This title certainly got you clicking

Everyone has their styles. Some hold their groins scurrying and yelling “I gotta go I GOTTA GO” while others do so subtly, yet while others (still) don’t tell you AT ALL that they have done it.

As far as a number 1 goes, Caleb won’t tell you. At all. Until you carry him and feel the wet diaper on your forearm, or when you discover the puddle of pee on the floor, while he is still running around being his 2year old self discovering and/or copying what his older sister does.

For his number 2’s however, is something I haven’t seen “done” before.

I understand everyone needs their privacy, whether it’s cos the poop is gonna stink, or that it’s simply because it’s the action of pooping. But for a 2 year old, what’s “privacy”? So it is with a lot of laughter of adorableness when we hear about, and then get to see, how my boy does it.

In private.

When you kinda suddenly discover him missing, you start to wonder whether he’s okay- but more often than not it’s because he has run to some corner of the room/house; preferably behind something, and pushing. It doesn’t matter if the pusher is 2 or 20 years old, I believe all humans push the same way. It becomes a lot more “funny” when it’s on a 2 year old boy. The same slight-squirm, the same red-face. Only standing up, hiding in some corner.

When we discover him “midway” he is somewhat apprehensive, don’t-come-any-closer kinda gesture. Dunno why. Perhaps at (only?) 2 he is starting to feel shame and embarrassment already. This idea is emphasised when I tease him (yes this Daddee teases his kids)- at any “usual” moment I’d look at him and say “Ngg ngg? Ngg ngg??” (the local baby talk for pooping; I think you can imagine how that term came about!) where he’d quite vehemently declare “Mai! MAI!” (which till today we are wondering whether he is trying to speak Hokkien dialect when most of what he hears is Cantonese where “no” is “moi”, not the Hokkien “mai”) as if the act of it is shameful.

Not that we make fun of him, maybe he is starting to develop his own self awareness and image (self respect?)

For now, I will still laugh at him. It’s okay if he develops a complex surrounding pooping. Having a complex surrounding pooping is okay compared to “performance anxiety” surrounding peeing, at the men’s room urinal.

Heh.

Now there’s a title that will get the spam bots excited!

Last night, I was going to photo-document Caitlin’s thigh’s healing, to capture the pink patch now that all the brown dried skin has fallen off, to share with you here. I had already taken a shot of when those bits were just starting to fall off.

In that first photo session, I had asked her to put her hand where it was (in that shot mentioned above). While going to take this second shot, we were on the bed and she was a little cheeky wanting to lie down; effectively she couldn’t reach / place her hand strategically as instructed.

I asked her to sit up, put her hand where it would cover the bits; mentioning that it’s rude to take photos of one’s private parts.

“Private … what?”

“Private parts”, implying the bits.

She contemplated for a while. She already knows the implications of the bits, in that she does get quite squirmy about whom she allows to help her wash them. She only didn’t know how to refer to the concept of the private parts.

This morning in the car ride to school, not surprisingly she brings up a conversation she had from some time back. This time it was from our chat last night.

“Praaaiiiiii… what did you call it again, Daddee?”

“Private parts.”

I don’t know why I continued further after reiterating the “rudeness” of being photographed: That if anyone touches her private parts also, to tell Daddee.

Specifically, I said only Mummee, Daddee, both Grandma’s, Dr Pixie, and our domestic helper are allowed to touch her private parts, and even then it was only to help her wash her bits. Dr Pixie is an exception, cos she’s a doctor- she’s allowed to touch because she is helping look after us.

I am pretty sure she got it. I am also pretty sure she will even repeat this to, say, her (female) teachers, if they were to try and help her wash up after a visit; but which she tells me they don’t (help) anyway.

She did also ask what I’d do with the people who did touch her private parts. Trust a 4 year old to probe further! Other than beating the crap out of them, I decided to only offer that I’d tell the police. She asked further; but we kinda agreed that somehow the perpetrator would be visiting the police station with me somewhat voluntarily!

I hadn’t planned on broaching this subject this early; I hadn’t thought about it actually. But since it came up, and that she was likely to be able to comprehend anyways; which she did, I think this topic went down well.

Don’t you think?

So all the dry brown skin has pretty much “dropped off” the wound / site now; leaving a pink patch (or “continent” as one of Caitlin’s cousin exclaimed) there. It still looks quite fragile, so we’ll leave it for at least another week before we begin considering indulging in (one of) her favourite activities- the pool. But in all, there is no more open / exposed skin anymore.

So now I think we can start considering the other aspect from the healing of this accident- getting rid of the the scar.

I know some of you have suggested mederma and equivalents. Do you have anymore, or any experience with this and other brands, and how they have worked out for you? Would appreciate any(more) suggestions…

While she is only 4, and also that I am her father, there will be a time in her life where she’d like to be able to wear a short skirt; or at least that I will (have to) allow her to! I wouldn’t want my daughter (even if it wasn’t Caitlin) to be weary of something like this and feel inhibited from enjoying her young adult life….

A quick update.

I took this photo last night, and sent it to Dr Pixie.

It’s not as painful as it looks. In fact the only feedback I get now is that it is ticklish!

It looks shiny because of the flash on my camera. It is actually dry, but the “new” skin is smooth and dry, effectively giving it a sheen.

Dr Pixie replied saying that it looks like it is healing “cleanly”, but that it is likely to leave a lighter pigmentation as a result of scarring. I initially enquired if I could apply Eurax on the site, since Caitlin has been complaining that it is very itchy, and we don’t want her to be scratching the area at all!

She said no, which was also my initial reaction; general reaction, to letting things heal as naturally as possible.

Dr Pixie did say to continue using the SSD though, which we did because it does have antiseptic properties in it, and since there are still skin areas that need peeling but which may likely be peeled by itchy fingers leading to hey-I-am-not-ready-to-be-exposed-yet new unready skin being open to infection….

Caitlin is already asking when she can go (back to) swimming… I’d like to bring her too. She needs the break.

At school only this week; Monday (blues) in fact.
Grandma and Hot Mummee dropped by to settle some issues with Caitlin’s schooling.

The school had suggested we check out a neighbouring suburb’s franchise which is offering the Pre-2 Chinese medium, that we could transfer Caitlin to that school if we choose to.

After “spying” on that school / class and knowing that they still conversed in English in that class (whereas the present one they speak in Mandarin fully), the two ladies decided to let Caitlin remain.

After informing the principal of the decision, the two ladies were in the vicinity of Caitlin’s ongoing class.

Hot Mummee’s remark to me that night was something like this:
“.. she’s actually quite disciplined…”
“.. she saw us from the class, and only smiled and waved a little wave. She didn’t run out crying “I want Mummee…” or anything like that ..”
“.. she was even behaving when the class was let out to wash their hands; not recess time yet. It was only on Grandma’s insistence that she came over for a hug, and one for Mummee too..”

Reminds me of her first day at school. Walked straight in. Never looked back.

Recent scalding accident
Despite the I-can-only-imagine pain from the accident, she’s actually been quite steady about the whole thing. Sure, she was sobby on the same night, being “banished” from her usual arrangement to sleep in the other room / bed cos of the medication / cream (we did keep her company). But she didn’t really complain.

The next days she was very conscious of the burn site, heeding our advise to watch our for small accidents that may rupture the blister. She had to wear only shorts, folding up the right leg to keep it exposed / uncovered, being very careful when going to the toilet. She walks with a limp, right hand holding up the folded shorts; which we are not sure if it’s put on or that it does sting from the impact of foot / leg connecting with the ground. In any case it was quite amusing / cute / heart wrenching to see this.

Other than these physical quirkiness, she was / is her usual happy-go-lucky self.

Update on the scald site
This morning after she was ready for school, I applied the SSD again. This is the second time she exclaimed it was ticklish rather than painful; I think the first ticklish time was last night but she still say it hurt.

It also felt harder, like soft scabby, under the pad of my finger. Meaning the site is no longer raw. Which to me is good news.

A short update post.

Don’t mean to gross you out; and it’s not as yuck as it looks..

These were taken by Caitlin herself with my phone. Don’t know what prompted her to, likely cos she was just toying with the camera than intending to photo-document it.

Still, it will effectively be what they are.

She has been very good about it, really looking after the site ensuring no harm come to it, not breaking the blister.

The blisters themselves are a little smaller now, making the sac sag, making the fluid inside swish around!

The white bits are actually the SSD cream.

On the first night when talking to Dr Pixie, she was suggesting getting Caitlin some panadol due the the pain. I have been positively-reinforcing her that she’s been “a brave girl”, because other than the immediate hours she’s been very good about, didn’t need any painkillers.

Update: Saturday afternoon, Jan 10

Caitlin is actually due for her MMR shot between now and 6 years old. So we brought her to see Dr Pixie; to also let her have a look at the scald.

Like most other people who first saw it, I am sure her heart sank too. Everyone I spoke to about the incident never knew how bad it was.

Anyway she said to leave it alone, don’t rupture the sac, and don’t need to apply the SSD anymore.

Unless..

The sac ruptures. At which time we should start applying SSD again at the puncture site, since SSD itself has antiseptic agents in it. There is no need for the SSD on the dried areas though.

However, if the site does indeed get infected due to this puncture of the sac/skin; the signs include reddish fluid discharges, then we should administer fucisic acid, likely under the brand of Fucidin.

Because Caitlin could still wait a little longer for her MMR shot, Dr Pixie thought to spare her another trauma of an innoculation (INJECTION!!)

So, We came home. And wouldnt you know it, the sac ruptured!

I don’t think it was intentional, from being itchy fingered or accidental bumps. It was likely that the swishing was too much and the skin (was thinning?) couldn’t hold much longer.

It doesn’t look so gross now, but it also means we gotta watch out ensuring the site is kept clean, now that there is a puncture exposing bare skin.