My Squirrel is going NUTS , and it's not funny

My sweet girl

So my sweet six year old Squirrel's eczema is currently flaring with a rampage, the likes of which we haven't seen since she was a little baby and had to be wrapped in gauze like an infant mummy.  We've been to the doctors multiple times this summer.  She's also had cellulitis and a fungal infection as a result of it.  We've been to the pediatrician, the ER, and the dermatologist, and have another dermatologist and allergist visit coming up.  At the beginning of summer she was on two antibiotics (Keflex and Bactrim, I think), Cutivate, Atarax (to control the itching), desonide, and DermaSoothe. The antibiotics were just for 10 days.  The derm took her off everything and prescribe griseofluvin, fluocinolone acetonide, and prednisone.

My baby is going bonkers.

She is literally out of her mind right now and I am at my wit's end. Prednisone has some funky side effects on your head-mood swings, irritability, depression, difficulty sleeping, chills-and she's feeling all of them.  The stuff in her head is the worst.  You can't say boo to the poor baby with out her bursting into tears.  Case in point, This is a conversation that took place yesterday.

Me: Those socks don't match. Take them off and I'll find you some matching ones. (SN: one sock was yellow with "Monday" in magenta and the other was white with an aqua toe and heel and lime green polka dots.  And they belonged to Princess)Squirrel:  >bursts into tears<
Me: Why are you crying?
Squirrel: Because you told me to take of the sooooooooccccckkkkkksssssss

I'm not exaggerating. That's verbatim. Here's another example from today.

Me:  Come on, sweetie. Let met me do your hair. You can bring your [philly] ice with you. (SN: normally, I do not allow them to eat outside the kitchen. I was letting her eat in my room)
Squirrel: >bursts into tears<
Me: Why are you crying?
Squirrel: I don't knnnnnoooooowwwwww
Me: Okay, well, I'm not mad at you. Try to calm down.  Here, give me a hug.
Squirrel: >still crying< I don't want to hug yoooooooouuuuuuuuu
Me: Uh, that's okay. You don't have to hug me.  It's okay.
Squirrel: >sniff, sniff< Okay >bursts into fresh tears<
Me: Wait,why are you crying again?
Squirrel: Because I coughed on you earlieeeeerrrrrrrrrr!
Me, in my Pooh voice: Oh, bother.

I don't know how much more of this I can take. She is literally crying for everything, and I mean everything.  Eating, drinking, sitting, standing, laying down, getting dressed, taking baths, putting on jammies, putting on socks, taking off socks, getting in the car, being hugged, not being hugged, because it's hot, because it's cold, because there are gnats/flies, etc.  She is so....hypersensitive and it's making me edgy.  I can barely sleep.  On top of that, school starts soon and I barely have any milk pumped. I only pump 4-6 oz at a time and I can't see to get on a pump schedule.  The only thing that relaxes me is nursing Popcorn.

I'm getting off topic a bit.  The point is, prednisone is not going well for us and we still have 3 another day of it. Her skin still looks bad.  Plus, it suppress your immune system and I think she has cellulitis again.

I'll update you on her later. Oh, and Side Salad needed a breathing treatment last week. He may have allergic asthma, probably to ragweed. Last year, he ended up in the hospital for about 3 days. This time, I recognized the symptoms (wheezing, retraction, breathing around his words) and took him for treatment immediately. We were home in less than 2 hours. Bully for us.

In happy news, Popcorn is 4 months old and rolling like a wheel. She's getting efficient at it, understanding the need to build up momentum by rocking back and forth first.  She's also sitting some.

Back from Hiatus

It's been over a month and a half since I last posted and I do apologize. It's summer, and my house is so very  kid-ful.  I barely have time to comb my hair and brush my teeth some days. The big four go back to school soon.

Ready for s'mores

Astronaut is getting ready to begin middle school. I can't believe he's so grown up now!  He'll outgrow me this year. We pick up his schedule in a few weeks, which is very exciting.

She likes the AGs

Princess will, for the first time, be the oldest of the crew at a school.  She's going to fourth grade.  Madness. This child literally read over 20 books this summer and helped her school librarian. She is such a little go getter.

Unfortunately, there's no tooth fairy

Squirrel has had a busy summer. Her eczema flared horrendously and was accompanied by a fungal infection on her scalp and a bacterial infection on her skin. We finally found her another derm and an allergist. She's been to the doc 5 this summer and has two more appointments coming up. She also lost a tooth!

He likes worms

Side Salad starts 4K this year **tear** He is my baby boy and I think he's far too young. He assures me that he will be fine and that Popcorn will keep me company.

The happiest baby on the block!

Popcorn will be 4 months old next week. I plan on starting her on a cup then, too. She rolls around a lot and growls like a little tiger!

My crew and I before a farmer's market visit