Lusting to be elsewhere

I think it's getting time to leave NYC. I'm at the end of my tolerance for people in cars, with bad taste in music, playing it super-extra loudly and parking in front of my building. And car alarms all night. And drunk people at night. And the 7 train at my window. And no grass to sit on. 

There are just so many inconsiderate people, everywhere. I think leaving the city means having to put up with fewer proportionately.

Miss C still has her ear infection but the new antibiotic seems to be somewhat better. Still a little hyped up in the morning after I give it to her. I've also been giving her Tylenol, twice a day since yesterday. For some reason I think it helps a little. I could be wrong. At least she told me she needed at nap today at 11am and let me put her down awake by 11.15. The last week she was having a hell of a time relaxing.

Not her fault. Those ears be killing her comfort.

I've been more protective of her nap than usual. Not going to playmates that would interfere or taking her into the city. Not until this ear business is over. She sleeps at least two hours at naptime. No way I'm interfering with that rest if it helps get her better.

She has been, also, very stressed and picky about eating. Dinner in particular. I cant't figure out why. Tonight I'm going to start dinner at 5.30 instead of 6 or 6.30, and make sure there is a new book to read to her during it. Last four nights have required me playing Tinkerbell movie preview in order to calm her down and eat. Something.

Meanwhile, I daydream about eating the omakase at Jewel Bako, knowing full well I can't get that outside NYC, or another large, expensive city with Japanese residents. There are desperately lacking decent sushi, forget omakase, in Leon. I hear there is some in Monterrey but there's zero chance I'll move there until after the narcotrafficos clear out.

Blah blah blah

Ear infection + Amoxicillin = X

Do you remember the old Family Feud tv show? Remember when someone would say an answer that was wrong? It wasn't just a big, red X on the board -- it was accompanied by a eah-eahh sound. Made you feel both wrong and stupid.

After 48 hours on amoxicillin, that's how I felt. The baby was very, very hyper about 30 minutes after I gave her a dose and this would last a few hours. Getting her to bed and a nap, even leaving the park was drama.

Once I finally realized the correlation, I spoke to the doctor on call last night. She thought perhaps it's the sugar in the amoxicillin that they add to give it a bubble gum flavor, which the baby adored. Couldn't suck it down fast enough.

When I mentioned her little heart beat was much faster than usual and she wasn't just hyped up but almost possessed hyper. Could NOT sit still or relax. The doctor believes she's allergic to penicillin and called in azythromycin (sp?) to the pharmacy.

This morning will be the first of that instead. I hope it works. Her ears are really hurting her.

Neither of us are allergic to penicillin, that we know of. But holy christmas. I'm never giving this kid any such meds again.

Apparently, the common side effect is diarrhea for both amoxicillin and azythromycin. That I can handle. I guess Miss C is special. Makes sense since I'm pretty sensitive to certain meds that make me feel very anxious/hyper. My dad too. Poor kid.

We have our first, real sickness

After a week of being snotty nosed and mommy-mommy, she was better for nearly a full week. Monday she started to get all mommy-mommy again and feel warm. There wasn't any high temperature, although the thermometer said 96 degrees so I figured two things: A) the thermometer is broken, and B) she's not as hot as I think she is.

Well fast forward to today at the doctor's office, she has an ear infection in both ears. Hence the resurge of yellow mucus streaming out of her nose, and the constant pulling on her ears. When I thought she had an ear infection last month, the doctor said it was just teething. But this time it was.

Got the amoxicillin and first dose given before bedtime since we got home about 6pm.

I carried her to the city and back, plus grabbed some needed groceries and the drug store two times. I am exhausted, and my lower back hurts so badly I nearly started crying a little while ago when I tried to pick her up out of the bathtub. And, poor thing is super uncomfortable (still) and pulling on her ears in her crib right now. :(

Gotta keep her home tomorrow and then see how she is if she's okay to go to music class on Friday or not.

At least this isn't the flu and she's contagious!

Two Carolina stories from today

When she woke up at about 8am, which is about 30-60 minutes later than usual, she was in a very good mood. I went to change her diaper and her clothes, so to keep the good mood going I showed her one of her diapers that has a Sesame Street character on it with apples and bananas. (Yesterday, we were reading a book during dinner and the little girl said she liked Apples, and another page she said she liked Bananas. She also said she likes Cookies and Pizza and Sandwiches, but that's for another time.)

I said to her, "Look, it has apples and BANANAS!" (like it was the most exciting thing ever) And she smiles broadly. So I keep repeating "apples and BANANAS!" and she smiles or giggles. Then I say, "Apples and..." She goes, "anaNAS!"

It was very cute.

Then this morning at the park she was wandering around and more and more little babies started to arrive. (It was around the time just after younger babies wake up from their first morning nap.) She was starting to do things I normally say 'no' to -- so I knew she was starting to get a little tired. I suggested we go to the stroller for "a cookie and juice".

Like usual, she goes, "Cookk! Juze!" (cookk is for cookie)

I say we should go to the stroller to get "snack and juice" and she just runs off. She goes towards the park exit. I said again "The snack and juice is in the stroller. Let's go to the stroller." She's saying, "Juze! Juze!" as she keeps running towards the sidewalk, then takes a right turn and keeps going down the sidewalk.

Apparently she wanted to have snack and juice at home and was heading there as fast as her little running legs could carry her.

I grabbed her, got her in the stroller and headed to the store and then home with cookies and juice!

Lots of fun.

Speaking of food, we've finally gotten her the chewable calcium supplements that she needs. (The liquid one I bought last week was wrong. Sigh...) Still having trouble with milk -- broke out in a face rash last week. And I need a new toddler multivitamin. The one we have is the same as when she was an infant and it's not really all that complete. Any suggestions?

just up from her nap

And I can hear her talking to herself in there going, "Quack, quack, quack, quack"

Quack, bye-bye, and no-no-no are some of her favorite things to say. We have a duck at bathtime and one that holds up the handtowel in the bathroom, and a bunch in her books. She's practicing now.

Super cute and hilarious!

When the groceries are heavier than the baby

I took the little muchkin into the city with me this morning to go to Whole Foods. Get some coconut milk yogurt, fruit, veggies, frozen blueberries, other stuff, and a calcium supplement her doctor told me was at that store.

The trains weren't cooperating very well, and it took an hour to get there -- and then the same home.

She wasn't very happy about it, but was mostly content to be in the baby carrier and suck on her chupon.

The groceries, two bags, were easily heavier than she was. So there's her in the Ergo, her diaper bag on one shoulder, one grocery bag on the other shoulder, one bag in my hand. Awesome.

It was nice that some people gave up their seat so we could sit down. Carolina fell asleep in the carrier before we got out of Manhattan. Gratefully, she stayed asleep when we got home and I put her in her crib. Unfortunately it was very early, but what can I do? I'm just glad she is sleeping.

Poor thing is still suffering with congestion in her nose and waking up at night, crying out, probably because she can't breathe. She stops before I even wake up enough to stand up, so I don't go in her room in case I would just wake her more.

Anyway, at this age, I'm still glad she's on the small side. Doing this shopping with the stroller would be absolutely impossible. Stairs up and down the subway and into our building -- impossible.