Back to the Hospital {long story short}

11.20.10

• Oliver babe runs a fever of 100.8 on Thursday evening.

• His pediatrician re-admits him into the hospital.
  

• Standard procedure on infants under 30 days old, but it totally stinks. This is our fourth night sleeping here. Or should I say not sleeping here.
  

• No more fever. Babe is fine. Vitals are excellent. Pediatrician takes urine and blood cultures {oh the torture!} and sets the clock 48 hours for results.

• Babe gets two antibiotics through IV in case of dangerous bacterial infection.

• Platelet count is elevated.
  

• Anxiously waiting on those cultures. We want to go home!
  

• After 39 hours the hospital breaks it to me that the blood culture is lost. LOST.
  

• Doctor apologizes and blames lab. Nurse apologizes and blames emergency department. Doctor redraws blood {oh the drama!} and resets clock 48 more hours.
  

• I want to cry but don't. I miss Buby and Bleu so much it hurts. Oliver appears healthy though, and that means everything to us.

• He's pooping and peeing and eating superbly. Weighs in at 10 lbs, 1 oz. today.
  

• I feel for My Sweets, who is handling it alone at home. He feels for me, who is handling it alone at the hospital. We text a lot.
  

• Daytime television is awful. AWFUL. I'd rather stare at a blank wall.

• Hospitals smell. They are loud and dirty. I just found a bug on my bed. A beetle type that would not die. And what's up with these mashed potatoes?

• The hospital is on fire. That's right. "Code Red in electric room 2." Nurse slams door shut and six fire trucks pull up outside my window.

• Poor baby has had his rectal temp taken more times in four days than Buby and Bleu have in their lifetimes. Now he just sleeps through it.
  

• I hold/comfort/nurse my sweet newborn around the clock and pray he doesn't get sick from being here.
  

• He smiles at me for the first time. And second time. And 20 times after that. Wow, it's a good smile. Everyone here comments on his sweet disposition.
  

• Assuming all tests are negative, the doctor will discharge us tomorrow afternoon.

• We try to salvage our week as a family and keep the babe in a bubble, away from all germs. Seriously, nobody is touching this kid.

• Update: Blood culture came back negative and we high-tailed it out of the hospital. Later our pediatrician explained that actually we'll never know if the fever was spiked by a virus or bacteria, since by the time the hospital redrew Ollie's blood he had been on antibiotics through IV for almost 40 hours. And he continued to be on them until we left.
  

• Happy to be home.