Sick

Feverish, coughing, sneezing, stuffy head, headache, sore throat, medicine, nebulizer, thermometer, chest rub, humidifier, soup, steamy shower.
These are words describing our household for the last week. Whatever it is we have (I am starting to suspect flu!) just doesn't seem to want to let go. Every last one of us has had it now, and only one child is currently well. I have made numerous cups of hot apple cider and gingerale, moved the humidifier from room to room, taken what seems like hundreds of temperatures, we have 2 nebulizers set up in the living room and numerous blankets strewn about. What a week. Not much school or otherwise is getting accomplished but boy am I hiking up my numbers in the corporal works of mercy department! ;) I just wish I weren't sick myself!

This cute guy had a high fever one day and was just constantly coughing. He spent most of the day at Manah's in her bed with the nebulizer. But he was coughing so much and so hard he could barely sleep. Finally at the end of the day, his fever went down a little and cough calmed just enough for him to totally conk out. This photo was taken after we carried him home at dinnertime. No matter where he was or what happened around him, he slept. So we finally just put him to bed at 7:30!

Amid this all, God's grace is with us. Just when I think I can't do it, a sick child offers to serve another child a drink, or the baby actually conks out for a few hours so I can rest or like today someone finally stops running fever just when another starts. God is good! All the time!

Swim Meet

Allia had her first big swim meet in the Gulf League this past weekend, so after returning from Mariana's trip around 7pm Friday, Austin had to take Allia out of town at 6:30 the next morning! Luckily it was only about an hour away. She swam 3 events Saturday morning and 3 Sunday morning. She improved her times on the 3 events she swam before and got 3 times in new events! And her team won the meet! Yay! We are so proud of her for working so hard.

First Robotics Competition - SA Stock Show and Rodeo

Last Thursday afternoon, Austin and Mariana left town for her first competition since joining 4-H Robotics. She has such a gift for this kind of thing, and I am so thankful to have found this wonderful opportunity for her to foster and grow that talent. Unfortunately, I came down with the family illness the night before they left, so I was a little less happy to see them go than I expected...but still thankful!
Austin was so good at sending me pictures throughout the day so I could feel more like I was there!
The young man in the picture is a very generous college student who coaches her team on a volunteer basis. What an amazing guy!

 There were 42 teams total, 30 in the senior division (age 14-18) and 12 in the junior division (age 11-13). Look at all those work tables!

 Getting started...I believe once the challenge was released they had 10 minutes in which to talk with their coach, and then they were on their own to make it happen!

 There were several matches in which they would test their final product in front of the judge (who was grading them all along on teamwork and other such things). They made it through and were in first place (of the 3 teams moving on) going into finals. However, the computer decided to do a firmware update, and they lost an entire program and had to just sort of hack/wing it! They came out in 2nd place in the end. Not bad at all! We were so proud!

Sick house

I cannot remember the last time we were all sick at one time! Actually Austin and Allia are mostly well, but everyone has this fever/cold/cough thing going. It started with Anastasia and despite my best efforts to quarantine, Cecilia got sick and now the rest of us. A sweet friend with 6 children said, "I never feel like our family is that big except when we are sick." So true. I have lots of people to care for and am sick myself. Plus Austin took Mariana to a robotics competition in San Antonio Friday (post on that later), before she was sick, and then had to travel to another city yesterday and today for Allia's big swim meet. Craziness! Here are some cute baby pics despite the sick house...

We are doing a lot of lounging in PJ's

 Pawpaw and Manah have been a huge help...getting us dinner, going on a grocery run, helping with the kids. Whew!

Valentines chefs

I have had my hands full with our sick little one (although it could definitely be worse...she has been very patient with this illness). So these two made Valentines pizza for lunch yesterday. I just got out the ingredients and set them to work. It turned out beautiful and yummy!

Baby holding

Cecilia certainly steals the show on the blog...but who can help it?!

 Cute naked baby after a leaky diaper change

 With Fr. Albert Sunday. He loves to talk to her in French! Unfortunately you can't see it, but she had a tight grip on his Roman Collar!

 And despite my best efforts to quarantine, she caught the latest family illness/cold. Poor baby. She is handling it pretty well but is so pitiful. For some reason, she loves complaining to Pawpaw. Last night and this morning he came over and was talking to her. She went into a long soliloquy of sad sounding goos and aaahs and some teary eyed frowns. This morning he had mercy on her and rocked her to sleep!

Baby moments

Now that Cecilia is more aware, we brought out the butterfly gym. Though truly, if she is in a room with a ceiling fan she is usually entertained. She loves those!

Cecilia has been such a good sport. I drive our swim carpool 3 days a week which is about a 45 minute drive. She typically sleeps at least part of the trip. When I loaded her up today, she looked so cute in her little bow hat from the hospital that I had to take some pics.

Fun with friends

We had a fairly free Saturday, and the girls enjoyed some time with friends. They decided to make lunch for us using the AG cookbook. It was so sweet. They worked really hard!

2 months old!

Cecilia turns 2 months old today. I took her picture in the same outfit and spot as her 1 month photo for better comparison. She looks very much the same just a little bigger/chubbier. She weighed 11 lbs. 12 oz. (62%) and was 23 1/4" long (80%). I am not sure what her head measurement was but she was in the 97% of course! She was smiling and cooing at the doctor and nurses and charming everyone in sight...until the shots. :/

Baby faces

She is definitely filling out!

She proudly sports the double chin look.