Lukas

Yesterday started like a normal day.

Lukas woke up with a big old grin on his face, as if to say "I'm happy it's your day to stay with me!"

We woke up, and got dressed. I made him a 3 egg omelet with spinach, and feta, and he promptly wolfed it down. We went outside and swung on his swing. He laughed, and kicked his feet, and was mad at me when it was time to go in. 

We went inside, and I decided to take him to the park. We load up, and head out. Lukas played for an hour. He was running. He was laughing. He was playing. He was mad at me when I said it was time to go.

We get home, and wake up daddy. 

Lukas plays for a bit. I pick him up to put him down for his nap. He feels warm. Take his temp 101.4. Not too concerned. He's had worse. Give him a half dose of Motrin (we ran out, so Patrick ran to Walgreens) put a cool compress on him. He falls asleep nursing. 

 

. 

I take him upstairs, and lay him down. Aspen goes upstairs, and start licking him, and he wakes up. I smack Aspen, frustrated that she would wake my sick baby. I'm thankful she did now.

He's up and I feel him. He is burning up. I take his temp with our temporal 103.6, take it again because it's rarely consistent. 102.5. Find another thermometer and take it under his arm. 103.4. Give him the rest of his dose of Motrin, and call his godmother, who is a nurse at Arkansas children's hospital. Tells me to watch him, and she would want his temp to go down under 100 with meds. She tells me the risk with high temps is seizures, and I start getting freaked out. Take his temp every 15 minutes, if it's not going down get his butt to the ER. 

Got a game plan.

We watch him. 102.4. 101.8. 100.4. I'm feeling way better about it. 

We make him some soup. He hardly eats, but he had a big breakfast. He's playing with his food, and smiling. He's drinking lots of fluids. I'm okay with how he's doing.

Patrick takes him upstairs for a nap.

I dose off on the couch. 

Patrick wakes me up around 5:15ish to tell me he's getting ready for work, and tells me to go up with Lukas. I get upstairs, and lay down. Patrick goes in the bathroom to take a shower. 

I feel Lukas. He is burning up again. I'm about to get up to get the thermometer when his little body starts shaking. His eyes roll back, and he's gagging on his tongue, and his face is white. I can't remember what your supposed to do in this situation. My thoughts are a jumble. I instinctually scoop him up, and start screaming for Patrick. I kick the door running to the car. I have no shoes. I have no purse. I have my baby in my arms. I hold him, crying the entire 3 minutes to the ER. His jaw is clenched up, and he is in a trance-like state. Patrick is driving like a madman. 

We get there, and she's asking me questions. I don't really know what I'm saying.

"Don't ask me things just fix my son."

The take us to a room, and take his vitals. 105.5. That's all I hear.

I hold my son who is screaming at this point. I nurse him, and he calms down. They give him Tylenol. 

We go to the waiting room. Patrick calls my sister in law and she brings me shoes, and my phone. I call his godmother again, and tell her he had a seizure. She tells me she is calling her mom, who is an ER nurse at the hospital we're at. 

Stacy (the mom) comes in. She feels his head. She says "he's still burning up. I'm going to find you guys a room." 5 minutes later we have a room.

Stacy tells us if we have any problems let her know. An overwhelming sense of gratitude floods over me.

The doctor comes in shortly after. Examines him. Looks for any other signs of infection. Ears-good. Throat- good. Snot-clear. He tells us that they are going to run some tests, because the only sign of infection he has is fever, and the need to figure out what's wrong. He says some other things, but all I hear is chest X-ray, catheter, blood work. That's what we're in for.

They take his temp again. 102.5. It's amazing how cool 102.5 feels.

An X-ray tech comes in, and wheels Lukas and I off to get the chest X-ray. "1 parent allowed." I hear.

As she's wheeling us down, she asks if I have ever seen a chest X-ray for an toddler. I hadn't. She starts telling me they are going to put him in this corset like shielding, and he's going to scream, but he'll be fine... Tears come streaming down my face. They tell me it's time for me to leave the room, so I do, and I cry as I hear him screaming for me through the door.

It's over. And I hold him, and he calms down in my arms.

Back to our room we go.

He falls asleep on my chest. 

A nurse pokes in and tells me she is going to get supplies for the cath, and blood work. She asks how I'm going to be, and decides that it would be best if Patrick handled this, as I'm crying. 

She comes back with supplies, and a helper to hold down my baby. I lose it. Out in the hall I go listening to my son screaming. And I cry. I go in after the cath, and he looks at me with those big blue eyes, pleading with me to scoop him up. I kiss him, and stroke his forehead, and then back to the hall I have to go.

Then the blood work.. I lost it. The sweet, young, nurse couldn't get enough blood, so she goes to get another nurse, and I hold him while we wait. He calms down. 

Then a very manly male nurse comes in, and puts in a hep lock.. Just in case they need to draw more blood or anything after. 

I hate "just in cases." 

Lukas falls asleep in my arms.

The doctor comes in, and tells me the results of his tests. Blood- clean. Urine- clean. X-Ray- consistent with a viral infection. We just have to let it run it's course. Alternate Motrin, and Tylenol every 3 hours to keep the fever down. Lots of fluids. Follow up with his primary care physician on Monday. 

The nurse comes in to take his temp. 97.7. Discharge is coming soon.

"When can we take the hep-lock out?"

"Mary will do that."

Hep-lock out. Discharge papers. We head home. 

We shower to wash of the hospital germs, and climb into bed.

Lukas slept. All night. No temp. No seizures.

This morning we woke up a tangled nest of three, and Lukas smiled at me a great, big grin. Like nothing ever happened.