another one falls victim...

...to chicken pox that is! Madeline does have it, she started breaking out in spots this am. I was getting worried that she wouldn't get it, it sure took long enough. Chicken pox has an incubation period of 10-21 days, Madeline's appeared on day 19. Just like my family to wait till the very end. 

the joys of traveling

A friend invited me to visit her in Maine this summer. I originally was very interested until I realized that between Ryan taking off time next month to visit my grandmother in FL with me, and him going to Vegas with his parents in June for a couple of days, another vacation wasn't going to happen this summer. Then I decided I was going to to this, I do love visiting other places, getting there, no, I don't like that, not that fond of flying, especially with children and by myself. Ryan never can get away from work, the very few vacations we have had together is when I decide I need to visit family or attend a LLL conference and make him come with me, and he is never that happy about about. I really want to do this, I don't want me nor my children to miss out just because Ryan can't get away. I have been searching for flights over the last few days. I know the airlines are struggling, gas prices are up, but this is insane. I expect pricier tickets because of where we live, we have to take a puddle jumper to get to a major airport, that I know. I keep running into the same thing over and over again, there are virtually no tickets for the day time to get to the East coast, flight after flight were all overnight unless I wanted to pay over 800.00 a ticket! I finally managed to find three tickets on a early am flight, and the returning flight isn't bad either, and for only a measly 600.00 a piece. I feel strongly about Gabrielle having her own seat even though she is under 2 and could be a lap baby. It is much safer for her to be buckled into a car seat for takeoff and landing, and I'm envisioning two children screaming at each other if they aren't separated.... Still 600.00 is a lot of money for one ticket, Ryan is arguing with me about the need for the extra ticket, I see that extra ticket as a small price to pay for my sanity. Travel by airplane these days is not passenger friendly, never less child friendly. There are massive lines to get through check in, security check points, no liquids, not to mention the fear of being thrown off a flight for breastfeeding, keeping two children entertained, just thinking about going through security with children makes my eye twitch, we have never had pleasant, easy experiences. More like Ryan holding a screaming Madeline while a TSA employee pats me down or me trying to cox a non-willing toddler to walk through the gates under her own will complete with trying to gather up laptops, strollers, phones, put bags back together while chasing a running toddler around barefoot because they took my shoes while Ryan is being questioned. Great fun. 

chicken pox

We have it! Well, Gabrielle does, Madeline I am unsure of. She has all the symptoms, is itchy, but I can only see just a couple of very small spots. Getting and having chicken pox has been a lesson is just how much vaccines has changed life. 20 years ago the vast majority of children got chicken pox, it was a common occurrence. Not the case now days. A couple months ago I send out e-mails to everyone I know who might possible get chicken pox and might be willing to pass it along. Early this month I heard about a family that I knew slightly that had it, the very next day I was over with another mom hoping our children would get it. Exactly 16 days later after a week of cold like symptoms, odd rashes, fevers, Gabrielle broke out in pox. During that time I was unsure of proper protocol, do I warn follow parents that my children might be contagious, stay at home, or do nothing? I choose a combo, telling some friends that we might be getting it, going out to some of our normal activities, but trying to stay away from small babies. Now Gabrielle does obviously have it so I am keeping her at home with me, but am sending Madeline out with dad. Another mom and I were chatting about this, she was been made unwelcome at her regular playgroup because her child might be getting chicken pox, I feel some pressure to keep quiet about Gabrielle because then Madeline's dance class moms will find out, it seems to be an environment where they wouldn't take so kindly to their children being exposed to chicken pox, vaccine or not. 

Maybe I analyse this this much. Ever since having Gabrielle and going through all the illness and resulting health issues with her, I try not to pass illness on to others. Before Gabrielle, if Madeline had a nasty cough or a runny nose with interesting colors coming out then yes we'd stay home, but a little dry cough or clear runny nose then we'd go out. Now I don't want to take the chance of giving an illness to another child, and had the chicken pox not been much a long incubation period and recovery then I probably would of been at home during that time. Maybe if that one person that had a nasty cough had stayed home, then maybe Ryan wouldn't of gotten pertussis, maybe Gabrielle wouldn't of gotten it as a newborn, maybe she wouldn't of struggled so much in her short life.... maybe.... I think of the hell we went though, the pertussis, all the numerous colds that made it worse, the influenza, the croup, the RSV, this last nasty virus, her being on O2 for 6 months, the utter fear of her getting ill again, the inhalers that she requires now when she gets sick, I wouldn't wish any of it on anyone.