Elijah Rockwell's Story....

This caught my eye on Ava's memorial site this evening (well, this morning at 1:30 actually.....). I had no idea about the risk between reptiles and children ~ I will be reading more into this now.

To the Rockwells ~ I wish you all of the best for your future with your special little boy. xxx

On November 24, 2004 I delivered my son- Elijah Rockwell Johnson. As his nurses said when he came out HE WAS PERFECT! He stayed awake for the first three hours he came out and just looked at everyone in amazement. He had a set of lungs that you wouldn't believe..the second night of his short life he screamed his head off..ate every half hour and didn't sleep a wink!!! My husband and I couldn't have been happier! My daughter, Desierae, was also very excited to be a big sister. We left the hospital on the evening of November 27th, 2004 and were so happy to be taking our baby boy home FINALLY after the nine month wait!!!!!!!

On November 28th Elijah slept a lot, I thought he had worn himself out staying up every night but my husband had a bad feeling. Elijah stopped nursing completely that evening around 11:00 pm. We thought that maybe the tylonel that we were giving him for his circumcision was making him drowsy so we stopped giving it to him and immediately his fever went up. We called the pediatrician around 1:00 a.m. and took him to Upper Chesapeake's emergency room.

By the time we arrived- Elijah's organs had started failing, he had stopped breathing and he was having seizures. We were informed that he would have to be flown to Johns Hopkins and asked to kiss him in case he did not make it through the helicopter ride .. we could not ride with him because there was no room so my husband and I drove in rush hr traffic in a daze..when we arrived at Hopkins he was hooked up to a breathing machine and our heads were spinning..each second seemed liked hrs and all we could do now was wait!!!!

We later found out that Elijah had a stroke before he arrived at Hopkins that killed most of the right side of his brain. We waited to find out what was wrong with our baby and had no clue what to expect!!!!! We soon found out that Elijah had meningitis caused by salmonella which came from our daughter's lizard. At the time when the Drs asked us if we had a reptile in our home we had no clue that there was any danger involved with owning a reptile. We met with Hopkins Infectious Disease team and were informed no child under five should EVER be around reptiles of any kind but this was the first we had ever heard of this! We were informed that a large percentage of reptiles including snakes, lizards, frogs..etc carry the salmonella bacteria. This bacteria is very dangerous and can live on surfaces such as light switches, carpets, couches, telephones, clothing etc for up to 90 days. You never actually have to come in contact with the reptile itself to contract the bacteria.

We were told that Elijah may not make it through the next 48 hrs. He was put on antibiotics along with 3 blood pressure medicines and the drs continued to run tests. The happiest time of our lives had turned into a living nightmare.

After 5 long days in Hopkins PICU it seemed Elijah was doing better, he had opened his eyes and started crying over the breathing machine. Sadly though, the salmonella had built up in his spine and Elijah now had 187,000 white blood cells in his spinal fluid alone. A normal baby has around 5 white blood cells in his spinal fluid !!!! His drs had never heard of a count this high!!!
When the drs took a spinal tap the spinal fluid was so thick and pink they could barely pull it through the syringe!!! Elijah was on the way to get a CT scan and his heart rate dropped to under 30 bpm right in front of our eyes ... they started giving him chest compressions. We almost lost him again...but thankfully they brought him back to being stable!!

An EEG was done and this time there was no brain activity at all other then seizures, we were told that 80% of Elijah's brain had turned into scar tissue and that it would never rejovinate!!! We had a meeting where my husband and I were asked if we wanted to let him go but the thought never crossed our minds. I prayed and prayed for the strength to make it through for my son, I did not pray for Elijah to live, only for him not to suffer.

Elijah is a strong boy and within three weeks he was off the breathing tube and no longer had to take the blood pressure medicines. He was slowly weined off of the oxygen and was able to open his eyes shortly after. We would soon learn that Elijah was now blind and could not cry or suck. He had developed hydrocephelus and an abscess had formed from the bacteria. He had two brain surgeries the first week in January and developed a staph infection from the catheter that was put into his brain to drain some of the fluid. He would later have two more brain surgeries all performed by Dr Ben Carson.

Elijah now has a permanent shunt in his head . We were able to come home on March 14, 2005 after 3 1/2 long months in the hospital. Elijah's outlook was and is still not very good but we are not discouraged by this. He will never see again. He had to go back to the hospital in April of 2005 for a permanent feeding tube that was put into his stomach. Elijah has therapists that come to the house 4 days a week along ... we constantly have to go to the Dr and to Johns Hopkins to make sure that Elijah is ok. We have been flown back to Hopkins and taken a few ambulance rides but everything for the most part is stable at this point.

People ask how my husband and I do all that we do but I just tell them that we are no stronger then anyone else! We do this all out of the love for our baby boy! We will do everything that we can to make Elijah's life the highest quality possible! Although Elijah does not laugh or cry we know that he loves us..we can watch his breathing pattern change when we come into the room and that is enough to keep us going. Elijah now has a stander and a wheel chair that help us get him around in the house.. we have had so much support from family and friends that we could not ask for more! Our blessings are countless and for all that has happened we still have an incredible life and are so grateful!

Our faith in God and Elijah's strength is what has kept us going through all of the hard times... It is not only our job to be there for Elijah as loving parents but a privilege that we have him in our lives. He is the best thing that has ever happened to us and he has made us appreciate every moment that we have to share with our loved ones. We are so blessed to have the support of friends and family and we thank everyone from the bottom of our hearts for thoughts and prayers.

Thanks for listening and please pass this story to everyone and anyone that will listen .. WBAL did a story on Elijah and Salmonella from reptiles ..the link is below..if you click on the lizard you should still be able to view our story ..make sure your volume is up..it is very interesting how many petstores were violated for not having signs that showed the dangers of reptiles carrying salmonella and the deadly effects that they could have!!!

http://www.thewbalchannel.com/news/4506427/detail.html#

What next?

This month has been just horrid.

My grandfather passed away last night ~ he was very ill but as with any passing, it's still a shock. It makes me think back to when I was a kid ~ frozen strawberries, lemon drinks, TANG, his fish and chips etc. Now though, I just am so worried for my Grandmother. How do you learn to live without somebody that has been in your life for so so long? I hope she finds a way ~ she deserves so much more happiness than what she has had of late :(

If you read my blog, you will know that my friend lost her mum earlier this month ~ her funeral was 2 weeks ago. Last night, her father passed away. It's just cruel. Jos ~ you know I am here for you and the girls. I don't even know what to say ~ it's just so hard to see you in the place you're in but you will come out of it... you are one of the stongest people I have ever met and we are all here for you. Your dad was such a character and he will be annoying your mum already!!!

2007 ~ it really has been the worst year yet.

Our Balloons for an angel....

I was reading Sheye's blog this morning and one of her posts touched me, as they often do. An angel friend (James) of her beautiful Ava would have had his third birthday today (26th June) and she suggested releasing balloons in his memory, as we did for her Princess when she flew to heaven.

In all honesty, nothing has affected me more than Ava's accident ever in my life and to think that there are so many families out there who have experienced what Sheye and Crayton have and are experiencing, just breaks my heart.

James ~ I send you heaps of love on your 3rd birthday gorgeous boy. Shine down on those who love you and make sure Princess Ava celebrates today with you xxxxx

Here are some of the pics we took today ~ I am shocked to say I love them LOL. I haven't been at all impressed with my photos of late.

Kara is not going to be impressed....

I am not going to be a very loved Mumma lmao.

Ok ~ a few weeks ago, Kara and I were browsing the Adelaide Festival Theatre site and noticed a show on Cinderella. Well, Kara's little face lit up and I said we would go to see the show ~ she was rapt!

Fast foward to tonight.

I forgot all about it. I quickly logged on to the site and it sent me to Bass to book tickets. So I did. I sat there hoping like crazy that it wasn't sold out and to my relief, one show wasn't. I entered all of my details, paid and felt so relieved, until I noticed that they had only issued me with one ticket. I immediately panicked and went back to book another, only to see SOLD OUT.

So, now, I have one adult ticket to see Cinderella next Saturday. WTF do I do? I cannot believe the system allowed me to purchase one ticket, when I asked for 2, knowing it was the LAST one.

ARGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

YouTube Another addiction thanks to Eden :P

I have to share this one ~ I wouldn't normally share XXX sites LMAO but watch it and you will see why.

I have nfi why, but every time I watch it I PMSL!!!!!

Just Because I Like it

I thought I would post this pic!

I took it tonight before Kara and I headed out for a coffee and I just love it. It's exposure/lighting or whatever is all wrong but Kara is so happy and we had the best time. Seeing as we don't have a weekend together (don't get me started on that ......), I have been trying to do something 'nice' every day, even if it's only for 30 mins. Tonight, we went for coffee and ended up looking around an a cinema that has just been opened close to home. Kara bought popcorn and ate it in the lounge area and nagged for a while to see a movie... nothing suitable was on though. Her disappointment was short-lived when she spotted little girls' jewellery and purses ~ she really is so easy to make happy.

My baby is growing up too fast ~ she is just such a gorgeous girl though :)

The Sewing has Started!!!!

I have decided to seriously think about making children's clothes again as a small business. I have bought HEAPS of fabrics and initially, will make twirly skirts to get me going. I haven't looked into the business side of things as yet (Mum ~ expect me in the next couple of days :P) but there seems to be a huge market out there for little girls' clothing.

This is my first go at one and I adore it ~ Kara has claimed it which may be an ongoing problem but at least she likes it LOL!!!!!

What do you think? Cree ~ give me advice LOL.

My Artist...

Our home is a mess.

Everywhere, there is clutter and pretty much just crap LOL. I just hate it. It's all Ebay's fault ~ 5 years ago I would have thrown stuff out (well, not everything because I have tendencies to hoard :P) but now, I pick it up and assess its value lmao. Then I put it down with a view to list it and 6 months later, it's still here.

Anyyyyyyway, I decided today that Kara is NOT to have toys in the lounge room. They come in here, get looked at for 20 seconds and then she moves on to the next thing. All I seem to do is tidy in here.

As a compromise, I moved her easel into the lounge today and bought a huge roll of paper from Ikea ~ Kara LOVES it... it's the best $9 I have spent LOL and not one toy has been brought in (so far....).

How Divine is this child?!!

This child is gifted ~ a living angel. I have watched this video about 10 times now and each time, I just have tears down my face. It's her voice, the song, everything.

I was just reading that Simon is wanting to offer her a 7 figure deal with Sony BMG ~ she has just blown everybody away.

Good luck Connie, although I don't think she needs much luck.

Thanks Sue....

.... for linking me to this this morning JUST after smothering my face with my morning makeup :P

This man is amazing....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=47G5pejQ9Nk

A Sad Day :(

A dear friend lost her mother last week and today she was given a 'beautiful' service to farewell her. The loss of anybody makes you think about where you're at in life but when it's somebody so so special, you question yourself a little deeper. You also try to make sense of such a massive loss and get nowhere.

Today, being a Catholic Maltese funeral, there were many comforted by their faith and for a moment, I understood why so many people have the beliefs they do ~ to get them through days like this. Perhaps it helps them 'deal' with their loss; perhaps it helps them believe that their loved one is in a much better place ~ I don't fully understand it, especially when seeing such a huge outpour of grief but I hope it helps them in some way.

Jos ~ I am so sorry for what you, your mother and entire family have been through of late. Your mother was such a beautiful woman and it was so clear today that she was so very loved and respected. I like to think she is up there looking after Ava xxx

I loved this verse from your Mum's card:

You never failed to do your best,
Your heart was true and tender.
You simply lived for those you loved
And those you loved remember.

I LOOOOOOVE this dress :P

This is for those whom replied with vomit emoticons on MSN LMAO. Perhaps you still will be it's sooooo divine on Miss K.


After the museum, we went for a walk along the Torrens and scrounged biscuits from my bag to feed the ducks. I neeeeeeed a good camera :(


I really need to learn about Photoshop too ~ have had it for years and really have nfi how to use it. I think some of these would look excellent with the proper post-pic processing..... just not by me LOL. I borrowed a Photoshop for Dummies book today, so perhaps the photos I post will start looking better than they do!!!!

The Poor Emu....

I took Kara to the museum on Monday and she just loves it there!!! There is a section of Native Australian animals and I meant to get a pic of this last time we were there before I forget the story!!!.....

Two years ago, Kara being 2 1/2, we were visiting the museum. Kara, after looking at several stuffed animals, asked me why they were there. I went through the whole 'to educate others story' and she seemed satisfied with that (although a little concerned that these animals had been killed for our benefit). About 20 minutes later, Kara was on the verge of tears. I asked her what was wrong as she was totally fine until that point and she said....

"The poor baby emu".

I asked what she meant.

Her reply....."Well Mummy, look at him. He was about to eat a meal when somebody killed him".

This was the poor emu.

Every time we see that display, I laugh and get odd looks lol.

I Feel Like I Can Breathe Again...

For a little over twelve months, I have lived every day in a state of 'dread' ~ out of fear of what might happen with my daughter at the end of a lengthy custody dispute. I know some have felt I should have handled it better than I did but in all honesty, I couldn't have done that. I know that I have done what is best for Kara every step of the way but I also know that it was a nightmare for me and that there were times when I felt I just couldn't do it anymore. Seeing your child hurting and not being able to have any control over that is something I would wish on nobody.

Anyway, last week, Kara's father and I came to some sort of agreement. We have decided to try to work out some orders away from court (I HATE that word) and I am finally feeling like a balance can be met ~ Kara will get the relationship with her father that SHE deserves without her whole world having to be turned upside down for the next 3 years. It's all I have wanted all along and I am just so grateful we have reached this spot.

I never thought I would say this, but I am so grateful to Kara's father for attempting to see our side of this situation. I feel like I can breathe again and enjoy my little girl without fear trailing me.

Mum, Rachael, Tanya, Meredith, Vickie and every single online friend who has been there for 12 months ~ thanks so so much for everything you guys have done (I am getting all emotional LOL). You have all put Kara's needs first when dishing out advice and I wouldn't have got through this without you xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx