If you follow us on Instagram or read our posts regularly here, you know how excited we were about our half-term break and a trip to Greece to see relatives.
But things have a way of not happening as we expect them to and last Saturday, the day before we were supposed to travel, Emma started running a fever. We took her to Dalriada and explained the situation but the doctor on call reassured us it was only a viral thing and it would probably pass within a few days.
Last Sunday was a total nightmare in my books. We travelled from 11 a.m till 11 p.m., 12 hours straight; a lot of driving, changing two flights and getting lost in Athens upon arrival. All with a feverish child who needed carried and pumped with Paracetamol and Ibuprofen every two hours or so. She was very good and never complained but rest eluded us as the same scenario continued at night. I had to be up every two hours, checking her, offering drinks and fever relief so not much sleep for this mama.
On Monday, Emma seemed better and Alex had a busy day, filled with paperwork and appointments so we just tagged along and tried to enjoy the warmth (a very unusual 21 degrees!):
By the time we arrived in Patra, where my in laws live, Emma was spiking up a fever again but we put it down to tiredness and after a lovely dinner prepared by my mother in law with loads of Greek feta and fresh bread as obligatory side dishes, we headed for our hotel to rest.
We had planned so much for our three day stay in Patra but at the top of our priorities was resting and enjoying time as a family of three.
But by noon, Emma was complaining of tiredness and in the evening, as we were visiting the local organic market and buying all sorts of goodies to bring home, she unexpectedly spiked a fever again. She hadn’t all day so I knew in my gut that things weren’t as they should be.
As things weren’t bad enough, shortly afterwards, a panicked auntie burst into our hotel room arrived with an unrequited thermometer, making our already depleted energy resources drain instantly and leading to a lot of bickering between Alex and myself. You know, I kept telling myself, my big fat Greek wedding isn’t so f….ing funny when you are not the onlooker!
On Wednesday we managed to see a local pediatrician who immediately diagnosed otitis(infection of the ear) and bronchitis(inflammation in the bronchial tubes). Emma was put on a strong antibiotic and was also given the blue inhaler to use for a week, to relieve the symptoms.
As Wednesday was our last full day in Patra we steered clear of the panicky auntie and headed to see the grandparents. Emma had dreamt of a number of things regarding this visit: having loads of bougatsa, a sweet custard pie she adores usually but had no appetite for due to the fever, and picking oranges off the tree in her grandparents’ garden.
She managed to gather enough energy to do the latter, here is my favourite picture, her Papou showing her the technique of picking a lemon off the tree:
Thursday was back to packing and travelling again, we had to drive back to Athens as we were catching a flight back to Dublin insanely early on Friday morning. We were all physically and emotionally wrecked when we finally arrived in Athens, so dinner was a quick and noisy affair of chicken skewers and salad, followed by a last stop in a sweet shop for chocolate:
I honestly wish we could rewind last week and start all over again. It has been a week full of worries and fighting, which has left me completely drained. I slept most of yesterday, in an attempt to recover my strength. Emma is feeling much better and is back to school today.
Oh, well, roll on Easter holidays, with no illness and loads of moments to cherish and enjoy, pretty please!
Mama's Haven 
Oh no, I am so sorry to hear Emma was so unwell 😦 glad she is on the mend now x
I’m really sorry that your special holiday was so stressful 😔
Awww I’m so sorry to hear Emma was so poorly, I hope she is feeling much better now and your next holiday is wonderful xx
It’s a complete nightmare when you have a poorly child and when you’re away from home it only seems to make things ten times harder. Happy to hear that your daughter is recovering, I hope you’re all feeling brighter after your horrendous half term x
How horrid for your little girl and you too! Coming from a Greek-Cypriot family, our remedy for illness is avoglemono, always works wonders. Glad Emma is on the mend now x
It is horrible when your child is unwell. I understand that it upsets the balance and can cause issues
What a shame that illness and exhaustion spoiled your break, but that lovely photo of Emma and Papou is gorgeous. One to treasure. x
Oh I’m so sorry. What an awful and worrying week for you. There really are some nasty bugs doing the rounds. Glad to hear she’s all better now.
I’m so sorry your half term was spoiled, poor Emma, I’m glad she’s feeling better now. I still have memories when I was little and managed to come down with measles during a family holiday.
I hope your Easter holiday is free from illness and full of fun x
Oana I’m sorry your holiday turned out this way. It must have been so worrying from you, with Emma so ill and being far from home. I’m glad she at leas got to pick a lemon. I hope you all manage to get over it – sounds as though rest is the cure.
I am so sorry to hear that Emma was ill. Poor Sebby has tonsilitis at the moment and his temp keeps spiking too – such a nightmare when one minute they are ok and the next they’re flat
Oh no Oana! I’m so sorry that you had such a stressful break away – I bet you need a holiday to get over that one x x
So sorry to hear Emma was poorly, what a shame. It’s exhausting too isn’t it. I hope she’s feeling much better now, fingers crossed for the next trip 🙂