The Beginning of a New Year, the Good and Bad so far....

My thoughtful hubby mentioned a couple of months ago that he wanted to stay somewhere nice for New Year's Eve, and leave the boys behind. What busy wife, mommy and therapist can pass that up! So we booked a room at the Ritz Carlton Atlanta, club level, made dinner reservations, enlisted our good friends,The Renes, and off we went!

Staying on the club level, you HAVE to take advantage of the appetizers, open bar, and light snacks they provide throughout the day so we checked in at 4 and didn't meet up with our friends til 7pm. That meant plenty of time for the club level lounge.

Connor stayed with Nana and Pawpaw and Vic went to a cousin's house. About 5pm, we got a call from my mom that Connor was reacting to what seemed like an ant bite but that all was under control. Medication given, bath taken, temperature down and breathing normal. Of course, this didn't keep this momma from worrying about my lil man but I knew he was in good hands with my parents and that they would call if anything changed.

So the night went on....dinner at the midtown Melting Pot...bring on the cheese!! That's my favorite part. After an intimate dinner with great conversation and laughs, we headed back to the Ritz for a dance celebration. Now yes, I admit, any dance party that happens at a hotel is sure to be cheezy but it was free, they played good music and I just can't pass up an opportunity to boogy! We rang in the New Year on the dance floor, toasting to an exciting and hopeful 2010! And Nana had called to say Connor was playing and feeling better so all was good in our world!

New Year's Day we went to pick up our little Connor but not before enjoying our club level breakfast and buying new living room furniture. When we arrived, we noticed that one of Connor's ant bites had swollen up and his appetite wasn't great. His temp was down, he played but we could tell he just didn't feel well. Well....by 11:30pm, Connor was running a temperature of 103, his navel was red and swollen shut and he obviously just didn't feel good. Off to the ER we went :(. Fortunately, there was no initial wait and Connor was put in a room immediately. After an IV of antibiotics, a suppository of Tylenol and a lot of examination, the doctor believes that he reacted to the ant bite and also developed a secondary infection from the scratching.

I tell you, the worse part about being a parent is watching your child be stuck and prodded and not being able to protect them. As the nurse laid across Connor to hold him down so the other nurse could set up an IV port in his hand, my eyes filled with tears, if only I could have been the one to go through it, not Connor. Blood was drawn and labs were done. Scary..."Mr. and Mrs. Cook we will want to keep him in the hospital if his white blood cell count is too high." Not what we wanted to hear at 2am! The labs took an hour but returned good results. His blood counts were good and we could go home but not without ten days, 3x a day of antibiotic and directions to keep his fever down and monitor the bite sight for growth.

Anytime Connor is sick or has been taken to the ER, I would trade places with him if I could. At his age, they seem so helpless. Although it wasn't an ideal way to spend the early morning hours of January 2nd of the new year, I feel reassured that God is in control and Connor was provided with the care and courage he needed to get through some not so fun medical tests....for that I am thankful. I am thankful that I have a God I can pray to when I am scared, anxious or upset.

So as January 2nd continues, I am practicing my mindfulness skills and living in the moment. Laying in my pj's with Connor and Hagie, watching all the movies we can stand. I wouldn't be anywhere else!

Thank you God for giving me the absolute best parents ever, for giving Connor the greatest Nana and Pawpaw any child could ever have and for providing comfort during a scary situation! Continuing to pray that Connor gets a little better every hour that passes and that he takes his antibiotic willingly so that IV antibiotics don't become necessary.

Here's hoping and praying that 2010 brings no more ER visits, maybe we got our visit out of the way early in 2010 to make room for bigger and better experiences!