THE BLACK FAMILY: Fifth Disease . . .

. . . Yes, there is such a thing. It is obviously not very common, but common enough that we got it at our house. Fifth Disease, also known as "slap cheek", is caused by a virus called human parvovirus B19. This is a very mild disease with either no symptoms or a slight runny nose and sore throat, followed by a lacelike rash that may come and go for up to 3 weeks. Some kids have a low-grade fever, and some have no fever at all.

For about 4 days Stetson didn't eat much, I didn't worry because he has never been a very good eater. On the fourth day I noticed that he was a little less active than usual, he layed on the couch most of the day and acted sleepy. He insisted that nothing hurt and that he felt fine; I kept checking throughout the day, and he didn't have a fever. He seemed better on the fifth day, and actually started eating a little better. On day six, when I picked him up from preschool, I noticed that his cheeks were more red than normal, still no fever. A little while later I noticed a rash on his arms, suspecting an allergic reaction, I started giving him Benedryl. Over the next two days the rash spread up his arms, then started up his legs, over his bottom and up his back, as well as being more pronounced on his cheeks. Still, he insisted that he felt fine, and that the rash didn't even itch (unless I touched it, of course). I decided to take him to the doctor. They checked him out from head to toe, and everything was fine, except the rash. A look on the internet proved the doctor's suspicion, it was the final stage of Fifth Disease.

I found out that children will come down with the rash 10 - 14 days after they have been exposed to the virus, and that the disease is contagious during the week before the rash begins. Once the child has the rash, they are no longer contagious. The good news is that it is usually super mild and no treatment is necessary. The rash is harmless and causes no symptoms that need treatment. Also, this is like the chicken pox, once you have had it you shouldn't ever get it again because your body builds up antibodies to fight it. In Stetson's case it was mild enough that I didn't even know he was sick until he was no longer contagious. My apologies to anyone who may have come in contact with Stetson during that time!

A picture of the rash on Stetson's cheeks and arms

A picture of the rash on Stetson's legs

The crazy thing about this rash is that it comes and goes. Sometimes it is very dark, and sometimes you almost can't see it at all. It seems to be much worse after he has been playing hard and after he has a bath. This picture was taken the next day, when the rash on his face was much darker.

Can you see why they call it "slap cheek"?
(No, I did NOT slap his cheeks!)

And a view from the side

I can't believe he hasn't been scratching like crazy, but it doesn't seem to bother him at all, it just looks bad - especially for sending him to preschool - but the damage has already been done, no use keeping him home now!

I believe Lucy got this as well, though the rash has only appeared on her legs. She got a lot sicker too, but I think that had a lot to do with the two eye teeth that just broke through - yay!!! She has been trying to get those for months!

My cute little diaper baby

You can see the rash a little better in this one

Lucy had a runny nose, cough, fever, and ear infections. She was one miserable little chick! It was Sunday, it got quiet so I went looking for her, and this is what I found . . .

She got herself a pillow and blanket and went to sleep on the floor

I think we are finally on the mend! Yay!!! We celebrated that and the warm weather by going for a walk and playing outside - I am definately ready for spring!

Check out those shades!

We tried to feed our horses some apples, but they weren't interested, I think they were just scared. Stetson was super disappointed because "the big white horse on Tangled eats the whole apple, even the seeds". I thought that was pretty funny!