Never a dull moment

My dad had to leave town on business for a few weeks, and it is the first time in 25 years that my mom has been alone for so long. So last Wednesday, while Jesse worked late, I thought Ryleigh and I would go hang out and have dinner with Mom.

I picked up Taco Bell on the way over, and we sat down to eat. Ryleigh had been asleep in her car seat, but naturally woke up right when we started to eat. And she did not wake up happy. It was right around the time she was supposed to eat, but since we were eating, I did not want to stop and go feed her. I had a bottle of pre-made formula with me, so my mom attempted to give it to her. Well, Ryleigh did not like that one bit, and started screaming her head off. She would not take the bottle and would not stop screaming. Mom tried to walk around and calm her down, nope. So, I tried feeding her myself. Still, she screamed. We walked outside, up and down the driveway...still screaming. We were so desperate for her to stop, we even stuck her in my mom's kitchen sink, thinking a warm bath would certainly calm her down. Nothing. I had run out of tricks; something was wrong.

I called Jesse, who agreed it would not hurt to have her checked out and make sure nothing was seriously wrong. My mom drove us to the after-hours emergency clinic on Hwy 249. Ryleigh calmed down in the car, but the second we got her out again, the screaming resumed. Jesse was waiting for us when we arrived, and had already filled out her paperwork. We went right in, and eventually saw a doctor. (The place had just opened for business a few days before, and they moved pretty slow...especially considering there really was not anyone else there but us!) I think overall, we spoke with 2 or 3 doctors and one nurse. They checked Ryleigh from head to toe, ruling out fever, ear infection (which was my prediction), throat infection, diaper rash, and any other irritation. *Keep in mind that she is still screaming her head off.* After we had been there almost an hour and a half, and Ryleigh had now been screaming for over 2 hours, they took an X-ray of her chest/stomach. Sure enough, her stomach was full of air pockets, very similar to colic. However, colic normally peaks around 6-weeks...it does not suddenly show up at 3 months. Not to mention the fact that of course they would see air bubbles; she had been screaming and crying for 2 hours, swallowing tons of air! So I was not convinced.

Around 9:45 I finally convinced Jesse to go home. We were just waiting on discharge papers and instructions, and there was nothing else he could do. My mom walked around the waiting room with Ryleigh and finally rocked her to sleep. Poor baby, she practically whimpered herself to sleep. We left the ER around 10:15 pm.

After I dropped Mom off back at her house (which looked like a tornado had hit...Taco Bell on the table, baby clothes and towels on the counter, water still in the sink), I drove home and Jesse met me on the driveway to bring Ryleigh inside. She was still out cold. Once we got her inside, I went to lay her down in her cradle and she woke up. I changed her diaper and tried to feed her (she had not eaten in over 6 hours). She took a little bit and fell back asleep.

The next day I went ahead and took her to her pediatrician to have her checked out again, as recommended by the ER doctors. There was still nothing that blatantly stood out as a reason for the episode. Her pediatrician thought she might have had a bit of acid reflux when we originally attempted to give her the formula, which might have burned or something, and then she just continued to get herself worked up. My neighbor suggested to watch for teeth...though it is still early, they can start to teethe around 4 months. Honestly, I have no idea what it might have been. She has not reacted well to that pre-made formula, so I'm wondering if she is allergic or something. No telling. All I know is that we were all thoroughly worn out after yet another Ryleigh-escapade.