I've heard it my entire life... "when you have child, it will be the hardest thing you've ever done."
You never really know until it happens to you! Molly has been sick this past week. It all started last Tuesday. Willie's sister Nina, her husband Nick, and their 7 month old Ty were visiting ALL the way from Alaska. I had noticed that Molly was sleeping a little bit "harder" than normal. She also has been sleeping through the night since she was about 1 month old, but Monday night, she was waking up at least every hour just crying. Her eyes were closed! I would rock her and she'd fall back to sleep. An hour later, same thing... over and over and over again.
Needless to say, since we have been so spoiled with sleep for so long, this interrupted sleep was like a smack in the face! I was a zombie on Tuesday morning. We had plans to have cousin pictures taken (future post to come) at 11 that morning. I was getting Molly dressed when I noticed she felt a bit warm, so I decided to take her temp. It was 100.5, but worried me regardless. A newborn to 3 month old with a temp at 100.4+ should be seen by a doctor. I called the nurses hot line (the best thing ever) through our pediatricians office, and left a message. They call back within one hour with answers. She told us to give her 0.8 mls of Tylenol and watch the temp, and to make an appointment if it reaches 102 or has one for 3 days. To make a LONG story short-ish, against my better judgement we traveled to Elizabeth City to visit with family. Day 3 arrived, and Molly still had a fever. They ranged from 100.5-101.6 for those few days. I contacted a few friends that have children in Elizabeth City for pediatrician suggestions. I was able to get an appointment at Coastal Peds at 3:30. After a long wait (the place was packed) we were taken to the back for our visit. Dr. Hudson, a pediatrician Willie and I have known since we were kids was the doctor! It was a relief to see a familiar face considering we weren't at Molly's regular pediatricians office! After a urine analysis and a culture, it was verified that Molly had a UTI.
MY POOR BABY!!
We also learned that we were giving her the incorrect dose of Tylenol, too little not too much. Apparently Tylenol has recently changed its concentration so the dosage has changed. With was her weight (checked at two month check up) she could have had 1.25 mls compared to the 0.8 we were giving her. But with her new weight - checked at appointment at a whopping 14 lbs 7 ounces, she could have been taking 2.5 mls. That's a big difference from what we were giving her! No wonder her temp wasn't going down! To top it off she also has a virus/cold of some sort. A nasty cough with a runny/congested nose.
With the antibiotic and the correct dosage of Tylenol, the fever was gone within the first 12 hours! She has to be on the antibiotic for 10 days, so she is currently taking that twice a day.
For a few days she was hoarse from the cough. She would cry a silent cry and it would BREAK MY HEART!!! I seriously teared up every time she would cry. I just can't imagine how uncomfortable she must feel being so little!!!
I would rather be sick a zillion times more just so she wouldn't have to!
We have an ultrasound scheduled for her tomorrow (Thursday) to check out her anatomy. They want to rule out that its an anatomical thing that caused the infection. We will see how it goes!
Here are a few pics of my sick girl :-(
She was a sleepy girl! Look at those cheeks!
She was still in overall good spirits!
Still a smiley girl!
