Teething tantrums and road trips.

I know what we are going through as parents is extremely challenging, but this teething business is definitely one of the most testing times of being a mum. Jacobs illness doesn't affect him in anyway day to day. When we used to have bloods taken every Monday through his port, and go into hospital for platelet transfusions, it never bothered him. It was over within ten minutes and he'd be back to his happy self. But this boy has been teething for what seems like forever and in the last week it has really kicked up a notch. He has about six teeth cutting which I think must be the last ones as he has had what seems like a new tooth every other day. He is screaming all the time, and if he isn't screaming, he's swinging off the stair gate growling his little head off. And if he isn't doing either of these, he's hanging off my trousers sobbing his little heart out because the little evil white buds of death are tearing through his gums. In between writing this, I've been running up and down the stairs trying to rock him off to sleep. (And if you know me, you know I will do anything before rocking him to sleep!)

We resorted to taking him out in the car, (in his new big boy car seat!) as even the rocking to sleep wasn't working tonight. The second I lay him back in his cot, he was up again and screaming. I was meant to be going to my friends house so Rich dropped me off in the hope it would calm down the crazed banshee that's replaced Jacob for the night. And shock horror it did, he's been snoring like a little piglet ever since. I'm just waiting for the 3am teething tantrum now...

Yesterday we took a little road trip to see Rich's family in Norwich. I'm not a fan of car rides myself as I get so travel sick and need to pee every five minutes, and the only way to make me feel better is to literally eat the whole journey, so I request a pit stop at every petrol station on the way to get more food/diet coke/to pee. That teamed with a teething baby is just a road trip disaster waiting to happen. And that's what happened. We left at Jacobs naptime in the hope he'd sleep the whole way. Just over the halfway mark with about 40 miles to go, he wakes up absolutely screaming his head off, and growling, which is his new thing. So I get in the back, try feeding him, try giving him a drink, medicine, teetha granules. He was having none of it, just looking at me with his fingers in the back of his mouth, screaming. So having to pull over into one of those lay-bys on the motorway that are designed for lorry drivers wasn't my idea of fun. But there I was, marching up and down the motorway lay-by, bouncing Jacob up and down, singing Jo Jingles to him. And he was still screaming. Twenty minutes later, I decide that dancing in the rain wasn't working, and to be honest, the amount of people driving past looking at me like I'd lost my mind was starting to get annoying. "I've got a teething baby!!!!" 

Back in the car, with me in the back seat which does nothing for my travel sickness, trying to calm him down. I finally give in and turn to gadgets and the internet. And so we spent the rest of the journey watching Elsa from Frozen sing "Let It Go". Sixty million times. 

By the time we arrived to Rich's parents, I'd learnt all the words and had a pounding headache. The drive home was absolutely fine, except for the M11 being closed at our junction, which always makes a journey fun. We managed to avoid most of the disruption and get home just in time for Jacobs dinner.  

As nice as it was to see everyone, I'm not in a rush to do that journey again until all the little white pegs have made their appearance!

It's now 12.30am and part of me doesn't even see the point in going to sleep (I'm normally in bed by 9pm!) as I'm sure he will be awake as soon as I drift off! Clueless is on, and if I drank coffee, it would definitely be on the agenda for tonight. 

Thank god for Calpol!!! 

Enjoying a chocolate biscuit while watching Frozen, for the zillionth time at Grandma's house.