My week with mama

Last week, papa went to DC for a conference. He was gone for 5 days, and during that time, mom sure did spoil me. Let's say she was just a big ole' sucker for my charming ways. It was so bloody hot during those days, so we had a fun time sleeping together in the living room where the A/C unit is located in our apartment. Mom also cleared off her entire calendar those days just to spend some quality time with me.

During all that heat, I developed a pretty bad rash which was followed by a couple of visits to the doctor's office -- and prodding and poking from two different doctors. There was some prescription cream involved, after which my bumpy, sandpaper textured rash turned hot pink with inflamation. Mom stopped the cream and after spending a couple of hours in front of the computer, she came back and started soaking me in the tub with clear tepid water. Ahhhhh...relief. I got some new tub toys to keep me occupied, and somewhere in the string of 15-minute long tub soaks, I learned how to blow bubbles into the water. And I also realized that I can dunk my face completely underwater and lick the bottom of the tub. But it's not all that fun actually, I don't recommend it as a hobby.

Along with the soaks, mom also started contributing to California's power crisis and blasting the air conditioner to keep my skin cool and dry during the heat wave. She also rearranged the furniture in the living room (where our wall-unit A/C is located) so that I was surrounded on two sides by sofa, one side by a chaise lounge, and one side by a heavy coffee table turned on its side.


It was her way of simulating my crib and keeping me in a confined and safe space, but ha! That didn't stop me -- most of the nights, mom slept on one of the three couches and I slept on the floor in the "pen," but a few times when I was supposed to be napping, I managed to crawl over the chaise lounge while mom was passed out on the sofa. Somehow she heard me scrape my spoon against Lucy's food bowl (how can she hear so well?), woke up, and ran over to whisk me away before I could get a bite.

In the end, the doctors say it is eczyma, or atopic dermatitis. One doc said I may outgrow it by the time I'm two years old, but another doc said I will probably have this (on and off) for the rest of my life! Well, I hope the first doc is right. Here, this photo should sum up my condition pretty well:

Today, back to day care.