Thankful

Now these are little boy legs! See all those bumps, bruises and scrapes? It's funny how just the sight of these cute (very obviously boy) legs can make me so thankful. People often ask me if we want a girl. I have to be honest, I am content. Before having Josiah, I was terrified of having boys and really wanted all girls. But God knew what I needed, and I am so thankful that He gave me what I needed and not what I wanted. :) I'm not saying there is anything wrong with girls, I'm sure I would love them too...but there is something special about little boys in my heart. I love that my days are filled with legos, superheros, dirt, bugs, gross bodily functions (ok, maybe not really thankful about that part), wrestling,  transformers and nerf gun wars. I'm thankful that I hear on a daily basis "Mommy, you're the most beautiful girl I've ever seen. I want to marry you!". I'm thankful for the mystery that little boys are to me. Sometimes I am watching them play with their superheros and suddenly am amazed at the way God made them so very different from girls. It's often obvious that they are made to be leaders and protectors.
I am grateful for the gifts God has given us...but the greatest gift is that I get to be their Mommy.

Food Allergies

Being a mom of a sweet boy with a very serious nut allergy is stressful. So many times I feel like people don't take me or his allergy seriously. I often hear (even from Americans) "so, he doesn't like to eat that food?". No, he could in fact DIE from eating this food. This morning I read this story and it broke my heart. I am grieving for this family. Even if your child doesn't have food allergies, please be thoughtful enough to ask before offering someone else's child food or drink. I have been to numerous kids birthday parties where nuts are served in some form. If there's going to be children there, why risk it? Just don't serve nuts!

Almost a year ago, we went to a restaurant (one that we go to often and know the people who work there) and the waiters took the boys to the counter while we were sitting at the table. I didn't think much of it. I sat there talking to our friends who were with us and then Casey came over with an Indian sweet in his hand. I started to panic when I saw he had taken a bite out of it. Before I could ask anyone what was in it, he said his tongue felt funny. Now I was really panicked. We gave him some benadryl and started praying. I'm sure the people in the restaurant thought we were crazy! Then the vomiting started....again and again and all that benadryl came up. I remember standing over him with the epi pen loaded and ready to use with tears streaming down my face. He was wheezing and terrified...and so was I. Was this how I was going to say goodbye to my little man? Over something so stupid and so preventable? All these things were running through my head as I held him in my arms, rocking him and telling him it was okay. Praise be to God that he slowly started getting better until he was back to normal.
When we knew Casey was okay, I looked over at Josiah and he was sobbing into his hands. I asked him what was wrong and he said "It's all my fault! I asked the man if it had milk in it but I didn't ask him if there were nuts before he gave it to Casey!". I was quick to explain to him that although he needs to look out for his little brother, it was in no way his fault.
My point is that it only takes ONE bite. ONE! This is a Mom of a food allergy kid begging you to be aware, begging you not to roll your eyes and sigh because your kids can't take nut food to school, begging you to understand that we didn't ask for this and we can't control it.