Archive for August, 2007
Posted by Tricia at 8:37 pm
I love our pediatrician’s office. Our doctor is great, his nurses are compassionate and oh so competent, even the tech who comes to poke my poor children and draw blood is sweet as can be. (Except for that nasty needle of hers!)
We love Dr. D so much that in the past three weeks, various of our children and I have visited his office six times. Most recently it’s become something of a habit: we went this past Friday as well as yesterday, talked to the man over the weekend as well as last night and this morning. Given all that’s been going on in our family, they have been keeping close tabs on us, and we are grateful. Yet when Josiah’s fever broke sometime last night, we figured that would be it for awhile - after all, they do have other patients!
But tonight as we cleaned Josiah up from supper, we were rather horrified to see giant welt-like hives covering large patches over most of his body. We phoned into the office immediately, leaving our number on the pager, not knowing which of the doctors might be on call overnight, and within 30 seconds our favorite pediatrician’s # popped up on our caller ID. Which was a relief because we didn’t have to offer extra explanation and background on the past few weeks’ happenings…
Well anyway, it is of course an allergic reaction, but it doesn’t look serious, and after adminstering some children’s Benadryl and an oatmeal bath, the worst of the hives have subsided. We’ll give another dose tonight per dr’s orders, and keep a close eye on Josey. Dr. D tells us he’s standing by…on call all night, so just phone if we need him. Oh, I hope not!!
Tonight, we are giving thanks that Josiah appears to be rid of the horrid fever that ravaged his little body for so many days and nights. To say we are tired is putting it mildly, but we are so happy to see our little boy already more himself, playing and even having himself a good healthy temper tantrum earlier this afternoon over absolutely nothing.
So, don’t get too expectant, but maybe, just maybe…soon we’ll have something to share here that has nothing to do with fevers, viruses, hives, or doctors….
Posted by Jay at 5:26 pm
The next chapter is up in my dad’s novel. Enjoy!
Posted by Tricia at 6:53 pm
Josiah had his worst night yet last night. His fever has stayed pretty high - mid 104’s when he’s not medicated. He spends much of his day sad and fussy due to tummy cramps i think, as his system relearns proper functioning. And now his cough and the congestion in his throat is complicating matters by causing him to choke till the point of throwing up. One of the times he woke in the night was due to throwing up in his bed while asleep, poor guy. It happened again at naptime today, so we have begun administering guafenesin in hopes of helping this latest issue.
Other than that we are just trying to keep him comfortable and very hydrated. He does eat when his fever’s down, and that is good. The rest of us are fine, though I admit to feeling tired at this point. It has been very nice to have jay home for the weekend - besides extra reinforcements and adult company around here, I had the chance to get out with a couple of the older kids and do some errands! Sounds boring enough but given we’ve had sick kids for so long, I can’t just get out of the house during the weekdays. So, yes, uniform shopping with Abigail and Jonathan was downright FUN!!
The older children are being so sweet with sick little Josey, and have had good attitudes about staying inside to accommodate his illness. This says a lot since it has been a full 4 weeks now since we started with all this sickness. It is of course hard for the ones who are suffering, but in some ways I think more challenging mentally for the healthy ones. I am proud of our big kids and the way they are showing compassion for their baby brother. When Jay took them to Half Price Books this weekend they all chipped in and bought Josey a Maisy book to help cheer him.
I hope to post soon and tell you that we are done with the fevers and the illness. Until then…..
Posted by Tricia at 10:36 pm
As of Tuesday, no one around here had fever. All the kids, even little Josiah of the “bad poop”, as he has learned to say this past week, were mending. And we were thankful. And even cautiously optimistic. Maybe not cautious enough…
Friends and family brought us supper a few times this past week. How wonderful these meals have been, both in removing a daily chore, and in helping to lift our spirits. I think food tastes ten times better when someone else brings it to us whilst in the midst of a hard situation. Thanks to all of you who helped…the meals are appreciated more than you know.
For the last couple of days I have said to everyone who has kindly asked that we think maybe we’re seeing the end of the illness that has plagued our family for some time now. I went so far as to promise our “pool-sick” children (think “homesick”) that we would plan a big day at the pool this Friday in celebration of our release from the clutches of the fever. I even had leftover cold chicken from our generous meal-bringers to make into tasty sandwiches for the occasion! But I think we will have to change our plans. You see, Josiah came down with a bad fever today. Much of the day he would only lay in my arms because he was so worn out by it. I was really looking forward to playing with him tomorrow in the baby pool, but I think instead we will be spending some more quiet time here at home.
We purchased a pool membership at the start of summer since we knew we’d not be travelling away much during the season, and weren’t planning on using camps or the like to occupy the children through the hot months. We thought it reasonably likely we could take serious advantage of a wonderful pool a street over from our home that had a great family setting and convenient facilities for both big and small kids. And the times we have been able to go have been really great.
But it would be an understatement to say we have not used this pool nearly as much as we’d thought we would. The last time we were able to go (when everyone was healthy) was in early July. In fact, I am trying hard not to do the math to figure out the value we got (or didn’t get) on this whole pool thing by taking how much joining the pool cost us, divided by the very few times we actually got ourselves there to swim. It’s too depressing.
So, where does all that leave us? Sick…again. Taking temperatures and doling out meds….again. Losing sleep because I am up in the night comforting the scared child who has wakened burning with fever and sobbing for his Mommy…again. Canceling yet more playdates, and pool dates, and supper plans with many, many friends, who are all so sweet and gracious, but whom we don’t actually seem to get to see or spend time with lately. Not doing a host of things I thought we should do this summer, and feeling sad about the fact that school begins in two weeks and I don’t feel like we’ve truly had a summer, at least not in the way I thought we should.
And yet, in the midst of the frustration, there are little treasures to unearth and savor. Like having ample opportunity to help our children understand that being part of a family who loves each other deeply means all of us hurting when one of us hurts. And having many, many chances to practice living contentedly with whatever circumstance we are given (not that I am good at this yet!). Rejoicing heartily over our family being reunited when Jay and little Jonathan returned home after being in the hospital for a few days. And cherishing those moments here at home all together these past four weeks, both the good times and the not so good times. Feeling sad about what I could view as missed opportunities, and then realizing my plans aren’t really what it’s all about. Seeing my children taking turns caring for the sick ones among us by making cards, praying for each other, bringing stuffed animals, reading stories, and watching countless movies together….always letting the sick one pick his or her favorite! Wishing we could all be outdoors splashing and playing in the sun, and yet relishing the feel of my cuddly little Josiah in my arms since it’s the only place he feels comforted right now. And in these moments I remember how blessed I truly am. And I am thankful.
Posted by Tricia at 8:18 am
I mentioned previously that there are no antibiotics or meds available to fight these viruses in our house. But there is validity to keeping bodies as strong as possible, through good nourishment, lots of sleep, maybe a little backyard fresh air (my own idea!), and some boosts of vitamins. Toward this end, a friend suggested Emergen-C, which I have used in the past when I was fighting a cold or virus. Given everyone around here is either sick, has been sick, or is at least being exposed to a ton of sickness, I liked the idea, and so I purchased some, mixed it up, and presented a bit to each child at breakfast this morning. To say my offerings were met with less than enthusiastic responses might turn out to be the understatement of the day. A conversation ensued…
Abigail: I don’t like this very much (accompanied by many facial expressions which she attempted to keep dramatic and yet polite in that Abigail way of hers).
Nicolas: I don’t like it at all! (this in a much more whiney voice)
Jonathan: (always one to take things up just a notch) This stuff is awful, it’s terrible! This is most definitely NOT paradise! This is….
Nicolas: This is HELL!!!! (most emphatically)
Abigail: (now fully on the bandwagon) Yeah, this stuff is like drinking poison!
At which point I had to put a stop to their grumblings and complainings and remind them to consider their language, behavior, and attitudes, especially in front of Baby Josey (who was guzzling the vitamin drink with delight). But I assured them that if they did not want to drink any more of the delicious Emergen-C I could mix up some of my own homemade concoction for them to enjoy. I have a little secret weapon of my own in my immune-system boosting arsenal which I ingest whenever I feel illness coming on, so far with surprisingly positive results. I’ll try and tell you about that another time. Right now I’ve got to go drink my fizzy Emergen-C!
Edited to Add: I’ve received a couple questions about why Nicolas came out with such a strong statement about Emergen-C being akin to Hell. He was contrasting Jonathan’s previous statement about my having them consume this awful beverage not being Paradise with his best theological understanding about the opposite of Paradise…which of course is….
Posted by Jay at 12:38 pm
Exciting news! My father, John Horne, has put his novel out there for other folks to enjoy. I’ll add the following link to our sidebar, and I encourage you to do likewise. The code is below the picture. Or, if you’d like to do me a favor, you can copy the image to your own server and change the image source accordingly.
<a href=”http://www.hornes.org/john”><img src=”http://www.hornes.org/john/AWH.jpg” /></a>
Posted by Tricia at 12:32 pm
I wanted to provide a bit of recap on stuff around here the last day. A diagnosis has finally been made on Jonathan’s illness, and based on what we’ve learned, all the illness we have seen around our house for the past three weeks is beginning to make sense, and appears very related. But I’ll back up….
Things got pretty interesting on Friday and Saturday. Baby Josiah took a turn for the worse with his tummy virus: he got significantly worse Friday night, starting running a fever, was up much of the night again, and became “limp” early Saturday. A trip to the pediatrician assured us he was not dehydrated or in any immediate danger, and the doctor gave us a few suggestions which appear to have helped him some. While he has not made a full recovery, he did sleep through the night last night, and today is perkier again. How wonderful to see him playful and happy after the past few days.
As you already know, Jonathan came home from the hospital in the early afternoon yesterday and we are so thankful to have him and Jay back. He continues with fever and lethargy, but will hopefully gain strength gradually. He had a great night’s sleep last night in his own bed which is a huge blessing. His hospital doctor called a short while ago to inform us that based on some cultures done while he was at Children’s, they have made a definitive diagnosis: adenovirus, which is a collective name for a group of viruses that afflict mostly children, have far-ranging symptoms, and often mimic pneumonia closely. From what the doctor described, we are concluding that Josiah has actually had the same virus, just in somewhat different form, and that Abigail’s illness from a week ago also falls into the same group of symptoms. Nicolas, our only child who has not been ill these past three weeks, probably not wanting to be left out of the “fun”, woke us at 3am crying, as he had started with high fever, headache, and some other symptoms Jonathan had.
So…that is a longwinded way of telling you, it looks like we know what we are dealing with here. Antibiotics won’t help; the only treatment is to keep the body strong in order to help fight the virus till it’s gone. Jonathan’s case was much worse given his recent bout of pneumonia, and weakened system, which is why he ended up in the hospital. We hope and pray the other two little boys will experience a much more “normal” course of this virus. Fever and other symptoms are supposed to last approximately five days.
Thank you all for your prayers, concerns, notes, etc over the past few days. You are of great encouragement to us. Maybe within a week’s time our family will be ready to venture back out into society, and celebrate the last remaining days of summer. (I REALLY hope so!)
As a small aside, I’m wondering if we should consider setting up a sub-category for blogposts on this website entitled “Sickness, Illnesses, The Latest Plague at House of Horne, etc etc”. Heheh, just a bit of humor, dear readers!
Posted by Jay at 1:13 pm
There have been a few twists and turns since my last post. Yesterday morning, it seemed like Jonathan was doing very well and would likely be headed home today. Then he spiked a high fever in the afternoon and those hopes dwindled. We had a rough night and then an early morning visit from vampires, er, I mean the nurse who draws blood for further lab work.
When the doctor came by a couple hours later, Jonathan was still struggling with fever and discouraged by the blood letting. Interestingly, the doctor reported that all lab reports were looking good and moving in the right direction. And this without any new doses of antibiotic (which they withheld to test the hypothesis that it was viral).
So, it appears Jonathan is afflicted with a mystery virus that piggy-backed the pneumonia from a couple weeks ago. Mono is one of the suspects. But whatever the culprit, there wasn’t much to do other than ride it out, so were given the okay to head home. There are a few more results that should be coming in on Monday, so we may yet discover the actual culprit, but it is good to be home.
Posted by Tricia at 11:56 pm
Children’s has a medium set up for patients to receive email messages from friends and loved ones. Anything you send will be hand-delivered to Jonathan. Click here if you’d like to send him a message directly. He is a great reader, and loves to get mail of any variety. Thanks, Everyone!
Posted by Jay at 3:17 pm
First, we appreciate everyone’s thoughts, prayers, offers of help, and other expressions of love that have poured in over the past couple days.
Jonathan and I arrived at Children’s Medical Center yesterday afternoon and were treated to the least tortuous, least degrading, easiest admittance process I have ever experienced (and I’ve experienced about 20 of them). Interestingly, the gentleman signing us in was apparently in training for Mr. Universe or something, and his biceps were probably bigger than my thighs. But I digress.
Jonathan was doing very well, particularly given he was running a 103 degree fever. Once we were settled in a room (and a nice room at that, think LDR), we had a nice long consultation with our hospitalist. She was pleasant and competent, traits shared with pretty much everyone at Children’s. She then ordered a battery of tests, and Jonathan made me proud as he kept his composure while they poked, prodded, measured, x-rayed, and bled him through the evening. Along the way he enjoyed a dinner of french toast and bacon, cried after spilling his hot chocolate (and not from the hot liquid all over himself, but because he was enjoying it), took in a view of Pete’s Dragon, and generally did very well. Tricia dropped by late in the evening for a nice visit that coincided with the administration of the antibiotic via the IV installed earlier, and then Jonathan settled in for some sleep. I settled in for “sleep”, as I was on this couch-bed thing that was roughly equal to a balance beam surrounded by some squishy couch material.
The night went reasonably well, though there were some rough patches as Jonathan broke his fever. This morning he had no fever, which was fantastic, but didn’t last. The hospitalist came by again, with the surprising report that the x-ray hadn’t really shown any pneumonia. So next up was a CAT scan and then a rousing game of Battleship, followed by the return of the fever and some lunch.
So we have test results drifting in, but no real resolution yet. The hospital stay has been very pleasant, but we would like to be home. And I suppose that’s a good thing.
Posted by Tricia at 3:20 pm
Last night saw very little sleep for most of us as Jonathan relapsed with high fever, and Josiah fought a very nasty tummy bug, which he continues to fight today.
This morning after seeing Jonathan our pediatrician made the decision to hospitalize him, because he did not like the direction the pneumonia was taking. Jonathan is now checked in, and they are running a series of tests to rule out anything worse, in order to determine proper course of treatment. He is under the care of a very competent and compassionate doctor, and we are thankful for the attentive care he will receive, though we miss him terribly at home.
For his part, Jonathan was quite nervous about the prospect of hospitalization, so prayers for his little heart to be calm, and for his little body to heal are all very appreciated.
We are thankful for our sweet Grammy, who has come to be of help. Her presence has cheered us, and the house is a fresher, cleaner, more delightful place to be since her arrival.
I will try to post updates here as we have them.
Posted by Tricia at 9:11 am
This was written in very big letters, and handed to me earlier this morning while I was in the midst of a phone conversation. We have tried to teach our children not to interrupt us unless it is an emergency, but I guess they assumed a written message was a good way to get around that rule:
“Jo has a Stinky!!!”
and then in tiny little letters at the bottom of the note:
“(pe yu)”.
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