My wife and I generally split up “diaper duty” 50-50. However, this weekend it was more like 100-100. Confused? What I’m trying to say is that it’s taken both of us for each diaper change. You see, Oliver came down with something that has caused some MAJOR diaper damage. And that, in turn, has caused some MAJOR blistering on his, ahem, private areas. And those blisters, when in contact with a wipe, cause some MAJOR PAIN, as evidenced by the boy screaming, crying and flailing his arms and legs.

Yesterday alone, we changed eight straight diapers that must have weighed a pound apiece. Nasty, nasty stuff, too. This morning, we found Oliver in his crib with some MAJOR diaper leakage. The stuff was all over his arms and legs. Very gross. Let’s just say we had to give the crib a full and thorough scrubbing today.  We will leave it at that.

The diaper changes have become a tiring routine. One of us handles the diaper and one of us holds the boy’s arms and legs and tries to get him to laugh. Per our call with one of those doctor help lines, we have been rinsing the wipes before using them, putting neosporin on the tender spots and petroleum jelly all over the rest of his bum, giving him several baths a day in a mixture of water and baking soda, and making sure he gets lots of water.

Things were a little better today. Several diapers featured only our favorite potty number (No. 1 – urine!). And at least Oliver has a good sense of humor about the diaper damage. When I question him with, “Did you poop?,” he says, “Ssssss-tink,” and flashes a huge smile. And when I repeat back to him, “You stink,” he giggles like crazy.

Oh, the joys of parenting. What wouldn’t we do for this kid?