"Baby Measles"

Roseola infantum or just "roseola" (roh-zee-OH-la), is a viral disease. They say it's caused by a kind of herpes virus - but not the sexually transmitted kind. Supposedly, it's common in babies between six and 24 months of age. It starts off as a high fever that last a few days and ends in a body rash. Well, apparently, Thevy's got roseola. :-/ We took her out on Thursday (to the mall), then Friday, her head felt hot. But she didn't exhibit any other symptoms. On Saturday and Sunday when I took her temperature, it was over 101 degrees. During the fever stage, she seemed to have lost her appetite, pretty much refusing to eat. She'd turn her head sharply if you put a spoon in front of her. I just had to nurse her all the freakin' time to make sure she didn't starve. Then, though she still felt hot to the touch, she didn't seem as feverish. Today, I noticed some red on her face. Later, I saw bumps on her chest, stomach, and back. And then I saw splotchy red spots on the side of her neck. But there's nothing you can do about it. You have to let viruses run their course. But there's no discomfort in the rash. You only feel slightly embarrassed taking her out in public. :-P I love showing her off, but I didn't want people to think "Ew!" when they saw her. It wasn't too bad while I was out (it seems to get worse, then subside, on and off), but I bumped into the mother of a girl I went to high school with, this silly guy I went to high school with, and then a high school Spanish teacher. The good news is, Thevy will probably never get roseola again. Supposedly, her body will have built the immunity for it now.

And just a little non sequitur... I saw this pic on an MSN.com:

Nick Koudis/PhotoDisc Red/Getty Images
and it just tripped me out a bit. I was tickled. Make anyone else laugh? Or is it just me. :-)