Exhaustion- noun
1. the act or process of exhausting.
2. the state of being exhausted.
3. extreme weakness or fatigue.
4. The state of health of a parent who has a poorly child or two!.
Being a parent is the best thing in the world you are lucky enough to be able to watch them grow and develop and listen to all the funny things they may come out with, they just bring this little bit of sunshine to your life without even trying.
However at times it can be tough, whether it be juggling childcare or dealing with a full-blown melt down in aisle 4 at Asda. Though nothing can be tougher than dealing with a sick child.
We’re not talking little temperature or an upset tummy that passes in about 24 hours, I’m talking non stop sickness for 4 days with hardly any fluids staying in and then them not taking much in after they have been sick.
The last week has been so tough on the whole household as Ethan went down with some virus in the early hours of Friday morning and since then its been a whirlwind of sickness, fighting to keep fluids down, disinfectant and then a trip to be monitored at A & E. Then just as he is on the mend Kayleigh gets sent home from school after she nearly passed out at school after PE and was sick. Both of them needed my urgent care and attention and I felt like I was on a constant watch to make sure they were both ok.
It’s just never-ending.
As well as dealing with a poorly child and comforting them, you find that you become unable to rest at all, even when they are asleep.
Ethan (and now Kayleigh) has been really unsettled over the past week throughout the night firstly it was with sickness and an upset tummy then just as they felt unwell. We would do and have been doing anything to keep them comfortable even if that means surviving on a couple of hours sleep before having to head to our jobs the following morning.
It’s called being a parent.
But you get to the end of a week on a few hours and your body becomes like a heavy weight to carry around, you start putting the milk in the cupboard and the cereal in the fridge, your brain just can’t function in a normal way that it becomes difficult to spell your own name. Then you realise that although its been tough the last week you’re doing alright at this parenting malarkey.
The kids are on the mend.
The sun is shining.
The bank holiday weekend is within touching distance.
Being a parent is an amazing thing and I’m very lucky that I’ve been given the chance twice 🙂