My poor baby

Oh, my poor 1st grader. He is suffering with allergies something terrible this year. I took him to the allergist today and he had a bunch of tests on his back and some on his arm. His poor little welted back and arm!!! And, then, he went to school. But, on the way, we stopped at McD's for a milkshake. Such a brave guy, I thought he deserved it.

So, he's allergic to ragweed, grasses, oak trees, dust mites (how do you convince a 6 year old he can longer sleep with his beloved stuffed animals?), some type of mold that floats around the air everywhere, and cats. Dogs were non-reactive on the first test (phew) and every so slightly on the second test. The doctor said to not let the dogs in his room, but its such a minor reaction that it's really not the problem here. Though we miss our Akachan, its probably best we didn't get a new kitty.

UPDATE: $40 eye drops, nasal spray and a HEPA air purifier for his room and, still, today his eyes are so swollen he can barely see out of them. I guess we better start the shots, cause treating the symptoms doesn't seem to do much good. Just looking into seeing how difficult it will be to continue them when we move.

A GREAT DAY

Today, my dearest hubby actually surprised me for my birthday. He planned ahead, he didn't tell or hint a bit to me or the kids, and low and behold he totally pulled it off!!!! We had a lovely afternoon at Tim's Rivershore with friends in the area--friends from old schools, friends from old jobs, family from Oregon, and friends we've made here in town. Such a lovely mix and so cool to have them converge in one place. And congratulations to D&M and W&R on your pregnancies!!!! So exciting and so wonderful to share in your news!!!!

Then this evening was also very fun. Our 1st grader's friend is having a camp out birthday party. They have a beautiful big woodsy backyard perfect for camping. The baby and I stayed only for the first part of the party, which was very lovely. They cooked hot dogs on a fire pit and served dirt and worms for dessert. The kids learned how to start the camp fire and played lots of fun camping games and activities. Now, the big boys are setting up camp. I think they will have such a fun time. Hopefully, its not too cold and windy tonight!!!

Chicken Butts

On Sunday afternoon, we skipped hockey and went to our local library because my 1st grader was a semi-finalist for the library's "Create-a-Bookmark" contest. The theme of the contest was "No Butts About Reading." In addition to handing out awards to winners, the author of the children's classic, "Chicken Butt" read the book to the whole group. Of course, now my two year old is going around saying, "chicken butt, chicken butt. . ."

I find this extra funny because in college my RA used to go around saying, "what's up chicken butt?" and reply, "not a thing chicken wing." Really, this whole book is not more complicated than her "chicken butt, chicken wing" routine.

You can see a photo of the bookmark on our facebook page. Instead of drawing a chicken butt or the butt of some other animal, he drew a leprechaun and a pot of gold. Not sure how it's related, but hey he did include the phrase "no butts about reading" on it.