4 Years ago today I quit my job and started working.
ThingTwo turned 5 yesterday. Upon opening her presents one of which was a pretty party dress, she says to me, “Daddy, I’m going to wear this dress on my first day of kindergarten!”. Now I know all you Moms out there are welling up with the bittersweet feeling that your little girl is growing up so fast… and where did the time go?….and all that. Let me say, it’s been a long 4 years. 4 years spent wondering what seemingly harmless situation could have life-threatening consequences for ThingTwo. 4 years of monitoring ThingTwo in public situations with attention reserved for Presidents and Royalty. 4 years of reading food labels, every time you buy food because the company may have changed the ingredients since the last time you bought them. 4 years of hosting play-dates in your allergy-safe home because it’s easier than the stress of going out.
When she announced she would wear this new outfit to kindergarten, it was a feeling of relief, and then a small twinge of impending doom. I really want her to go to kindergarten, and she really needs to go, but will she be safe? I’m not entirely confident with the situation but as each day passes the reality gets a little closer. So what to do? If any of you out there have children with life-threatening allergies, who are now in school, tell me, how did you do it? How do you trust someone who has twenty other little beings to watch at the same time, trust them to pay the kind of attention to your child’s safety that you do? Is that possible? The other terrifying fact is that next year, her first year at any kind of school environment without one of us present, the school is moving to an all-day kindergarten format, as opposed to the 2.5 hour (half-day) it has been until now. Now from a transportation factor this is great, only two trips to the school each day as opposed to 4 trips with the half-day. What this means however is, she has to eat lunch at school…
Being parents of a child with multiple life-threatening allergies, this is scary. How do we handle this? ThingTwo can break out in an allergic reaction from touching something touched by a child with one of her allergens on their hands. There is another child in the school that has similar issues and he’s still alive, so that’s encouraging. In speaking with his mother she relayed to me all the steps she took educating the teacher, and the parents of his classmates when he first entered kindergarten. I’m not looking forward to that process, but I suppose we have no alternative.
On a lighter note this may amuse some of you. While out shopping for Birthday presents and perusing the usual 5yr old girly type aisles at the dept store I came across the most awesome thing ever! I decided to ignore the 9yrs+ age suggestion on the packaging and add it to the pile of presents. I was initially torn by the choice of the neon pink (girly suitable) Lucha Libre (not girly suitable) theme or the Neon Green (not as girly suitable) Zombie Theme (still not girly suitable) . As you can see I went with Zombies, explaining why Mexican Wrestlers wear those masks to a 5yr old was not something I wanted to undertake.
When my wife asked what I got for ThingTwo I rhymed off the list…
Me: New storybooks, animated movie, Play-Doh Ice Cream Set,….and CuPonk!
Her:Cuponk?
Me: Yeah, well, it’s…..basically it’s a beer cup and two ping pong balls, but it’s waaaayyyy cooler than it sounds, she’s going to love it!
Her: …You got our 5yr old a drinking game!?
Me:……but it’s so cool, it’ll be tons of fun, she’ll love it I swear!
Her: Alright. (I can hear her rolling her eyes over the phone.)
Happy Birthday ThingTwo.
BBD
She loved Cuponk by the way, just sayin.
