The Tummy Bug

We all get it. No matter how much we wash our hands, wash our kids hands, use chemicals to keep our house clean (or use vinegar or just try to make a pathway through our house) it always happens. And this is the time of year in the Northern Hemisphere it tends to happen. The tummy bug, the flu (though actually the real flu is about your lungs not your gastrointestinal track), the puking virus, the roto virus, whatever you call it is bound to hit your house at some point.

It came to visit us at the end of my 7 year old’s birthday. Her party had been canceled due to what was suppose to be two feet of snow (we got more like a foot) and we had stayed home. That night she and the sister she sleeps with woke me up puking. They both managed to miss the toilet. I forgot what a pain in the ass getting puke out of carpet was.

So I ended up sitting up most of the night with the girls. Rob had work the next morning, so I had the night shift. We watched the Great British Bake Off and then Extraordinary homes and I kept dozing between having to get up every half hour to empty the buckets they had puked into. Like clockwork every half hour even though they were down to just sipping water and their dinner was long gone in the upstairs carpet… they would puke and I would get up and empty their bowls. And then sit back down on the couch with them and doze off again.

I lasted until 4 am and then they were both asleep and hadn’t popped in a while so I snuck up to bed for a while. My hubby was working from home that day due to the snow so he took over and let me sleep until about 9:30. And then the tummy bug did what it loves to do, it tore through our house.

By Tuesday my hubby was up in bed with his own puke bowl, and my 12 year old was doing her best to help out because while I never puked or got diarrhea I was so exhausted and tired from looking after everyone else that I wasn’t much help. My 5 year old came down with it about the same time as her Dad and I was up with her the next night. By Wednesday when my hubby tried to go into work (and got sent home after half a day anyway) it was getting pretty bad and we were out of any kind of food my family would actually want to eat. We also live 15 minutes away from the closest grocery store of any size, my hubby did stop and buy bread and eggs at the local general store where everything is local and/or organic.

Late Wednesday my eldest finally succumbed losing her dinner on the carpet in the hall as well. I got up and cleaned that up but unfortunately she was on her own with the tv remote that night. She said she dozed off because she would wake up and it would be a new episode of whatever she was watching. I felt bad but hadn’t had a full night’s sleep since Saturday and was running on fumes.

I kept my girls home Thursday from normal Girl Scout activities because I didn’t want them sharing these lovely germs and by Friday night we all went to the grocery store together to resupply.

One of the things that this bout of the tummy virus reminded me was that I need to create a box that only gets open when we are sick and has the crackers, gluten free crackers, maybe some juice and ginger ale, packaged bone broth and other things you really want when you are sick. Because if I keep then in the general pantry then my family will find it and eat it all and it won’t be there when we need it.

So tell me what would you put in your food for when you are sick box? I would love some more ideas as I build this box. Also has the tummy bug hit your house yet?