Burned in the Worst Way

This past Sunday I went to Gulf Shores with Allan's family. We hung out on the beach and at their condo. The baby absolutely loves the beach. Mostly because he thinks that he can eat the sand. He is also definitely not afraid to crawl right towards the incoming waves! I enjoyed watching him have so much fun, and enjoyed my time with Allan's Mom, Aunts, and Cousins.

On my way out of the house, I snagged some sunscreen from under the bathroom counter. SPF 30 to be exact. I knew that my poor, white appendages had not seen sunlight in about 2 years, so I wanted to be extra cautious. We got ready to go out on the beach at the condo, where I applied my sunscreen generously. Sure, the first squirt out of the bottle was crusty and squishy, and slightly discolored, but I didn't think anything of it. The beach was beautiful and it was perfect weather. I noticed about an hour after being on the beach, that my legs were getting a little hot and crunchy. So, I reapplied my sunscreen to the places that were getting the most sun.

Once we went in from the beach, I immediately realized how much sun that actually had been soaked into my semi-virgin-to-the-sun skin. All of the sudden my body temperature was around 250 degrees, and that was on the outside! Ahhhhh! The ride home was miserable. That night trying to sleep was miserable. The next morning, trying to get out of bed was miserable. I couldn't even walk. As I hobbled across the room, grabbing every piece of furniture on the way for support, Allan just laughed at me and asked, "What is wrong with you?" I told him that my legs were hurting so bad from my sunburn that I couldn't even walk. By this time my burn had turned purple. I didn't know that a sunburn could even come close to this horrible of a color. Allan was convinced that I must have hurt myself somehow, because a sunburn couldn't cause me that much pain on the inside. Well, he was wrong, even though he still won't admit it. I called into work because there was no way that I could show clients around the Hotels walking like a cripple, and on top of everything else the baby was very, very sick. (No worries, he did not even get pink in the sun.)

I began puking that day and continued to puke the next day. I must have gotten sun poisoning. I was determined to get up and go to work on Tuesday. I did my best to get ready without getting sick, which did not work out too well. I think I vomited like 5 times. I got in my car and got halfway to work on the Interstate, when all of the sudden, I felt the urge to vomit again! I immediately grabbed the Wal-Mart bag that my lunch was in, dumped it onto the floorboard, held it up to my mouth, and realized there was a hole in the bottom. A lot of good this was going to do me! I tried to hold the hole closed and use it as a barf bag and pull over all at the same time. I was not coordinated enough, and ended up with puke all over my work clothes. All that work getting ready for nothing. I do have to say that I contemplated, for a moment, if anyone at work would notice the stain or the smell. I must have been really out of it to even entertain the idea of still going to work. Once I got my head straight, I pulled back onto the Interstate and went home. Allan was surprised to see me back at home, but disgusted by me at the same time.

Anyways, I say all of this to teach you all a valuable lesson. Sunscreen expires!!!! I was unaware of this, and that is why I am still suffering to this day. My skin is still purple in places and I am peeling everywhere. I look like a freak and I am pretty sure that I will never get the feeling back in my right shin again. I will make sure from this point forward that we buy new sunscreen each Summer.

Thank goodness that I forgot Peyton's sunscreen at home from last summer. We had to stop on the way and buy some more for him. That would have been terrible! I would have felt like the World's Worst Mom.

Needless to say, after taking Monday and Tuesday off at work and coming back with a burn/tan, my co-workers and boss seem to think that I was lying about being sick. Oh well. They better just be glad I puked on myself and not them!