Finally 21!

Today my "baby" turns 21. I can't believe it!! I had heard that childhood goes by in a flash but I don't think you can fully comprehend it until you actually go through it. It didn't seem to go by quickly as I was going through the days of colic and daycare, then to dating and teenage worries. But looking back, it was but a moment. Hence my favorite new quote that I first heard in the last year: "The days are long but the years are short." How true! It is so easy to get caught up in the day-to-day worries and doing everything right, that sometimes we forget to capture the memory in the present. And to hold on to the feelings we have while we are having them and locking them in our heart to keep forever. Memories have flooded my mind of the day he was born- how I felt, what I thought, how scary it was. Sadly, I'm not sure I know much more today than I did back then. But I certainly appreciate the lessons more today than I ever could have back then.

Josh's 21st birthday was not what any of us expected. Josh was so sick today! He started feeling really sick yesterday so I took him to the Instacare so he could start feeling better by his birthday. Great plan, right? Well unfortunately, they gave us the "it's a virus" answer so we can't do anything but wait it out. So he took Ibuprofen 800 for the pain in his throat and kept trudging along. But by his birthday, he was only feeling worse! He had been at home all day so I talked him into letting us take him to dinner. I kind of made him go...I thought it would do him good to get him out of the house for some fresh air. Plus, it made me sad to think of him spending his birthday alone in my Grandma's basement- all day!

So he chose Olive Garden because pasta was the one thing he thought he might be able to swallow.

Grandpa M. joined us for the celebration. But I don't think it was much of a celebration for Josh. He didn't eat much at all and talked even less. He said it hurt too bad. :(

After dinner, he came over to unwrap presents. Uncle Jeremy brought him an ice cream cake. Josh usually loves those. In fact, he requested chocolate ice cream this year instead of cake.

But as you can see in this picture, Josh started feeling worse and worse.

(Josh and his uncle, and roommate- Jeremy)

Josh felt bad enough that he went home shortly after having cake and went to bed. Probably not the 21st birthday he had imagined. Luckily, he is a pretty good sport about these things.

But now to finish the story (Written 1 week later):

On Friday (the day after his birthday), Josh sounded so bad on the phone that I honestly could not understand what he was saying. You could just hear how swollen his throat was. I finally had to hang up on him and have him text me anything he needed to say because I could not understand a word he was trying to tell me.

So finally, after worrying about him all morning, I left work early and took him a frosty. You could visually see how swollen his tonsils were from the outside. I told him that I thought we better go to the doctor but he wanted to wait and just "keep an eye on it." I think it had something to do with the fact that his friend, Amy, was coming into town to visit him that night.

A couple of hours later, I got a text from Josh saying that he thinks we better go to the doctor soon. Being that Josh is so laid back, I figured it must be pretty bad. So I went to pick him up right away.

We first went to the Instacare. They originally thought he had mono but then after examining his neck, felt they better take a CT scan with contrast. So then we had to go to the hospital. Immediately following the CT scan, they told us he had 2 tonsillar abcesses and needed to be admitted right away. We spent 2-3 hours in the waiting room on IV steroids (trying to get his airways opened) and having his abcess drained. I know, gross!

We finally got to his room at about 1:30AM. Poor kid! Not a very fun week. Luckily, he only had to stay overnight and we took him home Saturday night. They IV's, antibiotics, and steroids did wonders. Unfortunately, after he gets feeling better, they will be removing his tonsils and he will probably be going through the same pain all over again. But with abcesses, the risk of infection going in the bloodstream is just too great.

So overall, it was a pretty eventful birthday...but definitely not a fun one! I could just kick myself for not getting a picture of him in the hospital, since it is his first (and hopefully last) overnight stay. I guess when you're having someone admitted to the hospital, you just don't think of capturing the "fun." But it would have been fun to look back on, I think. Since he felt so good after getting medication and having his good friends, Jon & Amy visit him in the hospital, I don't think it was too bad, as far as hospital visits go.

And since he was home from the hospital on Sunday, we were still able to have his birthday dinner of choice - Haystacks. His friend, Amy, came over for dinner, too. It was nice because it's been hit and miss with Josh, as far as Sunday dinner goes. His student ward meets much later than ours so it's difficult to coordinate schedules. Josh was even able to see Grandma and Grandpa O. today. They were nice enough to take Maddy home for the weekend while Josh was in the hospital. And then nice enough to bring her home on Sunday and visit Josh.

Josh is so blessed with wonderful friends and people in his life. And we are so blessed to have him in our lives! I am so grateful for him and the joy he has brought to my life. He has taught me alot of lessons as I have learned to be a parent, alongside him growing up. He has been so patient through my many mistakes and is luckily strong enough to endure all the "bumps" along the way, as we learn as we go. As I have always told him, he is truly our "pilot project." And he will always be my "baby." :)

Happy Birthday, Josh!