Bad Weekend

We had an awful weekend. :-( Carson had his first "big" fever. Miss Kathy told me last Wednesday that several people (kids and teachers) were sick w/ fevers, etc. Since Carson wasn't feeling hot the weekend before (slight fever and bad cough), I thought that maybe that was all he'd get of this "round" of sickness. Uh.....no. He woke up Saturday morning and just wasn't himself. He just wanted me to hold him. He felt a bit warm so I took his temp. 100.2. No big deal. He went down for his morning nap as usual but woke up only 30 minutes later screaming. I took his temp again and it was 98.6. He just wasn't acting right though so we went to lie down on the couch together. He just kept whimpering and twitching. It was starting to freak me out. Then he broke out in goosebumps from head to toe and started shivering.

My mom's a nurse (thank God) so I called her immediately. She said that chills usually indicate fever and to expect a spike. Well no kidding! 45 minutes later, he was at 103.1! I freaked out watching the digital thermometer climb. Of course, I immediately called mom back! So began the weekend of Tylenol, Motrin, baths, cold washcloths and lots and lots of cuddling!

That day his fever went up and down all day, finally reaching 103.7. He literally was bright red and hot to the touch at times. I called the after hours peds line and they reassured me that we were doing all the right things and not to panic unless it got to 104. I was worried to put him down to sleep that night so we kept him out in the living room and slept next to the pack n play. Or tried to. He only slept for about an hour on his own and then he wouldn't let me put him down. So I held him all night. It's just awful to watch your child miserable like that! At the same time, it's nice to be able to hold and hug and comfort. I won't lie - it's a great feeling to have them reach up to you and have them stop crying the moment you pick them up. :-)

Anyway, thought we were doing well Sunday. He woke up and his temp was right around 100. Stayed there for most of the day. He was up and playing normally. We noticed he felt really warm. And then, all of a sudden, he was burning up again. We checked his temp and it had spiked to 104.4! OMG. Okay....the nurse said not to panic unless it reached....104. MOM! Again, love that my mom is a nurse! She convinced me not to panic and we gave him a double-dose of Motrin. That brought it down fairly quickly, even though it stayed between 102 and 103 the remainder of the night.

Daddy stayed home with him today and we went in to see the doctor. He has an ear infection in his right ear. :-( No wonder he felt so horrible. Antibiotics to the rescue! He's still running a slight fever tonight but hopefully we'll be fever free and back to school tomorrow! I'm relieved to know it's at least something we can treat!

So, long story short, we survived our first major fever. I was proud of myself that I didn't panic too much :-) and we were able to get through it. Poor baby though! I'm sure it's the first of many. It's just that getting all of these "firsts" under our belt.......kind of hard and scary. And exhausting. :-) But hopefully we're all on the mend now.