Early last week, Owen came down with a little bug. He was running a low-grade fever, but generally feeling fine. We took him to the doctor and found out he had an upper respiratory infection. A few antibiotics, and he'd be good. Then, late Tuesday, little Benjamin started to run a fever. He was puny and not his typical happy self.
On Wednesday, we took him to the doctor, and bloodwork showed he had a virus, and we just had to wait it out. However, by Thursday afternoon, it became clear that there was something more going on. He had not eaten in over 24 hours (and could not keep anything down that we tried to feed him), had stopped producing wet diapers, and his temperature was really high. We took him back to the pediatrician, who decided he needed a quick trip to the hospital to get some IV fluids.
By the time we got there, he was pretty lethargic and feeling awful. They put in an IV and his temperature was 103.3. He was alternating between periods of sleep and extreme fussiness. It broke our hearts.
Overnight, because of the high fevers, they wanted to run some tests. All of the blood work still showed a viral infection, but because the x-ray showed distended intestines, they ordered an upper GI. Benjamin still was not eating anything, so they had to put a tube down his nose to get the contrast in him.
Meanwhile, Mom had come to Savanah to help with Owen, and what a Godsend she was. We never could have gotten through this without her help. While she was busy chasing Owen around the neighborhood (ask her for details), we were able to devote all our attention to the little guy in the hospital.
By Friday night, Benjamin still was not eating, and was spiking high fevers. We all were at a loss to what was going on and how to treat it. He would occasionally perk up.....
But the majority of the time, he felt awful, and just wanted to be held and lay with us.
By Saturday night, we were so very frustrated. These fevers were out of control, and none of the tests were showing anything definitive. That night, we started him on antibiotics to, as our pediatrician said - "cover our ass". Over night, he still had a fever and was beginning to cough a lot. That morning, they decided to repeat the x-ray. Immediately, we discovered that Benjamin had developed double pneumonia, and that is what was causing the fevers. Because we had already started the antibiotics, he was well on his way to getting better.
The Flemings sent Benjamin a teddy bear and balloons, and they definitely perked him up:
We were able to go home early Sunday morning. We think that Benjamin started with a viral GI bug, and that's what got him sick, unable to eat and dehydrated. When we were able to rehydrate him, the gunk in his lungs turned into pneumonia. But, that's just a guess, and we'll probably never know for sure. We just know that the last five days have been really tough on us all. Well....everyone but Owen - he had a blast playing with Maggie, Mollie, Nana and Bobbie - all of whom took care of him while we were taking care of Benjamin. A big thank you to each of them, and lots of thanks to all our friends and family that were praying for Benjamin. We felt your love and prayers, and they meant so much to us!
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