December started out pretty nuts for us.
It started with Sam betting bit in the arm by the neighbor's dog, when he went over there to get a turkey that they had for us in their freezer. Sam was just walking to their garage, with the neighbor, and the dog just bit him, out of nowhere. The bite was bad, and it ended up required a stitch. It made for a very crazy evening.
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| yes, that is fatty tissue in that hole |
The whole saga created a little issue with us and that neighbor, not instigated by us. We didn't press any charges against the dog or anything, but we did let them know how bad the bite was. Hopefully things are worked out now, but it was not fun for anyone, especially Sam!
The day after Sam was bit, Molly started saying her tummy hurt and she spiked a super high fever. There was a stomach bug going around the neighborhood, so I figured it was that. My other kids had also been sick from it. A couple days later, after not getting her fever down, and Molly looking worse and worse and worse, I began to wonder if it was something more. She would scream in pain for a while, and then relax, and then scream again. I had no idea what to think. Once her fever hit 104 and would not budge, I decided to take her in. Unfortunately, it was at night, so it was an ER visit. She was so, so sick though, and it was scaring me.
We too her to the ER, where they said she had a UTI. I was blown away.
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| Heber ER |
No one in our family has ever had one, and she looked so horribly sick. She tested positive for the UTI, so they gave her a shot of penicillin in her leg, and sent us home.
Molly continued to get worse that night and the next day, so I took her in to our pediatrician. He did a quick exam, where her temp was 105! He said that her kidneys were infected and that I needed to get her Primary Children's hospital immediately, because it looked like she was about to go septic. He offered to take her by ambulance, but he said that I could avoid a lot of paperwork, time and cost if I drove her myself. I would probably get there faster anyway.
So, I buckled my very sick little girl into the Pathfinder and headed down the canyon. I was worried sick about Molly, and praying in my heart that she would make it to Primary's before going septic. I took the wrong exit at the end of Parley's Canyon. It is really confusing down there. The exit goes over a bridge. As I was headed over the bridge, the car, a few cars in front of me, all the sudden did an illegal U-turn, but he slid on ice. The car behind him tried to brake and swerve to avoid hitting that car, and they ended up skidding sideways as well. I knew I was going to hit them. It was inevitable. I hit my breaks, but the crash was still really hard. Soon after, a car slid and smashed me from behind as well. That car drove off, as well as the first car that caused the whole wreck.
I was completely stunned. The Pathfinder started smoking, and then it stopped working. I immediately checked on Molly, who was whimpering, but too sick to cry much. We were stuck in a terrible spot on a icy bridge that was around a corner, so I grabbed her and we got out of the car, and out of the way of the cars coming over the bridge and sliding all over. We almost got hit twice, just while we were getting out of the car.
The truck in front of me, that I hit, had two guys in it, about my age. They were wonderful. They immediately helped me and Molly get to safety. One of them was clearly hurt, but didn't say anything. They could tell that Molly was extremely sick, so they let my lay her down in their truck, where the heater was working. It was FREEZING outside. They called the police, and we waited. The officer that came offered to quickly drive molly to the hospital, because she was obviously in bad shape. As he was getting us in his car, another officer came, and put a stop to it. He was horribly mean, and didn't care at all about Molly, or the rest of us. Luckly, Ben was working close by, and he was able to drive to us, get Molly, and take her to the hospital. I had to stay and fill out stupid paperwork and wait for the tow truck to get the Pathfinder, which was completely totaled. The officer was horrible, and after an hour of waiting, told us that his computer didn't work anyway, so we could just go. He also didn't believe us that two cars had fled the scene. Really!I had no car, so I asked him for a ride to the hospital. He acted totally put out, but drove me, the entire way he complained about people, drivers, and so on. He never asked about Molly. He also told me that if he wanted me, he could ticket me for an overdue registration! Seriously dude! I was to worried about Molly to car much though. The whole thing was a total nightmare.
I got to the hospital finally, where Molly was getting settled in her room and the doctors were checking on her. She was definitely very sick. Once we got her settled, Ben headed home to take care of the other kids. He was wonderful through it all. I don't know what I would have done without him. He was just as worried as I was about Molly, and he helped figure things out with the wreck, while I was still kind of fuzzy and in shock.
Later that night, when Molly was asleep, the hospital told me to go get checked out at their ER. It is a pediatric hospital, but they let me get looked at anyway. I had whiplash and a concussion, but I was fine, sore, but fine.
Molly's fever didn't budge at all that night, or the next day. They were trying different antibiotics through her IV, but nothing was working. They were trying to grow her urine culture, so they could figure out the exact bacteria that was making her sick, and get the correct antibiotic. They also did an ultrasound where they confirmed a double kidney infection. The infection from the UTI had traveled into her kidneys, making her a very sick little girl.
The hospital was wonderful. They basically gave Molly anything she wanted. Playdough, crayons, movies, toys, blankets, stuffed animals, any food she wanted at any time (which she never ate), and so on. They had dogs that they would bring in, and that is what finally got Molly to smile for the first time.
The doctors and nurses there were also amazing. Molly's specialist was named Dr. Good. haha! The nurse she had wore a different costume every time he entered the room, and was always trying to help Molly smile and feel good. They were so good to her, and to us. The hospital even has it's own branch of the church. The branch president stopped by and asked me if I wanted Molly's name on the temple role. He also said that they come around and give blessings in the evenings. They even have sacrament and relief society. (takes place in the hall between the spiderman and batman). What an amazing hospital!
Finally, on the third way, Molly started perking up. After 5 rounds of antibiotics, they finally found the right one. We were thrilled! Molly quickly improved after that. Mary came to visit her, and that was a huge uplifter for Molly.
We got to go home that evening, along with a HUGE container of antibiotics. I was so worried that it would be a fight to get Molly to take the medicine, but she did not complain once. It was a total blessing for sure.
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| She still looked gray and sick, but by this point, she was actually doing much better |
We drove home in a rental mini-van, that we ended up using the next few weeks, while we found a new car. Ben had figured it all out while we were in the hospital. He is amazing.
As we were driving home, Sam apparently got bit by our dog, Charlie. It was a bad bite, and we came home to blood everywhere!!!! I guess Sam had food in his hand, and Charlie went for the food, but got Sam instead. He ripped out Sam's stitch from the previous dog bite, and also bit through Sam's lip. Unbelievable. I came home to what looked like a crime scene!
I got home, helped Sam, got Molly all settled, waited for Ben to get home, and then I went to bed. I hadn't slept more than a few hours in 3 1/2 days. I woke up 14 hours later!!!! haha! It was an insane week. We did have amazing neighbors, friends and ward members that took great care of us though. We had meals being brought in, lots of prayers going out for Molly, and lots of treats and gifts sent to Molly. We are surrounded by amazing people. The primary president came to visit Molly, along with Molly's best friend Beckham, while she was in the hospital. Even her uncle Devin, mailed her a unicorn blanket, all the way from New York!
The following week after Molly got home was definitely hard in it's own way. The other kids were all dealing with the whole thing. Mary and Luke had lots of anxiety and uncertainty. Molly was angry at everyone, having nightmares, and glued to my side. Sam was distant, and William was acting out. It was a very hard week emotionally, trying to get my house back in order again. The one bright light that week though, was my appointment for my hip.
It was my 12 week appointment, where Dr. Maak could clear me to run. I was worried though, because my hip was definitely hurting after the wreck a little.
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| I wore my good luck running shirt to my appointment. They also gave me these gorgeous x ray shorts to take home. ha! |
They did an xray, and a few leg movements with me, and I was cleared to run!!!! It was perfect timing. I had been doing the sit down bike for 5 weeks, and I was ready to scream. I was more than ready to run again. I came away from the appointment grinning from ear to ear. I did my first run the very next day, and it was amazing. 4 miles with no pain at all!
Mary's Birthday popped up before we knew it. 14! My girl is 14! She celebrated the day before, by going to the mall with her friends. It was also the maiden voyage in our new Yukon XL!!! We bought a new vehicle, and we LOVE IT! It has all the bells and whistles we could want, and it is very roomy. It is wonderful! I dropped Mary and her friends off at the mall, and I went to the temple. The next day, Sunday, was Mary's Birthday. It was kind of low key, which I felt bad about. I tried to make it fun though. She got a gift from us, which she loves. It is a blow up tumble track. We had her special dinner and made her truffles instead of cake (her request). We talked about how much we all love Mary, and we tried to make it a good day. I hope she knows how much we love her! She is a gorgeous girl, and she is such a neat person. She is a good faithful friend, she is low drama, she stays close to her values, she is one of my best friends, she is a great sister, she is responsible, she is funny, she is fun, she is creative, she is athletic, and so much more. I am totally panicking that she is growing up so fast!
The day after Mary's Birthday was Christmas Eve! We started the morning out with our traditional breakfast of cinnamon roll French toast at Kneaders. It was a snowy day....perfect!
Ben took Molly skiing, while the rest of us hung out at home, and got ready for the Christmas Eve party. We hosted it this year. The day was definitely nuts, with the kids being extremely excited. The party was a lot of fun! We had the Delorey's over, as well as the Dyers and their friends from Texas. We played games and the kids acted out the nativity. It was fun, and the kids had a great time.
After the party, we opened our Christmas Eve PJ's, set out cookies and milk and reindeer food, and the kids went to bed.
This year, Luke was absolutely in love with our elf, Joey. On the few days the kids were allowed to touch him, Luke would just play and play and play with him. Luke asked about him every morning, and was always writing him notes and letters. In one day, he wrote Joey over 30 letters!
He truly loves Joey.
Luke wrote another note for Joey, wrote a note for santa, and also set out stockings for two of his favorite stuffed animals! Christmas got a whole lot busier this year for "santa" haha!
Christmas morning was great. The kids were so excited and happy. Joey stayed one more day, which Luke was thrilled about. It was fun to spend the day as a family playing together and giving and receiving from eachother. It was crazy as always, but in a good way.
Molly loved it for about 15 minutes. Then she, like me, needed a break. She packed up all of her stuff into bags, marched into the bedroom, shut the door, and began organizing. haha! I love it!
The aftermath....well, part of it.
Happy December!!! Merry Christmas!
