So this is sick!

For almost two weeks now, the kids have been ravaged by some mysteriously potent infection with Cryptosporidium (a coccidian protozoan parasite, for those of you who - like me! - care). A week ago, I caught it from them. It has been an interesting time in our household - a definite time of focusing inward and experiencing exhaustion together. We've had some sweet moments reading book after book, and watching movie after movie. We had the kids sleeping in our bedroom on an extra mattress for a week so we could handle the frequent bathroom trips without any accidents - that brought back beautiful memories of our days with the "family bed". We've survived on delicious Greek yogurt with an extra sour kick from powdered probiotics, and mixed up batch after batch of homemade electrolyte replacement. Through it all, everyone has fared well, with the exception of Katrina, who has lost 9 pounds in the past two weeks. I am thankful I took the old-fashioned route and never worked to eliminate the natural softness of her figure. Without an extra pound or two, my dear girl would be so much more ill.

Aaron has enjoyed the extra time at home, and has bottled two of his Farmhouse Wines from the 2008 vintage: apple & Hawk Ridge Wild Plum. Another delicious batch of wine was hand-pressed and lovingly placed in the fermenter: Whistle Lane Chokeberry. And - perhaps most exciting - his first ever batch of port is also bubbling away in the basement, casting off a lovely aroma of berries and tang: Cedar Gables Chokeberry Port.

And so it goes, life as we know it. Compelled by the service of these four dear children, we have set aside every date on our calendar for two weeks (with the exception of our first night back at the bowling league on Wednesday). Please pray for a quick recovery from this point. The kids have begun to chow down toast and bagels, so I have hope that they will soon be on the mend after weeks of not eating more than a tablespoon of even the most delectable food. Someday even coccidian protozoa will bow, right?

And the inhabitant shall not say, I am sick: the people that dwell therein shall be forgiven their iniquity. (Isaiah 33:24)

...unto Me every knee shall bow, every tongue shall swear. (Isaiah 45:23)