So how’s Kristi, you ask?
Well, a couple of days after arriving in Texas, I had to take her back to the ER due to shortness of breath.
Sure enough, pneumonia in both lungs.
As a souvenir, she was prescribed a steroid, antibiotics, antinausea just in case and something else in addition to the 5 or 6 medications she got in Colorado.
Finally, yesterday was the first day in 18 days where Kristi didn’t get worse or exhibit new symptoms, and 10 days since she tested COVID positive.
She still felt awful but today we were able to have a conversation outside without her being short of breath.
I’ll take that as a small win.
COVID is sneaky
You know that song “heads, shoulders, knees and toes?”
That’s kind of what COVID did to her.
Except it would be “head, throat, tongue, nose, veins, skin, phalanges, chest and gut.”
I know, it doesn’t sound as good as the nursery rhyme…
For Kristi, it started as a headache, then got more intense than any migraine she’s ever had.
That lasted 8 days before we brought her in.
Then a few days after she tested positive, it moved to her throat and a cough developed like a cold.
She then lost her taste and smell.
Then parts of her body got a weird pattern on it – not a rash but you could see her blood vessels – almost translucent skin. Very weird.
Then her fingers and toes turned purple for a couple of days.
Serious stuff
Then she started being short of breath.
Then chest pain started. We found out that this was related to the shortness of breath, not her heart.
The meds have helped heal those symptoms.
Now her stomach hurts but we don’t know if that’s COVID or the meds.
Then exhaustion set in. Walking 10 feet can make you question your choice to use the restroom.
One day she slept 16 hours, the next she slept 17.
Like slept – out cold. I tickled her feet a few times each day to make sure she was ok.
I definitely see how COVID can become more serious for folks if they don’t pay close attention to their symptoms.
How are the kids and I?
The kids were pretty scared for the first several days so I kept it mostly lighthearted.
We went to the Fish Hatchery in Colorado (before Kristi was COVID positive, she just had a migraine).
This was really cool. They release rainbow trout into the river every year for fishing.
But you can go there and feed the fish.
We even got to see the train drive by that we rode the week prior.
We did one more mountain biking trail but had a rain/snow storm on our tail so we couldn’t complete the trail.
In Texas, instead of “Don’t mess with Texas” our motto was “less is more.”
I just let the kids use their imaginations while Kristi was trying to recover.
Red clay
There was red clay so the second thing they did after mud slinging with their bikes is applied their knowledge of mud that they have learned during our recent travels.
All along our trip to New Mexico, Arizona, Utah and Colorado they have learned and actually seen how natives built things out of red clay and water.
Pots, plates, jewelry and even buildings.
So they made a bunch of clay pots out of the local mud.
It was actually pretty impressive – the mud was the perfect consistency the first few days (it had recently rained), and it dried rock hard.
Like you can drop it and it won’t break, hard.
Take that, corningware.
Child’s play really…
Enough with the puns, Eliot.
Clay pot business
Anyway, they decided they decided to turn it into a business.
Much of the rest of the week they say by the road on our campsite, at the clubhouse, and even at the stop sign “because then people have to stop, dad.”
Duh, that is just good business sense.
I’ve never been so proud.
The funny thing is, that after a few days the kids made over $70 selling these pots to people at the campground.
Crazy right?
Grant it, $25 was from mom and dad, but still pretty impressive in 4 or 5 days. About $10 a day.
Grandmas – hide your wallets, the kids are coming back to Florida soon with some handmade pots.
Settled dust
Anyway, I say all of this now because I feel that the dust has settled a bit.
It was actually pretty scary at times.
Four doctors visits, two of those the ER, 6 pharmacies, and a bakers dozen prescriptions.
Plus, we’ve all had a year of horror stories in the news that messes with your psyche.
In addition there is the loneliness and seclusion – Kristi doesn’t like that.
Although Kristi has a ways to go to be 100%, I feel like there is a light at the end of the tunnel.
Just wanted to give everyone an update. We are ok but treading lightly.