I think the root problem right now is The King’s rash. He’s going back to the pediatrician as soon as we can get him in, which I assume will be Monday. It’s started looking crusty and truly awful. (And that is also why I haven’t posted any pictures in a few days.)

The rash is obviously making him itchy and miserable, so much so that he doesn’t even completely stop fussing while he’s eating. The pattern goes:

  • Eat like a maniac for 3-5 minutes,
  • Wriggle/squirm/kick/turn beet red,
  • Successfully hurl body away from dinner,
  • Shriek horribly for 1-2 minutes — even when dinner is being stuffed into your mouth,
  • Suddenly realize that you can eat and resume eating as if nothing happened.

Repeat with diminishing eating intensity, 2-4 times per boobie, every 2-3 hours. Once per day, wait 4 hours.

In other news, we’re leaning towards an option on the adoption front. We haven’t totally decided yet, but it looks like the best option is going to be moving to a neighboring county where same-sex second parent adoptions are a non-issue.

I’m very sad and stressed out about that as the option — I love our house, I love our neighborhood, I love the location, and this will be my 4th and Jill’s 5th move since 2001. (I think. She might have 1 more.) Plus we both did separate stints in temporary housing when we originally relocated here, because I moved here first.

We’re looking at renting ASAP while selling our place and finding a new place to buy, because we don’t want The King to be without the protection of having 2 legal parents any longer than is absolutely necessary. Plus it would give us a chance to "taste test" a new neighborhood.

The reason we feel such a sense of urgency about this is twofold — first, there is a same-sex second-parent adoption that is being challenged and is currently working it’s way through the appellate court system. If they come back with a bad decision, we may not be able to ensure that The King gets 2 legal parents.

And second, the legislature may come in and "clarify" the law — a circumstance that strikes me as even more likely if the appellate court comes down with a good decision. And that clarification is just not going to be one that helps families like ours.

IMO, the best chance of protecting The King and our family is by acting as soon as possible, before the legal circumstances change.

Much like giving up a favorite food group for awhile, moving to another part of the metro area is a pain in the ass and I really and truly wish I didn’t have to do it, but it isn’t so burdensome that it outweighs the safety and security of my baby. And also like giving up dairy while he nurses, it doesn’t mean I have to give it up forever. If we stay in the metro area long term, maybe one day we’ll move back to this community.