Carolyn's 3 - Month check-up

Today was Carolyn's 3-month check-up. While I know the best way to protect your child from illness is to make sure she's vaccinated, it pains me to go to these appointments. She's always smiling and happy upon entering the doctor's office, not knowing what's about to happen, and then the shot comes and she just looks so betrayed and upset, it kills me. I couldn't help but think about this as I pushed her- all bundled up in her bugaboo-like stroller- through the snow-covered streets to our appointment just a 15-minute walk or so away. I knew I'd be upset, so I enlisted Bryce to come along. Some things he just doesn't get a free pass on and this appointment was one of them. When we got there, Carolyn stared at all the other babies, pretty quiet and seemingly content. When the nurse called our name and we walked into the room, Carolyn took one look around and started crying.. and crying .. it was as if she suddenly remembered where she was and what was about to happen and wanted out. She cried continously as the nurse checked her hips, weight, length and then asked me to calm her down so she could hear her heartbeat. Poor Carolyn. I found it difficult to pay attention, so Bryce did all the talking to find out what all the numbers meant. We learned she's 10.8 pounds and 23 inches long, so she's put on almost 4 lbs since birth (from 6lbs 12 oz) and has grown 2 inches in length! We were able to see how these numbers stacked up against other Dutch babies and learned she is average across the board. What a pleasure it is to be normal! But then just as Carolyn started to relax, they brought out the needles to do the vaccination and she got one in each leg. Daddy held her hands and I stood closeby with tears in my eyes. I don't think I've heard Carolyn scream at such a high pitch before. But, she made it through and we ran out of there into a waiting room that was dead quiet as people stared at us. One lady asked if she was okay since they heard Carolyn cry through the entire appointment. Yea, sorry!
Carolyn and I headed home after a quick stop at the market and enjoyed a nice, calm afternoon playing, eating and sleeping- just what the doctor ordered. She slept for 3hours this afternoon and had no problem going to bed tonight. One more dreadful appointment down!