Excrement and Emesis

Warning! Potty humor and bodily functions abound.

On our last day in Hilton Head, I finally admitted that Nathan was sick. When we left home he was "recovering" from his last bout of day care gripe. He was in good spirits and the fever was gone but he was still plagued with festive colored snot, especially in the morning. A week later, that part still hadn't gotten better. As a pediatrician, I staunchly held out until that 10-12 day mark that indicates that no, your child is probably not going to get better without pharmacologic intervention. As a mommy, I watched my sweet boy get a little crankier, a little more easily disturbed with each passing day. His eyes got puffy and his nose got even grosser. So, I finally called his doctor and did what I really, really did not want to do. I procured some amoxicillin.

He hates the stuff. With the ear infection it was a twice daily mewling, spitting, pink-bubblegum-smearing battle to get about half a dose into him with equal amount of time spent cleaning it off everywhere else afterwards. I had never before conceived of a teaspoon as an impossibly large quantity of liquid but it is a nearly insurmountable obstacle. Needless to say, I breathed a sigh of relief when his ear recheck was normal and we stopped the meds about 3 days early. This time around I waited until there was a flashing neon "SICK" sign over his head before I gave in and admitted he may need an antibiotic.

Anyway, there we were, on vacation, with a syringe full of sticky amox and a boy who has a very sensitive gag reflex. Here's the bullet point version of events.

- Nathan took about 3/4 of the dose.
- Distressed look
- Medicine returned with interest - about 4 ounces of warm, freshly consumed leche de madre.
- Mommy, who hates vomit more than any other bodily secretion, flees to jacuzzi tub, shedding warm, wet, stinky clothing
- Daddy and Nathan follow in appreciation of chance to sit in tub
- Tub filling slowly
- Mommy swishing
- Nathan poops in tub
- Tub emptied
- Tub cleaned
- Tub filling, slowly.
- Praying for sufficient hot water
- Nathan, sitting in mommy's lap in tub, poops - again
- Hysteric laughter
- Tub emptied
- Mommy showers
- Tub cleaned
- Tub filled, slowly, lukewarm.
- Finally, tub enjoyed by all.

Final score - Meds ingested: 0, Squeaky Clean Elsters: 3, Rookie Parent Mistakes: at least a dozen

Fortified by an afternoon nap, Dave and I were able to laugh at the whole comedy of errors. It wasn't until later, however, that Nate did as well . . . (click to see a laughing baby)