June 15, 2008 Fathers Day: We had our first trip to the Emergency Room with Vivian. We were at our friend's house to spend some time relaxing and fellowshipping. Garrett and his BFF, Dawson, ran off to play in the dirt pile. Keep in mind that this is one of the last few places on earth where a kid can be a kid. The boys run and play and dig in the dirt and then we hose them off and bring them in for a scrub. There is usually an inch of dirt in the bottom of the tub after their bath.
Vivian usually stays in with the grown-ups while the boys run off and fight bad guys or whatever it is that little superheroes do. This time, though, Vivian decided that she was going to go run with the big boys. No big deal. We really didn't even think anything of it because this place is uber kid friendly.
Well, two lots over from this house wasn't so kid friendly. After a while, the boys came running in huffing and puffing and tell us that Vivian has gotten into an ant bed. We knew it couldn't be close to the house because our friend, Lee, has spent many hours and many dollars ensuring that his yard is ant free. Melissa went out to check on things and saw that Vivian was in a yard about 250' away from our friends' house and she was frozen in her scared little tracks with her right foot right in a fire ant bed.
Melissa ran back to the house swatting ants off of Vivian. Melissa got bit about 10-20 times, but when all was said and done, it was estimated that Vivian got about 200 bites. We took her to the emergency room to make sure she didn't have a serious reaction, other than just the redness right around the bites. Thankfully, there was not a systemic reaction and we were released with a prescription for an oral steroid and instructions for keeping her comfy. Here are some pictures:
Vivian didn't seem to mind at all. All she has ever said is, "Boo-boo HOT!"
Happy Fathers Day to me!
This is from a couple of days later when the bites started to blister. Quite freaky!
We'll be following them more closely next time, but the boys know (they've always known) to stay in the yard and not wander off.
That looks so familiar from when Casey and family first moved to LA. The girls were forever getting in fire-ant beds. Hope she is OK
ReplyDeletePoor baby! But, she's still got those beautiful eyes & the twinkle!
ReplyDeletePoor girl and poor mommy. Ouch! I'm so glad she's on the mend!
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