The day after

Elowyn is back to normal today. Her pediatrician agrees that it was most likely heat exhaustion. We took her to Dairy Queen to keep her hydrated. God is a God of miracles. This experience renewed our love for her. (the terrible twos have an effect on people). Her brothers also had faith promoting experiences during the ordeal. All is well.

She is at home and asleep now

Elowyn came down with a fever unlike any we knew. Her arms were cold but her chest was burning up. She got to 103. Julie cooled her down a bit and got her to drink so we thought it might be over. The fear was that it was heat exhaustion. So when she threw up and her temperature went back up she went to the emergency room. I got there soon after. They asked questions. Took measurements. Then they put us in a room. Then it was Tylenol up the bottom. Thermometer up the bottom. Ibuprofen down the throat. Then wait. Then check eyes ears and throat Then measure again. Then an IV which I thought was terrible and would be the worst. She could never look at a nurse without suspicious fear for the rest of our stay. Then wait. She was getting normal, but a blood test showed high white blood cells. So chest x-rays. Julie took the other kids home. Then the worst came. Test for meningitis by taking spinal fluid. They gave her a drug that made her loopy so she couldn't register pain or any other input correctly. I held her hand and tried to hide my tears while they poked her. When she came back around 20 minutes later she said in a pleasant in charge voice "let's put this away and go home now. ". The test was negative. So finally antibiotics. Then peel off all the sticky sensors. Peel off the IV. Then put on a gown and go. When we got outside Elowyn pleasantly talked about how it was dark and how we should find the truck so we could drive home to "Bonnie Jean"(think of Brigadoon). She said on the drive home that we went to the doctor and they made her better so now we go find Mama. I'm the one who wants to cry about it all. Blood lab work is still pending, but the worst case should just be more antibiotics.

Babies

"Mama, do you want to lay down with the babies?"
"oh, yes!"
We love our babies.

Ghost

I see a ghost. A big one there and a little one over there. I'm scared. Come see my ghost. Can you come find them? Let's find a ghost.

The wind in the bushes, or a brother in a flag, can appear to the imagination as ghosts traveling through the bushes.

When your smiling...

It's fun when you can finally cajole a baby to smile. It really increases the depth of the conversations you can have.

Berries

The blackberries are just starting to ripen. If you look you will notice my little princess has a full little red bucket. The whole family joined me in my daily walk through the fields picking berries every now and then. The sun was out, we worked up a little glow, and enjoyed a snack. Later I received a surprise, a plant pot full of berries collected with love. I ate them with sliced nectarines covered with milk. They were delicious.

Blessing Day

My baby boy was blessed today. Got his name right and everything.
There was a strong feeling of who this little person was. He is special.