This week has been one crazy week. Labor Day was nice and relaxing but then on Tuesday chaos ruled the week. If you remember a few posts ago I wrote that Brad was having trouble breathing during strenuous activity; on Tuesday I took him to an Allergy and Asthma specialist. We arrived on time at the doctors office, Brad was nervous about getting shots but he was ready to get it over with. Brad was given a breathing test which he passed. However, because Brad has trouble breathing with strenuous activity he was placed on an inhaler and tentatively diagnosed with sports-induced asthma. Brad will be required to use the inhaler 30 minutes prior to any activity; for Brad that means baseball and Karate. If the inhaler works at relieving his symptoms during activity then we know he has sports-induced asthma. If the inhaler doesn't work then we are back to the drawing board and more testing. Pray that the inhaler works.
On Wednesday, Ashley had 3 1/2 hours of dance. Brad had confirmation class at our church at the same time Ashley had dance classes and I had a ton of work to do on the website for the Children's Liver Association for Support Services. Because I like to think ahead and multitask, I thought I could take my laptop to dance and work while the kids were occupied. Excited that I was actually going to get some work done, I immediately plugged in the laptop and got comfortable in the lobby of the dance studio. For those of you who know anything about designing or managing a website, you know that having Internet access is valuable. Well, guess what...there is no Internet access at the dance studio and I do not have/can't afford a wireless card for my laptop. Needless to say, I sat around the dance studio accomplishing nothing. To bad I didn't have workout clothes on at least I could have walked/jogged a few miles.
On Thursday, Ashley wakes up looking a bit pale, she complains of a headache, a sore throat and a tummy ache. Being the good mom that I am I take her temperature; it's normal. And because I am such a good mom I send her to school. I know she has a liver disease but she is still a normal kid who gets normal colds and viruses. At 11 am, I get a call from Ashley, "Mommy my head is pounding and I don't feel good." Of course, being the good mom that I am...I leave work to pick her up at school. On the way to her school, I call the doctor and we are able to get her in immediately; it helps that the pediatrician tells his staff that Ashley is priority. The short story is that Ashley has a viral illness. Strep test was negative but he gave me a prescription for antibiotics just in case Ashley starts running a fever. So far Ashley has been fever free although her complaints are still the same; headache, sore throat, tummy ache, etc.
Friday Brad is back at the Allergy and Asthma specialists for his skin test. This boy is allergic to the outside; if it's green he is allergic to it. Being allergic to the outside is not good for a baseball player. You should have seen Brad's back after all 86 shots were administered; he had a rash and a huge variety of welts. I took a picture of his back on my Blackberry but I have no clue how get those pictures on my computer. We also learned that Brad has a mild allergy to peanuts and to dog dander. Brad has a moderate to severe allergy to 9 things; dust mites, Bahia, Bermuda and rye grass, tobacco, oak and pecan trees among many others, pollen, mold (penicillin), and several types of weeds. As bad as Brad's allergies seem, it could be so much worse. After all, he doesn't need an epipen. However, he will now need weekly allergy shots which he is so NOT happy about.
(Added 9/6/08) Look I figured out how to get pictures from my cell phone to my laptop. Here are some pictures of Brad during his allergy tests. They aren't the greatest pictures but at least you can see the redness created by his allergies. I wish I zoomed in on some of the welts created by the allergens. Brad was itching so badly he started squirming on the examining table just to keep from scratching.
It was chaotic this week but it does remind me that I am alive. Now I am ready for rest and relaxation. If we could get rid of those darn tropical storms/hurricanes maybe a day at the beach will be in my future.
On Wednesday, Ashley had 3 1/2 hours of dance. Brad had confirmation class at our church at the same time Ashley had dance classes and I had a ton of work to do on the website for the Children's Liver Association for Support Services. Because I like to think ahead and multitask, I thought I could take my laptop to dance and work while the kids were occupied. Excited that I was actually going to get some work done, I immediately plugged in the laptop and got comfortable in the lobby of the dance studio. For those of you who know anything about designing or managing a website, you know that having Internet access is valuable. Well, guess what...there is no Internet access at the dance studio and I do not have/can't afford a wireless card for my laptop. Needless to say, I sat around the dance studio accomplishing nothing. To bad I didn't have workout clothes on at least I could have walked/jogged a few miles.
On Thursday, Ashley wakes up looking a bit pale, she complains of a headache, a sore throat and a tummy ache. Being the good mom that I am I take her temperature; it's normal. And because I am such a good mom I send her to school. I know she has a liver disease but she is still a normal kid who gets normal colds and viruses. At 11 am, I get a call from Ashley, "Mommy my head is pounding and I don't feel good." Of course, being the good mom that I am...I leave work to pick her up at school. On the way to her school, I call the doctor and we are able to get her in immediately; it helps that the pediatrician tells his staff that Ashley is priority. The short story is that Ashley has a viral illness. Strep test was negative but he gave me a prescription for antibiotics just in case Ashley starts running a fever. So far Ashley has been fever free although her complaints are still the same; headache, sore throat, tummy ache, etc.
Friday Brad is back at the Allergy and Asthma specialists for his skin test. This boy is allergic to the outside; if it's green he is allergic to it. Being allergic to the outside is not good for a baseball player. You should have seen Brad's back after all 86 shots were administered; he had a rash and a huge variety of welts. I took a picture of his back on my Blackberry but I have no clue how get those pictures on my computer. We also learned that Brad has a mild allergy to peanuts and to dog dander. Brad has a moderate to severe allergy to 9 things; dust mites, Bahia, Bermuda and rye grass, tobacco, oak and pecan trees among many others, pollen, mold (penicillin), and several types of weeds. As bad as Brad's allergies seem, it could be so much worse. After all, he doesn't need an epipen. However, he will now need weekly allergy shots which he is so NOT happy about.
(Added 9/6/08) Look I figured out how to get pictures from my cell phone to my laptop. Here are some pictures of Brad during his allergy tests. They aren't the greatest pictures but at least you can see the redness created by his allergies. I wish I zoomed in on some of the welts created by the allergens. Brad was itching so badly he started squirming on the examining table just to keep from scratching.
It was chaotic this week but it does remind me that I am alive. Now I am ready for rest and relaxation. If we could get rid of those darn tropical storms/hurricanes maybe a day at the beach will be in my future.
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