Jackson's Hospital Stay

 Resting in the ER

Jenni's drawing of Jackson in the ER. She wrote his name and then drew a tiny baby on a big hospital bed.

 Waiting for a room upstairs

 The littles keeping a close eye on their favorite babe

 I love this picture of my boys. Both of them are worn out, resting and have their arms covering their eyes.

 Still Day 1/Night 1 upstairs in our room. Eric had been working out of state and was driving in, so Jenni and Joshua were still with Jackson and me.

 The end of our first day. Jackson was in isolation so the littles had to have masks on when they left his room to get dinner. Thumbs up for cool masks and a great hospital staff.

 Sweet Jenni staying in touch with her littlest love through FaceTime.

 A few days into our stay the littles came for a visit with E. They peeked in at Jackson and then we went downstairs to build him his very own Build-a-Bear.

 A week in and sharing a smile. Thankful!

 Day 6 he went without additional oxygen and did well for a few hours and then had to be put back on it.

Day 8 and Released!

Timeline

Monday, January 21 - Jackson had pink eye and had a well baby check-up. All is well minus the eye infection. Later that day, he develops a fever.

Tuesday, January 22 - Still has a fever and takes several naps throughout the day.

Wednesday, January 23 - Fever hits 102. Take him into a pediatric urgent care that evening. Checks oxygen level and tests for RSV and the flu which end up being negative. Doctor says he has a terrible upper respiratory infection. Told to suction his nose and mouth and keep him on Tylenol.

Thursday, January 24 - Slept and nursed well throughout the night. Cough had gotten worse.

Friday, January 25 - Except for being nursed, Jackson stayed in bed until 2:15 in the afternoon. Totally unheard of. I think, at the time, that the sleep means he's getting better. Later that evening his fever is back to 103. I called the nurses line at his pediatricians office and they agree that something more than an upper respiratory infection is going on. Doctor appoint schedule for the next morning.

Saturday, January 26 - I meet with the on-call doctor, she thinks he may have pneumonia. We are sent to the children's hospital for a scan. We went to the ER, they were waiting for us and saw us immediately. Jackson was being checked by the staff when his oxygen level was at 60% (should be 99-100%). They rushed him into a different ER room and hooked him up to several machines. He had many breathing treatments done - none helped, and was put on oxygen and an IV. He had a chest x-ray done for pneumonia, as well as tested for flu, RSV, and pertussis. Jackson is not very responsive but is able to rest peacefully.

Sunday, January 27 - For the most part, Jackson slept nicely through the night. He had a handful of coughing attacks that we would sit him up for. Nurses say the coughing is a good thing as it is helping his lungs clear. He hasn't showed any interest in being fed while in his crib but once I get him out to hold him he will nurse. We find that his pertussis results are negative. Thankful! Today Jackson opened his eyes when I was holding him and almost able to hold my finger. Thankful for his responsiveness. Throughout the day he has periods of restful sleep and periods of sadness and discomfort. Doctor thinks Jackson got a virus on top of another virus. He is in isolation and only myself and the staff can be with him. The nurses increased his oxygen level so that he is able to rest more comfortably.

Monday, January 28 - Jackson had a really rough and miserable night with many many coughing attacks and subsequent sunctioning of his nose and mouth. The sunctioning wears him out so he falls asleep quickly afterward. His nurse isn't in a rush to lower his oxygen today since he just can't handle it so they are focusing on him resting and staying hydrated. Eric and the littles visit the hospital and we build our babe a bear. I have lunch with Jenni and Joshua before they head back home. While I was able to continue nursing Jackson throughout the whole hospital stay, they put Jackson on an IV in the ER to make sure he stayed hydrated. He was taken off the IV this afternoon.

Tuesday, January 29 - Jackson continues to receive breathing treatments and chest physical therapy. His lungs remain "tight" and he's coughing more. Today, Jackson smiled for the first time since he became ill. Thankful! Throughout the day Jackson continues breathing better and the nurses decrease the oxygen levels. He is able to continue nursing about every two hours but because of his short nursing spans, Jackson is put back on an IV so he does not get dehydrated.

Wednesday, January 30 - Jackson spent the night having coughing fits and was given some medicine to help the pain. His breathing is hard and fast and he does not nurse well. He continues having chest physical therapy throughout the day. Jackson enjoys cuddling.

Thursday, January 31 - The morning starts of well with the nurse lowering his oxygen level again and Jackson handling it well. Later, the nurses try to transition him off the oxygen to see how he responds. Once he is off the oxygen Jackson starts playing with his toes and small toys. After a couple of hours his oxygenation level keeps dipping below the cutoff so he is put back on oxygen. Jackson's able to rest again and falls asleep snoring.

Friday, February 1 - Another hard night of breathing and coughing. He was given pain medicine in the middle of the night after making very sad whimpering sounds. Chest physical therapy continues as well as suctioning his nose and mouth. His oxygen is lowered by a quarter liter every couple of hours until he is off of it again. The doctor checks him over and his lungs sound better. If he is able to go twenty four hours without an IV or oxygen, we will go home tomorrow.

Saturday, February 2 - His respiratory looks good and Jackson's breathing continues on the right track. Nurses continue checking his oxygenation levels and his diapers to make sure he is hydrated enough. After twenty four hours of good health, Eric and the littles come to pick us up and we return home as a family!

While Jackson and I were at the hospital, Eric took off from work to be with the two littles. Jenni and Joshua loved having "Daddy time" and spent a majority of their days coloring with him (literally for hours), taking walks to the park, and trips to the grocery store. They ended their evenings with a FaceTime call with me and Baby J and sent us pictures and videos of the fun they had together at home...

 Lots of coloring :)

Jenni teaching Joshua to spell "yes" and "no" :)

Jenni teaching Joshua to count by tens :)

Joshua trying to spell (with some help from big sister) :)

"We love a Jackson" song :)

"We love a Mommy" song :)

Joshua eating "delicious!" dessert :)

Joshua singing his own version of a "Me love a Jackson" song :)

A huge thank you to our family, friends and church for all their prayers for our little babe!