This adorable little girl is pulling an interesting third child card so far. She's pretty opinionated, likes to be held and snuggled, almost refuses to sleep in her own bed, and kicks off her second week by going to the hospital. Although I do love most of these little characteristics of her 2 week old personality, the hospital stay could have been better by not existing. We live through crazy moments only to appreciate the truly good ones, right?
We took Hailey to the ER at 4 am Thursday morning because she was running a fever. 100.4 to be exact....so....barely a fever. I was really worried about her on Wednesday night because she was ultra lethargic (hard to tell in a newborn since they always sleep forever). She wouldn't wake up to eat and even when she did eat, it was just barely. I didn't sleep all that night and kept taking her temperature. I called the 24 hour nurse who advised us to take her in, so in we took her. I knew we would have to when I took her temperature because newborns aren't supposed to get fevers.
Since Claire, Jared, and anyone who has visited our house in the last two weeks have gotten sick, I thought they'd just tell us that it was probably the same virus and send us home. I remind you that I had no sleep and was VERY tired and already a little paranoid. We then found out that she would get a little IV, blood work, and a "lumbar puncture". When we first got to the hospital they said that she may not have to get the lumbar puncture since she was right on the edge of a fever. If they kept taking her temp and it didn't go up at all, they may not do that. The doctor decided otherwise. I'll be honest, because she HAD to get a spinal tap, I immediately started sobbing and didn't really get over the whole trauma of it until it was over. It really was pretty horrible to watch my poor, new little girl in so much pain. So sad!
After all the fluids were taken, we were then admitted to the hospital to keep her on antibiotics for 2 days until all of our cultures came back. The early results of everything looked good, so we were hopeful that it was just a virus (which her blood work was sort of indicating). We are very happy to not have meningitis or encephalitis, but grateful for early precautions that are taken just in case.
The next two days were LOOOOONNNNNGGGGG. The antibiotics turned her diapers into hot lava that burned her so badly that we've gone through a worlds supply of diapers and desitin, not to mention a whole day without diapers and pooping into towels just trying to spare her cheeks a little pain. The worst diarrhea I've ever seen. I'd just hold her while she cried, sing to her, and sob myself into her tiny little cheeks.
I was so grateful on Thursday night when she decided to wake up and start looking and acting normally. Before her eyes were glazed over and her arms were like limp noodles, so to see her alert made my heart a little happy and relieved.
By Friday she was acting normally and much more alert when she was awake that I was hopeful to go home at the 36 hour mark instead of staying until Saturday for the cultures to run the full 48 hours. Our nurse, Andrea, was amazing and 100% on our side of getting discharged. Nothing was growing yet in the cultures so we were all thinking we'd be ok to go home. She pushed for it all day and we did end up going home Friday night, thank goodness! Hospital chairs are the worst in the nation and my postpartum rump was aching for a squishy chair!
She had to be held constantly while in the hospital of course, not to mention the sleeping. We were both so exhausted after the whole ordeal that we've been sleeping every spare minute since.
Thank you for the prayers and calls! We are doing well and so happy to be home. I'm convinced that having children is wonderful and terrifying. I'm so incredibly grateful that she's ok and that it turned out to really be nothing.
Happy two weeks old, Hailey! Let's not get sick again!!!!
