Ronan's behaviour during his bout of sickness

Ronan is 6.5 months old. The weather is acting crazy these days.Itz winter time but it is hot in the afternoons and looks like it will rain as the sun gets hidden by the clouds which say "Yes, we are going to pour down."

Ronan, Richie and I started taking evening walks just to have some fresh air. One of the cousins developed cold and as all the children play together Richie and Ronan too were affected. I treated Richie with expectorant and he seemed fine again, Ronan's cold didn't show up much until one morning when he started coughing and whizzing a bit. We took him to the doctor who gave him a dose of medicines. We thought he will be all right by the next day. But to our utter dismay his whizzing worsened, so much so that he could not breath properly. He was crying and was looking so tired, that I could not see him suffering.

He used to sleep for 10 mins and then wake up feeling choked. That whole night was terrible, with me and my mom-in-law taking turns holding him throughout the night. I was just waiting for the morning sun so that we could get him some good treatment. The child specialist told us that he is suffering from mild bronchitis and should feel better in a day or two after the intial dose is complete.

Today is the 2nd day and yes, Ronan is feeling much better. He has become playful and is responding well to the medicines. But one thing I must say. Ronan is very naughty. He knows when I come to give him medicines. I guess he smells them. ;) He keeps his mouth shut tight and does karate to throw the spoon or dropper down. He really drove the hell out of me. I tried mixing the medicine with honey but it was a big NO NO. He was like, "Mama, we are too smart not to understand which is medicine and which is not". Today his dada thought he will give a try and guess what, dada was in for a surprise. Inspite of me too holding Ronan he was just not ready to co-operate. But at last we succeeded.;)

What are your thoughts/experiences in taking care of children when they are sick? Did you face any difficulty?

Could you share your techniques of handling your child's behaviour?

Baby - 9 to 10th month checkup

In Japan, medical facilities are free for kids till they go to elementary school. Also many a times, for special checkups (i.e 6 month checkup, 9 month checkup), the city office gives coupons so that we can avail those checkups free of charge too. Even some of the regular vaccines like polio, BCG are given free of charge at health centers.
Last Saturday we took Richie for his 9th to 10th month checkup. It was overcrowded so we had to wait for a long time. Meanwhile we went for a stroll to the nearby park and came back.
The doctor checked for the following:
-overall health
-pincer grasp (thumb-pointer finger hold)
-has started crawling or not
-checked his reflex by trying to throw him down. Richie touched hands down to save himself from falling;)
-Whether holding on to support and standing.
-Mashing and eating solid food.

Richie is 9 months and 11 days old now and had started to do all the above just 1 or 2 weeks back. Doctor said he was progressing well and there was extremely no need to worry. He will master it slowly and steadily.

Christmas time with baby

It is Christmas time. Time for celebrations…Catholics celebrate it as a time when baby Jesus was born. We made special food and decorated the Christmas tree. We also put on bells, Christmas stockings and other decorations well in advance. It was fun with baby too squirming in my tummy and saying “Give me, I will also do some decorations.” Yes sweety, your time will come soon.. just 1 more month to go…Baby was so active on Christmas eve. .. I thought maybe he was playing with baby Jesus and other angels and having a nice time… decided not to disturb him. ;) These days nights are cold, but it is better in day when the sun comes out.

We had a visit to the doctor in the afternoon. Now I have completed 35 weeks 6 days. Doctor said baby is growing well and weighs about 2660 gms. He is getting ready for delivery with his head down. Baby tried some of his stunts on Dr. Uncle and the doctor could not help laughing. We also had blood tests and urinalysis. There was a special test wherein they pricked my ear with a needle and checked for the time required for the coagulation of blood. This is very important because during delivery there is bleeding and they have to be sure that it will stop soon. Later the doctor checked for baby’s heart beat, his movements and my contractions (if any) by putting fetal monitor. Everything is normal. The visit to the doctor lasted almost 4-5 hours as it was crowded. Overall, we felt happy and came home, celebrating our Christmas day in hospital. :)

34 W 6D - Visit to Dr.Uncle

The visit to the doctor was very positive. The doctor was happy with the growth and movements of the baby. This time we captured the ultrasound images with our handycam. Baby is now 50 cms in length and weighs around 2500gms. Baby smiled and winked at us when we were seeing the ultrasound. He was also closing and opening his mouth and drinking in aminiotic fluid.

The doctor said once I complete 36 weeks, it will be called full-term delivery. After that if I go in labor anytime, it is fine. A couple of weeks to go... I am feeling so excited.

This time we also did the hospital admission formalities for labor and delivery. We also had a tour of the hospital to know what are the facilities provided for labor and delivery and what is the essential stuff required during the stay in the hospital.

32W 6D - Visit to Dr. Uncle

Baby completed 32 weeks,6 days. He has gained almost 500 gms from the time of the last visit to the doctor, already weighing 2100gms.

Baby says, “The doctor called me ‘Good Boy’!! Guess why? Keep guessing…. Hmmmm .. cannot.. Bcoz, bcoz , I was in the same head down position. He he he ..and I gave my big broad smile to Dr. Uncle and specially to my mom and dad. They were thoroughly impressed with my performance. Made Dr. Uncle’s day tooo.. ;) he seemed to be in a jolly mood... and guess what mom and dad gifted me? ‘A nice piggy bank’. They said they will reward me for all my performances.”

31 weeks - Appoinment with the doctor

Today I have come to visit the doctor again (just within 4 days), to check whether baby has moved in the head down position. I have just completed 30 weeks and the doctor said it is a good time for baby to be ready for the D-day with head down, as I mentioned in my earlier post. So I am visiting the doctor in just 4 days after doing the exercise he mentioned.

I also have 3 rounds of blood sugar test with 1 hour interval between each. I am sitting and writing this diary as I am waiting for the 3 hours to pass by. My baby is happily kicking in my womb. I just love to feel him. I am hungry and so is my baby as we could not eat anything before all the tests are over. They gave us some sweet juice as part of the test, but do you think it is enough for both of us.;)
I am talking to baby to move in the head down position and imagining that he has already moved in the right position. I am trying to be as cool as possible because I know if I am happy, baby is also happy.

The doctor called me for the examination and did an ultrasound again. And you know what, the baby had indeed turned. My joys knew no bounds. Tears just trickled from my eyes. After all, baby did respond to my talks. Now I know, together we can do anything.I treated baby to a sumptuous lunch because we were hungry since morning. Later baby and I bought colorful toys for his wonderful performance.
Just 7-10 weeks to go. Wow, I will be soon holding my little darling in my arms.

30 weeks 3 days - Visit to Dr. Uncle

We went for the doctors appointment today, but had to wait for 2 hours as there were many people ahead of us. It was almost 6pm by the time we entered. The doctor was cool and calm as usual. The doctor did an ultrasound and said that the baby is in the breech position and that he should move in the head down position in this week. He gave me some exercise to help baby in the head down position. Then he also said the sugar in the urine was high and it will be good to check blood sugar. Actually during pregnancy, urine sugar increases as the metabolism is slow. He told me not to worry as things can be taken care of. It was little disappointing but I hope that everything will be right soon. I guess I ate too much of sweet stuff too and I am trying to reduce on that. Prevention is better that cure, hence I feel the earlier we know about things, it is better. I know I get a bit anxious of the days ahead, but then I try to relax at the designated time,because by then it is as if I have been through all the feelings.

It is a great feeling to have a new life in your womb kicking and playing happily. :) I really understand now what our parents have been through when they decided to have us and raise us. I admire my mom for going through all the pain for us. They have done so much for us without expecting anything back. Hats off to them.

27 weeks 1 day - Visit to Dr.Uncle

It was a nice Autumn day. I went to office as usual and took a half day off to visit the doctor. My Baby calls him "Dr. Uncle". ;) He is a sweet person with lot of patience and care. We did the weight, blood pressure and urinalysis checkups. In just 3 weeks I had gained 2kgs. Thanks to all the potatoe chips, ice-creams and sweets I felt like eating these days. ;) Development of baby’s sweet tooth you see!! I got a good warning from the doctor to keep my weight under control and to eat only healthy stuff. My cute little sweety, do not worry, mom will put everything under control.

Then it was time for baby show. In the ultrasound, we saw our little angel (now a little bigger) was having a nice time. He has come out of his breech position with his head downwards. Doctor said it is a good sign, but there are possibilities of him moving a bit and we can be sure of his position only after the 30th week. Baby is weighing 1.2kgs (a little more than average) and measures about 38 cms. His toes were long, maybe he is taking his features from his dad who is also very tall.:)

Later I had a blood test to check for anemia and other stuff whose report I will get in the next visit.