Sick Kids

Hey y'all. I had every intention of posting earlier this morning… but we've been sick this week - just the low-grade fever, tired, crankies with runny noses - and it all went from frustrating to worse at 7:28 this morning. Our youngest threw up at the breakfast table. So, in the midst of finding a ride to school for the oldest, cleaning, caring for a sad little one, canceling all our day's plans… the blog was forgotten.

And since my mind is on entertaining sick children:

9 At-home Activities for Sick Kids

by Molly Cerreta Smith

from SheKnowsParenting

9. STEAMY SWIRLS

If your child has a cough or congested chest, sometimes a steamy shower will make her feel better. Instead of actually putting her in the shower, let her stay in the bathroom (with the door closed to keep the steam in) and draw on the mirrors. Sure, you'll have to grab some glass cleaner and paper towels to clean the streaks off afterward, but it's a great non-TV activity that will help her feel better, too.

8. COLOR ME WELL

Pick up some new crayons or markers and a coloring or activity book for your homebound little one. Keep a few packs on hand during cold and flu season so you're always prepared! This is a perfect activity for sick children because they can do this lying down in bed without exerting too much precious energy. If he's missing a fun activity at school that day -- like a field trip or special guest -- have him draw a picture of the activity. This can help him feel included even if he's not able to attend.

7. CRAFTY KIDS

If your sick kid is up to the task, have her help you put together an art box. Find any cardboard box around the house and have her decorate it with glitter, stickers and markers or crayons. Fill the box with colored felt and other fabrics of varying colors and textures, along with pipe cleaners, beads, sequins and glue. Encourage her to create an abstract picture based on how she's feeling.

6. NOT-BORED GAMES

Play a game with your child that uses more mental than physical energy, such as Memory, Scrabble, Tic-Tac-Toe or Hangman. Another idea: Print some word find games from the SheKnows Kids' Activity Center.

5. GIVE HIM AN EARFUL

Books may get tossed to the side in favor of other, more physical activities on a daily basis, but when your child is sick, a little quiet is just the thing. Serve some chicken noodle soup in a mug, cuddle up with a cozy blanket and get lost in a good story.

4. BUSY BLING

Your child can make a necklace or bracelet to pass the time while she's recuperating. Set up a TV tray in her bed and supply her with some pretty beads and thin elastic thread. Tie one bead at the end of the thread, then let her string other beads onto the elastic in a pattern. Tie the two ends of the elastic and trim off the excess.

3. PUPPET SHOW

Pull out some old socks, random buttons that have fallen off shirts, plus some fabric scraps and fabric glue — and let your child's creativity run wild. Once you have finished making your sock puppets, put on a little puppet show with your child.

2. DRAW YOURSELF

Have your child lie down on a long piece of butcher paper and trace his outline with a black magic marker. Then let him decorate his likeness however he chooses.

1. FOR THE BIRDS

Clean out a milk carton, glue the top closed and help your child build a birdhouse. Cut a dowel twice the length of the milk carton, and then cut a hole just large enough for the dowel to fit through on either side of the carton at the same level. Slide the dowel through and apply glue where the wood meets the carton. Cut a few other holes in the carton large enough for the birds to get through. Poke two holes in the top of the carton; thread a string through it, then tie it. Fill the feeder with birdseed and hang it from a branch outside.

I know many in our area are sick this week. Get well quickly, stay warm and good luck entertaining the masses!

The Inevitable Legacy a Mama Leaves

by Misty Krasawski

A sudden wail startled me from sleep last night.

My second daughter, our bright butterfly, was uncharacteristically frozen in bed with all her energy going into calling my name. Hair going every which way and lashes stuck together from sleep and tears, she knew her belly was sick but couldn’t remember what to do about it. I held her hand, guided her to the bathroom and held her hair back, and afterward poured her a drink of water, helped brush her teeth and tucked her back into bed with a bowl nearby.

I hate being sick and spent much of my many months of pregnancy avoiding it at all costs! Yet here I found myself, at 1:15 in the morning, willingly dealing with what was probably the consequence of too much indulgence at the movie we’d been to that afternoon.

  Moms work hard.

We run laundry and buy groceries, make meals and wash dishes, comfort hearts and read bedtime stories. We listen and counsel, train and disciple, snuggle and carpool. We stretch dollars and fish sticks and sweater necks, hours and bedroom space and patience. We deal with things we’d rather avoid, all because we love our children.

There are a lot of things we do on purpose. But what about the things we’re doing without even being aware of them?

When I was tucking Savannah back into bed the second time that night, smoothing her hair back from her face and saying one last, hopeful prayer for rest, I thought about the fact that I have no such memories. Maybe it’s why I’m so fretful when I’m sick now. Anyway, I realized that while she may not remember that particular night, there’s been a certain atmosphere she’s breathed all her life which she surely will remember.

 We really have no choice in the matter, mamas: we are leaving a legacy.

Every morning, when we make breakfast and greet them with a smile or lounge in bed while they pour cereal. When we hustle them off to the day’s activities with shrieks of “Where are your shoes? Your bag? Your … stuff?!” or bend heads together over God’s word. When we respond to the cries of even the tiniest ones at night.

Our children are taking mental notes. On the days we want them to, and the days we don’t.

Believe me, I’ve said plenty of prayers asking the Lord to erase certain days. The ones where hormones were high and patience was low. I’ve pulled blankets up over my head and offered TV rather than my attention, too. Someone has said that mothering is a marathon … not a sprint.  Only the Lord can give us the strength we need to finish this mothering marathon well.

 “Let us not lose heart in doing good,  for in due time we will reap, if we do not grow weary.” Gal. 6:9

That sounds an awful lot like a command to me! Let us not. In other words, if you begin to grow weary, stop it. Which means you and I have to know where to go for help.

The good news? He is here. Closer than the breath we breathe. Living right within us, the Maker of the universe, flinger of stars, designer of galaxies, Boss of it all.

 And He is looking for those whose hearts are completely His …

 “that He might strongly support” them. ~2 Chron. 16:9 

 Might you qualify for His support today, friend? Are you one He is looking for? If your heart is His, you’ve made His list. Won’t you cry out alongside me for His help, today?

 That we might leave a legacy of faith rather than fear? 
Of grace, rather than striving?
 Of love, rather than anger? 
Of patience, rather than short-temper?
 Of a soft answer, rather than a raised voice?

 Father, I lift all these sweet moms to you. I ask that You would draw close to each one of us, Lord. Help us! Oh, Lord, help us to be more like You. We can’t do it on our own and You know we are but dust. Without You, we can do nothing. With You, we can move mountains. Come breathe in us today, Lord; that we might fill our childrens’ sails with Your life and send them out strong, carrying a legacy of a mama who leaned on Jesus. In Your mighty and precious name, Amen.

Blessings and prayers for you today! ~ Misty

originally posted at I Take Joy 11/12/13 used by permission

Thursday Thoughts with Theresa: "In Which Grace Is Found"

With my cheek sunken into the pillow, I jolt from my sleep to the sound of her cry. My thoughts will the sound to stop. My eyelids fall shut again. It seems they just gave way to the weight of the day and the book that lies beside me. I hear it again, my body is tense and I haven't been woken like this in months. I've gotten used to calculating my days down to the hour, where I finally have time to breathe, rest and refuel.

I lie and wonder if she is just searching for that comfortable position like she does, or if something is really wrong? She didn't have a fever all day and the doctor said her ears were just fine.

I lie their stiff, waiting, not wanting to fully wake up and I think about those cuspid teeth I suspected were coming in earlier. I relax a little. Then I hear it again and throw back the blankets. I creep into her room and adjust the light to see her sitting up, hand over her ear again, or is it her cheek?

I gently pick her up, reach for the Tylenol and sit with her after I give her a dose. She straddles my waist with her head pressed against my chest. I had forgotten how wonderful the weight of her felt in the wee hours of the night. Within minutes I hear her breathing heavy again and I think about lying her back down. But the weight of her pressed against me holds me back and I just hold her.

I close my eyes, arms wrapping her frame. I feel her weight and I'm thankful for the disturbance of my rest and for the weight of the day that I traded for the weight of her, and I remember, that this is where grace is found...always in the un-calculated moments. 

- Theresa Miller, MOPS Mom





Theresa is a wife and mother of four children (3, 5, 7, and 9), who are embarking on their first year of homeschooling. Theresa has been involved in Sheridan MOPS for the last 9 ½ years, serving in multiple leadership positions, including Day MOPS Coordinator in 2007-2008. She took one year off, then started the Sheridan Evening MOPS group in September 2009. Theresa has published an article with MOPS International MOMSnext Ezine, in addition to other on-line publications. You can find Theresa encouraging mothers on her blog, Heavenly Glimpses.