Ho, Ho, Hospital?

Our Christmas started off with Kendall wandering blindly from my room, through the living room while we were actively putting together Santa items and had stuff strewn all over the place. He was rubbing his eyes and was three-quarters asleep, and my mother and I just stared at each other in slack-jawed horror as he marched to the bathroom.  I followed him in there and then covered his eyes and made him get in Hudson's bed. Santa was almost ruined for a 7 year old because of an ill timed urge to pee and my bright idea to put them all in the floor of my room so they could use the attached bathroom.

We finally finished getting everything out, and Haley brought all the stuff over for her kids in my van. I had the kids all dressed in their Christmas pajamas for optimal picture taking on Christmas morning. That is, until Maddie threw up all over hers about 9pm.  She had been running a fever in the afternoon, but a little Motrin brought it down. Hudson was having a terrible time getting settled down for the night. He didn't go to sleep until after 10. 

When we finally got it all set up and the stockings filled, we drifted off to bed to wait for the next mornings festivities. All the kids were in our room, Maddie in the bed with us, to help alleviate her coughing.

I got up around 6:45 and called my Dad to call my brother and his wife and Dad's girlfriend over to watch the present opening. The boys woke up on their own, and went to the bathroom and had pull ups changed and piled in the bed with Tim to wait for the starting gun. 

Maddie's Haul

Hudson's present extravaganza

We spent an hour and a half opening presents. Maddie didn't eat a lot of breakfast, in fact, she wasn't really interested in it at all. About 9, I checked her temp and it was 100 in her ear, so I gave her some more Motrin (BTW, you shouldn't give under 6 month olds Motrin, something about platelets, I don't know, just don't give it to them.)  By 10:30 her fever had still not broken, she had a 101 rectal, which, according to my book on infants, is the critical number for 3 moth olds. I hated to use the on call doctor and interrupt their Christmas, but I had to do it. When he called back he said it was probably a virus and if she wasn't better or the fever didn't come down to come in on Friday.

By 12, the fever was the same and she had not eaten anything substantial since the bottle before the thrown up one the night before, probably around 5.  She was lethargic, not having wet diapers anymore and was not herself, so I packed up my diaper bag and took her to the Emergency Room.

We seemed to have gotten there just in time, there was only one person in front of us, and three more came in after I sat down. We went through triage, which was done by the nurse who attended Hudson just a few short weeks ago. Maddie was still running a fever, and the doctor wanted a bunch of cultures and tests done to see what was going on. She was hooked up to an IV, which took TWO tries on her little dehydrated veins, and we went for a chest X-Ray.

Maddie had pneumonia. Really bad pneumonia. The doctor said he wanted to start IV antibiotics and keep us a night so we could monitor her fluid intake. While we waited for a room, Santa came to visit.

In what is possibly one of the last Polaroid pictures on earth, My daughter's first Christmas was documented while she was sporting an IV and hospital gown. And I look like shit to boot. I know the ER is not beauty contest, but damn.

Santa brought her a big children's hospital dog and a stocking. They were a very cute Santa and Mrs. Claus.

Our nurse came in to take us to our room. I wasn't paying attention to where we were going, but when we got off the elevator, I realized we were on the floor where Hudson was in November. When she consulted the board for our room assignment, WE WERE IN HUDSON'S HOSPITAL ROOM. I had to call my boss at home and tell him that another one of my children was in the hospital and I wouldn't be at work on Friday. Haley and Tim brought me some Christmas leftovers; I hadn't had anything to eat except 5 sausage balls that morning.

In the ER, she wasn't tested for RSV, so they did that on Friday morning. I went to get some water and a bottle for her and when I came back, the gown and glove isolation signs were up on our door. The RSV test had come back positive.

She didn't want to eat all day, and the doctor decided to keep us another night. Tim came up and I went home to change clothes and shower and observe the destruction at the house. Tim managed to get her to take 4 oz at once. Her total intake for the previous 12 hours was 10 oz.

By the morning, she was taking 4 ounces at a time. We got to leave at 2. We saw quite a few of the nurses who were with Hudson in November. It took them a minute to figure out where they new us from, but I remembered some of their names and faces. They all asked about Hudson. The respiratory lady said she knew she had seen my face come out of that room before. I'm sure it's going to be named for us if we keep up with the monthly visits.

I did my after Christmas 50% off shopping in the hospital gift shop.

Maddie is still coughing, and we have to suction her out before every feeding. We've got the humidifier running and she's on her first round of antibiotics. She's at least eating a little again.

We're going o try and keep her home for the next month to recover from the RSV.

I think this is going to be a long winter.

I hope you and your family had a great Christmas. One that did not involve hospitals and IVs and sick babies.

P.S. I got the Kate Spade perfume I wanted. I also threw a big tantrum on Christmas Eve about doing the damn dishes AGAIN. A big tantrum. I slammed drawers and doors and threw stuff around and generally acted like a big huge baby. Tim was appropriately contrite and apologetic.

Comments

[SJ]

Oh how scary. I'm so sorry that you are going through this awful sickness with Maddie, and that it all came to a head on Christmas.

I hope she recovers quickly.

[Rachel]

How scary for you! 2 hospital visits in 2 months! I am glad that Maddie is ok and home with you guys. I hope it was a Merry Christmas anyway.

Screw dishes.

[CPA Mom]

When you told me about this on Christmas, I was so scared! I'm glad she is doing better. Winter won't suck - the worst is over!!! Merry Christmas!

p.s. I would have thrown a tantrum too. Think I still might. Just for you.

[Kellie]

Sweet Mary Mother of Shoes, that SUCKS!! Poor baby! Poor you, too!

A friend's baby had RSV when she was around Maddie's age. Poor kid was in the hospital for almost a week and then my friend had to keep her home all winter. It was awful.

Hope everyone is doing okay :)

[Kellie]

Oh man! Not fun AT ALL! It is so scary when kids get pneumonia! Hopefully the sickies will not cross your doorway anytime soon in 2009.

Happy New Year!

P.s. I really dislike doing the dishes more than once a day. It feels like I spend half my life in the kitchen. Bleh. I feel for you.

[Amy W]

I hope all is well now...and probably a good idea to keep her home for a month, even though I know how hard that is.

And man, Hudson made out! Audrey would be jealous! :)