I will be telling Iyla about this year's Easter celebration for the rest of her life. 'Twas the year we spent 3 hours at the doctor while our 15 some guests arrived, then spent the rest of the afternoon with her scream-crying in my arms- not letting me put her down, eat, socialize, etc.
Let's start from the beginning.
Last week on Tuesday Iyla had myofascial & cranial sacral work done. It actually went really well- and at the chiropractor on Wednesday, he noted that he could tell a HUGE difference with her neck & overall muscles. So that was great news!
Wednesday night I cooked dinner for BC and I- and amazingly enough, Iyla went down for a nap while I cooked. We sat down at the table like excited school kids- praising our good luck at an actual seated dinner with just the two of us. The SECOND we clinked wine glasses- I kid you not- Iyla woke up crying.
Attack of the BABY RADAR!
BC got her, put her in the sling, and starting pacing around the house. At one point he had to sneeze, which startled Iyla so badly she started screaming. And there was no consoling her- the screaming lasted right up until she went to sleep.
Then the scream-crying continued on and off Thursday & Friday. Both nights we had plans for early dinners out with friends, and both nights Iyla had absolute MELTDOWNS of intense, inconsolable crying. Very out of her recent norm. A quick desperate poll to my November Mamas Board Friday night led to several responses saying it could be an ear infection and that I should take her in to be seen ASAP.
Saturday I got an appointment with the on call doc at 11:50- 2 hours before all of our company was scheduled to arrive. Iyla and I waited for over an hour to be seen. When we finally got into the exam room, I seriously felt like I was putting my sweet baby girl through torture. They took her temp rectally (a first for her) and proceeded to check her ears & mouth. The on call doc did NOT have a gentle bedside manner, and poor Iyla was crying during the entire exam.
The good news? Ears were clear.
The bad news? We still didn't have answers.
The doc said we needed to do blood work & get a urine sample. My poor girl had to get her toe pricked for blood and then have a catheter inserted to extract urine (we'd waited 45 minutes hoping she'd pee on her own, but to no avail).
The time was now well past guests arriving for Easter, and I had a sad, exhausted baby on my hands. It was awful. And guess what? Blood and urine were both normal so the conclusion was....
She must be TEETHING.
Seriously?! Good God. I put my daughter through all that to be told she was TEETHING?!?
We did discover something at the visit that totally made it worthwhile to be there, however. When the nurse was examining Iyla, she discovered that Iyla's private little lady parts had partially fused together. It was a total surprise to me- I didn't even know that could happen! The nurse had to slowly pull them apart while Iyla screamed some more. I am to now check on those after every bath to ensure this doesn't happen again. I am SO glad we caught it now, before things closed up further & we did have issues with infections/etc.
When we finally got home to a house full of relatives, Iyla and I were both totally spent. She proceeded to spend the entire afternoon scream-crying or sleeping in my arms- not wanting to be put down. There were a few brief beautiful smiling moments- but those were fleeting, and our guests didn't really get to enjoy her. Not that I blame her after all she had gone through!
She DID look adorable in her Easter dress... unfortunately we didn't get a lot of photo evidence. Here's a cute one my dad took:
Iyla's fussiness continued Sunday... but I am happy to report (knocking on wood here!) that today the clouds seemed to lift and my sweet, playful, smiley little girl made a return. It's amazing what a good mood that instantly puts me in!
Who, me?
Let's start from the beginning.
Last week on Tuesday Iyla had myofascial & cranial sacral work done. It actually went really well- and at the chiropractor on Wednesday, he noted that he could tell a HUGE difference with her neck & overall muscles. So that was great news!
Wednesday night I cooked dinner for BC and I- and amazingly enough, Iyla went down for a nap while I cooked. We sat down at the table like excited school kids- praising our good luck at an actual seated dinner with just the two of us. The SECOND we clinked wine glasses- I kid you not- Iyla woke up crying.
Attack of the BABY RADAR!
BC got her, put her in the sling, and starting pacing around the house. At one point he had to sneeze, which startled Iyla so badly she started screaming. And there was no consoling her- the screaming lasted right up until she went to sleep.
Then the scream-crying continued on and off Thursday & Friday. Both nights we had plans for early dinners out with friends, and both nights Iyla had absolute MELTDOWNS of intense, inconsolable crying. Very out of her recent norm. A quick desperate poll to my November Mamas Board Friday night led to several responses saying it could be an ear infection and that I should take her in to be seen ASAP.
Saturday I got an appointment with the on call doc at 11:50- 2 hours before all of our company was scheduled to arrive. Iyla and I waited for over an hour to be seen. When we finally got into the exam room, I seriously felt like I was putting my sweet baby girl through torture. They took her temp rectally (a first for her) and proceeded to check her ears & mouth. The on call doc did NOT have a gentle bedside manner, and poor Iyla was crying during the entire exam.
The good news? Ears were clear.
The bad news? We still didn't have answers.
The doc said we needed to do blood work & get a urine sample. My poor girl had to get her toe pricked for blood and then have a catheter inserted to extract urine (we'd waited 45 minutes hoping she'd pee on her own, but to no avail).
The time was now well past guests arriving for Easter, and I had a sad, exhausted baby on my hands. It was awful. And guess what? Blood and urine were both normal so the conclusion was....
She must be TEETHING.
Seriously?! Good God. I put my daughter through all that to be told she was TEETHING?!?
We did discover something at the visit that totally made it worthwhile to be there, however. When the nurse was examining Iyla, she discovered that Iyla's private little lady parts had partially fused together. It was a total surprise to me- I didn't even know that could happen! The nurse had to slowly pull them apart while Iyla screamed some more. I am to now check on those after every bath to ensure this doesn't happen again. I am SO glad we caught it now, before things closed up further & we did have issues with infections/etc.
When we finally got home to a house full of relatives, Iyla and I were both totally spent. She proceeded to spend the entire afternoon scream-crying or sleeping in my arms- not wanting to be put down. There were a few brief beautiful smiling moments- but those were fleeting, and our guests didn't really get to enjoy her. Not that I blame her after all she had gone through!
She DID look adorable in her Easter dress... unfortunately we didn't get a lot of photo evidence. Here's a cute one my dad took:
I look exhausted, and I was.
Not only did we have a rough afternoon, but Iyla had been up 4x the night before.
A brief moment to catch up with family while my Aunt Sheri held a sleeping Iyla in the other room
Video documentation of a happy girl today
I leave you with several photos from this past week. Here's hoping my little lady continues to have happier days!
Practicing her Blue Steel look
What's so funny?
So over having her picture taken
Sweet bedtime shot with her Papa
Pre-bath mirror admiration
Love those blue eyes
And a closing shot of Sam & Iyla's 'cute-off.'
I call it a draw!
Arg, teething! I hate it! Alec is also starting to have random pains from this even though there are no signs of teeth coming up at ALL. They turned 5 months on Sunday. He'll settle down a little if we give him a cold washcloth to gnaw on, or a rubber toy that he can shove in his mouth. Iyla looks adorable in those bunny ears!
ReplyDeleteI hope she has less painful teething from now on. She looks adorable in her Easter dress and bunny ears.
ReplyDeleteAww..I'm sorry y'all had to endure that. Yes, teeth cutting gums must be so painful in their tender mouths. Have you tried the homeopathic teething tablets and/or an amber necklace? No good evidence that they work but they can't hurt (other than the $$$). I also give Ezra a child's toothbrush to gnaw on.
ReplyDeleteWow, Iyla's really coming into her personhood. Is it the eyebrows? I see a real human emerging (versus the alien newborn)!
And how are you coping with the scream fests? It can be really hard to hold an inconsolable baby for hours on end, especially after on little sleep. This too shall pass.
Hugs,
Abby
Abby