My entire tenure as a mom, I have been scared of one thing.
All my mamas out there know, a million things could go wrong in any given day and if we were to be scared of every single thing that could happen to our kids than we’d literarily be scared of everything. In an effort to keep ourselves sane, I think our brains latch on to that one thing, and our mom anxiety is channeled there, allowing us to live the rest of our lives. For one of my besties, it’s broken bones. She’s never had one and she’s terrified about the day it happens to one of her children. For another of my pals, it’s severe allergic reaction. She worked at a summer camp where a camper with an undiagnosed allergy had a severe reaction and now it’s the thing that her brain turns to when she can’t sleep at night.
For me, since the very first kid, it’s always been one thing: croup.
In one of the my childhood classics, “Anne of Green Gables”, Anne has to save her best friend Diana’s sister, Minnie May, from the croup. When Minnie May comes down with croup, her parents are out of town. No one knows where the doctor is. He shows later, of course, after Anne saves the day. As a child reading, I thought croup was one of those old timey diseases we didn’t have to worry about, like small pox or the plague. So the stakes were a little low for me when Anne saved Minnie May. But years later, as a twenty something, the family I nannied for gave me the book “The Nanny Diaries” as a joke. In that book there is another scene, this one more realistic and high stakes for me. The main character has to take care of a little boy with croup overnight. She’s never dealt with an illness like this before, and it’s presented as very dangerous and scary. That scene shocked me, because here I was, thinking croup was just the boogeyman for heroic orphans, only to learn it was still a very real, potentially dangerous condition for small children.
Croup, in case you didn’t know, is an infection in the upper airway that that obstructs breathing by inflaming the upper voice box, windpipe, and bronchial tubes. It results in a seal like barking cough and high pitched, whistling sounds when breathing. It affects children ages 6 months to about 3 years, generally, since their airways are smaller.
Call it over imagination or reading too many books, but croup was the thing my mama brain targeted. Maybe because I was neither as plucky as Anne or as brave as Nanny, I just didn’t think I would be able to handle it. I have said many a fervent prayer that my children would not get croup.
Welp. Two out of three ain’t bad.
Wednesday night, my little Teacup went to bed happy as clam. Thursday morning, a wheezing seal had taken over her room. My eyes flew open when I heard the first cough and in my heart of hearts, I knew what it was. I may not be brave or plucky, but I am very good at decision making in a crisis. She was on her second sad, pulling breath when I bundled her up and off we went to the doctor.
The good news is this: She was treated with steroids, we set up a humidifier in her room, regular doses of tylenol, and warm showers with mom and then exposure to some fresh air. Just like Anne and Nanny! And within a day we saw improvement. We saw the doctor again Thursday, then Monday, with the proclamation that she was well on her way to fine on Wednesday. As I type this, she’s happily smashing Cheerios in her face.
But what a week.
And during that week, you know what I had to do? Go grocery shopping.
I have never not wanted to go grocery shopping as much as when my babe was home, all croupsey. And, keeping it 100, I think my grocery trip reflects that.
The only thing I really cared about was squeezable baby food for the Teacup. We’ve been doing more table food with her because she’s got two teeth now, but I wanted things that weren’t going to aggravate her little throat. Everybody else seemed to get one thing they needed: big girls got berries, Mr. B got a steak, and I got some cheese. Make it work!
I’ve gone grocery shopping during stomach bugs and various viruses, but this was something different. This wasn’t a grocery trip where I could grab some noodles for chicken soup or some saltines for a tummy bug and then go about my shopping trip. There was nothing I could get for my little to help her feel better and so I didn’t care about getting anything.
Before you worry that the other children starved, fear not, dear reader. We had Creamy Green Chile Chicken Soup (notice the chicken, cream, and milk). We had chicken enchiladas (again, the chicken). We had Steak Salad (with lettuce from last week) and we had delicious grilled sandwiches. No one went hungry. :)
- Blackberries, 12 oz-$4.99.
- Boar’s Head Pepperoni, .5 lb-$4.58.
- Boar’s Head Honey Maple Turkey, .5 lb-$4.07.
- Gerber Baby Puffs-$1.99.
- Gerber Baby Melts-$2.
- Heritage Farm Chicken Breast, 4.75 lb-$9.47.
- Homemade Ice Cream, .5 gal-$3.99. Left over paper coupon!
- Kraft Dressing (5)-$4.95. Buy 5, Save $5, and I spent it all in one place.
- Kroger Milk, .5 gal-$1.59.
- Kroger Heavy Cream-$2.19.
- Merry Estate Gouda-$3.79. Manager’s Special!
- McCormick Chipotle Chili Pepper-$8.59.
- Private Selection Wheat Bread-$1.99.
- Roma Tomatoes, 1.29 lb-$1.28.
- Simple Truth Organic Baby Food Pouches (13)-$13. On sale for $1 each. I will take that $.19 savings. Third time is a charm!
- Strawberries, 2 lb-$4.99.
- T-Bone Steak, .7 -$7.54.
- Vidal Onions, 2.27 lb-$2.93.
- Apps I’ll submit to: Fetch Rewards, Ibotta ($.10 Off Any Item,) CoinOut
Total Budget: $70.25
Total Spent: $83.93
Total Saved: $18.81
Deducted From Next Week: $13.68
The long, slow march to defeat the deficit continues. Hey, two bucks down is better than no bucks!
How do you navigate grocery shopping when you’ve got a sick kiddo? What’s your favorite scene from “Anne of Green Gables”? Share your thoughts down below!
Kristen B. is wife to the best Prince around, mama to the spunkiest little princesses, and lover of all things Disney. She started her savings journey five years ago and is now dedicated to making her family’s wishes come true one coupon at a time. She is so excited to take her love of saving to the next level and share her journey with you! Click here to catch up on Kristen’s Savings and join in on your own savings adventure!
Lisa says
My son had croup when he was 18 months old (many years ago). He was in the hospital for 3 days. Very scary. At that time the doctor told me that one of the best things to do was to take him outside in the cold. That helps open up the airways. Glad your little one is on the road to recovery.
Kristen says
That is so scary! Thank you, Lisa! She is all smiles now. :)