Year 2, Day 182

Miles has met a lot of people in the year and a half he’s been alive, but I always wonder how capable he is of remembering the people he doesn’t see as frequently as, say, his daycare teachers or babysitter. Does he remember his grandparents? His aunts and uncles?

Well Miles had his 18-month check-up today, and I don’t know how many people he recognizes on-sight, but I can tell you that he sure as hell knows the nurse at his pediatrician’s office.

As we sat in the waiting room, Miles was all smiles, exploring the space, looking at books, and climbing on furniture. Everything changed, however, the minute a door opened and Miles heard someone call his name. He turned, saw the nurse and immediately started shaking his head, crying, and flipping his hands to say, “All done!”

Yes, he remembers The One Who Sticks.

Miles’s howls echoed throughout the corridor as he was hauled down to observation room 3, where he went through all his usual least favorite activities: stripping down, having his temperature taken, getting weighed, getting his length measured, and (his least of the least favorites) getting his head circumference measured. All the while, Miles yelled, “Bah-bah! Bah-bah!” as though trying to convince the nurse that she was needed elsewhere.

After the nurse left, Miles slowly collected himself and returned to innocently pointing at the pictures of elephants on the wall. He soured again when the pediatrician entered the room, but grew relaxed as it became obvious that he was really only here to talk with mommy.

Did I say the head measurement was his least favorite part of the visit? Well it was, until the nurse returned and delivered three shots into his thighs. It was a lot like every other shot he’s ever gotten, except he cried the entire time — even before the shots were administered.

And yet, despite the fear triggered deep within Miles every time he lays eyes on the nurse, he became perfectly cordial at the end of the visit. As the nurse finally left the room, she said, “Bye bye!” And Miles, in a normal, controlled tone of voice, said, “Bah-bah,” and waved. Bygones were bygones, all was forgiven.

…until, of course, the two-year visit.