This past weekend was not fun. Elizabeth developed a fever on Friday morning that lasted throughout the weekend. She is still sleeping as I type this post, and her face finally feels cool to the touch. I picked her up at daycare at 1 pm on Friday. She threw up Friday night. We canceled our Valentine's Day photos at Picture People and plans to ride in a horse-drawn sleigh on Saturday because she was just so sick. She spiked fevers over 102F all weekend and wanted to be held constantly. I thought a lot this weekend about our Adoption Day--that night, in China, I sat on the loveseat in the hotel room while Elizabeth slept fitfully on my chest. That night, her breathing was so labored, and I remembered feeling so helpless and scared. And, I thought about the day now almost two years ago when Elizabeth had two febrile seizures and went to the hospital by ambulance. For those of you who are unfamiliar with febrile seizures, it is probably one of the most frightening experiences a parent could have. Elizabeth spiked a fever that day, and I gave her Baby Tylenol for the very first time after carefully looking up the correct dosage on the internet. My father was holding her at that time. Within a minute of my giving her the medicine, she began to shake, and he handed her to me. She then began to convulse. She became rigid, and her eyes rolled back. I honestly thought that I'd killed her. We called 9-1-1, and while waiting for the ambulance she had a second seizure. The ambulance FINALLY arrived (it seemed like forever, but only took five minutes or so), and I carried her outside and into the ambulance. She looked soooo tiny, strapped to the gurney. (There was one funny moment on the way to the hospital: one of the EMTs asked me if she was an easy pregnancy...I said, For me, it was!). My parents followed the ambulance in my car. Once at the hospital, she was catheterized in order to get a urine sample--the nurse found a dog hair inside her diaper (those darned dog hairs are everywhere!). The doctor then diagnosed her as having had a febrile seizure, caused by a rapid spike in temperature. Once a child has a febrile seizure, they are prone to having more, so I was told to watch her carefully when she had a fever in the future. She was given Baby Motrin, and I was told to alternate Baby Tylenol and Baby Motrin every three hours until she was well. She was discharged, and we drove home in a snowstorm. That was quite a day (what an understatement). So, that's what I thought a lot of this past weekend. Luckily, nothing like that happened this past weekend, but it was bad enough. Poor little thing--just when she began to feel better, she would then spike another temp. Her little face and body were HOT to the touch. We'll try daycare today and see how it goes. I have to present cases to the Grand Jury this morning, so I can't call in sick (ah, the pleasures of being a single mother...), as much as I want to let her stay home another day. We'll see how the day goes...
Happy New Year! Xin Nian is New Year. Xin is new and Nian is year. Kuai Le is happiness, joy, pleasure, delight, or rejoicings. So "Happy New Year" in English is "New Year Happy" in Chinese: Xin Nian Kuai Le. A more common way for business people to greet each other at the beginning of the Chinese New Year is: Gong Xi Fa Cai. Happy New Year! Today, February 7, 2008, is the first day of the Chinese new year. It is the Year of the Rat. Legend has it that in ancient times, Buddha asked all the animals to meet him on Chinese New Year. Twelve came, and Buddha named a year after each one. He announced that the people born in each animal's year would have some of that animal's personality. Those born in rat years tend to be leaders, pioneers, and conquerors. They are charming, passionate, charismatic, practical and hardworking. At Chinese New Year celebrations people wear red clothes, decorate with poems on red paper, and give children "lucky money" in red envelopes. Red symbolizes fire, which according to legend can drive away bad luck. The fireworks that shower the festivities are rooted in a similar ancient custom. Long ago, people in China lit bamboo stalks, believing that the crackling flames would frighten evil spirits. In China, the New Year is a time of family reunion. Family members gather at each other's homes for visits and shared meals, most significantly a feast on New Year's Eve. Chinese New Year ends with the lantern festival on the fifteenth day of the month. Some of the lanterns may be works of art, painted with birds, animals, flowers, zodiac signs, and scenes from legend and history. People hang glowing lanterns in temples, and carry lanterns to an evening parade under the light of the full moon. In many areas the highlight of the lantern festival is the dragon dance. The dragon—which might stretch a hundred feet long—is typically made of silk, paper, and bamboo. Traditionally the dragon is held aloft by young men who dance as they guide the colorful beast through the streets. More later on how our family will celebrate the new year...
