Sammie's been a busy girl the past couple of weeks. She got a double ear infection on 2/1 and we went to her Dr for some antibiotics. He put her on her usual, Cefdinir, which she's been on several times before. She seemed to be improving for the first couple of days - even helping Mommy clean the kitchen floor.
As we progressed through the weekend, new symptoms started showing up, first sores in her mouth, then spots on her face, legs, heiny & arms. By Monday morning they ranged from strawberry red to deep purple & we took another trip to the Dr. expecting it to be something she picked up at daycare. He sent us immediately to the Connecticut Children's Medical Center ER in Hartford to get a second opinion, but his first thought was that she was having a rare allergic reaction to the antibiotic called Steven's Johnson syndrome. After spending all of Monday in the ER, seeing 4 different doctors & countless nurses, it was confirmed and we were admitted. Craig, Sammie & I spent the next 2 days there - while she received IV steroids to help her body recover from the medication, and got round the clock medical supervision. Periodically they would un-hook her from all monitors and the IV drip so she could take a ride around the floor in a wagon provided by the hospital. It was the highlight of her day.
Playing in Mommy's shoes in the hospital room.
Luckily, she pulled through, and we were allowed to go home Wednesday afternoon. Her appetite started returning, and she was eating more than me by Saturday! (the steroids increase appetite, clearly). For some fun relaxation and pampering after her hectic week I gave her a pedicure on Sunday morning. She loved it. She just sat there watching me paint her toes, and then spent time just looking at them & wiggling them.
We all took the opportunity to get some fresh air over the weekend & went for several walks around our neighborhood.
On Sunday we bundled up & took a short hike at West Woods in Guilford. It was a nice relaxing weekend, just what we all needed.
Samantha continues to improve, her rash will likely be around for several more weeks, but it fades a little each day. She is her happy self again, running around and playing just like normal. She won't return to daycare until later in the week as her immune system needs a chance to recover before we throw her back into the germ pool, yuck! We are super happy Sammie is OK and on the mend! :)
Yesterday I spent the day working on Sammie's 2011 scrapbook. A lot happened last year, Sammie turned 1, we bought a new house & we went on two great vacations. I managed to get January through May finished, so here's my progress.
In January Sammie was 4 months & she had her first tastes of food, on the right are her 5 month pictures from February.
I had some great pictures of Sammie with Craig & I so I decided to do a page dedicated to Sammie & each of us. I had a lot of fun doing these pages and really like how they contrast when you view them side by side. 
These pages were just to highlight some great photos, her playing in the wheelbarrow with some dirt at Grandma Teri and Grandpa Bob's house, and some quality jump time in her jumperoo. She loved that thing!
We took her to the annual daffodil festival at Hubbard Park in Meriden in May. She was fascinated with the flowers.
This is her pool party playdate at Ethan's house. Sammie, Ethan & Emma all had such a great time splashing in the pool!
