The Baby Niles Scare

The weekend started off with me grilling — soaking up a quiet morning. Bacon and egg street tacos for brunch hit the spot. The weather was perfect — I enjoyed my coffee outside with the dogs I love this time of year when I can sit on the porch, water my plants, and listen to the songbirds sing. Pure tranquility.

The tranquility of that moment.

It didn’t last long. I started looking at my backyard. Damn the acorns — I hate them. nature’s version of glitter — everywhere, impossible to get rid of, and just when you think you’ve cleaned them all up, there’s more. One of the joys (curse) of having big oak trees.

After that, not much happened. I ran a few errands, stopped by to see my mom before she left town, and let the day drift by. Lola was off to a concert, Alaya spent time with her grandmother, and Tee got picked up by his brother for an early morning hunting trip. I settled in with a new book while Yvette watched her show — I don’t think she even left the house. Mellow Saturday.

Sunday carried the same lazy energy. We had taco salads at Yvette’s parents’ and lounged around for most of the day. Weekends never last long enough, but this one was beautiful — calm, quiet, and exactly what we needed.

Than came Monday.

Monday was the day from hell. I barely slept, and my stomach was a mess. Pretty sure it was the salmon I made — I had a bad feeling about one of the pieces. It was a little off. I noticed it when I was preparing it and made sure I was the one who ate that piece. Big mistake. Regrets. I threw up a few times.

As if that wasn’t enough, baby Niles was also throwing up. He was lethargic. Scans showed an intestinal obstruction. They decided it was best to have him airlifted to DFW for better testing.

Yvette wasn’t thrilled that I didn’t go with her, and honestly, I wish I could have. But someone had to stay behind — the house, the kids, the dogs, work… It also turned out they were in DFW for entire week, which I couldn’t have done.

I waited for updates from Yvette while juggling dinner for the kids and making sure Noah’s dogs were fed too. It was a long, anxious day. Luckily, when news did arrive, the obstruction was just a simple twisting of the small intestine. They performed a minimally invasive procedure (through the anal cavity) to untwist it. The baby was fine and once again drinking and eating.

Told to remain in the area for at least 24 hours, they were discharged on Tuesday. I thought that was a little soon and that Niles should have been under observation for a longer period of time. I’m no doctor — what do I know?

Ignorantly believing all was better, I went about my workday Tuesday. I was tired, and my stomach was till a little sensitive. My biggest gripe was that I love seafood, and the thought of eating fish made me queasy. Idiot. Throwing up salmon and coffee the day before was brutal.

That Tuesday evening, the kids’ father paid for their food — Japanese steakhouse — leaving me to fend for myself. That was fine; I had Trader Joe’s meals at home.

Turns out my gut feeling that the baby should have been under observation wasn’t without merit. Around 10 PM, they took Niles back to the hospital because he wasn’t eating or drinking. After 12 hours of ER waiting, they finally got a room and saw the doctor: Niles was inflamed from the procedure but otherwise fine.

On Wednesday, they kept him overnight for observation to make sure he stayed hydrated. No one had packed appropriately for a long stay, so Yvette checked out of the hotel and went to find clean clothes and travel accessories.

I was at work, busy as a bee and disappointed to hear that I’d be sleeping alone in my bed again. I just wanted them all to be home. I didn’t mind getting dog food or taking care of the dogs. I love feeding the kids dinner. I just wanted everyone home so they could catch a breath.

When Thursday rolled around, the week already felt like it should have been over. What a long week it had been. I partly blame the time change for that — not just everything else going on. It gets dark so early now, and I’ve been running around after work trying to make use of the little daylight left before heading home to cook or find dinner for the kids.

I really do hate the fucking time change.

The workday started with a minor shouting match between my coworkers, Seth and Troy, over a silly disagreement that had happened around five o’clock on Wednesday. Both were being stubborn, each convinced he was right.

I tried my hardest not to laugh out loud — it was exactly the kind of ridiculous moment I needed to start the day. I even thanked Seth for the entertainment. He grinned and said, “You’re welcome,” like he’d just performed stand-up. Honestly, I think he enjoyed it as much as I did.

Later, I talked to Yvette. She had stayed another night at the hospital, catching what little sleep she could in a chair. The baby was finally keeping most of the formula down — most — but the doctors wanted to keep him a bit longer to see if he’d have a bowel movement before going home. It wasn’t looking too promising.

In the end, they all stayed one more night in DFW.

I can’t believe Yvette left on Monday and it’s already Friday. That’s the longest I’ve gone without seeing her in over a year, and honestly, I don’t like it one bit.

The day at work was meandering along at a painfully slow pace. Troy had taken the day off to dry his eyes after his little altercation with Seth. I expected as much—he always gets upset and needs a day to recover. Poor baby. The upside? I got to pick up a couple of his tasks since my own work had basically dried up.

By the afternoon, I was just done. I kept glancing at the clock, counting down the hours. I had dinner plans with the whole family, and all I could think about was cooking for everyone. Mostly, though, It was just excitement knowing Yvette was finally heading home. I can’t even explain how much I’ve missed her.

The evening was magical. Dinner was amazing. We laughed. Some of us drank. We shared our week’s war stores. We were exhausted, but we were all together.

Happy Friday!!!