PB Mishap

I never questioned Gabrielle's peanut allergy or the severity of it, but I also didn't ever want to find out just how serious her reaction could potentially be. I knew the time was inevitable ... so here is a recap of the event. Saturday Gabrielle attended a princess party at her little friend Chase's house. I headed off to Costco with my parents. I hadn't been in Costco 5 minutes when I had this sick feeling that Gabrielle was going to be exposed to peanuts. I hadn't reminded Allyson of her allergy nor had I brought her epi pen with her. I quickly phoned Allyson and she assured me all was well. It wasn't 2 hours later and we were off to celebrate Jason VonMoss's 34th birthday. We were all so wrapped up in the fun and good conversation when Gabrielle looked across the table at me with a terrified look in her face and said "Mommy, I don't like the ice cream. It's yucky!" I didn't think anything of it (I was eating vanilla ice cream and assumed she was as well). I quickly realized she wasn't playing games. I crossed to the other side of the table right as she said "It has peanuts in it!!!" Within a matter of minutes she was spitting and telling me her mouth felt funny. I turned to hand off Dawson just to hear Rene' say "Gabi is throwing up." Poor baby threw up everything in her tummy. I stripped her of her clothing and started cleaning up the mess in the bathroom when she broke out in hives. At this point I hadn't wished for any medical help nor did I think it was necessary to administer her epi pen. Once I saw how quickly the hives came on her neck and wrist I decided the epi pen wasn't such a bad idea. Here is the kicker ... I totally wimped out!!! Yes, me! The one who is fascinated by all things medical. The one who has administered hundreds of shots over the years, assisted with several very gruesome surgeries, birthed 2 children. When it came to inflicting pain on my daughter when someone else was readily available to do it. I opted out. SO, Jason went to give the shot after a 5 second instructional from me and administered the epinephrine to himself instead of Gabrielle. In the interim we gave Gabi a hefty dose of Benadryl & Rene' phoned to request the EMT. They arrived in 2 minutes flat, gave Gabrielle a thorough exam and allowed me to sign a refusal of transport form.
Lessons learned:
Listen to the doctor and always carry 2 epi pens
Don't be a wimp and inflict a little pain next time (I pray that isn't for a long time!)
Be prepared to be ridiculed by others for the mishap
Stomach listening to Gabrielle talk about how she threw up time and time again today
Appreciate those friends who are willing to clean up your child's vomit & caring enough to outwardly express their concern for her well being

Happy 34th Jason! Thanks for everything!