H1N1 is in the house

Well, Murphy is at it again. I have this theory that Murphy's Law hits me harder because I am a Murphy.

This week I was planning to take the children to get the free H1N1 vaccine. I know many people are conscientious objectors and I'm okay with that; we all have to make the choices we can live with for our own families. Interestingly, my husband has always been against the flu vaccines until this year. I suspect because, although he hasn't said, he can't imagine the worst case scenario of losing another child.

They've got us on fear. Had George lived, we would have qualified for the vaccines last week. But he didn't and so this week was the week for children over five in our province. I could have had our daughter vaccinated last week but I thought I'd wait and do the group thing. And this brings me to Murphy's Law.

Our five-year-old boy got very sick Saturday night. This is the non-stop action mini-man who doesn't ever cease talking or moving from when he wakes till he falls asleep. He sat on the couch staring at us and spiked a fever of 104. Poor little guy had fever chills and the cough started. We loved him through the night and he was worse Sunday. The vomiting started and he could not keep anything down. A few sips of liquid had him heaving till there was nothing left. We'd bring the fever down and it would spike again. He took to his bed and slept fitfully.

I called 8-1-1 to talk to the BC healthlink nurse and went over his symptoms. She advised I have him assessed and so we bundled him up and I took him to the ER at the local hospital, which is brand new and very nice. We didn't have to wait long in the swanky new waiting area of the ER.

Forget TV. We live in an interesting city, one where university students, biker gangs, farmers and Mennonites, a huge Sikh population, and all manner of other folk mix and mingle. Morris was suitably horrified and impressed with the awful wounds of an older gent who was attacked by a pitbull. He noticed the black bonnets of Mennonite grannies and the turbans worn by two Sikh men. He watched a man hop into the ER because he hurt his ankle on the soccer pitch.

And then the S&M gang came in. Ah, life is not dull when you have watchful children who adore eavesdropping. A rather geeky looking trio came in and the injured man had a very badly dislocated shoulder. His friends supported him and sat him in the only available chairs, across from us. He thanked them for getting him and bringing him to hospital and then proceeded to describe, in great detail, how he got injured while at a huge S&M party in town. By the time he got to, "You should have seen the guy they had over the sawhorse" I decided Morris needed to visit the bathroom.

There are some things I just don't want to explain to my boy right now.

And of course while we were in the bathroom they called for us. Naturally. We wait nearly an hour and in the five-minute window when we're in the bathroom, that's when they call his name. Fortunately they checked for us again and off we went to paeds. The doctor was fantastic and the nurses very kind and he was rehydrated successfully. We're home and he's feeling much better, thrilled to stay home from kindergarten and have Daddy stay home today and tomorrow.

Because now I'm sick.

I guess on the bright side we'll have our immunities the old-fashioned way now and I don't have to go stand in any queues for vaccine.