Emily spent the night at our home on Sunday and was here Monday during the morning to help me get out the door. I was trying to do laundry, tidy up the kitchen, help Jarom finish his pinewood derby car (which had to be turned in to his troop on Tuesday), feed the kids, tell Emily all about our family routine and how best to handle naps, bedtime, meals, etc...when I noticed Becca was really looking congested and sick. I know even for me my six kids can sometimes be a challenge, especially with my Irish twin girls at the end. So I called my mom to see if she'd be willing to watch Becca while we were gone so Emily would not have to worry about a sick baby in addition to 5 energetic kids. My mom was totally willing and I was very relieved.
Everything seemed to be going great after that. Scott showed up with just enough time to load us up and head for the airport. I settled into the comfy seat in his truck and started thinking about my little vacation as we started to drive to my mom's to drop of Becca. We talked and I could feel a sense of relaxation taking over my body.
We were doing okay on time when we stopped at my mom's. Scott carried Becca in and set down her carrier on the kitchen table when we noticed that she wasn't looking good. She seemed to be having trouble breathing, her cough was worse, and her color looked terrible. However, when I saw her little chest retracting just to get a breath and noticed how fast she was breathing I knew something was wrong. I didn't think she had looked that bad when we left our house, but maybe I'd been so busy with other things I hadn't noticed. I wasn't sure...but I knew that I wasn't going to board any plane until I found out what was going on.
Scott and I decided to fly out later and headed to the Pediatric Urgent care by my mom's. After waiting for 40 minutes we finally got into triage. I was relieved to finally have someone look at her. Maybe we'd find something out now! I knew she looked bad, but when they put the pulse oximeter on her little toe (the machine that measures the oxygen your blood is carrying) flashed 90% I freaked out. That was bad! I wasn't surprised when we were taken straight to a room and not shuffled back into the waiting room which was the standard protocol.
It wasn't to long before the doctor came in and examined her. He ordered a chest X-Ray and within 15 minutes of getting to our room we found out our little girl had double ear infections...oh and yes she also had Pneumonia in her right lobe. I was in shock!!! Becca got a steroid shot, antibiotic shot, and a breathing treatment. Whoa!! Then it was time to check her pulse ox again. I knew if she hadn't made any improvement she'd be getting a one way ticket to the hospital. Thank goodness the pulse ox read 95% which meant we got to take her home! Of course she'd be on a heavy duty antibiotic and breathing treatments, but we got to take her home. WOO-HOO!!So now we had to figure out what we were going to do. Scott still had to get to LA so he could attend his conference, and I needed to stay with Becca. I was an emotional wreck and since we had Emily already set to watch the kids I stayed at my mom's and just took care of my sick little girl. What a huge blessing it was for me to be able to focus just on Becca. Thanks Emily!!
By the time Scott got home on Tuesday Becca was doing better. She was still quite sick, but didn't require breathing treatments every four hours which was huge. I am so grateful for modern medicine and the ability it has to help us get over sickness. I thought of all those mothers in the past who had lost a baby to pneumonia because there wasn't the medicine or knowledge of what needed to be done to help. The thought of having to watch a little baby struggle to breath (like I watched Becca do for only a short time) until they couldn't breath any longer broke my heart. I am grateful for my blessings and for the gift of having Becca in my arms to enjoy for another day. I know the Lord knows who I am and loves me. I know he wants what is best for me and comforts me when I am in pain. I am so grateful for the knowledge and testimony of the gospel of Jesus Christ.
2 comments:
Our prayers are with you for a complete and speedy recovery!
Glad you found out she was sick before you left. What a great family you have who are willing to help out. I hope she'll recover soon! My boy Kade was almost two when Kimball and I rented a cabin and got a sitter. I was so busy rushing around to leave, I didn't notice the signs...3 hours later as we pulled up to the cabin, we got the call. He wasn't as sick as your daughter but he got the stomach flu and had a rough few days. Let's just say it's wasn't very relaxing knowing that my toddler was home and miserable and wishing I hadn't gone.
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