Monday, January 31, 2005
Kayla is Hot, Hot, Hot
This morning my WW wife called to inform me that Kayla had a fever of 101.9F.
I was a little alarmed, to say the least. Up till now, my baby has never been sick. When I last saw her at her 5:30 am meal she was her normal smiley self and now she was cranky, upset and FEBRILE! Lucky for me, my WW was home to give her Tylenol, call the Pediatrician and console her.
Because both of us are doctors, we are comfortable assessing patients and recognizing problems. However, the last time we dealt with common infant illnesses was during our 3rd year medical school Pediatric clerkship which was, GASP, 8 years ago! During Pediatric Surgery and my Peds Radiology rotations I never encountered normal ailments. After all, I work in a children's hospital. Although my WW clinical interest is Pediatric and Adolescent Gynecology, she never deals with the sniffles.
Although both of us intuitively knew that Kayla's fever was likely "nothing", my WW took her to the Pediatrician for his blessing. He concurred with our assessment and proclaimed the fever to be of viral etiology which means that after shining a light in all the appropriate holes and checking her skin, he couldn't find any bacterial causes.
Lucky for us that both Mother-in-Laws pitched in today to help us. Lucky for us that we have Tylenol to knock down Kayla's fever and to bring back our smiley girl. Lucky for me that I have such a WW who was able to deal with Kayla and was able to reassure me that everything was going to be OK.
I was a little alarmed, to say the least. Up till now, my baby has never been sick. When I last saw her at her 5:30 am meal she was her normal smiley self and now she was cranky, upset and FEBRILE! Lucky for me, my WW was home to give her Tylenol, call the Pediatrician and console her.
Because both of us are doctors, we are comfortable assessing patients and recognizing problems. However, the last time we dealt with common infant illnesses was during our 3rd year medical school Pediatric clerkship which was, GASP, 8 years ago! During Pediatric Surgery and my Peds Radiology rotations I never encountered normal ailments. After all, I work in a children's hospital. Although my WW clinical interest is Pediatric and Adolescent Gynecology, she never deals with the sniffles.
Although both of us intuitively knew that Kayla's fever was likely "nothing", my WW took her to the Pediatrician for his blessing. He concurred with our assessment and proclaimed the fever to be of viral etiology which means that after shining a light in all the appropriate holes and checking her skin, he couldn't find any bacterial causes.
Lucky for us that both Mother-in-Laws pitched in today to help us. Lucky for us that we have Tylenol to knock down Kayla's fever and to bring back our smiley girl. Lucky for me that I have such a WW who was able to deal with Kayla and was able to reassure me that everything was going to be OK.
Sunday, January 23, 2005
Graduating from the Infant Seat
It seems like just yesterday when we brought Kayla home from the hospital in her infant carseat. She was so small that it was difficult to keep her securely in the seat without multiple bolsters.
Kayla snug in her Snugride
Recently, it became readily apparent that Kayla's infant seat was just not cutting it. Although the "Bundle Me" was amazing when it began to get cold, things were a little tight.
Bundle Me by JJ Cole
In January temperatures hovered in the single digits. With Kayla approaching the 26" max length and a bunting thrown into the mix, it impossible to buckle her in. As a result, my WW and I were forced to bite the bullet and invest in the infant to toddler convertible seat.
Following exhaustive and comprehensive research, we finally settled on a model. Unfortunately, like most everything, we liked the most expensive model. And, like most everything, we were able to rationalize the purchase. Of course Britax shares some of the blame. They definitely capitalized on our willingness to do most anything to ensure our child's safety. Additionally, Kayla is going to be in her carseat for 5 days/week for the next 4 years! It better be good. To make matters worse, it is not as if our schedules or bank accounts allow us to have a designated kids car.
In the end, we bought 2 "Britax Wizard with True Side Impact Protection" convertible carseats in "Funky Denim."
Wizard with True Side Impact Protection
Recently, it became readily apparent that Kayla's infant seat was just not cutting it. Although the "Bundle Me" was amazing when it began to get cold, things were a little tight.
In January temperatures hovered in the single digits. With Kayla approaching the 26" max length and a bunting thrown into the mix, it impossible to buckle her in. As a result, my WW and I were forced to bite the bullet and invest in the infant to toddler convertible seat.
Following exhaustive and comprehensive research, we finally settled on a model. Unfortunately, like most everything, we liked the most expensive model. And, like most everything, we were able to rationalize the purchase. Of course Britax shares some of the blame. They definitely capitalized on our willingness to do most anything to ensure our child's safety. Additionally, Kayla is going to be in her carseat for 5 days/week for the next 4 years! It better be good. To make matters worse, it is not as if our schedules or bank accounts allow us to have a designated kids car.
In the end, we bought 2 "Britax Wizard with True Side Impact Protection" convertible carseats in "Funky Denim."
Tuesday, January 18, 2005
Feeding advice from Dave Barry
Comedian Dave Barry says:
"Babies do not take solid food through their mouths....Babies absorb solid food through their chins. You can save yourself a lot of frustrating effort if you smear the food directly on your baby's chin, rather than putting it in the baby's mouth and forcing the baby to expel it on its chin, as so many uninformed parents do."
When I first read this, I thought that it was very funny. Now I know that it is true.
"Babies do not take solid food through their mouths....Babies absorb solid food through their chins. You can save yourself a lot of frustrating effort if you smear the food directly on your baby's chin, rather than putting it in the baby's mouth and forcing the baby to expel it on its chin, as so many uninformed parents do."
When I first read this, I thought that it was very funny. Now I know that it is true.
Open Wide
Sweet Potatoes are Yummy!
Updated Hello software sucks
Help!
I cant post any pictures to this blog. My picture posting software auto updated and now I can't logon. Hopefully, things will be rectified soon. I have scoured the Picasa forums and have contacted Tech Support. I am praying that they will find a solution soon because I have SOOOO many pictures of Kayla to post.
If you want to see more pictures of Kayla send an email to this company:
Hello
I cant post any pictures to this blog. My picture posting software auto updated and now I can't logon. Hopefully, things will be rectified soon. I have scoured the Picasa forums and have contacted Tech Support. I am praying that they will find a solution soon because I have SOOOO many pictures of Kayla to post.
If you want to see more pictures of Kayla send an email to this company:
Tuesday, January 11, 2005
Baby News Links for Tuesday
1. USA Weekend, the sister publications of USA Today, published a 15 step guide in this week's issue, focusing on the latest science has to offer on infants.
The story is really good and while I knew many of these steps before, I think its important that people having babies know that this study is not alone. All of the 15 points have been said before and really need to be followed. Especially the no smoking, turning off the TV, and not owning a baby walker.
2. Being well aware of my affinity for Kayla's Bug, my friend Sharon sent me an article from the NY Times. The article highlights a novel Bugaboo advertising campaign.
The Bugaboo Daytrips offered by the campaign are free urban tour maps and itineraries, designed for children accompanied by their parents (and vice versa), which are available for downloading from the special Web site. The home page explains the purpose of the campaign: "This is a growing archive of suggested daytrips for parents who want to spend an inspiring day with their child that does not include eating sweets or watching 'Shrek' for the 322nd time. Bugaboo daytrip maps are absolutely free and designed to capture the imagination of you and your child."
Bugaboo Daytrips
The story is really good and while I knew many of these steps before, I think its important that people having babies know that this study is not alone. All of the 15 points have been said before and really need to be followed. Especially the no smoking, turning off the TV, and not owning a baby walker.
2. Being well aware of my affinity for Kayla's Bug, my friend Sharon sent me an article from the NY Times. The article highlights a novel Bugaboo advertising campaign.
The Bugaboo Daytrips offered by the campaign are free urban tour maps and itineraries, designed for children accompanied by their parents (and vice versa), which are available for downloading from the special Web site. The home page explains the purpose of the campaign: "This is a growing archive of suggested daytrips for parents who want to spend an inspiring day with their child that does not include eating sweets or watching 'Shrek' for the 322nd time. Bugaboo daytrip maps are absolutely free and designed to capture the imagination of you and your child."
Bugaboo Daytrips
Sunday, January 09, 2005
Bugaboo: Coincidence or are they just taking the piss?
On Sunday we took a family field trip to Delhi Palace in Jackson Heights to meet some friends for dinner. After seeing Kayla's stroller, my friends were curious if the Bugaboo Frog was all hype or the real deal. They wanted to know if, after 5 months, we still felt the investment was worth it. For the answer, you can read my earlier post extolling the virtues of the Bugaboo. Up till now, it has met or exceeded all of our expectations.
My friend Mike showed us the definition of Bugaboo from Webster's Dictionary:
Main Entry: bug·a·boo
Pronunciation: 'b&-g&-"bü
Function: noun
Inflected Form(s): plural -boos
Etymology: origin unknown
1 : an imaginary object of fear
2 : BUGBEAR 2; also : something that causes fear or distress out of proportion to its importance
A debate ensued over the significance of the name. Is the name just a coincidence or is the company just taking the piss out of consumers? I think that it is no coincidence AND I think it is pretty funny.
My friend Mike showed us the definition of Bugaboo from Webster's Dictionary:
Main Entry: bug·a·boo
Pronunciation: 'b&-g&-"bü
Function: noun
Inflected Form(s): plural -boos
Etymology: origin unknown
1 : an imaginary object of fear
2 : BUGBEAR 2; also : something that causes fear or distress out of proportion to its importance
A debate ensued over the significance of the name. Is the name just a coincidence or is the company just taking the piss out of consumers? I think that it is no coincidence AND I think it is pretty funny.
Monday, January 03, 2005
My Blog is (in)Famous
Recently I was interviewed by Lisa Chamoff from Newsday regarding my blog.
The story is in today's Newsday:
It's a . . . baby blog
The story is in today's Newsday:
