ER Visit

It never ends, does it? Before I get too far ahead of myself, let me back up a bit.

Last Friday was my first attempt at a rummage/yard/garage sale. My parents, and my friend Jodi, were all a part of the sale, so I had a ton of help. Joe took the day off on Friday, so we had lots of hands to handle the sale and handle the kids. Joe and I made around $300! Not bad! It was a lot of work, but I think worth it. It felt good to get rid of all that "stuff" that we've accumulated over the years.

Joe's sister Julia, her husband Greg, and their 15 month old son Harry, came to visit last weekend as well. Our brave babysitter came over on Saturday night to watch all three kids, while the adults got to enjoy a nice dinner out. When we got home, all three kids were asleep. Amazing!

Then Sunday came around, and Nathan woke up sounding like a barking seal. Then after his afternoon nap, he woke up with a 103 temperature, was breathing incredibly fast, and was very lethargic. We called the pediatrician on-call, who suggested we take Nathan to Children's Hospital ER. Guess who came to the rescue yet again? My parents! They dropped what they were doing and rushed over to stay with Ella, while Joe and I drove Nathan to the hospital. When we got there, a nurse "triaged" him and we got filtered over into "ER II" which I still don't quite understand. Most of the kids in the waiting room appeared to be just fine, and I couldn't help but wonder if their visit to the ER was appropriate. It made me angry because I know some people treat the ER like their primary care physician.

After about an hour, we were taken back to a room, where it was discovered that Nathan had a 104.8 temperature and was breathing over 60 breaths per minute. 34-40 is normal. And then he puked. ALL. OVER. ME. I immediately went into hospital staff mode, threw on a pair of gloves, and began the clean-up while we waited for a doctor to see us. We never actually saw a doctor, but a nurse practitioner. She checked Nathan over and took a rapid strep test, which came back positive. She prescribed an antibiotic for that, gave him a steroid to open up his airway from the croup, and administered a Tylenol suppository since he puked up the Motrin earlier. They also gave him Zofran for the vomiting. And then we left. By the time we got home, Nathan was smiling and acting a little more like himself.

Despite everything that has been going on, he's been sleeping like a champ! (Knock on wood.) On Wednesday, Nathan woke up with a fever yet again and puked again. So off we were to the pediatrician, since he had been on the antibiotic for 4 days and wasn't getting better. They took another rapid strep test which came back negative, his ears and lungs were clear, and his fever was gone. Was it a necessary trip? Who knows...

All I do know is that I'm sick of Nathan being sick. I thought after he got the ear tubes, he would magically be healthy from now on. I know...silly me. The next time he gets sick...which will probably be next week...I plan on asking our pediatrician to do some blood work to see if Nathan's white blood count is low, or if there is some other reason his immune system is so compromised. I just feel so sad for my little boy. But he's a trooper.

Ella is doing well. She has so much energy. She has quite the imagination and loves to pretend. Her latest game is "Ice skating princesses" with my dad. Yes, with my dad! It's hilarious! They spin around, she climbs up his legs and flips over, she slides through his legs. My dad sure gets his workout with her! I think it's so neat though...I don't really have memories of doing things like that with my grandfather.

Joe and I start a parenting class tonight called, "Love and Logic." It goes for 6 weeks and I am really looking foward to it. I hope we can take the things we learn and start using the techniques with both Ella and Nathan.