Lucy's First "Real" Trip to the Doctor's Office

Up until this point in Lucy's 4 months, she's only ever had to go to the doctor for well visits. Luckily, she hasn't been sick (knocking on proverbial wood as I type this) so we've been able to avoid the doctor's office. Today, we made our first trip. Ironically, the visit wasn't so much for Lucy as it was for me.

Most would describe our little Luce as a good baby. For the most part, she's easy-going and happy. She smiles at just about anyone she sees, and she loves meeting new people. However, last Monday began a string of trying days in which our usually smiling baby became a quite the little crier. Unfortunately, Lucy's unexplained crying phase coincided with her first Thanksgiving while her Uncle Patrick, Aunt Amy, Grandpa and Lisa were visiting. Each day, Lucy cried from the time she woke up until the time she went to sleep with a few moments of interaction inbetween. We began to worry. Is she teething? Is it gas? Maybe she's fighting sleep. Perhaps she's too hot. Maybe she's too cold. Is she just bored? Could she have an ear infection?

Finally, after another night of minimal sleep, I made a doctor's appointment this morning. Jamie dropped Lucy off at daycare, and I fully expected to get a call from them about her "fussiness." However, the morning went by with no call. When I walked in to pick her up, Lo and Behold there was Miss Fussy Pants (Jamie's new nickname for her) sitting at the table, watching her teachers, looking around, and smiling. When she saw me, she looked at me and flashed her little sideways grin, with her peacock hair standing straight up. "Has she cried a lot?" I asked. "No, not at all," they said. I packed her up in wonder and headed to the doctor's office with Lucy cooing happily from the backseat.

At the doctor's office, Lucy grinned for the nurse while she weighed her (she's 16 weeks and weighs about 12 lbs. 14 ounces). When Dr. Song came in and asked me to describe Lucy's problems, I could feel my cheeks growing red as I tried to explain her days of crying and our worries about acid reflux, teething, gas, constipation, ear aches, and more. As she examined Lucy, our little bundle of fussiness became the model baby. She dazzled Dr. Song with her bright eyes and smile, prompting Dr. Song to say, "Wow, she's such a laid-back baby." Oh, if only Dr. Song could've been at our house over Thanksgiving...

A few minutes later, we were on our way home with Lucy snoozing happily in the backseat.