Our faithful readers have probably noticed that we haven't updated our blog in a week or so. That is because we have been on a bit of a medical journey with Emily. Thankfully, it has all turned out well, but it was very scary for a few days.
It started on Wednesday morning, when Emily's fever and cough suddenly turned into very scary labored breathing. Mama took Emily in to our regular doctor, and they quickly decided that she needed to be transferred to the nearby hospital Emergency Room, which was done by ambulance. Mama called Mom home from work, and we all met at the ER, where Emily was still having trouble breathing and was already hooked up to lots of tubes and wires.
After blood tests and a chest X-ray the ER staff made a preliminary diagnosis of H1N1 flu complicated by pneumonia. The decision was made to transfer Emily up to Eastern Maine Medical Center in Bangor, which has a very good pediatric department. She went by ambulance, with lights and sirens, and Mama got to ride with her. Mom followed in the car, after stopping by home for a change of clothes. Although Mama is smiling in the photo below, it is a nervous smile, because we were very scared for our little girl at this point.
When we got to Bangor she was admitted directly into the pediatric ICU, where we got probably the best room in the house--check out that view of the Penobscot river! There were lots of doctors around, and plenty of tests done and wires hooked up to her as soon as we arrived.
After some steroids and nebulizer treatments, Emily started breathing a little easier. She was pretty hungry, but they would only allow her to eat popsicles until they were sure she wouldn't need to be intubated.
Em had so many wires and monitors hooked up that she couldn't even roll over, but still she managed to smile a little bit. We called the red finger light her "ET finger", which she didn't quite understand.
Although the steroids and nebulizer treatments improved the condition of her lungs, they also kept her jittery and wide awake. After a very fitful night during which none of us got more than an hour of sleep, Thursday morning she was doing much better.
On Thursday we also got a new diagnosis from the doctor: Restricted Airway Disease, or in other words, an asthmatic attack. The doctors at Bangor took a look at her x-ray and decided that she might not have pneumonia after all.
Regardless, Emily was feeling good enough to do some coloring....
....and to play with her balloon and teddy bear from Uncle David and Ron.
Here is a photo of one of her nebulizer treatments. We called this the "Peace Pipe" because it looked like she was smoking. Notice that the nurses are wearing full masks, disposable aprons, and eye shields whenever they came in our room. This is because they still thought Emily had H1N1, which we later found out she did not have after all.
Here is a picture of some much-needed sleep. Both Mom and Mama were able to stay in the hospital the whole time with Emily, which was possible only because Nana and Grandma (with Pop Pop) generously took turns staying with Kate at home, and driving her to and from school. Once again we realized how lucky we are to be living so close to our parents!
We spent another restless night in the hospital, taking turns sleeping in the bed with Emily, and in the morning she felt well enough to eat some breakfast, which was a very good sign.
We were all hoping she would get discharged on Friday, but the doctors wanted her to stay one more night for observation. Emily was feeling much better and getting pretty tired of the hospital (so were her moms!), so we had to come up with things to do to entertain her. The balloon bouquet from Uncle Bob and Aunt Tawnya was a hit.
And then we had some visitors! Nana drove up with Kate, who was missing us all by then, and also starting to get "hospital envy".
Emily showed Kate her balloons, as well as the play mat that we found in the pediatric playroom (because Em still had a slight cough, she wasn't allowed to leave our room, which made it really tough to do any kind of playing).
Nana was impressed by our beautiful view!
We were, of course, entertained by the t.v. quite a bit. We brought some of our own DVDs, and we watched a lot of PBS and Disney Channel shows too. Mom and Mama finally found out who the Jonas Brothers are.
It was really nice to see Kate, and for her to see us and especially Emily. When it was time to go Kate didn't want to leave her sister.
Grandma and Pop Pop came up to visit us too! They arrived just in time to help us switch rooms--we were getting transferred out of the ICU and into the regular Pediatric ward for our last night in the hospital.
We also got a visit from our friend Hilary, who brought more DVDs and new toys for Em to play with, and even went out to sushi with Mama. She has spent her share of time in Pediatric wards, and it was real nice to take a break and chat with her, and compare experiences.
Friday night we all slept much better, and Saturday Morning we were raring to go home. Of course we had to wait for the doctors to make their rounds and discharge us, so there was a lot of time to kill. We did some more coloring....
....a little bit of napping....
....some stretching....
....and we played the world's largest game of Circle. When we finally took attendance, there were over 40 "students" in our circle!
Finally Doctor Wood came and gave us the okay to leave the hospital. We came home with our very own inhaler and three prescriptions, and we were very glad to go.
When we got home we had a nice surprise--an envelope full of Get Well cards from the students in Emily's preschool class!
Emily took the time to read each card--she was thrilled to get them.
It's always nice to know that your friends are thinking of you when you're sick.
So now we're resting at home, and trying to get back to normal after this crazy week. Again we want to thank our parents for all of their help, and all our friends and family for their words of kindness and support. This whole experience could have been much worse, and we feel lucky to have it end well, and to have such great support all around us.
Our girls always enjoy playing with other kids' toys, and Noah and Leo generously shared theirs.
Then Emily found the box of musical instruments--sweet!
....and pretty soon they had a whole band going!
Meanwhile, their dad Arne....
After dinner the kids did some more playing. There was tower building...
....(and knocking down, of course)...
....animal stamping....
....and even some arts and crafts!
We all had a great time at Noah and Leo's last night!
