Sick Mommy

Since FL I've not been right.

I was so sick that last night with what we thought was food poisoning and then came down with a cold right away that was hard to shake. Once it morphed into bronchitis I had an allergic reaction and just lived through the scariest week of my life.

About 2 weeks ago now, I developed a pretty rough cough and rasp in my chest. I took some OTC medications and broke out in hives. I dealt with the hives for a couple days then decided to go to the Dr. They told me to take Benadryl although I did tell them I've had a reaction to it in the past.... Less than 12 hours later my hands were swollen and I was covered head to toe in itch. Dr prescribed a steroid over the phone which took care of the swelling but not the hives. As I decreased the steroid a few days later, the swelling came back, and was in my face, and making it hard to swallow...

GD took me to the Dr. right away and they sent me straight to a dermatologist (Yes, a dermatologist, I think it should've been an allergist but whatever) and the dermatologist was going to send me to the ER but was afraid they'd put me on Benadryl and kill me. So back on more steroids...

Steroids do not make people feel good. I was having HUGE mood swings, and although I wasn't itchy on the outside, I was really bITCHY on the inside. About 3 days into that course I decided to see if I could take a reduced version of the steroid but within an hour I had to take it since I was breaking out in hives again. Today the Dr. said I could decrease the steroid and so far, I am ok... haven't had to use the Epi-Pen they gave me, and hoping that over night tonight I don't swell up...

This has truly been the scariest week of my life health wise. What if I were to stop breathing, how could I possibly leave my Gabs so soon after I've gotten her... just to be safe though I've been thinking about things and how to let Corey know how I have taken care of them through life insurance and setting up a future for Gabs. It sucks that this had to be what brought on my getting my act together, but at least it's getting together. With a little baby, and one as fab as Gab, we need to be sure she's taken care of.

So, hopefully this decrease on the steroid will go well, but if not, I will be back at the Dr, allergist, dermatologist, and whomever else can fix me, and keep my body going.

Downtown Disney

On our last night we were going to head in to Downtown Disney to get our souvenir shopping done and enjoy a fun dinner at T-Rex. All was going according to plan, Gabs fell asleep on the bus ride there and slept in her backpack once we arrived. We ordered dinner at T-Rex and then Gabs woke up. It was weird though, she was screaming but her eyes were closed. I couldn't console her. I picked her up to walk her around the restaurant and then she exploded. Projectile vomit, the likes of which I've never seen in my life. I was stunned and covered. A nice man picked up her pacifier and kept trying to hand it to me and GD was chasing us with the camera encouraging us to smile, but I was frozen as my child continued to vomit on me.

Finally to the bathroom but we were both covered literally head to toe. How she had that much food in her is beyond me. We got some semblance of cleaned up and left the restaurant. Gabs went right to sleep when we got back to the resort but things just weren't right. We packed so we'd be ready in the morning and then headed to bed.

At 11:30 I started. I looked at GD and said "I think I am going to be sick" and immediately vomited on the carpet. For the next 5 hours Gabs and I were vomiting uncontrollably to the point where rescue was called because GD and my MIL were so worried about us. They told us that we could go to the hospital but then we'd just be throwing up there. We opted to stay and hoped we'd be ready to board a plane in a few hours.

We managed to empty our systems to board the plane and make it home safely but it was several days before either of us was right again. I think it was food poisoning from the Cobb Salad especially since only Gabs and I got sick and we shared it. Hard to say, maybe it was a bug. It was a long and scary trip home, and not the ideal way to end our vacation but if we had to be sick, getting sick hours before our flight out was the way to do it...

Hollywood Studios... the beginning of the end...

Our last full day in Orlando brought us to Hollywood Studios. GD decided he HAD to go on Tower of Terror and Aerosmith. I am not a super huge fan of fast rides, but I figured Gabs and I could go to the character meet and greets while GD and Mae-Mae went on the rides. It didn't quite work out like that however and I did participate in the fast rides, and had a BLAST!

We enjoyed the morning and had lunch at the Brown Derby- I had my I Love Lucy moment and we all enjoyed Cobb Salads and DELICIOUS Grapefruit cake and desserts. Yummmmm.

We went back to the resort early to relax, pack, and rest up for dinner at Downtown Disney...

Epcot

When planning our Disney trip my only must dos were Animal Kingdom and Magic Kingdom. Gab's Daddy (GD) thinks Epcot is boring and Hollywood Studios holds nothing for a 14 month old. We had planned to have a day around the resort, just relaxing and visiting with my husband's uncles but ended up planning to go into Epcot for the morning anyway. It turned out to be one of our most relaxing and fun days.

We ran to Soarin' which was really a neat experience and got really lucky to be bumped to the front of the line due to the size of our party. Then we walked through the lands, eating snacks as we felt the urge and finally ended with the aquarium. The highlight was when Gabs played in the water feature. She really enjoyed the water and was disappointed when it was done.

Although Epcot didn't seem like a place GD would really like, we enjoyed our day there so much that we had a date night back at the park that evening catching a Beatles cover band, enjoying sushi and a fireworks show. Looking back on our trip, I think Epcot was one of our favorite days.

Magic Kingdom Day 2

Magic Kingdom was the park I was looking most forward to since it had more opportunities for Gabs to go on rides, and is the park you think of when you think Disney. On our second day at Magic Kingdom, Gabs and I both had a first, our first ride on Dumbo! It was a long wait- 20 minutes (which in 14 month old time is FOREVER) but the ride was worth it!

After our ride on Dumbo it was off to breakfast at the Crystal Palace (the second thing I was most looking forward to). Between Dumbo and the Crystal Palace, Gabs fell asleep in her stroller. I was worried because she was going to meet Winnie the Pooh and the whole gang at breakfast. She slept through our eating but was awake when the characters came through!

Our second day at Disney was another truly magical day. We stayed to watch the parade, enjoyed a turkey leg and everyone had a "first" experience.

Magic Kingdom Day 1

We planned to spend 2 days at Magic Kingdom as it was the park that had the most rides for Gabs, and is really the park you think of when you think of Disney. Day 1 at Magic Kingdom and we had a big decision to make, which ride would be Gab's first ride... the decision? The Carousel! She had a blast and was upset when it was over but quickly we were on to bigger and better things. Gabs enjoyed the rides, but the real highlight for her were the characters. She LOVED them! Couldn't get enough. She'd spot a character before we would and start screaming (in a good way). She was friendly and interactive with them, and they with her.

Our grown up highlight on that first Magic Kingdom day was Gab's first haircut. It went SO well. She was born with a head of hair and for quite some time now her bangs have been getting in her way. Harmony Barber Shop on Main St. USA has a Baby's first haircut package and I would HIGHLY recommend it. They did an amazing job and it even came with ears that say First Haircut. Another, fun, successful, and exhausting day.

Animal Kingdom

The first day we planned to just stay around the resort, rest, and if we felt up to it, go into a park. Gabs was up at 6:30 and Gab's Daddy was up and ready to go then as well. We headed into Animal Kingdom for the day.

Gabs LOVES animals. She was enchanted by the birds, thrilled by the fish, and loved petting the goats! The highlight of the day was lunch at the Rainforest Cafe. The restaurant was so much fun, there was lots to see, and Gabs and Gab's daddy smiled the whole time.

We only spent a couple of hours at the Animal Kingdom before heading back to the resort for some swimming. Although all the Floridians kept complaining about the cold, we northerners were just thrilled to be out of sub zero temps and we were loving the pools!

Florida was awesome!

In January we went to Florida as a family. Gabs went, Gab's Daddy, myself, and Gab's Mae-Mae. It was an adventure and lots of fun.

The trip out was rough, tough flight, I got pulled aside at security and they told me Gab's food was testing positive for explosives (which they then told me could have just been the Eucerin lotion I use). They confiscated about half of the food I had packed in our carry-on but I still felt like I had enough to make it on the flight. Lots of turbulence and a weather delay, we finally touched down in FL around 9:30 at night. A long day for sure.

Gab's daycare told Gab's Daddy when he picked her up that they didn't nap her so she would sleep on the plane. Well it was 10:34 when Gabs looked up at me, giggled and passed out on me. When we got to the hotel around 11, she was so wiped, I changed her diaper, put on her jammies and laid her down without a peep! Gabs was up at 6:30 the next morning though ready to go.... then the fun began!