Brandee's Blessings: Sick Baby

We brought home our sweet girl and had lots of family and friends to visit. We were settling in pretty good and finding our new "normal" as a family of four. On Saturday, when Greenlee was 12 days old, we made our first outing to my parents' house. I noticed that Greenlee was sleeping more than usual and hadn't eaten much. I chalked it up to just a normal phase. The next morning Andy and Jack went to church. Just after they had left, Greenlee began to cry. I knew instantly that it was a different cry. I picked her up and she felt so warm. I checked her temp. and it was 100.5. So, I called Andy and he headed home. Then I called the dr. and he told me to take her straight to the E.R. Panic set in. The staff at Marshall South were very kind and they checked her for RSV (which Jack had 3 weeks before), flu, and ear infection. All tests were negative. We had been there 6 hours when the dr. came in and told us they needed to admit her and do a lumbar puncture (spinal tap).
After the initial fear and heartbreak for the pain our little girl would have to endure, we requested a transfer to Children's Hospital. It was an agonizing, bumpy ride in the back of an ambulance. We were immediately seen by a doctor. They performed a lumbar puncture. My heart died a little. I'm ashamed to say that I couldn't stay in the room with her. I really could not bear the heartache. Andy and Maggee stayed with her. I'm so glad the Lord gave me a mate that is strong where I'm weak. We were admitted for 72 hours for a standard antibiotic protocol. After the 72 hours, we were released. The doctor said she just had a viral cold. This experience was one of the scariest in my life. Not to mention it was horrible on my body, which had just given birth 13 days before. I'm so thankful that in my scariest, most heart wrenching moments the Lord has sufficient grace for me. Lesson learned: YOU CAN NEVER BE TOO CAUTIOUS WITH YOUR NEWBORN. KEEP THEM HOME!