I thought I had seen everything when I wrote this post one year ago. Turns out it was just a small taste of the capabilities of the human body. And I was totally oblivious to the horrors that awaited me as I finished writing last night and went about my normal bedtime routine...locking doors, brushing teeth, setting up the morning coffee. I knew Punky was still awake in her crib and I finally decided to bring her into bed with me so I could relax. The hectic weekend and all the driving had taken its toll and I was beat.
She grabbed her blankie and two stuffed animals as I lifted her out of her crib. She wasn't acting strange. She showed no sign of pain or discomfort, just her usual unwillingness to go to sleep at bedtime. She trotted across the living room and into my bedroom. I closed the door behind us while she tossed her guys up onto the bed. As soon as I turned around, I saw her jerk and knew in an instant it would be a very long night.
I stood there in shock for a minute and stared at the mess on the carpet. There was a solid strip about two feet by one foot, and multiple random splatters all around it. Milk. Chicken chunks. Pears. How could that much vomit come out of that teeny-tiny little girl? Seriously, her stomach can't be that big.
I looked at Punky and she seemed to be shocked as well. When I asked her if she was okay, she burst into tears. Her face, shirt, pants, and special blankie were all coated as well. I honestly didn't know what to do first. Where the hell do you start with a mess like that?
I wiped her up the best I could and made her sit down on the floor. I got cold water, a brush, a new roll of paper towels, and a can of Lysol and began scrubbing the carpet. My gag reflex was going full force and it took everything I had to not add to the mess myself.
Punky sat quietly until I finished and then we went in her room to change her clothes. I called my mom for advice. Would it happen again? What can I do to settle her stomach? How do I know if she's sick or if it's just something she ate? I was clueless.
A half hour had passed without another episode. I kept asking if her tummy hurt and she said it didn't. "Feel better now, Mommy," she told me...so we headed back into the bedroom for another try at sleep. She climbed up on the bed and two seconds later I saw the jerk again. I lunged forward and grabbed her but it was too late. She got the sheets, and pillows, and blanket...and another huge spot on the floor.
Where the hell was it all coming from? I swear it was everything she had eaten in the past week. I just couldn't believe my eyes.
The second clean-up went much like the first, only it included stripping the bed and starting the washing machine. This time I was taking no chances. I put a clean shirt on her...no pants, no socks...and covered the recliner in bath towels. I grabbed a little receiving blanket to cover her legs, the garbage can from my bedroom, and a container of baby wipes. We settled in to watch Blue's Clues and wait for the storm to pass.
It didn't take long for round three to start, just as violent as the first two but with less volume. She was sitting on my lap and I had my hand resting on her stomach. When I felt the jerk, I thrust her head forward with one hand and grabbed the garbage can with the other. She still got her shirt, the blanket, the footstool, and a tiny spot on the rug, but it was a huge improvement nonetheless.
Round four went even better, and by rounds six and seven I had it down to a science. And I was absolutely terrified. It wasn't stopping. She would heave every twenty minutes and at this point it was a thick gagging mucus. She would doze off in between and wake up choking. I called her dad at work. It was time to head to the emergency room.
It was about one week shy of two years since we made that exact same two a.m. drive to the hospital for Punky's birth. I honestly think I was more scared this time around...my baby was sick, really sick, and my head was filled with a million horrific thoughts as to what could be wrong.
The ER visit was really rather uneventful. She had no fever, her vitals were good, her oxygen level was fine. They quickly deduced that Punky had a bad, twenty-four hour, stomach bug...apparently they had a parade of kids through there with the same thing in the last few weeks. So many, in fact, that they actually ran out of anti-nausea medication and had to order more.
We never got home from the hospital until six-thirty in the morning. After giving her something to settle her stomach, we had to wait a while and then force her to eat a popsicle so they could see if she would keep it down. She was finally discharged but with a disclaimer: it could start all over again. They told us no solid food until this evening and even then only something light. In the meantime, she could have only small sips of clear liquid.
At seven I called my boss and filled him in on the night's events. I surely wasn't making it into work for eight. Punky and I settled in on the sofa-bed to get some sleep. I didn't want to put her in her crib in case it started again, plus it was one of the few puke-free rooms in the house and I didn't want to spread it around any more than necessary. And my bedroom was obviously off limits without a hazmat suit.
I was still awake at eight and realized we hadn't cancelled the babysitter who was due to arrive at nine. I made the call and filled her in on all the gory details. I returned to the sofa-bed but still couldn't sleep. It was such a terrible night and I knew all the cleaning I had ahead of me later today. Plus I couldn't help but feel guilty for missing work, but there was no way I could leave Punky. I eventually managed to convince myself that the worst was over. There was no where to go but up... I think I fell asleep somewhere around nine-thirty.
The phone rang around eleven-thirty and proved me wrong. The worst wasn't over for the day; a whole new problem stepped in and took over...Punky's babysitter quit. After being off for about three years, the company finally called her to come back to work. Tomorrow.
After last night, and the whole two hours of sleep I had today, I don't have the energy to get into the details tonight. To be continued...
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