Have you ever just sat down & watched your kids? Noticed the little things that others might miss in the hurried pace of life? When I was a young mom I was so excited to get my babies to the next step in their development. (I may or may not have actually been checking it off of the list the pediatrician gave to me while simultaneously marveling at the sheer intelligence & physical prowess of my babies as they exceeded almost all of the important milestones. Now I've been told I'm an old mom-can you believe that! I guess with age comes a hope of maturity & I've noticed that I do some things a little differently than when I was a "young" mom.
One of the major changes has been that I no longer jump to check things off that developmental list. I celebrate each milestone but I now enjoy each tiny little thing they learn. The utter joy in their face when they accomplish something new is something so easy to overlook. Here's a list of my "joys" I've been noticing lately:
* the tiny slap of my 10mo old's palm on the floor as she crawls along with her cute little diaper bum & the wonderfully varied facial expressions she uses.
* the way my 2yo cocks his head to the side when he's observing something he's never encountered before & the hilarious things he says. I love how he tries to join in our conversations by telling us important things about his day or just quotes a movie line that usually makes sense to the situation.
* my 4yo wants so badly to be just like her big sisters & is trying to emulate their styles now instead of only wearing pants & any old shirt like last year & her tiny fingers as she grasps pencils & crayons to "do school" just like her older siblings.
* my 6yo looks for the beauty in every situation, listens before she enters a conversation, & her eyes are gorgeous to watch. I love the way she moves her hair back behind her ear with her hand when she's telling me something she's excited about.
* my 8yo is caught between wanting to be a big & the familiarity of being a little so he is feeling frustrated most days. He holds his bangs in his palm when he concentrates really hard.
* my 11yo is so fast to learn things. She started playing the flute 3 months ago & amazes me that she can play so well already. Watching her fingers move & her mouth shape as she plays is so interesting.
* my 13yo has made some big strides since joining the public school crowd. I've seen him start to figure out how to put himself in other people's shoes & his ears turn bright red when he's excited.
* the biggest thing I know about my 14yo is that he's bigger than me. I have to be on my toes to rest my chin on his shoulder. He's just realizing his strength (which is now stronger than me! I know, it's hard to believe!) His heart & sensitivity to all parts of life around him is something I'd like to encourage & I hope he doesn't lose as he gets older.
Take the time to notice the little things about your family
Sunday, April 17, 2016
Monday, February 15, 2016
Aspergers, Underpants, & Jesus
Alright, so some of you know that I have 2 kids with Aspergers. We don't walk around advertising it & you might never know by just observing our family. But I thought I'd give you an example how life can be.
One particular child has outgrown or put holes in all but one pair of underpants (and failed to tell me until the last pair had been worn for AN ENTIRE WEEK!). I asked said child what style of underpants I should purchase to replace these with and headed out to get this accomplished so the stanky ones can be fumigated or whatever.
Sunday morning, Valentines Day, underpants given to child. Child puts them on. They are WRONG! Activate stress meter. Are you kidding me! I bought the correct style. I bought tagless ones to avoid that war. I tried to find soft ones. I tried to anticipate EVERY MAJOR DETERRENT to said underpants.
FAIL!!!!!!
By the end of the morning this child couldn't attend church. Life wasn't worth living-serious. And just so you know, by the end of the hour long melt down I was enlightened to the fact that I don't love Jesus & neither do ya'll.
You didn't know purchasing underpants could be spiritually detrimental, did you?
I'm headed back to WalMart where spiritual decisions must be made AGAIN.
One particular child has outgrown or put holes in all but one pair of underpants (and failed to tell me until the last pair had been worn for AN ENTIRE WEEK!). I asked said child what style of underpants I should purchase to replace these with and headed out to get this accomplished so the stanky ones can be fumigated or whatever.
Sunday morning, Valentines Day, underpants given to child. Child puts them on. They are WRONG! Activate stress meter. Are you kidding me! I bought the correct style. I bought tagless ones to avoid that war. I tried to find soft ones. I tried to anticipate EVERY MAJOR DETERRENT to said underpants.
FAIL!!!!!!
By the end of the morning this child couldn't attend church. Life wasn't worth living-serious. And just so you know, by the end of the hour long melt down I was enlightened to the fact that I don't love Jesus & neither do ya'll.
You didn't know purchasing underpants could be spiritually detrimental, did you?
I'm headed back to WalMart where spiritual decisions must be made AGAIN.
Friday, January 29, 2016
A New Normal
Everyday I sit in my house & look out my windows at the current seasonal beauty and I can't imagine myself anywhere else. I am not the type of person that needs to get out of the house every day. In fact I don't really like to leave the house. I prefer to stay here & when I feel the need to get away, I head to the barn to work-which I can usually do alone because kids volunteer to watch babies in the house when work is suggested :)
BUT, we enrolled our oldest 3 children in the local middle school in Dec rather than educating them at home as we have been for their entire school career. So, now I have the privilege of leaving my home at least once a day to drive to school. (My fantastic neighbor takes 2 of them to school at 730 am & brings them home so I only have to take one to school mid-morning) You wouldn't think that's a big deal until you realize that I have to prepare to leave my house 30 minutes in advance! I have 5 kids ages 8 & under to prepare for venturing forth into below freezing temps. That's 10 gloves, 5 hats, 10 boots, 10 socks, 5 coats to find & put on them amidst all the other people's stuff in the closet. Not only that but you have to get them out the door & buckled in to their car seats before they start to take them off & you have to find them again.
Anyway, I was talking about leaving the house. My sister told me a couple of years ago that she has to leave the house everyday. She is a great teacher so she gets out for that but during the summer she likes to be out doing things. I thought that was different but recently I was talking with some other women who feel the same way. Apparently I'm the different one :) It wears me out to go to the grocery store on Fridays & it's even worse if I have to do it on a Saturday when the store is packed. EVEN if I don't talk to anyone but the checker. And since we moved to the country & because I have boys that are sensitive to lights & sound I now notice how loud everything in town AND I HAVE 8 KIDS so you'd think I would be used to the noise!
Maybe I'm getting older & this is part of getting old. I don't remember being this way when I was younger. I remember being around people was so great & I couldn't wait to leave my house & the bigger the group the better. I know that I started to change my thinking around my junior year.
Maybe I just never knew how my body craves quiet & calm & now that I have it I understand. Don't get me wrong. I like people. I need friends just like everyone else but not on a daily basis.
Do you prefer to stay home?
Wednesday, July 1, 2015
"You need a little Serenity in your life!"
Throughout this pregnancy I've done what I normally do. I make out lots of lists of names to run past Jeremy in the hopes that we will make a decision that we can agree on. I think Jeremy takes great pleasure in nixxing all my suggestions until the very last week before our babies are due. I like names that aren't common. After being "Katie B" in every class I've ever been in, I decided my kids could be their own person with their own name. This time I liked decidedly older names: Madge, Mavis, Reuban, York, Lincoln, Hezekiah, Vaughn, Liberty, Wilder. Of course, we weren't close enough to our due date for Jeremy to agree with any names.
On Tuesday, June 16th, I was super busy. We were doing lots of running around and by the time I was putting the littles to bed I realized that I hadn't really felt the baby move the whole day. I was not a very patient mama as I finished getting the kids into bed. I was very anxious to get to my room so I could eat some chocolate & concentrate on getting the baby to move. By the time Jeremy got home from work at 1015pm, I was a mess. You see, I haven't really enjoyed this pregnancy like I did with my others. Last spring my friend lost her baby a couple weeks before she was due. And I was exposed to Fifths Disease by 5 of my kids in the beginning of my pregnancy. And then in May, my friends' baby died at 7wks from SIDS. To add to this, the baby hardly moved at all compared to my others. Much of the time I was consumed with fear for this baby.
Well, we headed to the ER. Of course, as soon as they hooked her up on the monitors, the baby was more wiggly than she'd ever been the entire pregnancy. The wanted to keep me overnight & do blood work & an ultrasound in the morning. As Dr Swanson said, "Everything happens for a reason." The ultrasound was just great & she looked good-I found out the baby is a girl! The blood work came back not so great. It's a little confusing to explain. Both Jeremy & I are A+ blood types but under that Rh positive there are some antigens that I don't have & Jeremy does. Because my blood doesn't have these antigens, my blood creates antibodies to fight & destroy them if they are present in my body. The blood work found that Jeremy had passed these antigens on to our baby & my body was readying for attack. So, my body was about to kill all the red blood cells in the baby's body. That's really bad!
SO...we needed to be induced! I headed home Wed to prepare to for an induction on Friday. Sage's birthday is also on that day & he was super excited to share his birthday with his new sibling. We went back to the hospital after getting ready, making arrangements for our other kids, & packing a hospital bag. The nurses & doctor were very kind. I was a little nervous but they all thought I'd deliver quickly because this would be my 8th delivery. APPARENTLY NOT! She wasn't born until SATURDAY! And let me tell you, being induced is AWFUL! Super painful. I'm normally a kinda quiet laborer. I might groan or grunt a little but I was yell praying very loudly. I've delivered naturally-no meds but I was tempted to get an epidural but I didn't want the baby to be groggy from meds if they had to give her a transfusion as soon as she was born. I already had an IV because I was also GBS positive. Not a fan of inductions! Usually after I deliver I get this 24hr burst of energy & this time I was falling asleep sitting up after only 30min after delivering. I've never felt so exhausted. My body was NOT ready to have a baby yet. Plus, I'm getting older apparently. :)
I finally delivered a beautiful little girl at 214am. We still hadn't come up with a name because she was 3wks early. After having multiple blood tests, bilirubin tests, & checks by pediatricians & NICU nurses, we finally got to go home. I am breathing easier but still not able to take a deep breathe until we get the all clear. Hopefully we get that at her 2wk appt.
Oh, about a month ago, Jeremy was talking to me as he put his shoes on to go out & do chores or go to work. He said, "Maybe we should name the baby Serenity." I asked him why? He said, "I think you need a little Serenity in your life!" She is definitely the littlest of my babies BY 3#! We left the hospital with her weighing 5#12oz. So, she is my little Serenity! I hope she lives up to her name.
So, now I have 8 kids just like my grandparents & that excites me! Plus, 8 is my favorite number!
Thursday, April 2, 2015
Spring Baby Love
Well, it's been a great couple of months for us! We've been so excited for our first spring to welcome babies onto our farm. We started out with our bottle lambs from last year delivering babies of their own this winter! We got 11 lambs from those sweet bottle lambs from last year! We had 3 sets of twins & 5 singles. The kids had great fun naming them. The deal we made was that each one got to name the lambs from their ewe. There were some definite themes going on!
Sage named Scooby's lamb Gabriel (he's perfectly white & looks like an angel)
Brody named SugarMama's twins Luke & Bennett after his cousin & friend
Oreo also had twins but they were premature & died shortly after birth.
Julia named Chocolate Sprinkles' twins Olaf & Sven
Corbin named Cowgirl's twins TumTum & Shivers
Celeste named Cinderella's lamb Flynn Ryder (all her animals have Disney names)
Glory & I named Hershey Kisses' lamb Reese's Pieces
Olaf got to spend a week in our living room because he was so tiny & he couldn't figure out how to suck. He's our bottle baby this year.
We also added a couple more bottle babies except these aren't lambs. We got our first bottle calves. Julia & Corbin will be showing bottle calves at the fair this year. We now have 2 holstein steers named Marshmellow (yes, spelled Mellow) & Cordona Stumpy. Corbin named his after his favorite John Wayne movie characters.
This brings the count to:
3 horses: April, Daisy & Maggie
4 peacocks: Peaches & 3 boys
4 steers: Tank & Duke (Angus & cross) & Marshmellow & Cordona
1 Ram: Ramalamadingdong
11 ewes: Sugar Mama, Cinderella. Granny, Oreo, Cowgirl, Cowgirl Colt, Emerald, Sprinkles, Kisses, Scooby, & Snickers
6 lambs: Reese, Flynn, Olaf, Sven, Gabriel, & Luke
1 dog: Buzz
6 cats: Nermal, Snowflake, Snowball, Pirate, Boomer, & Ariel
2 rabbits: Lily & Oliver
~120 roosters & laying hens
I think our little hobby farm is off & running. My sister asked me how I was doing all this. Obviously I grew up just as "city" as she did. Well, I've read a lot, learned by trial & error, attended a few classes that Iowa State Extension office has offered & we ask our neighbors, relatives & friends a lot of questions. We are having a blast learning & playing.
Sage named Scooby's lamb Gabriel (he's perfectly white & looks like an angel)
Brody named SugarMama's twins Luke & Bennett after his cousin & friend
Oreo also had twins but they were premature & died shortly after birth.
Julia named Chocolate Sprinkles' twins Olaf & Sven
Corbin named Cowgirl's twins TumTum & Shivers
Celeste named Cinderella's lamb Flynn Ryder (all her animals have Disney names)
Glory & I named Hershey Kisses' lamb Reese's Pieces
Olaf got to spend a week in our living room because he was so tiny & he couldn't figure out how to suck. He's our bottle baby this year.
We also added a couple more bottle babies except these aren't lambs. We got our first bottle calves. Julia & Corbin will be showing bottle calves at the fair this year. We now have 2 holstein steers named Marshmellow (yes, spelled Mellow) & Cordona Stumpy. Corbin named his after his favorite John Wayne movie characters.
This brings the count to:
3 horses: April, Daisy & Maggie
4 peacocks: Peaches & 3 boys
4 steers: Tank & Duke (Angus & cross) & Marshmellow & Cordona
1 Ram: Ramalamadingdong
11 ewes: Sugar Mama, Cinderella. Granny, Oreo, Cowgirl, Cowgirl Colt, Emerald, Sprinkles, Kisses, Scooby, & Snickers
6 lambs: Reese, Flynn, Olaf, Sven, Gabriel, & Luke
1 dog: Buzz
6 cats: Nermal, Snowflake, Snowball, Pirate, Boomer, & Ariel
2 rabbits: Lily & Oliver
~120 roosters & laying hens
I think our little hobby farm is off & running. My sister asked me how I was doing all this. Obviously I grew up just as "city" as she did. Well, I've read a lot, learned by trial & error, attended a few classes that Iowa State Extension office has offered & we ask our neighbors, relatives & friends a lot of questions. We are having a blast learning & playing.
Thursday, October 2, 2014
Crazy busy
So, I know that everyone is busy but I dislike being crazy busy. I only like to have 1 thing on my agenda that is out of the norm. Preferably 1 thing per week. I'm perfectly content to stay home & leave only on occasion. So, for all you who would like to see A Day In The Life Of Katie, here was yesterday.
I woke up at 5am to feed Zebulun. I fell back to sleep but woke up to being pushed off the bed by a 1 & 2 year old.
- I got up, put my farm clothes on, arranged for the bigs to care for the littles, started a load of laundry & went outside.
-I penned up the ewe that is so strange we call her Stupid because we think she might be pregnant and it would be just like her to drop her lamb during the cold, rainy night.
- I checked the hens & rooster for mites because we treated them on Monday & I wanted to see how my all natural cure was working. FABULOUS SUCCESS! Then, I let out all the clean chickens & checked the feed & water.
-I gave 2 bales of hay to the 4 horses, checked the water (which was, of course, full because of all the rain)
-I gave the sheep hay & checked their water. Monitored Sugar Mama who injured her foreleg.
-Fed the 6 cats, fed & watered the dog, played fetch with said dog
-Fed & watered the 4 peacocks we acquired on Monday.
Then, I came back inside to take a quick shower, got dressed, switched the laundry, & went upstairs to start breakfast.
-cleaned our Berkey
-I fed all the littles some eggs & yogurt, cleaned up that mess & started cleaning the kitchen & picking up the mess they all created while I was outside.
-Got Brody started on school, started Sage & Corbin on their chores, planned what to make for dinner for all of us & to take to one of my very dearest friends that just had a major knee surgery (everything but the ACL was torn off her knee & dislocated!)
-Found a GF dessert to make for my friend.
-Helped Brody with school work he didn't quite get.
-Started Julia on school.
-switched laundry over
-all the while I'm keeping Zeb & Glory out of whatever they are in, climbing on, or pulling apart
-I email a couple of things for 4H
-Gma Glenna stopped by to see us after her vacation & time with Gma Sparks
-started lunch & cleaned up the kitchen again
-put the littles down for a nap & the bigs had to have rest time
-Switched over the laundry again & sent Julia down to separate into piles
-Started Sage on his school work & then helped him with the things he didn't understand
-helped Celeste with her workbook that she loves!
-swept & picked up the living room
-started the GF dessert, served a snack to littles, started the lamb chops grilling, peeled potatoes, mashed the potatoes, cooked the green beans, packaged food for delivery to Jeremy (working long hours this week to get ready for GRAND OPENING of the new church facility) & my friend
-fed the kids & rushed out the door to deliver big boys to youth group, food to friends, pick up rx at Walgreens, return movie to the library & go to the Sprint Store to pick up Jeremy's replacement phone.
-Of course there were 4 people in line so I didn't wait that long before 2 littles had to use the bathroom. No public bathrooms available. SOOOO, I get in the truck & drive to ALDI's. While I'm there I might as well pick up some essentials I'm out of. Get through the bathroom & through the check out line only to realize Jeremy has my debit card & they don't take checks or credit cards. GREAT! We exit ALDI's without food while Glory is crying "I want my foodies". Get the 5 kids loaded & buckled again when a very kind man asks if he can buy my groceries for me. He tells me it must be hard to take 5 cute kids shopping & insists & goes in to purchase my forgotten cart. I write him a check & we load up after profusely thanking the man & head home...without Jeremy's phone.
-Did I mention that through this whole ordeal I'm smelling baby poop but I changed him at my friend's house before I left. I realize that said baby poop is on my shirt! So I was walking through ALDI's, in the Sprint store & other places with baby poop on my shirt, a handkerchief over my hair because it is CRAZY frizz, my face is broken out like I've reverted to the teen years again & I didn't make time to put any makeup on.
-I get home, unload kids, unload groceries, send Julia & Corbin outside to do the animal chores, put PJ's on babies, read them a story, nurse Zeb, & get Julia & Corbin off to bed in time for Jeremy to come home with Sage & Brody. Get Brody his meds, & remind them to brush their teeth, shower, switch the laundry & set another load to start in 9hrs, rewrite an email for Jeremy that he then says he doesn't like my wording on & fall into bed.
I think I've forgotten some things like settling arguments, redressing Glory "the naked girl" a few times, changing some diapers, etc. And I know I forgot to do school with Corbin AND he didn't remind me! ;) Oh, I did have some muscle spasms in my shoulder & Brody applied some White Fir essential oil & massaged it for me.
I've taken too much time on the computer now. I need to get back on my laundry PTHTHTHTH!
I woke up at 5am to feed Zebulun. I fell back to sleep but woke up to being pushed off the bed by a 1 & 2 year old.
- I got up, put my farm clothes on, arranged for the bigs to care for the littles, started a load of laundry & went outside.
-I penned up the ewe that is so strange we call her Stupid because we think she might be pregnant and it would be just like her to drop her lamb during the cold, rainy night.
- I checked the hens & rooster for mites because we treated them on Monday & I wanted to see how my all natural cure was working. FABULOUS SUCCESS! Then, I let out all the clean chickens & checked the feed & water.
-I gave 2 bales of hay to the 4 horses, checked the water (which was, of course, full because of all the rain)
-I gave the sheep hay & checked their water. Monitored Sugar Mama who injured her foreleg.
-Fed the 6 cats, fed & watered the dog, played fetch with said dog
-Fed & watered the 4 peacocks we acquired on Monday.
Then, I came back inside to take a quick shower, got dressed, switched the laundry, & went upstairs to start breakfast.
-cleaned our Berkey
-I fed all the littles some eggs & yogurt, cleaned up that mess & started cleaning the kitchen & picking up the mess they all created while I was outside.
-Got Brody started on school, started Sage & Corbin on their chores, planned what to make for dinner for all of us & to take to one of my very dearest friends that just had a major knee surgery (everything but the ACL was torn off her knee & dislocated!)
-Found a GF dessert to make for my friend.
-Helped Brody with school work he didn't quite get.
-Started Julia on school.
-switched laundry over
-all the while I'm keeping Zeb & Glory out of whatever they are in, climbing on, or pulling apart
-I email a couple of things for 4H
-Gma Glenna stopped by to see us after her vacation & time with Gma Sparks
-started lunch & cleaned up the kitchen again
-put the littles down for a nap & the bigs had to have rest time
-Switched over the laundry again & sent Julia down to separate into piles
-Started Sage on his school work & then helped him with the things he didn't understand
-helped Celeste with her workbook that she loves!
-swept & picked up the living room
-started the GF dessert, served a snack to littles, started the lamb chops grilling, peeled potatoes, mashed the potatoes, cooked the green beans, packaged food for delivery to Jeremy (working long hours this week to get ready for GRAND OPENING of the new church facility) & my friend
-fed the kids & rushed out the door to deliver big boys to youth group, food to friends, pick up rx at Walgreens, return movie to the library & go to the Sprint Store to pick up Jeremy's replacement phone.
-Of course there were 4 people in line so I didn't wait that long before 2 littles had to use the bathroom. No public bathrooms available. SOOOO, I get in the truck & drive to ALDI's. While I'm there I might as well pick up some essentials I'm out of. Get through the bathroom & through the check out line only to realize Jeremy has my debit card & they don't take checks or credit cards. GREAT! We exit ALDI's without food while Glory is crying "I want my foodies". Get the 5 kids loaded & buckled again when a very kind man asks if he can buy my groceries for me. He tells me it must be hard to take 5 cute kids shopping & insists & goes in to purchase my forgotten cart. I write him a check & we load up after profusely thanking the man & head home...without Jeremy's phone.
-Did I mention that through this whole ordeal I'm smelling baby poop but I changed him at my friend's house before I left. I realize that said baby poop is on my shirt! So I was walking through ALDI's, in the Sprint store & other places with baby poop on my shirt, a handkerchief over my hair because it is CRAZY frizz, my face is broken out like I've reverted to the teen years again & I didn't make time to put any makeup on.
-I get home, unload kids, unload groceries, send Julia & Corbin outside to do the animal chores, put PJ's on babies, read them a story, nurse Zeb, & get Julia & Corbin off to bed in time for Jeremy to come home with Sage & Brody. Get Brody his meds, & remind them to brush their teeth, shower, switch the laundry & set another load to start in 9hrs, rewrite an email for Jeremy that he then says he doesn't like my wording on & fall into bed.
I think I've forgotten some things like settling arguments, redressing Glory "the naked girl" a few times, changing some diapers, etc. And I know I forgot to do school with Corbin AND he didn't remind me! ;) Oh, I did have some muscle spasms in my shoulder & Brody applied some White Fir essential oil & massaged it for me.
I've taken too much time on the computer now. I need to get back on my laundry PTHTHTHTH!
Saturday, June 28, 2014
Processing it all...
So, I was driving through town today in our Suburban & had a flash back moment from this past weekend. My heart sped up & I felt the panic rise in my belly. You see, this past weekend, we almost lost our daughter. The story goes like this:
Friday, June 20th we had a really fun barn party. We invited friends that we needed to thank for all the help in building our fabulous new barn & some that we needed to thank for helping us move to our acreage & neighbors. It was GREAT! We bar-b-q'd, had chicken races, homemade ice cream, great conversations, and more. Plus, it was Jeremy & I's 16th anniversary.
The following day was filled with egg deliveries & all the little chores you need to do normally on a hobby farm. I was just starting dinner & sat on the couch to ask Jeremy a question. Glory was standing on a chair at the table getting her drink. She knocked the glass onto the floor & it broke. She slipped off the chair & landed on the broken glass. Brody, who had been standing next to her, hollered to me that she was bleeding. I walked the few feet over to her, turned her around & cursed.
My kids know that I curse when we are headed to the emergency room. But his time, I cursed 3 TIMES! I grabbed her up & had to hold her insides in. I could see past all the layers of skin & through the muscles. THROUGH THE MUSCLES! I yelled for everyone to get in the car & for Jeremy to drive. He told me to just go (meaning don't wait for the other kids to get in the car) so I explained to him that I needed to hold her together.
We called 911, we called the hospital & told them we were speeding & the route we were taking. We treated red lights like stop signs. All the while Glory was going into shock & vomiting all over my leg multiple times while I tried to hold her sideways while clutching at her mid section. What 2yo wants to be held in a funny position, squeezed & vomit while driving? She startied out crying & pleading with me to let go & take the rag off that I'd grabbed out of the drawer on the way out. I couldn't make her understand. But when she just layed there with her eyes drifting shut, that was scarier. I asked her questions about what she liked more swings or slides, chickens or sheep, what's her sheep's name, etc. She stopped answering; but she was still awake.
When we got to the hospital I wanted everyone to move as fast as I was & I was trying to be calm but I felt like punching the registration lady in the face. Nurse Shelley was fantastic. She understood. She didn't wait. She got busy. Since we called ahead the doctor was already waiting & a surgeon walked in after just a couple minutes. They started 2 IV's. The peds doc came in & stayed. They did a portable chest xray to see if her lung was perforated. It looked good. They gave her a 200cc bolus of fluids. Within a very short time they told us that Glory would have to go to Blank Children's Hospital because she had a "life threatening injury". Those words actually echoed in my ears.
You might notice that the above paragraph, minus the punching the registrar in the face, was somewhat clinical. See, I'm a nurse & when my kids are hurt, I go into nurse mode. It's easier to get done what needs to be done if you aren't as emotional. Not that nurses aren't emotional, but they aren't having to work on their own hearts personified in the little one sitting on the gurney. At the moment that doctor told me it was life threatening & they were sending the Life Flight Helicopter, I struggled to keep it together. I couldn't finish singing the songs to keep her calm while they put in another IV & took blood & monitored her heart. Then, they explained that I might not be able to go in the helicopter. I would have to hand my baby over to strangers while they rush her to surgery in another city & I couldn't hold her or say goodbye or be her comfort in the midst of all things scary & new.
I tried not to lose it. I had to think. I had to answer questions. I had to get my other kids taken care of. I had to plan 2 different scenarios of action should I get to fly or not. Jeremy & Zeb needed to come. I would need to feed Zeb soon but I had to stay with Glory. Should I send Jeremy or would weight be a factor in the flight so I should go? Add in about 30 other weird thoughts that enter your mind, like who will do animal chores & make sure Sage turns off the water to the cattle?
The Pediatric Flight team from Blank came to our hospital to take her in the ambulance to the little airport in town to fly us to Des Moines. My heart was pounding through my chest while I patiently waited to ask if I could fly with my baby. I didn't even hesitate when they asked my weight. Thank God, He answered my prayers! One of the paramedics stayed back so that I could fly with the Pediatric Team.
I had no time to be pondering the fun of my first ambulance ride & helicopter ride. I feel like time stopped or was in slow motion at various points. The ambulance ride felt like 2 min tops. The helicopter flight, maybe 5-I know it was 15 because they said it would be a 15 minute flight on the head phones. Glory got blood in the helicopter. Her lips turned grey & her skin was mottled & paler than normal (cause as it was pointed out many times, I am rather pale normally). I had signed the papers okaying a blood transfusion if necessary but it was still shocking that IT WAS NECESSARY!
I forgot to mention that the paramedic that helped in the ambulance on the way to the airport was so great! I have the feeling that if I saw him in public, I would only have minor qualms about rushing up to him & hugging him. In reality, I would just smile very big & say hello hoping he remembered us but inside I would be hugging him. Laurie, on the other hand, I would run to to hug! She was the head flight nurse & she was INCREDIBLE! She put Glory at ease starting in the ER, she continued in the ambulance, the helicopter, and all the way to the trauma room. She has 6 kids so she knows how to talk to them. Then, she came to visit 3 or 4 times on the PICU. She even took Glory up to the roof to visit the helicopter a couple days later & have her picture taken. She is fantastic at her job & deserves a huge raise! I wish I could give it to her.
We were met on the roof by more people & police. I guess the police guard the helipad? We took the elevator down & were met by a team of about 10 trauma specialists. Blank is a teaching hospital so I knew some of them were learning but it was a little overwhelming. I started answering questions directed at Laurie & apologized quickly while putting my hand over my mouth. I had switched back to nurse mode in my head. The head trauma surgeon put me at ease & didn't make me feel badly for speaking up. He acknowledged that I was a nurse & asked me some questions. There was a lady there just to keep Glory calm & entertained. She had bubbles, toys, & an IPad with fun games. It didn't really work but she tried really hard. Jeremy arrived with Zeb & I knew that he must've sped a little but who could blame him.
We walked along with the gurney to the surgery area but we had to stop at the doors. They told me I couldn't say goodbye. "Just walk away." A couple students took us to the waiting area which was deserted because it was late Saturday night & they don't schedule surgeries for that time. We were left alone. I was supposed to sit & wait for news.
Jeremy deals with stress by eating. He called Jimmy Johns & ordered for the both of us even though I was nauseous. (He did a great job of reminding me to eat & drink the entire hospital stay) After 16 years of marriage & 3 years of dating, he knows me pretty well. I don't eat or drink when I'm stressed, or busy, or...let's just say it isn't a priority & if I was single with no kids my food bill would be really easy to budget. Anyway, Jeremy offers me a tshirt from his bag & I finally notice that my shirt is covered in blood & my pants are covered in vomit. I took them to the bathroom to change but I couldn't bring myself to do it. It was weird. It was like I needed to keep her blood near me just in case. I was kept busy for the next 2 hrs watching Zeb & trying to eat the sandwich Jeremy got for me.
The surgeon finally arrived to tell us all about her surgery. The glass had missed her diagragm. Her ribs had done their job in protecting her lungs but one had a triangular knick out of it. Her artery next to her ribs was cut & that's why she was bleeding internally. That artery helped them to find the other damage. The fat that surrounds each organ was poking out of the hole in her side. When the investigated that they found that her stomach was perforated & needed to be fixed. He had to make a vertical incision from the bottom of her ribs all the way to her belly button in order to fix her stomach. But she's alive & we can go see her.
Finally we got to go up to the PICU to see her. But we had to wait in the family room until they got her situated. They took her breathing tube out but she was still on oxygen. She looked so puffy & tiny in that big bed. Her nurse was one of 11 kids. She was great all night long. She gave me some scrubs to change into & I showered in Glory's room. I forgot how comfy scrubs are! Jeremy & I took turns sleeping with her in that big bed. Well, as much sleeping as you can do when your baby has just had emergency surgery & is connected to machines that beep constantly & nurses come in every hour to check her vitals. I think I fell asleep between 430 & 630am.
Funny thing, Glory is a very insightful child. She could tell within 15 sec of meeting a nurse or doctor if they were going to be good or not. And danged if she wasn't right every time. If she spoke to them, they were in. If she just stared at them, we knew that they were having a bad day or not really a kid person. We had 2 fantastic nurses named Amy & Chelsy. The other ones were ok & some of them must've been having a bad day. She had a bunch of docs but her favorite was her trauma doc Dr Swegle. She told him that the arm boards taped to her arms to keep her from bending them & pinching her IV's were her SUPER SHIELDS. So when he came in, he would say, "shields up" & she'd put her forearms up by her face. It was very cute. He said he'd never had anyone call them that before. You can tell she has big brothers.
Another way God took care of us was that Zeb got to stay with us. Normally he wouldn't have been allowed to stay all night & there isn't enough room in the rooms for both mama & daddy let alone an infant requiring a crib. But they put her in the only double room so they had room for the gigantic crib & both of us. Even when they down graded her status from intensive care, we got to stay in that room unless it was needed-it wasn't. Plus. Zeb slept through the night for the first time every night we were there! I didn't have to worry about feeding him & noise & getting him to sleep while there. At home he sleeps with us but it is against hospital policy to co-sleep. I didn't want to make waves since they were already allowing him to stay but he never sleeps for over a couple hours in a crib. Didn't even have to worry.
OK, this is getting long. So, I'll wrap it up. Thank goodness for the kids' play room, the wagons & riding cars to take walks, Frozen movie (I believe we watched in 9 times, could've been more), therapy dogs & their fun baseball cards, hot cocoa & popsicles, fun visitors, Gma & Gpa watching the other kids, cell phones to keep everyone in the prayer loop, helicopters & ambulances, doctors & nurses, & FANTABULOUS husbands.
I have a greater respect for many things. But that'll have to be another post. Go hug someone that you need & love.
My kids know that I curse when we are headed to the emergency room. But his time, I cursed 3 TIMES! I grabbed her up & had to hold her insides in. I could see past all the layers of skin & through the muscles. THROUGH THE MUSCLES! I yelled for everyone to get in the car & for Jeremy to drive. He told me to just go (meaning don't wait for the other kids to get in the car) so I explained to him that I needed to hold her together.
We called 911, we called the hospital & told them we were speeding & the route we were taking. We treated red lights like stop signs. All the while Glory was going into shock & vomiting all over my leg multiple times while I tried to hold her sideways while clutching at her mid section. What 2yo wants to be held in a funny position, squeezed & vomit while driving? She startied out crying & pleading with me to let go & take the rag off that I'd grabbed out of the drawer on the way out. I couldn't make her understand. But when she just layed there with her eyes drifting shut, that was scarier. I asked her questions about what she liked more swings or slides, chickens or sheep, what's her sheep's name, etc. She stopped answering; but she was still awake.
When we got to the hospital I wanted everyone to move as fast as I was & I was trying to be calm but I felt like punching the registration lady in the face. Nurse Shelley was fantastic. She understood. She didn't wait. She got busy. Since we called ahead the doctor was already waiting & a surgeon walked in after just a couple minutes. They started 2 IV's. The peds doc came in & stayed. They did a portable chest xray to see if her lung was perforated. It looked good. They gave her a 200cc bolus of fluids. Within a very short time they told us that Glory would have to go to Blank Children's Hospital because she had a "life threatening injury". Those words actually echoed in my ears.
You might notice that the above paragraph, minus the punching the registrar in the face, was somewhat clinical. See, I'm a nurse & when my kids are hurt, I go into nurse mode. It's easier to get done what needs to be done if you aren't as emotional. Not that nurses aren't emotional, but they aren't having to work on their own hearts personified in the little one sitting on the gurney. At the moment that doctor told me it was life threatening & they were sending the Life Flight Helicopter, I struggled to keep it together. I couldn't finish singing the songs to keep her calm while they put in another IV & took blood & monitored her heart. Then, they explained that I might not be able to go in the helicopter. I would have to hand my baby over to strangers while they rush her to surgery in another city & I couldn't hold her or say goodbye or be her comfort in the midst of all things scary & new.
I tried not to lose it. I had to think. I had to answer questions. I had to get my other kids taken care of. I had to plan 2 different scenarios of action should I get to fly or not. Jeremy & Zeb needed to come. I would need to feed Zeb soon but I had to stay with Glory. Should I send Jeremy or would weight be a factor in the flight so I should go? Add in about 30 other weird thoughts that enter your mind, like who will do animal chores & make sure Sage turns off the water to the cattle?
The Pediatric Flight team from Blank came to our hospital to take her in the ambulance to the little airport in town to fly us to Des Moines. My heart was pounding through my chest while I patiently waited to ask if I could fly with my baby. I didn't even hesitate when they asked my weight. Thank God, He answered my prayers! One of the paramedics stayed back so that I could fly with the Pediatric Team.
I had no time to be pondering the fun of my first ambulance ride & helicopter ride. I feel like time stopped or was in slow motion at various points. The ambulance ride felt like 2 min tops. The helicopter flight, maybe 5-I know it was 15 because they said it would be a 15 minute flight on the head phones. Glory got blood in the helicopter. Her lips turned grey & her skin was mottled & paler than normal (cause as it was pointed out many times, I am rather pale normally). I had signed the papers okaying a blood transfusion if necessary but it was still shocking that IT WAS NECESSARY!
I forgot to mention that the paramedic that helped in the ambulance on the way to the airport was so great! I have the feeling that if I saw him in public, I would only have minor qualms about rushing up to him & hugging him. In reality, I would just smile very big & say hello hoping he remembered us but inside I would be hugging him. Laurie, on the other hand, I would run to to hug! She was the head flight nurse & she was INCREDIBLE! She put Glory at ease starting in the ER, she continued in the ambulance, the helicopter, and all the way to the trauma room. She has 6 kids so she knows how to talk to them. Then, she came to visit 3 or 4 times on the PICU. She even took Glory up to the roof to visit the helicopter a couple days later & have her picture taken. She is fantastic at her job & deserves a huge raise! I wish I could give it to her.
We were met on the roof by more people & police. I guess the police guard the helipad? We took the elevator down & were met by a team of about 10 trauma specialists. Blank is a teaching hospital so I knew some of them were learning but it was a little overwhelming. I started answering questions directed at Laurie & apologized quickly while putting my hand over my mouth. I had switched back to nurse mode in my head. The head trauma surgeon put me at ease & didn't make me feel badly for speaking up. He acknowledged that I was a nurse & asked me some questions. There was a lady there just to keep Glory calm & entertained. She had bubbles, toys, & an IPad with fun games. It didn't really work but she tried really hard. Jeremy arrived with Zeb & I knew that he must've sped a little but who could blame him.
We walked along with the gurney to the surgery area but we had to stop at the doors. They told me I couldn't say goodbye. "Just walk away." A couple students took us to the waiting area which was deserted because it was late Saturday night & they don't schedule surgeries for that time. We were left alone. I was supposed to sit & wait for news.
Jeremy deals with stress by eating. He called Jimmy Johns & ordered for the both of us even though I was nauseous. (He did a great job of reminding me to eat & drink the entire hospital stay) After 16 years of marriage & 3 years of dating, he knows me pretty well. I don't eat or drink when I'm stressed, or busy, or...let's just say it isn't a priority & if I was single with no kids my food bill would be really easy to budget. Anyway, Jeremy offers me a tshirt from his bag & I finally notice that my shirt is covered in blood & my pants are covered in vomit. I took them to the bathroom to change but I couldn't bring myself to do it. It was weird. It was like I needed to keep her blood near me just in case. I was kept busy for the next 2 hrs watching Zeb & trying to eat the sandwich Jeremy got for me.
The surgeon finally arrived to tell us all about her surgery. The glass had missed her diagragm. Her ribs had done their job in protecting her lungs but one had a triangular knick out of it. Her artery next to her ribs was cut & that's why she was bleeding internally. That artery helped them to find the other damage. The fat that surrounds each organ was poking out of the hole in her side. When the investigated that they found that her stomach was perforated & needed to be fixed. He had to make a vertical incision from the bottom of her ribs all the way to her belly button in order to fix her stomach. But she's alive & we can go see her.
Finally we got to go up to the PICU to see her. But we had to wait in the family room until they got her situated. They took her breathing tube out but she was still on oxygen. She looked so puffy & tiny in that big bed. Her nurse was one of 11 kids. She was great all night long. She gave me some scrubs to change into & I showered in Glory's room. I forgot how comfy scrubs are! Jeremy & I took turns sleeping with her in that big bed. Well, as much sleeping as you can do when your baby has just had emergency surgery & is connected to machines that beep constantly & nurses come in every hour to check her vitals. I think I fell asleep between 430 & 630am.
Funny thing, Glory is a very insightful child. She could tell within 15 sec of meeting a nurse or doctor if they were going to be good or not. And danged if she wasn't right every time. If she spoke to them, they were in. If she just stared at them, we knew that they were having a bad day or not really a kid person. We had 2 fantastic nurses named Amy & Chelsy. The other ones were ok & some of them must've been having a bad day. She had a bunch of docs but her favorite was her trauma doc Dr Swegle. She told him that the arm boards taped to her arms to keep her from bending them & pinching her IV's were her SUPER SHIELDS. So when he came in, he would say, "shields up" & she'd put her forearms up by her face. It was very cute. He said he'd never had anyone call them that before. You can tell she has big brothers.
Another way God took care of us was that Zeb got to stay with us. Normally he wouldn't have been allowed to stay all night & there isn't enough room in the rooms for both mama & daddy let alone an infant requiring a crib. But they put her in the only double room so they had room for the gigantic crib & both of us. Even when they down graded her status from intensive care, we got to stay in that room unless it was needed-it wasn't. Plus. Zeb slept through the night for the first time every night we were there! I didn't have to worry about feeding him & noise & getting him to sleep while there. At home he sleeps with us but it is against hospital policy to co-sleep. I didn't want to make waves since they were already allowing him to stay but he never sleeps for over a couple hours in a crib. Didn't even have to worry.
OK, this is getting long. So, I'll wrap it up. Thank goodness for the kids' play room, the wagons & riding cars to take walks, Frozen movie (I believe we watched in 9 times, could've been more), therapy dogs & their fun baseball cards, hot cocoa & popsicles, fun visitors, Gma & Gpa watching the other kids, cell phones to keep everyone in the prayer loop, helicopters & ambulances, doctors & nurses, & FANTABULOUS husbands.
I have a greater respect for many things. But that'll have to be another post. Go hug someone that you need & love.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)