I Can't Win

Sorry for the prolonged silence from our camp - to say that life has been hectic lately is a bit of an understatement.

Sam recovered from his bout of near pneumonia and was quite happy to return to day care. I took him to an allergist where it was determined by skin test that he is allergic to milk, eggs, cashews, almonds, and peanuts. The strongest reactions were to eggs and cashews. We are awaiting blood test results to determine severity. So the vaccines that were delayed at his 1 yr check up due to illness were partially further delayed - as the MMR vaccine contains egg so we have to make ANOTHER appt and have the shot administered at the allergist's office in case he has a negative reaction. And no more flu shots for this kid. So we pulled all offending foods from his diet (including his beloved almond milk).

Then this weekend he was hit with yet another ear infection (and for those keeping track, yes, it's only been 4 weeks since his last ear infection started and two weeks that he's been healthy). Screaming in pain at night gooey ear drainage infection. I feel so horrible for him.

Today his back breaks out with ezcema (which is an odd place) and this evening I notice his tummy is covered in hives. And I can't pinpoint what it is. Next step is to eliminate soy, wait for everything to be clear, try it again and see if that is the issue (not everything may show up on the skin test). Poor kid. I felt horrible for all the good eats he's missing out on as I made a separate pan of lasagna with no cheese or egg. Which is basically just noodles, meat, and marinara. He doesn't seem to notice or mind his alternative menu (yet).

Gavin slept for an hour and a half at KTC before grandma picked him up (not like him). Take his temp and it's 102 and he keeps saying his tummy hurts and then hurls all over his blankets tonight. Yup - I totally jinxed it because just today I was telling someone how healthy he's been and how he hasn't gotten sick in two years and that I just know Sam will outgrow the ear infections too if we just get past this winter.

And back to Sam, come to find out the rice milk I've been giving him is notorious for being cross-contaminated with allergenic foods. Almond, soy, and cow's milk are already out (he didn't test positive for soy, but the test can easily have false negatives and he screamed in pain twice when I tried it last - enough confirmation for me), then I come to find out what I have been giving him is probably not the best for him either.

And we don't have a lot of options given our lack of health food chains (Whole Foods, Trader Joes, etc).

So, you see, it just feels like every move I make, I just can't win. I'm lucky, really, if this is the worst of my problems, I know it's nothing compared to what other people go through with kids. But man, is it discouraging to do what you think is the right thing for your kids only to find out