Strep Infections

I figured that since my family has had 23 diagnosed infections of strep in the last 7 months, I have learned a lot about it and should pass this knowledge on.

We're healthy today.

I think that Alex has been picking it up from an undiagnosed carrier in school, because he is always our first case, and we have confirmed that David, Griffin, and I are not carriers for sure. We are having the other three tested this week.

Here is a typical presentation of strep throat from my kids:

1) Alex is so strong, so he doesn't actually look that sick. He will tell me that he's not feeling well, and usually by this point he is running a little fever. When he's at this point, if I check his throat, he will often have a war zone at the back of his throat. That's the best way I can describe it. I had always thought that strep resulted in white spots, but I've more often seen bright red patches that sometimes bleed. It looks SO painful (because it is!).

2) In addition to the fever and a red throat, the kids won't eat or drink. This is one way to distinguish strep from a virus or some other infection. Consistently, none of my kids will eat when they're suffering from a strep infection.

3) When I had it, I couldn't believe how painful it was. It was as painful as having my tonsils out when I was 25. Of course, having had them out has probably protected me from getting the infection more than the two times I've had it.

4) Only once did one of my children present with "strawberry tongue" (see below if you're interested). I knew as soon as I saw it that the child had strep. David took the child to the doctor who said that the kid was coming off of it, since that child had just finished antibiotics a week previous. But at least the doctor ran the test, and the child was (of course!) positive for strep.

5) Untreated, or in our case, insufficiently treated strep turns into Scarlet fever, which often results in a rash that has fine bumps and can look like one smooth color but still feel rough. At this point, the fever is higher and the fever reducers don't work very well. Scarlet fever can also cause heart murmurs, so the doctor may run some tests to check the heart, depending on what he hears through the stethoscope.

6) Untreated, or insufficiently treated strep may also show itself as an exit sore from diarrhea. It basically looks like the skin was rubbed away with sandpaper. This is called impetigo and requires an antibiotic cream to clear it up.

7) Sometimes fever blisters show up. I'm not sure if they're fever blisters or boils from the infection, but they've usually been about the size of a pencil eraser or maybe slightly larger. I've seen them on arms, feet, and legs. I've never seen them on the trunk of the body or the face. They get very itchy, and in fact are more itchy than painful.

8) Strep has about a 4-day incubation period, and it's contagious up to 24 hours after treatment with antibiotics. You can imagine me counting down days every time one of our kids has gotten it. This last time, I managed to keep it away from two of the four children, thank God.

I don't know what is causing us this grief. If I did, it would be resolved by now. But I can certainly tell you that this is one of the main reasons I am so excited to get home. For some reason, I am confident that the pediatrician in Waynesboro would never allow this so passively as the pediatrician here has.

Please keep us in your prayers!!

When a foreign city starts to feel like home

Photo from the Schirn Museum exhibit

I had a chance to walk around Frankfurt by myself for half a day yesterday.

I took the S train to the U train into Römer Plaza. On a pretty day, Römer Plaza is one of the best places in the world to sit alone.

It was a pretty day.

I visited the Schirn museum. Their exhibit at the moment is vulgar, offensive, distasteful, and disgusting. It was an exhibit from two Swedish artists who create stop motion films. They use multiple mediums such as clay, felt, metals, and probably anything else that fits their needs. They had running themes of masks and animals, sometimes animals wearing masks. If I could take a guess, I would say that the artists were making an overall statement that we are not who we need to be. We are not true to ourselves. We are not true to each other.

Many of the films were gruesome. The pieces of art physically on display (in addition to the films) were exquisite. The first thing you see when you walk in is a room full of exotic birds in all different positions. You might be caught off guard with the detail and even the size of them. Then you'll notice the film. I watched the first film with curiosity. Stuffed women made of nylons having to do with breaking eggs. The next film I saw, I watched with interest. That was the gruesome one, but I was interested to learn the artists' agenda. The next, with loathing. Picture a baby and a momma who are switching in between a lizard and a lizard skeleton. Really, words don't describe it. The last one I watched, which was the maximum I could tolerate, I watched with horror. Something about a mother's children forcibly re-entering her womb to undo their own birth. Honestly, I couldn't do it, so I didn't watch very much of that one.

I love, love, love the Schirn museum. No other thing I've seen or done has taken me outside of my culture and made me think more than this museum has. I am fascinated by the artists whose works they display. What drives them? Why are they so different from me? In what (or whom) do they place their hope? That is what I always wonder about people. I really enjoy new cultures and different lifestyles. The Schirn museum is amazing at showing me that.

Because of that, more so than the artists, I would love to meet the curator. Who is that person?! How did they get so good at their job? What drives them, and how do they find people?

I'm just a simple Pennsylvania girl, and I'm happy to be that. But I'm also happy that I've had the opportunity to visit this world-renowned museum, more than once, and to let it open my eyes just a little more than they were before. I think I will get to see two more exhibitions before we leave. I missed several while I was here. But what I've seen thus far has been very, very interesting.

When I walked out of the museum, I realized that I knew where I was going, and I didn't need to use Google maps to get there. That was a nice feeling, but then I started to get a little bit sad. I was starting to feel at home in Frankfurt. I enjoy Römer Plaza and visiting the nearby churches. I walked across the footbridge and simply enjoyed the skyline. It was a really nice afternoon. It felt a little bit like home: comfortable, familiar, welcoming, and even unimposing. I was saddened by the thought that after this year, I may never see Frankfurt again. I may, but I may not.

I think that's the way these moments are going to be for me for the next two months. I'm looking forward to them so much.

At the same time, I don't think I will regret leaving at all. I am ready to go home to the always-familiar way of life. I am so very ready to see my family and friends. My life has been such an adventure these past two years. I am looking forward to seeing what the next stage will bring.

A gorgeous day at Romer plaza, which is a great place to visit

From the Schirn Museum. Look at this incredible detail.

I just the other day told my dad that I miss the PA wildlife. I sent this picture to him and called it, "Frankfurt wildlife". He said, "I think that's a turkey, but it looks like it belongs in a cartoon." Exactly.

A two photo panorama of Romer plaza. There is so much going on in this photo.

Zaanse Schans and Keukenhof Gardens

This weekend we're going to the Netherlands to see the tulips, so I'm praying that this time, no one is sick. I'm also coaching Livvy that I want her to wear the dress I give her to wear and to smile for the camera. I hope she does. I believe that when she is older, she will value this photo that I hope to take. I almost got it last year, but it was a big fight and the good memory isn't there for me.

We're staying at a Eurocamp for one night. I'm hoping it's as nice as the one we stayed in in Italy.  We were going to stay for two nights, and I was going to take Monday off, but I ended up signing up for training that week and couldn't take the Monday off. It's okay, though. Our timing has the potential to be perfect this year. Most of the sicknesses are out of our house (except for colds and allergies), and the weather has been fabulous. I hope it sticks!

... We went and came back. It was a great trip. We started out at Zaanse Schans, which was even prettier than I'd expected. The weather didn't cooperate at all there, though, and we found ourselves unprepared in a windy torrent of rain. It was neat to go into a real, working windmill. We spent just a short time there and then headed for the Eurocamp.

I had remembered that the advertisement mentioned a waterpark onsite. I wasn't sure if we'd get a chance to visit it, since we had so much to do (for me!) already. But then, somewhere in that timeframe, I realized I had recently archived one of my Keep notes that mentioned this place that is a must-visit for families with small kids, and it was called Duinrell, which was where we were going.

Thankfully, I had thought ahead enough not only to pack my and the kids' swimsuits, but also to have David pack his.

We all slept quite well in that cozy little Eurocamp that night. In the morning, we went for a breakfast buffet onsite, which was so nice and the coffee was delicious and they were friendly and people told us our kids were so good! Then we went back and changed and went to the indoor waterpark, which, by the way, was bigger and better than Great Wolf Lodge. It was a lot of fun, and thanks to the discount from Eurocamp, our entire family got in for a price of €30.

Two and a half hours was a good amount of time, and the kids willingly left like the good kids that they are when it was time to go. I was so glad we went. David and I had discussed if we should take them, and on the condition that he drove home, I was willing to let him drop me off at work the next morning for my training. So after the waterpark, we got changed and went to the gardens.

It was a very overcast day with a little mist of rain here and there, but Livvy was a doll and posed for every photo I asked her to. The lack of sunshine had a negative impact, but it was still a great day, and I happily got to take some flower shots in addition to kid shots. (Thank you, David!)

By the time I had my fill of the gardens, we were all starving, so on the way back to the Eurocamp, we stopped and got some Chinese food, which was really tasty. David and I discussed the thought of leaving earlier, around ten, and decided that would be a good idea. By the time we ate and got all of the kids in bed (they were exhausted!!), it was already 8:30, so we decided to start our journey immediately after all.

We all very quickly fell asleep, and David pretty much teleported us home (that's how it felt to the kids, at least). It was a great trip. We unloaded the van and got the kids to bed as quickly as possible. We didn't make the kids go to school Monday. I got enough sleep to handle work just fine, though. It was a really nice trip.