Photo from www.sanfordhealth.org
He's a very nice and friendly man. He came into Jack's room to see if there was anything he could do for Jack, on Dr. Henry's request of coarse. The second he started talking it was obvious that he wasn't from around here. He had a very definate southern accent. Every time I hear someone talk with the twang it doesn't take long before I find myself following suit. I though 'oh lord' as he stared to speak. We spoke for a bit and then he asked me to tell him about Jack's choking spells. I said "You can always tell when he's fixin' to wake up because he'll start to cough and that's when he chokes." The second I said "fixin'" all bets were off. It was very funny. After I got done talking he was explaining something to me. I don't even remember what it was right now, but he gave some 'back woods' explanation - a 'Dr. Phil ism' if you will. I couldn't take it any longer. I started laughing and said "Oh lord! You are so from the south." He said "You started it! You said fixin'!" It was very funny.
The funny thing is that the moment he walked into the room he reminded me of my brother. I'm not sure if it was the southern accent (Dr. Lundien is from Mississippi) or the red hair or maybe just a combination of both. It doesn't matter I guess. I felt great comfort around him and that was nice. Every time he'd walk by our room he'd give a friendly wave. When I got home I looked at his bio on the Sanford Health website. Much to my surprise, his name is also Matthew - the same as my brother.
I think I'm finally getting caught up on my sleep. Jack is finally getting back on a schedule. He started sleeping through the night right before he was put in the hospital and due to being poked, prodded, tested and such, I thought it would take forever for him to get back on any kind of a sleep schedule. Much to my surprise he's slept through the night the past few days.
I just got a call from Natey's pre-school teacher saying that they were calling off school. Hallelujah! Justin is working the day shift today and I was going to have to take all the kids out to get Natey to and from school. The weather is horrible out - so them calling off school was music to my ears. Now - let it snow!
Hi everyone! Before I get into an update, I'd like to thank you all for checking in each day to see how Jack was doing. Thank you for your thoughts, prayers, and encouraging words. A very special thank you to Tracy for her love and helping touch. A special thank you to Linda, Shannon, Mom, and Sharelle for calling each day to check in and offer any help that could be given. Knowing that there were so many people willing to help if needed made my stay away from home that much less complicated.
Dr. Peach got in on the fun as well. She likes it because Nee-Nee (Natey) likes it. The kids were so happy to see us when we got home. It was so cute - it almost brought me to tears. Yesterday Natey and I ran to the store and Peach almost fell apart. I'm sure she wasn't sure if we'd come right back or if we'd be back in a week. Poor thing.
We're very happy to have our baby home and getting better. Thanks again for all your kind words and warm thoughts. This picture was taken of Jack today. As you can see, being sick can't keep a smile from this babys face.Kerrie just sent me a text telling me that her and Jack were on their way home!!! I am not sure when she'll be able to get on and post so I thought I'd let you all know!!
I am sure she appreciates all your thoughts and prayers for Baby Jack. Hopefully their family will be back to normal in NO TIME!!
Tootles!!
Tracy
Kerrie just called and they got moved last night from the Peds ICU to a regular room on the Peds floor. This all happened at 11pm at night! Can you believe that?!? I couldn't...but I guess they have their reasons.
Jack does have Laryngomalacia. There is no treatment for this...just time for it to become stronger. All of the other tests came back normal that they have done in the past couple of days. Which is great news!! I am assuming that means both the sweat test and the swallow test. The allergy tests will trickle in when completed. They are sending Kerrie home with a monitor to keep track of Jack's O2 so she is learning how to do that today. I am not sure the doctor wanted to let them leave today but due to the weather Kerrie convinced them that that is a wise decision on everyone's part!! YOU GO GIRL!
OH-they are coming home today!!!! I am sure after learning about the monitor and going through the discharge process they will not be leaving until later this afternoon.
Kerrie has to continue the NO DAIRY diet and Jack will continue the Prevacid for his acid reflux per Dr. Henry.
I am not sure there is anything else. Kerrie and I chatted about the doctors...but I will let her tell those stories if she chooses.
Thank you for all of your comments for Kerrie and her family. I read them to her yesterday and she is much appreciative to all of her blogger friends! :)
Now let's pray their transition home will be a smooth one!!
LOVE YOU MEYER'S!
Tracy
I just got off the phone with Kerrie after 2 attempts to see what was going on. Darn doctors! No, just kidding!! She sounds so much better!! I tried to call yesterday afternoon but she was sleeping and I told the nurse "DON'T WAKE HER!" After talking with Justin last night he said, "Yeah, I woke up Kerrie yesterday." I almost had to slap him...no, just kidding again!! HA! (sorry Justin)...love ya!
Anyway, Jack is OFF of oxygen today and has been for 24 hours!!! He is maintaining his levels!!! YEAH!!!! They also found out what was wrong with him other than Para Influenza. That was just an illness on top of everything else. Okay so he has something called Laryngomalacia. Now if you can pronounce that...you're doing better than me!! Kerrie tried to explain what this was but when I was going to start explaining to all of you...I decided to look it up. Sooo...
Laryngomalacia results from a congenital anomaly of the larynx (voice box). A weakness in the structures in the larynx, can cause stridor. Stridor is a high-pitched sound that is heard best when the child breathes in (inspiration). This is present at birth. During fetal development, the structures in the larynx may not fully develop. As a result, there is a weakness in these structures at birth, causing them to collapse during breathing. The major symptom of this disorder is the stridor that is heard as the infant breathes. The stridor is usually heard when the infant breathes in (inspiration), but can also be heard when the infant breathes out (expiration). The stridor gets worse if the infant has an upper respiratory infection (for instance the PARA INFLUENZA that Jack has). In most cases, congenital laryngeal stridor is a harmless condition that resolves on its own, without medical intervention. The condition usually improves by the time the infant is 18 months old and has no long-term complications. In some cases, the stridor is apparent until about the age of 5. Each child's case is unique.
Hopefully that made some sense...I didn't include the whole article but only the parts that pertained to Jack. As you can see...it definitely makes sense. On top of that the poor child has acid reflux...ugh!
They are going ahead with the swallow test today at 10am to see if he is aspirating into his lungs. Tomorrow they will be doing another procedure where they put a camera down his nose to see if there is any irritation from the reflux (I believe on his larynx or esophagus). They were also going to do a sleep test to see if he had sleep apnea but must have decided against that (per Kerrie).
They are continuing with the tests they had ordered...once again to RULE out things. I am very happy to see they are doing EVERYTHING they can to make sure they don't miss something. That makes me very at ease and you can tell with Kerrie...she is satisfied with their care.
Claire is doing good. I think she is over her bout of runny nose and coughing. Actually I just called Justin to verify that information and he said she just had a slight cough last night but is doing well.
Justin, Claire and Nathan came to Pizza Hut last night for Dawson's birthday supper! I was so glad they came!! It meant alot to us to have them there!! Claire looked a little sad but Justin said she was tired. She apparently didn't go to sleep the night before until 11:30pm. She was kicking the side of her crib or the wall (not sure which one) and talking. Justin would go up there and say...
Justin: "Claire, you need to go to sleep"
Claire: "OKAY"
Justin: "Claire, stop kicking and go to sleep"
Claire: "OKAY"
Justin: "Claire, close your eyes"
Claire: "OKAY"
can you just see it??
Justin no longer walked down the hall and BOOM BOOM she was doing it okay! HA!! Okay, so that's not funny but...too cute!! So she must have been tired last night at supper! Kerrie said she stayed up last night until 1:30am! I think she is taking after her daddy! Up all night! I am sure she senses that mommy isn't home and things have been different! Hang in there Claire!!
I hope this is keeping you all as up to date on Jack as I have available. I didn't even hesitate when Kerrie asked me to update on her blog. If I could be at the hospital with Kerrie...I would be. Helping her...letting her sleep, getting her something to eat. Anything! But unfortunately I have responsibilities at home and with Dawson's birthday...it's become next to impossible. This family means the world to me and I would anything for them...anything...
Justin called this morning and I just got off the phone with Kerrie (before the doctor came in) so this is what is happening this morning with Baby Jack. A doctor came in last night around 11pm to confirm that Jack has Para Influenza. This illness mimics other respiratory illnesses and right now his is mimicking RSV. So they have Jack on an antibiotic, Zithromax, and giving him neb treatments every 6 hours...although Kerrie says they don't seem to be working. Jack is still on oxygen (nasal canula) and they have tried to wean him off but he cannot maintain a safe level. Kerrie says as soon as he gets better (illness wise) he should be able to maintain his oxygen level on his own without any problem. Dr. Henry came in this morning and beings Jack is still on his oxygen so he said they won't be going home today. Kerrie is hoping for tomorrow.
Kerrie also asked Dr. Henry about eating dairy. He said to continue the NO DAIRY diet until Jack gets better-since he is sick it is hard to tell if he would benefit from her change in diet or not.
This morning they did the sweat test (cystic fibrosis) and took 1/2 the blood they need for allergy testing. Apparently a lot of blood is needed to do allergy testing so they took 1/2 now and will do 1/2 later. They will see a pulmonologist later today but Kerrie wasn't real sure what they would be doing. I asked about the reflux scan that was scheduled to be done again today and she didn't get a chance to answer me because the doctor came in.
She sounds extremely tired but seems to be doing okay. She said there isn't a lot of down time as there are constantly nurses and doctors coming in and tests being run. She is still breastfeeding so of course, that takes time as well.
Thanks for all your comments...I was going to read them to Kerrie but didn't get a chance. Will do so later if time allows!!
They are going ahead with the testing to RULE OUT things...in case you were wondering.
Hang in there little buddy!! They are taking good care of you!!!
Lots of love,
Tracy
Kerrie asked me to write this post...
Yesterday, Kerrie took Jack back down to Sioux Falls to see Dr. Z (since Dr. Henry wasn't in). They admitted him into the hospital for some testing. They checked his oxygen levels which were low so he has been on oxygen since arriving at the hospital. Kerrie said that yesterday he pinked up but today he looks pale again. When they try to take him off the oxygen...his levels drop again. They also did a chest x ray yesterday and Dr. Henry said it looks like he has a touch of pneumonia although the radiologist said no. This morning they were going to both a sweat test and a reflux scan which they only did the reflux scan with no results as of now. They will repeat the scan in the morning to see if he is aspirating into his lungs. He is currently in the Peds ICU but only because they don't have any open beds on the regular Peds floor. So right now it is hard for Kerrie to call people or receive calls due to the restrictions in the ICU. Hopefully a bed will open soon so she can be more comfortable. Jack is pretty cranky today as he isn't able to sleep without any interruptions. Kerrie is getting little sleep and I am sure she is not eating well. Justin is on his way down to see her and take her a bag of clothes and other personal items. I have had the children yesterday and today and I told him I would just keep them until he came home. I also told him to make sure Kerrie has gotten something good to eat and he should sit and chat for awhile. Nathan and Claire will be fine with us! They have done very well but I am sure they miss their mommy. Kerrie is waiting for Dr. Henry to come around so she can ask him if she can eat dairy again. It is next to impossible for her to find something to eat even at the hospital with no dairy. She is breast feeding again and they are supplementing with formula but Jack isn't taking the bottle very well.
I am sorry if I jumped around with all this information but I wanted to make sure and pass along all that she said. Pray that our little guy comes home soon and the doctors find out what is wrong with him.
Written with love,
Tracy
P.S. If you have any questions...feel free to email me...tferber@iw.net
On Friday the kids went to Tracy's house. She snapped this super cute picture of Jack. Poor little guy threw up just minutes after getting to her house due to the flem in his little body. The kids love to go to Tracy's house. Natey had been counting sleeps to keep his excitement at bay. Tracy got a lot of "Ta-cy...HI!" from Claire. Claire walks around our house saying 'Tracy where are you'. It sounds like 'Ta-cy where yah woo?" :) This was Jack's first stay at Tracy's house. Other than getting sick he did well.
Today is the DAYTON 500!!! I'm giddy! I've long said that I have too many teeth to be a NASCAR fan, but I am. I blame it on my dad. When I was growing up, my dad was a huge football fan. I didn't get into football until I was living on my own. I got to where I loved it. My favorite team is the Denver Bronco's. I had an unfortunate 5 year hiatus from my dad in which his loved turned from football to NASCAR. When my dad and I reconnected, I was happy to tell him about my 'love of the game' in which he replied "I haven't followed football for quite a few years". Um....what? He said that he enjoyed NASCAR and I sat down and watched a race with him. I thought it was the most 'redneck' thing I'd ever seen in my life. It wasn't long before I was hooked and there is no going back now. My favorite driver? I like many of them, but I like Dale Earnhardt Jr. the best. There, I said it. I'm officially out of the closet. I LIKE DALE JR. It feels good to say it. ;)
Do you watch Grey's Anatomy? Oh my gosh - I LOVE this show! If you're not watching, you really should. In my opinion it's the best show on TV right now. Love it! Tonight The Amazing Race - All Stars starts. This also makes me happy. This is my favorite reality show and it's going to be even better this season because of the All Starts. YEA!
Did you guys see that Britney Spears shaved her head? What on earth is she doing? I'm not a huge Britney fan, actually I don't like the sound of her singing voice much at all. But she's a train wreck waiting to happen. How many times does this girl have to call out for help before her family steps in? I realize she's a grown woman, but I can't imagine that my family and friends wouldn't have intervened if they thought I was off my rocker. My lord!
Ok, gotta go. The race is on. :)
Natey simply couldn't wait for his Dad to get home last night. Waiting was killing him. He sat in the window like this for 45 minutes. He, of coarse, doesn't understand time yet. Finally Justin called and told him that he'd be home when the clock on the stereo said 7:45. Nathan watched that clock like a hawk. Justin finally made it home and Nathan couldn't have been any happier. All of us were so happy to see him.
Peach wasn't doing well last night. When I picked her up at Pam's she was coughing. Pam said she never stopped coughing the whole day. When we got home it only got worse. She was coughing nonstop and I mean it when I say nonstop. Her little heart was pounding. I was concerned that something bad was going to happen to her. She would be coughing and then all of a sudden gag and dry heave. It was horrible! I had no idea that such sounds could come from such a little person. I was very close to taking her to the ER - something had to give.
I called Tracy to see what kind of advise she could give me. She couldn't believe how nonstop Claire's cough was. She said we could use some cough medicine that she had of Dawson's that has codeine in it. Normally I wouldn't give my kids someone elses medication, but she needed some help. The poor little thing! She would come and lay her head down in my lap and just cough and cough. I tried to give her an ice chip but she wouldn't take it. I tried to give her water to no avail. Ferber brought the medecine over and I gave her a little. She'd slept most of the day at Pam's and was still exhausted. As expected, she was out like a light.
Justin said he went up to calm her down 4 times before he went to bed at 2. I went up at 4 because she was coughing and fussing. I'm not sure what time she got up today, but she was up at 9:30 when I called to check on them. She's at Tracy's today because Pam took the day off. Tracy agreed that she looks like she's been ran over by a truck. Poor Peachy Pie!
Jack isn't doing much better. He's been on the steroid since Wednesday and I really hoped for some results by now. This morning he choked hard. He was turning colors by the time he got the crap out of his throat. Justin came running out of the bedroom to get to him. I happened to be closer so I picked him up and turned him on his side. It doesn't help much though. It's scary as all get out when he does that - and he does it often. Luckily we don't have to go anywhere this weekend so maybe the kids can have some time to get better. If Jack isn't better by Wednesday we'll have to let Dr. Henry know and more than likely put him in the hospital. Hopefully that won't happen though.
Have a good weekend everyone!
First of all, thank you to everyone who asked about Jack. It's a very long drawn out story, so settle back and get comfortable.
Lets start with Peach. Dr. Henry checked her out and saw some drainage in the back of her throat. He said at this time her ears are fine and she looks to only have a cold. He said to watch her because it can easily turn into an ear infection. As of 9 this morning, she was still walking around gagging. I called Pam to check on the kids because Natey said he didn't feel well this morning either. She said that they are both playing well with their friends and told me about the gagging thing with Claire. Hopefully they'll get better soon.
Now for Jack. Dr. Henry seemed a little peeved that I was there again. He said that Jack didn't seem to be all that different from the last time I saw him. I explained that I could hear him breathing from across the room that morning and that I was SICK of him choking. Jack threw up a bunch of snot (sorry) on Tuesday night and I asked him WHERE the snot is if it wasn't in his chest. He said that it's just hanging out in the back of his throat causing him to gag. He asked me how often Jack gags. I told him that I've never kept track, but that it's numerous times a day and that it happens at all hours. He told me that he was concerned about the gagging. (ARE YOU KIDDING ME???) Yeah, me too! I told him that I suspected that Jack might be having some sort of a reaction to the dairy in my diet and so this is what we're doing. He gave him a steroid to try to kick the cough. I have to take dairy out of my diet, including whey. Do you know how much food contains some sort of dairy product? Popcorn has dairy in it for crying out loud. UGH!
Anyway, Jack will have to have a special formula until he and I can get the diary out of our systems. He'll be on the steroid for 7 days (or less if it works). After the 7 days of Jack being on the special formula, I can nurse him again. However, I'll just use the whole can due to the cost of the stinky stuff ($22). If I nurse him and he gets worse then we'll know it wasn't the diary. I should back up; if the steroid doesn't work then Jack will have to be admitted to the hospital. Dr. Henry wanted to keep him in the hospital yesterday, but with Justin being gone it obviously wouldn't work. I asked what he would do with Jack other than observe him if he put him in the hospital. He said that they would put a monitor on him so they would know his choking pattern and have a heart doctor look at him and also a GI specialist.
IF he has to be put in the hospital, they will do a sweat test checking for cystic fibrosis and also do an allergy test. So for now we wait and hope he gets better with the steroid. OH - check this out! Remember when I said that Jack didn't do well when I had chocolate? I thought it was from the caffeine, remember? Dr. Henry said most likely it was due to the milk in the milk chocolate that I was eating.
Thanks again for checking in on us. I just got off the phone with Justin. He was supposed to be in Sioux Falls between 3pm and 4pm, but is delayed in Chicago due to a plane coming out of Kentucky. He's been delayed 3 times now and is supposed to leave Chicago at 4pm. That would put him home at roughly 8 tonight. I hoped to be in bed by 6. I've had a rough few days. There is, however, a light at the end of my tunnel.
Nathan got a bunch of the toy cars from the Pixar movie 'Cars' from his Grandma and Papa Meyer for Christmas. He LOVES them and plays with them non stop. If he's not playing with his 'Cars' cars then he's usually playing with his NASCAR cars. Dawson has taken a liking to the 'Cars' cars and I planned to get him some for his upcoming birthday. Well, GOOD LUCK! We went to Walmart on Sunday and there was hardly anything there. There was a huge space where they had been (notice past tense), but there was only one set left on the shelf. I guess I'll have to order them on-line. They're even hard to find on-line though!
Here is the only set they had left. Nathan's been asking for these so he couldn't have been more excited to see them. Aren't they cute? I think they are adorable. Natey played with them non stop yesterday. If he sat them down and Claire picked them up then trouble would ensue. Thankfully, Claire moves on to other things quickly so we didn't have to have a ton of meltdowns, but to say there were non would be a flat out lie.
They aren't kidding - they mean business! Ok, so we got to the game and had to load up on snacks. Apparently this is a ritual for them. Dawson had pizza which wasn't worth putting down to say 'purple monkey' for this picture like I requested.
As you can see, I almost got the 'talk to the hand cause the rest of me ain't listening' from Dawson. The boy LOVES him some pizza. (For real - the boy would eat it every day if Tracy let him.)
And then the reason for coming happened.......
BRING 'EM OUT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Check out the look on Natey's face in that second picture. I was laughing and crying at the same time. This is SUCH a big deal to him. I think it is absolutely awesome that the players do this to/for the kids. I was happy to finally be a part of it.
A good time was had by all!
Did you read this story? When I came to work today this call was winding down. From what I hear, our dispatcher did an awesome job. I couldn't be happier about it! As dispatchers, we often times go unnoticed. Actually, the police also go unnoticed as well (which I'll never understand). In the paper, you might see a thank you to the ambulance and hospital staff, but it was the dispatcher who got that ambulance for you AND the police officer who either came to assess the situation or possibly even gave CPR. It's very nice when someone calls to tell the dispatcher that they did a good job. As you can imagine, it's not fun to have someone screaming in your ear that they need help - whatever the reason is.
This morning one of the girls dad's called and thanked the dispatcher. I thought that was super great! I'm glad this story had the ending it did. Last weekend might have brought a different result with the temps we had.
Look who visited Natey's class a week or two ago! He was SO excited. He hardly got in the van before he started having me guess who came to his class that day. He assured me that it was someone in a Clifford costume and not to be scared by it. It was more than likely what he told himself the second Clifford walked in the door. :)
(photo property of St. Thomas pre-school)
The nurse called at about 11:30 with the results from Jack's upper GI/small bowel test. There is nothing blocked and nothing twisted, so that is good. She said that he didn't reflux while he was drinking the barium, but that doesn't mean that he doesn't have reflux. I asked why, and she said that just because he doesn't reflux with one drink doesn't mean he doesn't have it, especially with the family history. I told her that he turned for the worse after we'd been there and also that we'd started again with the nebs. She said to keep doing the nebs every 4 hours and to keep an eye on him. If he's still coughing by Monday then they'll need to see him again.
I called Justin with the results and he said that Jack seemed to be doing better this morning. He said that he's not coughing and choking as much which is WONDERFUL! I also asked the nurse how long it would take to see results with the new medication and she said up to a week. With that said, hopefully we're on the up-hill climb.
Ok, I can't believe I'm going to blog about this, but I am. I can't help but feel bad for Anna Nicole Smith's baby. Her mother was such a train wreck. I was shocked when the news of her death popped up on my MSN news thing. A couple hours prior to the message about her death there was a message that she'd collapsed. I clicked on it and thought 'that's what drugs will do to you' and didn't think anything more of it. Then the pop up came of her death and I thought 'OH NO! Her baby will never know her - good or bad!'. It's so sad. So tragic. So preventable.
Jack seemed a bit better this morning. I gave him a neb last night and it seemed to help his coughing a little. It wasn't much, but I'll take anything over nothing. I'm afraid that he might be reacting to the dairy in my diet. I have given up pop with caffeine which was no big deal. I haven't been drinking caffeine for quite some time, years actually. However, I'd never willingly give up chocolate. You might remember that Jack can't tolerate chocolate so I've cut it out of my diet (diet - yeah right). I've eaten chocolate chip cookies, but who eats a chocolate chip cookie to satisfy their chocolate need? NOBODY - that's who! I've told many people that I'm going to have an entire meal of chocolate the day I'm done nursing Jack. Not that I won't, but I really hope I don't have to cut dairy from my 'diet' as well. I'm a cheese fanatic! Everything tastes better with some sort of cheese on it.
Last night Natey started complaining of a sore throat. JUST what we need at our house. I had a sore throat almost all of last week, so I can't say I'm too surprised. He told me this morning before I came to work that it was still hurting. Fantastic! (sigh)
Yesterday I was chatting with Tracy on the messenger at work. It was getting close to 4 and she said something to the effect of 'I bet your ready to be done with work'. I laughed and said "Are you kidding? This isn't work. Work starts when I leave my job." It's one hundred percent true. Having 3 young children at home is MUCH more work than talking on the radio, answering the phone and helping save the occasional life. I don't mean to make light of it, but it's very true.
Anyway, after I get the kids from Pam's, Nathan usually asks if we can drive around for a bit. He likes to check if the train is at the 'train yard' (elevator) and those sort of things, but mostly he likes to watch his DVD player for a bit before we go home. Yesterday I had to deposit a check, so we headed to the ATM. On our way to the bank we saw a police car with its lights on. Natey was beside himself with excitement. It wasn't long and we were on a detour to see if it was Justin. Natey was on the look out to see if it was the 3 car. That's the car that Justin usually drives, so Natey was searching the car to see what number it was. Low and behold it was Justin. I told Natey to look inside so he could see his dad. He said "He's writing that guy a ticket. Let's go back by." So we did. As we were going by, Natey yelled "HONK AT HIM!" Could you even imagine? I'm sure Justin would have been more than pleased with us. Needless to say, we didn't honk. We did drive by again because we're stalker type people and Natey couldn't get enough of his dad's flashing lights. :)
Justin: Did you pay the city bill?
Me: No.
Justin: Ok. I'll do it then.
Me: Ok. Thanks!
Nathan: What's the city bell?
Me: No, he said the city bill.
Nathan: Oh.
Me: We pay them so they don't turn off our lights.
Nathan: (with urgency) HURRY DAD! THEY ALREADY SHUT THE LIGHTS OFF IN MY ROOM!
Me: (giggle) No they didn't Natey. Your lightbulb burned out.
The RSV test came back negative which is a good thing I guess. I just wish they could tell me what's wrong with him so that we can make him better. He had the upper GI yesterday and if we don't hear the results today then we're supposed to call the office tomorrow. I really need some answers for this poor little guy.
I got up with him at 3:40 this morning and never got back to sleep. He had a cough that was causing him to bark like a seal. I know - sounds like croup, but it would have to be the early stages of it. Justin gave him a neb this morning and it didn't help his cough. It doesn't usually make it go away, but it usually makes it so that it's not that barky. Then this morning I was feeding him and he threw up all over me. He's much like Claire was when she was a baby when it comes to being sick. She was a sick baby and also one of the happiest babies ever. Jack is the same way. He threw up and then looked at me and smiled.
Anyway, I'll pass along news as I have it.
As you can see, Claire thinks potty time is fun! She's doing well with it too. She's even pooped on her potty. We take her every hour and sing songs and sometimes read books.
I know this is going to surprise you, but Natey felt sick last night when it was bed time. I'll give you one guess as to what I did when he told me his tummy was sick. Here, why don't you just guess.
A) Laid in bed with him and rubbed his stomach.
B) Bit his arm so he'd forget about his stomach.
I feel like a broken record. It seems that at least once a week I'm updating on a sick child. Today is no different. Today, again, it's Jack. I told Dr. Henry to fix him and that I wasn't kidding. He asked me if I was ready to trade him in. I'm not to that point just yet, but I just feel sorry for the poor baby. He's been scaring me to death too, and that's no fun!
Sunday while I was cooking stuff to go over to Tracy's, I looked over at Jack and from his nose up he was purple. I about had a heart attack. Of coarse my hands were full and full of goop so by the time I got to him he'd gotten up the snot crap that he was choking on. Seriously people, I freaked out.
This morning he woke me up by coughing at 4:30 and I've not been back to bed. Todays verdict is that he ..... wait ..... I just assume you're all sitting down, but if by some rare chance you're not - please - sit. No, it's ok. We'll wait for you. Ok. Lets just say it together. It's a ..... (drum roll) ..... VIRUS. Oh how I despise that word. Yes, once again Jack has picked up a virus. This is on top of the acid reflux which I'm not sure is getting any better. Dr. Henry ordered an upper GI/small bowel for tomorrow to 'make sure he's not missing anything'. He also tested Jack for RSV. He made mention of putting him in the hospital if he doesn't get better - so I'm not sure what is going on. I'll have to ask some questions when the nurse calls (with the result of the RSV test).
Anyway, that's how Jack is doing. :( Poor little guy. He's still cute as a button though. ;)
Cute, cute, CUTE! Grandma and Papa got this hat for Claire. When she opened it up, she said "OH - MY". We all busted out laughing. It was so funny. We've never heard her say that and it was so clear - and in the right context. It was so cute! As you can see, she was very happy with her new hat.
Settle into your chair. I have a Natey story that you don't want to miss. It's not a normal Natey story. The 'normal' story is funny. This one - not so much.
I'm not positive when this started, but I believe it was around last Saturday sometime. When we put Nathan to bed that night he said he didn't feel well and wanted someone to lay with him. Claire was still sick at the time and it was quite possible that Nathan wasn't quite better from his flu bug. So, Justin went up and laid with him for a while. The next day, Sunday, is my 'work, sleep, work' day. While I was sleeping, Justin was busy getting the kids through their nightly routine. When it was time for Natey to go to bed, he told Justin that he wasn't feeling well again and thought he was going to throw up. Justin called him on it this time. He pointed out that Nathan had been fine all day. Natey got all worked up and started gagging. Justin told him to go downstairs to stand by the toilet. He did - for 45 minutes - of coarse never throwing up once.
The next two nights weren't quite as bad. Each night Natey said he didn't feel well, but went to bed without much of a fit. Then came Wednesday. Wednesday night I took Nathan up to bed. He was crying and carrying on. He didn't want to go to sleep. He worked himself up so much he started to gag. I grabbed a towel that was laying by his bed and he spit up a bit. You should have seen the look in his eyes. He'd FINALLY thrown up after all these nights of warning. Believe me, I wasn't impressed. His Grandparents were supposed to be coming for the weekend which he was super excited about. Not only did he want to see them, but he'd asked his Grandma to buy him a Jimmy Johnson (NASCAR) car while she was in Rapid City. He knew if they came - so would the car. I told him that I would have to call them and tell them they couldn't come because he was sick. He yelled "NO"!! I asked him if he was sick. He shook his head and muttered 'no'. He was on the brink of hyperventilating, so there I was in his room coaching him on breathing. "Take a deep breath in. Now slowly blow it out." Finally he calmed down and I assured him that I'd had quite enough of his behavior and ordered him to sleep which he complied.
That leads us to Thursday. Nathan was asked to clean his room over and over and was talking back. Justin had finally had it and sent him to bed at 7:30. Nathan, of coarse, fell apart. He was gagging and was working himself up like crazy. He came down numerous times to stand by the toiled and for me to 'help him breathe'. After an hour of his ridiculous behavior he was told that we would be calling his Grandma and Papa and telling them not to come because he was too sick. He yelled "I KNOW!" I told him that I was disappointed that this was his choice, but that we weren't going to allow them to come and get as sick as he was. That was just fine with him. Finally we told him that if he didn't stop the nonsense then we'd be taking his music out of his room for the night. He went upstairs and we didn't hear another word out of him.
Justin called his parents and told them about Nathan's behavior and told them they they didn't need to come. They had been concerned about the roads, so Justin said that they should just stay put. Well, of coarse Grandma got a soft spot and said she wanted to try nonetheless.
Friday at work Justin called to tell me that his parents were on their way. I didn't tell the kids that they were coming. We went about our normal routine and got supper ready after coming home from work and daycare. About 6:30 someone was at the door. I said "Who's here?" to the kids and we went to investigate. I opened the door and Nathan's face was priceless. Standing there, of coarse, were his Grandparents. He stood there speechless for at least half a minute. Finally he said "Grandma! Did you bring my car?" (sigh)
Needless to say, Natey had no problems at all going to bed while they were here. I'm not sure what he did last night because I was in bed when Justin put him to bed. I hope he's done with it. Just in case he's not, stay tuned.
Yesterday after I got off work, I ran to Jubilee to pick up a few things. While I was there I saw a couple of kids that live down the alley from me. The little girl is more than I can handle on most days. My guess is that she's in about the 4th grade or so. She was with one of her brothers who I would guess to be in middle school. The first time I saw them I didn't make eye contact with them. I didn't want to be held up by the little girl. I was on a 'get in and get out' mission. It wasn't long until I ran into them again. This time I noticed that the boy had a grocery list. I looked around for their parents. I hadn't run into either of them in the store.
The kids and I were checking out at the same time. They took their load of groceries to the courtesy counter. The look on the cashiers face was one of obvious displeasure. I was getting more and more sad for these kids. I got checked out before they were done and ran out to the van to see if maybe the parents were in the parking lot. I got out to the van and looked around. I didn't see any of their vehicles, but that didn't mean anything. I don't always know their vehicles.
Finally I saw the kids coming out. They were both loaded up with grocery bags. The boy was also carrying a 12 pack of pop. They started walking across the parking lot towards their house. I had HUGE hopes that their parents would drive up to get them. It didn't happen.
I looked up to the panel on my van that says the temperature. It said -3. That was just the air temperature. There was wind and it was cold. Neither of them had gloves on. The girl had a hat on but the boy didn't. I couldn't take it. I zoomed over to them and asked if they were the kids that lived down the alley from me (knowing full well that they were). The boy didn't want to talk to me but the little girl yelled "YES". I asked if they were walking home in which they said they were. I put the van in park and told them to get in.
We got their groceries loaded up and we headed towards home. I realize that it was only a block and a half, but it was so cold that your skin burned instantly when you went outside. It was horrible.
To get to their house you have to go thru the alley. While I was approaching the alley, the boy said "Don't drop us off there. I'd like to get out here" (on the road). I casually said, "Oh, ok. Will you get in trouble if they knew I gave you a ride?" He said "Yes. Probably."
I let them out of the van and they loaded their arms with the grocery sacks. As I was shutting the door the boy told the girl that he must not tell their parents. They thanked me and I got back in the van. I shut the door and started to cry. WHO on earth would have their kids go get groceries in this cold? What kind of parent would make them walk? I don't know. I don't have an answer for this one.
When I came to work today it was -14. FOURTEEN BELOW! Usually I don't notice the weather when I come to work. I quite possibly wouldn't notice if my hair was on fire either. I'm always in a hurry in the morning. Today, for example, I've been up since about 5:45 yet I didn't have time to take a shower. It's not that I was wasting time, it's just that my mornings revolve around an (almost) 3 month old baby who calls the shots.
Today when I left the house I noticed the negative fourteen degrees that was freezing our neck of the woods. Any time you get below 10 degrees it's cold, but -14 seems a bit extreme today. And as you can tell by the weather graphic brought to you by Keloland Weather, it's not getting better for a while.
Switching topics but staying with numbers; here is another number for you. 85. That's the average number of people who visit this blog each day. The highest number of visitors I've had is 114 in one day and the lowest is 42 which occurred on a Sunday. People seem to think that they are wracking up my numbers with each click on this blog. That's not the way I have it set up. I have it set to only track unique visitors each day. With that said, if you check my blog 15 times while you're at work, it's going to show 1 visitor. If you go home and check it again from your home computer, you've just added another visitor to my counter. See what I'm saying?
So, who are you people? I could name 20 of you that I know come here daily, possibly even 30. But 114? I don't even know 114 people nor do I have 114 relatives. I say that about relatives because I included this URL in my Christmas letter. I sent out about 60 cards and I know some of those are part of the 30 that I could list. I thought that our friends and family might like to check in on us from time to time. I used to be obsessed and quite freaked out by the number of visitors I was getting. Now it's not a big deal, but I still get curious as to who's checking and reading each day. There are at least 50 of you that are continuous lurkers. Now don't get me wrong, I don't have a problem with people coming to my site, you're more than welcome to be here. I just don't know how you've made it through 141 posts and never had anything to say about any of them. Go ahead - don't be shy. Say hello!
Today when I signed into MSN Messenger, this article popped up on MSN Today. Why do people have such a fit over someone nursing their child? I must admit, there is no way on God's green earth that I'd nurse my child out in public the way that these mother's are, but that doesn't mean I don't think they have the right to do so. For one thing, I'm not near as talented as they are. I show way too much boob when I'm nursing. I'd also have to expose my 'almost fat roll' in order to do this. I'm more protective of that than I am of my boob.
