Round 2

I began my Round 2 battle of Mastitis again on Sunday. What a mess I tell ya. We had some friends over on Sunday for dinner and to watch football, and around 6 pm my right breast began to get really sore again. I tried pumping twice after they left, and got pretty much nothing. I knew right away what was going on since last time. If you remember, I had an allergic reaction to the first medicine they put me on last time, and the second medicine gave me severe diarrhea. So, I only ended up having 6 days of medicine last time instead of the 10 I was supposed to. I called the Dr. right away yesterday morning, and they got me in right away. Again, my breast was SO swollen and red, and very painful. Much worse than last time, but no other side effects (usually you have flu like symptoms with Mastitis). So, we were presented with a dilemma. There are only 4 medicines that really treat it, and the top two were already knocked off the list since I had reactions to them. The third medicine is in the same family as the first one, which may cause a cross-allergic reaction, and with the fourth one I can't breastfeed b/c it is not safe for Reese. Hmmmm....what to do. After talking with the doctor and pharmacist, we all decided it would be best for me to go with medicine #3. There is only a 2% chance it would cause a cross reaction and I would have an allergic reaction. So, I started the medicine yesterday and things are already improving. I just have to keep a close watch on any symptoms that may be related to an allergic reaction, and get to the ER as soon as possible if they were to show up. Let's pray they don't, and I can take the full 10 days of medicine to get rid of this!!!

I was already feeling better yesterday afternoon, so Kyle, Reese, and I went to the Mendota Terrace in downtown Madison to sit by the lake, eat dinner, and watch the sunset. It was a gorgeous evening. I will be the first to admit I have been weary to take Reese places for long periods of time in the fear of her having a meltdown in public (when she gets hungry). Even though she is a GREAT baby at home, I just have a fear she will start crying in public and everyone will start staring at me :) So, I overcame my fear last night as we walked up and down State Street and then headed to the Terrace. Wouldn't you know it, halfway through eating, she began to whimper. So, we tried the bottle. No go. We tried burping her. Not having it. By the time we got walking to the car, she was screaming her head off (the loudest she has ever) and I was frantic. We checked her diaper, nothing. What else could it be???? So, after seeing the tears roll down her face, I picked her up, and just started talking to her while burping her, and a very loud belch finally came out. Ahh, relief. For her, and us :) She had then cried herself to sleep, and we walked to the car and headed home. It was not that bad, but it was exactly what I didn't want to happen. Ohwell, when she is two, I won't be able to burp her to get her to be quiet :) Here she is, wiped out after all that fussing!

Tonight we are going to a local park near our house for a picnic. We are taking full advantage of the great weather outside. If Reese wants to scream tonight, she can let it all out.

Here are some recent pics of her. She is becoming more and more fond of bath time, but still sheds some tears at the end.