Due Date -5

Yesterday Annalise had her two-year check-up. It started badly and never got much better. The doctor's office left a message to remind me (I thought) that my appointment was at 9am. When we got there, they said the appointment wasn't until 9:50. Whoa. But we waited. As the time kept passing and several mini-tantrums later, the receptionist informed us that the doctor was running late. That was at 10:06. She finally saw us at 11:15. Well, any goodwill Annalise might have started out with had evaporated hours ago, so I knew it would be bad. First the nurse weighed her on the regular scale. 24 pounds and in the 14th percentile for weight. Then they wanted to recheck the weight on the baby scale because it seemed too low to them so we tried to get her to sit on it which was a five-minute long exercise in screaming terrified frenzied futility. Annalise thought they were trying to give her a shot and was having none of it so we gave up as she screamingly launched herself off the scale 48 times in a fashion not dissimilar to how she avoids ever sitting in a shopping cart. Then they wanted to lay her down to measure her. Another round of the same terrified panicking screaming explosions bursted out of her but we found that she is 34.25 inches and in the 59th percentile for height. The doctor came in and was equally impressed with her smarts and stunned by the condition of her horrible athlete's foot (we went in a week and a half ago to find out what her rashy foor problem was, but it looks exponentially worse now- peeling, cracked, bloody, dried out- even though its healing). Then the nurse came back to actually do what Annalise was dreading. I rejected the flu shot on her behalf so she only had one shot (Hep A) and the nurse let her sit on my lap for it. I wish I could request this nurse every single time. She was the nicest, most genuinely caring and efficient nurse, as well as talented shot-giver, we've met. Her work was so quick and there was no lead-up torture as Annalise was in my lap so the pain came but wasn't intensified by the fear that usually happens when they make her lay on the table leading up to it. The nurse gave her TWO toys and let her have TWO stickers for being so "good". (Um, that was a stretch. But a very nice one.)

We left a little after 11:30. It was a long morning at the doctor's. I felt so bad for Annalise I promised her candy, chicken nuggets, and anything else she asked for. Even when she very irritatingly wanted to play forever in the car before getting into her carseat I waited a good fifteen minutes before the time-out threats began. Poor little thing. I hate shots surely as much as she does. :( Happily she won't have another appointment for a whole year.

5 days til due date. Feeling ready. Hoping I don't have the baby tomorrow though because then she will be born on 9/11. But I look forward to getting the show on the road.