And away we go!

So where did we leave off. It’s almost Christmas time. My mom and dad are living in Glenn-Allen making it possible for us to visit them and vice versa. Christmas is a time for family to be together and we have no reason why this one should be any different.

If you know Larry at all you know for him being on time is being late. This means that when we were supposed to be on the road by 5 pm we were not on the road until 9 or 10 at night. Now for those of you that don’t know what it’s like to travel in Alaska in the middle of winter here is some background. Unlike the lower 48 where there are major highways lit up in the night with multiple options to exit onto small towns here, headed in that direction, there isn’t even street lights. If you happen upon a house it’s questionable to even approach as the thought is, if they live in the middle of nowhere do they really want to be bothered in the middle of the night? On top of all that you are along a mountain side with a chance of slides. Travelling snow covered roads in the dead of winter in the dark and in Alaska is not for the faint of heart. But I digress- we finally are on the road and away we go.

I remember Alana being fine because why, in my bloody mind, would we travel 3-4 hours with an ill 3 month old. We were half way to Glenn-Allen when both Larry and I were taken aback by this sudden cough coming from the back of the van. It was a very distinct cough and not one we had heard from our other 2 babes. That made us both take notice seeing as it was coming from Alana. We both assumed it was a onetime thing. Nothing to worry about right? A few minutes go by and again, here’s this terrible cough. By now I am looking at her car seat trying to see if she’s got her head in a position that is making it hard for her to swallow or breath. Larry and I are looking at each other wondering the heck is going on. This isn’t something in all our infinite wisdom as parents that we can remember hearing with the other 2 girls. Again, coughing, by this point I am scared and have Larry pull over. We are now on the side of the road, in B.F.E., -20 something degrees with a sick baby.

We do make the choice to go on. We have no real reason to fret. She’s not running a fever. She’s sleeping through this whole thing. She’s sticky sweaty from exerting herself during these spells of coughing and a bit red in the face but there really isn’t a huge red flag going up. I remember making it to my parent’s house and just being so tired. We manage to get everyone to bed and try to sleep through what’s left of the night. Tomorrow we will call the doctor. Tomorrow whatever fluke has taken place will be gone. There really was a time that I did think that everything would be okay. That there really was no reason to be worried about what had happened in those past few hours and that everything would be a-okay.