Chicken pox, specifically. Jonah doesn’t necessarily have them, but he’s been exposed.
We received word earlier today that one of the friends we visited in California has come down with chicken pox. Both Erin and I have had them—I still have a scar on my wrist from the episode—so there’s no danger for us, but Jonah might be a different story. Chicken pox are potentially contagious up to five days prior to their appearance, and they show up typically 10-14 days after exposure. Since Jonah is still breast feeding he’s probably picking up Erin’s own immunity through the breast milk. The doctor thought it unlikely that Jonah would come down with chicken pox even if exposed.
Jonah’s had a few crying fits in the last couple days which are similar to what colic must be like in other infants. Let me tell you that I absolutely feel for those parents whose kids are colicky. To have some inconsolable baby wailing away is just the worse thing. It’s unusual behavior in Jonah, so that coupled with the pox scare led us to call the Kaiser advice nurse, who of course told us to bring the kid in. I guess it’s better to err on the side of caution, but since all tests came up negative, and we didn’t really glean any information that couldn’t have just been acquired over the phone, I’m not sure how useful it was. I suppose we got some peace of mind from it. That’s probably worth the $10 co-pay. Anyway….
After some soccer down at Bush Park, I returned home to watch my favorite team, the Clowns, lose on The Amazing Race. A tremendous disappointment, that. Especially since the loathesome Jon and Kelly made the final three. If they win, I may swear off the show altogether. It’s hard enough to believe I’m watching it again after last year’s travesty with Zach and whiny little Flo. Fortunately, I’m OK with Dave and Jeff or Chip and Reichen winning, so the odds are in my favor. (In the final three last year, I only had one team for whom I could cheer.) We’ll see what happens next Thursday at 8 PM.