Mommy Monday: Toddlers and Antibiotics

Sorry about the slacking on the blog posts lately. My almost 3 year old had strep throat. It kind of went like this:

I got sick, she started coughing and then on Saturday night she started running a fever. Being the AWESOME mom that I am, I couldn't find a thermometer- do I even own one anymore??

But, I could tell that she had a fever. So I gave her some tylenol at 11pm and tucked her in bed next to me. We fell back asleep with the humidifier as she coughed some more. I finally felt her fever break when she was sweating all over me. I laid there thinking "my poor baby doesn't feel well" and then fell back asleep.

About 2 hours later I felt myself start to sweat when I realized she was burning up again. The cough wasn't any better so I picked her up, gave her a drink of water, rubbed a cool wash cloth over her and googled "Night time pediatric urgent care" in the Phoenix area. I wasn't thinking a cough needed an ER visit, but I sure didn't want to take her to somewhere with adults. I wanted books and movies and someone who had a little pediatric stethoscope. I found THIS place and loaded her in the car and off we went.

I went originally for her cough and the triage nurse takes us in to check her vitals and says "wow, temperature of 103.6, that is kind of high."

Another MOM OF THE YEAR award goes to Brittani. Seriously, how did I let my baby's fever get that high?? Isn't that when kids are supposed to get seizures or something?? (It has been a long time since my pediatric rotation back in 2004 in nursing school)

Short time later and she is being looked at, the doctor gives us a prescription for ibuprofen and amoxicillin because he found out she has strep throat. We were in out and back and home with our prescriptions within an hour.

So now that she is feeling better- this bubblegum flavored amoxicillin is going to be the death of me. No amount of bribing with chocolate, toys, marbles in the marble jar, will convince her to swallow her medicine. I put it in her mouth and she screams but keeps it in her mouth.

I coax, encourage, clap, make funny faces and she still screams.

Then I pick her up and lie her back so she can't start spitting it out. Cause she always starts to spit it out.

I then threaten- threaten to take away toys, put her in time out, take away her blanket, no candy, no marbles, etc.

Then I blow in her face- It is supposed to make them swallow, right? But then she starts to gag and she ends up spitting/coughing some of it out on my face.

Then I start the cycle over. I try to bribe again- coax her- trick her- encourage her- threaten her- and blow again. I swear giving toddler's medication is like bipolar on steroids. Scary. Very scary.

After she swallows it, minus the stuff she spit in my face and on her clothes, I hold her close and give her a hug. I remind her that she needs to get better all the way and she has to take her "white medicine" three times a day.

Then I wipe away her tears and kiss her.

To be repeated 6-8 hour later.