By Michelle Byrne COVID now behind us
It began as an ordinary Tuesday in our house, nothing out of the usual but it ended very differently and put a halt to our usual family adventures across the Hills and Hawkesbury for the next 2 weeks. As a family we had managed to avoid COVID for the last two years but with Covid now everywhere it was only a matter of time.
It was our 2-year old Sophie who picked it up first from playgroup. We had no idea she had Covid and no reason to suspect it. There were no signs of her being unwell until Tuesday night when she had a seizure at the dinner table. We had two ambulances and a resus unit here within minutes. In emergency Sophie had a temperature of over 39 degrees and she failed a RAT test.
As a parent your mind goes to the worse possible places as to what is wrong with your child but there was a sense of relief to be told that it’s “only” COVID. In Sophie’s case the COVID had caused a massive temperature spike leading to a febrile convulsion. Febrile convulsions are common in kids, leave no damage to the brain and they grow out of it.
We are incredibly grateful to the unsung heroes of our health system, the paramedics, the nurses and doctors who looked after Sophie that night. They were absolutely brilliant.
It is however a timely reminder of the importance of knowing basic first aid because you never know when you will need it and it’s also a reminder that for some people COVID can be dangerous. With rest, plenty of fluids and paracetamol Sophie was back to her normal self in a couple of days but unfortunately one by one the rest of us tested positive to COVID.
During isolation we talked about all the things we wanted to do once we could leave the house and the consensus was that we wanted to go to the markets. We have been exploring the different markets at the Castle Hill Show Ground in recent times. Each market is different but each provides the opportunity to support small businesses and regional producers as well as providing a great place to catch up with friends and family.
The Castle Hill Farmers & Fine Food market runs the 2nd & 4th Saturday of the month and we often visit after Saturday morning sport for fresh fruit & vegies. The Up Markets which run in collaboration with the Positive Vibes Foundation (PVF) on the 4th Sunday of the month has stalls, food, live music and provides an opportunity to support a local charity with funds raised going to support the Hills Women’s Shed.
The girls love looking out for Coco, the mascot for PVF. The Aussie night markets held on the first Saturday of the month has stalls, food trucks, carnival games and rides for the kids making it a very popular in our household.
With COVID now behind us we can’t wait to attend the markets again and we certainly can’t wait to explore other markets across the region
