As I write this, I am functioning on 3 hours of sleep after being up most the night with our four of our 8 children, who were sick from food poisoning. It’s been a rough night, and as I was cleaning up the mess that comes when someone fails to make it to “the bucket,” I thought of how useful it would be to be able to plan for this in some way, shape, or form when this happens again next time, as it inevitably will when one has 8 precious children!
For those of you reading this who are considering reading this over a cup of coffee, you might want to think again if you have a particularly weak stomach. So, consider yourself warned.
When you get over taking care of sick children, you have a wave of relief and rest come over you. You are thankful that this time has passed, but you never really think…”How could I have coped with this better? What could be improved upon when caring for a sick child next time?” However, to make it easier the next time sickness descends upon your household, let’s plan for this now!
Medicine Cabinet:
1. Is my medicine cabinet full stocked with over-the-counter meds and herbal home remedies?
2. What do I need to throw out (check those expiration dates!)?
3. What needs to be restocked? Make a list!
Tummy Troubles:
1. Use mop buckets or 5 gallon buckets for children who might not be able to make it to the toilet in time.
2. Place a padding of paper towels under the bucket to better protect the floors.
3. Use a large Ziploc bag to store paper towels, torn in half and folded, in or near the buckets for the child to use to wipe a mouth until Mommy can get there. Instruct the child on how to use them properly (disposing of them in the bucket, instead of on the floor).
4. Keep a generous amount of grocery bags in or near the buckets for trash accumulated during clean-up. This will keep germs in their own place, instead of contaminating bathroom trash cans or clogging up toilets.
5. When sickness arrives, gather any cleaning supplies you need and place them within reach of the sick child. This will enable you to quickly access these supplies when you’re again not exactly awake enough to figure out what you need.
6. Gather towels, wash cloths and an extra pair of clothing and place by the tub for bathing after a sick spell. And extra set of bed linens will also come in handy and should be placed within reach.
7. When the sick child(ren) decides to recuperate on the sofa, use trash bags under sheets to protect furniture that the child will sleep or recline on, so that you only have to clean up sheets and not a sofa if an accident occurs.
8. If your children sleep in top bunks, consider moving them while they are sick to a lower bunk or spare room to avoid making a bigger mess if they throw up as they are descending the ladder.
Colds, Congestion and Fevers:
1. Always have plenty of extra tissues on hand so that a trip to the store is not needed when everyone is feeling down and out.
2. Make homemade chicken soup and freeze it for use when someone is sick. Do not freeze for more than 3 months. If no one falls ill during that time period, you could bring it to a friend who is sick or serve your own family on a busy night of the week.
3. If homemade chicken soup is not exactly up your alley, keep canned condensed soup on hand, along with Saltine crackers.
4. Keep frozen popsicles in the freezer and Jell-O stocked in the pantry for sore throats.
5. A cool mist humidifier is a good investment to ease nighttime congestion. If you have a large family, consider buying one for each bedroom or sleep area. These can often be found on Craigslist or EBay for better prices than Wal-Mart.
6. Keep rubbing alcohol on hand to rub on the chest and extremities when a high fever needs to be brought down to a manageable temperature. This works like a charm!
7. Dealing with croup, which always shows up at night? Take the child outside in the cool night air for about 20 minutes. All of our biological children deal with many bouts of croup each year and this works better and faster than anything else we have tried. If it’s winter, bundle you and the child up and take a cozy blanket to cover the two of you. Don’t let the cold air scare you from trying this tried and true remedy!
Quarantine:
1. In our house, we have an extra bedroom that we are able to use to quarantine a sick child at night, so as to not as easily infect the others. Most of the time, this really doesn’t spare the others from illness, but if that child is the only one who is ill, it is much easier to attend to the needs of the child in that room in the middle of the night and spare waking others nearby. If you have a spare bedroom or playroom, you might consider that as an option, as well.
2. If you have more than one child who is sick and others are well, this room could be used for more than one, by setting up sleeping bags or air mattresses. Air mattresses can be turned to the “all-plastic” side for quicker clean-up, as well.
Other Tips:
1. Use a baby monitor to screen the goings on in the room of the sick ones. Again, these can be found on Craigslist or EBay for next to nothing if you no longer have baby monitors on hand.
2. When your child is sick assemble toys, books, stickers, paperclips, and coloring supplies for your little patient, in a basket so that they will have it all in one place while recovering.
3. Get some educational and Christian DVD’s for your children to watch while sick. Our children rarely watch DVD’s or have extensive times on the computer, but when they are sick, we do allow them to spend larger amounts of times watching DVD’s or playing computer games. 
This is okay, as long as the content can be monitored and controlled by you constantly.
4. Do not worry about completing your own daily to-do list when you have sick children. Rest with them, as you need to recoup or reserve your energy for night duty. You will catch up after everyone is well again!
5. Always remember, “This, too, shall pass!”
6. Show your babies – big or little – the love of Jesus through your actions when caring for them! “For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me…I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.’” Matthew 25:35, 40
Another good idea is to line “the bucket” with a grocery bag…it makes clean up much easier!
I remember when food poisoning went through our home. We got sick from bad ketchup, in a restaurant. No fun!!
Lisa,
You are so right! It is in the exhaustion of the aftermath that it is best to survey what worked and what yet (when recovered) we need to ‘get up to speed.’
A word about the ‘bucket’: We use a $1 plastic pitcher well-lined with layers of… grocery bag with a couple paper towels folded in the bottom. Then another grocery bag placed on top with a couple folded paper towels. etc.
This makes it easier for the ‘patient’ to not see the (for lack of a more delicate term) vomit. It solves the ‘splash back’ problem. It makes it easy to ‘whisk away’ manageable disposals and, if layered enough, allows the ‘patient’ to always have a ‘ready container’. Using a pitcher means they can keep it handy in their beds, too.
Silly, I know, to write so detailed an account of the set up (of what we call) a ‘spit up bucket,’ but it has been sort of perfected for our household through frequent need. (Big Smile)
grateful that we can plead “that Your beloved ones may be delivered … answer us!”
HveHope *-:¦:-
-:¦:-¸¸.·´*
( Psalm 60:5 )
p.s. I have paused to pray for you as you face the remainder of a sleep-deprived day. May roses and lilacs and lavender and shasta daisies and peonies shower their petals on your soul this day that the Lord has made. (Huge Gentle Smile).
Great list, very complete. You do these things, too and I have found it helps reduce some of the crazies during times of sickness.
Tam,
My husband does help out a lot – when the kids are sick and when they’re healthy – but it wasn’t mentioned in this article since this pertains to women living out Titus 2, hence the name of the site and devotional. To find out more about my amazing husband, check out my blog. He’s a wonderful husband and father. I am more than blessed…I wish every woman was as blessed as I.
As far as having bio children versus adopting the rest…we are always open to more children (whether through birth or adoption). Birth control is telling the Creator of the universe; the Creator of HUMAN SOULS when and if He should have the control to create. We are using our finite minds to see where we cannot see. ONLY Jesus creates life and if He is the ONLY one who can see farther down the road than we can, who are we, as simple foolish humans, to take the control from Him and assume that God cannot provide if we *allow HIM* to create new souls within our wombs. Seems rather arrogant to me to assume that GOD needs our help in creating/preventing life and providing for His own.
I will take any BLESSINGS that God sends my way….more money, a larger house, a newer vehicle…and CHILDREN (the MOST talked about and “coveted” blessing in the Bible). In our society we take some blessings that will ENHANCE our lifestyles, EMPOWER us as women, and EXPAND our wallets or INCREASE our societal status, but we reject the eternal souls that will be with us, as a blessing, for ETERNITY, worrying that God will not provide for the blessings He chooses to send us!
As far as refraining from relations, that is also completely unbiblical. Since we live our lives by the Word of God, we happily choose His way and have found in every instance that it makes sense and creates peace and order when we obey God. It is truly a joyous life…not wasted, but glorious and fulfilling. Words cannot explain how blessed I feel, as a wife, mother and woman when I follow GOD’s leadings.
For more info on the myth of the diminishing resources of earth..check out “Demographic Winter”. It’s a secular documentary that dispels that antiquated lie and well-distributed propaganda.
All of this on this that I wrote and the content of this site might make no or very little sense to someone who doesn’t know Jesus as their personal Savior and friend. I know it sounds crazy, but after living this life, I have found how easy ad peaceful God really wants us to be IF we just follow His leading. I emplore you to read the Bible and to contact me if you’d like to know more about this wonderful friend, Jesus!
Praying for you!
Lisa Metzger
That is a totally different Titus than the one in the Bible. The Biblical book of Titus was written by Paul. The Titus that Paul is witing to in that Biblical book was an early Christian, a missionary and friend of Paul. According to later tradition he was a bishop in Crete.
This website (not mine, I just contribute) refers to the Bible and the passage Titus 2:3-8 (scroll up and see the header at the top of this site)… “Likewise, teach the older women to be reverent in the way they live, not to be slanderers or addicted to much wine, but to teach what is good. Then they can train the younger women to love their husbands and children, 5to be self-controlled and pure, to be busy at home, to be kind, and to be subject to their husbands, so that no one will malign the word of God. Similarly, encourage the young men to be self-controlled. In everything set them an example by doing what is good. In your teaching show integrity, seriousness and soundness of speech that cannot be condemned, so that those who oppose you may be ashamed because they have nothing bad to say about us.”
*Totally* different Titus than the one to whom you’re refering.
Lisa Metzger