Trip to SLC and the ER

We had some fun plans for my birthday weekend in February, since I was turning 50. However, I got a stomach bug and was quite sick. I never get sick, so it was kind of a bummer.  The next day, I was enough better that we went to Salt Lake as planned. We stayed in a hotel so that we wouldn’t share germs with relatives. Just strangers. (John was sick with the flu and stayed home. )

So on Saturday, we went to the zoo with Echo bundled up. (She was congested and I shouldn’t have taken her, in retrospect.) The weather was fairly warm, though.  We ran into Rachel's family there (Charlotte and Delmer's oldest daughter.) She told us that the big silverback had once seemed interested in their little Natalie, and a worker told them that he loved babies. We decided to get Echo out and hold her by the window. He loved her! He just kept staring at her, and it was very touching.

Rachel's kids with ours.

This lion was roaring as we approached.

Noah loved the hotel pool with the kids. We have some videos of him jumping to each of them.

On Sunday, I wanted to attend church in a beautiful chapel on the second floor of the Joseph Smith Memorial building. (I'd watched a conference session there once.) We got there a touch late and hurried into a lobby outside the chapel where people were waiting for the sacrament. I was fussing with Noah’s shirt when Sister Linda Burton (former General RS Pres) tapped me on the shoulder and indicated an empty seat - which happened to be by Elder Ballard. After the sacrament, we went in and sat very quietly, since there didn’t seem to be many (any?) kids.  At the end, we stood with everyone else as President Nelson left the stand. It was a beautiful experience! The kids all agreed that we should move there so we can attend that ward, but I don’t know that they really wanted us there to begin with. :) 

Afterward, we took a few pictures by the temple and conference center as we headed to the car. By that time I was really worried about Echo's breathing and croupy cough. I also realized that she had a fever, so it was scary.

When we returned home, I took Echo to the emergency room. I cried as they put in the IV and gave her other scary treatments. It was all kind of overwhelming. She had RSV and ended up having to stay for four full days. I stayed with her, and my sweet mom came and stayed with the kids. John had to go to a conference in St. George, which was very unfortunate timing. I struggled with one of the nurses, and I missed being home with the other kids, but I didn't want to leave Echo. I got almost no sleep during those four days. It was a frightening, exhausting experience. I don't think Echo enjoyed it too much either. Afterward, she had to be on oxygen again. :(