one hundred six

Sunday brought us the warmest day of the year - so far.
It also brought us the highest-recorded-temperature of a human in my family- EVER!

The story:

K woke up from a late-afternoon nap with a fever of 106.

I promptly shed her clothing while speed dialing my mother.

I placed her in a cool bath (which she understandably was NOT cool with) and then administered Tylenol and Motrin.

I hung up with my mom and called my father in law after a second temp check read 107.2. What? (About 20 minutes had passed since she woke up.)

I then called my next-door neighbor and managed to get out, "I need help," between tears.

She flew to my front door in 5 seconds flat.

Oh, but before that, a 3rd temp check said "hi."

K's temp was so high it wasn't even registering anymore.

So by the time my neighbor arrived at my door, I was freaking out.

Through tears I quickly explained K's fever for the last couple of days and its accompanying cough.

I was shaking.

My neighbor thought something had happened to Drew.

She had me repeat what I'd said because by the looks of me, she was expecting different news.

I was so floored by K's body temps that I couldn't think.

I kept thinking surely she was going to seize.
(I also had dinner cooking, E on the computer, and a whiny baby in my arms)

My neighbor handled the phone calls to the Children's Hospital and took the baby.

I stayed upstairs with K, dripping cool water on her head, back and chest repeatedly.

It had been at least 30 minutes since I gave her medicine, so I checked her temp once again as she sat in the tub.

105.8

RELIEF

"It's down K. It worked," I said - as if for the first time I was seeing medicine work it's magic.

She happily hopped out of the tub that she'd been asking to exit all along.

A fourth temp check read 103.8.

Whoa. We totally dodged a bullet here.

What's absolutely amazing to me is how I went from sheer panic to sheer peace once that temp dropped. It was still high, but it dropped. Instantly my nerves were cooled too.

I laughed at myself for forgetting He who was in charge and was with me and K all the way.

We also had some earth angels in our midst.

My neighbor, who has 5 kids of her own, stayed for a while to make sure E got her dinner and that we were set with a nighttime plan before she left.

My in laws showed up in the middle of everything with a, "Hi. We're here to help," greeting that was pleasantly surprising and needed. After my neighbor left, my mother in law entertained E while my father in law picked up more popsicles at the grocery store (K ate 4 in about 20 minutes and depleted our supply).

And then today I heard all the phone messages that my family left last night.

How nice to have family and friends who love and support us.

Amazingly, I felt rather chipper today. I wondered what I was running on (baby was up 3 times last night, E was up once, and K slept like a bear in hibernation).

Then it came to me: I was running on the prayers of my faithful friends and family, the blessings of gospel living, and a whole lotta LOVE.

(I've gotta say it again - K is amazing when it comes to handling illnesses. I'm forever awed by her willingness to calmly wait it out. I love that girl! She really is cute when she's sick.)