There's a First Time for Everything

There certainly are drawbacks to having a child who is non-verbal. Especially when he’s sick. That’s why it’s critical to be able to pay attention to his other ways of communicating. Like poking his ears. Zane has been sticking a finger in his right ear for the past couple of days. To us, this could mean one of two things: 1) he’s playing with his hearing aid or the place where it’s supposed to be for self-stimulation of exploration, or 2) he has an ear ache. Since Zane has not had a single ear infection in five years, we assumed the former. We were wrong. To be on the safe side, we took him to the pediatrician yesterday. Sure enough, he has a secondary infection to accompany his now 12-day-old cold. Zane can now claim an ear infection—in both ears—on his medical resume. He’s staying home from school to rest, take his antibiotics,  and load up on Pedialyte and probiotics. He should be feeling well within 48 hours.