A Parcel, Christmas Countdown and an Unwell William

Sorry, this post will be a mish-mash of bits and pieces! It's Christmas Eve and although I wanted to blog today I don't want to spend too long on it. ;)

I entered a giveaway on the beautiful Lovely Little Cottage blog a few weeks back, and won! :D My beautiful parcel from Elizabeth arrived this morning. What wonderful timing, the day before Christmas.

Thank you so much Elizabeth. Everything was so beautifully packaged! And the children thoroughly enjoyed threading their candy canes and decorating their angels. Please thank your children for me too for sending them!

We've had an awesome time counting down for Christmas this year. We've had several means of doing this. Our Jesse Tree.

Our felt advent calendar.

We've also been having treasure hunts most nights for wrapped Christmas stories. The children have taken turns. Over the past months I have purchased some little Christmas stories, as well as borrowing some titles from the library. This has provided the children with plenty of Christmas reading material!!

William has really got to know the Christmas story through all this reading. It's been great. He knows tomorrow is Jesus' birthday, he knows what the star on top of our tree symbolises, etc. And we can pull out all these books again next year!

We also try to break up the presents for the children a little, so they're not bombarded on Christmas Day. I want their focus to be on Jesus' birth, not just presents! So we break up the gifts with prayers for those the gifts are from, some singing, meals, and readings. Our Christmas gifts are usually given over 3 days, to give us time to enjoy and appreciate each one.

Today we also cut Christmas Cake number 2. I took so much of our first cake to gatherings, etc. (and we've clearly eaten too much...) that I decided to bake a second one so we had some for today and tomorrow!

And last but not least, we have a sick little boy this week. :( William started coughing last week, and after days of reading all I could get my hands on, I decided we had to get him looked at. To me all his symptoms were very characteristic of whooping cough, which happens to be going around this year. The doctor who examined him declared it to be viral, though gave us a script for antibiotics "just in case". Well. I know my boy, and I have seen viruses in my kids enough times to know this is different. He has the characteristic "whoop", and is coughing to the point of blue face and vomiting. So I got that script filled pronto, and am also dosing him up on some immune boosting probiotics, and lots of cuddles and lots of prayer.

Today, cuddling on the couch with his new little knitted cowboy and tin drum. And towel handy on his lap just in case....

He is responding well. Most nights he is coping better, though still wants to sleep with me and get lots of cuddles. :) I'm watching the other children closely for symptoms, but my reading suggests older children rarely get it to the point of it being diagnosable, just very mild forms. And adults very rarely contract it at all. Praying we all return to good health soon.

Merry Christmas my dear readers, I may not see you until the new year, so I pray you all have a safe and joyful holiday! xxx

More Spring Fruit

William is still unwell, and only granted himself (and myself) a total of four hours sleep last night. :( We're groggy and a little out of sorts today.

Still, it's Market Day in our little town so we took ourselves out of doors and walked the streets, met some friends, visited the library and restocked our book stash, and lunched at one of our favourite cafes.

William is now napping, the older children have retreated to their bedrooms, and I am soaking up the quiet.

And Market Day always brings loads of fresh fruit into the house, so all is well in the world!

More Updates...

Sorry everyone, my blog is rather dull lately I know. :(

Here's the latest.

Stuart is in Adelaide for a conference for four days. The night he left, I had an episode that wound me up in hospital for the night. That was hard. I miss him so much. Mum has come up to be with the children and I, which is giving me much comfort. It's so nice just knowing she's here, and having her wonderful company.

The chest discomfort continues - a tightness, pressure, feeling of something being "stuck" in my chest, a bit of difficulty breathing, some pain, etc. I don't know if this lingering pain is linked to my heart, or to anxiety, or possibly heartburn!? I just don't know, so I'm trying my utmost to relax and not worry about it. Please pray that it leaves me soon?

My heart issues seem to be fairly manageable at the moment (despite Tuesday night). I am booked in to see a Cardiologist in the city on the 21st of October. He will analyze the results of my Echo test etc. and may suggest some medication to correct the problems. We'll see.

School holidays continue and the children have had some lovely experiences this week. We went to the wildlife park, and to a great indoor playground in a nearby city, and they have had several play-dates with friends. Saraya even had a sleepover on Monday night. :) So they're happy.

I am off to bed. I have just taken one of Mum's Zantac tablets in the off chance that I am experiencing heartburn / indigestion for the first time in my life. How nice it would be if this chest discomfort is not linked to my heart problems!

Goodnight all. I promise to offer some more interesting posts soon. :) xx

Health Update

In case anyone would like to know (and yes please to prayer!):

- I have another chest infection and am on another round of antibiotics. I am also taking probiotics and vitamins and trying to rest as much as possible. We'll pop down to the markets this morning to get lots of fresh fruit and veggies as well. Want to knock this one on the head completely.

- I have absolutely no voice!! Being mute and mothering 3 young children all day long isn't easy.

- I had to have a chest x-ray yesterday as the doctor could hear noise on my lungs. The results didn't come back as 'urgent', though I do need to go back to the doctor to discuss them. The x-ray guy said "yeah, you've got a lot of gunk in there". Excellent.

- I have returned the holter monitor, and once the results are evaluated they too will be sent to the GP. I'm very interested to see what they show (if anything).

- My heart definitely feels like it is still all over the place. :(

- When I had blood tests on Saturday, my white cell count was high. Once I finish the 6-day course of antibiotics, I will go again for a full blood count and hopefully my WCC will have come down.

- I am really, really tired and breathless most of the time. Stuart is being really attentive when he is home which is blessing me enormously, and my sweet friend Petrina has looked after my children for the past 2 days while I was having all these tests done. She is amazing!

- I would appreciate your prayers! I just want to be well again. It's been so long.

Lots Going On

There is a lot going on in our family this week. May I share?

I have had some issues with heart palpitations / shortness of breath / dizziness on and off for the past month or so. I went to see my GP about the issues a few weeks back, and was booked in to get a holter monitor (you wear for 24 hours for heart monitoring) on the 16th September. On Saturday morning, the palpitations got really bad. My heart was positively racing, despite the fact that I had had no caffeine or any other stimulants, and I was home alone teaching my piano students - my most relaxing day of the week! I wound up very short of breath, and very dizzy - and ended up going into the ER at our local hospital. To cut a long story short, I was in for about 5 hours, on an ECG and oxygen, and was diagnosed with PSVT - basically a rapid heart rate along with "extra" beats. It is unknown what caused this to happen, and numerous tests are being done to find out. Right now I am sitting here with the holter monitor strapped to my body (we were able to get it earlier based on the issues I had on Saturday) and have cords all over the place. It's not a pretty sight.

I must admit all this gets me pretty worried. I just want to be well to take care of my family. The thought of having a heart defect (yet to be determined) scares me - the thought of not being around to see my children grow up terrifies me (morbid I know, but the thought does cross my mind). Anyway, would you pray for me please? Lots of tests are being done this week so I am desperately hoping for some answers soon. God is giving me enormous peace and amazing support through some wonderful friends, which is helping so much. I know 3 people who work at the hospital, and all three were working the day I was in - and 2 of them, who are strong Christians, came and prayed with me while I was there. Amazing grace. :)

In other news, we are pondering deeply some big family decisions. Will we stay living here, or move back into town? Will we continue to homeschool next year, or will Saraya (and possibly Elijah) go to school? These are huge decisions, and I would appreciate your prayers for wisdom for us as we make these too. It is an interesting time. Lots and lots running through my mind. I feel God prompting me to relax, to trust, to rest, and not to worry. So I'm trying really hard. ;)

Life is filled with seasons. This one is a little hard because it is filled with unknowns. But I lean on this verse, and I am filled with peace.

"For I know the plans I have for you" says the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future". Jeremiah 29:11

Things Happening Here

Thank you friends for praying, I feel much much better!! It seems I did indeed need antibiotics to fight this infection - they are working, and it's so nice to have a clear(er) chest and be able to breathe easy again. :) It seems pneumonia has been ruled out, which is a huge relief.

I have rested more than I have since having children this week. ;) I have read lots of books, and thought about lots of things. And slept too. In a funny sort of way, it has been nice to have an excuse to rest! And that got me thinking - must I be so ill to feel justified in resting? Or should I be incorporating more rest into my normal daily life? I think so. I don't want to get sick like this again, and must take it easier on myself to stay strong and healthy - for myself and for my family. Of course I already knew this.... but some lessons you only learn the hard way.

In other ways, the week has been difficult. Getting behind on the laundry and housework etc. doesn't bother me overly (I know I'll catch up), but feeling as though I'm neglecting my family does get me down. And the children have particularly felt it. Mama in bed??! What on earth??!!! So. There have been some difficult behaviours to deal with, especially with Saraya who often struggles when things are different from the norm. She's just one of those kids. By Wednesday morning (my sickest day) I was pulling out my hair, and a kind friend agreed to have Saraya come over for the day and help care for / play with her little ones. Saraya also did the dishes and folded washing over there! So she was a genuine help. And a change of scene did her wonders. Thursday another friend offered to take her to Bundaberg with her children, for a day of fun activities- well, she was overjoyed! And yet another friend looked after the boys for several hours, and cooked us dinner..... I have been so blessed. Not having family nearby is hard. When friends step up and help, it is just so wonderful. It really got us through.

Then yesterday it was just the children and I again. I didn't overdo it - we just took things slowly. Saraya did a writing project and spent lots of time riding her bike and climbing trees. :) They did some quiet craft and played with playdough and we sat in the sun and read The Secret Garden together. Saraya is still reading up a storm independently too. In recent weeks she has read The Secret Treehouse, Arabian Nights, and Mary Poppins. And now she has started on The Chronicles of Narnia. This was something we were planning to read aloud to her, but she was already 6 chapters in before we could stop her!! So perhaps we'll read it aloud to Elijah instead. ;) Reading is something she genuinely enjoys, which makes me very happy.

And this morning I have just finished music teaching. It feels so good to be well again. I still feel the lingering symptoms of having been so unwell, and will continue to take things slowly. But it's nice to be out of bed and in clothes instead of pj's, and out in the sunshine again! Stuart will return home with the children shortly. I'm not sure where they have been this morning. This afternoon I am having my hair cut. It hasn't been done for many months so I'm looking forward to that.

Other news...........

* We have found some local Art Classes which Saraya is going to attend on Saturday mornings for the next 4 weeks. Very excited about this!!!! Art is definitely her other passion, and she is excited to be doing something all of her very own.

* William is simply adorable. When he says "My love you Mama" in my ear it just about makes me cry every time. :) He is also still infatuated with machines and mechanics. He is always building or making or 'fixing' something. And he sings non stop.

* The other boy around here who sings non stop is our Elijah. :) Non stop. I am planning to formalise his piano lessons some more too..... he is just all music, that boy. He deserves more attention musically, so I need to pinpoint a time in the week that we can have a formal piano lesson together. And Mum recently told me that she has bought a small child-size drum kit for him for Christmas!!!!! So I'm putting some earplugs in my Christmas stocking. ;) I just know he'll LOVE it, he adores the drums and is desperate to learn.

* I am reading a great book at the moment called Simplicity Parenting. It's all about simplifying the environment and lifestyle of your children. It is excellent. I have marked some pages and will endeavour to put up some quotes in the coming days.

* Not so good news.... Stuart has enlightened me on the state of his mind concerning living here where we are. It has been a difficult time, comprehending that we may not be able to afford living here after all. The mortgage is quite big for us, on one income. It's do-able, but really restricts everything else we can do. Or can't do, which is the point. It seems that the financial stress of living here over-rides the joy Stuart has here. When he looks out on our land, he sees the huge cost of bank payments and maintenance. So we are considering our options. And I am praying hard about it. Whatever happens, I know that having our family together, and healthy and happy and low-stress is the most important thing.

Stuart and the children will be home soon, so I'm going to stop here! Writing is such a great outlet, and my blog continues to be a journal for me. Hope I haven't bored you all. ;) Happy weekend. xx

Please Pray

So, I overdid things on Monday. I was feeling much better and it was so nice to be up and doing things again........

I woke up yesterday feeling dreadful, even worse than I was last week. And today was no better. I am very thankful for good friends who have been helping me, and children who are trying hard to be helpful while their Mama is lying in bed.

Tonight I went to the hospital (thank you Petrina, for escorting me there :)) and was able to see a doctor who has prescribed me antibiotics. He seems to think I should have been on them for the past week. :( He is fairly confident I don't have pneumonia (I was worried about this possibility), but if I am still unwell by Friday I need to go in for a chest x-ray just to be sure.

So. Would you pray for me? I just so desperately want to get well so I can be back to normal and caring for my family again. I am OVER being sick. Thank you. :)

Eisteddfod and Other Stuff

Well, we have had a week of sickness and Eisteddfod performances. And no, they don't really go together too well! The sickness is really getting me down. We are generally a very healthy family, and yet this winter we've all been hit hard with various bugs. This week my chesty cough and heavy sinus has worsened, and the aches and pains in general have too. I have been coughing now for 3 weeks. A trip to the doctor (rare for me!) confirmed that I do have a viral chest infection. I need to take some cold and flu medication, drink loads of water and rest, rest, rest. Hopefully it won't worsen and I won't need the dreaded antibiotics. I am so thankful to Stuart for taking the day off work today to look after the children so I could stay in bed.

Aside from the sickness, we still managed to sing on Tuesday! Saraya performed in her very first Eisteddfod, and I am so proud of her efforts. I also was seven when I did my first one, so this was very special. :) She sang 'The Windmill', which I also sang as a little girl.

All ready to go.....

And that afternoon she sang 'Maybe' from Annie, in the Musical Theatre section.

Here is my little Annie, complete with her gold locket.

The adjudicator was very encouraging, and awarded Highly Commended's to all the children who didn't receive a place! Saraya thoroughly enjoyed the experience.

And despite having very little lower register I made the decision to perform anyway. I had been looking forward to singing my song 'The Wizard and I' from Wicked for months!

Here I am, all 'greenified'. ;) I didn't sing to the best of my ability, but I still enjoyed myself and am glad I did it.

____________________________________

We were blessed to have Mum here from Monday until yesterday. It is always so nice to have her here, and we're all missing her already.

William is fairly unwell too, though seems to be improving every day. And everyone else, for now, is well!! Now just to get me well............

I'm off to rest some more, and read some more. I finished Wuthering Heights yesterday, and picked up the next book in my pile, Atonement. Well thanks to being bedridden today, I am about 3/4's of the way through! It is a real page-turner, much better than the movie as per usual. Perhaps if get snuggled up now I could get it finished tonight.

Much love to everyone, I look forward to catching up on some blog-reading over the (restful) weekend. :)

William waved!!!

I just wanted to record that this morning while I was bringing in the washing, I waved to William on the other side of the garden...... and he waved back!  We have been encouraging him to wave for awhile, but this was the first time he did it independently!

He is growing up SO quickly.  I cannot believe that this tiny baby is going to turn 1 this month!  

I feel like celebrating in a really special way for him but haven't thought of anything as yet.

He is such a special boy.  He is affectionate and loving, witty, clever, beautiful....... all those things and more.  He is not only walking, but just about running around now!  Still loves following his big brother and sister around, and getting quite good at that now I must say. :)

Sadly he has picked up Saraya's headcold, and is pretty miserable this week.  Not much sleep, which of course means not much sleep for me either. :(  We're getting there.  Only a little housework going on today.  Lots of story books.  And right now, a good long rest time.

Hope everyone has a brilliant weekend; I'll post next week about what we got up to, and some other very exciting news from our household!!!!

A brighter day!

"Why are you downcast O my soul?

Why so disturbed within me?

Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him,

my Saviour and my GOd."

"By day the Lord directs his love,

at night his song is with me-

a prayer to the God of my life."

"God is our refuge and strength,

an ever-present help in trouble."

"Come, and see the works of the Lord".

Dreaming

Here in the House of Dreams today, we are dreaming of many things.

We are dreaming of sunshine.

We are dreaming of autumn.

We are dreaming of dancing, and singing, and having fun.

We are dreaming of being healthy again.

Stuart is back at work today after playing Doctor yesterday.  I miss him!  I've wound up with what I've self-diagnosed as "Viral Uvulitis"- in other words, my uvula (the "hangy bit" in your throat) is enormous, swollen, puffy and red raw.  My throat is so sore too.  That whole area is burning like fire.  I wound up at the hospital late late last night seeking antibiotics- I couldn't sleep a wink with the pain every time I swallowed, and thought I'd nip it in the bud- but apparently it's viral so it's just a wait-it-out thing.  Lots of salty water gargling, pumpkin soup eating, and the spraying of Difflam anti-inflammatory throat spray which I may be becoming slightly addicted to. :)  Lets just say I've blurred the "spray every hour and a half" lines a little!  It's the only relief I've been getting.  Anyway, I had about half an hour's sleep all up last night, so today's been.... interesting.

Saraya has still had low fevers on and off.  She also had a few vomits this morning, not that there's been anything in her tummy since Sunday, other than water and a few bits and pieces of fruit here and there.  Poor little baby, she's looked so grey and quiet and little all day today.  She kept down a bit of lunch though, and dinner.  She sat up with Stu and I tonight getting some one-on-one cuddle time and seemed a bit brighter. I'll keep her home again tomorrow for more dvd-watching and colouring in!

William is miserable as can be.  He is cutting several teeth (ugh! timing!) and the virus has given him a very runny nose and difficulty breathing at night etc.  He is clingy.  He's also decided he prefers drinking from a bottle while he's so stuffy so I'm trying to find time to express with the pump..... I really need an extra few hours in the day.........

Eiljah..... is fed up with the lot of us!  He was ill last week but is basically better as of today- and wanting to do more than laze around in his pj's!  So tomorrow I will endeavour to give him a more interesting day.

I notice the swelling in my throat has gone down a bit tonight, and I can now swallow without getting tears in my eyes and needing to grip on to something.  A sweet friend brought us some dinner over tonight and I actually ate it and it tasted wonderful.  Another friend brought chocolate (always welcome, and enjoyed particularly by Stuart!  I also had a little nibble and the sweetness was SO good) and another friend sent beautiful flowers.  Fancy going down to the laundry and finding a big bunch of flowers waiting on the back patio!  Well, they were the 3 highlights of my day.  No, there were 4 highlights- Mum also phoned from Brisbane to see how we're doing.  

I wish I had something more interesting to blog about.  All day today I've been longing to get to the computer to write one of the many posts I've constructed in my head.  But now that the day is done, Stuart is home, William has been resettled for the 5th time, and I"m HERE!! at the computer.......... I write the boring, real details of my day.  This, for now, is my reality, and I must embrace it!!!  And dream of the healthy, happy, energetic days to come.......................

Happy Birthday Mum!!!

We are home.

I am SICK with a throat that is beyond swollen - I actually wonder if there is any passage through there at all?  My glands are all swollen up and I'm achy and feeling pitiful...

William has a goopy runny nose, and Saraya is down with fevers.  She's sleeping lots.  We got home last night, and all new the night would be bad- and it was.  Will is having trouble breathing and feeding because of his runny nose, and he is miserable.  The good news is that Stuart decided to stay home with us today and he is helping me run the ship.  I would be desperate without him today.  He has unpacked the bags with Elijah, cleaned out the chicks, and is now playing lego.  I'm sending him to get groceries soon......

THis is actually the first time I've got up properly this morning and after taking panadol yet again my throat is semi-bearable.  Enough to sit here and blog anyway.

Aside from us dropping like flies yesterday, we had a great birthday celebration with Mum and Ray!  Here are some pics:

with gifts for Nanna

my handsome little brother :)

This is cake I made for Mum- it turned out, thankfully!  Have a great birthday on Thursday, Mum!  I love you. xo

Hope everyone is having a good Monday.  I'm going to go put some washing on and then get some more rest....

Might make a big pot of garlic-y vegetable soup later.  Go away sickness!!!!!

Who would have thought.............

Who would have thought that a tiny little guy like this could cause so much worry for his Mamma?

Well, he has succeeded this week, yet again!  A few more grey hairs on my head I presume, and another year or two off my life for the anxious, sleepless hours spent pacing the floor with my feverish, wailing little bundle.

Yes, that's right..... William has been unwell again.  Nothing like the first year of life for my other two, he's had so much sickness!  My thoughts are that his rocky start to life, plus that first respiratory tract infection at 3 weeks of age have made his system more susceptible to general congestion and "clogging".  I have had around 2 hours sleep in the past three days, and he has had only a little more than that.  We wound up at the emergency department for a few hours last night and it seems Will has a middle ear infection, and possibly a urinary tract infection as well.  :(  They are testing the urine sample in the lab to be certain, and further investigating will follow if needed.  For now, anti-biotics, panadol, breastmilk, sleep as he can get it, and lots and lots of cuddles!  Your prayers would be appreciated for his continued healing.  And for my sanity.........

Our spotty little William

Saturday afternoon William started to get a few spots on his arm.  By today there were many more.  Both the other children had chicken pox last year, and these spots looked a lot like them.

So today I took him to the doctor, and would you believe it, he has the chicken pox.  My little 4 month old with the chicken pox!  My poor sweet bubby.  Apparently it's going around at the moment.  It is nearly 10pm, and he's up sitting on my lap.  He's getting lots of special attention! 

Does he seem worried?  No.  In fact, I'm sure he thinks the whole thing is hilarious.

I on the other hand could sleep for a month.........

And I have NO idea what to do with Stu and Saraya's big birthday party this Saturday.  I can't not be there, but William will still be contagious.  Help!!!!!!!  Any ideas??

Sundays when sick.............

are relaxing.

A slow, easy start......................

Eggs for breakfast, stories on the rug, colouring in, listening to the psalms on CD.

A long morning nap for William.

Another cup of tea for me.

Sandpit play for the children.

And, for the first time since Will's birth..... I sat and played my piano. My fingers remembered what to do and soon it was as though no time had past since I last played. I was so happy I nearly cried! Will seemed perplexed as his little eyes watched me. Elijah was quick to appear at my side and ask what I was playing.

A walk in the park this afternoon.

Homemade pizza for tea.

Things are looking up. :)

Will we ever get well?

Wow, this Winter has surely hit hard. EVERYONE in town is sick with something. There are several tummy bugs going around, as well as a variety of coughs and colds and flus. The classes out as school are only half-full most days.

I work hard to keep my family healthy, and we usually manage to escape these Winter blues.... but not this year! Elijah and Stu and currently fine, Saraya is recovering well though still has a lingering cough.......... my throat however is quite sore, especially through the night, and my sinuses are all congested. Could be worse, and I'm eating everything good I can get my hands on and taking extra vitamins, and willing it to go away before it manifests! I don't have time to get sick. Poor little William is still struggling along, in fact this afternoon his nose seemed to block up again. One of his eyes is weepy and his nose is actually running this time - last week it was just congested inside, with nothing running out. Is it a new virus or just an extension of last week's?

Please pray for him, just that he'll get better quickly and that we won't have to end up back in hospital or needing antibiotics etc. etc. I hate seeing my tiny bub unwell!!

Stay well everyone. :)

A big adventure

Well. What a week it's been.

My poor baby got worse on Tuesday night, and by yesterday morning was so congested he was really struggling to breathe. His breathing was so noisy, and rapid...... and he was starting to get quite distressed. So, off to the hospital we went. Saraya was at school, so it was just Elijah and William and I. We were taken straight in and given priority consultation which was good as sometimes at the local hospital you can wait hours before being seen. I presume being a baby and obviously having respiratory distress, the nurses were keen to have him seen to straight away.
After being examined by a couple of nurses, a doctor and his senior colleague, and having a chest x-ray (horrible for William; I had to hold him with his legs extended and his arms up above his head), the doctor announced that we would need to be transfered to Hervey Bay hospital (a half hour from here) to be examined by the paediatric doctors there. And worse still, we had to go by ambulance as they were not keen for me to drive him up there myself as they wanted to closely monitor him. At that point I totally lost it!! It all sounded so serious. I remember Elijah looking up at me with big eyes and then just hugging me and kissing me. I was sleep-deprived and hence very very weepy. The nurse kindly phoned Stuart at work for me, and Stu managed to come straight up and have the rest of the day off to be with us. I cried and cried when he got there! I don't like hospitals and being there alone with a sick baby and a toddler who was trying so hard to be a helpful boy made my emotions really run.
Anyway, I was surprised when Cathy showed up unexpectedly......... she had known William had had a hard night, and managed to track us down. :) I felt so much better having familiar faces there with me. Stu livened things up for Eljiah too, and they managed to find some fun things to do while we waited for the ambulance to transport us.

It took over an hour for it to come, but finally we were on our way. Stuart and Elijah travelled by car, and I went with Will. He looked so tiny in the big baby capsule they had strapped to a hospital stretcher........... I couldn't stop crying for him! He was just so uncomfortable and looked so helpless. I sat by him and held his hand and just kept telling him how brave he was and that he would be fine.

Once there, we were seen by the paediatrician. She was happy that William's chest x-ray looked clear, however he has an upper respiratory tract infection which is viral (so no antibiotics needed, thankfully). She decided we would need to be admitted and stay for at least 24 hours so they could observe him and monitor his condition. Oh, how desperately I wanted to go home! I was so dissapointed we would have to stay overnight as I wanted to be home with my family, and didn't want Stu to leave me. But it's necessary when you have more than one child! Stuart and Elijah headed off fairly soon after we were settled as Elijah had been hanging around hospitals the whole day at that point. And so began my little vigil with William. After many hours of just holding him and struggling with his feeds, rocking him while he slept, etc. etc. his little nose finally started to clear. He settled into a deep sleep late last night, and by morning today his breathing sounded fairly normal again. What a relief for him! I praised God.
We were once again seen by the paediatrician. She and her colleague agreed that if William continued to feed well, and kept his stats positive, we would be able to go home this afternoon.

He did, and we did!!

It is SO good to be home. I missed the other 2 children and Stu so much, and the comforts of home. (though thankyou Stu for packing me my bag of bits and pieces and Cathy for delivering it last night- and keeping me company:)).
William is sounding a little chesty tonight as the mucous is settling on his chest now that it's moved down from his head. We need to watch his temp as that could indicate a secondary bacterial infection if it goes up. We have the vapouriser on and I'll be monitoring him closely again tonight.

I'm so tired physically after nights of being mostly awake, but mentally and emotionally I feel abundantly blessed by my family, and the support of so many friends who obviously care so much for us. Thankyou!! And I'm just so relieved to see William more comfortable.
Thankyou so much Heather for your kindness, and prayers!! I look forward to communicating with you in the following days.

Laura Ingalls Wilder once said "I think home is the nicest word there is".
I am certainly inclined to agree!

Sick children

Well, today was not an easy day in our household. Firstly, William has caught a cold from somewhere and is really blocked up in his nose. How awful, to have your first cold at 3 weeks of age! So many people around us are unwell....... it's hard to avoid at this time of year. It's awful seeing William struggling to breathe with all the congestion. He just needs to be held all the time as putting him down causes him to get more blocked up, gag, and wake up crying. He can only get decent sleep when he's being held upright. Which of course means that I've been holding him virtually constantly since Saturday afternoon, day and night...............

We're getting loads of cuddle time - I'm trying to keep positive and value that time with him! It's just hard when there are other little ones also needing me.
Poor Saraya woke up with a sick tummy this morning, and proceeded to vomit a couple of times through the morning. So no school for her today! Elijah is mostly well, just off his food and a bit pale over the weekend. What a houseful of unwell kids! It's not fun and I'm so glad we rarely get sick.

Right now I'm just counting my blessings that I am well. I need to stay well so I can take care of everyone else! Praying for better sleep tonight, for Will's nose to clear up soon, for Saraya and Elijah to sleep all night and wake up happy and well in the morning.......... and for Stu and I to both stay well.

Can't wait for full health to return! And to be able to sleep properly again, with free arms
so I can lie in any position I want. :)

I'm sure hoping tomorrow is going to be a better day.