Let's Remember the GOOD

Darn it!  Another hospital stay with our Jett man.  

He had been doing really well too...those darn $#&@%$ viruses will get you every time.  I'll give you quick details on the hospital stay, but then I really want to focus on how GREAT Jett's month really has been.

On Thursday, Jett started showing signs that he may be sick.  He had been congested for the previous week, but I attributed that to allergies.  In fact, that very day, I had gotten a prescription for Claritin in hopes that it would help his stuffy, mucousy (is this is word?) nose.  Well, he began to develop a fever.  Tylenol and Motrin weren't helping.  I went to teach dance in the afternoon and came back to a very irritable and hot baby.  His temperature was at 102, which is never fun, but a temperature I can deal with.

Over the course of two hours his fever jumped up to 105...and that, my friends, is when Cody and I jumped in the car and took him to the hospital (Omaha Children's Hospital).  Usually we feel comfortable keeping him at home when he's sick since we have all of the medical equipment, but when a temperature reaches 105 it can get scary...and it did.  Within minutes of his temperature reaching these dangerous heights, Jett began seizing (small seizures), his teeth started to chatter, and his color turned blue.  Cody and I immediately put him on our pulsoximeter to check his oxygen levels.  He was dipping down into the 70's.  Not good.  Luckily we have oxygen tanks in our home.  Even though Jett hated every second of it, we taped the oxygen cannula to his face and away we went to the hospital.

At the hospital, Jett received all kinds of needle pokes and tests.  Results came back positive for Parainfluenza 3 and Rhino Enterovirus.  Poor Jett had TWO viruses to fight.  The docs quickly booked him into a room and observed him from there.  They also had Cody and I update Jett's DNR.  If you don't know what a DNR is, consider yourself lucky.  We really do not like making those difficult decisions.

I captured this sweet moment at the hospital.  It was about 1 a.m. and Jett was miserable.
Daddy to the rescue!

In these two pictures, Jett is saying, "It's okay Mom...I got this."  What a stud.

He was able to come off of oxygen within 24 hours and is now resting up to get rid of that stinkin' fever.  We are at home now and Jett is loving his snuggle buddy...a doggy rice bag. 

 Random, I know, but he loves it. He smooshes his face into it as he is sleeping. The last I checked, he didn't have a temperature so hopefully we're on the up and up!

Now, for the details of Jett's FANTASTIC month...

Up until the beginning of March, no medication could even TOUCH Jett's chorea.  He was miserable almost 24/7 because his poor little body couldn't stop tensing up and moving.  It was really painful for Jett and extremely painful for us to watch. Well, the neurologist decided to try Jett on a new medication that is only used in the adult population...Adults who suffer from Huntington's Disease.  At this point, we were desperate to try anything.  The medication, itself, you are unable to get in a regular pharmacy.  Therefore, we had to wait for it to be shipped to us.  I won't get into the nasty details of HOW blasted LONG it took to get to our doorstep, but we were super excited when it showed up.

The drug is called Xenazine (Tetrabenazine) for those who are curious and I feel that it has done wonders for Jett.  He is a different kid! Not only has it calmed him, but he has become more aware of his surroundings as well.  He focuses more on our faces and listens very intently to anything we say.    We are also discovering his unique ways of interacting with us, including MORE SMILES!  An even bigger bonus, Jett is gaining weight finally.  He is now up to a stout 13 lbs 10 oz.

I gave Jett his first popsicle!  He loved it, but then choked on the juices.  It's all good, I just had to suction him out.  It was still worth it for the smiles.

Jett went on his first road trip to Kansas City.  He was seriously an angel the entire time.  

For more on that trip, click HERE

 We also visited the Lego sculptures at the botanical gardens that are right by our house.  Jett learned how to push a lawnmower with daddy.

He dressed up with me for St. Patrick's Day and also took a horsey ride on Kusaba. (Bottom left pic)

We visited the zoo and the jellyfish were Jett's favorite part. 

 He loved the bright colors and how slow they were moving.  We probably stood there for an hour.  Im sure people were like, "Get a move on, lady!"

We've enjoyed the spring weather that is headed our way and hopefully here to stay...

and Kusaba stays true to form by always photobombing our pictures. Good doggie.

 Jett also learned to bite my nose.  

It's a shame that such great progress had to be impeded by sickness, but we are going to focus on the positive and kick these viruses in the a@@!  Better days are ahead.

Hibernation

I have now been working on this post for about five weeks now...and finally getting around to actually publishing it.  You would think that with my title, "Hibernation", that I would have gotten around to publishing sooner!  

It is true, though.  Jett and I are hibernating until spring decides to roll around.

This winter has been nasty; and I'm not talking about the weather.

SICKNESS!

Frankly, we are sick of it, and I bet you would agree.  

EVERYONE has been hit this season including us.  

There is a more detailed account HERE about what Jett dealt with, but let's just say that we are glad that he stuck around.  It was incredibly scary there for a bit and we were worried that we might lose him.  We weren't quite ready for that to happen (we never will be) and he wasn't ready either.  He wanted to show us how strong he really is.  I would prefer to not have him be forced to prove that again.  It takes a toll on everyone.  

Get ready for major picture overload below.  

I did  A LOT of baking over the holidays and loved every minute of it.  I jammed out to the Christmas radio station and test-tasted all of my cookie dough...to make sure it was safe, of course.

 The day before we traveled back to Utah, we found out that my parents' dog, Buddy, passed away.  He was really sick with pneumonia and his kidneys were failing him.  I begged my parents to keep him alive (he had to be put down) for one more day so that I see him, but Buddy was too sick.  

He was such a great dog and companion for my dad.  I always looked forward to taking Buddy and Kusaba for walks together.  They would always try to bump each other off of the sidewalk as they walked.  Oh...and his breath.  He had the stinkiest doggie breath EVER.

I miss him, but he's happy and healthy now in heaven.

The first day back in Utah was a beautiful, sunny day.  Jett and I had some fun in the sun.  He loved feeling the warmth on his face and gave me some good smiles.  This was, of course, before the dreaded sicknesses hit.

Cody's dad, Jerald, turned the Big 6-0 while we were in Utah and we HAD to throw him a surprise party...only because he hates them so much.  A huge crowd showed up to celebrate.   We had fun dressing up in the "photo booth".

Jett was wiped out toward the end of the party and cuddled with his Aunt Tiffany (my sister).  She has the special touch.  Cody and I try to imitate how she tickles Jett's head, but can't do it quite like her.

Tiffany and I were able to spend some quality time together...pedicures, Cheesecake factory, and wearing mustaches as we drove around Salt Lake.  

We spent Christmas up in Logan with my side of the family.  Our Christmas Eve party was definitely something we'll remember...for both the good and the bad.  

The good:  Our White Elephant party.  Let's just say that Cody and I are the king and queen of white elephant gifts.  Is that something we should be proud of??

The bad: This was the night that we discovered that Jett was really sick with something...we just didn't quite know what yet.  Poor baby.

Our first trip to the ER...at Logan Regional Hospital.  Definitely not our favorite hospital, but when you're in a pinch (no pun intended), you go there.  This is where we found out Jett had C. Diff.

By the way, if you understood my pun above, props to you. Hee hee.

Even though Jett was terribly sick, we tried to still make the best of our trip.  As you can see, I let Cody play dentist on me, but I didn't get any happy gas.  Booooooo.

We also went out to eat a lot.  That's what you're supposed to do during the holidays, right?

Second trip to the ER with Jett for some IV fluids...this time at Primary Children's Hospital. 

Back home in Omaha, things took a turn for the worse.  I tried to keep Jett at home throughout his sickness since we have all of the required medical equipment.  However, his lungs began to worsen and I didn't want to chance anything.  Jett ended up at the Omaha Children's Hospital for five days.  It was a little stressful, to say the least, because during his stay, I came down with the flu bug.  I was DOWN and OUT.  The hospital nurses didn't want me there until I was feeling better.  That was somewhat difficult to be laying in bed at home while your baby is deathly ill in the hospital.  Not fun.

            

"I will conquer!!", says Jett.

Flash forward to today, we are on the mend! We are so ready for spring to be here.  Honestly, the winter hasn't been that bad, but I think we need some warmth and sunshine just because.  

 I am super hesitant about going out where there might be a lot of germs.

 I've turned into Mama Bear, so watch out.  

"Put that hand sanitizer on NOWWWWWW!" roars Mama Bear.