Only Jule

So, if you've been reading my blog for long, you will know that Jule is a very expressive baby/toddler. Namely, he will scream at the top of his lungs when he wants you to know something. I think most people think I'm being dramatic when I talk about how he screams, but a poor new ENT's office got to experience his screaming firsthand yesterday.

Jule has yet another double ear infection that did not really respond to an oral antibiotic. I took him back to the doctor on Friday, and he gave him an antibiotic shot on top of the oral meds. I emailed the ENT who responded quickly that he had an opening for tubes on 2/26...two weeks later. I talked to our Pediatrician at church Sunday, and he said he would try to get him in somewhere sooner. Jule screamed for a long time when he woke up from his nap Sunday, and he was up a lot crying through the night Sunday night. Monday morning, I gave him Motrin, and we got an appointment with a nearby ENT to check his ears. I thought maybe he would get tubes within the week.

We got to the office around 10:30, and everything was ok for about a half hour. Jule smiled and flirted with all of the other patients. He read books, climbed in and out of chairs and giggled when I kissed his cheeks. Then, it happened. I guess the pain meds wore off. He started to scream the scream that only he can do. After over an hour of me pacing the floor of the waiting room with my 32-lb toddler, the nurse finally came out and took us back into a room (even though they still weren't quite ready for us). He continued to scream to the point that I could not talk to the nurses or doctor because none of us could hear each other. The major thing I heard is, "We need to work him in today!" They looked fairly horrified at the level of his screaming, but I told them this was normal for him when his ears hurt or when he is uncomfortable.

So, at 12:30, we ran home, which was all of 5 minutes away, and got his blankey in an effort to calm him down. We were back to the ENT's by 1:30, and he was in surgery to get tubes and to have his adenoids removed by 2:30. He woke up around 3 and screamed for most of the next three hours. He would fall asleep from exhaustion and probably from the after-effects of the anesthesia, but then he would wake up and scream uncontrollably. It broke my heart because I knew he was hurting, confused and exhausted. We finally got him to drink some strawberry koolade around 6:30, and he began to perk up. He also devoured some goldfish crackers. After that, he played happily for a little while. He fell asleep on the couch around 9 and only got up two times in the night. I'm hoping these tubes stay in for a whole year and that his ear infections stop.

Today, I feel like I could collapse, but I'm so relieved that he has some relief in sight! Hopefully, tonight will be very low-key, and he can play rest so he can fully recover. Sweet Jule!