The little man is sick these days. Sick enough that I took him to the doctor yesterday. Doctor's appointments and things of this nature are usually more my wife's milieu; she's better at the whole "nurturing" aspect of parenting than I am (I'm more in it for the vicarious living -- I've already got Lil' S tabbed as the first World Series MVP to win the Fields Medal), but it was more convenient for me to take a day off work than for her, so I had to do it.
He's got a fever and a diaper rash that proved impervious to over-the-counter ointments. The doctor thinks he might have hand, foot, and mouth disease, which sounds much worse than it actually it is (note to whoever names these things: don't call something that typically takes only a week to run its course a "disease" -- "sickness", "illness", or "bug" are far less death-evoking and patient-friendly). He doesn't have any lesions, but he has some of the other symptoms: fever, fatigue, malaise, loss of appetite, and diarrhea. Of course, these are pretty much the symptoms for every illness ever, so who knows?
The doctor told me to give him some baby analgesic to keep the fever in check, and she prescribed some sort of concoction for the diaper rash that's a mixture of zinc oxide and butt cream. This is in fact the medical term for it; "butt cream" is actually what it said on the scrip. It ended up being a pain in my butt to get filled. I had to drive all over town (in the heart of D.C. traffic) looking for a pharmacy that could do it before the end of the day. And then after that I had to drive up to my office to get my work computer so that I could work from home today. Somehow my kid getting sick segued into me spending all day in the car. Thank God (and Chinese slave labor) for the iPhone; at least I could listen to my podcasts. Normal radio just doesn't cut it anymore. If it's got commercial breaks I can't fast forward through, I'm out.
This morning Lil S's fever was gone and the rash had abated significantly. Things were looking up. But by the afternoon the fever was back (the rash thankfully not). It's been touch-and-go with him all day. He was in good spirits before he went to bed, and he went down pretty smoothly, so hopefully he's better in the morning. We shall see. We already had to cancel our nanny-share for tomorrow because he has to be fever-free for 24 hours before hanging out with other kids (doctor's orders). And then S unfortunately has to leave town super early tomorrow for a work meeting in North Carolina, and she's not coming back until Friday morning, so I'm in for a full day of some hardcore parenting tomorrow. Just me, my son, a thermometer, and butt cream.
Alright, that's all for this entry. I had a few more things I wanted to talk about like Jason Collins coming out as the first active, openly gay athlete in one of the four major American sports, and some typical Krugman fanboy stuff. But I'm out of time. I'll get to those topics later, or not.
Until next time...
He's got a fever and a diaper rash that proved impervious to over-the-counter ointments. The doctor thinks he might have hand, foot, and mouth disease, which sounds much worse than it actually it is (note to whoever names these things: don't call something that typically takes only a week to run its course a "disease" -- "sickness", "illness", or "bug" are far less death-evoking and patient-friendly). He doesn't have any lesions, but he has some of the other symptoms: fever, fatigue, malaise, loss of appetite, and diarrhea. Of course, these are pretty much the symptoms for every illness ever, so who knows?
[I wanted to talk about Jason Collins this entry, but I ran out of time.]
The doctor told me to give him some baby analgesic to keep the fever in check, and she prescribed some sort of concoction for the diaper rash that's a mixture of zinc oxide and butt cream. This is in fact the medical term for it; "butt cream" is actually what it said on the scrip. It ended up being a pain in my butt to get filled. I had to drive all over town (in the heart of D.C. traffic) looking for a pharmacy that could do it before the end of the day. And then after that I had to drive up to my office to get my work computer so that I could work from home today. Somehow my kid getting sick segued into me spending all day in the car. Thank God (and Chinese slave labor) for the iPhone; at least I could listen to my podcasts. Normal radio just doesn't cut it anymore. If it's got commercial breaks I can't fast forward through, I'm out.
This morning Lil S's fever was gone and the rash had abated significantly. Things were looking up. But by the afternoon the fever was back (the rash thankfully not). It's been touch-and-go with him all day. He was in good spirits before he went to bed, and he went down pretty smoothly, so hopefully he's better in the morning. We shall see. We already had to cancel our nanny-share for tomorrow because he has to be fever-free for 24 hours before hanging out with other kids (doctor's orders). And then S unfortunately has to leave town super early tomorrow for a work meeting in North Carolina, and she's not coming back until Friday morning, so I'm in for a full day of some hardcore parenting tomorrow. Just me, my son, a thermometer, and butt cream.
Alright, that's all for this entry. I had a few more things I wanted to talk about like Jason Collins coming out as the first active, openly gay athlete in one of the four major American sports, and some typical Krugman fanboy stuff. But I'm out of time. I'll get to those topics later, or not.
Until next time...
Super Dad!
ReplyDeleteMore like Greatest American Hero. I bumble around most the time, but somehow get the job done in the end.
ReplyDeleteOh, also, S took a 6 am flight to N. Car. did a work meeting and flew back standby that afternoon. She was home by 5 pm. So more like Super Mom!
ReplyDelete