Why are the Kids Teeth Chattering?

Ah, another adventure in our house!

Around 9am this morning I finally sat down to have my first cup of coffee. I had been running around for the past 1 1/2 getting breakfast ready, feeding the kids, cleaning up, changing some diapers...Once I sat down I started to notice I was a little chilly. I asked Brady to come sit next to me and warm me up. Then I asked Eli to come over with us...that is when I noticed his teeth were chattering. Brady's nose was red and his cheeks were really cold too! So I checked the thermostat which is always set at 68 during the day and it read...62!

It was then I realized something was wrong with the furnace. I turned it up, nothing. I turned it off, then on again, nothing. I looked at my four kids, all of whom are sick, and knew it was going to be one of those days. I gave Matt a quick "We have a problem, fix it!" phone call. He got a hold of someone but they couldn't come until later in the day. He gave me a few options of using an oil heater and a tiny electric one. The idea of keeping my 4 monsters off of heaters all day long frightened me down to my very chilly bones. I made the decision that we would pack up and head to Grandma's for a while.

So we spent a few hours over there with all of the cousins. After lunch the repairman called to say that the problem was our thermostat and that our 21 year old furnace wasn't great, but it was working okay. So we decided to head home at nap time. It was snowing pretty hard, that really wet snow. The kids noses were running all over, they were cranky, I was getting soaked. I almost cried when I pulled into the driveway to see that the repairman was parked directly in front of the garage. That meant I had to schlep the kids out of the van, into the snow-filled driveway, while carrying the baby--and two huge bags, and get us all across the driveway, through the garage, up the sidewalk, up the stairs, and into the house. We finally made it there and thank God it was nap time.

It turns out we will be getting a new furnace tomorrow anyway. Apparently the tax incentive and energy efficiency make it a good purchase. That old thing could go any day. So tomorrow, with temps in the teens I think, we will be without heat for part of the day. Great plan for those who will be at work tomorrow, scary plan for the person who will be here with 4 sick and cold children!

Actually I'll be gone tomorrow for a little bit and Grandma Sandy will be here with the kids. I'm taking my nephews on a lunch/movie date. It's an annual tradition! Of course I'll have to see how the situation is going here at home. We may need to take another field trip to stay warm!

Here's hoping you are staying warm wherever you are!