The Downside to Co-Sleeping

I read a parenting article that said whether you choose the family bed or not, whether you choose to Ferberize or cuddle the baby to sleep - it doesn't matter what the experts say so long as you, the parent, is happy with the choice and it works for you in our particular situation. I agree. So we co-sleep most nights. It works for us. Well, truthfully, we co-sleep to get everyone to sleep and then move to another room. But sometimes, we parents are so exhausted we fall asleep with the monkeys and stay asleep.
But there is a downside to the family bed. When one kid gets sick, EVERYONE is affected.
After a busy day of dance lessons, hockey practice, shovelling the driveway, temper tantrums, and ice skating, our little family was exhausted. Once the lights were turned off after bedtime stories, everyone fell asleep almost immediately. Only to be woken up two short hours later to Ceilidh gagging and vomiting, in bed. Devlin managed to escape unscathed, but Aisling was in the pathway of the barf. Mommy and Daddy also got covered in our failed attempt to remove Ceilidh from the bed before she emptied the contents of the tummy everywhere.
As I stripped the puke-covered sheets and wondered how I was going to get our ginormous comforter cleaned, Daddy had to bathe two little crying girls. Eventually, the fresher smelling kids were tucked into separate beds - sick girl in one room, and the other two in another. Then we toiled to get our bedroom clean (the floor was gross) and start a load of laundry. We tired parents joked about the sheer volume of vomit considering this kid hadn't eaten much dinner. We congratulated ourselves over the decision not to buy the kids popcorn at skating and holding firm on our resolve not to let snacks take the place of dinner. Then we settled down to sleep in separate rooms. Daddy got Ceilidh, while I had the other two.
An hour later, Ceilidh was throwing up again.  Another bath, another change of sheets, another trip to the laundry room. Thank god our washing machine is in no danger of conking out. One episode of vomiting could be chalked up to "maybe she ate something funny". Two episodes suggest a virus. As I trekked down to the laundry room with another pile of stinky bedsheets, I vaguely recalled some of the parents at dance complaining about the various illnesses their kids had suffered recently. I remember thinking smugly at the time that my kids were healthy and had weathered the holiday season without any incidents. No smug grin now.
In an effort to be proactive, we spread out several large bath towels over the bed sheets, and also administered a suppository dose of Gravol to a resistant child.  Lights went out again. I returned to Aisling and Devlin, but didn't sleep much because every time Aisling stirred I was awake, wondering if she was going to be sick too. (She wasn't sick but she did wake up to inform me she had to pee and a trip to the bathroom was warranted.)
An hour later, Ceilidh was sick again. Another change of pyjamas, one bed sheet and the towels. I trekked down to the laundry room again. This pattern continued throughout the night. I lost track of the number of times she was sick.
Clearly, the other two weren't affected since they were up at 7:30 this morning! Bright-eyed and bushy tailed, and inquiring about breakfast.
It's been 3.5 hours since her last vomiting episode, and Ceilidh appears to be on the mend. I've given the kids strict warnings to not share their drinks and to wash their hands. Keeping my fingers crossed that Devlin and Aisling will escape the clutches of whatever bug held Ceilidh captive last night. Now I'm looking up the location of the nearest laundromat with heavy duty washers to handle the soiled comforter.
Oh, the joys of parenting.