I always say I would have had 10 kids if only children didn’t get sick. I can handle diapers, meal time, story time, bath time, and getting them to bed. I can handle home schooling and sky rocketing hormones, but sickness? Sick kids leave me worried and weary.

I’ll never forget checking my 18 month old boy into the hospital at 5:00 a.m.  After 6 months of intestinal infections, he got a virus that left him severely dehydrated and unresponsive. As day broke we sat waiting for the doctor, and my heart broke to see my big, strong husband cry.

The same kid later developed an asthmatic cough. He’d cough five times a minute. That cough kept us up nights and sent us to the emergency room and countless doctors. Total strangers approached me all the time to ask what was wrong with my son.

Then there was the week he spent flat on his back hallucinating from fever, unable to lift his head, open his eyes, or eat. Those seven days turned me into one distraught, dog-tired mom!

And that’s only one kid.

Motherhood: It’s worth it, but it’s a marathon.

Today I’m guest posting for my friend Abby McDonald’s “Renewal Through Christ” series. Come on over to Abby’s blog to read about how I find renewed strength for those uphill marathon days.(And while you’re there, check out some of Abby’s posts. She’s a gifted writer who who has a knack for knowing just how moms feel.)

Linking up today with Holly Barrett’s #TestimonyTuesday and Kelly Balarie’s #RaRalinkup, Meredith Bernard’s #Woman2Woman, and Jennifer Dukes Lee’s #TellHisStory.  Check their communities for more encouragement.