4 year old stats

Luke had his 4 year well visit today. I was quite surprised to learn that he had not been to the pediatrician's office since December 2007. Finally! Any antibiotics we've needed have come from the ENT. Yay! A more or less healthy year. Let's hope the trend continues. So, here's where we stand:

* Height: 43 inches (1.09 meters), 95th percentile; up 3 inches (7.6 cm) since last year
* Weight: 43 lbs (19.5 kg, 3 stone), 95th percentile; up 7 lbs (3.2 kg) since last year

His blood pressure, hematocrit, and BMI are all fine. His ears look great (yay!). He passed the hearing and vision tests (pictures, not letters). She was very impressed with his speech improvement. Apparently, everything looks great and sounds great! What more could a mother ask for?

But of course, there is a down side. He had to get *4* shots; one in each arm, and two in one leg (one of them tetanus, so it's still hurting him). Boy, was he not happy. He hasn't had shots since he was 2, so he didn't remember. We tried to explain that it would hurt for just a second, and then it would be over, but that didn't seem to help much (didn't think it would, but I felt compelled to try anyway). He's always done really well with them, so I was actually surprised that these went so badly. According to the nurse, he did great (let Daddy hold him and didn't try to wiggle/jump off the table), but it seemed pretty awful to me. When he got shots as a baby, he would just wail a single time as the needle went in, and that was it. Barely any tears. This time there was hysterical crying over the ones in the arms and *screaming* bloody murder at the two that went in the leg. He's never screamed like that before, ever. Not about his broken arm, not about his stitches in his finger (going in or coming out), never. Talk about feeling like the worst parents in the world! DH was literally shaking when it was over and nearly in tears himself.

Needless to say, Luke wanted to be carried out of the exam room, and for once, we capitulated. He also got a Twix in the car (the "fun size" that's about 2 inches long, which makes about 3 bites for him) and pancakes at IHOP for lunch. He's been asking for pancakes for dinner off and on for a couple of weeks now, and I've been intentionally holding out for today. He was so tired and zoned out at IHOP that we just brought him home. Today had been trying enough, it was cold and rainy and dreary outside, and he was complaining about his leg aching even after Children's Motrin had time to kick in. And he was asking to go home in a very sad and pitiful voice. I just didn't have the heart to send him to school. I know, I'm a sucker. But for today, that's fine with me! Unless he gets sick, there's no reason to go back until after he turns 5, which is also fine with me.

Currently feeling: sorry I had to be the grown-up and let them hurt him today