Our Little Trooper

Last Friday, Kellan just wasn't himself.  He was irritable, wasn't sleeping well, and wasn't smiling nearly as much as usual.  He started eating less, and we noticed his gums looked a little swollen.  "Could it be??" we asked.  Is he teething?  He was drooling so much more, had a slight fever... But no.  It was not teething.

Our poor little guy has hand, foot, and mouth disease.  Ugh!  He developed a rash all over his body (looked like roseola), except for a few bright red spots on his hands that seemed to turn to tiny blisters.  We didn't notice any sores in his mouth, so we assumed he must be having an allergic reaction.  Took him to the Children's ER just in case - thankfully!  The doctor looked in his mouth using a tongue depressor, and lo and behold, there were small clusters of inflamed sores at the back of his itty, bitty throat.  OH!  I felt like such a terrible mommy.  Here we were, thinking he was being a bit "dramatic" about the teeth he was about to get, but instead, he has been dealing with a painful condition that will last 7-10 days.  That's right.  A week or more!  So, no daycare for Kellan until Wednesday at the earliest.  And we're knocking on wood that Mommy and Daddy have averted the illness (though it's unusual for adults to contract the disease).

Even though he's been struggling, however, Kellan's chipper attitude hasn't been completely lost - he still flirted with the nurses and doctors (even the males) at the hospital, and he's still babbling, laughing, and playing... just less so.  He's even eating pretty well, considering his condition.  He's our steadfast little trooper!  Let's hope his healing time is on the short end of things.