2017 has been interesting all ready and we're only 2 months in! We started off the new year by traveling up north to visit family and got to stay in a hotel in the process, which the kids thoroughly enjoy. We got to see just how much she has grown when it came time to play in the hotel pool. Not only can she walk in the three foot area with ease, she can go into the four foot area and start to work her way towards the five foot section. Yup, that's right, she is on her way to being as tall as her mother, if not taller.
Winter finally showed up, or at least the snow did, in early January and the kids were super excited! Brianne had a great time making snowballs, snow angels, and even doing a bit of sledding. Oh days where it was just a "tad" too cold, she would sit inside and drink a cup of hot chocolate to her hearts content. If you ask this girl what her favorite part of Winter is, I promise she'll respond with snow and hot chocolate.
Oh boy, the part I really dislike. My baby girl, my precious daughter, my first born... she turned seven. Unlike prior years, our daughter elected for a friends party this year. There were nearly 20 girls!! It was noisy, they shrieked, they shrilled, and they all had a great time. The party started with a feast, full out taco bar with ground beef and chicken fajitas, followed up with painting, a punch out pinata, and cupcakes! You would think with a household full of girls (and two boys -- sorry Joey), that we'd limit their cupcake intake... yeah... we probably should have, but no, we gave them all two cupcakes and if you thought the shrieking and shrilling couldn't get worse... you'd be mistaken. Okay, okay, my wife is "informing" me that there were only 9 friends, two of which boys (Keaten and Joey), and for the most part they weren't shrieking and shrilling and that I'm over-exaggerating... psssh, as if I'd do that!
One of Brianne's favorite gifts this year for her birthday was a Lego set and a learn to sew project. Brianne took to sewing really well. She has made a stuffed cat and a stuffed dog thus far. There is also an owl which she hopes to make for her 1st grade teacher, because her teacher absolutely loves owls. Speaking of school, guess who got honor roll (again)! Yup, Brianne! We couldn't be more proud. She not only got honor roll, but is reading at a level I now. To put that into perspective she started the year trying to read level E.
To end the month of January, part of our Christmas present to the kids was taking them to see Disney on Ice. Let me tell you something, if you have never been and you have kids... it is WORTH IT! It likely cannot be a yearly event, but it was amazing. Brianne absolutely loved it. Her eyes were glued to the scene in front of her, as she watched each princess take the rink, sing a couple of songs from their movie as they re-enacted a scene as well, it was just amazing. Before we headed inside, we told them kids two things, 1. we would get them some lunch and 2. they could pick one item from a gift shop and were to ask for nothing else. Brianne got a cheese pizza and a Cinderella necklace. The necklace is cute and fits her well, I'm sure it is something she'll treasure for quite a while.
Then there was February. Oh February, the month that has Valentine's Day. Don't get me wrong, I love celebrating Valentine's Day with Brianne and Kami, but the stress of the holiday when your child has a food allergy, let alone, a peanut allergy, is overwhelming. Before getting into all of that, let me say Brianne was super excited about her flowers this year. I even brought Keaten along and introduced him to the process of picking out the flowers and BOY, he was nit-picky! Just any old flowers were not good enough for his sister, so she should feel loved and proud that her brother thinks so highly of her.
We took both kids to Uno's pizza this year for a special Valentine's Day dinner, and it was truly special. Did you know Uno's is a peanut free facility? Neither did we! We got an appetizer, entrees and even desert! I can't express enough how little we've ever ordered desert at a restaurant. I could probably count the number of times on one hand when we're out with the kids. Simply because of Brianne's peanut allergy. It is just too much of a risk.
Unfortunately, this year, we had an incident. The Valentine's Day school party was geared up and ready for fun, however, the candy hearts they used in a math lesson and of course, ate, weren't safe. We picked Brianne up at 3:15 PM, her voice was already nearly gone and her cheeks were rosy. We gave her a dose of Benadryl and she started to clear up, so we gave her a full dose that evening feeling confident we were in the clear and wouldn't need to use the Epi-Pen.
Wednesday morning, she still looked good and we sent her off to school, by 10:00 AM, the nurse called as her symptoms returned and now she had hives on her hands. Straight to Children's Hospital and six hours later, we're heading home with her cleared up and on a steroid to keep her airways open for the next 24-48 hours. Needless to say, it was a great reminder that just because the product itself doesn't contain peanuts, it doesn't mean it is safe. In fact, if you ask me, it could be far more dangerous. She eats countless things each day that do not contain peanuts, can you imagine having to try and look back on what she ate in the last 4 hours, 6 hours, 12 hours? Then try and identify what could have caused the symptoms? And then find the packaging and see if that has any clues? Yeah, it is really that crazy. Thankfully, Brianne still had the packaging to the candy hearts they used and thankfully it clearly stated it was made in a facility that also processes peanuts.
Then there is the steroid, Prednisolone. An item that should be impossible to cause a reaction,
because it is meant to clear someone up when they are having an allergic reaction. Yeah, we're
starting to question whether Brianne may be allergic to it. Every time she takes it, her cheeks
become bright red and she starts to have a rash across her back, stomach and arms. Every single
time. Needless to say, we're going to be a lot more cautious when it is prescribed in the future
and so is her doctor's office. We're both perplexed about it but we both have documents showing
these exact same symptoms the last time she was on it too. Coincidence? Maybe.
Hey, let's not end this on a down note though, let's brighten it right back up, this February was a first not only for Brianne, but for me as well. We had our very first Daddy Daughter Dance. You know as a computer "nerd", dances are not exactly in my wheel house, but I was pumped for this day! Believe it or not, Brianne was far more nervous than I was, however, I was able to convince her to get on the dance floor with me and dance we did. I don't think I could even recall a single song, but I can definitely mentally pull back the smile on her face as she gripped my hands and we danced. Her gripping my side as a slow dance song approached is a moment I'll never forget and a moment I cannot wait to repeat.
After the dance, I took Brianne to dinner. She was ecstatic. She ordered herself hot chocolate and pancakes and she loved every second of the time we spent together. To her, all cares were gone, she had one on one time with her Daddy and she loved it. For me, these moments are more than just making memories but instilling expectations in her life. Making sure she finds someone who treats her special, be it, opening the door for her, comforting her nerves, holding her hand, and letting her talk her mind and really listening. I don't know if she realizes all of the things I'm trying to instill in these moments, but I do know she loves the attention and that is bound to be leaving some sort of impression.
Phew, that was a lot and we're only two months in, but it was a fun two months! To help bring this to life, enjoy the photos below.
Love,
Matt, Kami, Brianne and Keaten