A few days ago Violet finally cut her two bottom front teeth. 

I say finally because they usually come in around 6 months, and here she is 9 1/2, but fine by us--although it is a gruelling thing to go through for us. Our kids don't teeth well...

So when she stopped sleeping through the night, wasn't eating as much, and had a fever, we weren't really worried. It comes with the territory when baby is teething, we thought. {Although we were pretty whiny about her getting up in the night, seeing as we've been totally spoiled by here sleeping through the night since birth.}

If you Google or look up teething in your baby handbook, you'll find that the "Does teething really cause fevers?" debate is a heated one between moms & doctors. 

Moms swear teething causes a low-grade fever. Doctors insist it doesn't, and that fevers only accompany teething when something else is also going on...

Two days ago I was ranting to Justin about how doctors think they knew better than moms! Violet had a fever for two days, ranging from 99 to 102 degrees, and she just happened to be cutting her first teeth at the same time. "Yeah right, doctors think they know everything, they don't," I said.

Turns out I'm going to have to eat my crow pie on this one. 

Doctors 1. Mom 0.

A few hours ago I put Viv down to change her diaper, and upon unbuttoning her outfit I saw this:

Wait, cameras don't catch rashes well, so don't freak out, but here is an edited version with contrast added:

 A splotchy, slightly raised rash covered her tummy and back, from neck line to groin. Being the alarmist that I am {don't judge, Paul Revere was one, too, after all} I texted Justin to let him know and immediately called her pediatrician. 

They must not worry as much about rashes as moms do, because it took the nurse 45 minutes to call me back.

Doctors 2. Mom 0. 

All the while I let my mind run scenarios in my head of Violet being hospitalized and treated for measles, or German measles, or some strange mystery disease, or brain tumors that somehow cause rashes on the abdomen.

My kids rarely get sick. In fact, this is Little Red's first time, ever. 

Eisley has been sick 3 times that I can remember. It's a good thing, too, seeing as I hate seeing my children sick. Who doesn't? I pray for their health constantly. 

Now I can see it wasn't just teething. The fever, the fussiness, the lack of appetite--it all seemed to be teething symptoms at first, but now we know otherwise. 

When the nurse finally called back she told me what I had already begun to suspect {thanks to Google and What to Expect the First Year} seeing as her symptoms fit this diagnosis perfectly:

Herpes caused this. 

Not that kind of herpes. 

Little Red has roseola infantum. 

Also known as sixth disease, baby measles, or 3-day-fever.

NOT the STD. Just a common virus from the herpes family. 

It just looks a lot worse than it is. 

Phew!

Now that the fever has already run it's course, there's really no need for concern, the rash is superficial and will be gone within a couple days.

It's contagious, but usually only to other babies and toddlers so the rest of us should be fine. I had never even heard of roseola before. 

A few hours ago I was imagining the worst, but now I am grateful for a false alarm. Alarmist I may be, but some mothers live every day watching their children suffer horrible diseases. I am all too aware of this, I tend to be drawn to stories of sick children when I hear of them. You could almost say they fascinate me, in a weird way. Something about it touches me deeply, and I have a strong, natural urge to ameliorate them & their mother's suffering. At the same time it gives me a humble cause for joy and gratitude in my own life. 

I would love it if you all would send a prayer up today in thanksgiving for Violet's health, and hopefully that of your own children. If you do, please also take a moment to lift up Kate McRae in prayer. As you might already know, this is one strikingly beautiful little girl who's story I've been following on Caring Bridge for a while. Her mother blogs here, shares her amazing faith despite what her family is facing, and the heart wrenching updates about her daughter's battle with brain tumors. {Though her recent MRI was good, praise God!} 

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I was going to show you the stockings I made for the girls today, but that will have to wait until tomorrow...