The Day of the Holiday Vaccinations

The calm before the storm….

Saturday went pretty much as expected. The Lily soft toy bribe was a resounding success (score) and she was full of bravado all the way to the clinic. Part of me felt slightly optimistic about the appointment, while the other part laughed in the face of such ridiculous optimism.

The doctor seemed to spend an eternity talking us through the recommended vaccinations for Thailand, all the while I was aware Poppy was taking every bit of information in and getting more and more uneasy with every passing minute. Eventually he handed over control of the medical chair in his office and she was quite delighted at being able to move herself up and down like she was on some kind of fairground ride.

When we finally decided that we were all going to go for the rabies vaccination (she’s also scared of dogs, so this seemed like a no brainer), the doctor suddenly announced that this particular jab requires a course of three.

Our faces fell.

“You mean we have to come back again? Two more times?”

I could have cried.

And then it was time. I went first, which was probably a big mistake as I am not the best with needles myself and apparently my face gave off the opposite vibe to the picture of serenity I was trying to create for Poppy’s benefit.

By this point she was in the classic self-preservation/psychotic position, knees up to her chest, rocking back and forth.

“I don’t want to go to Thailand, I just want to go home!” she repeated over and over, tears starting to form.

My boyfriend was up next. His (genuine) lack of fear did nothing to alleviate the situation either. Her increasing panic progressed quickly from crying to screaming as she realised it was her turn next.

There was only one thing for it. I scooped her up, sat down with her on my knee, asked my boyfriend to help me pin her arm down to the table, and told the doctor to just stick the needle in her arm. She was screaming. And I mean screaming.

And then it was over.

“Did it go in my arm or in my leg?” she asked. *face palm*.

The doctor said that was the loudest screaming he’d heard all year. We paid a small fortune for the privilege and booked two further appointments.

Then we got Poppy her last bribe – an ice lolly – for being “so brave”, drove to her dad’s, kissed her goodbye, and went straight to the pub.

Who’s Lily then?!

Well, The Day of the Holiday Vaccinations (as I fear it will be forever known) is almost upon us. I booked us into a private clinic to get them done so that we could get a Saturday appointment, meaning my boyfriend can be there to help me pin Poppy down.

There was mild panic earlier in the week when he reported that the Lily Bobtail soft toy requested by Poppy as her vaccination bribe – which she had spied on our trip to London  – was no longer in Hamleys.

Our text conversation went like this:

Him: “May have to get Lily online.”

Me: “Oh no, are there none left?”

Him: “They had a tiny one called Floppy.”

Me: “Do you mean Flopsy?!”

Him: “Yep.”

Me: “Flopsy, Mopsy and Cottontail are Peter Rabbit’s sisters!”

Him: “Will try somewhere else tomorrow.”

Me: “Getting nervous now!”

Him: “About the jabs? Or about no Lily rabbit?”

Me: “No Lily.”

Him: “Who’s Lily then?!”

Me: “She’s Peter’s clever, brave friend!”

Him: “There’s no Lily rabbit?! I’m confused!”

With the prospect of having to go through this stressful scenario again, he took to Amazon and found one that would be delivered in time. It has just arrived and is almost the size of Poppy…..which she is either going to love, or is going to moan about because it’s not the same as the one she saw in Hamleys.

The giant Lily.

So I remain in my constant state of nervousness. Roll on 10.30am on Saturday when this will (hopefully) all be over….

 

 

First world pre-schooler problems

As my four-year-old daughter sat, breaking her heart, on the sofa, bawling at the top of her voice “I don’t want to go to Thailand, I want to go to Portugal”, I couldn’t help but wonder what I had created. I’m 33 and have never been to Thailand, and here is this pre-schooler turning her nose up at the opportunity. And the situation got even more ridiculous when my boyfriend called mid-meltdown and, on hearing her utter devastation, suggested we holiday elsewhere – a suggestion which I actually agreed might be the best option. But fear not, because I managed to bribe – yes, BRIBE – my daughter to allow us to take her away to an amazing country which she will thoroughly love and won’t want to leave.

“I don’t want to go to Thailand…”

Seriously, where have I gone wrong?

And what was her problem with Thailand, I hear you ask? A country which, just a few weeks ago, she was desperate to go to, and asked every morning if it was time to go there yet.  The U-turn was all down to the fact I told her she will have to get vaccinations before we go. In a way, I can’t blame her for not wanting to get them – the poor girl was left traumatised after a four-night stint in the Sick Kids Hospital last year. At one point, when her cannula fell out and had to be re-inserted, it took about five medical staff plus me to physically hold her down as they tried and failed to put it back into her wrist and ended up having to stick it in her foot. And while the promise of a Lily from Peter Rabbit cuddly toy, a post-injection ice cream AND a lollipop may have resulted in her giving us permission to go ahead with our holiday, I fear at least one of us will need tranquilised come vaccination day.

We may well end up in the safe haven of Portugal after all…watch this space.

On the plus side, her sad faces are highly amusing.