Sick leave...

I'm full of stories and posts to share from Exotic California but please be patient as I get posts up and running.  While in Exotic California, I seem to have come down with some exotic pneumonia.  Boo.  I can't be 100% certain but I'm about 100% certain this is directly due to some nastiness we picked up from a visit to the pediatrician's office right before we left.  How's that for irony? Come in with a healthy child for well baby exam and leave with a sick child and as a special two for one offer, you can also get sick! Great success!

And why this healthy to sick shift? For all the pediatrician's visits we did in Austria we never had this problem - probably because Austrians are meticulously freaky about organization and selection.  When we entered our doctor's office, there was a room to the right if you were healthy with one set of toys and books etc, and a room on the left that you went to with a mirror set up if you were there with a cold or other illness.  Basically, there is a whole lot less cross-contamination - genius if you ask me. Now I'm also a proponent of children neeing to be exposed to build immunity and not being sheltered etc etc etc, but given the last few rough days we had, I think this is one exposure we could do without.  There's a differerence between healthy exposure and foolish contagion.

My mother is actually a pediatrician so I was had some super human immunity growing up since we were exposed to a lot of what she brought home, but I appear to have weakened in my old age and I am regretting it today as I pound down antibiotic elixirs and suppresant cocktails.  Looks like I won't be leaving the bed any time soon but hoping to get caught up on posts shortly!