I just don't know.

So Finn has been on amoxicillan for the equivalent of two days now. I can't tell if he's doing any better. I guess he is . . . sort of. I think his ears are feeling better because he's nursing better again and sleeping a bit better (although I have him sleeping in his swing in order to keep him upright to help with the congestion - and I am dreading the process of getting him back in his bassinet when he's all better). What worries me is his cough. It sounds nasty, really nasty. But really, it sounds like the same cough that my other kids have had for weeks. So maybe it just seems worse because it's a little baby? He doesn't have a fever, and his breathing isn't labored. But still, I find myself worried about the possibility of RSV or pneumonia. Not knowing much about RSV, I googled it and discovered that most children get it by the time they're 2 years old, and in the vast majority of cases, it's not a big deal. They get over it in a week or two all by themselves. When it's worrisome is in preemies and babies with "compromised immune systems." And that opens a whole other can of worms. Does Finn, in fact, have a "compromised immune system" merely by virtue of the fact that he has Ds? Isn't that like saying that all children with Ds have congenital heart defects, or all children with Ds have duodenal atresia? Because, honestly, he's been healthier than any of my other babies were. All the others had their first cold before they were a month old, and here Finn has managed to stave this off for six months, despite the fact that everyone else in the house has been trading illnesses for a couple of months. So, I don't know if RSV would be a huge problem for him or not. But I would think that if he were really struggling with it - if he did have it - then he would have a fever, labored breathing, lethargy, etc. . . . right? And he doesn't. He's crabby, that's for sure. Crabbier than usual. And he's got this ugly, rattley cough. But that's it. And pneumonia? Well, he's already on amoxicillan for his EI - and isn't that what they would prescribe for pneumonia? (And let me tell you: trying to get a dose of amoxicillan - or anything else for that matter, like Tylenol - into this kid is like TORTURE. Michael and I are starting to negotiate over who has to give Finn his medicine.)

Anyway, I just don't know. I don't know what to think of this cough. My other kids have coughs also. His sounds the same as theirs, but it seems worse because he's a baby. I think I might try to get him into our regular ped. tomorrow just to have a looksee.