The hardest thing about being a parent is that you have to send them out into the world. And if you happen to be a "work out of the home" parent you do this when they are inconceivably little. So no matter how safe you try to keep them, you have to trust too. Which is how I ended up in the pediatrician's office yesterday discussing the possibility of Keegan being exposed to Hepatitis and HIV.
He was back at his current daycare for the first day of the new school year and was bitten. Twice. The second time broke through the skin. I got this news by voice mail after I dropped back down from the mountains after yesterday's monthly trek to northern NH. I setup the appointment, checked in with the office and went to pick him up. What they failed to tell me was that the first bite was right in the middle of his cheek. Try to absorb that and examine the deep scabbed bite on his back without breaking into tears.
He is on an internal antibiotic and topical one as well. I have a letter this morning from daycare assuring me that the biter is up to date on immunizations and does not have any communicable diseases. The biter is supposed to be anonymous but I know exactly who it is. He was the one one who pounced on Keegan the first day back in the summer. Clearly a child with issues and a family that needs to get on this behavior. They are working with them and may resort to shadowing the kid all day to prevent further occurrences. Apparently he was all over the other kids yesterday too. I am hoping that they come to the same conclusion that I have, ultimately this child will be best served in an environment more suited to his special needs. Until that time I will be watching closely, calling them on the interventions and pushing to keep my son safe. Oh and checking our spot on the waitlists all over town.