Namine woke up this morning, crying and coughing. When I heard that wheezing, barking cough, I thought, Oh no. Not the croup again.

Unfortunately, yes, Namine has the croup again. That makes three times this season – haven’t we had enough cold weather already? My second thought was quite inhospitable toward the doctor we saw yesterday. The doctor who doesn’t know Namine, doesn’t know how easily she gets sick, and didn’t listen to us. But the past is the past, and you can’t change it. All you can do is move forward. So I wrapped her up in a blanket and went outside, so she could breathe the cool air.

After a few minutes outside, Namine stopped crying. Her breathing slowed, no longer wheezing. She started to shiver, so I asked her if she wanted to go inside again and lay down. She nodded. “Uh huh.” I took her back in, and still wrapped in the blanket, layed her down next to Jessica in the bed. I couldn’t call the pediatrician’s office until 8:30 when they opened, so all there was to do now was wait.

The doctor saw Namine at 9:45 this morning; Jessica took Namine in with the help of my mom; I was at work by this point. Being the third time this season we’d taken her in for croup, we already knew what they would do: they gave Namine a dose of the steroid that would help reduce the inflammation. We’ll need to watch her tonight, of course, and be vigilant for wheezing and stridor.