When Mummy’s sick

Claire Reardon - 13 Feb 17

As a single mum living on a remote Cornish hill, I’ll never forget the first time I was on my own with my son Edward and I was ill. By no stretch of the imagination it was the longest day of my life, the minutes painfully stretched out and I was at a complete loss as to what to do with poor Edward who was so worried I wasn’t my normal self. Now we’re better prepared. Here are my top five ‘get me through the worst of days’ tips.

1.Give Up.

These are not the days for any form of normalcy – routines, teeth brushing, getting dressed etc. These days are a twilight zone of few rules. So just give up and go with ‘more chaos than normal’ vibe. If your toddler is going to nursery, let them go in their pyjamas, forget organising spare clothes or breakfast. The nursery can cope for 1-2 days. Ask a friend or neighbour to get them there, someone from the nursery may even be able to pick them up on their way or a childminder may be able to. Don’t be scared to ask.

If your toddler is home, tell them you’re not well, don’t assume they’ll automatically realise. Ask them to tell all your household pets and their toys the same and that it’s a day for quiet play. This buys you a bit of time to think a bit straighter, lets them help ‘make it better’ and allows them to easily remind themselves.

2. Count down.

The day is all about filling the minutes until it’s bed time. Your house will be turned into a war zone with toys, games, duvets and plates strewn across all surfaces. Ignore it all. It’s not important. Your only mission is to survive the day.

• Baths. If I can’t be more than five paces from a toilet, I’ll run Edward a bath. He’ll spend ages in there playing and he’s contained, I know where he is. On days like this he may have more than one bath or a bath and a shower. If we were on the beach he’d spend all day in the water, I’ve just transferred the location and kept the warm water flowing.
• Sick day toys. I’ve a box Edward pulls out on sick days, it’s got lots of the stuff he likes – stickers, play dough, a doctor’s set, fuzzy felt, a couple of unseen before dvds, some sweets etc. All quiet toys and games that don’t require too much adult supervision but can be played beside you.
• Netflix. For some reason we don’t watch a lot of tv, I think it’s because of time, as I do love a good box set session just rarely get round to one. But on sick days kids Netflix earns every penny of the monthly subscription fee.

3. Hugs.

Edward, like most toddlers, want to make things better and the best way he knows is by giving hugs. A big Edward hug does give me about 15-20 seconds of clarity to fix him a snack, feed the dogs etc. These hugs are a big help. Edward also likes to take my temperature with his doctor’s kit to see if I’m getting better, make sure I’m covered in blankets (he can over do this!!) and get snuggly under the covers with me. Sometimes the blanket is a moon scape for dinosaurs to quietly roam. If it all gets too much I’ll ask Edward for a hug and request the dinosaurs move to new pastures for a bit. Momma needs some chill time.

4. Food.

I have ace neighbours who’ll fetch milk, pop over a loaf of bread and just generally be around to help. However I am prepared in case the only day I’m ill, is when they’re on holiday. So we have almond milk in the cupboard as a just in case (Edward prefers the taste to UHT cows milk), we have frozen pizzas, pre-made jelly, tinned baked beans, frozen garlic bread, ice-cream, cartons of juice, fish fingers…pretty much all the food I ate when I was a kid (except the pop tarts and Findas crispy pancakes) that only come out for Edward when I’m ill (poor Dude, I thrived on this stuff). As a bonus (I think) he can open the fridge himself. On a normal day I’ve found him and my dogs on the sofa sharing four yoghurts and a bag of carrots. He’s resourceful. The boy’s not going to starve (and neither are the dogs).

5. Bed time.

There is no feeling like realising you’ve made it through the day to toddler bed time. Once they’re tucked in and asleep, you will probably feel a little bit better from the relief you all survived. Do not go and clean the house, get out the boxsets or surf the web. Go to bed. Get sleep when you can. Get better. The armageddon that is your home will still be there tomorrow.

Claire Reardon

One Mum. Following One Boy and Two Ridgebacks. Till the end of time (and beyond).

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