High Maintenance Mom

Summer is a great time for outdoor activities but also prime time for tick bites and poison ivy. Since we live in tick central, we have learned what they look like, how to do daily tick checks and how to remove them.

On May 19th my youngest son came home with a stomach ache. He threw up a few times and had a low grade fever. I thought he had H1N1 or a stomach flu. I called the doctor and they said we didn't need to be tested or stay home for a week. N was sicker on Thursday and on Friday morning I took him to the doctor. From there we went to the hospital where we learned his appendix had ruptured. Eight days later we came home and are waiting to see if he needs a second surgery. I've tried to figure out if we could have come to the hospital before his appendix ruptured but I'm not sure we could have. The doctors told me appendicitis is often hard to diagnose in this age range. Below is a more detailed account of our week in the hope that it will help someone else...

My friend has graciously allowed me to post the story of her son Cade for encouragement to others and to remind us all how precious life is. Here is Cade's story as told by his Mom.......

My son had a fever of 102 yesterday and I went into full sick mode with Motrin, humidifier, etc. He slept well and by morning was 100% fine. Then I get an email from a close friend whose son had been ill since birth. He will be OK but it has been very stressful for the baby and for his parents. I read her email and almost started to cry. I am so lucky and try to remind myself often. I will be posting my friend's story on the front page in the new few days.

I didnt think the first colds of the season would come this soon but I have a cold and so does my 3 year old. My son seems to be in the clear but his nose is making some crackling noises so I assume one is one the way. I love our cool mist humidifier, our vapor plug in and Motrin. The combination does help both kids to sleep through the night which is key...sleep! I hope this winter proves to be kinder to my daughter who was sick too much last winter, ear infections, stomach bug, etc.

Our son was born a healthy 9 pounds 7 months ago and in that time we learned a great deal about Gastroesophageal reflux disease or GERD. Our son had what his pediatrician and I considered to be a mild case and in hindsight, our daughter, now 2 ½ may have had an even milder case. When my son was about 2 weeks old he began what I can only describe as grunting. I remembered my daughter doing it also but hers was slight and soon went away. My son’s grunting was loud and kept him awake at night.

My son is 11 weeks old and while we just celebrated a full nights sleep, we also morned the arrival of his first cold. I was extremely annal about my toddler going near him the first few weeks and have been a hand washing fanatic since my daughter was born two years ago. Sometimes bugs just get through the barrier of hand washing, cautious sneezing and coughing and good vitamins. My son is doing so well, all things considering.

A child in our center has croup and a friend of mine sent this informative message about her experiences. Croup is relatively common and it's likely you will either experience it at home or know someone whose kids have had it. "Between my two daughters I have dealt with almost a dozen episodes of croup, so I have a good bit of experience. I should say that I am not a doctor. I am simple telling you about my experiences and what has worked for my daughters.

The reason, I feel I should share my experiences is because in some cases the croup can be a very scary experience for the child and for the parents. Even after having dealt with several bouts of croup, that distinctive cough in the middle of night starts my heart racing...

The recent recall of Veggie Booty an all natural, vegetarian snack made of puffed rice and corn (this one with spinach and kale) made me furious. Yes, furious! I am pregnant and have a 20 month old and do everything I can to eat right for my unborn child and buy foods that are good and fun for my toddler and my husband. So, I go out and buy organic this, all natural that and sleep a little better at night.

Some parenting questions are easy to answer. For example the question, "should I let my two year-old play with my new Henckels knife set" rarely requires much thought. But the question of whether to take a child to the doctor, often after hours, is harder to answer. A friend, whom I called this weekend, said her doctor told her to bring in a child anytime they are listless. N, who is normally running full speed, was listless and on Sunday night his fever had increased to 103 degrees...