Sickie Spencer Boy

It's been an eventful week for us, and our internet has been spotty so it's been nearly impossible to blog. If you're actually reading this post that means a modern-technology miracle has occured and our internet is working for more than 5 minutes at a shot!So, this entry is about our little Spencer baby. He's been sick this week. Actually, it started last weekend, when he kept running a slight fever. So that you don't have to go through all the suspense we did, I'll tell you right now that Spencer is fine. But the story is journal-worthy, so I'll share...

Last Friday Spencer was just fussy and unsettled all day -- short naps, lots of groaning and stirring, etc. Then on Saturday he was inconsolable while we had a little outing to the country all day (the grand finale was when he cried for over 2 hours on the way home, only breaking for a 20 minute nap). Sunday, he slept and slept, and was rather warmer than normal. On Monday, he was fussy again, and still warm. I gave him some tylenol-type stuff several times, to keep the fever down. But it seemed to creep back up after the medicine wore off.

On Tuesday morning, his temp was at 101F -- not extremely high, but also not exactly low. I called the doctor and got worked in for a visit before 9 a.m. I had just given Spencer some more medicine, so by the time I got to the doctor, the fever wasn't as high. But it was still there, and the doctor was concerned. He asked me all kinds of questions -- does Spencer have allergies? has he been sniffly? does Sammie have a cold? has he showed any other symptoms of anything? No, no, no and no. Nothing other than temperamental and feverish, and a slight loss in appetite.

The puzzled doctor sat down at his computer while I sat in silence waiting for some response. He printed something, put it in an envelope and handed it to me, telling me to take Spencer and the envelope straight to the A&E (emergency room), paediatric ward. What?! He explained that with no symptoms other than a persistent fever, we should treat this seriously and get some blood work done at the hospital.

Brian came with me and Spencer to the hospital while Joyce and Debbie took turns watching Samantha (what wonderful friends!! I owe them, for sure). At the hospital, they took several blood samples from Spencer (he wailed, I cried, Brian bravely held him), and put an IV in his little hand. Then they admitted Spencer for the night, ran some chest X-rays, and did a lumbar tap (where they stuck a needle in his back to remove spinal fluid to test for meningitis). Again, he wailed, I cried, and Brian bravely held my hand.

Then we waited. I stayed at the hospital with Spencer, and Brian stayed at home with Sam. They monitored Spencer's temp and heart rate all through the night. Everything was normal. They got some preliminary test results showing that he indeed had an infection, but there was nothing to indicate what or where the infection could be. They put him on antibiotics, just to be safe, but had no way to tell what they were treating. By Wednesday morning, Spencer was acting a lot better than he had been all week. When the doctor came to see him, Spencer cooed and smiled and put on a good show. Was he really even sick? It really hardly seemed like it, to me!

We got to go home by 1p.m. Wednesday, and they left the IV in for more antibiotics. A nurse came by the house to check on him and give him the last dose before she removed it yesterday (Thursday) evening. By today (Friday), Spencer seems to be one happy boy, just smiling and cooing and eating like normal. The doctors said it must have just been a virus, and is probably on its way out. I'm just so glad to know he's feeling better.

Some pictures of Spencer after we got home (No, I did not take the camera to the hospital... I try to keep my blogging addiction under control). Here is Spencer in his pajamas, modeling the little splint and IV, along with the hole I cut out by his foot, so they could monitor his heart rate with a little electrical band around his big toe. A close up of Spence with his Calpol and his splint. (And yes, his hair does look red a lot of the time nowadays)...
He's not THAT sick, as you can see...
Big smiles from our little man...