The Mumps that stole Christmas...

I put my hand up to host Christmas last year.  The family had had a generally shitty year and I decided to make it special.

I truly love Christmas, plan for a lot of the year.  I love decorations, giving gifts, hanging lights and decorations and the cooking...I don’t even mind the shopping (Parking sucks though).

Cakes were baked, supplies bought and ordered, lights and decorations put up, all was going well...

Our lighting efforts...

Our well loved and slightly wonky, definately non-designer tree

Then the Saturday evening a week before my face started feeling strange, upon investigation I had swelling in front of my ears which spread down to under my jaw as the night went on.  Sunday I generally felt pretty ordinary and a bit more swollen.

Monday bright and early I was at the doctors, we laughingly quarantined me in a private area and I felt a bit of a fraud.

My brother and sister had mumps when they were little, I however did not.  I also learnt that those of us lucky enough to be born in the early 70’s did not get immunised due to conflicting medical opinions and lack of government support for programs.

Long story short, examination and blood tests, a throat swab and hey presto, MUMPS.  The 24^th case in Queensland in 10 years...told to go home and stay home, I was in quarantine for the good of the town...no shopping, to going out except the doctor’s surgery and worst of all NO CHRISTMAS!!!

My husband wanted to go out and paint a cross on the front door!

Luckily the presents were bought, as was most of the food...the legends at Coles On-line took care of the rest.  We had also already bought the booze so all was well...

Except that I was supposed to be catering for 9 people, 6 of whom could now not enter the house due to the quarantine and the fact that by Monday night I felt truly awful.

My face hurt true, but it was the crushing tiredness and generally feeling horrible that was the worst of it.

Did you know there is a risk of pancreatitis in adults with mumps? So no grog, and no rich food; basically I couldn’t even enjoy the products of all my hard work.

Plans were changed and everyone made do...disappointing after all the work and planning but what can you do.

So apparently from now on until the end of time my husband will wittily call that time... “The Mumps that Stole Christmas”