Croup-y Head

I got home from work Monday and could hear Mooch coughing from outside.  I went to hug her and she smelled different.  You know how each of your kids has a certain smell?  I couldn't even describe what exactly it was - just not right.  I bundled her up and took her to the doctors, and the poor kid literally got worse every minute.  This is a child who never stops talking and she was huddled up on the examing table, completely silent.  Her temp was 103, and the nurse checked her blood pressure and it was really high.  I started to get a little weak in the knees and had to talk myself out of passing out.  I know the parenting gods knew I could not handle a chronically ill child, so they gave me two healthy ones.  The doctor diagnosed her with croup and gave us a steroid pill to give her, to reduce the swelling in her airways, and a seriously scary list of things to watch for.  He very casually said, "So if she starts to have trouble breathing you need to get her to the ER as fast as possible"  Gulp.
Luckily the pill worked, and despite her fever spiking yesterday she is getting better.  She was thrilled that the doctor told her playing outside was one of the best treatments for croup, so we ventured out all bundled up yesterday.  I stayed home yesterday, and today have a delayed start time thanks to the snow.  I'll post pictures later - I love waking up to these snowfalls!  And here's your useful tip for the day - diaper rash cream is excellent for healing chapped red noses.