The Croup

Wow, what a day today has been. It began this morning at 2 am with Elizabeth crying at the top on of the stairs with Joseph because she thought he was going to get sick. She was sure that he was about to hurl.

I stumbled out of bed trying to gather my mind and locate the nearest trash can. However, he was not in fact sick to his stomach, but rather gasping for breath. I recognized it right away. Croup.

We've been through a lot of nights of the barking baby seal, but this was different. He was gasping, having difficulty speaking and starting to panic. "Joseph," I said, "you have got to slow down." "I. Don't. Know. How." was his reply. His body was forcing him to suck down as much air as quickly as possible. He had no symptoms of any illness prior to this. I knew I was way out of my league.

It's amazing how quickly mommy adrenaline can kick in and within moments he was off to the hospital in his father's arms. Had the hospital not been 3 minutes from our home, I would have called 911.

I was left home waiting for my mother-in-law to relieve me. Thankfully she is a night owl often going to bed at 7 and rising in the middle of the night to do housework and the like. So she was awake when I called.

Those fifteen minutes waiting for her arrival were long, but much needed. Being a nurse, my mind had been playing "worse case scenario" which had already led me to places that no mom wants to go. What if he passes out and stops breathing on the way to the hospital? What if the doctors can't decrease the swelling in time? What if I'll never talk to him, or hold him, or read him a book, or watch him play again?

I prayed and pleaded to the only One who can heal. I knew that the Comforter was with Joseph whatever his state. I knew that God had woken Betsy. I knew that I could stand on the Rock that won't be shaken (though I may be, literally). Of course, I was still fervently asking for the best outcome.

And that is what God saw fit to give us in the early hours of this morning. Some steroids relaxed the constriction and Joseph was chatty, full of energy, playing tic-tac-toe and drawing pictures until he finally fell asleep around 5 am. I loved every minute of it.

And though the rest of this very long day has been tiring and frustrating, I'm praising God for His many blessings and this very real reminder that each and every breath comes from His hand.

"Let everything that has breath praise the LORD! Praise the LORD!" Psalm 150:6