Annabelle's Blog: Summer update

So many of my blog posts focus on more of the positive side of things, all the great things Annabelle is doing and the progress she has made. That is just the type of person I am, try to always look at the good. The past few weeks has tested my strength to focus on the good.

A few weeks ago on a Sunday evening we landed in the ED because of a mistake I made while making Annabelle's dinner. I used a hot dog bun that had dairy in it (the other blue packaged buns do not have dairy, I bought the wrong ones). Luckily she knew something didn't feel right and told us. Brian gave her the epi pen but we had to go into the ED to be observed. When the epinephrine wears off children can have another reaction if it's still in their system so it's very dangerous. Luckily we were home by 9pm and all was ok.

The following Thursday after a fun afternoon of swimming at a friends house Annabelle started getting very fussy and upset then threw up. She was lethargic, wouldn't stand and acting very strange. I called the after hour doctor and they recommended we go to the ED to make sure it wasn't a UTI, appendix or that she aspirated some water while swimming. After 4-5 hours they decided it was just a GI bug. It was the first time Annabelle had a bug that included throwing up so it was new for both of us. All of our friends are amazed that she has never been sick, especially with being in school since she was 2.

This brings us to Monday, September 3rd. We had a GI appointment after school, just a follow up to make sure all is well. Annabelle was weighed, as she is at every appointment she has, and was just 24 pounds 9ounces. Her weight went down a little, possibly because of her being sick the previous week. They were very concerned with the lack of weight gain (less than a pound in over a year) but her height is still growing. We started discussing a G-Tube, something that I have worked extremely hard to avoid. She also put her on Periactin - an appetite stimulate. I immediately started talking to people I knew with kids that had g-tubes. If it was necessary I would accept it, it just seemed so drastic. After accepting all the facts and the possible future she has started gaining weight - a lot! The 5th she was up to 24lbs 14oz, 10th she was 25lbs 14oz, and on the 13th she weighed in at 26lbs 4oz! I'm so very happy with this, if she can continue gaining weight we won't have to go down that path of surgery and g-tube.

So we are just praying that she keeps gaining weight, her allergy to milk decreases and we don't have any more reactions, and she stays healthy. In the mean time, we are done with the summer program at school so now we have 3 weeks off to enjoy some free time. We have a few little day trips planned but nothing major.