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Last month was the 3rd time we had to take Charlie to the ER since January 1st.
Never have we been to the ER so many times with one child. Poor little
Charlie, he has had a very sick winter
with RSV, stomach bug, respiratory infection and whatever else a baby can catch
this time of year. Last month, he
dislocated his elbow. HOW? I have no clue, but he did. Actually I did
it, but don’t know how. So, needless to
say I am learning some new things thanks to all of these trips to the ER.
1.
Always take a shower before bed, never think you
can take it the next morning. Every time
I decided to shower the next morning we ended up taking a sick baby to the ER
before I could shower. Thank goodness
for pony tail holders, baseball caps & perfume.
2.
Keep snacks & a water bottle in the diaper
bag. 2 of the 3 times we went to the ER
during a meal time. Thank goodness today
I had some trail mix stuck away in the bag because Scott & I were hungry
& there were no vending machines in sight.
Plus who wants to pay $3.00 for a tiny bag of pretzels?
3.
Keep a journal at home. On our first ER trip Charlie had RSV. When my
baby was gasping for air and the nurse was asking me when I last took his
temperature, how high his fever was and when he last had Ibuprophen I couldn’t
remember a thing. If I had written it down and brought it with me it would have
made things much easier. I write stuff
down now just in case I have to tell it to the Pediatrician or ER doctor. Plus it really makes me look like I’m on top
of things. J
4.
Be patient. It is so easy to want to demand quick
treatment when your baby has been sick.
You are tired from staying up all night and all you want is for your
child to be ok. ER trip #2 we sat in a
waiting room for 3 hours on Martin Luther King Jr birthday with hundreds of
other sick people, tempers were flaring.
It was a long wait, especially when you have a sick child. The staff was working as fast and as
efficiently as they could. We knew that
& waited, even though I really wanted to stomp my feet & yell, “Hey do
you even care my baby is sick?”. When we
were finally taken to a room, we waited some more. It was getting old, but getting upset about
it would not help our sick baby any at all.
5.
Be prepared to shine for Jesus. Even when you are the patient (or your child
is) we can shine for Jesus by the way we respond to others or speak to them. Every time we have been in the ER the Lord
gave us opportunities to talk about Him with others. Scripture says to always be prepared.
“But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. “ 1 Peter 3:15
When Christ rules your heart and mind others notice even if
they don’t really know what they are noticing.
Do others see something different in you? Do they see a hope and joy they rarely
see?
Our family has been through a lot in the past 2 years and is
still going through it. I will never
forget when someone asked my oldest daughter how she could be so upbeat and
joyful when our family was experiencing such a difficult time. Without missing a beat she responded with,
“It has to be the Lord carrying me through this because this is the hardest
thing we have even been through and yet I know he has our backs.” I love that!
My 20 yr old daughter, in the midst of difficult days, was living out
the joy of the Lord & her hope was grounded in Him and others noticed.
Are you prepared?
Do others notice a hope in you they don’t have?
Do you know someone who has that hope that you want?
Sweet Mom, Jesus is the author of the faith that makes
that hope & joy possible. I pray you
know him as personal friend and Savior and learn to choose His hope and
joy. It is there for the taking.
