First Time Hospital Patient

My dearest son is lying in a hospital crib next to me hooked up to IVs & monitors & respiratory assistants. It's so sad. We are here for the night. Marcus is at home gathering things for our stay like toothbrushes & clothes & a soft blanket for Isaiah.

The breathing issues started last night. He woke up every half hour crying. We held him & softly coaxed him back to sleep. I stayed home with him today & Marcus ran some errands for the business.

He struggled through his nap & was very lethargic & although he didn't cry, he also didn't smile or talk as he normally does a LOT. When I noticed his chest caving in when he breathed, I got a little concerned & decided to email his doctor a video if his breathing. Shortly after she responded, "You need to bring him in."

Marcus stopped washing dishes & came over. I threw clothes on me & Isaiah & gathered my computer & his bag.

It wasn't soon after we arrived that they called him back. Some dumb assistant came in & checked something & said a certain number had to be at a certain point. I asked what that meant & she said it was good. I didn't pursue the reasoning any longer. The doctor came in & listened to him breathe. She was almost immediately certain that we were going to the ER. It sounded like he was having a hard time breathing in, that the problems were coming from his throat rather than his chest. Which meant it wasn't congestion rather it was swelling of the vocal cords - narrowing of his airways - croup. She confirmed it & sent us to the ER.

The receptionist made sure to inform us that usually the visit was much more expensive than the doctor was charging us.  Great because apparently Marcus's insurance had been cancelled, & he forgot to tell me.  I was planning on getting insurance soon but only to get better coverage & coverage for me. 

When they took us a back, a swarm of doctors & nurses came in & took Isaiah to be treated.  First they did an epinephrine treatment.  Then steroids.  Then they were gone; they had to wait a few hours for the treatment to work & to see if he would require more. 

We watched Miss Universe.  Our favorite was Miss Venezuala, but she didn't make it to the top 10.  Our second guess was Angola & she won.  Marcus joked with the nurses the next few hours about how he was too busy to follow their instructions because he was watching the girls.  I told Isaiah to pay attention to the girls when they would threaten another treatment.

The first set didn't take, so they gave him another, told us he was staying, hooked up an IV so he could get fluids, & moved us to a room upstairs.  We decided Marcus would work the event in the morning & I would stay with Isaiah.  Thank goodness I brought the computer; I prepared lists & labels for food & sent Marcus on his way.  He went to get us dinner & a bag of things I requested.  He returned & said goodnight. 

Here we are together.  It's quiet now, but soon either the nurses will return to check him or he will be startled by his cough & wake up crying. 

My poor baby. 

Getting Closer... And Baby Pictures!

Last time I wrote, I said I was feeling better.  That feeling didn't last long.  Instead the cold got worse.  It spread to my ears & my eyes.  I lost my voice for a whole week.  But today, for real, I feel better.  I can taste & smell things again.  I smelled the popcorn when we walked into a movie theater last night (Robin Hood... ehhh).  And I tasted the chicken dipped into my favorite ranch dressing today.  And I can talk! 

My midwife Sarah came to my apartment for my latest prenatal visit.  I have dropped a little.  And after feeling his head & his butt and his back, she says everything is perfect as far as size goes.  Which means all that work I have been doing not eating ice cream has paid off!  My baby isn't too big! 

We set up everything on my dresser for the birth, and we talked about who was going to catch the baby & who would cut the cord.  Marcus doesn't think he will want to do either, but I think he'll change his mind.  The other day he tried to tell me that because his father couldn't handle the natural birth of him & his brother, he shouldn't have to either.  Then I threatened him. 

And now...  I've been meaning to post these forever...  Baby pictures of me & Marcus.  I will admit that he was much cuter than me as a baby.  My looks came in a little later.  After looking at these, can you tell what Isaiah will look like? 

 

Sick, Useless & Loved

I was making lots of headway on getting things done when I felt something in my throat, that horrible thing that tells me I'm about to get sick.  How disappointing!  I felt great throughout my whole pregnancy until now. 

Thankfully, it's not that bad.  Just a sore throat & a little cold that's making every possible sleeping & sitting position miserable.  But it could be worse.  It could be the flu or my nemesis strep throat. 

Thankfully, even though I would like to be productive, I have a chance to rest.  Marcus "fired" me from work yesterday.  I joined on this week's events to ensure they could do them without me, and they did.  So I'm now free to stay home & start doing what a bunch of moms told me to do...  rest. 

And thankfully, my mommy is here to take care of me.  This morning she made me vinegar & honey, an old family sore throat remedy.  And she asked if she was helping me too much.  I told her I didn't think that was possible.  It's really nice to have her here.  And my little sis too. 

And now, a completely unrelated picture...  Is my son going to be anywhere near this cute?