One year and a week ago...

One year and a week ago we were in the Emergency Room at Trinity Medical in Carrollton after Karl Mikal had a severe allergic reaction. I will never forget that morning. It was a one of the longest mornings I have ever had. Everything from the blueberry muffin that kicked it all off, to big Karl passing out, to the ambulance ride to Children's is forever in my brain.

Over the last year I have felt a full range of emotions about living with food allergies. I am sure that there will still be a full range of emotions as we continue to live with food allergies. I am always so excited when a recipe works, but frustrated when the exact same recipe doesn't work again. I sometimes get so tired of having to pack up a lunch for Karl Mikal everywhere we go and I find myself irritated that we can't just go through the drive thru line and pick something up. My heart lights up when I make something and Karl Mikal looks at me and says "Yummie". I am sometimes embarrassed at the scene I feel like we are making when we do eat at a restaurant. I find myself wanting to explain why we are wiping the table down and the highchair and bringing our own food in for him and using a disposable place mat even after we have wiped the table and when Karl and I eat everything with a fork/knife including the bread that was made to tear and be eaten with your hands. And even after all of that we are still a stress case because everything in the building we are in feels contaminated and dangerous for our little guy.

But at the end of the day I say a prayer of thanking God for my little guy. I wouldn't trade him for the world!!!

Here are some pics from that day .

You can see the IV in his arm. That was no fun at all! The pink on his arms are hives that came back after he got sick just after we were told we were about to be released. This changed their minds and that is when the IV went in to give him more meds since he just got rid of the ones that they gave him earlier.

Things weren't exciting enough, so Big Karl decided to liven things up by passing out when Karl Mikal got his IV. He was told to sit and was given oxygen. This is after sitting for a while.

Here we were getting ready for the ambulance ride. Karl Mikal's car seat is strapped onto the bed.

Here we are getting ready to go inside (I was able to ride with him). Too bad Uncle Jamey couldn't be the one to drive us over (my brother is a paramedic).

As I said before I would not trade this little guy for anything! He has brought so much joy to our lives. We are truly blessed!