"What Kind of Doctor is That?!"

My 10 year old has been dealing with some health issues lately and we have been at the doctor trying to figure out what's going on.  For the past 3 weeks he's been off and on lethargic (more on than off) with headaches and an occasional fever.  He had blood drawn on Monday and we saw the doctor yesterday.  He hasn't done much school in the last 3 weeks and so I have been trying to determine if the lethargy (resulting in laying on the couch) is mental.  As in, Wow!  I don't have to do school.  I can sit around and watch PBS with Charlotte.  (side note:  although I would love to tell you all of the creative and fun "mommy" things I do with my girls, most days I just try to keep them quiet - meaning...PBS is a good friend of ours)  Anyway, Joel tends to have a lazy streak that appears only when asked to work.  Like when asked to clean his room or rake leaves he often feels "horrible" and just isn't sure he can complete the chore, yet if his brothers ask him to play football, he has a miracle recovery.  I had gone so far as to say things like, "Fine.  You don't have to do school, but just so you know, you'll be doing school well into June when everyone else is done"  and "OK, if you are that sick, we are going back to the doctor and they are going to take even more blood, and probably have all sorts of other tests...maybe even surgery."  It didn't change his mind that he still felt yuck.  So,  after all the blood work came back and showed nothing - no mono, nothing - she recommended that he not take any Tylenol for headaches and general discomfort so we could monitor any fevers.  Last night when he felt crummy and asked for a Tylenol, I said, "No, remember Dr. Jacob said you can't take anything."  Then he replied, "What kind of doctor is that...not letting you take medicine when you are sick?"  I tried to tell him that she had his best interest in mind, yadda, yadda, yadda.  It fell on deaf ears.  But that got me thinking...how many times do our kids ask themselves, "What kind of mother is that??"  for all of the crazy things we do for them that they don't appreciate.

Well, after all the tests came back negative - it was time to find some real answers.  I turned on my computer and Googled "child lethargy".  Of course!  I should have done that in the 1st place.  For about 30 minutes I had myself convinced he had been exposed to black mold.  I was trying to figure out where the black mold was growing.  Although I am not the neatest of housekeepers, I haven't seen any black mold growing on the walls or carpets.  Perhaps my fridge....so for the 1st time (oh, true confession) I took everything out of my fridge and cleaned out every drawer and shelf.  I didn't find any black mold.  But, there were some interesting looking pieces of broccoli and one stray carrot that was disgusting.  The cheese drawer was equally unappetizing.  There were a few pieces of shredded cheese that had fallen out of the bag and ended up at the bottom of the drawer continuing to get mushed by the bologna and American cheese.  Gross.  But no black mold.  Well, I figured that since I had gone this far, I might as well clean under and behind the fridge.  If you are one of those that vacuums behind your fridge every Friday -- leave now.  This is not for weak stomachs. You should have seen the crumbs, and magnets, and combs, and hair clips and dust bunnies.  There was an entire family - no, village - living behind my fridge on the various little pipes and contraptions.  Oh, I really disgust myself.  You know, I  think I am keeping things up pretty well until I discover something like that.  That's when I realize I am only hanging on by a thread.  Well, here's to a clean fridge!!  And another 7 years until I have to clean it out again!

I will try to post pictures in the next few days.  Thanks for asking!