A Little TLC

That's what Charlie has been in need of this past week. So much so that he decided that he needed a short stay in the hospital just to get enough of that TLC!! We had Charlie's well-child check on Tuesday afternoon & everything looked great. No worries, no concerns. Wednesday morning his nose was running a ton but he was acting fine. By Wednesday afternoon, I thought he was getting a whopper of a cold so I stayed home with him while the rest of the family did the church night activites. Charlie was up tossing and turning all night and was coughing much more than he had. I gave him a nebulizer treatment that morning and laid him down for an early nap. When he woke up, he was having trouble breathing & I could hear him wheezing. I decided to call the doctor and thought I should just have him looked at but was really thinking they would just tell me it was just a cold. We got there & they listened to his lungs and took his oxygen levels. In 10 minutes they had us over in the ER to get some oxygen and start the tests going to see what was going on. After 2 blood tests, chest x-rays and an RSV test, they decided to admit him for pneumonia. His white cell count was pretty high & his oxygen levels kept dipping down at times. I was so glad that our regular doctor was in the ER that day!! She wanted him on IV antibiotics and fluids since he was also dehydrated. I stayed with him in the hospital while Brian bopped in & out so that he could be with the other kids. By Friday morning, he was doing so much better! He started having smiles for us again & his oxygen levels had stayed up while he slept so we were good to go home. His white cell count wasn't as far down as our doctor had wanted so we did have to do 1 more round of IV antibiotics before we went home & now he is on low dose medicine for the next week. We also have to do his breathing treatments 4 times a day for the next week or so. Charlie was so happy to be home & went right for his toys & started playing. He gave us quite the scare with how fast he got sick in a short amount of time! We are so glad to have our happy Charlie back!! Here's a picture of him on Thursday having 1 of his treatments. Not that I want him in 1 anytime soon but he did look kinda cute in the little hospital gown!

He's Two Wheeling It!

Many of you on Facebook have seen this video again but I'm sharing it here too. Charlie has just taken off with walking & I'm sure he will be running soon! Just what I need! Being outrun by Jackson & Charlie! Oh, and don't mind the saggy diaper! This was right before bedtime & I didn't want to spoil his good mood to change him!

What?!?! People Still Read This?

I really don't know if I have anyone still reading here. It's not because I don't have things to write about but you need something called time to still type and that is few and far between these days. We went straight from AAU volleyball with Emma to soccer season for the 3 oldest kids. These schedules are brutal and there are a couple weeks where we will only have 1 night at home. I guess I better get good at packing sub sandwiches. I also need to build up my arsenal of things to keep the kids occupied during the longer games. Everything is fine if the weather cooperates but we all know that spring weather in Iowa can be unpredictable. I thought movies would do the trick but my older boys were soon trying to play ninjas in the way back of the van before the movie even started playing. Yeah, you are correct......that didn't end well.

About a week before Charlie's birthday, we got the chance to talk with Miss A on the phone!! I can't even begin to tell you how wonderful it was to talk to her. She is just as wonderful as we remember her and we have since talked several times on the phone. She loves Charlie so much and cares very deeply for him. I ask for your prayers on this relationship that we are starting. I can see so much potential for this to be such a blessing on both our ends but we also know that things can be tricky navigating this part of the process. We just pray that God blesses our new relationship and that we can live out a Christ-like example to her.

Well, I know very well that I could be writing this strictly to myself by now but I really do want update more often. All the kids are growing up so fast & I'd love to have some of our life experiences documented here. Until next time!!