Sun kissed

Yesterday while we were painting, Daniel was not too content to sit in his car seat and watch us. That meant that Stuart did about 70% of the painting while I entertained the baby (I'm not sure which was more work, honestly). It was an unusually cool but nice day outside, so I brought him outside, where he seemed content to watch me garden. This morning I noticed the end of his nose and the round parts of his cheeks are a little red. Not very red, but there's a definite blush there. Did my baby get a bit of a sunburn? He's too young for sunscreen, so I took as many precautions as I could! I set him in the shade, I put a blanket over him, I pulled up the canopy on the car seat, and it appears that the sun still kissed the roundest, most delicate parts of his face. I feel so terrible, so responsible, so guilty. (I've also been going on about it non-stop all day and it's driving Stuart crazy.) What's the doctor going to say tomorrow when I take him in for his shots? How long will it take for this (the sunburn and the guilt, both) to go away?

Comments

Jenn-Jenn, the Mother Hen said…
Just short of erecting a concrete barrier on all four sides of your son, you did everything you did to protect him from the sun. A little bit won't hurt him. In fact, in babies that get jaundice, doctor's prescribe sunshine. And babies that breastfeed are more susceptible to jaundice - so merely think of taking him outside as preventative medicine. So stop with the worrying. A little sunshine is good, as it promotes vitamin D production. Chill out Suze. There are worse things you could have done - like drop your kid (which I have done on a couple of occassions - the first time being the day I brought him home from the hospital! More on that story later)
11:05 PM
mamacita said…
I'm sure that my baby gets tons more sun on his daily walks down here in Cabo. He actually has a bit of a farmer tan on his arms, but I know he's ok. I'd feel worse if I just stayed in the house with him all day. How boring! I think it's good for babys to get out a bit. And you took all the necessary precautions. Don't sweat it! Daniel is lucky to have a such a caring mom.
1:47 AM
Suze said…
thanks so much, guys. and it's already faded quite a bit today, so for all i know, it was just a little heat rash or baby acne. stu knows a guy from work who dropped his kid, too, and that kid is fine as far as we know. i feel better about this today.

of course, in about half an hour, we'll be at the doctor to get some shots. ick.
9:13 AM
Jenn-Jenn, the Mother Hen said…
Ick! Sorry! Rough night for Suze tonight. Cranky baby alert!
11:20 AM
Tooz said…
Back to the sunburn business and the guilt business--Did he have on a hat with a wide brim? That's the only precaution you didn't mention. Now on to the guilt business--when Lydia was about the same age as Daniel, I was clipping her nails and accidentally clipped the end of her thumb! I was freaking out that I had maimed her for life, wanting to take her to the doctor to see if she needed stitches, etc., but folks who were wiser than I talked me out of it. As far as I know, she has no lasting scars or impairments from that injury. And I felt guilty for a good long time, until something else came up to feel guilty about. Guilt goes with the job--just ask any Jewish mother.
11:57 AM
ann said…
fyi, mom thinks she was jewish in a past life.
1:01 PM
ann said…
so, what, are you so worn out from guilt and painting that you can't post on your blog?
11:40 AM
Lydia said…
Another FYI, I just checked my thumbs thoroughly and after 31 years, they're both fine. Except neither is green, so...
1:33 PM
Jenn-Jenn, the Mother Hen said…
Must have been a bad night with baby... No blogging yet today!

And Joel says "Hi" - he can't post on your blog because he isn't a blogger and has no desire to have a blog, so he will send messages through me!
2:40 PM
Jenn-Jenn, the Mother Hen said…
Tit for Tat, Suze! You need to let go of YOUR guilt over baby daniel getting a little sun kissed!
4:12 PM
Suze said…
cool, jenn! hi to joel, too. i guess he can read this even if he can't post. i'm just afraid that allowing annonymous comments will eventually lead to spam-like adverts on my comment roll.

daniel was pretty dang fussy last night, but when he went to bed (i think around 7:30), he was out like a light...until stuart sneezed at 10:00. that woke him up. but he's been OK since then.

the doc didn't mention anything about sunburn and said he's really healthy and really strong (he'll be rolling over any day now), so i feel better about everything.
9:12 PM
Jenn-Jenn, the Mother Hen said…
Cool, glad to hear it. And the word verification on the blog pretty much keeps adverts from happening.
9:30 PM
Becca said…
Since he's 4 months, now, you can use sunscreen. There's a brand, I don't remember the name, but in comes in a big stick, like oversized chapstick, that's fairly easy to apply to a squirming baby.

Trust me, I live in AZ--I know sunscreen.
5:16 PM
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