Monday, October 27, 2008

Mother's Intuition




This afternoon when Luke woke up from his nap, he was crying his eyes out. He just wanted to lay his head down on my shoulder and hang out with me.....this is when I knew something was wrong. Luke does not like to sit still. So I decided to call the doctor. What was the reason I wanted to bring him in, they wanted to know. I don't know.....he's cranky? I am sure they thought I was nuts but sometimes a mom just needs some validation (I really wanted to hear someone say, "No, you're not crazy....there is definitely something wrong with this kid.")

After waiting 50 minutes to see the doctor(!), he let me know that there was nothing wrong with my son. His ear tubes looked good - no ear infection. His throat looked fine. His breathing sounded ok - no wheezing. No rashes. He did seem a bit concerned about Luke screaming his head off throughout the entire appointment but I didn't feel like explaining that he was probably crying because he was trapped inside this tiny exam room for almost an entire hour before the doctor made an appearance!

As we drove to pick up Zachary and Emilie at a friend's house, Luke was quiet in the backseat and he looked worn out. All of a sudden he started making this coughing/gagging/crying sound. After having three kids and going through one or two rounds of the stomach flu each year, I knew what was coming. I took him out of the car and let him stand next to me for a few minutes while I tried to steer him away from my shoes. Well, after about 3 minutes, he seemed to calm down and nothing came of it.

I put the kids in the car and since it was 5 o'clock, I decided to scrap my idea of barbecuing tri-tip and baking potatoes. We drove to pick up a $5 pepperoni pizza. Just as I pulled out of the parking lot with the pizza next to me, Luke started coughing/crying/gagging. As I looked in my review mirror, he began to projectile vomit. (I know....too much information!) How many times have my kids barfed in their carseats? Hmmmm, I think I have actually lost count. They must know that a carseat is so much more time consuming to clean than let's say....the tile floor in the bathroom.

Anyway, after the first incident (luckily, we were stopped at a light), I grabbed my daughter's baby doll carrier that she just borrowed from a friend (sorry, friend!). I ripped off the Winnie the Pooh cover so that only the plastic base remained. I shoved it under Luke's chin and it actually caught the next round of yuck! Seriously, it held probably one cup of regurgitated Ritz crackers, peanut butter and quesadilla! (I know....this is WAY TOO MUCH INFORMATION!)

All of you moms out there know what comes next.....get home, wash sick child in the bath, put on fresh diaper and clothes, and put child on a towel in front of the tv while mom gets to work cleaning the car and car seat. I armed myself with washcloths, soapy water, vinegar, the shop vac, gloves, and plastic bags for trash. I scrubbed my heart out for about 45 minutes and on the advice of a friend, I ended up removing the carseat cover and throwing it in the washing machine. (Yes, I do know that you are NOT supposed to do that.)

Luke seemed completely fine after that one incident. He wanted to eat and no longer seemed sick. He was more than ready to jump in his crib at 7 o'clock this evening.

All this to say....I KNEW IT. I KNEW IT. I WAS RIGHT. MY BABY IS SICK. I AM NOT CRAZY. So far, I have refrained from calling the pediatrician to inform him of my Super Mom Status.

Update: At 10 pm this evening, I was back to work cleaning up yuck. I have to give my husband credit here: he thought it would be a good idea to lay a towel down in Luke's crib. That made for a quick and easy clean-up. (I hope I do not have to write another update tonight!)

7 comments:

Laura said...

Ummmm.... don't worry about returning the winnie the pooh toy car seat....it's yours! ha ha ha Oh I hope you don't have a horrible night ahead of you and I will start praying now that you, Matt, and the other 2 don't get it.

Allison Vasquez said...

So sad! Mia had the flu for the first time this month so I totally understand about the clean up . . only when she had the flu, so did Troy and I. I'll pray that doesn't happen to you. That is the worst thing I can think of.

Tonight, I'm hoping my mother's intuition is wrong. Mia has been acting strangely today and I had a suspicion it was her ear, but I don't feel like I have enough evidence for an urgent care visit yet. She's finally sleeping, so I'm hoping that means she's fine.

Okay, so my comment turned into a blog of it's own! Thanks for giving me some blog space!

Allison Vasquez said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Unknown said...

Oh, Heather! Barfing is the WORST! I'll be praying for you guys, too.

heather said...

Wow, you guys are all up late! I got to sleep from 10:45-11:45pm. It is now 1:15 and I just turned on "Dora" for Luke! This is crazy! He cannot fall asleep and now the yuck is coming out the other end....ewwww!!!!!!!!

Cindy said...

Poor baby Lukie.

cyndie said...

sorry about your sickness drama. cute picture of you and luke!