Has it really been weeks?

My friend pointed out today that it had been weeks since I posted anything. I said, "No way, A week, maybe but not WEEKS!" Then I checked out my blog and it has been weeks. So I will try to play catch. As we use this as our journal, it will be long and detailed for posterity's sake. Anyway, Thanksgiving came and went way too fast. My whole family was in town which meant lots of noise, good food, games and laughter. These are pretty much all of my favorite things! I don't have any pictures because I am to excited to get out the door to head over to my mom's that I ALWAYS forget my camera when the family is in town. Krista is always really good about taking pics so I will steal some of hers!! My family was here for a week, some ten days. And it was glorious as usual! We had lots of really fun times and also some spiritual moments at night with our children sitting around. This is becoming more and more important to me as I see how fast Brady picks up on things! I don't want him to ever remember a time in his life when the spiritual things weren't just as important as the silly things! As we are all getting older, I find that I enjoy my brothers and their wives more and more. We are all in the same boat or getting their quickly as we have and raise children together. It is a wonderful thing to see your older brother love his child or your younger brother share a tender moment with his new bride when he doesn't realize anyone is watching. These are the things that matter the most to me. It was just a wonderful time seeing all of them and just being a part of their lives if only for a week. I sure do miss them when they are gone! Just as we started getting back into a routine around here following Thanksgiving, things got shook up again. On December 3rd, Brady woke up suddenly from his sleep at about 11pm. He was really crying, obviously upset so I went in there because I knew this was not a cry that he would fall back asleep from. The moment I picked him up I could feel how hot he was. He was on fire! I brought him into our room and took his temperature and it was 101.9. Not that big of a deal for a baby but this is my only baby and his first fever so I was a little worried. We gave him Tylenol and he fell back asleep in our bed. About 2 hours later he woke up crying and he was even hotter. I took his temperature again and it was 102.9 with Tylenol in his system. At this point I was pretty worried because Brady has never been sick, neither Nick nor I had been sick - I was just stumped. We hardly got any sleep that night. He was pretty inconsolable, poor little guy. First thing in the morning I called his pediatrician and she told me that they usually wait to see babies after three days of fever. That put me into the weekend so I was pretty annoyed. She said his fevers weren't considered "high risk" so to just continue the Tylenol and luke warm baths. She said it was probably viral and he would be better in a few days. I hoped she was right because he was obviously not feeling well and very unhappy. Friday was horrible, basically. Even with around the clock Tylenol, his fever never got below 101.9. He was so clingy and would not let me put him down - even to sleep. My mom came over around 2pm to take a shift holding him so I could get some rest. Friday night he slept in our bed and he just couldn't sleep longer than 1-2 hours at a time. At this point, a horrible cough started deep in his chest. So it seemed every time he got comfortable, he would start coughing. In the middle of the night his temp got to 103.1, we gave him Tylenol and he fell fast asleep. Saturday morning he woke pretty happy, just like his old self. I thought we were out of the woods and his fever broke. We woke up to tons of snow that day but because he wasn't feeling well, he had to enjoy his first snow from inside. He's so stinkin' cute! So, most of Saturday went as usual. No fever, no fussiness. Around 4:30pm I noticed he was on fire again. I took his temp and it was 103. So I started the Tylenol again. By 10:30pm, his fever had gone up to 104.1 and I was pretty nervous. I called the on call doctor and he said not to worry - just start alternating ibuprofen and Tylenol every three hours. He said it was probably viral. All day Sunday we did the Tylenol/ibuprofen every three hours and his fever never ever went down below 101. First thing Monday morning I called the doctor and they said we could come at 3:45pm. When we get there, the nurse I had talked to on Friday was like, "I can't believe he still has a fever, maybe he should have come on Friday!" DUH lady!!! Anyway, the doctor came in and listened to him and said he wanted to run some tests. He tested Brady for Strep and Influenza A & B. They all came back negative. He then came in he and said he wanted to do a nebulizer treatment and see if that helped the cough at all. So the nurse came back and we did a treatment on Brady, after which, the doctor came back in and checked his lungs again. He said there was a huge improvement. He was hesitant to make a definitive diagnosis but he said it was likely bronchialitis. He sent us home with a nebulizer and instructions to do treatments every eight hours and that he wanted to see us back on Wednesday. Before we left, he gave us about 6 things to look for and to not ignore - go straight to the ER. I don't remember them all but one was to not let his fever get above 104. We came home and held our baby close, still worried that something wasn't right. His breathing was very shallow and labored. I caught Nick checking his pulse and breathing using his cell phone a couple times and that only heightened my worries. Nick knew something wasn't right but he was willing to try another neb treatment to see if it helped at all. At 10:30pm we did the second treatment and Brady just sat there, limp and listless. Right after doing the treatment, we took his temp and it was 105.4. Immediately, we made plans to leave for the ER. This was not our baby. He was unresponsive and had this constant moan of pain. To go back for a minute, since Thursday, he hadn't really eaten or drank very much which was worrisome. We tried everything!!! So by the time Monday night rolled around, we weren't just worried about the fever but also his dehydration. Anyway, we get to the ER and they were fabulous!!! Within thirty minutes of being there, we were already checked in, in a room and talking to our doctor. She did an evaluation on Brady and instantly ordered an X-Ray. She was back in 15 minutes to let us know that he had significant pneumonia. At this point, we were just relieved to hear what it was and that is was treatable. After 5 days of being told it is viral and to just stick it out, we were so glad to have a solid diagnosis we could work with. She immediately ordered IV meds and fluid to get him hydrated. The poor thing was so exhausted at this point that as soon as the needle was in and he got his fluids, he fell fast asleep and looked more calm then he had in days. It was a relief to see! She also ran some blood work and it came back normal for somebody fighting an infection. She said she felt comfortable letting us go home as long as we were diligent about fluids and got him in to his pediatrician the next day, whom she also left a voice mail for. She was so amazing and I am grateful she was there that night. She was 7 months pregnant with her first, a boy, and I think she was so wonderful to us because she realized that in a few short months that could be her in there with her little boy. We got home about 3:30am and were all exhausted. Poor Nick even got up and went to work the next morning! Anyway, since then it's been pretty bleak around here until this morning. He's back to our happy little boy with just a cough. His check up is tomorrow so we'll see! I am hoping all is well now with him! He's still on an antibiotic and neb treatments every 8 hours.

This is in the ER - so sad! I never want to see him in there again! Home doing a neb treatment

So, long story short, that's why I haven't posted in weeks. I have been playing nurse to my favorite guy. This experience has taught me to trust my motherly instincts more. I knew I should've pressed the nurse to see me Friday but I just listened and obeyed. Not next time baby - hopefully there won't be! It has also made me realize how much I love Brady and Nick. I knew I loved Brady but I didn't understand the depth until my happy, joyful boy was sick and listless. I love all that he is! And I love and appreciate Nick so much more. He was so strong throughout this whole ordeal. Going on as little sleep as me and still getting up to go to work. Using his knowledge to calm me and help me understand. He is such a great dad and a wonderful nurse and I love him dearly! I am just grateful that we are on the other side of this!