The Woes of Babes

So Ellie still has her cold (as do I), and now on top of it, she's teething. And not just any ole teething. 4 teeth are breaking through up top at the same time! That's right, 4! The pain must be atrocious. She was so upset all day yesterday, and I didn't know what I could do for her. She had her 9 month visit yesterday, and the doc took a look in her mouth and showed us the 4 teeth. Her gums are so red and swollen! How awful for her.

And her cough and stuffy nose don't help it any. Every time she coughs really hard, she cries out. It's too much pressure on her mouth. The doc said we could give her benadryl strips besides the triamimic strips we're giving her for the cold to help alleviate the congestion. She also said we can give her some tylenol for the tooth pain. Hopefully, she can get some relief.

I had heard her grinding her teeth night before last, so I knew there had to be a tooth up there for her to grind the bottom ones on. She just wouldn't let me look. I would never have guessed that there would be 4.

She's sitting happily in her swing right now watching Sesame Street, so I think the tylenol kicked in. I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

As for the 9 month checkup, she weighed in at 19lbs, 13oz (70%ile), measured up at 28.25in (75%ile), and her head measured 47cm (100%ile). I asked if I should be worried about her head circumference, and they assured me that she was fine. I hear that 100%ile thing, and I start to freak a bit.

She got her first shot in the arm (ugh), and she had to get a finger prick (double ugh!). The finger prick was horrible, naturally. Instead of being a gusher like her dad, she trickles like her mommy. Of all the dumb luck.

The doc keeps telling us she's very advanced, but I just don't see it. All my nieces were just like Ellie, talking, crawling, standing, cruising, etc. She asked if we thought Ellie understood more than just her name, and well, yes, she does. She seems to understand many of the things we say to her, but I thought most 9 months old do. I don't know, maybe I'm wrong. I just don't want to put a label on her at such a young age. I still think it's too early to speculate on her intelligence.

In all honesty, I don't want her dad to get his hopes up. He's always saying he hopes Ellie is smart like mommy because he's afraid she may have inherited his learning disability. I think it's his one big fear in life. And every time the doc or someone else say how smart Ellie is, I see that his fears are alleviated, which should be great. I know it should. I'm just cautious about the whole thing. Only time will tell.