January 2022

Malachi trying to stay warm, before going to school

I got a haircut (Thanks Mom and Dad)

                                                    Joseph tested positive for COVID 

                            I gave Gideon a haircut! (at least the sides and the back, he wouldn't let me cut anything off the top)

                            Playing at 'pig' park

    So in January, the weather would go back and forth from being warm one day to being really cold the next.  We still managed to get outside and play at parks on the warmer days.  January 17th Joseph tested positive for COVID, he had been having cold-like symptoms for a few days (Jessica too).  I used home tests to test all of us, and the rest of the kids and I were all negative.  Since Joseph and Jessica had COVID, Joseph couldn't go to work for 10 days, and they had to quarantine in their room.  I also had to drive Joseph around and try to get him tested for COVID from an actual Dr., as that is what his work required.  After trying to get free tests for a few days, and it not working (all the free sites were closed due to bad weather), he had to pay $200 to get his test done at an urgent care.  I had to get Joseph and Jessica all their food and things they needed and leave it outside their door for them to grab and take in their room.  Joseph and Jessica did come out in the evenings after we had all gone to bed, and would use the kitchen or watch  TV in the living room, we just asked them to sanitize everything they touched, and I would also wipe everything down in the morning that I thought they would have touched.  They also wore masks whenever they left their room.  Their symptoms remained mild, although Jessica seemed to get a little sicker than Joseph.  The rest of us were doing good until the 26th.  I got a call from the school that Gideon had a fever and a sore throat and needed to be picked up.  They checked Malachi and Caleb too, and Malachi said his stomach hurt and was warmer than normal, and Caleb was slightly warm, so they just had me take them all home.  Caleb was fine, said he was just a little warm, because he had been running around and was still wearing his coat.  Malachi and Gideon both were complaining about not feeling well, so I got them Dr. appointments for the next day.  The nurse said strep throat was going around, so I wanted the Dr. to check for that.  The Dr. checked Gideon for Strep and COVID, and Malachi just for COVID.  They were both acting pretty normal so I thought that the tests would all be negative, but Gideon and Malachi both tested positive for COVID and had to stay home from school until Feb 7th.  It was hard having Gideon and Malachi home for 10 days, when they basically felt perfectly normal, and still get my schoolwork done, and keep them entertained.  I am grateful that they didn't get very sick though.  I am also grateful that no one else got sick.