Viral Infections In Children...

Viral infections in children are incredibly common.

In the 2 years of Leo's life he has managed to pick up 3 to date.

Before having Leo, I actually had no idea what a Viral Infection was? 

I didn't know that it would be one of the worst things that Leo would experience as a baby, and as a toddler.

In the May of 2012, just shy of his first birthday Leo was diagnosed with Roseola.

A viral infection that kept us both up all night.

What is Roseola?

'Roseola is a viral illness in young children. It most commonly affects babies and toddlers aged between 6 months and 2 years old. It is usually marked by several days of high fever, followed by a distinctive rash just as the fever breaks.

A child with roseola typically develops a mild upper respiratory illness, followed by a high fever (often over 39.5°C) for up to a week. During this time, the child may appear fussy or irritable and may have a decreased appetite and swollen lymph nodes.

The high fever often ends abruptly, and at about the same time a pinkish-red flat or raised rash appears and spreads over the body. The rash's spots turn white when you touch them, and individual spots may have a lighter "halo" around them. The rash usually spreads to the neck, face, arms, and legs.'

Leo had been incredibly grumpy and not himself.

But with that infection behind us, 

I didn't think he would come down with it again...

But I was wrong.

Very wrong..

Roseola can strike more than once.

On August 7th Leo was not 100%,

not in that last hour before bedtime anyway.

He was burning up like a radiator, and hot to the touch.

He was clingy and whinging but still got put to bed just like he always does,

and for a little while that is where he stayed.

By the end of the evening Leo had already navigated his way to my bed,

very quickly forming the starfish position leaving me nowhere to get comfy.

It was a night full of disturbed sleep,

a wakeful toddler wanting reassurance and Cars 2 on the iPad.

We had big plans for the following morning. 

It was my birthday.

Plans were forming and being cancelled in the wake of the night 

Leo and I had been subjected too.

As the day progressed Leo became more under the weather.

To accompany his temperature, a very familiar spotty rash was 

spreading all over his back and tummy.

A rash that looked very familiar to the Roseola rash he had been sporting once upon a time.

Then everything else began to add up.

- He had been off his food

- He had a runny nose

- He wasn't sleeping

- He had a temperature

- He now had a rash...

My little boy was fighting off the bane of viral infections.

Roseola... For a second time.

Last night there was not a lot of sleep to be had. 

Sleep became a distant memory,

memories from yesteryear crept back.

People wanted to make sure I had thought to do the glass test on the rash.

People were telling me it was everything but a viral infection,

Told me to take him to the doctor.

I failed to see the point in going back to the doctor. 

I had a very good idea what it was. I knew what I needed to do. 

I knew that the doctor would check his temperature, 

give him a once over and send us on our way with the merry words

'it's viral...Just keep doing what you are doing'.

I had to try and keep the fluids going into him, keep an eye on the rash. 

Give him all the cuddles and love I could muster where he would allow it, 

and finally try and keep him dosed up on calpol. 

Calpol has to be the hardest bit of it.

Leo will not allow calpol, So I have to try and sneak it into his milk. 

With this virus though he has been completely off his milk, 

which is not something that happens to Leo very often. 

That alone is enough to set alarm bells ringing for me.

I did call the doctor though, and she talked through Leo's symptoms with me and told me that she completely agreed. It was most likely Roseola and just to carry on doing what I was doing, and if I felt the situation escalated then to give them a call back.

Roseola is such a horrid virus, 

it has reduced Leo to screaming for over an hour on two occasions today.

It seems to shake his very being and it is horrible seeing your toddler affected so deeply. 

There have been moments in the thick of this virus where Leo has shone through as brightly as ever,

and even through my sleepy haze I can muster a smile for that beautiful boy of mine.

It has been a hard two days, but I think we are coming out of the other side of this awful infection now, so hopefully a sense of normality will resume tonight. Or else I will be kicking myself for writing this and not getting an early night as planned..

Through the black smog of Roseola here are a few things that have brought a smile to my poorly boys face..

How I Lost All of My Birthday Glitter...

Yesterday was my birthday. 

I had big plans for an exciting day out at Legoland but from the moment I woke up, 

to the time I finally got to bed... 

The day had it in for me.

With each passing moment, the day chipped away all of my birthday glitter.

The night before my big 24th,

Leo had become grotty, he was not himself.

That grotty-ness progressed and he ended up in bed with me.

By 4am I had decided to cancel my birthday trip and spend the day at home with Leo.

If only I had stuck to my guns.

If only I hadn't gone...

I was awoken to a smiley face,

as Leo tapped my head shouting 'Mumma' and I decided that Legoland 

was back on again in that mere moment. 

The bag was already packed, the pushchair was in the car. 

The wheels had been inflated especially for this exciting journey...

Arriving at the train station a very kind man helped me up and over the steps, 

but on the other side just as I was about to get on the train...

My front wheel popped.

Simply turning my pushchair around caused the wheel to go *BOOM*.

I stood there, with a very confused Leo.

My face must have mirrored his confusion, 

and a number of business men from first class rushed out of the train to help.

I had no choice but to take my poorly pushchair with me on my travels, 

as the train was set to leave.

Off we set on our latest adventure. 

With each turn of the train wheels,

 taking us further away from home.

Then disaster sets in...

Leo starts to cry.

Hysterically.

I told myself 'He will be fine when we get there'.

Almost trying to lull myself into a false sense of security,

knowing deep down that he was coming down with something.

He had been hot to the touch, burning up like a radiator.

I should have stayed at home..

Our journey involved a change.

A change with a poorly baby and a broken pushchair.

My heart was slowly sinking.

I decided the best option was to strap him back into the pushchair 

and see how far we got.

It became apparent very quickly that the only way to really push him, 

was to lift the pushchair up and roll him on the back wheels.

*Along comes Mr Know it all train conductor at Slough Station*

He told me in no un-certain way that this wasn't safe.

I should stop now.

When I had actually wanted to leave the pushchair somewhere 

at Slough station to pick up later, 

there was just no time with the connecting train to make the feesable.

So I stumbled on, loosing a little bit more of my birthday sparkle with each passing minute.

Legoland very kindly checked my pushchair in to keep for me.

But there were no pushchairs left for me to rent. 

I had a poorly toddler who just wanted cuddles and carrying around.

I had a heavy bag full of essentials for the busy fun day we were supposed to be having. 

But there wasn't much fun to be had.

Leo was getting progressively worse,

getting more clingy, more viral.

I began to notice a rash all over Leo's tummy and back.

Having only been there a few hours,

it was time to come home.

The few hours had given us chance to get on 2 rides,

The lines were horrific, but then what did I expect for a sunny day in the Summer holidays?

It would have been fine if Leo was his usual happy self.

But today Leo just needed snuggles with Mumma.

He needed to be at home.

I managed to leave the pushchair at Legoland,

One less problem for the way home on a busy train. 

Now however I need to try and get it home again...

On the transfer at Slough I ran into the same train conductor.

On this occasion we needed him to help us get my sister in law's pushchair onto the train.

I had Leo on one hip, and my bag on the other,

so I asked for his help.

I asked him to help us lift the pushchair onto the train.

His response?

'Sorry I can't, health and safety'.

Seriously!? 

Is this what the world has come to? 

Now you cannot even ask train staff to help you?

So I commented on the health and safety aspect, 

ironically it would be safer for me to assist and potentially drop my child? 

Or even drop the pushchair?

Yet earlier this very man had been cautioning me on the perils of child safety.

REALLY!?

Getting back home was not the end of my hellish day,

I was awake throughout the night with a poorly toddler.

A poorly boy who just wanted to watch Cars 2 on my iPad.

A poorly boy who was awoken bright and early by the road works right outside of our house.

And that is how I lost all of my birthday glitter.

The Birmingham Baby Show 2012

The Birmingham Baby Show has been taking place all over the weekend, and on Friday that is just where Leo and I went. This time last year I was 8 months pregnant and I attended the baby show with my baby bump, this year I took my bump along in the pushchair!

Arriving at the baby show, I was actually mourning my bump. I suddenly remembered what an exciting time I had the previous year, making all the preparations for my impending arrival and checking out all of the deals that were to be had.

As you all know, Leo has been suffering with Roseola which has resulted in lack of sleep on both of our sides. However we still attended with all guns blazing and ready to see what was on offer at the highly anticipated show.

Walking through into the show is always exciting, you can feel the energy and excitement that is buzzing all around the room. From first time Mum's expecting their baby's to Mum's with 2 or more, everyone is out in force to see what is on offer to them. If their visits were anything like mine, then I am sure they were not disappointed.

The best bit of the baby show for me, is meeting the people behind the brands, being able to talk face to face with someone who holds all the answers to your questions. It is great that they will offer you all the advice in the world and still not expect to make a sale. I visited Avent Phillip's stand and I found all of their advice extremely helpful. It is just great to know that they take the time to point you in the right direction.

After all that is what visiting the baby show is all about right!?

I find the baby show opens your mind up to all kinds of new things, some things that you may have never even considered before. During my visit at the Friends of Glass stand, I was very intrigued to hear all about the alternatives to plastic bottles. Have you ever considered using Glass to Plastic? I had never even considered this as an option, but people do use Glass as their main choice. They make this decision because Glass is inert and 100% recyclable. Of course if you are like me, you will be questioning just how safe it is to use Glass bottles with babies....They have eased the minds of parents with special rubber bands that have been designed to go around the bottle. This design would contain any glass if the bottle was by chance smashed.

Food for thought!

Walking around the Baby Show, I was hit with Pushchair envy. Everywhere I looked I could see brand new designs and beautiful prams. The whole day just re-confirmed my love and appreciation for everything Pushchair related.

After reading up on so many of the reviews it was great to see some of the Pushchairs in the flesh. There was everything from the new Quinny Mood to the Joolz Earth. I spent my time walking around just falling at their wheels in complete and utter amazement.

If you want to see all of the differnt brands and designs under one roof, then I highly recomend a visit to the Baby Show. You can test the one's you want and have a real insight into the diverse market that buying a Pushchair brings to your front door. However if you are like me and just have a little bit of a pram addiction, I do advise you to keep your distance from all the beautiful Strollers...

 I went armed with plenty of cash, and I was very surprised to come away with plenty of cash at the end of the day. There are of course so many bargains to be found but I was realistically thinking about how I would cart boxes of goodies home on the train, with 2 changes and a poorly baby.

So what did I purchase at this years Baby Show? A Tomee Tipee Digital Ear Thermometer. It was the perfect purchase at a bargain £25.00 and it has already had so much use, what with Leo being poorly and running a temperature.

So who else has visited the Baby Show this weekend and what were your best bargains?

Laura

xx

A Daddy's Touch

This last week, Luke has been away with work. In Luke's absence, Leo has developed Roseola, a viral infection very common in babies and young children. Over Two nights, I have faced some of the hardest times since becoming a Mummy.

I have had my patience tested and gone through the night without even closing my eyes. I have been there to comfort my beautiful boy as he battles through the nasty virus that has him tightly in his clutches. I even began to wonder how much more sleep deprivation I could endure.

Then Friday evening arrived and...Luke came home!

 I suddenly realised I had all the support I needed. I had someone to take Leo so I could go to bed and finally have some quality sleep. I had everything I needed, and Leo had his Daddy home.

I warned Luke that he may not go down to sleep, and filled him in on just how Leo had been suffering over the last couple of days. I showed Luke the rash that had erupted all over Leo's beautiful skin. By now the rash on Leo's little cheeks had become so angry that it was no longer little individual dots, but one really angry looking red splodge.

Luke was great, he took Leo straight off me and told me to go to bed. I really did not need telling twice and handed Leo over to his Daddy, and just like that Luke took control. Leo went out of his way to prove me wrong, and seemed to be a completely different baby to the one who had kept me awake for so many hours. Yes he did whinge and yes he had a little cry, but those special cuddles with Daddy seemed to do the trick. Luke even came up to bed at midnight after putting Leo down in his cot...Something I had been trying to do for the last two nights, and had completely failed on all accounts.

Luke had taken Leo for walks up and down the drive in his pushchair and sat and cuddled him in the dark. All things I had tried but not been successful in. Leo then proceeded to fall asleep in Daddy's safe arms. Something Leo always refuses to do for me.

Last night seemed to be a turning point, Leo only awoke once and went back down in his cot without any issues at all, and I even managed to catch up on my much needed beauty sleep.

Today has been a mixture of a grumpy and also a very sleepy baby boy, and the rash seems to be at it's very worse. The individual dots have merged and the rash has been so bad today that I called the out of hours surgery again, in the hopes of being able to take him along to get checked.

They asked me a number of questions about how Leo was feeling, Does he have a headache? Does his neck hurt? questions I can only begin to guess the answers too...How do you ask an 11 month old how he is feeling? In the end they did not wish to see him, and told me to call back if his fontanel sunk, his temperature sky rocketed or his rash did not fade when pressure was applied.

I do think that Leo has missed his Daddy on his week away, and maybe it is not just a coincidence that Leo started to sleep better when Luke arrived home last night? Maybe Leo has missed his Daddy and being poorly has just added to his monster baby state? Whatever the reason this does seem to be the start of Leo's very anticipated recovery, and I welcome it whole heartedly with open arms.

I was so thankful to Luke last night for taking control of Leo, sorting him out, looking after him and letting me go to bed for 8pm, and then even letting me sleep in until 11am. Saying that though, Leo didn't rise much before 10am this morning, which as you all know has not been known over the last few days!

When I came downstairs this morning, I was greeted with Leo fast asleep in his Daddy's arms. Snuggled up in his favourite blanket. This blanket was Luke's magical trick for helping him get Leo to sleep last night and seems to have done the trick for nap time too. They both looked ever so contented in each others embrace, and it was lovely to just watch them. So naturally...I grabbed the camera.

My Two beautiful boys...

Tonight has been a really good night and since putting Leo down at 7pm, I have not heard a peep! So here is hoping for another good nights sleep, and that my beautiful boy is on the road to recovery!

Get well soon Baby Boy x

Laura

xx

Roseola...

The past few day's have been some of the hardest since becoming a Mummy. I have never been subjected to complete sleep deprivation before this, and to be thrown into two very sleepless nights, is the things nightmares are made of.

On Thursday I took Leo to the doctors to have his rash looked at, and to see if I could get a magical remedy to help take away any discomfort my poor little baby may be feeling. The doctor checked Leo out and eventually diagnosed Roseola.

Roseola is a viral infection that commonly affects infants and young children. It involves a pinkish-red skin rash and high fever. The virus is common in children aged 3 months to 4 years, and most common in those aged 6 months to 1 year. So poor little Leo is very susceptible to picking up this nasty viral infection.

I had been expecting a viral infection to be at the centre of it all, after talking to many helpful Mummy's on Twitter (Thank you all for your advice!)

Roseola seems to sum up everything that Leo had and may be feeling, and it is no wonder he has not been his smiley happy self over the past couple of days. Roseola presents it's self in the following symptoms:

- Eye redness

- Irritability

- Runny nose

- Sore throat

- High fever- Pink or rose-coloured rash, that starts on the middle of the body and spreads to the arms, legs, neck, and face. The rash usually has small sores that are slightly raised - Just like Leo's.

It is really good to now know what is making Leo feel so under the weather, and it makes it less frustrating knowing that there is a real reason for us being up all night.

You all know about my first night of no sleep, but I am yet to talk about the second...

Expecting the worst out of the night ahead was all I could do, the doctor had also mentioned that she could not promise me a better night which of course re-confirmed my worst fear. I dosed Leo up with Calpol and got him ready for bed, and I even managed to get him down by 6pm. However when 9pm struck, I was greeted with my screaming nocturnal baby boy once again.

It seems that as soon as the moon comes out, Leo makes the transition from angel baby to monster baby...

I was determined to not have such a bad night, I wanted us both to get some sleep. At 11pm I was out driving around the countryside trying to get my beautiful boy to close his eyes once again. I was secretly hoping that I would get him to sleep and then be able to transfer him into his cot. Of course as soon as the car stopped...Leo was awake once again, dashing any hope of going to bed myself.

Leo reminded me of the Terminator by this point, he needed no sleep and he could go all day and night without even closing his eyes...Despite what I did, he just kept on coming back...Back from the land of nodd.

Leo wound himself up until he got hysterical, and by this point I felt like crying too. All the hours were merging into one and I was aware that this would be my second sleepless night. Through my teary haze I called the out of hours surgery. I told them all about my dilemma and how I could not settle my baby boy, how he was screaming and would not relent. By this time I could not control the tears falling down my cheeks.

Luckily my Dad was holding Leo while I made the call. I was told I could take him into the surgery for a appointment at 2am if I felt the need. It was around 12:30 by this point, and I did not feel strong enough, or confident enough to drive the half hour drive with my baby boy in my current tired zombie state. I was far to tired to even consider doing it safely and I knew they wouldn't be able to do anything. All they wanted to do was take his temperature, which I could do at home.

Leo would not settle in his cot, not even for a second. As soon as I put him down he worked himself into a hysterical state. I decided as a last straw to put Leo into his pushchair and walk him around the house. Yes in my hour of madness I was walking in circles around the living room and out into the hall. Anything to just try and get him to rest, and therefor pave the way for me getting some shut eye.

Eventually he did give in and he shut his eyes, so I brought down my duvet and attempted some sleep on the sofa. Sleep that never came. Leo then began to cry again and I was presented with the fact that I had the chance to sleep, and that chance was now passing me by. Luckily Leo was soon settled with a gentle rocking of the pushchair, and I made the decision to bring down the baby monitors and get into my bed for as long as I could.

I managed about an hours sleep, and by about 5:30am Leo was back up and awake again....My day was now starting and I was now more tired than before I went to bed.

With Luke being away all of last week, I have been trying to cope alone. I am not ashamed to say that I have found it hard. When Luke arrived back last night I don't think I have ever been so pleased to see him. I was thankful that we could both work together, and I could even take a little break.

To be continued....

Laura

xx