our swim buddies
I was trying to teach Nat how to float on her back...
she thought putting her feet up in the air was so funny
doing rolls in the pool
Speaking of Natalie...our girl got pretty sick all of a sudden Friday night. It started with a cough, and by the middle of the night she was getting more and more uncomfortable. By about 4:00am she was having increased shortness of breath and started to really labor to breath or even talk. At 5:00 I called for back up and we made our third trip in three years to the emergency room for Natalie. A breathing treatment and chest x-ray to rule out pneumonia, and we were sent on our way with a couple of prescriptions. In the car, I noticed that her breathing was getting worse again, so we decided to hang out, have some breakfast, and go to sick call at her pediatrician. Thank goodness we did.
The pediatrician immediately wanted a second breathing treatment. Nat's oxygen saturation was 94, and the doctor was worried it would go even lower while she was sleeping. Poor lamb was still so short of breath and her chest was so tight that she just couldn't keep up. After the second treatment, and a listen to her lungs, she didn't sound any better, so the doctor wanted her admitted to the hospital in order to monitor her and to give her at least a few hours of intense treatment. She told us to be prepared to spend the night.
trying our best to stay occupied in a hospital bed
Natalie was such a good girl. Her biggest gripe was the monitor on her finger. We had to tape it on because she kept pulling it off. The fact that it meant she was tethered to the wall didn't help matters.
Within minutes she made friends with all the nurses
Just like dada, she thought the best part was the "souvenir" cup she got for her very own water.
After 3 more treatments in 3 hours, a short nap, and lots of fluids, Nat was starting to perk up some. She got 3 more treatments, and by that time was going pretty stir crazy. She had called the nurse on her call bell more times then they probably thought was cute, sufficiently wore out the controller on her bed moving the head and foot up and down, walked the halls, and even got to check out the nurses' station with her nurses aide. Her tolerance was so shot, she wouldn't even sit for the Mickey Mouse Clubhouse DVD I ran home to get.
The doctor came back to see her around dinner time, and felt that if we were comfortable taking her home, she was comfortable discharging us. We had to keep up the breathing treatments, got a script for an antibiotic and a steroid, and were on our way. Today, Natalie is much more herself. She still has a cough, which the doctor said she might have for another 3 or so weeks! But her breathing is much, much better. She is only really short of breath when she's been playing or running. By the way, the diagnosis was originally bronchitis in the ER, and her pediatrician agreed, but then said that after she got a look at the chest xray films, she saw a few spots on it that she might consider pneumonia. But the treatment is the same: treat for both, open up the lungs and reduce inflammation.
Nat was awarded the unofficial star patient. She was totally into all the attention, the cool gown she got to wear, the fact that she had her own bathroom with toiletries, got snacks in bed, and could even hold her own mask for her nebulizer treatments (which she has been doing at home, too). And of course we are so happy that she's feeling herself again. Here's sincerely hoping that her frequenting the ER slows down a little bit in the next few years. I'm not sure that it's a good thing that we are able to recognize the staff there and she's only 2.5...
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