An EVENTFUL trip to Beaumont...

Kinda long, but had to document all of the details...

What a week this has been!! It all started last Friday--Brenley and I drove down to Beaumont to visit my parents, fun, right? Well it was not all fun, but it was eventful, to say the least. Bobby stayed back in Dallas because he is super busy at work. So Brenley and I left around 7:30 Friday morning. She acted great during the drive -- slept, ate a few snacks, played toys, etc. So we get there around 12:30 and eat some lunch at home with my mom. I noticed Brenley was not eating very much, which is odd for her, but didn't think too much of it. We also noticed a little later that she felt a little warm, so we took her temperature -- it was 100.5. Hmm...so we gave her some tylenol. She also had a little loose cough, which she had had for a few days, but no other symptoms, so there was not much the Dr or I could do at that time. So now, we have a cough, fever and lack of appetite all in the first few hours we are at my parents -- nice! BUT, she is acting completely normal and happy as can be!


So dinner rolls around and again she does not want anything I give her...hmmm! I decide to give her a bath and get her in her PJs. By the time this is all done we notice her breathing is very shallow and fast. This is what really concerned me. By this time it is about 6pm. I knew I would not sleep good knowing she was not breathing right, so we decided to take her to an urgent care facility. Of course, no one is really a fan of these places, but let me tell you, we get there around 6:45 and the place is completley empty -- no waiting! Praise the Lord! And on top of that, the staff is so nice and helpful! They get her in, check her breathing, ears, throat, etc and decide to take a chest xray.


The nurse practicioner comes and drops the bomb (in a nice, gentle way) that she has pneumonia and he recommends we take her to the ER to be admitted to the hospital...WHAT?!?! All at once the motherly emotions came out of no where and I started to cry. Thankfully my mom was there to console me! He shows us her xray and explained everything so great. Next they give her a steriod oral medicine and a breathing treatment! It was all happening so fast!

So I call Bobby and my most calm, yet urgent tone I tell him what is going on and try to keep him from freaking out. He tells me he has to let me go so he can start packing...and he got on the road at 9:30 to start his 5 hours drive (which really only took him about 4 :) ).


We head home to get a few things and make our way to the ER. After a little while in the ER we are taken back, checked out and sent to a room. It went downhill from there. My mom had been telling me, "you just tell me if you need to step out and I will stay with her"...I really didnt understand fully why I would want to step out, but when those nurses (plural) started HOLDING down my daughter to take blood and give her an IV (which took TWO tries), I looked at my mom, lost it and ran out in the hall to my dad! It was awful!!!!! After things settled, I went back in to hold my baby! She got an IV, blood drawn, got tested for RSV and got an oxygen mask put in her nose. She was so worn out from everything, plus it was probably 11:00pm by now.


We were then wheeled up to the Pediatric floor where we BOTH climbed into the hopsital CRIB bed and waited for "Dada" to get there. He finally arrived around 2:00am and my parents went home. She slept off and on, ON TOP of me that night and the next night. How can anyone sleep when nurses are bothering you every hour....boo!

Saturday was pretty low key in the room since she had to stay on the oxygen. We were able to take a few walks, but not for long. Saturday night was rough again. The tubes were on her nerves and MINE and she could not breathe through her nose. So I asked the nurse to do a nose suction -- "niave" me thought it would be that little blue bulb, but oh no, 3 nurses came in (at 4am!) and brought this big electric nose suction...we all held her down while they sucked everything, but her brain! It was so horrible, but it was so much better when they were done, she could BREATHE! Oh and her oxygen levels had been up so they had turned off her oxygen, but left the tubes in her nose (taped to her face) in case they needed to turn it back on, BUT this mama took matters into her own hands at a 3:30am I pulled that thing off of her face (nicely of course) because she COULD NOT sleep with it in. I did not even care if the nurses got mad -- but they didnt! :)

Sunday she was more alert and active and so glad to have those tubes out of her nose. So now we could walk around longer and play a little...yay! So we went on many walks around the pediatric floor! They also had a playroom, a wagon, and Barney DVDs...so those entertained us, I mean her, also. :)

By Monday, this girl was ready to be home. We were all tired of the IV and breathing treatmenst that she was having to get every 4 hours. I think I counted that she got about 16 treatments total. She was bouncing (literally) around in her bed! Thankfully we got released around 11:30am! We had some lunch and Bobby headed back to Dallas that afternoon. Brenley and I stayed in Beaumont until yesterday, to rest and actually visit my parents in a normal fashion for a few days.


We are home now and so glad to be in our own beds and back to NORMAL! It was a scary time and I am so glad it is over. I have not stopped kissing my girl since all of this happened. Makes me so THANKFUL for a healthy girl. We are off to get a follow up with our pediatrician this afternoon.


Here are a few pictures from our stay...

First night - she looks so pitiful


Saturday morning -- so glad to have Daddy there

Playing in her bed

Taking a walk around the hospital with the G-parents

Weee -- she loved the wagon!

Hi mom!

Daddy and her IV pole


More toys in bed

The nurse brought her a sucker...she still was not a fan of her though :)

WE ARE OUTTA HERE! (excuse the no makeup and Bobby's shaggy face -- we didnt really get dolled up in the hospital) :)

Thanks to all our family and friends for your prayers, thoughts, calls, texts, etc. The Soto family appreciates you so much! (and a SUPER DUPER thank you to my parents who sacrificed their whole weekend to spend it at the hospital with us. I could not have done it or handled it without you both!)