two more times during the night.  After that third puking session, I set up a bed for him in the bathroom...next to the toilet!  I found myself cleaning sheets, clothing, blankets and carpet.  I hardly slept a wink that night.  He didn't go to school, obviously, but he didn't puke again.  I wondered if, by chance, the two apples he picked off the ground (from our neighbors yard) and ate that night were the culprit.  A week passed and I assumed we were in the clear, until on that 7-day mark (Ryland's birthday), Caden came out of his room at 11:00pm after puking a HUGE amount on the bed and ON Luke, who he is currently sharing a bed with.  Luke is a deep sleeper and had no idea what he was swimming in.  Poor kid.  Caden seemed to have gotten everything soaked but himself!  After the clean-up I made up a bed in bathroom.  When morning arrived and I hadn't heard from him during the night, I just assumed he had puked through the night without alerting me.  In reality, he didn't puke again.  Poor kid slept on the bathroom floor when he didn't need too!

Ryland had a great birthday, but by the next morning he was complaining of his "body hurting."  He begged for food, but I wasn't ready to feed him anything solid so I gave him an applesauce.  He sat at the kitchen counter moaning off and on.  I seriously didn't know if he was faking it or not.  He would be happily playing one minute and then let out a moan the next.  After several of this back and forth thing, he finally said, "Mom, will you say a prayer?"  What a little cutie!  I said a prayer asking that he would feel better soon.  It wasn't long before he too was puking.  I am happy to report he made it into the bowl and continued to make it to the bowl or toilet every time thereafter.  Wahoo.  Leave it to the little guy to make things easy on mom.

All things considered I think we got off easy.  Porter and Caden felt better after 24 hours.  Ryland puked for 2 days.  Luke never got sick and can still say he has never had the stomach flu.