A visit to the hospital...

It's day 3 of our vacation in Pensacola, FL and where am I sitting? A hospital room. My 4 yr old, Isaac, was diagnosed with walking pneumonia a week ago and instead of getting better he made a turn for the worse on Sunday evening. After calling the dr, since I was concerned about how much trouble he was having when breathing (even after a breathing treatment), they said I had to take him to the ER. Joe wasn't here since he still had to teach and was planning on coming at the end of the week. Thankfully my in-laws came, along with Seth, and we didn't have to wait at all once we got to the ER (which is amazing!). I was especially thankful for this after learning there were people waiting that had the flu...not something any of us want to catch. They tested Isaac and were quite concerned about his oxygen levels. I was thinking they would give him some medicine, we would be there for a bit for tests, etc and then be able to go. But his oxygen levels just wouldn't stay up, so they had to admit him. After a long night of Isaac getting breathing treatments every 2 hours he was doing much better in the morning. After his 8:30am treatment they decided to take him off the oxygen and stop his treatments all together. I was thankful for this since then it meant he could be unhooked from the machines and be able to go to the play area and roam the halls. He was full of energy but we found lots of things to do. Played with toys, games, puzzles, blew bubbles outside (which was a great way to get him to use his lungs), and painted. It was about 3pm and I was exhausted from not having a lot of sleep and trying to keep up with my energetic child. A volunteer offered to play with Isaac for a bit in the playroom so I could go lay down. That lasted for about 30 minutes and then the volunteer's shift was over. Thankfully Isaac came back to the room and said he was tired. Within minutes of laying down he was out.

Now it is 6:30am on Tuesday and it's raining. The past few days have been gorgeous. I'm really hoping the rain goes away once Isaac is released. He keeps asking when we are going back to the beach. We are hoping the doctor will release him this morning sometime.

Sitting here and seeing the other children that are sick here at the hospital, makes me thankful that Isaac had something that has been easily treatable. It was a relief to know that we would only be here a couple of days. I don't know how parents handle seeing their child in the hospital day after day. We walked past a little girl that you could tell had cancer and Isaac asked if she was a baby. I had to explain to him how there were some really sick kids here and how they just look different because they are so sick. Pray for these little ones that are here with different illnesses. Also, pray for their parents. It's not easy staying here in the hospital that no matter how nice the staff is or how long you stay, it will never be like home.

Yummy Salad

Well, it seems my blog is becoming a recipe blog...not what I intended, just what I seem to be posting lately :) I just had to post this salad recipe before I forget to write it down somewhere. Thanks to my SIL for sending the recipe. It's quite delish!

I don't even have a title for what it's actually called, so I'm just going to call it...Yummy Salad.

Ingredients:

1 bag spring mix greens

Candied Walnuts (or I used candied pecans because I prefer pecans and I couldn't find any other candied nuts at Walmart)

Thinly Sliced Apples (my favorite are Gala Apples)

Craisins (Dried Cranberries)

Honey Mustard Dressing (I used Newman's Own Salad Dressing...Light Honey Mustard).

Mix the above ingredients, drizzle on however much dressing you like and enjoy. Such a yummy combination for a salad. I've become addicted to it. Especially since Aldi is selling a nice mix of small lettuce heads in their veggie section only for $1.99. It stays fresh longer than the bagged stuff.

Other than that, it's been an interesting week here. The boys have had colds and I finally took Seth to the doctor on Thursday morning. Turned out he has a double ear infection and has now been diagnosed with bronchitis/asthma. So he's been on breathing treatments every 4 hours and the morning and evening treatments will continue indefinitely. So that was a bit more than I expected when I took him in. The treatments make him all hyper afterward. Joe & I just laugh because he's running all over the place with this big grin on his face. It's quite funny to watch. Thankfully when I have to get him up for his nightly treatments he doesn't wake up much and actually falls back asleep while I'm giving him the treatment. I'm exhausted to say the least. Being pregnant, getting up 3 times a night and oh, Isaac's cough is back and he ended up throwing up last night in bed...so that was a nice thing to add to the evening. Basically it's been a long week with not a lot of sleep for this prego momma. Thankfully I just have the sniffles since Joe has gotten the cold too. Hopefully mine doesn't get worse.

Well, I'm off to make sense of the pile of medical bills since we just got another one that wasn't on the insurance statement. I get to call the insurance company again on Monday and find out what's going on because this bill has put us way over what we should have to owe. Oh the joys.

I shouldn't complain so much. I am so thankful to have my health back. I know it could be so much worse. We are definitely blessed beyond measure. Just some days it's hard for my human mind to see that. Thankfully God shows me in His way that He is a gracious, good, loving God that is in control of all things. May I strive to keep my eyes on things eternal where in the end there will be no more pain, no more sorrow, no more health issues, etc. Where we will be one day worshiping and praising our Lord.

May God be glorified in our health and in our sickness...

Came across this quote today on Ann Voskamp's blog:

We give thanks to God not because of how we feel – but because of Who He is.

Exactly what I needed to hear today as I lay here in bed with a migraine headache from the spinal tap I had for surgery on Friday. I've been dealing with this headache since Friday evening and if I lay on my back and drink caffeine (as doctor recommended) it eventually lessens and does go away for a bit. I keep thinking how so many others have it so much worse than me and I am so thankful for all those who are helping me care for my family through all of this. I hate not being able to take care of them. But if I can't at least others are there to help. It's been a long month between Seth and I being sick with rotavirus and then 2 weeks later I get a kidney stone and have to have surgery. I keep thinking....even in my sickness God is being glorified in some way, some how. I am trying to learn patience in all of this...it is so hard for me. And then I read the above quote today and see..God is glorified because of WHO HE IS! That is how he is glorified. It has nothing to do with me or how I am feeling. That is so true and I am so thankful.

May you all have a blessed Thanksgiving...

Our God is greater…

I’m loving this song right now and thought I’d share. I may just have to put this CD on my Christmas List

Chris Tomlin: Our God - And if Our God is For Us

It has been a long week and a half and this song just reminds me of the verse "If God is for us, who can be against" - even if we ourselves get down about life's difficulties, we can always look to Him that is there for us.

Thankfully we are on the mend. Seth came down with rotavirus 4 days after we got back from the whirlwind trip of to Indiana/NW Iowa/Indiana/fly back to Chattanooga.... So we barely caught our breath and then Seth was really sick. He started symptoms on Thursday and by Friday night I was really concerned. So I called the emergency number and they said to bring him to the doctor on Saturday. Once at the doctor's office they said to take him to the ER because he was severely dehydrated and needed fluids and also should have some tests done to figure out what was wrong. They diagnosed him with rotavirus (kind of a severe form of the flu, which he was vaccinated for but I guess it's like the flu vaccine...there can be different strains of the virus out there that kids can still get). He ended up being admitted overnight and was released Sunday evening. It's amazing how fluids got him revived and well again. I was so concerned because he had been so lethargic, it was scary. He literally sat on my lap for days straight and even slept by me. He wouldn't even let me put him next to me on the couch. Poor little guy.

Then Monday night I started feeling icky. I also got severe stomach cramps and by Wednesday I was at the doctors office hoping they could give me something to relieve the pain. Instead my dr was concerned about appendicitis and sent me to the ER (the last place I wanted to end up). After a long night of tests they sent me home with pain meds and zofran to keep them down. Diagnosis: colitis. Really, I could have told them that from the beginning. But I guess they have to be sure.

Throughout this all, God has shown me how much of a loving, Christian community we are surrounded by. We had people bringing meals, and ladies came and cleaned and helped watch the boys. Another watched the boys while I went to the doctor and even after that while I went to the ER til all hours of the night. All the while they could have easily gotten the virus themselves. What an amazing witness these women are to those around them. I will always be grateful for their help. I am also grateful for all those who have kept us in their thoughts and prayers this past week. I know they made a difference and it was a comfort knowing others were praying for us. Also, I know it comforted our moms, as well, that we had people helping us since they live too far away to be able to come quickly and help out. So they were grateful as well.

Simply put...

God is so good! God is amazing and all powerful. May we all strive to glorify Him!

Hospital Stay

Well, it's been an interesting week. Definitely not what I had planned on, but nothing goes according to my plans anyways. God is all sovereign and the one who is in control. We arrived home late Monday afternoon from our whirlwind trip and the boys had school on Tuesday and I worked. Wednesday was routine and then Thursday I picked up Seth from my friends house and she said he seemed to be feeling a little off and had taken a 4 hour nap. That night he started having diarrhea really bad and had it continuously all day Friday. He wouldn't eat anything and would drink a little. By Friday night I was getting quite concerned. I called the nurse and she said to take him to the doctor in the morning, unless it gets worse then go to the ER. Well, we went to the dr's office and they sent us to the hospital. In the ER they started an IV (which took forever for them to get into one of his veins because he was so dehydrated...poor little guy). Seth was then admitted after a couple of hours in the ER. We've been here all day today and he's perked up quite a bit and doing so much better after having the fluids in him. He's finally talking and responding again and eating and drinking. He should be released soon. I'm so glad my little guy is feeling better and getting back to his normal self. It's so awful to see your child sick. You just feel helpless.

Thanks to all of you who kept us in your prayers. It means so much.

Sunshine brightens my day!!

Since we’ve gotten back from our spring break vacation in Florida, it has been rainy and gloomy.  Today the sun came out and it is just gorgeous outside!  I went for a walk with the boys just to enjoy it a bit.  It’s amazing how the sunshine can totally brighten your mood.  Thank you God, for the sunshine today.  What a blessing!

Okay, back to our vacation.  It was WONDERFUL!  Thanks to mom and dad V, we stayed in a condo with them and Joe’s sisters and their kids.  The weather was the best we’ve ever had when in Pensacola for spring break.  Usually we have at least one day of rain, but this time the weather was just perfect.  Seth & Isaac got colds and as the week progressed their colds got worse.  Isaac thankfully got better after taking cold medicine.  I didn’t have anything to give Seth and he just got worse.  We came back and I took him to the doctor and he ended up with a sinus infection and ear infection.  He is now doing so much better, but the medicine for the ear infection is giving him a terrible diaper rash from his constant diarrhea.  Every time I change him I put ointment on him but it doesn’t seem to be helping so I’m going to have to try something else to help the poor boy. 

After returning from Florida I started my new part-time job as secretary at CVPC (Chattanooga Valley Presbyterian Church).  I’ve worked there two days now and it’s going to be a great job.  I get to use my office skills and work for God’s kingdom in the process.  This job couldn’t have come at a better time since we have had a ton of unexpected bills lately due to our car issues.  The transmission went out right before we were to leave on vacation so we rented a car to get to Florida and had our car fixed while we were gone.  Came back to a bill over $2000!  Plus the cost of a rental and we just had other things fixed (fuel line leak, etc) on the car…this car has been a nightmare.  But it’s the only car we have and we can’t afford another one right now, so we had to get it fixed.  So thankfully I now have this job to help pay for this huge, unexpected bill. 

We are so thankful we were able to get away and relax and enjoy being with family.  We had a wonderful time.  Here are a few pictures from our trip.

He’s on the move…

 

This past week Seth finally learned to crawl.  I feel like so many other babies that I know that are around the same age or younger have been crawling for weeks or even months already.  He never liked being on his tummy and once he learned to sit up that was all he wanted to do.  For awhile I thought he would just scoot around but just recently he started to get on all fours and rock back and forth.  Then this past Sunday night he got his arms and legs going together and crawled a little ways.  Now he is all over the place and into his brother's toys.  Isaac isn't so sure about this and yesterday he told me that Seth needed to just stay on my lap.  That was his solution to keeping Seth out of his stuff.  I told Isaac that he just better get used to this because this is how it's going to be from now on.  Seth will always be his little brother and he will quite often be into his things.  Soon they will hopefully learn how to play together and share...right? :)   It has been fun watching these two interact and actually play together at times.  What fun they will have as they grow up together!
We've been sick around here for the past week and a half.  Head colds, runny nose, ick, ick, ick...  Hopefully we will all be better so we can go to church as a family this Sunday.  We haven't been able to do that for several weeks now because one of us has always been sick.  Stay healthy! Have a blessed weekend!

I've got a bug

or I caught a bug?? I hate bugs...especially the cold/flu kind. And especially when they attack not only me but my kids as well. We've been suffering with colds for over a week now, but today Seth came down with a touch of the flu and then I got it this afternoon/evening. So not fun. I've been cuddling with my little guy all afternoon. He's been drinking pedialite and I've had gatoraide. My husband is not home tonight since he had to coach his basketball team. It's nights like this that I really wish he was home. Thankfully he'll be home all day tomorrow to take care of us. Hope he doesn't mind...especially after his long week at school.
Off to go snuggle on the couch some more...
hope you all are having a good weekend.

Update 12/5: Now Joe's got the bug. I'm really praying Isaac doesn't get sick. Poor kid won't know what hit him.