Today was one of those days that I really didn't think could happen. Someone in our family seems to be ill all the time, but, usually, the kids' illnesses don't come to a head at once.
Today, that happened.
While we were in Vermont at Christmastime, Petunia had a nocturnal asthma attack for the first time ever. While there's no question that she has asthma, it's always been mild and controllable -- think long coughs after illnesses, not paralyzing gasping for air. This time, something viral -- the biggest trigger of nocturnal asthma -- hit her hard, exacerbated by some strong smells in her bedroom, and she had one of those paralyzing, panic-stricken, really-can't-breathe attacks. We nearly called 911, but I had come prepared with a nebulizer just in case one of the kids developed a bad cough. The neb worked, and Petunia didn't seem to have further issues. Her asthma doc was in Argentina, but he suggested an appointment on the morning of his return, at 10:30 today at his office 40 minutes away.
And then Dash woke up in the night with another ear infection -- high fever, a little vomiting, smacking his head, his usual. Since I didn't know how long Petunia's appointment was going to be -- it was, in the end, two hours because of delays and the thorough exam -- I didn't know when I could take Dash to the doc. If I waited until a "safe" time, like 3 pm, he'd miss his nap. Since both he and I were up from around 1:45 - 4:30 am, we both needed that nap.
Fortunately, the Guv stepped up to the plate, without any hesitation or cries of martyrdom on his part, even. He knew that Dash had to be seen this morning; any delay in diagnosis and medication means that Dash throws up more, which becomes a serious issue since he's significantly underweight. So he took Dash to the doc at the same time as I took Petunia to her doc. Not only that, the Guv even managed to get Dash to eat an entire slice of pizza after the doctor's visit! This worked out fabulously well, but it's a rare day that the Guv will be able to step in like that. I'm left to wonder how parents with MORE than two children -- like our friends in Utah who have six -- handle these situations.
Meanwhile, both Dash's and my hands are looking a lot better, both kids are on antibiotics, and now we can focus on the bigger things. It looks like Dash may need tubes in his little ears, and it also looks like Petunia may need to have her tonsils taken out. Since I see the ENT on Wednesday morning regarding my own tonsils, I'm thinking of asking if he has a family plan. Maybe 3 operations for the price of 2? It's time I start working out some deals, because I'm starting to think it's families like mine who make health insurance so costly for us all. And I'm sorry for that. I'm trying to figure out where in this great country of ours we should live -- like perhaps Seattle? -- where we could all be healthy, all of the time. Suggestions welcome!
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