I get it. I'm a mom.

Growing up, I remember always saying ...

"I will never worry like my mom."

My mom would worry about everything. Whether I was at the mall with friends, boating with the church youth group, or traveling on an airplane ... she would worry. If I was out with friends and she heard sirens, she would always call to check if we were okay. To this day I still call her when I arrive somewhere after flying or even traveling a longer distance in a car.

"I will never worry like my mom."

That all changed when I had a child of my own and I can now say these three words. I get it. There is nothing scarier than the thought of something happening to your child and it being out of your control. But still ...

"I will never worry like my mom."

It all started Tuesday night when Abby didn't want to eat, was sluggish, and asked to go to bed on her own. I knew something wasn't right and figured I would be waking up to a sick baby. Jim and I heard her throughout the night through the monitor; coughing here and there and seeming to be a bit restless. That morning she woke up with a high fever and a barking cough. I knew it, my baby was sick. Abby coughed off an on all morning and when it was time to take a nap, she was a little wheezy and didn't want any part of taking any more medicine. She got all worked up, crying real tears, vomited, and began to take deep awful sounding breaths. Poor thing wanted to go to bed and so we let her. Rest baby rest.

Jim headed to the ballpark and I checked on Abby every twenty minutes or so, hearing her cough and "bark" over the monitor throughout her nap. I made a 4 o'clock doctor's appointment for her and at around 3:30 I decided to wake her up from her nap. She was really hot and quite upset waking up early from her deep sleep. She began to cry, cough, and it appeared she was having a hard time taking a deep breath. I panicked. My heart sank. Abby kept saying "mouth" and pointing to her throat. I thought something was terribly wrong. I wasn't sure if she was truly having a hard time taking breaths. I called the hubs and asked if I should call 911. And a minute later the ambulance was on the way.

It didn't take the EMT's long to arrive and by that time, Abby had settled down and was laying on the sofa. She didn't want me touch her or hold her, she just wanted to be still. They listened to her heart and lungs and advised me to go ahead and get her to the doctors instead of going to the ER. They assured me she was okay and would get the treatment she needed sooner at the doctors office, rather than sitting in the waiting room of the ER. She was okay. She was breathing fine. My heart was still racing.

Jim left the ballpark and met us at the doctors, which luckily was just a few blocks from our house. Thankfully nothing was seriously wrong. Abby has croup, a viral infection of the upper airway and vocal cords and sometimes that can cause swelling in the throat. The croup was what caused her seal like barking sounds and the difficulty with taking deep breaths. She received an oral steroid treatment and another yesterday. Thank goodness, her fever has broken and today she is feeling a bit better. She still has the horrendous cough but is at least up and playing around the house.

I had heard friends talk about croup before and just how scary it can be. Later that night, thinking back to the days events, I thought maybe I overreacted with calling an ambulance. Maybe? Who knows. But when all is said and done, I made the right choice. I was scared. I was worried about my child. And thanks to my Mama, I get it.

"I will always worry like my mom."