Couch Potatoes, a Bit of Sickness, and a Visit to Dr. N

Two Sundays ago, Riley was watching tv on the couch when Rory decided to climb up too. He looked very proud of himself after he had settled right next to his big brother.

However, the little one has a problem with sitting still. That is, he doesn’t do so for very long. So I wasn’t surprised when I looked over and saw him rolling all over his brother. Don’t you love Riley’s expression?

But my heart melted when I saw this. Sweet boys.

Riley actually came down with a fairly high fever the night before, and he still wasn’t feeling his best. However, this was the day we went to the aquarium. Might not have been our finest parenting decision, but it wasn’t like he was throwing up or anything. He napped really well in the afternoon, but it was obvious he just wasn’t feeling great.

Fast forward to the next day. Riley still had a slight fever on Sunday evening, so I kept him home from school on Monday. He was racing around with his dinosaur monster truck while I was getting dinner ready when he faceplanted into the dining room floor, giving himself a fat and busted lip. It bled a lot and he cried hard for a while, but he’s tough. Talk about add insult to injury, though. (Or is it the other way around in this case?)

Luckily, our next round of regular check-ups with Dr. N were scheduled for Tuesday morning. Riley hadn’t had fever for about 24 hours by the time we saw her. She said it was just a little cough and cold, not to worry, and to send him to school. Done.

In fact, both boys checked out just fine. Riley weighed 40 pounds (79%) and stood 43 inches tall (93%). His blood pressure was normal (98/56), as was his temp. Rory weighed 26.15 pounds (81%) and stood 31 inches tall (7%)*, with a head circumference of 19.5 inches (94%). They don’t measure his blood pressure yet, but his temp was also normal.

*I actually think he’s taller than that, but he was screaming when the nurse tried to measure him, so I guess she was going for speed, not accuracy.

They both had to get shots: Rory got one, and Riley got two. Rory understandably cried, but Riley didn’t even make a sad face when he was pricked in his arm or in his leg. I was so proud of him. Told you he was tough.

Two days after seeing Dr. N, Rory developed a high fever (102.4). I guess all of that brotherly closeness on the couch the weekend before wasn’t the best idea. He had a couple of off days but is feeling much better now.

I suppose I had better get used to having sick kids at this time of year. It always seems to happen at the beginning of school, when Riley is exposed to all sorts of fun germs from being in close contact with so many other kids. Remember last year when he was sick on his birthday?

Maybe I’ll call it “Sudden Start of School Sickness.” Giving it a name and knowing it’s inevitable might not make it so bad to deal with, right?