here we go again!

Short version: in the hospital with Natalie again for another UTI

Long, very long, version:
Yesterday (Tues.) Natalie seemed to be not quite herself…just a little extra sleepy and not as quick to smile. I took her temp earlier in the day and it was normal. I took it again in the afternoon and she had a fever…oh boy, here we go again.

My good friend Melanie watched K&A (thank you!) while I took Natalie to the locals to get a urine sample. I got there at 4:15 and was there until almost 6:00 but they were never able to get a sample. They talked with the docs up at U of I and as I expected we were sent up there.

I drove home from the local office in a daze and started gathering a few things together. We just came home from the hospital 2 weeks ago so it was all pretty fresh in my mind what I would need. I didn’t feel angry or frustrated or discouraged this time. More calm. More resigned to the fact that this is what we needed to do. More submissive to the Lord’s plan for us and for Natalie.

I didn’t get up to Iowa City until after 8:00 p.m. Then started the long slow process of checking in through the ER. We got the urine sample (it came back “dirty” indicating a probable UTI as we suspected) and got the IV in (2 pokes instead of 8 like last time). We were sent up to the peds floor and processed in there. It was 2:00 a.m. when I finally laid down. Why does this happen late in the day so that it pushes us into the middle of the night like that? Poor Natalie was so worn out (me too!).

One of the doctors in the ER checked Natalie’s ears and thought she had an ear infection but then another doctor (you see a lot of doctors here since it’s a med school) checked also and said she didn’t have one. In the end it really doesn’t matter since the antibiotics for the UTI will treat it if she does have one.

They also did some tests of her stool (no, not a cute little seat). It has some blood in it and they are checking for a particular bacteria that goes crazy and takes over when you are on specific antibiotics and can cause blood in the stool. The good news is that the culture takes about 3 days to grow and in the mean time we are in “isolation” which means private room and the docs/nurses are supposed to put a gown on when they come in just in case she has that bacteria.

Private room---oh what a difference it makes!! I can’t even begin to tell you what a different experience it is to have our own room. Last time I was worried about the noise we made and of course we heard all our roommate’s noise and it meant that twice as many people were marching in and out of the room. I feel like I can relax in a way that I couldn’t before. It is soooooooooooooo nice.

Ultrasound of Natalie’s kidneys in a little bit.

Our urologist here is going to talk with the doctor up in Wisconsin to come up with a game plan for Natalie. We can’t keep coming back every 2 weeks with a UTI.

Katie and Annabelle had babysitters this morning and then Ben ran them up to my folks in Davenport over lunch. They will stay there for two nights and my Mom will bring them back on Thursday. They are having a great time and in good hands so I’m not too worried about them. I’m more worried about my Mom. :)

Ben is going to come see me and Natalie tonight after work. It will be nice to have a quiet visit without the other girls. I feel guilty saying that but it is what it is. I miss them and I’m always happy to see them when they come but it’s just a little crazy and they don’t last long and Ben and I don’t really get to talk.

I’m going to get this posted before I head out to Natalie’s ultrasound. I’m in a bit in the purging mood so beware there may be more ramblings to come.