It's the Croup!

Matthew is doing much better today, after several doses of steroids.

When people ask me how Matthew is doing, I find myself having to explain "croup" to them. When I say "croup" they look at me like I've just fallen off the turnip truck, because no one gets "croup" anymore; that's something your great-grandmother might have diagnosed and treated with a mustard poltice and leeches and you should really stop using the doctor/vet/butcher.

HOWEVER: the doctor Matthew saw yesterday (who is not a vet or a butcher) said Matthew has the croup. CROUP. Nothin' fancy. Just croup.

So, yes, the croup is an evil disease, still lurking out there today to stike the unwary toddler with a bout of raspy, barking fits of coughing in the middle of the night and causing his parents to bolt out of the bed and into the kid's room completely bewildered by the fact that the kid was sleeping soundly and then BAM -- the worst sound ever. And there's no need to fancy it up and call it 'parainfluenza' or something like that; just call it croup. I'll know exactly what you're talking about.