PINK EYE AND THE CROUP GUY

Today has been quite a day...we were supposed to head up to Winter Park for the week, but as the day progressed, so did Brynn and Ethan's symptoms. Brynn's eyes were goopy & Ethan's cough (that started yesterday) took on a more barky, croup-like sound. I called the Dr.'s office this morning, and the nurse and I played phone tag until their office closed for lunch from 12-2. By the time 2:00 hit, Ethan was running a temperature of 101-102 degrees (I took it multiple times to make sure the reading wasn't off). He was having trouble breathing in, and couldn't sleep without waking up panicked to breath deeply or from a coughing fit. NOT GOOD. I got him situated, gave him some Tylenol and watched the minutes pass until the clock struck 2. I got them both scheduled for appointments this afternoon, Brynn at 3:45 and Ethan at 4. Thankfully, Scot made it home in time to help me cart our sick house to the Dr.'s office. I was grateful that I trusted my instincts and got in there. The diagnosis?

Ethan's breathing was such that they thought they were going to have to give him a breathing treatment of Epinephran (I'm not sure if that's how it's spelled). They tested his pulse ox, and thankfully (even though his heart was racing), his oxygen level was at 93%, which was much better than the nurse thought it was going to be. His temp was at 101.7. By the time the Dr. got in there, she could tell that both the kids were struggling. I've never EVER seen Ethan that mellow, and Brynn's eyes were so swollen and goopy, she didn't even look like the same baby. So sad. Brynn (just as I self diagnosed) has pink eye in both eyes. She looks miserable. They gave Ethan some Diaophran ( ???) mushed up in jelly (which wasn't at all delicious, you could tell by the look on his face...but he didn't complain at all). The Dr. said we still had a 50/50 chance that he might end up in the ER tonight, so we really needed to watch his breathing. This sick kid stuff is not for the faint of heart. Brynn, the little sweetie, still mustered up enough energy to smile and squeel for Dr. Susie. Same sweet baby, different looking swollen face. She kept reaching her hands out to grab onto the Dr.'s stethescope & Dr. Susie kept laughing saying "You are so sweet, you just want to share your pink eye with me, don't you?" I'm praying she doesn't share it with anyone. Sometimes it's ok not to share. The Dr. said we'd be okay to take the kids to Winter Park tomorrow, but we'll certainly wait and see how the night goes first.

At any rate, the kids are all drugged up, sleeping, and if we're lucky - they'll be feeling better tomorrow.

*Note: These pictures of Brynn were taken, day 2 of her pink eye. The swelling of day 1 had gone down, but the redness aroun her eyes was worse. She definitely HATES the eye drops, so we'll see how this goes. The poor little thing looked and felt miserable.