Was that a vacation? Part 2

Where was I? Oh yes, on our way to the one of the two hospitals in town.

My dad told me that there is a large hospital and a small, new hospital. It was his experience that the ER in the smaller hospital was much faster and so that is where he took us. I didn't think to ask any questions and figured it was best to go wherever it was quickest.

Bug suffers from chronic UTI's, so I suspected that is what she had at this time, but she has never complained of stomach pain like that before, so I was a bit more concerned that usual. When the dr. came in to the ER, I explained her Spina Bifida and chronic UTI's. He wanted to do an X-ray. I asked that he do a urinalysis and blood work first as I was sure that she had a UTI. He disregarded my request and sent an x-ray tech in (after sitting for about 1.5 hours). I declined the service, asking that the tech return AFTER a urinalysis and blood work were run. I didn't feel we needed to waste that money when I knew what was wrong. (side note: If Bug has a UTI in MI, I just call her dr., he calls in a rx and then I drop of a urine sample. They grow it out and change her antibiotic if necessary. We don't need to even go in.)

The dr. came in very upset with me that I questioned his authority. I politely apologized, informing him that I was not trying to question him, but that I was trying to be my child's advocate. He huffed out mumbling something like, "how am I supposed to do my job when parents like you don't allow me to?" Later he came back in to let me know that Bugs white cells were extremely elevated and that she had blood in her urine (i.e. she had a UTI). He left and the nurse came in. She informed me that Bug was going to have to be admitted to the hospital (insert jaw drop here!). She said that since this hospital doesn't do pediatrics, they are going to have to transfer her to the other hospital in town (another jaw drop).

This is where I finally lost it. I began to cry. I hadn't packed enough stuff to stay over night in the hospital. I wasn't sure how our insurance would work (if at all). I missed The Designer. Tons of things were running through my head. The nurse then informed me that she had to put an IV in and start an antibiotic before she was transferred. I asked if we could drive her to the other hospital (2 blocks away) and she said no, it had to be by ambulance. I asked if we could technically refuse treatment and drive her there ourselves. I had a couple of reasons why I wanted to do that...first, I wanted to go back to my dads and pack the stuff I needed for our stay. Second, I knew it would be very expensive. Third, I knew that I would take her to the other hospital (I wouldn't really refuse my daughter treatment!). She said she would ask and let me know if that would work out.

When the nurse returned, she said that if we refused treatment and left the hospital, we would have to be reported to the Texas Child Protective Services. Obviously, since we have not gone through finalization with Princess, that was not an option for us. So, we reluctantly agreed to have an IV put in and waited for our ambulance transport.

The transport team showed up about 2 hours later. It was ridiculous! There were 8 people total there to transport my sweet little Bug. They strapped a car seat to the board and then put Bug on it. She was so incredibly brave. She was talking to the transport team and made their day!

My dad took Princess to his car and drove to the other hospital to meet up with us. We got to our room and were promptly informed that Princess absolutely could NOT be on the hospital floor. I informed the nurse that I didn't have a choice. My husband was 1800 miles away. My dad just had heart surgery and is in no way prepared to care for an infant. I knew NOBODY else in Texas, therefore she had to stay with me. She argued for a moment and then conceded telling me that under no circumstances could I leave the hospital room because other parents might see Princess and question why they couldn't have their baby there also. Whatever! She then informs me that they will provide food for Bug (well that is might big of them, considering she IS. THE. PATIENT.) but that since I was a parent, I would not have food and that I would need to go to the cafeteria to get it. I reminded her that I had Princess and asked if she would rather I leave with Princess or if they would rather provide food. They decided to deliver food (if that is what you could call it) to me as well.

We only had to stay one night and two full days, but it was enough. To be honest, I could have stayed another night because as stressful as it was, it was still better than staying at my dads for the moment. But, when the dr. gave us the choice of staying or going home, my dad was standing there and I couldn't very well explain to him why I wanted to stay.

We left the hospital with a Rx and the instruction to fill it and give it to her. However, the culture was not done growing out, so they were not sure if the antibiotic prescribed would actually heal her. I went to Walgreens to fill the Rx and learned that our insurance wouldn't pay for out-of-state doctors so we had to pay the $122 to get it filled. I was praying that it was the right one and we would have to change it again the next day. Indeed, it was the right one. But, I was fully aware that I was going to have problems with our insurance and the TX hospitals after speaking with the lady at Walgreens.

We only had 1 full day left with my dad and it turned out pretty good. Bug was in much better spirits, which meant that my dad was much more receptive of her. We spent the day shopping and enjoying a bit of sunshine even though it was 40 mph wind gusts.

The next morning we went to the airport to come home and when I got to the counter, I was informed that someone had cancelled our reservation by accident and that I couldn't get out of town for another day or two. Then, when she realized it was a frequent flyer ticket, she corrected herself and said it could be as much as another week. I was ticked! I did NOTHING wrong. I made the reservation back in December. I absolutely was going home that day and she was going to figure out how to do it. After I insisted and wouldn't' leave, she managed and we did arrive home around 10pm that night.

The Designer was there waiting for us and I have never been so happy to be back in his arms. We waited for my baggage...and waited....and waited...and realized when the conveyor stopped that it wasn't coming. I got in line with the ticket agent and was told that my bags were left in Memphis. About 24 hours later they were delivered to our front door. We are home. The bags are home. All is well!

Now, since I know nobody could possibly still be reading, I am going to document some random things here for my own sake.

* The weather was not all that great while we were there. It wasn't bad, but it wasn't great. It was VERY windy 5 of the 7 days we were there. About 1/2 of the time, it wasn't hot, but at least it wasn't snowy. The last night we were there, the temp dropped to 40 degrees outside. My dad didn't turn the heat on in his house, so it dropped to 48 degrees inside. The kids froze and didn't sleep well.

* I didn't get more than 2-3 hours of sleep at one time the entire trip. I'm not complaining as I know that traveling alone with 2 kids is risky, but I was exhausted, to say the least.

* My dad rented car seats for the girls so I didn't have to travel with them. The one for Princess was broken. My dad didn't see the big deal. I insisted on making changes, but we had to get home the first night using the broken one. The next day I made changes with the "extra" seat someone had loaned him and all was well.

(Part 3 is going to discuss the beauty of people that I saw in my travels...so, if you read nothing else, read that one)