Shrieks, Squeals, Screams, and Cuteness

These cute eyes right here were the same eyes that were wide open yesterday, soaking up all the details of the exam room. Those eyes studied Dr. Grijnstein's (pronounces Greensteen) face when he walked in the room and touched her, poked her and prodded her. She was the perfect patient. So cute and cuddly. She really studied his face up close when he fed her the oral vaccine. No matter how much of it didn't get into her mouth, as she sat on Mommy's lap, she was as cute as can be. Then, the horror happened......the left thigh was penetrated by a long sharp needle. The moment it left her leg was the moment my heart broke. Now, I have seen my nephew at 6 months hit his head on a toy and start to cry like this. I have never seen Erin cry like this until that moment. It's the cry that breaks you because you know your child is really in pain. It's the cry that speaks the end of the world to them and nothing will be better again! As I watched her face turn a deep maroon color, her mouth opened as wide as possible, all I could do was hug her and remind her to breathe....because at that moment, to you, it seems like they aren't going to take another breath. And when she finally did, it was the loudest, most high pitched, ear piercing scream I had ever heard come out of her mouth. I did not think that such a little person was capable of such a scream....I had never heard it before. Then came the right thigh. Before the doctor even put the needle in, she began screaming upon the slightest touch! After 10 minutes, some rocking and a good suck on the pacifier, she felt safe and secure in her car seat. The next 3 and a half hours were bliss for me and Erin. She had a bottle when we got home. I gave her some Tylenol upon doctors orders and took a nice nap in her bouncy seat while I got things done. As I looked at her, she seemed so peaceful and calm, I then wanted to cuddle with her. I felt so bad for what she endured a few hours earlier, I just wanted to hold her in my arms. We spent an hour cuddling and after Ping arrived home from work, I passed her off to him so he could greet her.  Then the horror started... all she did was shriek and scream. Erin would scream that ear piercing scream the moment one of us would take her off our chest and pass her to the other. We had to hold her close in order for her to not wail and save our ear drums. By the time 8pm rolled around, Ping started to draw the water for her bath. I called my sister on the verge of tears wondering if we would have a baby glued to our chests all night long. She reassured me one night wasn't going to break the nice habit she has of sleeping in her crib. I was skeptical, but said okay and hung up the phone. As we set Erin in her bath, the fussiness calmed down a bit. She normally loves her bath and is just like Ping in that she likes her water on the warmer side. Warmer meaning that if any seasoned caregivers tested it, they'd say it was too hot for a baby. But for Erin, anything colder than that, she hates.  After the bath, we put her jammies on and I read her a book while Ping prepared her bottle. Erin drank from the bottle as she drifted off to sleep. I burped her, cuddled her on my shoulder for a bit and gently laid her in her crib. This was the moment of truth, I thought. She would either scream or go right to sleep as usual. Erin chose the latter! We are so blessed to have such a beautiful girl. So normally easy going, that I think we can thank our lucky stars that only this type of screaming seems to come out when she gets her shots....so far.