Neurotic Mommy: Gabriella's First Tick

Since today is Columbus Day, Gabriella's day care is closed and my parents are away on vacation, yet Ken and I had to work today. Tia Candace is spending half the day with Gabriella and Ken's mom, Kathy, is spending the other half of the day with Gabriella.

I received a call about half an hour ago from Candace telling me that Gabriella has a tick embedded on the back of her neck. Being the paranoid, first time mom that I am, I called Gabriella's pediatrician! They told us to remove it...duh! They were probably taken aback by being called for such a minor thing. But I wanted to know the proper way to remove it, if I should be concerned about Lyme Disease, and what signs to watch for for infection, etc. So I conferenced Candace and the doctor so he could tell her the proper way to remove it and what to do after it was removed. Uncle Steve met Candace at my house to assist with the procedure! They successfully removed it and cleaned it and saved the tick so we can be sure it was not a deer tick. Ken helped me keep a more calm head during this, but after realizing how nervous I got from this simple issue, I wondered to myself how I will handle all of the other typical child injuries. The outlook is not so good, but we shall see...!