Monday, February 21, 2011

The Weekend - A Fun Playdate & A Not So Fun Trip to the E.R.

Gracie went to back-up daycare on Friday morning and I hung out with her in the afternoon. She had a good day and even got to go visit the baby room a couple of times, which she absolutely loves. On Friday afternoon her and I took a nap and then we headed to the shoe store to buy some new tennis shoes. The rest of the day we just hung out at home and watched Gracie's cousin Kayla dance at State competition on a live web feed. I love modern technology and Kayla did an amazing job. I wish I could dance like that and I think Gracie was trying to figure out what she needs to do to get that good. :)

On Saturday we had a playdate with Emily (Gracie's former birth to three teacher) and her daughter Kai. It took Gracie a little while to warm up, but Kai is a vivacious, extremely social and happy little girl and it is hard not to open up and want to play with her. Gracie and Kai played with their babies and pushed a stroller and shopping cart around with their babies among other things. I could definitely see an improvement in Gracie's social skills since our last playdate. There is still room for more progress, but I was very pleased to see the interaction. Gracie had a great time. So did I! Thanks Emily and Kai for a great morning.

The rest of our Saturday wasn't quite so fun. I was late in getting lunch on the table so I gave Gracie a few bits of a cashew nut...it wasn't even a full nut. Well...we spent the next 4 hours in the E.R. Seems our little one had a severe allergic reaction....vomiting, tongue thickening, throat narrowing (thankfully she was always able to breathe), and hives everywhere. She was one incredibly miserable little girl. So now we are equipped with an epi pen that travels everywhere with her and she is not to eat peanuts or tree nuts of any kind until we do further allergy testing. We have an appointment next week. This is proving to be a little more interesting than I thought...even fruit snacks and some cereals are made with coconut oil...a no, no, right now.

The rest of our weekend was spent reading labels, throwing out all foods that had any nuts in them, and trying to explain to Gracie why she couldn't have any of her beloved coconut milk yogurt. This did not go over well at all.

By Sunday, Gracie was spunky again and most of her hives are gone. She still had a rosy cheek (yes, just one) and a few hives here and there on her neck and tummy.

No school today, so Gracie is at daycare. Our daycare provider is an R.N. who has used an epi pen before and I feel completely comfortable with Gracie in her care. We sent a bag of food along that was "nut free".

I have a call into the school nurse and a note in to her teacher, so we need to get those who care for her there informed and comfortable with the emergency procedures.

I'm learning so much and am counting our blessings....one of which is that the E.R. is only 5 minutes from our house!

I hope you are all staying well and warm. We had more snow this weekend. Everytime I would mention it to Gracie, she would look out the window and "ooooooooh" and "aaaaaaah" in wonder.

Love,
Lisa, Jeff, and Gracie

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