Saturday, February 20, 2010

RSV?

A couple of days ago Evelyn started coming down with what seems to be a nasty cold.  It all started with a cute little cough and a snotty nose.  She has some of the symptoms of RSV, but it hasn't gotten to the point where we have to take her in to find out for sure.  She has been okay the past couple of days, but this morning as we were sucking snot out of her nose, she started having a coughing fit and began choking.  She scared us very badly, but thankfully that's all it was.  We got a humidifier going and that seemed to help some.  She doesn't have a fever, but she does have a stuffy nose and cough.  Her appetite has drastically decreased, but she is still having around 4-5 wet diapers/day so at least I know she's not dehydrated.  She has also been very sleepy during the day, hardly staying awake for more than an hour at a time.

She was just starting to eat well at 5:00pm, and then when I sat her up to burp her, she spewed milk all over me.  This wasn't just a little spit up either. It just kept coming and coming.  I think she threw up everything she had just eaten.  The first round went up her sleeve with the rest falling all over me as I tried to catch it with my hand.  So into the shower the two of us went.  I think the warm steamy air helped loosen things up in her nose and throat because she's been breathing a lot easier and not coughing as much.  

Because we are trying to take a more natural approach to health and wellness, both her and I are taking a natural supplement.  We brought her bed back into our bedroom so that we can hear her easier if she has trouble breathing during the night.  We also have the head of her cradle built up with blankets so that her head is elevated.

We have no idea where she caught this bug.  If it is indeed a mild case of RSV, it can be spread through touching or kissing, and can take anywhere from 2-8 days for symptoms to show up.  In adults, RSV is simply a mild cold, so anyone who has held her in the past week could have given it to her.  It can take up to one to two weeks to fully recover from it, so we're looking at a potentially long haul with this. 

Please pray for little Evelyn.  It is so hard to watch her cough and then grimace because it hurts her throat.  It is also a very scary thing when she starts coughing and can't breathe.  Pray also for Kevin and I that we would have wisdom in knowing how to help her, and when to seek additional care for her. Any advice is welcome too!

Tuesday, February 16, 2010

Evelyn Rolled Over!

Yesterday I laid Evelyn down on her stomach on a blanket in the living room. I went into the kitchen to put away the dishes and when I turned to check on her, she was off the blanket and laying on her back. I thought it was just a fluke thing, so I put her back on her stomach and sat and watched her. Much to my surprise (and delight), she rolled over again. I quickly grabbed the camera to videotape her, and she rolled over again while I caught it on camera. When I went to watch the video, much to my dismay I discovered that the camera had been in time-lapse mode. I tried to get her to do it again so that I could get a regular video of her, but I think she was a bit tired out.

So today after her morning feeding, I thought I would try it again. I laid her on her stomach on her blanket and went to grab the camera. When I came back to her room she was already on her back. I reset her and got the camera rolling... Enjoy! Evelyn rolling over at 5 weeks and 6 days old!