Fever, Fever, Go Away

Very early Sunday morning, Emma Kate woke up feeling very hot to me. So I went into the bathroom and took her temp. It was about 100 degrees. I figured she was teething, and wasn't too worried about it. So I fed her, gave her some Tylenol and then put her back to bed. The fever persisted all day, so I kept giving her Tylenol and gave her a lukewarm bath later in the afternoon. She seemed happy as she normally is, maybe a touch more tired, though. Yesterday morning, she woke up and was hot again... all day! Because she's teething, I wasn't really concerned until her fever spiked after her nap. It was up to 103! That got me a little worried, so I called her pedi's office, and they said it was probably just a fever virus. She isn't having any other symptoms. (No runny nose. No cough. She's happy. She's eating fine.) But her fever persisted all day. When she woke up again feeling hot this morning, I decided to take her in to see her pediatrician.

It actually worked out perfectly, because I already had an appointment scheduled for Anna Brooke to see the doctor, so took both girls at the same time. Dr. Stone examined her--ears, eyes and throat look clear. The nurse came back in and got a urine sample and drew blood from her arm. Emma Kate screamed during this entire ordeal! Anna Brooke was the best big sister and kept saying, "Ssshhh! It's going to be okay, Emma Kate. It's okay." (Just precious! I wish I had been able to record that somehow.)

Dr. Stone said the white cell count in her blood looked fine, it wasn't elevated at all and her urine sample didn't show any signs of an infection. So, what is going on? We have no idea. It is a mystery. Most likely it is just a virus that is pretty common for any child to get. I am glad that Dr. Stone took a look at her blood, though. Potentially, she could have bacteria in her blood, which is a sign that there is an infection in the lining of her heart or on a heart valve. Apparently, this is not the case. The pediatrician's office is going to keep an eye on the blood culture to see if it "grows anything." And they'll call if it does. I am probably making this sound a lot more complicated than it really is. Basically, right now we are just waiting. Waiting for the fever to go away and waiting for the blood culture. (Dr. Stone predicted it wouldn't grow anything based on her other symptoms.) If her fever lasts for 2 more days or she gets worse, I'm supposed to take her back in.

I think EK will be fine. In fact, she just woke up from her nap and she doesn't feel hot. And its been awhile since she's had any Tylenol. That won't stop me from saying my prayers, though.

Catching Up!

Whew! It's been an eventful month. I'll be honest, it will be hard for me to remember all the stuff Emma Kate has done. I can't believe it has been this long since I updated. As a matter of fact, I did sit down a few times and tried posting, but didn't have the time. We have been super busy!

First of all, Emma Kate is now ELEVEN months old! As I say every month, I can hardly believe it! We are so blessed with her and very thankful for the last eleven months she's been in our family. This month she has made some great strides in her development, including getting her first tooth, crawling and pulling up on stuff, plus she's doing a whole lot of talking! Her favorite thing to do is to say "bye-bye" and wave her chubby little hand in sync. (Yes, I know I said chubby. And to the layman's eye it may not look that way, but compared with how she was two or three months ago, you'd agree. It's chubby!)

Speaking of weight, EK now weighs 15 pounds, 8.2 ounces, according to the scale at the cardiologist's office today. She's gained a lot since she was there four months ago! Even better news is that Dr. Law did a quick echo and said her heart function was really good. Go Emma Kate! Her sats were 80 and everyone kept commenting on how great her color is! And of course, she was showing off her waving and saying bye-bye skills to everyone we saw.

Emma Kate & Daddy @ the cardio appointment

Last month, we spent a week-long trip visiting one set of the grandparents, Kiki and Lito, in Georgia. It was so fun to get to play outside and swim any day that we wanted to! Emma Kate loves the water, and I cannot believe I didn't get a picture of her swimming. It was so precious to watch her splashing and laughing! A couple of weeks later, we drove all the way to Virginia to visit Nana and Papa. It was the longest trip E.V.E.R! But well worth it, of course! We had a few setbacks on the way and didn't get there until like, 2 or 3am, I believe. We had a great time just hanging out, walking to the park in my parents new awesome neighborhood, and doing some shopping. My sister and her son (who is the same age as EK) were there, too, so the babies had lots of fun together.

Laughing with her cousin, Alyssa!
Emma Kate & Jackson playing in the pool!

On the way home from Virginia, we made a stop in Durham, NC and got to meet our heart/blog friend Charlotte and her sweet family for the first time! It was so much fun to finally see one another in person! We had a yummy breakfast at Cracker Barrel and got to sit and chat for awhile before getting back on the road. I really hope we can do that again!

Emma Kate & her heart sister Charlotte!