I was finally feeling like I was starting to figure this MoM thing out and the world had to snap me back into the reality of my life. Things have been pretty crazy 'round these parts the past week. At one point I contemplated putting a giant "sick tent" around our house, but that would just exhaust me even more.
The whole family spent last weekend down at my parents' house (yes, again!) and it started out pretty routine and escalated into disaster rather quickly. In the wee hours of Sunday morning Carter woke up crying like he had done several times that night. Kevin went in to the kitchen to make him a bottle and I fed him while still half asleep. When I was changing his diaper I noticed his body felt warmer than usual, so I grabbed the medical kit in my diaper bag and pulled out the thermometer...101.5. Not great, but not terrible. I gave him a dose of Tylenol and put him back to bed hoping it was nothing more.
The family got up for the day around 9 a.m. after a night of terrible sleep. Throughout the day Carter's temp continued to rise into the 103s. We kept up with the Tylenol, but the medicine would do little, if anything to help my poor little bug. My mom helped give him tepid baths and drape him in cool, wet cloths which would work temporarily, but we always ended up back in the same place.
You could tell the he felt absolutely miserable and he cried and whimpered the whole time unless by some miracle you were able to get him to sleep. Night started to set in and his situation was not getting any better and my mind started to wonder myself into nervousness with thoughts of the swine flu and death rates among infants. I decided to call a nearby hospital to seek advice - they wanted me to bring him in.
By the time we packed up and got on the road it was nearly 10:30 at night and there was a steady rain for the entire half hour drive. We were admitted and seen almost right away and the ER pediatrician diagnosed Carter with a double ear infection. A nurse came in to give him some numbing drops and Motrin to make him a little more comfortable.
The doctor told us he would be prescribing some antibiotics, so we waited in our room for a while. Mom went with me and she struck up conversation with a mom of a little baby girl in the next room over, she also had a high temperature. The mother said the pediatrician was prescribing her daughter some IV fluids. We were so thankful our little buddy wasn't getting the same...or so we thought.
Another nurse came in and stated she was ready to start his IV. My mother and I looked at eachother and said we thought she had the wrong room and should be in the next one over. She looked confused at first and then actually agreed with us, but went to ask the doctor just in case.
She came back with a sorrowful look on her face and I stood by with tears streaming down my face as my tiny four month old son had an IV line placed in his foot after first trying in his left arm. He was also prescribed some antibiotics through his IV. It took about an hour to get everything into his body and we waited a few more minutes to be discharged.
He was really sick for an additional two days before he started showing signs of improvement. Mom called in sick to work on Monday since we didn't get back to her house until almost four in the morning, so that was a big help. On Tuesday, Carter was still wanting to be held 24/7, so I sent Brennan off to my mother-in-law's house and Kevin and I went for a follow up visit at our regular pediatrician's office. Carter still had an ear infection in his right ear, but the left one was already cleared.
On the drive there, we got a call from Kevin's mom and she told us that Brennan felt a little warm. Crap...here it comes! After our appointment we went to pick up Brennan and went back home. Kevin went back to work for a few hours and I had things under control and both babies napping. Then they woke up and all chaos ensued as I tried to calm them down. Which by the way, did not work - I need help. I frantically called Kevin, who by the grace of God somehow must have read my mind. He had already picked Evan up from school and was driving through our neighborhood.
That afternoon and night were delivered straight from the depths of hell. Nobody seemed to rest, although we did notice Carter was sleeping better than he had been. The next morning he seemed a lot better, so we sent him over to my Mother-in-law's house. Same song, different verse. Brennan ended up with an ear infection and was also given some antibiotics.
My mom, dad, and also Kevin and I think that it was possibly the swine flu and that it weakened their immune systems so badly that they developed ear infections. Carter was swabbed and tested at the hospital and it came back negative, but our pediatrician said she has read the tests are only anywhere from 10 to 70% accurate. I guess we'll never know for sure.
Today is the first day they are both feeling well and I hope to catch my breath sometime next week!
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