Monday 2 August 2010

Weekend wildlife

We were out for a walk on Sunday morning (the first day in about a month that the temperature has been mild enough to actually go for a walk, rather than heading straight for cold water or cold airconditioning somewhere) when Littleboy 2 started screaming and clutching his mouth. It was a little hard to hear what had happened, because he was sobbing so much, but once we had worked out that no, his brother hadn't hit him and no, he hadn't fallen over, we realised that he had been stung on the lip by something. Eventually I coaxed the following out of him; it was 'brown' and 'it buzzed'.

The Doctor went to have a look at where they had been playing and identified the culprits - a pair of reddy-brown hornet type things. By this time Littleboy 2's lip had begun to swell up dramatically, giving a whole new meaning to the expression 'bee-stung lips'. He has rather full lips anyway, so one side being double the size of the other really did make him look as if a Botox experiment had gone badly wrong.....

This is where having a medical husband comes in handy. If I had been on my own, I might well have rushed him off to the doctor's surgery, but my own Doctor prescribed ice lollies. And reader, they worked. Both boys got Dora the Explorer popsicles, after which they had been clamouring for days since the neighbours started giving them out (I, being a Mean Mummy, had refused to buy them, partly because they turn the boys' tongues such garish shades of green and purple that you wonder what the hell is in them). The lip started to subside. Everyone was happy.

Until that is, Littleboy 1 got bitten by a vampire ant outside our front door. I say vampire, because this ant (large, black, horrible) attached itself to his neck and dug its teeth in. It wouldn't be brushed off and had to be almost surgically removed by a piece of kitchen towel. He actually had a puncture wound in his neck. He was sobbing. I was screaming. The Doctor was killing the ant in the sink. All very dramatic. More popsicles were required, just to cheer him up.

How on earth they have managed to avoid being bitten by anything other than a mosquito in 14 months here, and then in one morning have two incidents, is beyond me. But we now have a fridge full of Dora popsicles, and the boys will want one every night until the box is empty. C'est la vie.......

13 comments:

Elsie Button said...

oohhh how i would love a doctor husband! hope they are both ok now and enjoying the rest of their ice lollies!

Unknown said...

I have a doctor (well, surgeon) father-in-law so my husband feels that he is a doctor in all but name. Not always helpful. Poor you though, poor boys, gladd all fixed with popsicles x

Deer Baby said...

Dora to the rescue! Glad Swiper hadn't swiped them all and the cupboard was bare.

Seriously, that must have been scary. Glad The Doctor was there. I am a real wuss with insecty things. Vampire ants - yikes! I know vampires are all the rage right now but yuck!

Expat mum said...

We have biting flies here, which sound hilarious but hurt like hell. Oh yes, and if you sit on grass with no blanket underneath you, the chiggers bite. Worse, they burrow into your skin. Oh yes, it's a jungle.

Uly said...

Edy's makes all natural fruit bars, made largely with real fruit and partly with sugar. They're still popsicles, but at least when they turn your tongue colors you know it's natural. Hope the kidlets feel better.

Mwa said...

Ouch! So much drama! You must have been SHOCKED!

I will remember the popsicle trick for future reference.

Corina said...

How do the critters know to bite the weakest? I have one that was bitten on a Monday by a yellow jacket whilst in the pool. She ran screaming around the deck away from me, the thought of my first aid kit somehow scarier than the pain of the chunk that had been removed from her neck? Then a mere 3 days later she falls from her trike at school camp... glad I wasn't there for that. Then to top it off on the same day she was then stung by a bee. I need a doctor just to sedate the kid.

WV ously. It was a ously week indeed.

Nota Bene said...

Bloody hell...it's a jungle there...

nappy valley girl said...

Elsie - they are fine now, if a little warier of insects. Although LB2 did pick up a firefly last night....

Knackered Mother - Popsicles seem to be a cure for everything! Maybe like wine for adults?

Deer Baby - I am not good with insects either. I still scream when a wasp lands on me....

Expat Mum - Ah, now I know what chiggers are. I have always wondered, as they are mentioned about on my can of bug spray...

Uly- thanks for the recommendation. We may have a popsicle addiction in the house now.

Mwa - it was just rather surprising, the two things happening in one morning. And bizarre!

Corina - the insects do seem to be out in force at the moment. Maybe they're being driven crazy by the heat?

NB - Too right. The mosquitoes are terrible as well as we head into August....I'm really looking forward to a brief respite in the UK.

Rachael Lucas said...

Eek. That doesn't bode well for my future! There's a possibility we'll end up somewhere in New York State in the nearish future (she said, hedging her bets and being vague, whilst touching wood). I'm not sure I'm ready for Things With Big Teeth. Gulp.

I'm going to do bedtime, then come back for a proper read of your blog. (Found you via CafeBebe's smores post)

Calif Lorna said...

Sucking on a lolly is such a fantastic idea, I wish I had a doctor with me at all times! Will be using that tip in the future, I'm sure.

angelsandurchinsblog said...

If yours are anything like mine, they'll be working out how to get stung in order to get their hands on those lollies. I'd be just the same, thinking about it!

nappy valley girl said...

Rachael - how exciting. Email me if you have any questions!

Calif Lorna - sometimes the simplest things work just as well. And make everyone happy too...

Angels and urchins - the thought had crossed my mind....