RSV and our hospital stay.

Emmett was diagnosed with RSV on Tuesday, March 12th. We were in Breckenridge on the annual family vacation and he started vomiting. We called the doctor's office and made an appointment for later that day, packed up and left the mountains. We had another appointment on Wednesday and again on Thursday. We didn't make it to Thursday's appointment. By 3am Emmett had vomited three of his feedings. We called the 24 hour triage line and the nurse told us to take him to the ER. He was quite dehydrated from eating less and regurgitating his feedings. They said he needed an IV and attempted to insert one. Nurses from the NICU and PICU tried and no one was able to push fluids without his veins collapsing. They stuck my poor baby seven times :(. We asked if we could try to feed him and he took a bit, then more, until they were confident enough to allow us to try to rehydrate him with breast milk. He was put on oxygen and monitored. I ran home (we live eight blocks from the hospital) one day and met a man in the elevator, Alan. I told him about Emmett and he told me that he was visiting a friend he has known for forty years. His friend was having a difficult surgery and would likely end up in hospice. He took me aside and prayed for Emmett. It was a very touching interaction, and I will be keeping Alan and his friend in my prayers. We stayed in the hospital for two nights. We were discharged with oxygen for Emmett on Saturday. Now that he is home things are going well. We took him to the doctor on Monday to follow up and his oxygen level was still hovering around 90 so the doctor decided to keep him on it for a while, which is pretty common for little ones with RSV. It's nice being home, although we do miss the lack of distractions and room service! I caught Emmett's bug so now mommy and baby are under the weather. Luckily for most adults, save for the elderly, RSV is no more than a head cold. Family and friends have signed up to bring us food on a meal calendar my mom created for us and so far everything has been delicious, and so immensely helpful. Thank you to everyone who gave us their thoughts and prayers. I'm pretty sure we're on the mend.

Feeling more alert in the hospital

Doing an Irish jig at home on St. Patrick's day

I can't wait until Mother's Day!

I cannot wait until Mother's Day to publicly proclaim my mom's awesomeness! She has always been there for me and she has been a best friend to me. I have told her my secrets, fears, hopes and dreams and I will continue to do so. She doesn't judge me, she keeps her lectures to a minimum (especially when she sees my eyes glaze over), she does things for us so selflessly that it blows my mind.

Suffice to say, this wasn't always our relationship. Obviously, at one point in my life I was a snotty, ungrateful teenage girl (and maybe the snottyness continued into my early twenties). What changed our relationship (in my opinion) was when I decided to be honest and tell her everything about me and my life. I will admit, my sneaky tactic was so she would stop asking and I would have my privacy... My plan backfired. It turned out having that type of communication in my life was awesome. Although I am sure I have divulged things she did not want to hear (and wishes she could erase from her memory), I loved having the openness and honesty I had with her. So much so in fact, that the practice trickled into many of the important relationships in my life. I digress.

I've always been the type who needs my mommy when I'm sick, depressed, heartbroken, or just bothered. My mom has always been the type to oblige, even when I kept her on the phone while browsing each isle in the grocery store. Nothing exemplified my mom's selfless generosity as me having a child. After Emmett was born she spent her time and resources to help us in any way she could. She spent time in the hospital with me helping Nick coach me thorough labor, without taking over or being overbearing. Once we came home she brought us groceries and cooked us enough pork to put us (at least me) off of it for good. Then she requested recipes so she could cook us a variety of dishes with other main entrées. When my Rav4 was to small to accommodate the new addition to our family, she traded me cars and helped me sell the Rav4, and hasn't so much as demanded a ride in the new car; although I'm tempted to buy her a car, house, puppy and chickens (pending lottery winnings). Even before Emmett, while she was undergoing chemotherapy she was happy to help planning my wedding (something we frequently did at her appointments). Now don't get me wrong she has her flaws, for example, she is a huge dork (insert clip of her singing "Who Let the Dogs Out" to Emmett). But that doesn't change the fact that she is the type of mother I strive to be. Honest, trusting, open, accepting, and so many more indescribable qualities that make her one of the pillars that keeps my life in balance.

Hug kiss cheeker weekers, mom.

Pam