Christmas Eve with the McClains...So Far

We're hoping things will improve.

Collin has had this cough for gee, I'm not sure how long. Last week, Dr. Genius (aren't all military doctors, amazingly smart?) said it was croup. On Tuesday, he said it was croup again. Both times, he also gave us Benedryl with the steroids. In case you aren't a military family, Benedryl is the handout for kids. Motrin is the handout for adults. If your arm falls off: Motrin. If you need birth control: Motrin. This may be the reason our neighbors have so many freaking kids.

Alas, he also said things like, "eh, give him the medicine if you think he needs it," and "keep him warm and cold." It's wonderful to have such care.

Anyway, he's no better. He barely takes a breath without coughing and I'm pretty sure that in the last two nights he actually did NOT stop coughing at all, literally. And, the added bonus feature of what I call covomit is super. It's what happens when you cough so hard that you vomit.

I'm not sure why I didn't think to bring extra clothes to urgent care this morning, as the first covomit was a doozie, and consisted of a lot of breakfast milk. Mmmm-mmm, stinky. The urgent care turned us away as he covomited three or four times all over their waiting room chairs and floor and they determined he was too little and too sick to be seen there and they wouldn't have the proper equipment to treat him.

When we arrived at the urgent care with pediatric equipment, he apparently felt energized and pranced around the waiting room like he'd just taken crack...or like he'd just finished emptying the contents of his stomach and felt great for it. Meanwhile, he smelled like Tara Reid on a Sunday Morning and we didn't smell much better for having tried to clean him up with what was on-hand, namely our own sleeves and bits of tissue. Ewww.

He wore Daddy's t-shirt as Daddy was in layers for his visit with the doctor and we toughed it through. Poor little guy looked so pitiful. He got a breathing treatment and a prescription for an inhaler and told to "be still" for a few days. The doctor said go ahead and give him some cough syrup even though he's young, so hopefully that will help.

I think I should get more presents for all the covomitting I've endured over the past few days, especially since I've endured it with such love and affection for my boy. I've dug in with bare hands, people!