Caleb had two baby teeth pulled yesterday. He was really brave, and recovered quickly. For all the fighting and arguing that the boys do everyday, when Caleb was in pain Joshua was there to hug his brother and support him. They actually do love each other!

Kimberly called from the hospital around 12:30 and told me that the doctor had finally released Isaac to come home. Ten minutes later Brunswick Elementary School called to let me know that Hannah-Grace has Fifth’s Disease. It includes an itchy rash that can last for four weeks, but since she was in this stage she was no longer contagious. She has “slapped face” red cheeks and red blotches on her forearms.

Dr. T. also told us that it takes four weeks to get to this stage, and during this stage it is very contagious but there are no symptoms (arghhhh). So now, more than likely, all the kids will get the “disease” or already have it.

The name sounds worse than the “disease.” She is fine and you can barely she the discoloration. The only real difference is that she is “itchy.”

I went in to the hospital this morning once the kids got on the bus. Isaac was still doing pretty bad — my hope was to bring him home by lunch (when H-G gets off the bus). But the doctors decided to keep him another night. So I went back in later this evening. The G’s kept the kids and put them to bed (thank you so much!). Apparently five minutes before I got to the hospital Isaac had a complete turn around. He started talking and playing. He started mashing buttons (including calling the nurse several times). He loves to mash buttons, especially if they make adults run fast! I said, “so let’s take him home” but the doctors want to keep watching him. I guess it’s better to go one more night. Kimberly was able to get some rest this afternoon,and prayfully he’ll be coming home tomorrow morning (depending on when the doctor makes his/her rounds).

Thank you to those who came by to visit,prayed for Isaac and our family, cooked us dinner, and have helped our family.

Kimberly dropped this kids off at church this morning and took Isaac to the Emergency Room. As a I was finishing up all the after-the-service stuff that we have to do because we rent our facility, I called Kimberly. She was still sitting in the waiting room. Our friend and neighbor Guin offered to take Hannah-Grace home with her and I had two car seats in my car. I then had to rush home because Kimberly had set up a Craig’s list sale – with a lady coming somewhere from West Virginia. I sold our “goods” and was waiting for Kimberly to come home but as the afternoon dragged on, she never did.

As we talked back and forth over the afternoon the doctors wanted to keep him there and watch him – rotovirus. Our same friend Guin and eventually another friend Kristy came over and watched the kids so I could go and see that was going on. Long-story-short and after two ivs and many many many diapers (did I say a lot) – we changed diapers one after the other for hours, they admitted Isaac to the hospital to stay the night.

So I just came home, and will get the kids on the bus in the morning and head back with a change of clothes for Kimberly and Isaac, and prayfully they will be coming home with me.

Please pray for Isaac. Our concerns are not dehydration (he is on an iv) and he is not throwing up, but he can’t stop the explosions in his diapers. I don’t want to gross you out – but if I didn’t know the difference, and had not seen it with my own eyes, I would have thought that he urinated in the diapers and not the other.

The Boswell family is working on the fifth day of a horrible who-knows-how-long sickness marathon. The relay started with me leading the way for the first three days, then handing off to Hannah-Grace. Her remarkable ability to project upon walls and doors is nothing but spectacular (really it took me forever to clean it up). Then Kimberly grabbed hold of those little germs and then handed it to the boys. We all went to our various doctors (yes even me), and then waited at various pharmacies for our various meds.

Isaac seemed to not be affected until his doctor just happened to look in his ears (since we were all there), and he had double ear infections. In his left ear was some wax, so Dr. T. had to dig it out. It was at this point, that after four kids we had a first. Isaac struggled so hard while I was holding him that the capillaries burst in the side of his face and around his eyes. You can Google “stippling” – but that is what it reminded me of – tiny pin point red dots all over the side of his face.

Today Isaac’s sickness kicked in at 3:30am, and as I sat down to write this at 9:20pm, he is just coming out of it. He threw up all day, every 15-20 minutes. Kimberly and I are exhausted and both still not over our hand-off of the bug.