Just as Marcelo was finishing up his antibiotic treatment for the ear infection he develops a mild fever. Another trip to the pediatrician's office reveals Hand-Foot-Mouth Disease sans hand and foot. Staying home with "a-da-da" today.
Daycare . . . any ideas on how to publicly shame parents to stop bringing coughing and snotting mobile toddlers to school when they know %@$# well that they're sick. And also, can you take YOUR FREAKING SHOES OFF when you come into the baby room because I think that's what the three signs on the door with pictures of shoes are trying to tell you.
Wednesday, March 26, 2008
Thursday, March 20, 2008
I'm a growing boy... I think
Marcelo did very will at his 6 month Well Baby Checkup. His ear infection seems to be improving despite all the diarrhea the antibiotic is causing. No more fever.
Last week I had a bit of a anti-vaccine freak out for some reason. I think I was running low on sugar and my anxiety over it just went through the roof. But I'm mostly over it now and although I considered post-poning his vaccines until Marcelo's next appointment, his pediatrician made me feel more at ease with doing them now. He got all his vaccinations except the HIB which was unavailable. I was bracing myself for the crying but he actually did really well this time. It took until the second shot for him to notice he was being stabbed with a sharp object and then the 3rd one was done quickly and by the time I picked him up he was done with his brief protest. I think the chubby thighs really helped this time. He had no reactions and didn't even need Tylenol. (Not that I ever gave him Tylenol for his shots before either).
He's falling down the growth chart a bit but somehow I kind of expected him to be this way, "this way" meaning the opposite of Sofia who weighed 18lbs 7oz (95th percentile) at six months. Marcelo weighed 15lbs 1oz which puts him in about the 20th percentile according to his doctor, the 10th percentile according to the nurse, and about the 15th percentile when I look it up. Maybe Dr. Arnold was compensating for him being sick the last week and loosing a bit of weight. Those pesky growth charts. I'd like to find one where you can plug in the measurements and have it chart it and keep track of the whole growth pattern so I can save it. His length was 25 3/4 inches (~25th percentile, maybe 30th). And his head circumference was 43.5cm (50th percentile). At least his head is not suffering.
They also asked me about his developmental milestones. There were a lot of no's, "no, he can't do that yet", but I think they might have either been looking at the wrong list or his puny-body/big-head just isn't allowing him to do triple back flips off a diving board yet. But, did I mention he's very good a scratching himself anywhere on his body and he can fart very loudly. Does that count for something?
Last week I had a bit of a anti-vaccine freak out for some reason. I think I was running low on sugar and my anxiety over it just went through the roof. But I'm mostly over it now and although I considered post-poning his vaccines until Marcelo's next appointment, his pediatrician made me feel more at ease with doing them now. He got all his vaccinations except the HIB which was unavailable. I was bracing myself for the crying but he actually did really well this time. It took until the second shot for him to notice he was being stabbed with a sharp object and then the 3rd one was done quickly and by the time I picked him up he was done with his brief protest. I think the chubby thighs really helped this time. He had no reactions and didn't even need Tylenol. (Not that I ever gave him Tylenol for his shots before either).
He's falling down the growth chart a bit but somehow I kind of expected him to be this way, "this way" meaning the opposite of Sofia who weighed 18lbs 7oz (95th percentile) at six months. Marcelo weighed 15lbs 1oz which puts him in about the 20th percentile according to his doctor, the 10th percentile according to the nurse, and about the 15th percentile when I look it up. Maybe Dr. Arnold was compensating for him being sick the last week and loosing a bit of weight. Those pesky growth charts. I'd like to find one where you can plug in the measurements and have it chart it and keep track of the whole growth pattern so I can save it. His length was 25 3/4 inches (~25th percentile, maybe 30th). And his head circumference was 43.5cm (50th percentile). At least his head is not suffering.
They also asked me about his developmental milestones. There were a lot of no's, "no, he can't do that yet", but I think they might have either been looking at the wrong list or his puny-body/big-head just isn't allowing him to do triple back flips off a diving board yet. But, did I mention he's very good a scratching himself anywhere on his body and he can fart very loudly. Does that count for something?
Monday, March 17, 2008
6 months
Well you're now 1/2 a year old. Why does this time go so much faster than all the months I had to carry you around in my tummy?
This past month has been pretty good for you. Although your eczema has not gone away, your skin has improved greatly with the steroid treatment. I just hope we won't have to keep using it too much longer. It's so nice to see your cute little face again and to be able to cuddle cheek to cheek. We have to be very vigilant about treating each little spot and constantly apply lotion and petroleum jelly on them. Despite the aesthetic improvements, you continue scratching and gauging yourself all over especially your head and when you don’t have clothes on, your tummy and thighs. Maybe as you get older you are more aware of the discomfort and the itching. We’ve tried some calming creams but the thing you like the most after scratching yourself violently is having me massage your head with lotion. I can tell it brings instant relief.
Your hair is starting to come in more now and you don’t look as bald. You still have a few really long strands at the top of your head I usually use to the comb over. I’ve considered chopping it off, but you look so cute even if it is with the comb over hair do. You seem to be following the same growth pattern to Sofia, OK maybe not quite the same; she was probably a lot chunkier than you. But you have the same short, chubby, midget thighs she had at this age that are totally unproportional to the rest of your body. You really have to look at them for a while to try to make sense of how small and wide they are. You also have tiny little feet.
You’ve started the taste testing phase, sampling everything you get in your hands with your mouth. I think you have pretty good dexterity with your hands for your age. After all, you manage to scratch yourself anywhere you want on your big head. You scoop things up, turn them side to side to examine them carefully and put them in your mouth. You can even pass things from one hand to the other. You also like to bounce up and down on your feet when I hold you under the arms.
In the last few days, you’ve started babbling more, saying “a-da-da” over and over. Daddy is very pleased. You’re also more vocal about expressing displeasure with a combination of squealing, screaming, grunting, and crying.
We tried to get you started on baby foods although you haven’t shown too much indication that you want to eat. At least nothing obvious like Sofia. I think at this point Sofia pretty much snatched a chicken thigh away from me and started eating it. You didn’t seem to mind the rice cereal, but you didn’t really have much of a reaction to it at all. I think you swallowed some of it but it was almost accidental. We tried it a couple more times but it was just hard getting you to pay attention to the fact that I was putting a spoon in your mouth while Sofia was clowning around you and making noise. You were far more interested in her than the rice cereal. Why would you rather eat my hair than rice cereal? I don’t know, maybe we’ll hold off a bit longer.
We got you down to five feeding a day now that you are waking up later for your first feeding around 6am. You still wake up once a night any time between 2 and 5am but Daddy just put’s you back to sleep. This moderate improvement has enabled us to put you in your own room for overnight sleeping and you seem to be doing pretty well in there. You like to sleep with your head touching something. You'll often wiggle yourself backward until you make contact. I miss you.
Last Saturday, you got to be in the St Patrick’s Day parade. When you finally woke up and we uncovered you, you were so interested in everything there was to look at around you. You even forgot it was time to eat.
As I write this, you are sitting in your rocking chair. We moved the back up so you can sit more upright. You’ve been kicking the hanging toys, grabbing at them and struggling to get them off the velcro. You grab your foot and stick in your mouth. But after a while, you get bored and prefer me holding you. We’re home from school/work today because you came down with a fever last night. After taking you in to the pediatrician this morning (you weighed 15lbs 3oz), they confirmed you have an ear infection. I noticed you’ve been a little more fussy at times the last couple of days. You took your antibiotic like it was some kind of treat but then had a big diarrhea a little while later so I don’t know if any stayed in your system. Hopefully you start feeling better soon. You’re such a happy little guy but you don’t hold back when you don’t feel good. Unlike Sofia who seemed not to notice when she was sick, it’s clear when you don’t feel good.
This past month has been pretty good for you. Although your eczema has not gone away, your skin has improved greatly with the steroid treatment. I just hope we won't have to keep using it too much longer. It's so nice to see your cute little face again and to be able to cuddle cheek to cheek. We have to be very vigilant about treating each little spot and constantly apply lotion and petroleum jelly on them. Despite the aesthetic improvements, you continue scratching and gauging yourself all over especially your head and when you don’t have clothes on, your tummy and thighs. Maybe as you get older you are more aware of the discomfort and the itching. We’ve tried some calming creams but the thing you like the most after scratching yourself violently is having me massage your head with lotion. I can tell it brings instant relief.
Your hair is starting to come in more now and you don’t look as bald. You still have a few really long strands at the top of your head I usually use to the comb over. I’ve considered chopping it off, but you look so cute even if it is with the comb over hair do. You seem to be following the same growth pattern to Sofia, OK maybe not quite the same; she was probably a lot chunkier than you. But you have the same short, chubby, midget thighs she had at this age that are totally unproportional to the rest of your body. You really have to look at them for a while to try to make sense of how small and wide they are. You also have tiny little feet.
You’ve started the taste testing phase, sampling everything you get in your hands with your mouth. I think you have pretty good dexterity with your hands for your age. After all, you manage to scratch yourself anywhere you want on your big head. You scoop things up, turn them side to side to examine them carefully and put them in your mouth. You can even pass things from one hand to the other. You also like to bounce up and down on your feet when I hold you under the arms.
In the last few days, you’ve started babbling more, saying “a-da-da” over and over. Daddy is very pleased. You’re also more vocal about expressing displeasure with a combination of squealing, screaming, grunting, and crying.
We tried to get you started on baby foods although you haven’t shown too much indication that you want to eat. At least nothing obvious like Sofia. I think at this point Sofia pretty much snatched a chicken thigh away from me and started eating it. You didn’t seem to mind the rice cereal, but you didn’t really have much of a reaction to it at all. I think you swallowed some of it but it was almost accidental. We tried it a couple more times but it was just hard getting you to pay attention to the fact that I was putting a spoon in your mouth while Sofia was clowning around you and making noise. You were far more interested in her than the rice cereal. Why would you rather eat my hair than rice cereal? I don’t know, maybe we’ll hold off a bit longer.
We got you down to five feeding a day now that you are waking up later for your first feeding around 6am. You still wake up once a night any time between 2 and 5am but Daddy just put’s you back to sleep. This moderate improvement has enabled us to put you in your own room for overnight sleeping and you seem to be doing pretty well in there. You like to sleep with your head touching something. You'll often wiggle yourself backward until you make contact. I miss you.
Last Saturday, you got to be in the St Patrick’s Day parade. When you finally woke up and we uncovered you, you were so interested in everything there was to look at around you. You even forgot it was time to eat.
As I write this, you are sitting in your rocking chair. We moved the back up so you can sit more upright. You’ve been kicking the hanging toys, grabbing at them and struggling to get them off the velcro. You grab your foot and stick in your mouth. But after a while, you get bored and prefer me holding you. We’re home from school/work today because you came down with a fever last night. After taking you in to the pediatrician this morning (you weighed 15lbs 3oz), they confirmed you have an ear infection. I noticed you’ve been a little more fussy at times the last couple of days. You took your antibiotic like it was some kind of treat but then had a big diarrhea a little while later so I don’t know if any stayed in your system. Hopefully you start feeling better soon. You’re such a happy little guy but you don’t hold back when you don’t feel good. Unlike Sofia who seemed not to notice when she was sick, it’s clear when you don’t feel good.
Saturday, March 15, 2008
St Patricks Day
Taking it all in. You hadn't eaten for a while, but you weren't complaining because you were so interested in everything around you.
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