Rayl Family

We got a call from our babysitters Saturday night telling us that Lilly was throwing up...again. It seems like we get such a call on date night every couple of months, always involving Lilly. We were just about done with dinner so we headed home. I assumed the incident was a result of Lilly getting over-excited at the prospect of having two of her favorite babysitters on the same night (Ashley O'Brien and Amanda Fackrell). Such things do seem to make her throw up on occasion. But coming home from dropping the sitters off I started feeling a little ill. Thus began our 3-day bout of the stomach flu. Quick riddle, what is to only thing worse than having the stomach flu? The answer is cleaning up kid throw up while you have the stomach flu. I can't complain too much. Shelby handled night duty since he felt fine, and Lilly throws up so frequently that she is a pro about making it to the toilet. Rachel came down with it last night and had some trouble getting to the toilet, but even then she only threw up on hard surfaces. This morning we all woke up feeling great, and I was sure we were out of the woods. I called Shelby on my way to take Rachel to school and guess who isn't feeling very good? Carson and Emilia have remained untouched by this stomach bug, knock on wood.

After Rachel threw up the first time I tucked her into my bed and told her about how much I hated throwing up when I was a kid. I remember coming upstairs to tell my parents that I felt sick. My dad would ask "Are you going to throw up?" Not wanting to admit that I might (because it was just so awful) I would say "No...." and seconds later I would puke anyway, usually all over the floor. Then my dad would say "Aw Katie! For Pete's sake!" I don't think I ever made it to the toilet until I was about ready to leave home. My dad is a good sport when it comes to the worst parts of parenting, but he hated cleaning up after sick kids. Another memory from being sick was that even if we felt we were dying my parents NEVER, EVER let us sleep in their bed. But if we really felt lousy enough, and they were feeling kind, they would let us sleep on the floor of the hall by their closed bedroom door.

Lilly is positively delightful when she is sick. In the midst of throwing up she is usually chipper and talkative. She does milk it though. I think she was over the worst of it by Sunday, but anytime she needed or wanted anything she would come out with "But I'm sick!" This morning while I was making oatmeal (Lilly's very least favorite breakfast) she told me she ought to choose the breakfast because she is sick. I told her if she was really all that sick she would not be able to go to the park with Elizabeth. She said "Well, I am not going to be sick when I am at the park, but I AM going to be sick when I am eating breakfast."

Speaking of Lilly, her fear of dogs has become quite the thing at our house. It does not matter what our destination is, she always asks if there is going to be a dog there. It could be that we are going to someone's house that she has been to a dozen times, or on our way to the grocery store, the question is always the same. "Do they have a dog?" She asks nearly every single time, no exaggeration. This is exactly the opposite of Rachel who wants to take home every dog we come across. Her argument always lies on two things. First, "If we don't take it home, who will take care of him?" Second, "Lilly is not afraid of this dog!"