I have never been a great flu shot mama. For most of my mothering years, we have only gotten flu shots when we just happened to be in the doctor's office at the right time and they offered us one. I have done better the past couple of years. The fall that Eli was born, we took the whole clan in for the sole purpose of getting shots. It was a nightmare! Last year, I discovered this wonderful thing called a flu mist. The children just sniff, and it is over. I vowed that we would make sniffing an annual event! Fast forward to this year. Flu mists were on my to do list, they really were. It just never happened. Mark and I would discuss it, and then forget about it a few minutes later. We had great intentions...

Sunday morning, Olivia had a slightly scratchy throat and some congestion. She was her usual perky self, so we went on to church, without giving her symptoms much thought. Later that afternoon, Anna Grace went from acting normal to lethargic in a matter of minutes. She said her throat hurt and she had a fever, so I took her to a walk in clinic for a Strep test. It was negative, so I assumed we had some type of a virus. The next afternoon, Olivia' s fever was over 104, and we had a positive flu test! We all immediately started on Tamilflu (to the tune of $420) to try to stop the flu in its tracks. By bedtime, four of the children had a fever.

Thankfully, Olivia and Anna Grace have perked up some today, and everyone else is acting pretty normal. We are quarantined for the week. I sense some cabin fever and lots of TV watching in our future. I have learned a valuable lesson. We will be standing in line for flu mists next year!