Monday, January 31, 2011

5 for 5

We hit a new household record this weekend - all 5 boys were sick.

It started Friday with Cade dragging a bit and by Friday night, Tucker was feeling "tired". Saturday morning, Aidan came down for breakfast and looked like death warmed over. Titus had a very low, low fever, but was feeling fine. So, we just kept things quiet around the house and let people rest. Tucker and Noah played in the backyard some making practice swords (since it was an incredible 75 degrees). And, Aidan felt good enough to go to Robin Hood practice - big mistake.

Saturday evening rolls around and things began to hop. Titus' fever goes up and Noah starts to feel ill.  And then Noah and Titus decided to take things to the next level. As soon as we were headed to bed, Noah decides it was time - and he began to throw-up every hour, on the hour for the next several hours. I will say, I'm proud of my boy - he made it to the bathroom each time, and he can definitely barf louder than me.

At the same time, Titus fever is going up. We always know when Titus has a fever, because his heart rate will go up - especially when sleeping. His heart rate was over 150 and he was trying to retch. When Titus was a few months old, he had surger for a nissen - which means a fold in his stomach which prevents him from reflux - but also prevents him from throwing up. But that doesn't mean the impulse a body has to eject is stifled, so we could tell the poor little thing needed to get things "out" of his stomach. Fortunately with the g-tube, we could hook up and empty his stomach out. But, the heart rate was concerning so after consulting the NurseLine, Becky decided a trip to the ER would be best.

As Becky was driving Titus to the ER, he began retching and needed to be suctioned and have his stomach emptied out. Becky didn't even pull over she stopped the car, called 911 and got in the backseat to take care of Titus and wait for the ambulance. Now, it's a bit confusing to an EMT to be looking for a car parked in the middle of the road and Becky could see them cruising the parking lot for her, but she got their attention. They put Titus (carseat and all) in the ambulance and took off with Becky following.

The good thing about showing up in the ER at Medical City Dallas is that they know Titus very well. Within minutes he was in a room and nurses/RT's from past visits were showing up to visit and check on our little guy. He tested negative for the flu, but they gave him some nauseau medicine to help with the retching and within minutes, he was asleep. Becky and Titus were back home by 3am (around the same time that Noah stopped throwing up). By 4am, we were all back in bed and everyone had a few hours of good sleep.

None of the boys felt good on Sunday, so we divided and conquered. Aidan stayed in the media room and watched the Pirates of the Carribean trilogy. Tucker and Cade holed up in the master bedroom and watched Veggie Tales and Toy Story (1/2 in spanish - for some reason, they love the spanish version). And Noah didn't leave the living room sofa for 10 hours while he watched Little House on the Prairie reruns. (boy, that Nellie Olsen is annoying). Titus slept a good portion of the day, but was just not a happy camper.

Becky and I worked to keep everyone hydrated and medicated - and even through it all, I managed to clean out the foyer, polish the door, and repair the broken sofa in the living room.

And we were so blessed to have friends bring us food and gatorade (thank you Mike & Leslie).

As of Monday morning, the boys seemed to be making a little progress. Titus was happy and laughing this morning when I left for work. Cade seemed ok, while Tucker was still complaining his head hurt. Aidan was up and Noah was still in bed. And at this point, Becky and I seem to be ok - tired, but not sick.

Thanks for the prayers.

UPDATE: Becky is taking Titus to the doctor for a look-see this afternoon. He's a little more congested but not running fever and we haven't returned him to a full feeding schedule yet since we want to be sure the "retching" is done with. And, with the winter storm that is to hit Dallas tonight, we would rather have him checked out today in the event we are iced in tomorrow.

Wednesday, January 26, 2011

Donors Choose

Becky and I would like to share with you a special website and a way you can make a direct impact on Titus (and his classroom).

As I mentioned in my last post, Titus is a student in Frisco's Early Childhood School. He is in an Active Learning Classroom which means there are numerous items, toys, tools, therapy equipment to help the kids in the classroom learn. This isn't your average classroom by far.

But, as you can also imagine, the costs for all these supplies and equipment is not cheap. We know this first-hand since the toys/equipment for Titus at the house can be quite costly.

Ms. Lindsey, Titus' teacher, has a website where people can donate to the projects she has planned for her classroom. And, you can also see completed projects (with pictures of the kids). In fact, if you look now, you will see Titus and his classmates enjoying the finger painting which was a project funded by DonorsChoose.

Please have a peek at what Ms. Lindsey is planning and if you feel led, you can also have a part!

http://www.donorschoose.org/ellington

Sunday, January 23, 2011

Finger Painting

Titus has been enjoying school. He's in the Early Childhood School (ECS) and is in an Active Learning Classroom (ALC). This past week, we had our Admission/Review/Dismissal (ARD) meeting to discuss his Individual Education Plan (IEP). By the time it was over, I felt I had learned more acronyms that when I worked at EDS.  Let's just say, it's a whole 'nother language.

But, we were very pleased with our ARD meeting and the goals/objectives and schedule for Titus. His teacher, along with all the therapist at school, have developed a plan to continue providing Titus with therapy during the school day.

And last Friday, Titus got to finger paint. I think you can tell by the pictures he really enjoyed it! And, he didn't get a drop of paint on him. I'm sure if we had tried this at home, paint would have been everywhere.

And, the lady in picture with Titus is Ms. Lindsey - his teacher. She is a very gifted, patient, and talented instructor with a heart for her kids. We are thankful for her.