Everyone, guess what happens when you don't give your kids the chicken pox vaccine - they get chicken pox. Weird right? I found that out this week.
Let me do a quick recap for you.
- I had 6 kids this week under 7, 3 of them mine.
- We had 1 busted lip and used 3 gallons of milk and ate lots of chicken nuggets, pizza and mini corn dogs.
- We spent lots of time watching Diego and Blue's Clues, playing Super Mario Brothers and Lego Indiana Jones on the Wii.
- We played at McDonald's play place. I took 6 kids back and forth every morning to basketball camp. 6 kids in and out of car seats twice a day.
- Yesterday I took 6 kids with me to the doctors at 8am to confirm what I already knew, my youngest little man had chicken pox.
- Also, three kids sleeping in the same room will inevitably all wake up at 5:30am because if one is up, they all are up.
- I hurt my back lifting two 30 something pound toddlers.
But do you want to hear the good news? The kids hardly fought and genuinely enjoyed one another's company. They all slept unbelievably well at nap time and bed time (except for the getting up early). They allowed me a little bit of down time each afternoon so I would not go insane.
Honestly, except for the busted lip and the chicken pox, things went pretty well. Now, I just have to contend with one cranky toddler who has chicken pox. Piece of cake right? Right, is it? I don't know because I had chicken pox when I was 9 and I remember it not being a pleasant experience. Another bit of irony, I had a doctor's appointment for my toddler next Friday to get his vaccines caught up. And my daughter had the vaccine but my older son got his yesterday. Fortunately, the kids I was watching all have their vaccines up-to-date. Not that I want to get into a vaccine debate. I really don't.
Anyone else out there had to deal with their kids getting chicken pox, or were you smarter than me and got the vaccine?
My dear second born got it whilst I was waffling on whether to get him vaccinated or not.
ReplyDeleteNo vaccine debate? :P
Oh, you might not be out of the woods on that chicken pox! My husband got chicken pox from head to toe a few years ago, he seriously looked like an alien. Well, 2 weeks later my kids all got a very mild version of the chicken pox even though they had already been vaccinated. My daughter was the oldest so it had been the longest since she had been vaccinated so she got it the worst. Not TOO bad, mild fever and a few dozen spots. They boys didn't have a fever or anything but just a few spots on the tummy. If my husband hadn't had it, I never even would have known it WAS chicken pox. So let the other parents know, even if their kids have been vaccinated, they still could get a mild version. I had it when I was in kindergarden so I of course didn't get it.
ReplyDeleteI'm not convinced about all those shots they give to kids nowadays. If I had another kid right now, I probably wouldn't give them all the shots. Not planning to have more though. :-)
Bless your heart! I struggled with this vaccine above all else since this is the theory of why we almost lost Peyton. We are still battling skin issues 7 years later with him because of the reaction he had to that one! It's such a hard decision to make as a parent. If little man has much issue with the itching, we used Sarna with Peyton in the hospital and I've purchased it to use at other times. Triple Paste is completely allergy free and gentle if you need something just to soothe the skin (thought it doesn't relieve itching). We use Triple Paste on every kind of rash and raw skin! Good luck! I'm amazed with all you've accomplished this week!
ReplyDeleteThanks for the heads up! Abel just got his varicella and has been running a very low fever. Had NO clue he could pass the virus on! I called the pediatrician's office and they confirmed that he could in fact spread the virus to other's not vaccinated. Guess he won't be in the nursery until the fever is gone.
ReplyDeleteNow about vaccinations...I do believe in them BUT I don't like their schedule ESPECIALLY after the reaction Abraham had to the MMR. We spread out the vaccinations at a minimum weekly unless it is a biggie and we go 4 weeks between those. I just think their little bodies can't handle all that foreign gunk all at once! But I would much rather vaccinate slowly versus not at all. I don't want to have a resurgence of "extinct" diseases!
My Isaac just checked out the book "THE CHICKEN POX UPDATE" from the library the other day. (They love those kinds of books) I'm glad my kids have had their vaccines...some of those pictures were nasty! But we did learn that chicken pox rarely has severe side effects. I also had it when I was about 9 or 10...and boy was it terrible! Hopefully your little man will do fine and won't remember a thing. At least now he'll be immune!
ReplyDeleteI had chicken pox when I was 7 and my brother when he was 1. (Same time, obviously.) I remember being somewhat miserable (although to a 7 year old, I don't really know what that means) from one particular chicken pox (pock? Lol) on my back that I could not reach.
ReplyDeleteMy brother had nary any problems at all. I think he got about 20 pox total. Lucky.
You can rest assured that at least Caleb will likely have lifelong immunity, whereas vaccinations have to be boosted every so often. :)
@Ma
ReplyDeleteAt least I'm not alone.
@Debbi Does Dinner Healthy
ReplyDeleteThanks for the heads up! I will be watching the other two closely too. I hope it doesn't happen but if it does, it does.
@Tracye
ReplyDeleteThanks for the advice. I will look into those. He doesn't seem to be itching too badly right now. I just hope it is over soon.
@Anna
ReplyDeleteAt least we know where it came from. I could not think who we had been around that had it. It is good to know though for future reference.
@Sarah
ReplyDeleteThanks! I can't imagine what that booked looked like but I do know boys like gross books. Or maybe your boys like scientific books?
I did get the vaccine for my girls, but don't feel bad, when it was time for Hannah to start kindergarten I took her to the doctor to get her vaccines for school. I thought she would need a couple, but I hadn't kept them up to date and she had to get 5 shots in her little legs! I felt so terrible!
ReplyDeleteHey, I just wanted to get the word out that I may have been misleading in my last comment as I have now been under investigation for spreading Chicken pox at church! Abel received his shot on 6/7 and was in the nursery on 6/12 but was cleared by the pediatrician to not be a threat. Hope this helps clear the air!
ReplyDelete@Anna
ReplyDeleteThanks for clearing the air!
@klutzymama
ReplyDeleteI know I hate getting lots of shots for the kids at the same time.