Saturday, February 28, 2009

RSV...



February is just not our month! Last year Jeff got the flu and then I caught it (while pregnant with Lydia) and the Jeff got it AGAIN! All during the blasted month of February. Well this year during the horrible, no good, terrible, month of February we have had croup, 2 sinus infections, lasik surgery and one other minor surgical procedure...I'll give you a hint...we are done having children...For Real! I am so ready for us all to be well and stay well!


Lydia gave us quite the scare yesterday. It started with a minor cold on Tuesday. By Wednesday morning she was running 102 fevers and I took her to the Doctor. They checked her ears and her chest and everything was clear. They told us to come back on Friday if she was still feverish. Well Friday morning she was still running high fevers even with Motrin and Tylenol. So off we went again to see our Dr. Except this time the weather was CRAZY! There were tornado warnings everywhere, and the rain was coming down so hard! Not fun conditions to get a sick baby out of the house.



They checked her ears and chest again. They diagnosed her with RSV. She had also developed an ear infection and her breathing was rapid and labored so they gave us an antibiotic shot in her leg and sent us to DCH to have her blood drawn and get chest x-rays to check for pneumonia or secondary infections. At this point we knew if she had Pneumonia we would be admitted to the hospital. I was so scared for her. The tears were certainly flowing. The thought of my barely 7 month old baby in the hospital was more than I could take! Jeff met me at DCH and he had to hold her down for the blood work. They took two vials and she was pitiful. This is a child that NEVER cries, so even the tiniest little tear on her cheek nearly sends Jeff and I over the edge! People think I am kidding when I say she never cries. Seriously- in 7 months she has cried less than 4 times. I don't mean getting fussy or complete melt down fits....literally she has only shed a tear 4 times! So needless to say, I can't stand to see her cry. Then we both held her down for x-rays and were sent home to wait out the results. Jeff took her in his car and I was going to go grab some lunch for all of us and pick up Anderson from school...


Then my day went from bad to worse. I am already soaking wet, have taken my daughter to a Dr. office, outpatient lab, and then radiology...I'm worried sick and then as I am leaving Newk's (in the 3rd torrential downpour of the day) I back out of an uphill parking space and my wheels slide and boom....now I am hanging over the side of a retaining wall...thankfully I missed the fountain. Awesome. So I called Jeff who was almost home with Lydia to come back and get me. My car would not budge as the two front wheels weren't touching the ground! We get the manager of Newk's to pull us out using his 4 WD truck and some rope. Finally I got to go get Anderson and get home.

They called back at 4:00 (the longest 4 hours of my life I think!) and told us she was all clear! Thank you Jesus! He asked that we bring her back to the office for a breathing treatment and to get a nebulizer so we can do treatments at home (3-4 times a day). She pinked up and had MUCH better color after just the first one and the antibiotic shot from earlier in the day had finally broken her fever.


Last night she only woke up once about 1:00 am in a coughing fit. Bless her heart, she coughs so hard she literally turns blue. Jeff and I both got up and gave her a treatment and she felt better instantly. I am so thankful that all of the medications are doing their jobs. She is a different child today. We will continue the treatments for at least the next week and will have to have a re-check with our Dr. at some point to make sure her chest is still clear.

Friday, February 27, 2009

Coveting your prayers....

I am asking for you to take a second and pray for us right now. Lydia's fever is continuing to be high and after a re-visit to our pediatrician this morning, he detected some wheezing and rapid breathing that he wasn't comfortable with. After diagnosing her with RSV and an ear infection he sent us over to DCH to have blood drawn to check her white cell count and have an xray done to check for Pneumonia. It was awful watching her be poked and prodded! We are wating in results now. Most likely it will be around 4:00 when we finally get the call and know if there is any infection. We are praying very hard for her not to have to be admitted to the hospital later this afternoon.

To top it off, this weather has been horrendous. A tornado touched down near my mom's house in Chelsea, and I managed to have a nice little fender bender this morning after leaving the hospital. I was backing out of a downhill parking space, my tires locked up and off I went over a landscaped set of bricks. We had to have a man pull us out of it with his truck. All the while I am in the rain with no umbrella...I still feel soaked to the core!

My nerves are completely shot to say the least. Please no calls- we are turing down the phones and trying to get Lydia comfy and sleeping. Thanks so much for praying for us. We'll update as soon as we know more.

Monday, February 23, 2009

A new addition....



Ok- so how many of you just did a double take? NO, I am NOT pregnant! HA!! My step-brother Todd and his wife Susan just had a baby boy last Thursday. Bastian Jay Carroll was born on Thursday around 6:30, after a VERY long and not so wonderful labor for poor Sus! However, the good news is he is gorgeous! Lydia and I headed up to Birmingham Friday while Anderson was at school so we could get a peek at him! We met Gigi for lunch, did some shopping and headed over to meet the new baby. Things are about to get interesting at Pop and Gigi's house! They have gone from no grandchildren to 3 grandchildren in 2 1/2 years!

Tuesday, February 17, 2009

One more Valentines post...

I have to take a second to brag on my sweet hubby here. My hope is to have this blog turned into a book one day. That way Anderson and Lydia can have all of these memories to look back on. One thing that I really want them to understand is how much their parents love each other. I hope for a spouse for both of them that is just like Jeff Smith, because he is incredibly thoughtful and a wonderful husband, father and certainly my best friend. So on that note...I will share what this sweet man of mine gave me for Valentine's Day!


We went to Depalma's for dinner and really hadn't planned on swapping gifts other than a night out child free! When we got to dinner he gave me this wonderful photo book from shutterfly called "I love my Mommy the Best because..." it is filled with pictures of Lydia and the reasons why she loves me. It matches the book he gave from Anderson on my first mother's day. It has the same title, but is filled with all of the reasons Anderson loves me. I, of course, cried like a baby. Our waitress looked at it and teared up too and she doesn't even know us! HA! He also gave me tickets to Wicked! Now that is a testament to his selflessness....theatre is not his thing, but he knows I love it! I love you Jeff!




"She loved me before she ever saw me for the first time...."


I love this text..."She buys me the cutest clothes...and bows of course there are the Bows...and monograms....and don't forget hats"








Saturday, February 14, 2009

Happy Heart Day!!!

Check out the cutie patootie leg warmers I made for Lydia!

We started off our morning with heart shaped pancakes and red sprinkles!


Baby Sister's First Valentine's Day!

Jeff's Mom sent these adorable stuffed Valentines! They LOVED them! Thanks Nana!

A Valentine Smooch!


This cracked me up- and I quote...
"Mom!!! She's touching me!!!" and so it begins!


Anderson says "I'm Done"
Lydia says... "Wait a minute! Come back!"

Tuesday, February 10, 2009

My big girl...

Tonight Lydia finally sat up completely unassisted! She has been sitting up for a couple of weeks, but wasn't steady at all and generally needed something right in the small of her back to help balance. Tonight after dinner Jeff took her in the living room and put her on the quilt to work on it. She did it all by herself! I am so proud of her!

Look at me!

Oh yeah...I'm cool!

Ta Da!


Anderson clapped and gave her a big smooch!


Look Ma, No Hands!


Told you she loves that tongue...I guess she's using it to balance here! HA!

Sunday, February 8, 2009

Just some random pictures...

She loves to stick out her tongue!!
Blue is my favorite color on her. I just love a sweet little girl in light blue!

Daddy and his sidekick!

Not wanting to brush his teeth before school one morning.


The thing I love most about our house: A BIG backyard!


Driving his Jeep


I'm telling you- Baby Girl loves to stick out that tongue!

It's like a Gene Simmons impression!


yummy...

Sunday, February 1, 2009

Boys will be boys...

Speaking of boys: Here are some pics of my favorite two!




Anderson has been sick with a yucky cold, fever and pink eye since Thursday, so Daddy decided he needed a little "Happy" to cheer him up. I love his facial expressions in these pictures. He just lit up, but I think he loved Daddy playing with him even more than the cool Hot Wheels Loop!
Jeff had both babies all day Saturday while I went to Birmingham to help my sister Marcie interview a photographer and plan wedding stuff. Bless his heart, he did a great job juggling both kids and dealing with Anderson's crankiness, medicine and eye drops. He even moved the picnic table into the garage and broke out a paint set with model Dinosaurs. He took one of his old tee shirts and made Anderson a paint shirt. Little man was so proud of his art project! He loved showing me what he had done when I got home. I am so thankful to be married to such a hands-on Daddy!