Hopes dashed but still having hope

So, today was allergy testing day for K.  He has been off of antihistimines since before I went to Park City.  Plenty of time for it to clear his system.  I was out of town on business and connected in Chicago last night flying in this morning for the appointment.

Well, he can eat corn without restraint which is GREAT news!  I was rather panicked at the thought of going corn free.  BUT, after a clear skin test in April and a blood test showing allergy in May, today's skin test confirmed that K is still very allergic to peanuts.  Sigh.

Why do I sigh?  K's school does NOT get food allergies.  They INSISTED on Chick-fil-a chicken nuggets for the Kindergarten Thanksgiving celebration at 10am.  K is to avoid peanuts and peanut oil.  I offered to pay for the alternative (it is a private school) but the principal would NOT budge.  So, I took a half day from work and sat between K and the rest of the kids with an Epi-Pen Jr. in one hand and wipes in the other.  I've gone round and round with the principal over the allergy issue.  She will not take it seriously :-(  Today's appointment means it is another point to confront with her.

So, now I have a child who has a special needs diagnosis that will involve visible interventions in the classroom who also has a life threatening food allergy.  I have this awful feeling in my stomach that I'm the mother of the kid that will be the class punching bag in another couple of years.  I'm working to build confidence in him to try to avoid this situation but it is honestly one of my biggest fears.  I know K will be a productive, happy, well-adjusted adult.  It is elementary, middle and high school that scare the daylights out of me as a mother.

I'm reading Quirky Kids and It's So Hard to be Your Friend right now.  Perhaps this is why I'm so focused on this.  I don't know.  I do know that kids can be downright mean.  K's allergy means he can't sit with the other kids at lunch.  He will have an FM transmitter in the classroom this year.  Part of me wants to not do those things but putting ones life on the line and suboptimtizing the rest of the learning potential due to social concerns just isn't right.

Sometimes choices are quite hard and do not have clarity at the time the choices are made.  I hope K and his classmates make good choices over the years.

I love you K!  You are an amazing boy!  I'm so proud of all you are doing this summer with Fast ForWord.  You will thrive and do great things!

The chaos continues but life is good

So, we are a month into the house being a mess due to our home improvement project.  I had to go to pick up more supplies today, the second time we have done so since starting.  The job was supposed to be finished June 23, today is July 10 and there are at LEAST two days of work left.  I am SO over it.  I want my house back.  We are working until 10pm at night sorting materials each night.  It looks good so far but I'm not sure the price was worth it.  I'm sure over time it will be but I'm jaded right now.

On another note, I'm mortified to admit that K and I were late to his appointment with the Psych today.  I got home after errands and forgot there was no carseat in my car and well, we didn't get there in time.  She was understanding but it frustrates me that I goofed.  I wanted to get this underway and it will have to wait until next week.  Our appointment is 8am next week which means up and out on a Saturday.

K started Fast ForWord this week.  He seems to be doing well with it and enjoying it.  He earned 11 Fast ForWord dollars and his prize for the week was a set of Heroes and Villans Star Wars playing cards.  So, we have not transferred his obsession to something that all of us can enjoy which is a good thing.  We have been playing games of War all weekend and K is absolutely LOVING it.  I like that he loves it as it is good from a math, general processing and motor skills perspective.  Sweeping and stacking the cards quickly is putting him to work quite a bit.

Other than the home improvement project, things are generally very good.

We had a great trip last weekend as a family to see my brother and his family.  We had a fantastic time which included the Bronx Zoo, multiple sets of fireworks, boat rides on the Hudson, swimming, playing in my brother's AWESOME yard,  a trip into the city for dinner and The Addams Family for my husband and I, and plenty of great play time for the cousins.

This weekend we are enjoying our first weekend at home as a family in three weeks.  The weather seems to have broken a bit and we are enjoying play time inside and out.  Life is good!