After four week’s of listening to Sophie’s hacking cough night and day I made the call to the doctors; surely it wouldn’t be ‘just a cold’, ‘just a virus’? Alice had also come down with a thick, vile, mucus producing cold and with babies it’s always worth checking all is okay.
They managed to fit us in at 1.15pm – but did say the doctor may be running behind schedule, so phone nearer the time for an updated time.
Well, with the sun shining and fresh air always a good antidote to a cold I headed into the city at 10am, parking up in an all day park. The girls scooted along the waterfront and had a great time at the skate-board park – Alice slept and I wished I’d bought along my copy of ‘Cocktails at Naptime: A woefully inadequate guide to early motherhood‘, which had arrived in my mail-box the day before.
I was SO excited to see it, as I’ve been waiting with eager anticipation, whilst reading the hilarious interviews and reviews on the Cocktails at Naptime book tour. It will be my turn to review this book on 30th October – which makes me rather nervous as many of the esteemed bloggers that come before me are brilliant.
I’m already at Chapter 3 and really should work on my pelvic floor muscles as the book is laugh out loud funny and should be mandatory on every baby shower gift list. I wish it had been around when I started out on my parenting journey. There’s a plethora of baby books out there, but the mixed advice is so overwhelming and sometimes, as authors Gillian Martin and Emma Kaufmann write, “…out of postnatal nastiness and the human struggle with sleep-deprivation, couch stainage and perineum bruising, comes forth humour; lots of it.”
Anyway, back to my post (but don’t expect me to write too much over the next few days as naptime will be ‘cocktail’ good reading time).
After a morning playing we needed lunch and to get to the doctors. Wellington city between the hours of 12.00 and 2.00pm, Monday to Friday, is pedestrian heavy and I had two children on scooters, a baby and a buggy to manoeuvre from one end of the city to the other. Remarkably we achieved this feat without taking out anyone’s ankles or annoying the people in suits and had time to spare.
So I decided to treat my gals to a little something from Toy World. Their first impulse was to go for whistles – the kind teachers delight in blowing at ear-piercingly loud levels. I had visions of us walking into the doctors waiting room and deafening half the patients who weren’t already in need of a hearing aid and losing my sanity in the process. It was then that the gleam of a harmonica caught my eye. A ha! Musical, fun and easy on the ears.
So we arrived at the doctors, harmonicas in hand, and waited… for an hour!
The diagnosis:
Sophie: ‘It’s what we call a ‘100 day cough’. We could give her something to blow in morning and night, but she’s better off beating it naturally.’
Alice: ‘It’s a rotten cold, but her lungs and ears are clear. Her throat is a little red, but she’ll be okay in a few days – though you’ll have a rough few days of it.’
Meaning:
‘You will have to endure your 4 year old’s hacking cough for 100 days, with passers by looking at you in disgust that you dare to take your child out of the home with such a vile sounding cough and she will be tired due to not sleeping well.’
‘You will also have to endure a week of sleepless night’s, cradling your baby in your arms, propped upright on pillows as though you’re travelling on a long-haul flight. It’s school holidays, so you will have zero chance of a power-nap and will just have to battle on.’
Well, THANK GOODNESS I have ‘Cocktails at Naptime’ to make me laugh!
And the girls were awesome for me in the doctors (entertaining everyone with their harmonicas!).
On the scoot back to the car they talked me into letting them have a go on the vertical bungy and I just couldn’t resist my crazy clowns, even though I really wanted to get home for a strong cup of something!
And back at home they continued their musical melody, like a pair of gypsies in the garden summoning the fairies.
Related posts
February 27, 2012 Seeing Welly from on high!
October 30, 2010 A not so new Mummy gets a wake up call: Cocktails at Naptime
September 19, 2010 ‘Into the Wilderness’ and a Giveaway!
December 22, 2009 Longest day 2009 – what a beauty!
July 18, 2008 Maxing it out on a Sunday – and the rest!
April 13, 2008 Action Family!
Harmonicas are definitely a better choice over whistles, ha ha!
I’m just curious, but isn’t 100 day cough the same or almost the same as whooping cough? I’ve never heard of sending a child home with that without giving antibiotics, but it may be different in NZ than in the States. That really stinks!
Bleeergh to waiting in doctors surgeries and to doctors who always tell what you knew anyway….and I can’t believe you negotiated central Wellington with all that gear – hero!!
love the photos
praying Sophie is still able to get on with life nicely
I hear you on the 100 day cough. Annie is still hacking away … months later. And we sure do get stares!! We use a vapouriser – could be worth a go? Love to you all, K x
Hey Sarah… you’ve renamed it!!! Wahoo. I like it! Nice header too!
Hey in case you had fogrotten, the kidsclick comp is extended until 10th Oct. I hope Charlotte can find some animals to snap – I do love her pics!
They don’t have to be live ones!
xx
Ohhh poor girls! Hope they feel better.
Thanks Simone and yes, I did mention it to Charlotte and she started to think of various things and took some snaps of the fish and birds in the garden. Sophie said, ‘But Charlotte, you can’t enter, because then I won’t stand a chance of winning!’ So Charlotte said, ‘Tell you what Sophie, I won’t enter this time.’ So… we’ve had some discussions 🙂 Sophie has yet to take one – I’ll talk to them again tomorrow and might pop down to the Zoo, as we’re members and it’s just around the corner. They’d like that x
Thanks Katy, I know, poor Annie bless her. Will try a vapouriser – good idea, thanks x
Thanks so much Jen, she’s battling on really well, but it does get her down from time to time – when she has a coughing fit when running and bouncing on the trampoline etc. But she’s a tough lass x
Ha! Thanks Meghan and yep, I kinda knew that would be the answer – they are so very reticent to give antibiotics, but thought I should have their chests listened too just in case of something serious. x
Thanks Jenny and I’m not sure – the doctor didn’t mention whooping cough. He said her passageways were damaged and irritable and her body was fighting to repair the damage, which would take time. Her oxygen level in the blood was lower than normal. He thought it best for her body to heal in time naturally. We’ll get there – she’s a battler x
Thank you so much x
Crap, neither of those are what you want the doctor to tell you! And I’ve also never heard of a 100 day cough. Anyway, hope the kidlets feed much better soon.
Cheers and the ‘100 day cough’ thing had me stumped too!
100 days?? Eeeek…. hope it will be much less for you.
The book sounds cool – and the photos of your kids…. just beautiful!
Poor cough drops…thinking of you…hope the fresh air helps to clear the lungs out.Had a little giggle about the harmonicas in the surgery…kept the other people amused through their long wait!! Sophie seems to have some puff to make a sound!! Love the picture of them both in the garden..can almost hear the wonderful music!!
Thanks Laura, I hope so too! And the book is hilarious, hee, hee.
Thanks my dear Mummy, she is certainly not letting the cough stop her – still running around like a mad thing and little miss chatterbox from morning to night… :)xx
I am pretty sure my 4 year old must have that 100 day cough too! She has been hacking away since June. Two lots of antibiotics have helped a wee bit but its still very loud and chesty and we get lots of stares too .. especially at kindy! I keep taking her back to the doctor and he just tells us to wait it out. I have started dosing her with Olive Leaf and vitamin c in the hope that will help.
Hope your girls feel better.
Enjoy your naptimes with your book – looks like a good read.
Take care.
Thanks Leonie and for the tip with regard the Olive Leaf. Hope your daughter gets better soon too! Sarah x
Hey Sarah, a friend here in Sydney introduced me to pure essential oils in the vapouriser as Madison gets really bad croup and asthma when she gets any illness. Anyway I was quite impressed with how much of a difference they made for her. I put three 3 drops each of Frankincense, Ginger & Eucalyptus pure essential oils into the vaporiser. Madison slept the best she had slept for months once I tried out the oils. Unsure if they would sooth the “100 day cough” but thought I’d pass this on anyway. Hope your girls get better soon.
Love the new name and headers! very nice
Sorry your girls are so poorly, it is just so energy draining having sick children, and with 3 of them, it seems like at least one of them always has something IYKWIM?
That book sounds good.
Oh dear is that like “The Hundred Years War” where it lasted longer than that but they liked the name so just kept it at 100. Oh dear.
Loving the new name!
I have been following your blog for a wee while now, I love seeing all the fun things in Wellington you guys get up to (We are just up the Coast) You inspire me to get out more and explore the wonderful city of Wellington.
I just happened to be in town that day and saw your gorgeous girls scoot past, they were having so much fun. Took me a moment to figure out where I recognised you all from 😉
Hope all those nasty bugs pass, I remember having the 90 day cough as a kid (they seemed to have added a few days since then) it wasn’t so fun.
Ah I hear you! My seven year old is currently on day 4 of a hacking cough and we are learning to grin and bear it. So glad you are enjoying Cocktails! hugs xx