The second half of April and all of May were pretty intense, as most of you probably already know. In case you aren't on Facebook and we haven't talked to you, the short version is that Douglas went on a trip to Cuba in mid-April and came back with a case of (likely) typhoid. Over the course of 6 weeks, we spent more than 3 weeks in the hospital. During that time, amazing friends and family stepped in to help with kids, meals, car repairs, lawn care, financial support, prayer, and love. Here are a few pictures from that time:
Laura with Tag and Kinsey
(left to right) Grammy, Kinsey, Aunt Rita, Ashley, Laura, Me, and Taggart (with cupcake frosting on his mouth). Aunt Rita and Ashley live about 15-20 mins away and were amazing in the ways that they took care of us, even coming at the drop of a hat to watch the kids so we could go to the ER. Grammy and Laura also dropped everything to come and move in for a while :)
Pretending to sleep...well, Laura might not be faking :)
This is Dave - he is Laura's boyfriend and all-around awesome guy who drove all the way here to pick her up and drive her back to Silsbee in one day. 
I think this was during our 2nd week long stay at the hospital in Round Rock. Kinsey was fascinated with the nurses' work and here she is helping take Daddy's pulse.
And his temperature :)
I came home as often as I could to get some kid-lovin' and take a decent shower :). Here the kids were cutting up in Tag's bed.
During one of our in-between hospital stays, we spent a day at Kiddie Acres celebrating R.C. Kedroski's birthday with Susan, R.C., Lucy, their GiGi, and some awesome rides :). The kids had a blast - it was Tag's first real trip since he doesn't remember last year's trip :). It was so awesome to see them laugh and have fun and get to share that with them in the middle of all the chaos our family was going through. 
After our second release from hospital we spent the weekend in Huntsville with Obi and CC. Douglas was feeling better but still taking it easy. The grandparents took the kids to the neighborhood pool and had a great afternoon splashing. Some other kids there had a water squirter and shared, creating a monster in Kinsey who is now a super-soaker menace!
Tag got a huge kick out of Obi's binoculars...
And we got to share Hailey's birthday party. There was a horse and Cinderella came! It was a huge hit and very cool to share the day with family.
Unfortunately, that evening we had another unexpected medical emergency. While Douglas was carrying Tag downstairs after a nap (and as we were about to leave for home), they fell and Tag's ankle was broken. I would love to say I held my cool in the ensuing moments, but the truth is, I completely lost all sanity and called Douglas' parents in a panic to get directions to the nearest ER. Tag was pretty freaked out. Obviously hurting and very confused. The ER in Huntsville treated us pretty well and after they finally got some drugs in him, Tag was pretty mellow. 
It was his right ankle. They took some xrays and told us that it was broken through the tibia and fibula and we needed an orthopedic pediatric surgeon to "accept" us at Dell Children's before they could release us. After some back and forth, they strongly recommended that we take an ambulance to Dell Children's in Austin. A couple of nurses came in to stint his ankle, which he thought was pretty cool until they had to bend his foot up. 
Douglas rode with Tag in the ambulance and Kinsey and I followed. We arrived at 9pm-ish and were whisked into the Dell Children's ER. Those people are efficient!
Within the hour we were in the OR getting Tag prepped for surgery. It was a crazy whirlwind and probably the most scared we've ever been as parents. Of course they gave us the worst case scenario of a 2 hour surgery with pins and long-term growth plate issues, but after only 45 minutes, the surgeon came out and said the surgery had gone beautifully. He didn't have to make any incisions, no pins, and he didn't think the growth plate was badly damaged. We were out of the hospital by midnight and waiting for some pain medication at Walgreen's. I'm not sure Tag's been up that late since he was an infant :)
He didn't last long :). Douglas and I were barely awake ourselves, but at least we knew he was on the way to healing once the cast was on. 
The next day and a half we had to keep his leg elevated. He was pretty out of it most of the time but not in too much pain. There was a lot of Dora :)
Then it was time to get the fiberglass cover put on the cast. Kinsey wouldn't have dreamed of missing the coolness of the cast work.
His favorite color is green, so that was an easy choice :)
For the first day or two, he didn't really try to move around much. The cast was crazy heavy, and as you can tell, very restrictive. But after a couple of days he figured out how to scootch around and could lift his leg up and move it around. Some great friends had given us a train set just a couple of weeks before, which ended up being the perfect toy, and almost the only thing he could use easily with the cast. He spent hours on the floor scooting around the tracks.
During the last hospital stay (in Temple, when we were finally "diagnosed"), Tag turned 2. Again, awesome friends came through with an impromptu birthday party, presents, and cupcakes. Apparently he was having some trouble blowing out the candles and Kinsey stepped in to help. 
When we finally made it out of the hospital for the last time, we were shocked to realize how much time had passed by. It was Memorial Day and our friends the Magees and Kedroskis got together to celebrate. Kinsey and I stopped by while Douglas rested and Tag played trains :). We had a great time - it was so good to just laugh with her and soak up the sunshine. 
Right now, things are less chaotic. Douglas is feeling better each day, with occasional setbacks, but nothing compared to what he went through in the hospital. It was a really hard couple of months. We probably won't ever have a definite diagnosis. Unfortunately when he first got to the hospital, they treated him with so many antibiotics that it masked whatever the disease was. However, the doctors are confident that it was a tropical infection, probably typhoid, and that means that we might be dealing with relapses for the next 6 months or so. While the situation was definitely unlike anything we'd ever experienced, and not one we would have chosen, there were and are amazing blessings because of it that we will treasure for the rest of our lives. I can never thank everyone enough for loving us and loving our kids in such selfless ways. We have felt the love of God from His constant peace and comfort in the midst of uncertainty, and we've experienced His love through his people. I personally have learned that even the little things that we do for someone - a short Facebook note saying we're praying, a meal, a playdate - as well as huge things like moving in, mowing a lawn, or giving generously...all these things can change someone's day and make their challenges more bearable. I pray that I will now have the opportunity to serve others who are hurting, knowing now how much it means. I am hopeful that the next few months will bring blogs full of pictures of a beautiful little girl laughing while she swings and swims, a muddy little boy running with bubbles and popsicle fingers and suntanned legs after a day at the pool, and my husband, kicked back in the hammock watching his precious kids play with a frosty Dr. Pepper in his hand. And me, tucking my kids in each night, washing sippy cups and prepping snacks, and falling asleep in our comfy bed with my cozy hubby at my side. "Normal" would be AWESOME!!!
