Betrayal

We took the munchkin to her doctor for more shots today. We weighed in (14 lbs, 7.5 oz!) and then the nurse left us in the little room for a while so she could draw up the shots. While we waited, we were entertaining Ellie, who was just having a grand old time. Laughing, rolling over on the exam table, playing with our faces, standing on our laps, sitting on our laps, and so forth. BB started zerberting her tummy and she was laughing up a storm.

And then the nurse came back in, and before Ellie knew it, she was being held down on the table and mean sharp poky things were being shot into her thighs!! Outrage! Horror! Betrayal! She screamed and sobbed and we felt absolutely terrible. I swear half her tears were from the pain and half from the shock of being given shots after we were all having so much fun together. Fortunately, she calmed down quickly with a little holding and singing.

Yesterday we went for a nice hike in the evening. When Ellie got tired of being in her carrier, she'd take a little break and go for a ride on Daddy's shoulders. She was extremely pleased with this arrangement.

shot in the leg, and I'm to blame...

yeahh, I give looove a bad name...

Ahem. Sorry. Woke up with that song in my head this morning. (The original lyrics, though.) Woke up at 4:30 a.m., actually, worrying about taking Ellie in for her first vaccines. (Hence the made-up lyrics.) 

Yeah, I know the link to autism has been disproved, allegedly; I was more worried about the rare severe side effects ranging from seizures to, like, her intestines tying themselves in knots or encephalitis or whatever. When one of your children has died, it makes you a tad bit paranoid about shit happening to the other ones. As I explained to her pediatrician, who is awesome & very understanding.

Sooo, we're doing the Sears schedule, because I do think vaccines are pretty much necessary for the pooker's health as well as public health. (Mom tip #4: when freaking out about your child's possible death by rare causes, get as much data as possible on whatever it is you're freaking out about. The odds of a severe reaction are something like 1 in 2600, according to Dr. Sears.) So it was only two vaccines today instead of five.

She liked the rotatech syrup fine, and then it was time for her DTaP shot. Lemme just say: OMFG. When the nurse brought that needle out, I nearly had heart failure. It was so freaking long, and she stuck the ENTIRE thing into my poor baby's chubby thigh. Ellie, not surprisingly, screamed like a banshee and cried like it was her first heartbreak. I almost cried, too, she was so upset. But she calmed down pretty quickly, fell asleep, and seems to be doing pretty well. She had a mild fever an hour and a half after the shot, but her temp was back down an hour and a half after that. She's been a bit fussy, but she's so damn sweet & easy-going, she still hasn't reached normal baby fussy levels yet.

Knock on wood, she continues to do well. She's up to 11 lbs 3 oz, which I'd just like to note for the record is still 3 oz less than her dad weighed at birth. Yes, I think "holy shit" is the phrase you're looking for.

One last thing: yesterday I was talking to a woman I'd just met. "Well, enjoy it while you can," she said, referring to my darling, snuggly little pooker. "Once they start talking, they never shut the fuck up!"

All I have to say is, wow. I realize she was only half-serious, or maybe three-quarters serious (there was sort of an edge to her voice when she said it). But when one of your biggest regrets is that you'll never get to hear the voice of your first child, you tend to really look forward to talking with subsequent children. I am so glad this kid is my kid, and I hope she never shuts up.