#1 Eldest daughter is back! A new health barometer

My eldest daughter suddenly developed a fever last week.
I thought it was just a normal cold, but she started refusing to brush her teeth and would cry hysterically just from putting a single bite of food in her mouth. Something seemed off...
Hmm? Her gums look red?! Wait, should I go to the dentist? The pediatrician? She has a fever, so I'll go to the pediatrician for now. So we went.
The result...Herpanginawas the diagnosis.

Is it already summer cold season? 💦
This is the first time she's had herpangina. She's going to catch all sorts of things from group life from now on, isn't she? I have to be prepared.

Herpangina causes painful blisters in the back of the throat and on the tongue, you know. We managed to get through it by giving her Calonal to ease the pain and then having her eat things like pudding that are easy to swallow.
But when the medicine wore off, she would be in pain and start throwing tantrums.
Even though I knew she was suffering, having her cry and scream so much really took a toll on me in many ways...

And today, finally! Finally! It seems the pain in her mouth is gone, and she was able to eat a hearty meal from the morning, which was a relief. It's so nice to be able to eat 😭 I felt deep in my heart how grateful I am for good health.
(On the other hand, I really thought, please, seriously go to kindergarten starting tomorrow! I'm begging you!! lol It wasn't just my inner voice, it was leaking out lol)

She stayed home from kindergarten today, but since she was very energetic, I summoned Grandma, we went for a walk nearby, sang along loudly while watching her favorite Disney movies, and did some coloring, which she loves.

What I discovered was,
My eldest daughter is the meticulous type, and if I may say so myself, I thought she was quite good at coloring for someone just over three years old.
But while she was feeling unwell, her coloring was incredibly sloppy. I wondered, was my assessment wrong?
But today, now that she's feeling better, when she colored again, she was carefully checking the colors and trying her best not to go outside the lines.

Oh, coloring requires a lot of concentration, doesn't it? 👀 I guess she can't maintain her concentration when she's not feeling well.
I might have discovered a new health barometer. I'll keep an eye on this in the future.

And once again, I thought that since coloring is something she "loves" and "can do for hours without noticing the time," I want to help her develop that.

Writing is so much fun!
Back to kindergarten tomorrow. My eldest daughter still rides the school bus while crying. I need to get myself pumped up in the morning too!