I Guess I Forgot

I mentioned in my last post that Stephen had been sick, and acted as if I'd get to it later in that same post.

I never did. Shame on me.

Basically, the boy had a reaction to one of the vaccines he was given at his 15-month check-up. His leg swelled up, he developed a light fever, and he slept poorly for about three or four days. Due to the pain in his enlarged limb, he didn't want to walk at all for the first couple of days. Amy stayed home with him one of those days. He was whiny, but nevertheless content to sit and watch television or read books.

As first time parents ought to be, we were alarmed enough to call the doctor and ask for advice. What it came down to was thus: "Keep him hydrated, give him infant Tylenol, and wait for it to pass. If his fever rises above 103, or if he begins to convulse, take him to the emergency room." Toddlers and babies, being small, have higher body temperatures than adults. This is something that never ceases to alarm me. When my wife tells me that Stephen's temperature is 102.6, I get edgy. To the doctor, such a reading is technically a "low-grade fever."

By the weekend (and the birthday party), Stephen was back to normal...more or less. Still a little crankier than usual, sure, and with a slight rash on his torso, he managed to get through the ordeal relatively unscathed. We had a few sleep-deprived nights, but that's the price of parenthood. I guess we'd better get used to it.

In other news...

The dreaded birthday has passed me by. I've been 33 for a day now, with no ill effects. We went to Claim Jumper for lunch with my mother, step-dad, and brother. As far as giftage is concerned, I came away with some new DVDs (The Fifth Element "Ultimate Edition," Ice Pirates, and Underworld: Evolution), a CD (Rob Zombie's Educated Horses), some clothes, and four new tires for my dirty old Corsica.

I'm seriously considering a change in my dietary habits, starting as soon as this week. The pants I wear are a bit tighter than I'd like them to be, and there's no question that I've put on a few pounds since the sprout was conceived. If I'm going to be chasing him around, I'd damn well better get into some kind of chasing shape.

This week is a short work week. Neither Amy or myself have Monday off, but we do get the 4th of July to ourselves. We'll likely spend it with family, and take Stephen to witness fireworks after dark. He'll be up past his bed time, but I'm sure it will be worth it. At three months old, he seemed to enjoy them last year. We'll see what he thinks now that he's forming his own opinions about his life.