"My Story..." Monday: Having a MRSA + Child

Awhile back, I wrote about our darkest day in the NICU, when C. was so terribly sick none of the doctors thought she was going to make it. In those first days of her illness, we weren't even entirely sure what it was that plagued her. We had to wait out a lot of lab tests and cultures to see what we were even dealing with.

When we were told that our daughter had MRSA (methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus), neither my husband nor I knew anything about it. But it seemed bizarre to say the least. One day, our daughter was out amid the other babies and everyone handled her with (clean) bare hands. The next, she was in a little "isolation" room and we had to don gowns, masks, and gloves before going in there with her. Well, actually, as the parents, we didn't have to wear masks or gloves, but everyone else did. She was the same child, but the parameters had changed dramatically.

Mostly I was just concerned with little C's health and wanted to see her get better. But, as the days went on and I gleaned some more information from the nurses, I felt less enlightened and more confused. I figured that MRSA must be airborn, hence the masks, right? Nope. I thought, wow, this must be one uncommon, super dangerous bug, right? Not really. I thought, man, it'll be nice when she's "cured" of this infection, right? Um, nope.

I must have gotten annoying with all of my questions because, one day, they sent an expert in infectious diseases to come talk to me. And I was really relieved to be able to ask all my questions and finally get some answers. And here's what I learned...

First of all, MRSA is incredibly common. Some experts estimate that about one third of the general population and over one half of the medical population carry this bacteria on their skin. Hanging out on your skin, it doesn't cause many problems. But in the case of the very fragile (often these are tiny babies and the elderly), if it gets in the bloodstream, it can cause devastating illness. For more "typical", healthy folks, MRSA- like other bacterias- becomes an issue when it finds its way into the bloodstream through a wound and causes infection. What makes it "worse" than other infections is that it's resistant to more antibiotics. This doesn't mean it can't be killed. It just means that doctors have to find the right medication to knock it out.

MRSA is only spread through contact. Why the masks? In case people touch their mouths with their gloved hands, apparently. The specialist indicated she thought this was a bit of overkill and went on to explain that there is not even a consistent protocol for hospitals to use regarding MRSA procedures. Our hospital was on the very conservative side. And that's okay. But it was good to know.

Our daughter will ALWAYS be MRSA-positive. That label doesn't go away. The fact that she's had it in her blood means they can never be sure it's all gone. So what does that mean? In a nutshell, not much. She's not a danger to others; it's not even something schools or daycares care about. There is only one difference for C... she has to have a private room any time she's hospitalized. All-in-all? Not really a big deal.

I think what has been the toughest has been the big media hype in the last few years about "THAT HORRIBLE KIlLER SUPERBUG... MRSA!!!!" I've had people recoil a bit and say, "Isn't that what your daughter has????" And it bothers me. Not that the magazines and news stories feel the need to warn about the dangers, but because it's so sensationalized and so many facts are left out. We all know it makes a better story if it scares the dickens out of us, right?

And so I'm here to tell you, as the mother of a MRSA + child, that it's not as dramatic as they'll have you believe. And I'll also remind you that about a third of you have it too... and that's perfectly okay.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Come back next week when I talk about settling into our new digs and all the growing pains that involved...

A Little Bubbly With Littles

I love champagne. This is something friends and family all know about me. I love it at a special occasion (like a wedding or holiday) and I love it with a pizza. I find the entire flavor and experience of a glass of champagne to be nothing less than celebratory. And, let's think about it, having done a brief stint tending bar when I was 22, I can tell you that people don't "drown their sorrows" in champagne. It's a happy beverage. The very words associated with champagne-- bubbly, effervescent, sparkling-- are joyful. I also love the presentation of champagne. Nobody chugs champagne out of a can or a plastic Solo cup (well, I'm sure somebody somewhere does, but it's not common...). Champagne is served up in elegant, glistening flutes. I love those too; in fact, I collect them... everything from clearanced Pier One to Waterford.

All this to say it should come as no surprise that our New Year's Eves always involve champagne. Well, every New Year's Eve that is except 2004 (pregnant with my son), 2005 (just gave birth to my daughter and, um, things were a tad crazy), and, now, 2008 (pregnant with our third). But that doesn't mean we can't replicate that same effervescent joy in other ways!

Sparkling grape juice filled in this year, providing a safe alternative for pregnant me and a kid-friendly drink to share at supper! Our son opted for straight purple grape juice since he refuses anything with any kind of fizz (I am, for the record, completely okay with this since I can't stand seeing preschoolers drink soda...)

You'll get a taste of our kiddos' personalities here:


A, cooperative little ham, happily drank his grape juice and handled his "wine glass" like a champ...


C, stubborn and determined little rebel, really didn't like the sparkling juice but refused to give up her glass so we could replace it. She spent the entire "toast" looking like this...


Their daddy and I shared our toast shortly before midnight when our kids had been tucked in for a good four hours or so...

Cheers.

And Happy New Year.

To see how others rang in the New Year with little ones, visit Life As MOM!

Three Things I Wish You For 2009

1. Peace and Stability for your family.
2. Love and Joy in all that you do.
3. Faith and Wisdom as you face the challenges and opportunities of 2009.

Happy, Happy New Year to all of you! May 2009 be one of your happiest years yet...

(By the way, do you like how I really slipped SIX things in there by doubling up? Yeah, well... sometimes it's hard to stick to just three...)

Portrait of a Pregnancy After a Preemie: Part Two

Our 10 week 6 day old little one... who can argue that's not a baby????

I'm almost thirteen weeks pregnant right now and, while that is not anywhere even close to a full-term 40-week pregnancy, it's more than half of how far I made it last time. It's a little hard for me to explain, but I'm finding that I don't take a single day of this pregnancy for granted. I find myself thanking God at random intervals during the day for how smoothly things have gone so far. And I'm really not wishing any of it away. I'm perfectly content with this exact moment in time...

Some things I'm focused on right now:

1. Enjoying these last 7 weeks before the restrictions start. I'm spending time walking on the treadmill, picking up my children, and staying OUT of bed!

2. We are making a conscious effort to help C. graduate on to some new things without rushing her. She recently switched from the high chair to a booster which will help greatly when I'm not allowed to lift her anymore.

3. Feeling endlessly grateful that the nausea is lessening each and every day. I feel a large part of that is due to a new prenatal vitamin with mega doses of B-vitamins in it. But, even with the nausea, I've been incredibly grateful to not be getting sick constantly like I was last time around...

4. Still getting all the way back on my feet. At 10 1/2 weeks pregnant, I caught some nasty gastro-intestinal thing that made me sicker than I've ever been in my life. The doctor made me go to the ER where I received IV fluids and medications. I've felt fine for awhile now, but tests keep showing that I'm still dehydrated. I'm drinking enough water these days to float!

Some things I'm anticipating:

1. Increasingly frequent appointments- I remember with my first pregnancy, I would have happily trotted in that office every week if they wanted me! I just loved hearing how things were progressing. I certainly don't mind going, but I would gladly trade frequent updates for a non-high-risk pregnancy!

2. Even less queasiness and more energy- If past predicts the future, I should be feeling better and better in about a month or so... something to look forward to even as I cherish all the weeks in between!

3. Getting nagged to gain weight- I'm not sure why it is, but I always lose weight when I'm pregnant even when I eat well. Since I don't start out at all overweight, this becomes an issue around about the 4th month. Up until then, my doctors don't seem to care much. But usually when I waltz in at four months with maybe a half-pound weight gain under my belt, I get a lecture. Now, I realize this might sound like a dream come true to some people... being told to gain more weight. But, the thing is, it still makes you feel like a failure. I already know I'm down a few pounds right now from my starting weight, so I'm guessing it'll be the same ol' story...

Some questions for all of you:

1. Have any of you had to spend time on bed rest while remaining the primary care giver for other young children? How did you cope?

2. Have any of you had experience consulting with a perinatologist? If so, how did those appointments differ from more typical OB appointments?

3. Have any of you had a child after having had a classic c-section (that's a c-section where they cut you vertically instead of laterally)? Did the surgeon have to do a repeat classic?

Any input is so very appreciated.

I'll keep you all updated as the weeks roll on... as always, feel free to ask me any questions or provide any insight in the comments or through email!

Birthday Cake Thoughts...

So here are a couple things you should know about me...

1. I refuse to shell out $20+ for a grocery store bakery cake that tastes like it's frosted with Crisco and is often airbrushed with psychadelic colors.

2. I have nothing against boxed caked mixes.

3. I love making my kids' cakes, but I'm not one of those super-mommies who manages to create those amazing scenes on their cakes either. I'm somewhere in the middle.

My kids are little yet-- just turned 3, almost 4, and not-yet-born, so I haven't had the most experience making birthday cakes. But I do enjoy it! Usually...

Here are a couple cakes from past birthday celebrations...

My son's zebra cake for his 2nd birthday.

When our little girl was 2, her favorite food in the world was grapes. So there you go.

This year, as C's third birthday loomed before me just as I was recovering from my energy-sucking illness, the thought of coming up with a creative cake idea almost drove me to tears. I kept meaning to get online and find some wondrous design I could try to replicate. But it didn't happen. In the end, I bought two Funfetti cake mixes, baked about thirty cupcakes with Tinkerbell liners, whipped up some buttercream icing, tinted it pink, and topped them with pastel sprinkles...


Honestly? I think they were even more popular than the cakes I usually make. Fact is... kids love cupcakes.

So I guess my advice is... think about your audience. Decide what really matters. Is it more important that my neighbor thinks I'm a pastry genius or that my children have huge, cake-crumby grins?

Long live the cupcake.

Even on her first birthday, C. was a fan of the cupcake!

For more kitchen advice and ideas, check out Tammy's Recipes!

Update 1/29: Be sure to check out all the wonderful cakes at the Birthday Cake Round Up, hosted by Life As MOM!

"My Story..." Monday: Surgery and Unfamiliar Ground

When we found out that C. would have to be transported to Chicago for surgery, everything moved so very fast. We had very little time to think about much other than the sheer logistics of how we were going to manage the trip. Once we were actually on the road, we had a chance to think about the fact that we had no idea exactly where this hospital was, what it was like, if we would like the doctors, or even where we'd be staying. Like so many times before, we just had to trust that things would fall into place.

Arriving at the Chicago hospital was a touch overwhelming. While it's true that our daughter had been cared for at a children's hospital right in the heart of Indianapolis, it was a much different setting. There, we walked amid college students and residents on wide sidewalks through grassy areas. In Chicago, we were right in the heart of a busy city block. Traffic, both pedestrian and vehicular, was staggering and the lobby of the hospital was crowded and incredibly noisy. We waited our turn to speak to the individual at the information desk, received visitor passes, and got directions to the NICU. When we arrived there, we found out we had beaten our daughter. But only by minutes.

That first day was basically a "settling in" day. We got to know the nurses in the NICU a little bit. They seemed "tougher" than the nurses we were accustomed to, but very knowlegable and competent. We met Dr. Shapiro who would be performing C's surgery bright and early the next morning. We talked to a supervisor who gave us directions to the apartment we would be staying at. This was a fairly new project of the hospital's... they had taken over an apartment in a building several blocks away and would rent it by the night to out-of-town families with a child at the hospital. It was a great idea because the Chicago Ronald McDonald House was a long ways away and hotel rooms were expensive in the area.

I'd love to tell you that everything was peachy keen with this apartment. Unfortuately, the best that can be said is that it was clear someone had tried very hard to put up a coat of fresh paint, leave clean linens, and fresh soap. The effort was there. The building, however, was very old and in rough shape. And so... the hallway had a lingering, nausea-inducing smell to it, the heat ran incessantly forcing us to open windows during a Midwest winter, and, most disturbing of all, we arrived home one evening to find my freshly washed breast pump components crawling with roaches. Yeah...

But, anyway, what mattered most was not where we were sleeping at night, but the care that our little girl received. Dr. Shapiro had shared these statistics with us... without surgery, there was an 85% chance our daughter would go blind and a 15% chance she would retain some kind of vision through correction. With surgery, the statistics flip-flopped and she was down to a 15% chance of going completely blind with an 85% chance that she would have some vision. There was no doubt we were doing the right thing...

We returned to the hospital at 5:45 am on Thursday morning and met with her surgeon. We sat with mega-sized cups of coffee in the waiting room. And just waited. We didn't talk much. There wasn't too much to say. We just waited for Dr. Shapiro to come back and tell us how it went.

He came back just before 10 am to tell us that things had gone well. He ended up having to do two different procedures on each retina in order to attempt to resolve and halt the detachment. That had been the "worst case scenario" but now, hearing that it went well, it didn't seem scary. We were able to head back to the NICU and await C's return to start her recovery.

Our little girl had bandages over both eyes and was still sedated. She had also been re-intubated. When you've had a preemie on a ventilator for so very long before and it was such a huge battle to come off of it, it's very scary to see that tube in place again. All sorts of fears roll through your mind... you become terrifed that your child won't be able to get off the machine again, that you've started over on that horrible roller coaster ride. It doesn't matter that you know it's standard procedure for surgery under general anesthesia, it still leaves a sick feeling in your belly...

As it grew later and later on Thursday, we grew increasingly agitated that no attempt had been made to remove the ventilator tube though C. was receiving almost no oxygen or pressure through it. My husband questioned the resident on rotation and he said that the fellow had ordered that it remain. We essentially clawed our way up the food chain until someone finally called the neonatologist on call and they got the go-ahead to removed the tube. And, when they did, little C. breathed like a champ. No problems.

Our next mission was to try and get C. transferred back to Indianapolis the next day so we didn't have to stay over the weekend. We certainly didn't want to take chances if she was still in any danger but, as long as she was stable enough, it seemed best to get back to our "old stompin' grounds". Dr. Shapiro saw no reason for her to remain in Chicago and signed the release to get her back to her usual caregivers.

Friday morning, we met the transport team by C's bedside and this is what they said:

"We'll see you back at IU Medical Center."

WHAT?!?!?!

Our daughter had been at Riley! We loved Riley! We knew everyone at Riley! We must have looked completely panicked because the ambulance driver actually called Riley and talked to Dr. Lemons, the head neonatologist (and a man I absolutely adore). He checked, double-checked, and triple-checked and sadly told us that they were over-full. C. was healthy enough for IU's Special Care Nursery. And so, off we went to yet another new place...

But it was with great optimism that we left Chicago. Our baby girl's retinal surgery looked like it had been a success. We were going to pick our son back up. We now knew our daughter was one of the "healthier ones" because those are the only babies who can leave Riley...

We headed back to Indy.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Next week, I'll tell you a little bit about what it's like to have a child with MRSA (hint: it's nothing like those crazy "super bug" scare stories you read and hear...)

Happy 3rd Birthday!!!

(Oh, yeah... and Merry Christmas Eve to all of the rest of you too!)


Last Saturday, we celebrated C's 3rd birthday. But her actual day is today! I made a vow the day my little girl was born that I would never let that fact go unnoticed.

(Pink cupcakes with sprinkles were fun, girly, and tasty... and much easier to deal with than cutting a cake!)

(A new apron made by Bama... and a whisk! That whisk was the favorite gift!!)


(An apron, a tiara (from her brother), and frog slippers-- what an ensemble!)


(Yum! Cake time... and note the ever-present whisk...)

It is hard to believe that it has been three whole years since our little girl's dramatic entrance into the world. It's also hard to believe that for just over a month I now have two 3-year olds! Lots of fun ahead!

Enjoy beautiful holidays with your loved ones and I look forward to sharing more with you in the very near future. Thanks for bearing with me last week as I recovered from one nasty bug that landed me in the ER. So good to be back on my feet!