On the night after Thanksgiving, we typically attend the annual tree lighting in downtown Middletown. This year was no exception, but as anyone with an allergy kid knows, every social event is a ticking time bomb.
The beginning parts of the evening went well. Lots of great songs and celebrations. 
After wandering down Main st we ended up at our favorite restaurant, where Santa makes a final appearance before headed to the North Pole to get his month in order. 
Once Santa flips the switch, a flurry of artificial snow blows off the roof of the building. The snow consists of dried mash potato flakes. 
Everyone tries to catch as much as they can and the kids get to graffiti the cars that didn’t move in time. As you can see Leighton was reluctant but figured if Billy didn’t get in trouble…. she couldn’t possibly. 
About 4 minutes after the snow stopped flying Shayla was complaining about her eyes burning. After we looked at her face with the flashlight, it was obvious that she was having a reaction. Jen quickly ran to the chef of the restaurant and jokingly asked if they had changed brands (last year’s brand was clear of any allergies). To everyone’s surprise, the reality hit us that the brands were in fact different and the ingredient list needed to be read quickly. Jen sprinted to the storage room, read the ingredients and from across the street… signalled that we needed to go. I knew immediately that it couldn’t have been good. 
Fortunately for us we live 6 minutes from the restaurant and quickly stripped her and gave her a shower to clear her external contacts from any allergens. It was in our hair, her hair, her clothes, her car seat, our shoes, everywhere. With hives all over her and some wheezing in place; we headed to CT Childrens Medical Center almost instantly. 
I rode in the back with the epiPen ready and Jen drove. A little flashback to our first incident. 
The doctors administered the epi this time around as her symptoms weren’t anywhere near what they were the last time. This time however she didn’t ingest anything, except what she took into her lungs and on her skin/lips.
After about a 3 hour stay at the hospital for verification they let us go home. She was going to be just fine this time around. 
The next morning consisted of washing and vacuuming the car seats, the truck, and everything that lead up to her coming home. 
Here is a picture of her smile the next morning after eating her favorite avocado and toast. 
Two more Epi’s were prescribed and we took advantage of purchasing them to have on hand before our big road trip. (yes they cost us $535.18) Thank you affordable care act.
