Huh... what??

I'm sorry... you will have to speak louder. I can't quite hear you. I think I am temporarily deaf from all of the screaming.

Here is my advice to all of you. If your child ever has the displeasure to contract hand, foot and mouth disease promptly pack them up and ship them off to Grandma's for a couple of days. No really... TRUST ME!!

Here is my last night in a nutshell.

5:27 pm: Arrive at daycare and notice that he is crying in his room

5:28 pm: Notice that the little dear only took a 20 minute nap, briefly consider if it would be possible to pawn him off on someone this evening. Decide against it and suck it up for the long night ahead.

5:32 pm: Get him into the car seat and decide that I'm going to try to get him to take a small nap on the way to get him some ice cream to make his mouth feel better

5:33 pm: The screaming continues. I try to give him a binkie but it is the blue binkie NOT the green binkie and it just will not due. He hands it back to me and continues to scream.

5:35 pm: Decide there is NO way I can go to get him anything as I will not be able to hear in the drive through. Turn around and take him home.

5:37 pm: The screaming ceases for 2.5 seconds until he sees daddy and melts down again at the injustice of being inside and not outside

5:38 pm: Daddy takes him outside, the screaming stops. THANK GOD...

5:40 pm: Oh wait, it was just a fluke. The sand box is not behaving it's self and the screaming begins again in earnest. I take this as my opportunity to escape to acquire the ice cream

6:17 pm: Arrive back home, Zack is no longer screaming and is instead sitting on the couch waiting for daddy to get 101 Dalmatians started so he can watch PUPPIEEEEEEES!!

6:24 pm: Apparently french fries and PUPPIEEEEEESS (yes.. it must be said with much enthusiasm) make everything better

{This Picture Has Been Moved to Zack's Site}

6:27 pm: Oh yes, and Ice Cream... mussent forget the ice cream

{This Picture Has Been Moved to Zack's Site}

7:02 pm: The calm is short lived so daddy takes him upstairs to bed. The screaming begins.

7:05 pm: It is quiet, they are reading a book

7:07 pm: He puts him in his crib and the screaming begins in earnest. If I didn't know better I would think someone was trying to kill him.

7:15 pm: I head upstairs to try to calm him down. He stops crying when I get in the room but doesn't want to lay down. I read him a book trying to get him to calm down and sit in my lap. He squirms and wriggles so I put him back in his crib. The screaming starts again.

7:22 pm: Mommy.... mommy... (I think that is playing dirty)

7:30 pm: I go back up to check on my screaming child. I try to give him his binkie but the blisters on his tongue make it impossible for him to suck on it so he just screams and cries. I hold him, rock him, try walking with him, nothing works

7:38 pm: I decide to load him in the car and drive him around until he falls asleep before I pull all my hair out

7:39 pm: I step outside and the screaming stops immediately. His head pops up off my shoulder and he points to the field. "Moo...." (Well I'm glad to see he hasn't lost sense of the important things in life)

7:39 1/2 pm: I get him in the car seat and the screaming begins again

7:42 pm: The screaming has stopped. I can still hear the whimpers from the back seat but his eyes are closed.

7:44 pm: I put him in bed and fall defeated onto the couch

8:22 pm: He begins to cough... oh sh*t, oh sh*t please don't let him wake up, no such luck. It begins with a mild whimper

8:24 pm: The screaming is back again along with the flailing. I take him downstairs and try to give him baby ambesol on his tongue. It doesn't work.

8:26 pm: I try starting the puppies movie, he's still screaming, he wants no part of it

8:34 pm: I put him back in bed, not knowing what else to do with him

8:43 pm: Can't stand to hear him cry, not knowing if he's just overly tired or in pain, take him downstairs

8:44 pm: Screaming

8:50 pm: More Screaming....

8:58 pm: Oh yeah... still crying.....

9:08 pm: "HEATHER...." "WHAT?" "Why don't you take him in the car again?" He stops to listen and is suddenly overwhelmed with how tired he is. His eyes begin to droop and I sit as still as possible trying not to move so he won't start again.

9:12 pm: His eyes droop for the last time. I find the foot rest on the recliner, put it up and sit motionless hoping, please dear god don't let him start again....

9:28 pm: Finally find the courage to move and I take him up and put him in his bed

On the upside I think we have taken away the binkie? After all we've already survived the first two hour night of crying right?? :-)