Leland has a cold

There are a few times in parenthood that can truly test any person's limits. For me, they are 1) teething, 2) colds and 3) the breastfeeding phase. Today, I am just going to talk about colds.

As a member of a local MOPS group (Mothers of PreSchoolers) I attend bi-weekly meetings. This means that my kids have to go into a daycare each meeting. As all parents have learned, daycare settings usually mean your child will come home with a virus. Because I have 4 kids, I'm bound to bring home a cold each time. It sucks! Well, I had our last meeting before the holidays this past Friday and I guess another child had a cold, because on Sunday morning, Leland woke up with a runny nose. He spent the day fairly fine, but after I took a walk with my boys, the cold air effected him and his nose was a faucet. Naptime was horrible, poor thing couldn't breathe. I tried to nasal aspirate him, but like most babies, he screamed. He slept a little, but not well.

Bedtime, was not so good either. He was amped up from the cold meds, and couldn't decide if he was tired. Finally, Les and I decided for him, bedtime. I laid him down in the crib and he didn't fight it. He fell asleep around 9, but was up again by 11:00. Once again, his nose was stuffy, he was agitated and nothing we did could make him happy. At 12:30, Les put Leland back in the crib and he again didn't fight it. He slept until 4am. At 4 I got up with him and he was screaming, again nothing I did for him made him happy. He was miserable! He rarely screams, but Leland screamed his head off. So I decided that since he was already screaming, I would clear his nose. Boy did this piss him off! Finally, at 4:30, I gave up. I put him back in the crib and he cried for about 5 more minutes, then fell asleep.

I went back to bed at 4:30 and crashed. Luckily, so did Leland. We both ended up sleeping until 10:15 am. I know, that's crazy-late, but we both needed it. (I don't do so well with interrupted and little sleep. It's best if I get more than 6 hours, best for everyone.)

Today, Leland is still having a hard time breathing, but he took a decent nap and his mood is much better. He's been able to drink his bottle without too much difficulty and he is able to be soothed, a major accomplishment. Tonight, we will be using the Humidifier at all times to try to keep the air moist for him. I will even be putting a rolled up blanket under one end of the mattress to help elevate his head while he sleeps, this should help with drainage and not keep the mucus in his nasal passages. Wish us luck! We will need it.

For all you parents out there that read this, I am always open to suggestions on your remedies, preferably homeopathic.

Take care this "cold" season and happy holidays.