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Sponsor Spotlight: Are You Hot and Bothered?


I am so sorry, somehow I overlooked announcing the winner of the Vicks pack! So, without further ado, the winner is…

#10 Chic Mummy!

Please email me your contact details (for email link, try the ‘Contact’ link above in the header) and I will arrange for your prize to be posted out.

The view from our couch last week! Yes that is a toddler sitting on a towel with a vomit bowl! *SIGH* Fortunately though, no temperature. See for yourself, right there on the large, easy to read bright green screen!

Thanks to the generosity of Vicks, we have a brand new digital toy to play with. No not a new laptop *sigh again* but a new thermometer. And this one rips shreds off our old one. We used to use a ‘stick-it-in-the-ear’ variety but incredibly, despite the $60+ price tag, it was not backlit.

*Cues background music* It is pitch black, the dead of night, and your baby/toddler is fussy and won’t settle. You stand in the dark, trying to juggle not only a thermometer to take their temperature but also a mobile phone – for the light – as the ridiculous thermometer does not light up. Very unhelpful when you are trying to minimize disturbing your baby/toddler any more than is absolutely necessary.

That scene was played out at our house many, many times during the past two years, in fact Immy only ever seems to get sick during the night!

Anyhow, back to the Vicks Forehead Thermometer. As well as being backlit, you just sweep the thermometer across the patient’s forehead for a mere three seconds to take a temperature reading. A quick swipe, it beeps to let you know it is ready and then it lights up AND changes colour, just like a traffic light! Depending upon the temperature reading, the screen turns green, yellow or red. No late night, sleep deprived brain wondering if 38.2° is fever or not!

Now if Vicks could just work out a way to take care of the fevered child for you!

Readers of Childhood 101 have the opportunity to win this great nursery pack featuring a Vicks Forehead Thermometer and Grobag Room Temperature Egg, the total prize is valued at $140.
To enter, leave a comment on this post sharing your number one tip for caring for a sick baby, toddler or child. Giveaway closes on Sunday, 21st March at 6pm (Perth, WA time).

Christie Burnett is a teacher, presenter, writer and the mother of two. She created Childhood 101 as a place for teachers and parents to access engaging, high quality learning ideas.

Filed Under: Sponsors

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Read the comments or scroll down to add your own:

  1. Michele says

    March 14, 2010 at 10:20 AM

    Child would be iPod loaded with Dora episodes to watch and Disney stories to listen to, lullabies to lull them back to sleep.

    Toddler would be lots and lots of towels (and hot showers with sweet smelling apple shampoo for mum) because they never seem to hit the bucket when vomiting and just want to cuddle mummy so the vomit ends up all over the floor/you/your hair

    Babies would have to be the Vaporiser and/hot steamy bathroom/shower with mum as it seems to be nose blockes/chest dramas keeping them (and therefore you) at night and interefering with boobyfeeds. That and the Fess saline nasal spray if you can manage to get it squirted up there that is. I never had much luck

    And above all lots of love and patience and hopefully someone to tag team and share the load with so tired mummas get a break too
  2. Erin says

    March 14, 2010 at 10:34 AM

    Toddler/child- set up a bed on the couch and watch dvds/videos, also make jelly my sister used to only eat jelly and potato chips when she was sick. Also keep their fluids up with their favourite juice or just plain water. Icy poles work great too. Also give them a few toys like magna doodles and colouring books that they can do lying down. Also Panadol works wonders as it calms them down and perks them up if only for a little a while.
    Baby- would be to rock them and give them panadol to calm them down.

    Finally try and sleep when ever you can as if your relaxed so will they be
  3. Michelle says

    March 14, 2010 at 12:10 PM

    My best tip would be to kiss their foreheard. It doesn't replace a thermometer, but your lips on the forehead are a much better judge of temperature than your fingers. I can usually guess their temperature within half a degree!
  4. Kendra says

    March 14, 2010 at 6:08 PM

    For me, the key to dealing with a sick child is patience. When it's the middle of the night and they're up for the hundredth time and you don't know what's wrong, or it's the first time and you know what's wrong because they've just vomited all over you, or it's the middle of the day and they've just woken up with a raging fever and unexplained rash--I just have to be as patient as I can. Fear, confusion, and fatigue can combine to make me a poor parent when my kids are sick. But if I can be patient--with the kids, with myself, and with doctors--then things aren't quite as bad.
  5. Steff says

    March 14, 2010 at 9:05 PM

    On a side note for sick toddlers in the car - I was once told a marvelous tip - get two of those large disposable milkshake cups and cut off to leave the rim and about 5 cp of cup at the top - Place a freezer bag over one - place the other inside - whalla one disposable vomit bag like they haveat hospitals - works atreat - i always keep one of these contraptions in the car
  6. Jots Mum says

    March 14, 2010 at 10:38 PM

    I have no tips as I seem to get through each bug on sheer patience and panandol. But I am will be reading the others with interest.
  7. helgaanne says

    March 14, 2010 at 11:18 PM

    We get sick rarely but when we do; the house stops. Everything gets left till later as cuddles and 100% of Mummy is very important in the healing process. When my twins were sick together the older girls watched a lot of DVD's and I sat and held babies for about two days solid! We up the vitamins and olive leaf extract. Spray everything with tea tree oil and turn off the phone.
  8. Kelly says

    March 15, 2010 at 12:12 AM

    We have one of these... I'm not 100% convinced it's accurate though, have you compared it to your regular thermometer. It's rarely showed my little guy as having a temp over about 97.5F (36.4C). I think once when I thought he felt kind of warm - maybe borderline low-grade fever - it showed him as 98.something. Luckily he's never really had a fever so it's never really mattered. I keep meaning to bring it to my mom's and compare to her thermometer but I never think of it when I'm going there.

    I don't have much sick tips either... our little guy has had lots of colds, but never enough that it's affected his neverending supply of energy, so I normally am just chasing him around with kleenex to wipe his nose as he plays.
  9. miss carly says

    March 15, 2010 at 5:21 AM

    oooh! is all i can say!

    something that i always do with the sick bubbas is sit with them, have a cold facecloth to slowly bring down their temp. and i usually sit in their nappies.

    plus. if i am not sitting next to them, i have them on my lap and give them cuddles, trying not to give off too much body heat at the same time. cause really. cuddles is usually all they want!

    :)

    other than that i dont have too much knowledge with my own children, more of working with children..
  10. Chic Mummy says

    March 15, 2010 at 6:42 AM

    I have two toddlers, who will usually get sick together, and I have created a special "sick box" with some special, washable toys that they can play with lying down, like an eye spy bag, and a Mickey and a Pooh DVD.
  11. adam & rachele says

    March 15, 2010 at 8:48 AM

    If you're talking spew or poo, my best tip is getting them to eat grated apple left to go brown, doesn't look great, taste isn't too bad but boy does it work fast on fixing both ends!
  12. Organized Living by Amy says

    March 15, 2010 at 1:58 PM

    With my toddler, we just take lots of naps, read books, and drink fluids.

    Take it easy and cuddle.
  13. janimal says

    March 15, 2010 at 5:35 PM

    I don't have much experience taking care of sick children. What I do have are memories of my own Mother's cuddles making me feel better when I was sick as a child. So that's my secret now. Lots and lots of Momma cuddles.
  14. holly says

    March 15, 2010 at 7:13 PM

    my best advice is try to let all of the things on my "to do" list go and focus on whoever is sick. I still try to stay on top of changing the bed sheets. I always feel better after a warm shower/bath so I try to get the kids in the bath/shower even if they protest in the beginning - it does seem to help!

    Also, I always put vicks on the kids feet (with socks over them)... I'm not sure if it helps but it makes me feel like i'm doing something! :)
  15. Kelly says

    March 15, 2010 at 9:31 PM

    Lots of fluid and lots of rest (I find TV helps to keep them still). It's funny, I've developed a knack for guessing my children's temp. The Dr says, "Do they have a temp?" And I say, yeah, I think it's around 27.8." And I'm always very close. LOL! Us mothers are amazing!
  16. Suz says

    March 16, 2010 at 1:41 AM

    cuddles, rest, cuddles, water, cuddles, favourite foods, panadol & Daddy to look after Mummy if Mummyt is doing the lion's share of nursing!
  17. Candice says

    March 16, 2010 at 8:00 AM

    This is exactly what I needed last Saturday night for my 2yo son. He was burning up & it was nearly impossible to take his temperature without upsetting him even more than he already was.

    I use the the Vicks Vapouriser when he has head colds to clear his airways & it works really well. Thankfully though he hasn't really been very sick other than with colds etc.

    candy3181@hotmail.com
  18. MummaMb says

    March 19, 2010 at 6:35 AM

    My tip for my toddler would be to set him up on his little couch with a nice soft pillow and blankie and read him lots of stories in between naps. Feed him panadol, water and jelly if not eating. In the Night Garden DVD's also works very well! And lots of cuddles course!
  19. S. Franssen says

    March 19, 2010 at 8:16 AM

    Normally I would say cuddles from mummy, but because I have twins daddy usually has to be involved too.

    If they wake up unwell at night we sometimes let them pick something to eat, they cheer up straight away if they get to pick their favourite cracker.

    When my son has tonsillitis (yet again) he needs his antib and never wants too. So I give him a syringe filled with applejuice first to then quickly give him another shot of the antib. He usually falls for the trick!
  20. Kylie says

    March 19, 2010 at 10:24 PM

    With my 8 week old we've only had one sickie issue so far - her nose was SUPER blocked up and interfering with feeding. A little fess up there was all she needed (saline spray) and a bulb extractor/sucker. Cleared her right up. Now all we do is give her a spray when she starts to get snuffly and the little boogers come on out with the next sneeze :)
  21. Zoey @ Good Goog says

    March 21, 2010 at 7:53 AM

    Cuddles, cuddles and more cuddles. As well as creating a doona nest in front of the TV.
  22. Sharna says

    March 21, 2010 at 7:58 AM

    I am a first time mum, and the first ever time my daughter lily was sick, i had no idea what to do, i doubted myself and stressed myself out. What i worked out was if you stress out they feed off you, be calm, cuddle, give lots of kisses.

    For lily i have found that keeping her fluids up, sleep, watching bert and ernie, and also if she needs to sleep with us i will let her. Being sick is far from a nice thing for child and for parent. But when they share the love back to you, and you get sick that just proves that they love you even more!
  23. preece says

    March 21, 2010 at 8:12 AM

    Mine always seem to only get sick when we go away! Its always harder when you are away from the safety of home.
    I love the Little Innscents chest rub for those blocked noses, rub it on their feet as well and put socks on before bed.
    Best thing is always plenty of mums attention, kisses and cuddles.
  24. Cheree says

    March 21, 2010 at 10:09 AM

    Lots of TLC and reinforcements helps us get through sick days with the kids..

    Patience, hubby that doesn't mind the smell of spew and lots of water and encouragement.
  25. Dovic says

    March 21, 2010 at 11:25 AM

    Oh god I need one of these tonight. For me.

    For the kids snuggles are definate winner but my other hot tip, esp for new mums is to find out the number to your state help number for access to peadiatric nurses in cases where you just aren't sure what to do. In NSW for example it's 02 9845 2432. Worth seeking them out wherever you are for that little bit of helpful advice over the phone when you need it (esp when all the docs are closed).

    And then right back to the snuggles
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