Wednesday, April 02, 2008

Shots and Sadness - Revisited

Do you remember this post? Basic recap: We went to get shots back in July and inadvertently got the one shot that I didn't want my kids to be exposed to that leaves a nasty scar on their arm. It is the shot for TB that they give here. I found out later that there were 2 different TB shots available here...one that leaves a scar and one that doesn't. I was MAJORLY upset to say the least. (By the way, we are still praying for no scarring.)

Well, such regret I felt...until January when we went to another place to get some other shots. We were told there that they no longer make that TB vaccination that doesn't leave a scar. Yes, it is no longer available. So, even if we had remembered to be on our guard about that shot and even if we had waited to get the TB vaccine, we would've had to have this one that leaves a scar in the end anyway. Sad that the only thing available now leaves a scar, but glad that we would've ended up with the same thing anyhow...therefore, no more regrets. Although, we do have more of a sense of being on guard about things now since that experience, which is good.

Anyway, so we went to get Cass's heel pricked yesterday, had her ears tested, and also swung by to get...yes, shots. I am happy to say that I am the proud recipient of a yellow fever vaccination now. :) Cass got that awful (but necessary) TB, scar-leaving, shot and also a Hep. B shot (she can only get the yellow fever shot when she is nine months old; Eissa just happened to be nine months old when we went for shots in July, so everyone else already has their yellow fever shot). Poor little Cass. She did fine though.

We have a hard and fast rule about shots...whenever we get shots, we get treats (yes, even me at my age and Cass, even though she doesn't even know what's going on...it still counts...rules are rules). Here in Anapolis the treat place is none other than Cows (McDonald's).

So, we picked the kids up from school and ALL piled in our little car for the first time. It was funny...Grady got in the car and asked if we were going to Cows. We hadn't said a single thing about it and they didn't even know that we had gone to get shots. I guess he just thought something was up since we were both picking them up and were in the car instead of walking. Anyway, we had a blast at Cows last night for supper and ice cream.

It was also Cass's first outing yesterday...first time out of our house period. As of last night she is now a week old. Fun stuff. I have a couple of pictures of before we headed out to get shots, but unfortunately didn't take the camera with me to Cows. Bummer too...would've gotten some great shots. The car ride alone is quite comical in and of itself. Eissa is behind Joel (driver's seat) in her carseat, Cass is behind me in hers, and then Grady and Hadley share the seatbelt in the middle. It's crowded, but we are making it work...we have to right now. Soon I'll get a picture for you all to see that sight.

In the meantime, just a few of right before yesterday's outing. And, to start off, a couple of the sisters holding the little one, taken a couple of nights ago.

By the way, we had another great night last night. Cass is amazing me. I fed her at 11pm, 3am, and then she woke at 7:30. So, basically she is only waking up once at night already...not bad for a week old baby. We'll see if this trend continues.


Is it just me or does Eissa seem so much bigger these days? :)



Hmm, not so sure she's into going out. Funny, I don't even remember her crying...it must've just been a split-second thing.
Eissa was being a toot and not smiling, so I had to tickle.

4 comments:

Leah said...

Hey, you look great!
We stopped vaccinating after a lot of research and prayer.

Amanda said...

I understand the feeling sadness over things that are done to your kids with your consent, but not with your full understanding of what you are consenting to. As much as I tried to know exactly what to expect for Corban's tubes and adenoids surgery, the one thing I didn't expect was him waking up without me in the room with him. The medical staff all indicated he would never know a moment without me, but they waited until he was actually awake in recovery to come get me. That made me pretty upset and it was hard to get him to calm down.

I imagine it's tough for you too, since you know vaccines for that can be done without scarring in America. I admire that you've allowed yourself to feel/grieve over it, and then learned from it. I also learned from my experience that I will never know all the right questions to ask because I'm not a doctor, or I don't do their job.

I love that name for your fast food place, "Cow's." That really gets to the point, huh? My kids visit the doctor often enough that they know to ask for candy and stickers from every person in the office. That's treat enough for them to endure the experience. Although, I need to come up with more of a treat for days when we know we're getting shots, like chocolate! Yum!

Rebecca said...

oh my goodness - such very cute children you have! I can't ever get over how adorable they are! Cass is just as cute!

Unknown said...

Did you really just have a baby!?!? What in the world! I do the tickle Brady trick all the time and am just starting it with Bennett! Love that one! I'm eager to see the car trip picture! One of my friends has 4 and she loads the infant through the hood of her SUV...she has 4 girls! Sorry about the shot stuff! I never was grossed out by my moms if its any consolation!?!?