Quarantined!

Libby had her first trip to the Emergency Room a few weeks back. I was at work and my Mom said she had thrown up her lunch. She wanted to know what I wanted her to give her food/drink-wise for the rest of the day. Apparently Libby would go through spells of feeling well, and playing and then just wanting to be loved on and held. When I got off work and got her she was HOT! She had been holding down formula for a little while, so we thought!

I got her home and was walking to her bedroom when all HECK broke loose! Poor baby threw up again and again and again. I just froze in my tracks and patted her sweet little back. I tried not to move in an effort to keep it contained ON ME! Scott helped Libby and I, into my shower--clothes ON!! I figured it was best to not wrestle them off, but to just wash her, me, clothes--everything. She LOVED showering with me, but turned into a slippery butterball as soon as the soap hit her! ha.

We checked her temperature when we got out and decided she needed to go to the Emergency Room. With a baby under 1, Scott and I could have handled her cough, temperature, vomiting, OR diarrhea....but all 4 together were scary. Of course Saturday night at 7:30----there were a MILLLION little kids there!

This BAD MOMMY didn't even grab a diaper when we went in! I ended up with diarrhea ON my shirt a few minutes into our night there. LORD HELP US!

While we were waiting I had a 2 year old stranger climbing in and out of my lap---um hello! I can't very well turn a little kid away---but what was his dad thinking!!?? People never cease to amaze me. I could get on my soapbox here about some of the "reasons" kids were there and how they need pediatricians to see DURING THE WEEK....but that's another post. Enough ranting.

Libby was EXCELLENT during her physical exam. Didn't make a peep (TIRED??!! Dehydrated?!) She let her feelings be known during the nasal swab and urine catheter. In all fairness, the nurses worked super fast!! The WORST was the chest x-ray. If you've NEVER seen a baby get a chest x-ray....wow! It is absolutely painless...just CRAZY to watch. Libby screamed the entire time, because 1. i left her 2. she probably wondered what the heck was going on 3. she was exhausted and tired

It looks like a baby torture chamber. I googled this image and it's SIMILAR to what they used...but not exact. It's a free standing cylinder. Their little legs go in slots and then they snap them in the top with arms up overhead. NUTS!! Fortunately they work really really FAST!

THIS IS NOT LIBBY!

The ladies who did her x-rays let me stay in the room (behind i screen---Libby had no idea i was there, and was crying so loud she couldn't hear me....so I guess it did me more good than her!).

The doctor said she probably needed fluids but they were so backed up, they'd try pedialyte. Poor Libby choked down 1 ounce of it, and we were sent home. They said to bring her back if she started to vomit again. (Which she did---but so did I---and I had to have my own hospital stay!) In retrospect, I wish we'd just waited and gotten them....because she was so weak the following day and struggled to keep anything down. It's so hard to watch your child when they are sick. My heart really goes out to parents with children who have chronic illness' or serious conditions. God must give them strength that I can't imagine. THIS was trying enough!

Sadly...our week of "the little black cloud" does not end here. That's enough for one post!

Here's a photo of Libby while we changed the sheets on our bed AGAIN. The Sunday after our Lebonheur visit, she and I kept it low-key in the bed. Sadly, she started getting sick again and again. We finally got smart and put beach towels down everywhere. Everytime, she managed to get me and her both covered again---I guess she liked our fun shower! We did that several times! ha!

She actually was giggly in "quarantine"! It didn't last long. Mommy rescued her for more cuddle time (all this cuddling let to some super sharing of Libby's nasty tummy virus!) She had some HARD surface toys to play with and got to wear Daddy's tee shirt tied up in the back! It's tough being sick!

Let's hope this doesn't REPEAT any time soon!