SteelyKid had a check-up yesterday, and got three shots (chicken pox, MMR, and seasonal flu). This may or may not be related to her high fever and general misery last night; whatever the cause, she was not a happy camper.
Since she can't very well go to day care like that, I'm staying home with her this morning. I'm also leaving for the Sigma Xi meeting this afternoon, which is outside Houston, so I'm going to go from dealing with an unwell toddler to feeling like an unwell toddler as I deal with the air travel system. Whee!
In honor of spending the morning trying to distract an unhappy SteelyKid, a poll:
Choose only one.
- Log in to post comments
More like this
In comments to the Sagan post, Niall asked about how I spend my time. This is about to change, as today is the last day of my class for the fall term, then we have an extended break, but it's probably interesting in a life-in-academia way to put up my schedule at the moment:
Monday, Wednesday,…
SteelyKid had her two-month check-up in Monday (her two-month birthday was Tuesday), and checking in with the medical profession means we've got the opportunity for some baby science. And it's not science without graphs:
That's SteelyKid's weight as a function of time. Like most babies, she…
Appa appears in all the weekly Toddler Blogging pictures, but he's not the only stuffed animal in Chateau Steelypips. the others were getting a little resentful of Appa's blog time, so here's the full cast of characters:
In the back row, from left to right, we have: SteelyKid, Baby, Audrey, Appa,…
Warning: this is an intensely personal piece and I'm not sure why I'm posting it at all, except that some people I know have been encouraging me for awhile to write more about my illness or disability in general. So blame them.
(By the way, you aren't supposed to read this and feel pity for me…
Sometimes I get good results by letting the cranky child rest her ear on my chest while I loudly hum the "Transylvanian Lullaby"
(the theme from "Young Frankenstein")
Poor baby, poor daddy. Temporary pain for a greater good is hard to explain to someone who is very small.
I would also suggest "Brrrrrrrr-ing! Brrrrrrrrrr-ing!"
Whoops, forgot that was the same bit!
you did also leave out "Badger badger badger" but I think manah manah is probably superior anyway...
oh, never mind, I didn't notice the theme.
I was going to say Cow. Cow. Yipyipyip, but then I remembered the Llama
For a while, every time someone said "phenomena", someone else would respond, "Do doo de doo doo!"
One bat hanging in the steeple
One bat flies in through the door
That makes two bats in my belfry
VONDERFUL!
But wait, there's more ...
Two bats hanging in the steeple
One bat flies in through the door
That makes three bats in my belfry
VONDERFUL!
But wait, there's more ...
Three bats
hanging in the steeple
One bat flies in through the door
That makes four bats in my belfry
VONDERFUL!
But wait, there's more ...
Four bats hanging in the steeple
One bat flies in through the door
That makes five bats in my belfry
VONDERFUL!
But wait, there's more ...
Five bats hanging in the steeple
One bat flies in through the door
That makes six bats in my belfry
VONDERFUL!
But wait, there's more ...
Six bats hanging in the steeple
One bat flies in through the door
That makes seven bats in my belfry
VONDERFUL!
But wait, there's more ...
Seven bats hanging in the steeple
One bat flies in through the door
That makes eight bats in my belfry
VONDERFUL!
But wait, there's more ...
Eight bats hanging in the steeple
One bat flies in through the door
That makes nine bats in my belfry
VONDERFUL!
But wait, there's more ...
My favorites for calming the cranky kid were Great Green Gobs of Greasey Grimey Gopher Guts, alternated with the fight song of Dad's Big Ten alma mater.
Michael H that goes back to either Sesame Street or the Muppet Show depending on your age. I remember it from the 70s, but youtube has many versions including a couple with adult actors who were children in the 70s so it appears to have had a long run.
Laudanum would the the traditional approach. Handy for all sorts of childcare issues. Miserable, cranky kids who fuss and nod but won't quite fall asleep, etc. A baby dose and it is off to Sleepyland. Diphenhydramine is a weak imitation but it works and it is safer.
[Insert usual boilerplate warnings for correct dosing, contraindications, possible dependence, need to consult a doctor is condition gets worse, etc, here]
I know, y'all are aghast that anyone would drug a child. But it is infinitely better than making the kid suffer while silently building frustrations and resentments that your going to take out on them passive-aggressively later in life.
Let's face facts here, when we, as adults, feel miserable it is a great relief to be able to just sleep through it and wake up feeling better. Occasional use of the safer end of pharmacology is a great comfort to us. So why is it a good thing to withhold it from our children. Or is withholding comfort from your child another way of both working off and add more passive-aggressive frustration?
Manah manah works beyond the toddler age as well - my kids (age 3 and 6) love it.
It is bad advice to give your kid diphenhydramine. It makes adults sleepy; the more typical reaction by toddlers is the exact opposite -- it makes them excited and cranky. We've had good luck with children's ibuprofen for fevers. Other than than, you just have to wait it out.