Matt & Fion Plus 3: January 2015

From my last post, I detailed how Fion and I took the boys to their pediatrician for their 2 month check up and first-ever routine immunization. So far, the only had their monthly RSV shots. Well, know what? Some of you smart and more experienced parents probably already know what happened next. Yes, the side effect of vaccinations - fever!

We didn't know that the beanies were having fever until they slept through their feeding time (around 8pm), which was unusual for the beanies as we had been feeding them around the clock every 3-4 hours for 99% of the time. It is even more rare when all three of them slept through it as usually at least one will wake up for food! (Something to watch out for in their next routine immunization - definitely.) Typically, whenever it's feeding time, Cedric will be the first to wake, follow by Ethan, then Skylar (most of the time).

Immediately after we found out about the fever, we executed the emergency protocol in great caution and administered Tylenol as instructed by Dr. VT. We had also placed a piece of damped washcloth to their foreheads to help calm them down and get rid of the excess heat from their bodies. Below are a few pics I snapped during the undertakings.

Skylar reached 102.3 degree Fahrenheit!!!

Poor Skylar fighting fever with a damped washcloth on his forehead... Skylar's response to fever was indeed a very passive one - at least for us parents - sleep through it... zzzZZZ

Cedric reached 101.4 degree Fahrenheit!!!

Poor Cedric was also fighting fever with a damp washcloth on his forehead... However, Cedric's response was very different in compared to Skylar. He appeared to get more cranky and didn't want to rest at all! Interestingly, he constantly made some "weird" noises to signal his discomfort...

Ethan reached 100.9 degree Fahrenheit!!!

Poor Ethan fighting fever with a damp washcloth on his forehead... Again, Ethan's response was very different to his two bros. He appeared to be awake, but stay calm for the most part. In fact, he actually seemed to be in good mood and wasnt bothered by the fever at all...

A fun fact: While I was administering Tylenol, I accidentally spilled a little drop on my hand. Normally, I will just wash my hand or wipe it off with a dry cloth, but I didn't do it this time. In fact, I placed the drop in my mouth and got a taste of it! Well, I didn't know what I was thinking at the moment as I hate the taste of all liquid form medications. Cherry, banana, grape... Whatever... as they all taste YUCK! Surprisingly, the taste of the infant Tylenol wasn't too bad, it actually tastes quite nice - sweet and very fruity (as labelled)... Since when did Tylenol come up with such great flavor??? Why don't they apply the same flavor to adult medicine? Well... I am drifting off side now... HAHA... Weird thought! Anyway, let's get back on track!

Thank goodness... The beanies appeared to feel better and gradually re-gain their strength and consciousnesses after the medication... So, we continued to administer Tylenol every 4 hours and monitor their temp every 15-30 mins. Below are some more pics I took after things settled a bit...

Skylar continued his sleep as mentioned earlier...

Cedric cranky no more and resting comfortably on his bobby pillow...

Ethan continued to stay COOL and chilling out in the comfort of his Grandma Connie's arms

We continued to monitor their temperature every 15 - 30 mins. It's fair to say that the beanies "hate" the ear thermometer... Ethan instinctively cried to his mom "STOP mom! STOP poking me with that thing. I don't care what it is in your hand, but it hurts me baaaaaaaaad! Wahhhhhhhhhhhh....."

A quick snapshot on the beanies... Everything had finally settled and they also returned to their sleep... A rare moment of "peace" since we brought the beanies home! Remind me of past time when Fion and I were still a family of 2. Well, things really did change A LOT in the past 10 months. I praise God for his amazing work and wonderful blessings to my family...Our lives had just gone from GOOD to GREAT!

It is important to note that at around 3am in the morning, things had all returned to normal. For precautionary purpose, we continued to administer Tylenol to the beanies until next morning. Sorry if I scared you with my title or everything I have mentioned above. Life is full of surprises (good or bad), but it's all GREAT now! =)

Thanks for reading...

Fion and I took the beanies to their pediatrician (Dr. Vatinee Thassanapaff - Dr. VT for short) for a 2 months check up. Since I didn't get a chance to document any of the other 2 appointments (72 hours & 1 month old follow up) as I was too busy trying to work out the logistic on how to safely & efficiently transport the beanies. As things continue to work their way into a flow, I begin to think to myself that I should write something about the check up this time... Plus, this is the first time the boys will be getting their immunizations (against Diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis, polio, haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib) (five-in-one vaccine) & Pneumococcal conjugate-13 (separate vaccine) & Rotavirus (orally). So, this appointment is going to be an eventful one! Let me take you through a journey for another great day!

Skylar started to get impatient while waiting for his bros to get ready to get out the door!

Cedric was finally ready - just chilling on his bouncer

And so was Ethan

Just waiting for mom & dad to put us in the car seats. Hurry up dad! We're gonna be late again!!

It's feeding time! Mommy prepping our milk. We brought sanitized bottle with us and canned READY-TO-USE can formula, so there was no mixing and stirring required, simply open, pour, serve!!!

Daddy & Skylar while waiting for the pediatrician

Fion & Skylar waiting for the pediatrician

All three boys fell sleep at the pediatrician's office...... zzzZZZ...

Someone was soundly asleep......guess who this is?? Cedric or Skylar?

And who is this?

And then....it was finally our turn for checkup. First up, Skylar!

"Help, mommy help! What's going on here?!?!" Skylar instinctively know that something terrifying was about to happen!!!

Fion tried to comfort Skylar....look at his face!! He seemed to calm

down a little...

"Are we done yet?! Why is daddy taking picture of my naked body (or mostly

naked)?"

Dr. VT measuring Skylar's length

Dr. VT testing the strength of his legs, but he wasn't strong enough to stand yet...

Skylar on the scale...

Skylar on his tummy...

Boy oh boy... Skylar working hard and successfully lifting his head up during tummy time!!! My little boy suddenly seems to grow up so much!!!

Dr. VT completed Skylar's check up and him resting comfortably in his mommy's arms... The vaccination was given to Skylar during feeding. I didn't manage to take anymore photos during his vaccination since I was too occupied getting the next boy ready. However, I don't think this require further explanation as you all probably know how this will end. "Ouch!"... ;)

To this end, Ethan was up next!

Ethan feeling sleepy still when it was his turn

And finally waking up as Dr.VT started his checkup

Ethan remaining cool...he didn't seem to get bothered at all like his bro

Time to weigh Ethan - Both Fion & I were wondering if he still weighs slightly more than Cedric, since for the past appointments both Cedric & Ethan weigh pretty much the same even tho Ethan looks bigger (just b/c he has a slightly bigger head than Cedric). We will reveal all the weights of the boys at the end of this post :)

Dr. VT wanted to see how strong Ethan's legs are. He could actually "stand" for a few seconds with Dr. VT holding him. Dr. VT said Ethan has strong legs!! Unfortunately I was a little late in capturing his "standing" pose and only managed to take this.

Ethan's turn for tummy time. Dr. VT just tried to help position his head

While it was supposed to be tummy time, Ethan decided he just wanted to suck his hand and relax

And relaxing......Fion was trying to encourage him on the side "Go-Ethan-Go~!!!", but of course, he couldn't understand a thing that mama said

Figured it was a good idea to take a picture with all three. Ethan and Skylar were crying their lungs out (Fion was actually changing Skylar's poopie diaper while this picture was taken). As you can see, Ethan was crying because he was really really hungry by the time his check up was over... Cedric remained calm and sleeping as it still wasn't his turn just yet.

It was Ethan's turn to feed. He was already done with the vaccination when this was taken. Out of the three boys, Ethan's the one who won the "Big Boy" award of the day since he remained cool (well maybe just cried a little) when Dr. VT administered the shots. Good job Ethan!!

And finally it was Cedric's turn. Dr. VT just put her finger in Cedric's mouth to see how well he sucked. He proved to be a good "sucker" since he was borne. However, according to Dr. VT, Skylar appeared to be the best of the three through her "finger" test!

Close up shot of Cedric. He was starting to get a little cranky.

Cedric on the scale...

Cedric on his tummy...

Just like Ethan, Cedric was enjoying his tummy time and didn't do much at all apart from sucking his fingers... In fact, he almost fell asleep while his was on his tummy... Well, always next time! Fion and I got a bit of homework to do with the boys... More tummy time with the beanies to help them build some strengths!!!

Fion feeding Cedric while Dr. VT administered the vaccination.

Skylar resting in the comfort of his car seat...

So was Ethan...

At last, it was time to go home. Fion and I were working on the last bit to clean up the scene, so we didn't get to take any picture of Cedric. But, I bet you know how it ended with him... :)

It was certainly a very eventful morning... Of course, same as always, we managed to swing by our favorite local breakfast place for a hearty breakfast / bunch... Yeh, today was just another day that I won't forget. Fion and I were both very pleased with how everything went so far. The boys has grown so much since last check up. Below are all the statistics we got from this check up...

Skylar

Left - 1 Month Old | Right - 2 Month Old