The Four Madrilenos: Sick n' Teething!

Evie is taking a nap, and between trying to find something to eat and getting a couple things done, I only have a minute to write. Evie has been sick since about Tuesday. Jesse has a cold and passed it on. :-) So far I have had some symptoms but nothing debilitating. Neither of them have been able to shake their colds. From Tuesday night through Friday night, she couldn't fall asleep unless she was sitting up. Basically I had a newborn all over again. And she would wake up almost every hour! And her naps were all messed up.

I will tell you, if I ever thought snot was disgusting, I had to get over it after my baby starting snotting all over me!

When she started wheezing and not eating well on Friday (I had to give up feeding her solids for a couple days), I thought it was time to take her to the doctor. So I cut my lunch date with Miss Jennifer short, and sped off. Well, turns out she had a really bad cold AND SHE WAS TEETHING!!! The doctor told me that at this age, cold symptoms are more general in that babies get every symptom (instead of adults who may just get the runny nose or the sore throat). The bad news is that she can't take any cold medicine until she two years old.

Evie's normal doctor was out that day so we got a different doctor. The doctor enforced that, because I now knew she didn't have an ear infection (which I was worried about) that I needed to practice "aggressive sleep training." I could raise the head of her crib, but I couldn't hold her to help her sleep.

"What you have to do," he ordered me a la Dr. Phil, "is put her down, turn on the monitor, turn off the lights, shut the door, and put a pillow over your head." Because I had only about 5 hours of sleep TOTAL for the past few nights, I didn't have the energy to tell him that was never going to happen. He kept repeating the phrase "tough love/compassion" or maybe it was "tough love compassion." Personally, I could never just dump my kid in her crib in order to "let her work it out" when she's sick. I was teary when I left the doctor; teary from sleep exhaustion and incredulity. I want my baby to know that when she is sick, her mommy will be there for her!

On a more positive note, the teething news was right! I was washing her little bottom teeth on Sunday night et voila! She has a top tooth!!! The left one is not far behind. They look a little prehistoric. They don't come down from the base of the gums; it's more from the front. It's so cute, though, and so far no biting!

She is crawling INSANELY lately. On Saturday, she decided that the living room wasn't enough. Jesse was playing with her in the living room and I was in the bedroom. Evie decided to come find me so she crawled all the way to the bedroom. She was sweating and panting, and even with a cold, she is resilient! I still haven't baby proofed all that much. I think I will just pack everything away and put it in storage.

For Mother's Day my mother and sister bought me the Pack n' Play that I wanted, so when that arrives, I will see how she likes it. Of course, I will let her crawl around, but sometimes I need for her to be contained. My mother told me that I enjoyed mine so long as she didn't leave me. She said she would take it outdoors and garden while I played. That sounds delightful. If and when we buy a house, I will definitely try it.

Did you make it this far through my post? Here are some pictures:

Sick Baby: