Another Andrew

We met another Andrew today -- a neighbour's 6-year-old. And he's also allergic to peanuts -- he has anaphylactic reactions, and carries an epipen. So that's four allergic kids in our area.

By the time Andrew hits elementary school, I think the schools will be totally sensitive to all these allergies. I'm so glad that I'm not one of the first parents of allergic children in the schools. That must have been so difficult -- not only to advocate for your child, but also to then let your kid go to school, and trust that they'll come home again, safe and healthy.

Do I sound afraid. Yup, I am.

And I'm grateful to all those moms and dads who came before me, who argued with the schools about their kids' reactions, and showed them ways to keep all the kids safe in school.

Andrew's off to preschool in a week. He's been packing and re-packing his Diego lunchbag for school since I gave it to him. He's allowed to bring a jug of water (not juice or milk) and a piece of fruit (not fruit leather or anything else preserved) for snacktime. It's the same rule for everyone -- so there won't be any dairy, or wheat, or any of the top allergenic foods at the preschool. They've had a lot of kids with allergies go through, so they were totally reassuring to me, and their policies are fabulous. Not to mention healthy.