3 Years Ago....

3 years ago I sent this e-mail out to all our friends and family. Doesn't even seem possible now knowing what a strong kid Hudson is. I just came across this e-mail and what a wonderful reminder of how we should cherish our children. All of this happened on June 7, 2006

Hi everybody,

I just wanted to let everyone know what has been going on over the past few days. Now, let me start this by saying everyone is fine. Now that I’ve said that you’re all worried. Anytime someone starts a sentence with were fine, it’s not good. Let me also say that we haven’t called anyone until now because we didn’t know anything and I really didn’t want to tell this story 100 times. Ok, so here goes:

Wednesday night Brandon got home around 5:45. I was washing dishes & cooking dinner. Connor was playing & Hudson was in his bouncy seat on the kitchen table. Hudson had been very tired all day. He slept until 6:30 am from 8pm the night before. Then he ate & fell back asleep. I woke him up at 10:40 to feed him. We went out to see Brandon for lunch, then when we got home he went back down for a nap at 1:30. He woke up at 3:30 to eat. At 4:30 I put him on his play gym. He usually plays for about 15 minutes & then fusses. This time, he fell asleep. I put him on the kitchen table around 5:30…thank GOD!

When Brandon walked in the door I asked him to start the grill & I was going to feed Hudson while he grilled steak. I put the bottle in his mouth & he just didn’t look right. He was pale. I picked him up and carried him into the bedroom & told Brandon “I think Hudson’s sick”. He was now cold & clammy, he was white. You all know what beautiful tan skin the boys have & he was WHITE. Then he started to gag & puked all over me. He started to gag again & I turned him on his tummy & he got it all out. He suddenly looked asleep. He couldn’t hold himself up. I said, “I’m going to the hospital,” Brandon said “Don’t be stupid, just call 911” (thanks to our friend Judy… she told Brandon once, if there is ever a question. ALWAYS call 911) I talked to the 911 operator while Brandon held Hudson up to his ear to listen to his breathing. He was having a hard time breathing & may have even stopped for a couple of seconds. Brandon held him up & screamed in his face to wake up. No response. To their credit, the ambulance arrived & had Hudson & I strapped in within 3 minutes of the call. Thank you so much to the Apopka ambulance guys. They took me very seriously. On the way to the hospital I kept pinching him with no response. He would open his eyes every once in a while, but he couldn’t focus on me. It was as if he was looking through me. We got to the hospital & their triage nurse SUCKED. He checked Hudson & then sent us to the waiting room. WHAT????? At this point Hudson started to shiver (at least that was what I thought) I asked for a blanket, they all looked at me like I was crazy, so Brandon & I made a scene & that worked. They got us into the ER & as soon as I laid him down the nurse called the Dr. in & the Dr. said, “this baby’s having a seizure. We looked at each other & time froze. Brandon could barely stand. They made him sit down so they didn’t have 2 patients on their hands. I have never seen him this way. He couldn’t control himself. This is the man who didn’t cry at our wedding, didn’t cry when his kids were born & now he couldn’t stop. Suddenly I was the strong one. I never thought that would happen, but I had no choice. The nurses started an IV & within 1 minute of the drip Hudson’s eyes popped open. He looked up at us as if nothing had happened.

We spent the next 12 hours in the ER waiting for a bed at the big hospital in downtown Orlando. Luckily we have our pediatricians cell phone #, & we used it. He personally called the pediatrician at the other hospital & had us admitted. He even called within 1 hour of us arriving to check on us.

While we were at the Apopka hospital, they tested his blood and urine. They did a cat scan & a chest x-ray. All were normal.

We arrived at the big hospital downtown at 7am. The nurses there we amazing. They were caring & they all fell in love with Hudson & his cheeks. One nurse even prayed for him right there in front of us. On Thursday they did an EEG & an upper GI. Hudson did great during all of his tests, as if he knew what was going on. He even slept during his upper GI. We had to wait until Fri morning for the results of the EEG. They made Brandon go home on Thursday night, as only one parent can stay. So, on Friday morning, I was alone with Hudson, and finally I broke down. I was terrified & I didn’t want to call Brandon because I knew he was driving & couldn't handle it. So, I called Paul, our good friend & minister. He talked to me until I calmed down & then as Paul always does when a child in our church is in the hospital he came to see us. He waited with us until the pediatric neurologist came in with the results of the EEG. So, the result is….. All tests were normal. The Upper GI showed trace reflux, but nothing major. All his neurological tests were normal. Great news, but why did he have a seizure? That is what is scary. They don’t really know. They say he could have been dehydrated, but he eats every 2-3 hours. They say reflux caused him to puke, which caused the seizure, but he hardly ever spits up. So, we don’t know what happened.

So, what now? They sent us home with an apnea monitor, which straps around his chest while he sleeps, or rides in the car, or whenever I just want t put it on him. It sounds a very loud alarm if his heart rate drops or raises or if he doesn’t take a breath for 20 seconds. We actually slept last night. Knowing that the monitor was on was a great relief. It went off due to a cable coming out at 4am, but that was fine, at least I know it works.

What was Connor doing during all of this? Well, he was with us in the hospital during the seizure. I wish one of the nurses had taken him for a walk or something, but no one offered. After that Brandon called our friends Julie & Geoff & they were at the hospital in minutes to pick up Connor. They got him fed & Julie spent the night with him. Brandon’s Dad came by in the morning to get him. He got to spend the day at Grammy & Pops’ house with his 10-month-old cousin Rebekah. Brandon’s brother, Damon, his wife Kim, & their kids Tucker (6) & Rebekah (10 months) are in town from Texas. Damon, Kim & Tucker were at Universal for the day. When they got home Tucker played with Connor until bedtime. Brandon went to his parent’s house Thursday night & he & Connor shared a room. Then on Friday, Grammy & Pops took Tucker & Connor to a bounce house pay zone to play & them out to lunch & more play. They kept him all day, so he had a blast with Tucker.

Sorry to get so detailed, but I really didn’t want to have to rehash this story over and over on the phone. We are ok. Tired and scared, but ok. Right now we just want everyone to pray for our little guy. And I want to thank the great paramedics who picked him up, Julie & Geoff for taking Connor, Brandon’s parents for keeping him, Tucker for entertaining him, the paramedics who transported him to the big hospital, the nurses & doctors who gave him great care and Paul for being a great friend.


Thanks for listening.

Love,
Ilene