So, what started a couple of weeks ago as a little tickle in the back of my throat turned into a cute little heh – heh every once and again, then turned into a seemingly constant annoying cough that felt like razor blades in my throat, which then turned into to a full-blown case of bronchitis and another something or another that I can’t even pronounce, much less spell.

But, needless to say, after drinking everything I could think of that was warm and soothing for my throat from hot cocoa, to coffee, to tea, and simple warm honey and lemon water, I think I’m finally on the mend. Well, and I guess the medicine and shots my doctor gave me probably helped out some, too.

While I was out of commission running a fever and not really caring which way was up, much less actually trying to figure it out, I was thankful that I had written out my lesson plans and had prepared the associated materials to go along with them in advance.

I’d like to say that this is normally the case with me, but sometimes I have to admit I have our lesson plans sketched out but have not yet taken the time to pull materials for the next weeks’ lessons until the weekend prior.

It is definitely a habit that I need to improve.

But, luckily on this occasion, I had planned ahead.

With a little help from my husband and my mother {they were saints}, my son was able to keep on keeping on with our regularly scheduled schooling and I was able to fall into a fever-induced stupor in my bedroom.

As I recovered though, I started thinking.

Sick days aren’t normal for Moms, much less for homeschooling Moms.

Our stars were perfectly aligned to allow me to recover while our homeschool went right on.

But what if I hadn’t been that prepared?

As we get further into cold weather season, I’m sure more families will face illnesses. I thought it would be great for us to share our tips and tricks with one another for how we handle these days, and sometimes longer. I know y’all certainly have tried and true methods that work for your family that most likely would benefit another homeschooling family as well.

How do you handle sick days for yourself? Are your children able to work independently to allow you a day “off”? If so, how have you organized your daily routine to reach that point?

Please share.