I'd like a re-do on 2011 please.

It's what...5 days into 2011 and already I have heard of so much sadness and loss. And to top it off, we finally had our first ER visit after 3 kids.
Of course the culprit was Hurricane Eric (as if I needed to clarify).

It all started Tuesday when I noticed the little man was feeling warm on and off all day. He woke up about 10pm (which rarely happens) crying.
He was warm and by the bark of his cough I suspected he had croup.
Crappy, cruddy croup.
So, we went outside in cold air to help calm his little bark.
I then noticed the wee man was feeling pretty warm, so I gave him some Motrin (just in case).
This is when he started to convulse. His eyes rolled back into his head.
I knew what was going on, a febrile seizure, but I drew blank and panicked.

Tom (my usual voice of reason) was still at work, so in authentic Jill "In a Fizz" style, I ran to the neighbors house at midnight with a convulsing little one when I saw they were still up.
They helped to calm me down and call 911.
It felt like hours as I watched helplessly as Eric shook and gasped.
Finally, he stopped and lay on the floor looking eerily quiet and disconnected.
My worst-case scenerio mind thought he was going into a coma....the paramedics assured me he was fine now.

I got to ride in the ambulance with my not-so-happy camper, as neighbor M went to our place so the girls would not be alone and throw some wild party.
(and did you know that if you have a baby on your lap, they actually buckle you into the stretcher? I think that should be on everyone's bucket list.

Once at the hospital, I knew Eric was okay. Just a little shaken up
(excuse the pun) and feeling croupy.
I continued to be "THAT Mom" in the ER with all my crazy "what ifs" and "now whats?"
At one point a sweet nurse asked me if she could "get me anything", and my only answer was "I'd love a valium".
No luck. Just some bubbles to blow to entertain Eric.
We were out within 1.5 hours and home again by 2:30am. Of course I did not sleep much as the baby monitor was on full volume and I had to check on the wee man about 3 times in 3 hours, cause that's the brand of crazy I am.
Tom actually slept on the floor beside Eric's room. And although I was pretty sure it wasn't neccessary, I was so glad he was in there with him. (and I have a feeling this will be happening for awhile)

So January 5th 2011, ended up a pretty sucky day for Family Bennett.
But on the bright side, I got to ride in an ambulance (WITH sirens), I finally added the ER notch to my Mama-hood belt, and I realized just how awesome our new neighbor friends are to us.

The glass is always half full my friend.
Bring it 2011.

(as you can see, someone is still feeling a bit on the grumpy side, and despite the many times I thought about ebaying Eric, and the girls for that matter, last night reminded me why I probably won't.
Hug your kids extra tight today!