Happiness....

This picture was taken last week of the 4 of them :)

Today happiness is waking up to a little girl's big smile. A little girl who at age four has been through more than most people go through in their whole lives. Happiness is a fever breaking overnight and a normal morning at home where we aren't scrambling out the door to get to the hospital. It's spending the day with four precious gifts from God. It's knowing that a blood culture is negative. Happiness is knowing that we will all get to be together for Thanksgiving.

The last couple days have been a little crazy. As you know, Monday morning Abbey woke up with a fever. Jacob was in school, but we needed to figure out where Micah would go for the day and who could come with me, Abbey and Caleb to clinic. My sister and her littlest, Tommy came with us for the day while her mother in law watched the rest of the kids. My mom got Jacob from school so everyone was cared for. At clinic that day, her exam looked great. They were not finding any other symptoms, therefore had no cause for the fever. In a way, that's good that we weren't dealing with a cold or flu coming on, but at the same time it gets stressful as when there is nothing else going on it could end up being a bacterial infection in her blood. We were able to come home that evening after she got an antibiotic since her numbers were high.

Then, Tuesday morning Abbey again woke up with a fever. Even higher this time so we again were arranging for everyone to be taken care of. Her exam again checked out good and they couldn't find anything else going on with her. Just a high temp of over 103. Our nurse practitioner who has worked closely with us since day one started asking me about her flu vaccines. She asked when Abbey was given them and her H1N1 vaccine was given last Friday. When I told her this, she and our doctor began discussing the possibility of this fever being a side effect from the vaccine. They are feeling pretty confident that that is what was going on with Abbey these last couple days. We will never know for sure, but the important thing is that the fever has now come down and her blood cultures continue to be negative.

Yesterday was a day filled with lots of emotions. It never gets easy to wake up to Abbey burning up. The reality of this disease becomes so real again. The fears flood back and the realization that life is so not normal right now returns. My heart breaks for Abbey as trips to the clinic are now our social outings. The nurses and doctors are our friends and our day trips are not to friends houses for play dates, but trips to the 6th floor of a hospital. I've spent hours watching medications drip into her chest and had countless conversations with people about blood and numbers. Yet we continue to move forward. We find things to be thankful for in all situations. And today, we are just thankful and happy to be home and to be together.

Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus."

1 Thessalonians 5:18 (NIV)

Thank you for praying us through these last couple days. We hope you have a wonderful Thanksgiving with your family and friends!!