Allergies!

Nana and Mackenzie were visiting last week and we wanted to do something fun to end their time in NC. So, on Friday we decided to go to the zoo. We got a late start (because that is the way Nathan and I roll). When we are about 45 minutes away, it started raining...gently at first and then heavily. When we finally made it to the zoo at 3:30 and it closed at 5:00, we had our reservations about going, but since we had driven all the way, we had to do something. So we decided to have Nathan and Mackenzie stay. Mack went into Jonathan's stroller and Nathan took an umbrella. We told them we would pick them up at 5:00, then Nana, Jonathan and I went into the town of Asheboro.
Life is so easy with a GPS. We put in "shopping" and within minutes we were at a mall. That was perfect because Nana wanted to buy Jonathan an Easter outfit (a tradition she does with the granddaughters). We shopped and found a cutie pie outfit.
We went back and found Mackenzie and Nathan. They were soaked, but had a great time. We loaded them into the van and were headed back to Raleigh. The GPS sent us on 40 (busier route, more direct and more populated), not 64. We didn't think anything of it, but it was a good thing.
Jonathan hadn't napped and was really crabby. We thought he would sleep on the way to the zoo, but he didn't, so he was over-tired. He snacked on a few raisins and after tons of screaming, he finally fell asleep. I was driving and I looked back at him at one point and saw that his lip looked funny. I didn't say anything to Nathan, but checked back again and he had a hive on his face and some red marks. I told Nathan to check on him. He said his lip was swollen. I realized that the raisins he had eaten were in a trail mix package with other nuts and that we were most likely dealing with an allergic reaction to some type of nut. Nathan searched the diaper bag for Benadryl, but we didn't have any. We got off at the closest exit and decided to head to a drug store to get some. A few moments later Jonathan made a few wheezing sounds as he was breathing, as he was still sleeping. At that point, I put "hospital" into the GPS and we headed straight there. We were in Greensboro and ended up at Moses Cone Memorial Hospital. It was only five miles away! We are so grateful because they had a Pediatric Emergency Department. We got in very quickly because, thankfully, no one messes around with a baby who is wheezing. So they took his vitals and got us into the Pediatric side, while Nana and Mackenzie waited in the van. They put us into a room and a nurse gave him Benadryl and then they monitored him. The swelling went down and all of the wheezing stopped and he was himself. Then he got hungry and was a bit crabby, but they fed him some crackers and juice and he improved. The Doctor saw him and said that he needed to see a Pediatric Allergist soon. She also gave a prescription for an Epi-pen Jr.
In two hours, we were back on the road with a happy little man. He quickly fell back to sleep for the rest of the ride home. And because Nana and Mackenize were still staying at our house, he slept in our room that night. (That is a mommy thing--I wanted him close to me.)
We are thankful for the technology of the GPS! We are thrilled it sent us on 40, not 64!

It was cold in the emergency room. Jonathan wrapped up in Daddy's jacket.
Getting tissues to blow his nose...again!