Pictures Before The Storm

See these happy smiling faces? They have no clue what's about to hit them.

Within hours of hanging the blazers back in the closet, Jeff was hit with a 104 temp and laid curled up chilling under piles of down blankets. 

After three miserable days of every home remedy I could come up with we headed to the pediatrician. Diagnosis? Sinus Infection. 

We were sent home with antibiotics and a promise he'd be better within 24 hours. Ha! Little did we know that something more sinister was spreading. 

After three more days of no improvement and continued high fevers, coughing, aching, and chills, two more kids started fevers. 

Then another, and another...five kids, five fevers, five non-stop coughs, round the clock aching and chills. 

But even amidst all the miserable symptoms these awesome troopers kept us laughing with their attempts to describe their symptoms. 

"It feels like my eyes are swiping and swiping and won't stop." "My lips are broken!" "My legs won't walk normal!" "My muscles are broken!" "My lungs are inside out!" "I'm as cold as popsicles!" 

Well, after 10 days of sick kids, momma finally fell to the invisible threat. Matt forced me to the doctor where I tested positive, for influenza! Case solved. We had spent the last week and half fighting microscopic organisms mislabeled as a "raging sinus infection". 

So six out of seven of us are now wrapped in down blankets, too late to start tamiflu. Matt is the last man standing. Pray for him to miraculously come through this unscathed as he works all day and tries his best to medicate and hydrate his sick family all night. We'll stay quarantined and one day I'm sure laugh at that Easter we all got the flu.