Home Sweet Home

We are home from the hospital and it feels like we’ve been gone an eternity.  Nasty mac ‘n cheese for every meal, room/bed confinement, poking, prodding, and even forcefully and repeatedly sticking things in Alexa’s precious little privates… Hospitals definitely have similar qualities to prisons.

WTF Happened, you ask?  Well, Alexa fell very ill this past week while George was in Europe.  After a few days home alone with Alexa’s scary high fevers and a few trips to her Pediatrician, she and I ended up in the hospital under unfavorable, yet suspected suspicions.  After more invasive caths, it has been determined that in fact Alexa has another severe kidney infection.  George flew back into town last night and met us at the hospital.  Presumably this kidney infection is bacteria introduced from her awful cath VUR scan tests earlier this month, but we don’t know yet for sure.  She’s had a few doses of IV antibiotics and feeling much better now.  The sleepless nights were exaggerated by our poor little 2 year old roommate very ill with some kind of respiratory thing, the constant vital sign checks to both girls, the super uncomfortable chairs George and I attempted to sleep on, and our roommate’s guardian’s horribly loud snoring.  Yes, we all had quite a rough night. Alexa “slept” on my chest the whole night.  She is very traumatized with this whole ordeal.  Thankfully, the hospital let us leave early and will call us in the morning to let us know what kind of bacteria the culture grew.  There is a possibility we could have to come back in for another dose or two of IV antibiotics on Sunday.  I pray that is not the case.

Thankfully Alexa is mostly in great spirits and is relatively quickly overcoming another severe kidney infection.  Unfortunately, however, this Hell is not over yet.  All this pain and torture has only resulted in more.  Her Urology Specialist is 99% sure he wants her to have surgery to correct her VUR and he wants her to undergo the surgery immediately, meaning within the next couple of weeks.  Enforcing the decision more, the specialist’s partner is 100% sure he wants her to have surgery immediately, meaning right now.  We have 8 days of the new antibiotic.  The Docs promise a decision before those 8 days are up.

8 days from now is November 28.  Our plans to surprise Christopher at his football playoff game November 30^th in Boston are now in question which is devastating for us since we never get to see Christopher and he is doing so amazing in football right now.  The 4^th of December, George is supposed to fly to Antigua for a week, then back home to us for a week, then off to the BVIs just before Christmas.  I’ve learned, the truth is, no matter what, there is never a good time to schedule ANYTHING in this yachtie lifestyle.  Of course, our children’s health is always priority.

Alexa is peacefully sleeping in her own bed now.  She is exhausted and asked to go to bed just after 6pm tonight.  After we had to pin her down to get her to take her new meds, she drank a big cup of vanilla almond milk and skeptically went to bed.  The whole thing is so heartbreaking.  I love and miss my baby.  I pray we aren’t breaking her spirit with all this.

George and I are exhausted too.  I am completely avoiding doing my Accounting midterm as well as my backed up graphic design work to write this blog while my handsome, Captain, (amateur Chef) hubby creates a masterpiece meal for the two of us.  My classes are now suffering, so looks like I will have my Master’s degree Spring time now instead of fall.  We are all a bit shook up at the moment and don’t really know what to make of all this.  Honestly, I am SCREAMING inside and really don’t know what to do with myself.  Thankfully we are home sweet home.