Poor Baby

Those of you who read my last blog about Grey's Graduation know that Peter, Jaden, and I traveled to Colorado a couple weeks ago, Jaden's second experience with flying. The trip out went very smoothly. The trip home. . .not so much.

On our way to the airport, half-way between Colorado Springs and Denver, Jaden got sick. . .poor baby. One minute he was calmly eating Cheerios, and the next minute he was vomiting all over himself, Scruffy, and his car seat. Even with Denae sitting in the back seat with him, it was obvious we were not going to get him cleaned up without stopping. So, we pulled off the highway and into a parking lot. I got Jaden out of his seat and started undressing him and giving him a wipie bath, all while he was desperately trying to climb up into my arms. Peter started unpacking our luggage to find the extra wipies, some spare burp clothes, and a change of clothes. Denae, going above and beyond the duty of an aunt, set about cleaning up the car seat.

We put the dirty, stinky clothes (and the dirty, stinky Scruffy) into a plastic bag in the suitcase, and got back on the road again. Jaden cried and cried and cried until I relented, pulled Scruffy out of the yucky bag in the suitcase, gave him a wipie bath, and handed him back to Jaden. He was immediately appeased, completely unaffected by the smell. After that he seemed much better.

We got to the airport, dropped off the rental car, checked in our bags, got through security, all without incident. Once near our gate, I took Scruffy into the bathroom and tried to get him less dirty and less stinky, with only marginal success. We boarded the plane and discovered that there were no empty seats, so we couldn't claim an extra one for Jaden. Bummer.

Shortly before take-off the diahrrea commenced. We stuffed some napkins in strategic places to prevent leakage and waited for the seatbelt signs to go off. As soon as we started leveling off, however, I decided I didn't want to wait any longer and asked the flight attendant where the changing table was, only to discover there wasn't one. Lovely. So, warned by two separate flight attendants that I was doing so at my own risk, I got up and headed toward the "lavatory". Standing Jaden up on the toilet seat, I set about changing his diaper. Keep in mind here that I'm seven months pregnant and barely fit in that tiny room by myself. I managed to get the job done and returned to my seat feeling pretty proud of myself for the feat I had just accomplished.

As the flight progressed, it was obvious Jaden was starting to not feel very well. He spent most of the flight snuggled up in our arms but fortunately did not have any more "incidents" until we got off the plane. He required another clean diaper and change of clothes when we got to the car and bath and another change of clothes once we got home and tried to feed him a small lunch (mistake!).

To make a long story shorter, he continued in the same vein, on and off for the next several days. However, other than being a bit more cuddly than usual, he was pretty much his normal self. I am amazed at how he could be throwing up one minute then smiling the next. What a trooper. Here he is snuggling with Daddy, Scruffy, and some clear fluids. . .

I caught the bug briefly on Sunday. Peter (aka Super Dad) took care of Jaden most of the day while I rested and recovered.

When Jaden had three dirty diapers before 7:30 in the morning on Monday, I decided to take him to the doctor. He assured me that Jaden simply had a common stomach virus that was making its rounds and that it should clear up on its own in a few days. We had one more "incident" later that morning, and then it was over. It took Jaden a couple more days to recover his normal energy and appetite, but now he is completely fine, and I have finally caught up with the extra laundry :)

I'm sure all you mothers out there can relate to this saga and even have worse stories to tell. I consider myself very lucky, especially considering that Jaden hardly fussed during the entire ordeal. I hope that's a sign of how he'll behave when he gets sick again in the future!!! One lesson I learned is to take a spare Scruffy (we have 3) with us when we travel.

Thanks for all your prayers and for checking in on us. We feel much loved by all!!