The end of December was a roller coaster. Just when I was getting myself prepped for a final push at work and then a nice long quiet trip to the East Coast, we got some wild news. We would need to admit Luke to the hospital.

It turns out that Luke’s pneumonia was compounded with a case of RSV, a lung virus. Breathing was difficult for him and his oxygen levels were lower than the doctors would have liked. The poor little guys immune system had been pounded with one thing after another and the doctor thought it would be best to give him some time to recoup.

The hardest part was that our doctor recommended admitting us immediately through the Emergency Room, so not only were we not prepared for a hospital stay but we had a team of doctors who were–in their best impersonations of Dr. House–asking us every possible question under the sun to determine what was going on. I appreciate their thorough approach but it made for a scary few hours. Watching your little one go through test after test is a miserable experience. I would have gladly hoped on that exam table if it would have been any help, but our little trooper took it in stride as best he could.

Once we were on the pediatric floor, the nurses and doctors were incredibly human and did a great job helping us keep Luke as comfortable as possible and even gave us good advice on tests that we could do or tests we could possibly skip. At that point it was really a matter of waiting for his oxygen levels to return to normal though so that really helped. In some ways, navigating all the monitors and IVs made it feel like having a brand new baby all over again. Still, as tough as it was, I’m always so thankful for Eric in situations like this one and we wind up coming out of the situation closer than ever. He is always great with Luke but he had us both cracking up with a makeshift puppet show using some of the gifts from the hospital — laughs we needed for sure!

After two days, we finally got the okay to head home but our holiday travel plans were up in the air. Thankfully, after some negotiations with the airline, advice from our pediatrician and hard thinking on our part, we got the green light to head East for a shorter visit. We still fit in the visits with siblings, cousins, Eric’s grandmother (Luke’s GiGi) and friends from high school and college. Here are some of my favorite photos from our holiday festivities:

It was an amazing first trip with Lucas and spending time with him and nearly our entire extended family made for an amazing week. Hoping for many great holiday seasons in the years to come but this was a really great one for sure.