Sick Baby, Winter 2016

Okay, so maybe he's not technically a "baby" anymore, but my then-6-year-old got pretty sick last January. For a few days, we thought it was just a cold. But then it got worse, and his breathing was starting to seem labored, and he was really lethargic, so I took him to the Community Care, where we ended up doing this:

...and then got sent to the hospital. 

We spent two nights in this little hospital room. Liam slept best with me in the bed with him, and it was easier for me to adjust his nasal canula if it fell out of his nose and started his monitors a-squawking, so we cuddled together here at night.

But we had some special visitors!

Grandma and Grandpa came . . . and made sure to bring fruit snacks. Good thing, too, because that's the first thing Liam asked about when they walked into his room.

The Smiths ("The Smips" as Liam calls them) also came to visit. Big Marty and Arielle could come in, but no one under 18 was allowed to visit, so the other kids made Liam a video wishing him well and waited in the car while his dad showed it to us. (It was Big Marty's birthday, but he still came to see his nephew in the hospital!) After they left, Liam teared up a little. "I just wuv those Smips," he said.

Abe was pretty enthralled with this under-the-counter toilet set-up. I thought it was kind of creepy.

It was kind of nice to have some quiet time with my littlest one. He was in good hands at the hospital, so we enjoyed napping, reading, and playing cars together.

 We loved the pediatrician who worked with Liam. He was really great. 

All the nurses adored Liam. He's pretty charming. And, truth be told, he really liked it at the hospital. Since this visit, whenever he gets even the littlest bit sick, he's like, "Can we go back to that place where everyone is so nice and they let me choose what I want to eat?" 

It was pretty adorable watching him place his orders for meals. 

Here he is shortly before we were able to check out! He was pretty happy to not have monitors and tubes tying him down. 

Some sweet human soul had cleaned off the windows of our car in the hospital parking lot. Yes, I cried. 

Soren RAN out to the car when we pulled into the garage. He was so excited to see his brother again. It was after this picture that I finally realized that there was a fingerprint on my camera lens. Ha! 

 We were happy to be home, but so grateful for the good care Liam received at the Community Care and the hospital.