Pa-Thetic

Wow, we are officially the house of sickness!  Fortunately, although it doesn't really matter while we're in the throes of distress, it's not H1N1 (no Oink Oink, as I posted before).  Unfortunately, we did not get to go out in the woods to get a Christmas tree today, and despite my best efforts since the beginning of November to stay ahead of the holiday craze, I am now officially behind.  Oh well. 

Devon brought Birkeley home from the ER last night with a "clean" chest x-ray and 5 days worth of Tamiflu. He was still under the 48-hour limit, so hopefully it will help him speed through recovery.  Today he has been up and down:  still very lethargic and whiny, not very hungry, taking lots of naps.  His fever spikes occasionally, but we've been able to keep it under control with ibuprofen. 

Meanwhile, I took a turn for the worse this morning, so Devon took me to urgent care today.  I wasn't feeling well during Thanksgiving week, then on Tuesday I was slammed with a brutal cough, and also have been up and down over the last 6 days.  There they swabbed my nose for H1N1 (it felt like the back of my eyeballs, really), which 10 minutes later was determined to be negative, then took me for a chest x-ray.  The x-ray was clear for pneumonia, so bronchitis it is (it feels like I'm coughing up shards of glass).  I definitely have an infection, so I started Zithromax immediately, and I've never been so thrilled to take cough syrup!  Two doses of cough syrup later I am feeling a tiny bit better already. 

After missing school on Monday last week due to a restless night and a bad cough, Avery has been doing very well the last few days (phew).  But now Devon says his throat is getting sore....

Picture From The Past #18

Here is a picture of Jon Paul and me in ~1993.  I made both the sweater  (and hat) he's wearing, and the one I'm wearing.  Now I'm wondering where that sweater might be -- Birke could wear it in a couple of years if I can track it down!  Usk/Cusick, Washington. 

What Season Is It Anyway?

Avery went to a costume birthday party yesterday, and chose my old clown suit to wear* (handmade by nana Noma when I was about her age).  It's hard to believe it's almost Christmas, instead of Halloween!

*I really wanted to go dig through my old photo albums and scan some photos of both Jill and I wearing this costume, but it will have to wait until another day, I am just not feeling well enough to do all that. 

We've Been Here Before

I thought, mistakenly, that with Jordan gone, so would be our weekend night at the ER ritual.  Nope.  Birke, for the second time in his mere 11.5 months, is there now with Devon.  His fever was 103.8'F and not coming down with acetaminophen and ibuprofen, and he was miserable!  So, off they went.  I hate to see him suffer, and both Devon and I are extra-worried about our kids health all the time now. 

The last time he was in the ER was in March, for RSV (also on a Saturday night). That time he had IV fluids. I have no idea how things will go tonight, but I think we're going to be too tired and too sick to be traipsing through the snow hunting for Christmas trees tomorrow!  :-(

Birke, 2.5 months old, March 2009, getting some IV fluids thanks to a bout with RSV

Picture From The Past #17

A handful of cousins, all together at the Pend Oreille County Fair, Cusick Washington, August 1993.

back: Michael, Jennifer (their sister Amanda is missing)

center:  Jill, Jamie, Leslie

front: Jessica, Jon Paul

Our Super Star

Okay, a bit of shameless parental bragging.  Avery was chosen for a Citizenship award at school last week, and Devon and I were invited to the assembly to see her get her award.  However, when they called her name to come get her certificate, she covered her head and hid in the back of the room.  Devon said he wasn't surprised, he would have done the same thing.  He definitely prefers to fly below the radar (unless the topic is being silly, I would argue).  I finally got her to at least go out in the hall and have her picture taken for the principal's wall, but it was no small feat.  Of course I managed to get a quick pic out of the deal, silly smile and all!

We're so proud of her, as you can guess.  

A Happier, Healthier Birkeley

These pictures were taken right before he was 11 months old (at the end of November).  After the sad pics from last night, I thought I'd share these as a bit of a counter-balance.  He really is a happy, silly boy, usually.

 

 

 

Picture From The Past #16

February Birthday Follow-Up. Auntie Grace, grandma Martha, me (~11), grandpa John. Usk/Cusick, Washington, February ~1983.

OINK! OINK!

Uh, oh -- I think we're oinkers here.  Despite getting the H1N1 vaccination last weekend, I think it sneaked in and got us.  It started with Avery on Sunday, who coughed all night instead of sleeping, then spent most of Monday at home in bed or on the sofa.  With a great night's sleep on Monday night, Avery was back to school, but the nasty cough was sneaking up on me.  By Tuesday night I was the one who didn't sleep (but I did get Christmas presents sorted and wrapped before I finally crashed a little after 6:00am).  Consequently, I spent all of Wednesday, and a good chunk of Thursday and today in bed.  Luckily I am on the mend, but you guessed it, now Birkeley is S-I-C-K!  Yikes!  It's just heartbreaking!  He's so sad, weepy, and pathetic.  We're fighting his high fever with alternating acetaminophen and ibuprofen, cool washcloths, and nakedness.  We're also pumping him full of electrolyte drinks, too, and Devon and I will be up throughout the night* keeping an eye on him, making sure he doesn't go into respiratory distress.  If we make it through the night without a trip to the ER we will definitely be at the pediatrician's office with him in the morning!

 

 

 

 

 

So far, Devon has remained healthy (thank goodness, since someone has to be able to hold the fort down with the rest of us totally out of it), and nana Noma was up in Alaska with Jill, Soren, and Matt, so she isn't sick, either.  She's (smartly) avoiding us until all the fevers and coughs have dissipated, so we're going to be pet-sitting Daisy the cat and Dorothy the goldfish for awhile longer, I guess.  So far, they haven't shown signs of illness...and Sierra and Mojave are finally getting used to their "aunt" Daisy, and have downgraded their displeasure in each other to gentle growls and hisses.

Now, all we have to do this weekend is take our Christmas card photos, take Avery to a classmate's birthday party, and go out in the snowy woods to take winter pictures and get our Christmas tree.  Hmmmmmmmmm.  I guess we'll just have to see how it goes!  Fingers crossed for a quick recovery!

*I don't know if there is an official disorder for this, but since Jordan died in her sleep, I will never, ever, ever sleep the same again when my kids are healthy, let alone sick.  It won't matter how exhausted and ill I am tonight, I will only be half sleeping all night with Birkeley and the thermometer right beside me.

Picture From The Past #15

I'm now slowly dying of a brutal cough -- and it hit me all at once today.  But, I'm hanging in long enough to post this picture from the past, before there were any boy cousins (Michael Edwards and my brother Jon Paul), and my sister Jessie, too. 

Clockwise from top left:  Jill (~6), Leslie (~11), Amanda Edwards (~4), Jennifer Edwards (~2), Usk/Cusick, Washington, ~1983-ish