Home away from home

OH MY GOODNESS.

It's been a long time since I've written.

A couple of weeks ago all of the kids got the stomach flu, and although Gideon was able to kick it after one day, the girls just couldn't get rid of it.

Have you ever seen an infant vomit?

Not just spit up, but truly vomit?

It is terrifying. Absolutely and miserably terrifying.

The thing is, infants can't aim. They can't tell you that they think they are going to throw up. They also don't seem to be aware of the fact that they should move out of their own puddle of vomit.

So for four days I kept a constant vigil, making sure that when my babies did throw up that they didn't drown in it.

4 days was too much for me to handle, so I took them in to the doctor. The doctor had high hopes that they would get better on their own overnight and sent me home with orders to come back if they didn't get better...

They didn't.

They had each lost about 2 lbs, and if you've seen my girls, you know that 2 lbs is too much. They were lethargic and glossy eyed. It was heartbreaking. The doc admitted them to the hospital and they stayed for two days on IV fluids. (thankfully I was still allowed to breastfeed them during their stay)

Gideon came with me to the hospital while the girls were being admitted and just being there made him upset. I think he still remembers his daily visits while I was pregnant with the girls. He cried so hard when my sister took him away from the hospital that I felt like my heart was being torn apart---but what could I do? I had to stay with the girls.

I love nurses and doctors.

I hate hospitals. But in the last year they have become my "home away from home" in many ways.

At first it was really scary to see them hooked up to the IVs and monitors...they were so lethargic and tired they just laid there

But after a few hours it was clear that the IV fluids were working, and they were cheering up!

One comforting thing is that the girls were each given a blanket, a burp up rag, and a hat that were handmade and donated to the hospital. That meant so much to me because by the time we arrived at the hospital the girls had already soiled the blankets that I brought, and I wasn't in the mindset to bring extra.

The whole experience was extremely harrowing, and there were moments that I just wanted to close my eyes and pretend it wasn't happening, but we made it through! With the help of my sister and members of our congregation I was able to stay at the hospital with the girls, and Rob was able to attend school while Gideon was well taken care of.

Everyone is happy and healthy now, and we are on to new adventures.