Allergy woes

Well, we are back at ground zero. Kyle is having another allergic reaction. He started having mild facial rash/puffiness around eyes & fever yesterday afternoon. His temp went up to 101.8. Still has a slight fever today of 100.1. This morning, his face broke out in a rash again and it is pruritic. No rash on his body so far- and no facial swelling. Thank God. His diarrhea is finally under control- we switched to almond milk a few weeks ago (still on a little formula left over at Julie's).

Poor guy- this all happened yesterday on his 2nd birthday. We celebrated anyway and had some brownies for dessert and gifts. He got a toy lawnmower (loves to push things), a backpack- one with wheels that you can pull around (I went to 4 stores to find one "just like Devin's" - except blue)- gotta have what sister has- they fight over it all the time, a "Mac" truck, some toy trains and toy ambulance. Needless to say he has a theme of cars, or things you can push or pull.

I am typing this in his room right now hoping he will fall to sleep. Had to give him benadryl twice today and it makes him hyper rather than sleepy (Lucky Me) and he won't go down for his nap.

So, we have a doctor appt scheduled for next Tuesday to discuss his cough, vomiting and allergic reactions. Then, the following week, he has a dentist appt to have one of his fillings replaced that fell out. Then, the next week, he has another doctor appt for his "wellness exam and vaccines" for his 2 year old check up. Poor Ky-Ky. He flips out when he goes to doctor- it is so stressful for him and me. Is it wrong to want to put a shot of Bailey's in my coffee before these appointments?!

Vomit-ville

Yes, my house is vomit-ville. Kyle STILL vomits on a regular basis. It is both gross and frustrating- and sometimes even embarrassing in public. Let's just say we should buy stock in carpet cleaners like Spot Shot and Resolve. So far, all we can figure is he has a super- sensitive gag reflex. If he coughs, he barfs. It's that simple. Phlegm in the throat? Don't worry- he will get it out- he will cough till he pukes. He even knows when he is going to do it now and will grab a plate or a bowl or hang his head over a toilet.

He just got over a cold, and needless to say, because of his snotty nose, he had lots of phlegm. Lots of phlegm = lots of barfing. That was a nightmare b/c he felt fine otherwise but would start coughing and then vomit. He would do this at home, at daycare, at the gym, in the car.... SO GROSS. Basically, I call it "Vomit and run". He would literally start coughing, vomit, then be done and take off at mock speed again. It is a pain b/c I always have to carry extra outfits (for him and me). If he vomits in public, I can get dirty looks from other parents thinking I brought my sick kid out in public. But, he has never run a fever, had any changes in behavior or appetite. He literally can vomit and then want to eat the next minute.

We had all kinds of tests done including.... food allergy tests, CBC's, Chem panels, fecal cultures, fecal parasite testes, fecal WBC's tests... all came back normal. We tried Prevacid for GERD- no change. We tried a dewormer. I am at a loss.

Our pediatrician thinks he will outgrow it. I hope so. I really don't want to take him to a Gastroenterologist and have him scoped. He really gets freaked out with doctors b/c of all the tests he has had. I still think it is cough related. His cough is better now that the cold is over...but still has a slight cough when he gets up. I have a humidifier in his room.

Well, I guess I have to live with the "barf boy" until we figure out what causes it or he outgrows it. Hopefully, soon.

Halloween Fun

Kyle and Devin went to their cousin, Zander's, Halloween party last weekend. They had a great time dressing up and Kyle was a hit with his darling cowboy outfit. Devin was a leopard b/c she wanted to "roar"- even though she was a lion the last 2 years in a row. :) Since I drew whiskers on her face, Kyle HAD to have me draw something on his face too... so he got a mustache. One thing is for sure, Kyle does not like people in scary costumes. It FREAKS him out. My brother was a grim reaper and Kyle would cry and run from him for over an hour. Wouldn't even look his way. Halloween night is going to be interesting! He also got freaked out about the fake witch at the grocery store and started to cry. Now, Devin says she wants to be a "rock star" instead for Halloween. We shall see...

Mama Drama

Ok. My life is all drama and I just want boring. I like to call it Mama Drama. So, it starts out that I have been working or "on call" for 1 week solid. Ugh. So, finally Tuesday comes...my only day off. My horse, Chase colicks bad and I'm up all night with him. I didn't think he was going to make it... I had to run IV's, pass a nasogastric tube twice, and give him all kinds of medications. Fortunately, he made it through... So, the next night (my night off after working hard all day), one of my good clients and friends' horse suddenly goes into toxic shock and is dying. She calls me at home and I rush over. Unfortunately, there wasn't anything I could do but euthanize the horse and comfort my friend. Up again late. Took two beers to calm down my nerves afterwards.

So, today I took Kyle to gymnastics class this morning. He was doing great until his cough (from his cold) kicked in and that phenomenal gag reflex he has kicked in to full effect. He barfed all over himself, all over the bathroom (where I grabbed him and ran while he was barfing all over himself)and all over the toilet. Ok, we got over that, returned to class, sans nasty shirt, and then he did it again about 20 minutes later. I figured we better leave at that point. So,we went to pick up Devin from preschool. All is well again until we are driving down the road and Devin informs me she has to pee and she has to pee NOW. "Its going to come out Mom, you have to stop!" So, I do an emergency pit stop on the side of the road. At this point, I realize my daughter does not know how to squat properly and pees all over her shoes and pants by accident. Ok... we gotta go home so everyone can change. Then, we are off to the daycare so I can go to work AGAIN. Of course, when dropping the kids off, Devin has a complete temper tantrum b/c I forgot her backpack and left it at home when I changed the kids clothes... ya just can't win.

So, work was busy with lots of drama and now I'm home watching Grey's Anatomy trying to veg out. Kyle is in bed and Devin is watching her nighttime shows. Ahh... a moment of peace.... Course, I'm on call tonight, so ya never know...

Preschool Pictures

Devin's preschool had their Open House yesterday. She is doing so well there now. I am so happy we switched. All the teachers seem to really like her and she likes them. She gave everyone lots of hugs (she's a hugger). We got her 1st progress report. Overall, she got good marks... we need to work on her letter/sound association and lower case letters. She filled out a sheet on "all about me"... her answers were:
favorite color. green.
Favorite toy... pink bear (Ellie)
Favorite place...Grandma and papa's house
Favorite activity... drawing.
what i want to be when I grow up.. doctor.
If I could have anything in the world, I would want...another pink bear.
So cute.

Here are a few photos of Devin at Bel Esprit.

Devin is going to Preschool

Well, we survived the drama of not going to kindergarten this year. I don't know who was more traumatized... me or Devin. Since then, she has been having night terrors and walking in her sleep almost every night. We have gotten her to a point that we don't have to sleep in her room anymore. But, she usually wakes up almost every night...starts wandering around the house and talking nonsense. We have to walk her back to her bed and tuck her in. She "seems" awake... walking around, eyes open, talking... but she talks nonsense. Sometimes she has nightmares, sometimes not.

Well, I talked to lots of other moms and did some research. I picked out 3 preschools and then and went with Devin to visit them. We ultimately chose Bel Esprit. It is a private preschool in Litchfield. I really liked it there and their schedule is very flexible. So, we signed up Devin to start with 1/2 days on Tues & Thurs mornings. She started on Sept 1st. The first few times were rough, as expected. She cried at drop-off and didn't really want to participate at first. But, she has gradually improved every time and did not cry at all last week! This is a big deal for us. Plus, she is happy to go and participating well in class. I am so happy. I want Devin to have a positive school experience. This was definitely the right choice to wait till next year for kindergarten. She just was not emotionally ready for regular school yet. I'm so glad she is doing better... it is a huge relief.

Kyle allergy update

Well, Kyle's allergic reaction resolved. I took him to an allergist and the doctor thinks he had an allergic reaction to his cold virus. Go figure. They performed skin allergy testing on his back for 8 common food allergens including milk, soy, egg, peanut, gluten, etc... they all came back negative. He thinks Kyle's food problems stem from milk intolerance and not milk allergies. I would agree with that. He ordered a blood RAST test for peanuts to re-confirm he doesn't have peanut allergies... but we don't think so. Kyle has had peanut products many times before the allergic reaction. Haven't had the blood test for peanuts done yet b/c lab was too busy one day & finding the time.

In the meantime, my regular pediatrician had a bunch of blood and fecal tests done on Kyle including Celiac Disease panel, CBC, metabolic panel, fecal WBC, fecal cultures... they all came back negative. That was NOT fun getting the blood test.. Kyle cried from the moment he entered the lab office until we left. He is terrified of doctors now. Ugh.

So, basically after all this... we really don't know much.... just guessing and Kyle still has frequent bouts of vomiting and diarrhea. Both doctors did suggest considering a gastroenterologist specialist. I am not ready to go there. I am hoping we can figure this out ourselves and he will grow out of it.I know what the gastroenterologist will want to perform an endoscopy and possibly a colonoscopy of Kyle. I don't want to put him through that. He is basically a healthy, happy, growing kid. Most of his vomiting is correlated when he coughs... which he has had a chronic minor cough for months. He has a REALLY sensitive gag reflex and frequently vomits when swimming if he gets any water in his mouth. Lucky me... I have to hold him over side of pool if he starts coughing at all in the pool. He has vomited on the side of PUBLIC pools many times and its really embarrassing. I've even caught it once in my hands... yea, I know... gross! Better than in the pool though.

So, we are back to square one... I am currently keeping a log of his eating habits, vomit & diarrhea frequency... so we shall see... Hopefully, this too, shall pass.