I don't need no stinkin' flowers!

Every mom knows that when you're sick, the work doesn't magically disappear. There's still dishes to do, diapers to change, children to entertain and meals to be made. Unless you have a husband like mine. That's when the magic happens.

This past week, while I was sick, my amazing husband went grocery shopping, did dishes, picked up toys, put Jack to bed, made meals, got up with Jack, played outside with Jack, ran errands, and took great care of me. It was the most romantic thing he could've done.

I am so blessed!

Guess what we've been up to?

"Yucky virus" + Fever + Allergies = Exhaustion

**Not all of these medications are being given at the same time. Don't worry!

Can we catch a break...please?

Tuesday night we headed into the ER because Jack was having a hard time breathing. He woke up around midnight not being able to stop coughing and he was wheezing. Badly. I walked into his room, heard his breathing (or lack of), scooped him up in my arms, walked into our room and announced to [a still sleeping] Lonnie that we were going to the ER. I was dressed and putting Jack in the carseat while Lonnie was still waking up. I don't think I've ever moved so fast.

So...2 hours, one breathing treatment and one steroid shot later, we left the ER with a diagnosis of Croup. Yuck. So, now we're dealing with a nasty cough and lots of congestion. Thankfully we haven't had any episodes like we did Tuesday night.

It's June. My child has been battling some sort of illness since November. We've had a couple of weeks here and there when he's been healthy, but I don't think we've gone any longer than that. I am exhausted. I don't understand why he's been so sick. I don't know if it's the harsh Minnesota winter or if it's being around more kids than usual or if it's something else. I do plan on talking with his pediatrician about this in the near future...I've just been nervous to because I don't want to seem like the paranoid mom that insists there's something very wrong with her child....when there's not.

So, that's what we've been up to. Being sick and hanging out at home. Oh, and watching some awesome thunderstorms! We had a tornado warning last night, but nothing came of it. Just some wind, rain, lightning and thunder. Which is good...I was really dreading the possibility of having to wake Jack up and spend time in the basement in the middle of the night. Not my idea of fun. :)

We're Home

We were discharged from the hospital this morning...woohoo! Jack is feeling much better and is back to his "normal" self. He hasn't thrown up since Tuesday and just had a tiny bit of diarrhea last night (sorry if that's too much info!). Now our goal is to keep him hydrated and help him rest. Ha! The last thing he wants to do is rest. It's been a challenge. He has so much energy pent up from sitting in a bed the past 4 days. He has been eating little bits here and there, which is good. We are praying that this trend continues. Oh, he has the "official" diagnosis of Rotavirus. It's amazing how quickly this bug progressed and he got dehydrated.

Thank you all for your prayers. :) Here are some pictures from our stay at the hospital.

This was Monday evening. He was getting rehydrated and feeling a little better.

Jack and his lion. The lion was given to him by the hospital.

This was Monday night while he was asleep. He had to sleep with the lion every night.

This was Tuesday...one of our worst days/times.

Jack and Daddy reading together. This was Wednesday. He was starting to feel better at this point (notice the Cheerios).

One of Jack's favorite books - from Uncle Josh & Auntie Nan. :)

I believe this was taken Wednesday afternoon. He was OUT.

*Update*

Jack is starting to get back to his "normal" self. :) This is great, but also a challenge because he wants out of that bed! His bloodwork from this morning looks good and he is well-hydrated. They are going to decrease his IV fluids and see if he can drink more on his own (and hold it down). He ate one piece of canteloupe this morning and stuck a piece of egg in his mouth - an improvement! His potassium levels are down, so they are going to give him some in his IV and see if that helps.

Last night was rough. He cried for a couple of hours before finally falling asleep for the night at 10 pm. His fever was pretty high and I think he was just uncomfortable. He slept pretty well through the night, but had to be woken up at 1 am because of some major diarrhea. Yuck. But, thankfully they were able to get a stool sample from that (which we had been trying - unsuccessfully - to get for most of the day) and so we'll find out later if he has rotavirus.

Again, I am at home just to take a shower and clean up. We'll find out later in the day if Jack can come home...it all just depends on his ability to take in his own fluids and keep them in. I'll post when I can!

THANK YOU so much for all of the prayers. It means so much to Lonnie and I to know that people all over the world are praying for us and our little boy. Praise God!

Jack is in the hospital...

Jack was admitted to the hospital yesterday afternoon for severe dehydration. He had been throwing up since Sunday night and went in to see the doctor Monday afternoon. He also had a high white blood cell count, but that has gone down. He has an IV for fluids and has also taken meds for the nausea. They've also drawn blood twice. It takes everything in me not to cry when they're putting needles in him. He is more hydrated now, but they would like to see his "number" get better. He is doing really poorly though. He is crying most of the time and complaining that his tummy hurts. He has horrible diarrhea right now, but has stopped throwing up. He has a low-grade fever, but his body is burning up. His pediatrician said that best case scenario is that he goes home tonight...but he wants to make sure that he's feeling all the way better before he sends him home.

Please pray for Jack. Pray that he feels better and that his body heals. Please also pray that Lonnie and I lean on God during this time. We are both very tired and it hurts us to see our baby hurting.

I don't have internet access at the hospital (well, I haven't really checked it out yet) and I am home right now to shower and get a few things. I'll try to update when I can. Thanks so much.

Lack of...

Motivation. Energy. Sleep. Health. A Life. Organization. Sleep. Sleep. Sleep. Sleep.

These are just a few of the things that are lacking around here lately. Why? Jack is sick again. And boy, when this kid gets sick...he GETS SICK. He doesn't just get the piddly little cold that all the other kids have. Or, maybe I just overreact.

I will try to post some pictures later. Right now I can't think straight. Been up since 4 am and haven't slept much since Sunday.

Oh, and it's freakin' cold. Last night the temp was -9*F and it felt like -48*F. Yes, you read that right. -48. You know it's cold (and windy, and snowy, and miserable) when Minnesota closes schools and freeways because of the weather.

It gets a little overwhelming

Having a sick child, that is.

Let me preface this by saying - yes, I know I am blessed that I have a pretty healthy child. What we are going through is extremely minor in comparison to some of the illnesses that other children have. I am so thankful that the Lord has blessed us with a healthy boy.

I can't tell you how many times we've been to the doctor in the past 1.5 months. More than 5, less than 10? This bug will not go away. And now it's turned into a bad fever for my poor baby. He woke up with a 103* fever on Saturday night and it's been going strong since then. The urgent care doctor gave him a diagnosis of bronchitis and prescribed a new antibiotic (#4!). His fever/lethargy got worse last night and this morning, so I took him into his pediatrician. He thinks it's just viral and will have to run its course. So, no new antibiotic...just stick to the one they gave him for his (2nd) ear infection. Which is good, since he threw up the new antibiotic last night anyway. :(

He wants to be held ALL the time. I can't set him down without him crying. Which wouldn't be that difficult if he didn't weigh 35 pounds. It was much easier when he was a baby! I know he really doesn't feel well because he's so snuggly. He's my non-snuggler most of the time. And now all he wants is for me to hold him, lay with him, or rock him.

All I want to do is make the pain go away for him. He's so exhausted and run down. His eyes are droopy and he's hot all day long. I keep praying for this fever to break and praying that my active boy comes back soon. We're all tired of this virus. It's definitely overstayed its welcome! If you think of us, could you pray for us too? Thanks! :)

Oh, and in the meantime, we've decided to hold off on the eye patching. The poor kid has enough to deal with right now. We've also made an appointment with a pediatric ophthalmologist...just to get a 2nd opinion and see someone who's geared more toward children.

Overkill?

Jack and I are sick....again. :( I am exhausted. There was maybe a week or so where we weren't sick. And, then we caught it again. Now I am paranoid of THE GERMS. They are my sworn enemy. Today I spent a good portion of my day killing THE GERMS. Lonnie and I sprayed every.single.one of Jack's toys with Lysol. And then wiped them all down (I am not sure if this is an absolutely necessary step, but it's what the directions say to do). I cleaned the bathroom top to bottom. And I mean cleaned. Lysol was my friend today. The whole house smells like Lysol. Which tends to get overpowering after awhile. Tomorrow I plan on attacking Jack's room with the anti-GERM stuff. And the kitchen too.

Unfortunately, we have a bunch of moms and kids coming over for a potluck on Wednesday...so all of my hard work will be un-done. I will just have to start all over. Because THE GERMS need to learn that they will never survive here. I will triumph. We will be healthy.

Did I miss something?

So, we have a box of Trix sitting in the pantry. I decide to have some this morning. (Uh, because the marshmallows in the Lucky Charms are stale...why else?) I look at the box and notice that something looks different. I look inside. Yes, they look different.

Since when did they make Trix into circles? Didn't they used to be shaped like the fruit they were supposed to artificially taste like? Or am I dreaming? (Truth be told, I wasn't allowed to have cereal like this when I was a kid, so it is entirely possible that I could be thinking of something else altogether. And, that is also the reason why I feel the need to eat this garbage as an adult. I am making up for lost time.) Needless to say, I was a little disappointed and my morning wasn't as wonderful as it could have been.

On to more important news....I had to take Jack back to the pediatrician. AGAIN. The Amoxicillin wasn't doing its job, so they switched him to a new antibiotic. It had better work. The poor boy cried for an hour straight after he woke up from his nap...which is why I made the appointment. It's unlike him to CRY for that long. Scream, maybe. Cry, no. My heart was just breaking for him. But, in true toddler fashion, he stopped crying as soon as he saw the doctor and was all smiles for the rest of the afternoon.

Ear Infection/Pinkeye x 2

Apparently, my body wants me to understand everything that Jack is going through right now. So, I have also managed to get an ear infection and eye infection. Woohoo! It seems that maybe he is finally on the mend now, and I am getting worse. Which is fine. I would much rather be sick than have him be sick. But...it just sucks the life out of me! I had a hard time finding energy this evening to play with him. And he was so full of play.

One more vent about this whole "sick" thing...prescriptions/insurance/doctor bills are just no fun. I have to remind myself that I am thankful that we even have insurance...but sometimes I expect it to do more for us. My doctor prescribed a strong antibiotic (because, apparently my ear looks "nasty," in his professional opinion) that doesn't have a generic. So I got to pay $50 for 7 pills. Grrrrrrrrr. Again, thankful that we have insurance, but not so thankful when it doesn't do what I expect it to. So, I got to get told what I already knew for the mere price of $70. Yessss!

Jack has an ophthalmology appointment on Wednesday (unless they won't see him because of his eye infection) for a check-up. He's been turning his left eye in more with his glasses on, and I figured we should get it checked out, to see if he needs a new prescription. Which would be perfect timing (not) because we just ordered a spare pair of glasses with his current prescription! I take a lot of pictures of Jack in the bathtub (because that's when he's happiest!), but I am always hesitant to post them because of his eyes. His left eye turns in a lot without his glasses on and it looks funny. But, he is still my precious boy and looks adorable no matter what his left eye is doing. :) Here's a shot from bathtime tonight.

Mmmmmm....washcloth.....

Our first ear infection

Jack has his first ear infection. :( We did pretty good avoiding them for 2.5 years! The doctors/nurses are always surprised that he hasn't had ear infections since he was formula fed. Ha!

We took him to urgent care this morning because his cold just was NOT getting any better. It was getting worse. Sure enough, he has an infection in both ears and also an eye infection from rubbing snot in his eyes (ewwwwww, gross). My poor little guy.

As of tonight, his cough is also just getting worse, so I am worried about that. Oh, and it seems that the antibiotics are giving him diarrhea. Fun, fun. So we're making a call to the pediatrician tomorrow morning and maybe even making another trip in. They're going to start greeting us by our first names. Good thing we live not even a block from the doctor's office...we can walk there!

I am still feeling yucky, but hopefully I'll be on the mend soon. When I think of how horrible I feel, it makes me feel even worse for Jack because I can imagine how yucky it must be for him...not being able to fully communicate what's bothering him or what he needs to feel better.

And, to top everything off, our computer broke this morning! Seriously?!?! I'm having one of those days where I just want to yell "WHAT, LORD?!?!? What are You trying to teach me? What are You trying to get me to change? WHAT?!?!" So, Lonnie's at Wal-Mart right now, buying a desktop computer. On credit. Because we suck. I am hoping that we can at least access the hard drive of the broken laptop...all of our pictures are on there. We have them backed up on another hard drive up until we moved to MN, but the past 5 months of photos aren't backed up. Computers....such a hassle. It's pathetic that they've become such a necessary part of our life.

Please keep us in your prayers this week! It's going to be a long one.

Sick Sickies

Jack and I (Stephanie) are sick. We both have nasty colds. It is not fun...at all. My poor baby has a yucky cough and I can hear it while he's sleeping. It just makes my heart hurt when I know he's hurting. If his cough is still bad tomorrow, we're headed off to urgent care. Please keep us in your prayers!