Tom's mom, sister, and niece came to visit for a few days! My mother-in-law hadn't seen us for a year, so needless to say, it was good to see her and for her to see her youngest grandbabies! A highlight of their visit was going to Lohr's Pumpkin Patch so the boys could pick their own pumpkin.
Tennyson took Raleigh's hand all on his own as they walked across the field.
I love this one!
Getting the wagon.
Finally found the right one.
Tennyson was proud of his pumpkin.
The week Tom's family came to visit Tennyson and Raleigh caught a cold from the little boy I babysit. Within a week Tennyson's had turned in to croup and a week later so did Raleigh's. Tennyson responded well to the steroids and was healthy in a few days. However, Raleigh's croup went from bad to much, much worse. On Monday, October 25th, I took Raleigh in to the ER because he woke up in the middle of the night with that unforgettable, awful barking cough and he was definitely distressed. They gave him an oral steroid, but he only worsened during the next 24 hours.
First thing the next morning I took Raleigh in to the pediatrician's office (via my brother because on top of all this our car wasn't working). The doctor was obviously concerned. Raleigh had a high fever, he couldn't even breathe in without "barking," and his little tummy was going in and out (a bad sign to watch for). He tried giving Raleigh a breathing treatment, but in the 20 minutes or so we were in the office his condition worsened. So the doctor came back in and said something to the effect of, "We need to make sure it's not epiglottitis. He has to stay calm until we're sure, because his throat could close up. I've called the hospital. Do not stop at the front desk. Go straight up to the 4th floor and right to room 4164." Okay, then I really started to worry. I called Tom in tears and I am surprised I could even get out, "They are admitting Raleigh to the hospital. Can you leave school?" By the time I had called the pediatrician's office to the time we found ourselves at RMH it was only about 90 minutes.
When I got to the hospital and up to the room, the nurses swarmed on Raleigh. (They later told me that when they got the call that he was coming in they stopped everything because he was priority.) They tagged him with ID bracelets. The respiratory therapists gave him a breathing treatment. Then they wheeled he and I down to get an x-ray of Raleigh's throat so they could determine whether or not it was epiglottitis. The best way for him to stay calm was if he could stay on Mommy's lap, and he did really well! We were relieved to learn he just had a severe case of croup and not something way more serious.
It was unsettling to find out a few hours later that the emergency ENT box in his room was in case he got agitated and/or he couldn't breathe and they needed to do a tracheotomy. It was really a good thing I didn't know THAT was a possibility!
The IV was a nightmare. The nurses couldn't find a vein on his forearm so they turned his arm over and did it on the other side. I was crying. He was screaming. Not a pretty sight. Poor Raleigh had an IV (to give him more steroids), a heart monitor, an oxygen monitor, and a respiratory monitor. So needless to say his movement was very restricted. He was placed on "close observation" and whether or not we got to go home was largely dependent on how he did that night.
I had asked the first nurse for a bed instead of a crib because I knew there was NO way Raleigh was going to sleep in that. She said she couldn't do that and blabbered something about hospital rules. Tom is such a great Daddy and really wanted to stay that night, (My older sister stepped in and took Tennyson overnight.) but without a bed that was going to impossible. So I figured I would just sleep on the pull-out bed with Raleigh. The second nurse was awesome and I had barley mentioned how a bed would really be better before she had rolled out the crib cage and brought in a real bed! What a blessing!
So that day we just tried to keep Raleigh happy. He didn't eat much, so I was SO thankful for breastfeeding. All he wanted to do was nurse, so at least he was getting a little something. Our wonderful church sent a great balloon bouquet, and the principal of Tom's school came by to check on our little guy and brought a HUGE firetruck balloon! Sylvia M. from church came and prayed for him. And my parents came by and brought a singing, light-up dog. What a lifesaver! Raleigh loves that puppy! (And it's as close as he'll get to a real pet! Haha!) My sister and her then fiance (now husband) came and visited for a long time. Despite the circumstances it was nice to have a long visit with them without interruption. Raleigh loved having Aunt Courtney all to himself, too! We also had several friends call or text to say they were praying! It's times like that I am so grateful for the Body of Christ!
Doesn't he look so pathetic?!
This photo isn't the clearest and Raleigh's expression is so sad. :(
The puppy my parents brought him.
Notice how much stuff is on his arm. It was so heavy!
The neat balloons he got!
That night Raleigh slept in bed with me. I was able to keep his head elevated because of the automatic bed and that really helped his breathing. He only "barked" once during the night and none of his monitors went off! So the doctor came in early, early the next morning and checked him out and discharged us. (For some reason it took them another 4 hours and me asking to finally get us discharge papers. Ugh!)
Napping while we wait to be discharged.
Telling Daddy about the trucks below.
You can tell he feels much better!
He liked to sit in the windowsill and watch the cars and trucks in the lot.
So that was it! Our scary, harrowing croup experience. Raleigh actually got it again 10 days before Christmas, but thankfully it's was just a mild case. If your child ever gets croup don't wait, get him/her to the doctor ASAP! Raleigh's was unusually severe, but it's not something to mess around with on any level.
Next, documenting a VERY busy November!
