Off to Mill Hollow with EpiPen in Hand

You might think I am over reacting, but I've got some ground to make up after not calling 911. As if it's not hard enough to send your oldest away for three days, try putting him on the bus with an EpiPen in hand. Okay, so most likely nothing will happen while he's gone, but can you really trust the cafeteria at Mill Hollow to be completely free of mold? And, since he hasn't been into the allergist yet, we really don't even know what his reaction was to. For now we will go with what they are telling us from his ER visit and assume it was something to do with his allergy to penicillin. He will have to wear a cute little bracelet that says "penicillin allergy" on it and carry with him an EpiPen (which is the other drug they gave him in the ER that I couldn't remember the name of... epinephrine). My ten year old has learned how to jab the thing into his thigh in case he goes into shock again. Fortunately, the camp leaders have had some training as well. He's been gone for 15 hours and all is well so far. I'm sure he is having the time of his life, but I will sit and blog about him as I worry.

And to think I am going to send the kid away for two years when he goes on a mission. I am so understanding all that missionary mom's go through. My "new mom" little sister asked me recently when the worrying stops. Never.

I think I'm in LOVE

While I have an HP laptop that Jer gave me for Valentine's Day (and I do love it so so much), I also have this little thing called an HP Mini Netbook thats available through Verizon. Yes, I am spoiled - not really, just happen to have an "in" with Verizon.

I'm sure you've seen the advertisement for them. Here's the key thing: my laptop that I use for anything and everything (including Photoshop) doesn't come with "the network." This little thing works everywhere all the time! We are actually driving through the mountains right now on our way to our cabin. Yah, that's right. We are 1 mile away from Kamas and I am blogging. Remember the old days when you had to sit and listen to that annoying little alien sound with dial up? No more, honey. Not only are the days of waiting for the Internet to "connect" over, but so are the days of sitting at your desktop. Okay, so the concept of working "mobile" isn't exactly new. In fact, Jer sells aircards and smartphones by the handsful. But, this is new to me. And, I am lovin' this thing.

Can't wait to get to the cabin and see if I still get a connection. Milt will be rolin' over in his grave!

Moving On

I can officially say we are free of the Swine Flu! And, we all survived! Amazing. Mine did turn into Bronchitis (when I thought it was strep). So, after all was said and done, (to answer Aprils question) I gained weight. Between the steroids for my lungs and laying around sleeping for a week, I more than made up for what I may have lost initially.

Emma was the last one to get it. By the time her turn came around, I knew right away and took her in. The minute her flu test came back positive, the nurse came in with a mask for Emma. They didn't want her to even walk out of the office without it on. Emma was not happy. She kept telling me it was the "regular flu" and not the swine flu. I guess that would've made it so that she didn't have to wear the mask... or so she thought. Fortunately, she didn't have to suffer through the aches and pains like Josh and I did. They had her on Tamiflu so fast that she really only had two days of fever and headache.

So, Friday night, we went to the J's for a Birthday party. It felt so great for everyone to be able to get out of the house. The girls left with friends from our old neighborhood to play.

As soon as the party was over, Jer and I decided to take Josh out to dinner. He had been at Webelos Camp all day and was starving. We didn't want to be gone too long so we went to an old favorite: Pho Green Papaya. To make a long story short, something he had there didn't agree with him. After picking up the girls and getting everyone to bed, he started itching like crazy. He looked red so I thought maybe between the birthday party and scout camp, he'd gotten some sun. But, when I had him lift up his shirt so that I could put some Aloe Vera on it, I realized it was not a sunburn! I ran in to tell Jer and he immediately told Josh to grab his shoes and sent us to the ER. Jer stayed home with the sleeping girls. As Josh and I drove to the Urgent Care... and to the Night Time Pediatrics... and then to the ER after finding out everyone else was closed, he started shaking uncontrollably and was complaining of severe pain in the backs of his legs. Then he said he couldn't breath. I was really trying to keep my cool at this point. Then, he grabbed an empty wipe container and started vomiting. His entire body was so red and his eyes looked horrible. I had him tell me all about Scout Camp thinking that if he was in shock, it would take his mind off things a little.


(this is what Anaphylactic Shock looks like)

When we arrived at the ER, I panicked a little at the crowd. To my surprise, they took him right back and checked his vitals. The first thing the nurse said to me is, "His oxygen level is ok, so don't panic." Oh, that makes me feel better. Within minutes, they had him on a bed with an I.V. and the Dr. was there right away. So scary. Since he had been throwing up, they gave him benedryl, a steroid and something else.. (can't remember) through the I.V. Within only a few minutes, he stopped shaking and his color started to look normal. They decided to keep him there for a couple of hours to watch him.

(And, this is just ten minutes after the meds)

Needless to say, Josh is fine and it was quite an adventure. We still are not sure what he reacted to, but we will be super cautious from here on out.

We actually went to church yesterday for the first time in forever! And, the weather is GORGEOUS today! I couldn't be happier. . . my little family is healthy again and summer has finally arrived.

Thanks to everyone for your concern. We appreciate all the phone calls (especially every time they announced another death on the news from H1N1).

(I had to include this picture of Erin - we got new sleeping bags and she LOVES them! Even though she had to stay inside the whole time we were all sick, she kept us all smiling. And thank heavens she never got the flu.)

It's no fun when mom is sick

I swear when I turned on my laptop today it said it was June 14! Yet so many other things are telling me it's still winter! Not only has the weather been less than summerish, I've been sick for a week! And we're not talking allergies or a headache. It's been full on cough, sore throat, aches and pains, fatigue, fever... wait a minute... are those the symptoms of the swine flu? Yes, yes they are!

It started last Sunday with Josh. He was complaining of a sore throat. Being mid June, I wrote it off as allergies. I assumed he had been sleeping with his mouth open due to congestion from allergies. I gave him a Tylenol and he didn't say anything about it until Monday morning. He complained of the same thing. So, I gave him Tylenol and he seemed okay. Until the Tylenol wore off. We had gone to lunch and then the kids went to my moms to play. When I picked them up to take Emma to dance, Josh said he hadn't been feeling well the whole time he was at grandma's. By the time dance was over (only 45 minutes later), he was shaking, burning up and in tears. I texted Jer (he was at a soccer training) and told him I was taking Josh to the Urgent Care. I dropped the girls off at my moms again and went to the Urgent Care with Josh. It was absolutely crowded! After waiting in line for 15 minutes just to get checked in, we decided we didn't want to spend four hours in the waiting room. So, we scheduled an appointment for the next morning.

Tuesday morning (which happened to be my birthday), Jer took Josh back up to the doctors first thing. By 8:15a.m., Jer sent me a text to let me know that Josh had the swine flu. They had swabbed his nose and the test came back positive. The first thing Josh told the doctor was that he didn't want to ruin his mom's birthday. He's too funny. The doctor assured him that our day was pretty much done... she explained to Jer that the entire family would need to stay home for 7 days! OH MY GOSH! Do you know what it's like to keep three restless kids inside for seven days when it's the first seven days of their summer?

So, here's where things get interesting. I called my parents to let them know and within minutes my dad was sent home from work. I guess they figured he had been directly exposed to the swine flu because Josh spent a few hours at their house the day before. That was his ticket home. And, then they called and told him not to come back till next week! Woo Hoo! So not only was my dad not at Summer Camp for my birthday (like he was so often when I was young), but he got the week off work. Lol.

Poor Joshy slept for two days. They gave him a RX for Tamiflu and that knocked it down faster than we expected it to, but it still took a few days. At one point, he couldn't even walk up and down the stairs. His entire body hurt.

I spent Tuesday and Wednesday washing sheets and disinfecting EVERYTHING! So, of course, I started coughing Wednesday night. I went in Thursday to have them confirm that I also had the swine flu. They gave me a RX for Tamiflu and... I've pretty much been on the couch or in bed since then!

It's now Sunday afternoon and Josh is back to running around and teasing his sisters. I, however, am headed back up to the doctors because I have only gotten worse each day. I woke up about 37 times last night because my throat hurt. Now I have no voice and it hurts to talk or swallow. So, does the swine flu turn into strep? What the heck is going on? I'm so sick of being sick! My little family is sick of mom being sick. The kids are going bazerk all cooped up in the house for a week. And, Jer can't go back to work until Monday so he is ready to bust outa here too. Did I mention that it's been a freaking rain storm this entire time, too? I'm starting to wonder if people die from the swine flu because they get so depressed. Seriously... this is so not fun.

So there is my post for today. Lame story and a long one at that. What can I say? I have nothing else to do. I lay on the couch and play Farkle on facebook.

Xtreme Power STompers to Perform this Saturday!

Who: Everyone is Invited!

What: End of the Year Recital

Where: Empress Theatre

9104 West 2700 South

Magna, Utah

When: Saturday, June 13

at 12:30p.m.

Miss Katie's Preschool

Preschool is over for the summer and Erin is so sad! She's not sure why the big kids have been counting down until they get out. I would be sad too if I went to Miss Katie's. Erin has one more year (year 3) of preschool before Kindergarten and I debated over whether or not to keep her at the same school - only because I thought she might like some variety. But, when Jer and Erin and I went through the pro's and con's, the pro's definitely out weighed the con's. Erin would be absolutely heartbroken if we took her away from Miss Katie. Look at how fun it is at Miss Katie's Preschool!

This is Erin with her seed collection!

This is "bring your pet to school" day. Erin got to show all her friends her gerbils!

This was their end of the year party! They had ice cream sandwiches and played the whole time!

And, this is graduation!

Last year, Erin wouldn't leave Katie's side and not one sound came out of her mouth. This year, she sang every word to all the songs! Katie was a little sad that Erin didn't say her part in the program, but I know she knew it. And, just the fact that she walked out there and sang the songs is progress. Maybe next year (when she graduates for the third time) she will actually say something!

Thanks, Miss Katie! My shy little Erin is slowly coming out of her shell. She loves school and loves learning!

Baby Hungry?

Rear facing car seat, high chair, baby swing, bottles, diapers, nap time, tummy time... you get the picture. These are all things that I have not had to deal with in a long while. Erin, my baby, is four and a half years old. She is potty trained (final freakin ly), she fastens her own seat belt, she is going on year three of preschool, she sleeps in her own bed, she has the sassy pants of a sixteen year old, and she can ride a bike (yes, with training wheels, but at least she does it). Bottom line, I'm done having baby's. I do, however, love my sisters baby. I started babysitting when Lynsee went back to work. I knew that having an infant in our home would either make or break me in the "baby hungry" area. She is the yummiest little thing. I love to love on her. I love that she is such a good baby. I love that I miss her when I don't have her. But having all of those baby necessities around my house again has confirmed my desire to be done having kids. I hope this doesn't sound completely selfish. I just was so wishy washy for so long. And, now I know. I know that my kids would still drive me crazy... having a sleeping baby upstairs does not stop them from kicking soccer balls in the house and fighting over which Disney show to watch. And life doesn't slow down. Now I just have to take an extra ten minutes than I usually do to buckle seat belts. So instead of worrying about whether I should have another one, I am loving the three I have and loving Bryn like I love my own. How can you not love those cheeks?