Thought I’d do a quickie post to bring you guys up to date. Yes, Screechboy a.k.a. Little Drake. Have you ever heard the rare sound of a squeaky screech? I hear this whenever Little Drake, also a.k.a. Gabriel, is really annoyed and verbalizes his displeasure with us. Cute, though it jars my nerves.
Past week or so, Little Drake has had this rash on his whole body, and there were two days that he had a minor temp. To make a long story short, Dr. Oxman, his pediatrician, says that it’s probably from the fabric softener sheets I started using. He also found a sore throat and took a culture of it to make sure it’s not viral. Still waiting for the results. The thing is that I was only using the fabric sheets for towels, but I “could” have put them in this big wash I did of all of the little baby clothes. It’s funny how usually I put just a couple of his things in with mine, but THIS time I put up a mega wash of all his stuff. So the other day I rewashed every item of textiles associated with my little drake…. last night being the last of it- his special fleece blanket.
Doc Ox says that this rash will take a full two weeks to completely go away. Gabriel’s not even itchy, but in the mean time, I’ve got to put calamine lotion on him 4x a day…. yeah right! This little guy is so wirey that I can’t get him to sit still for anything… besides it would be faster to just dunk him in a vat of the stuff. Seriously, aside from that, it’s amazing that even though he squirms, you can see that he is actually allowing me to swab this stuff on, and even on his face. So precious!
I forgot to mention that this rash clears up, then comes back during the day. Since I rewashed his clothes, the rash seems to be gone in the mornings, then resurfaces during the day. All in all, he is not really sick by the normal standards. Yesterday he even went out for a little bit with his dad.
Oh, another update is that Little Drake started climbing two days ago (it was the rash!). We’ve been really spoiled because up to now, he has not tried to climb at all. Now, he climbs and he thinks he can walk to and fro on my little love seat. He is SO very happy and proud of himself! What an accomplishment! The story goes like this: Simple. First he wasn’t there, then he was. I was sitting on the couch, knitting. Then all of a sudden he was laying on the couch right beside me making noises. At first I thought nothing of it, but THEN I realized that he was UP ON THE COUCH. “How did you do that?”, I said. So I did what every mother probably has done at one time or another to confirm such progress. I put him back down on the floor to see what he would do. Sure enough, he threw himself against the couch and lifted his leg higher than I would think possible and got himself up with the biggest grin on his face. What a view! I plan on posting a video as soon as I can get one.
Another development of Little Drake’s is that the terrible two’s are coming on earlier than the name implies. He is so moody sometimes, totally out of his normal character. I am thinking maybe it has to do with the fact that he wants to communicate more, and he is, just in a non-verbal way. He is not talking yet, though he “talks” all the time. Unfortunately, I cannot understand him and probably never will. I take my cues from just knowing him and what he would “probably” want. I can see it being frustrating for him.
I noticed yesterday how jealous he is of my attentions. I had company over and was trying to teach her how to sew together a sort of knitted braid rug. I noticed that he got very cranky because I was giving my attention to her and not him. I think part of the problem, too, is that I am constantly taking things away from him and telling him what he “cannot” do or have. I hate to restrict him out of the kitchen, but that is where all the stuff is that I don’t want him to touch… garbage pail, stove, broiler door, outlet in the mud room… it can go on and on…. like when he pulled the table cloth and knocked over a full glass of iced coffee… SPLAT, WHOOSH… all over everything!
Yep, I’ll probably have to keep him out of the kitchen or keep him in the highchair while in there. So cute, though, he tries to help. Yesterday, he took some clothes that were on the floor in my bedroom and put them in the bag in the mud room…. it won’t be long before I have a little laundry assistant! Then one time he got a hold of my knitting and tried to knit… I am constantly amazed by this kid. Soon he’ll be knitting, too, though it freaked me out at the same time that he got those needles in the first place.
Oh man, it’s light out already. I got up when Big Drake went to work to write a comment I was thinking about last night and, now, almost 3 hours later, I am ready to go back to bed but can’t because baby will be up pretty soon……………….
need coffee!
DragonMommie's World 
Oh, man, kids and their rashes! My son is four now, but he gets this seasonal rash every time the weather gets cold – he gets this rough, dry skin on his wrists. I swear the preschool ladies probably think we tie him up or something! The good news is it mostly seems to bother us more than it does him.
Thanks for the kind comment on my blog! See you around.
Gabriel has very sensitive skin. Very fair and delicate (like his dad’s). One time he got an aweful mark by his neck from the CUSHION of the strap on the car seat…. so I’m not surprised if it’s a simply irritation. I’m just curious about that throat culture and waiting to hear the results, and/or if it affects the diagnosis of the rash.
Thanks for coming by!
I remember the screeching. It is very jarring. Thankfully most outgrow it. The ones that still do it at four I most say are girls.
I have always thought that our little ones get very frustrated when they want to communicate and just don’t have words for it. What is really amazing is that there will be this intensely frustrating times than they will make the great leap forward in their ability to communicate. It is mind-blowing. Have you tried teaching Gabriel any sign language? It really helped us through this language gap time, the signs for more and all done were the best.
You know, I was just thinking about that a little while ago… teaching him sign language. He is starting to communicate in other non-verbal ways, so I think it’s worth a try. Yes, I do think that they get very frustrated. When he does, he either throws something or gives up altogether.
Thanks for the tip!
You made me smile with warm memories! I love how you savor the moments with your precious boy.
Yes, I guess I do savor them, Naturalhigh. I must keep aware of all his developments because they are monumentous for him–and me! I marvel at how, even the simpliest of tasks or responses must be learned and I can detect “when” he is learning them. I am so grateful…. and sometimes I can’t believe it. Every day when my husband comes home, I tell him to watch this or that when I know that Gabriel is about to do something because I don’t want him to miss out on it completely. Like the past couple of days the baby started to “smell” when I smell (like his diaper). Now I say, “smell” and he smells; and when I sniff at the air, he will smell, too! So cute. He is my first baby and might very well be my last, so I must get all I can in NOW. Present circumstances are dictating that I not work and I am so grateful for it. My husband thinks that I am being deprived of my adult life, and he may be right; but I am loving the time with my son. Hey, my husband is even pushing me out of the house at night to make up for it. Who am I to correct this situation??? 😛