Harry Connick Jr. & Allergies!??!

Friday afternoon Harry Connick Jr. made an appearance on Oprah. Although we don't normally have the Oprah Show on in our house, I just wanted to sit down for a while after the crazy day at the title company. When the segment opened and the cheering began Benjamin stood facing the television. When he saw the audience clapping, he started to clap with them. Then, Harry waved to his fans, and Benjamin waved back. As the cheering and applause continued, Benjamin resumed clapping for the celebrity. It was SOOO funny to watch B involve himself in the action!

Later that night, Ryan and I gave B a new type of juice to drink with his dinner. About five or ten minutes after his first long gulp, about 25% of his face turned red. This was mostly around his mouth area. It looked like a stain from a red-colored juice, so we tried to wipe it away, but alas, it was a reaction. I immediately called the doctor's office on-call line, but since it was after 7pm they would have to have a nurse from Texas Children's call me back...apparently at her convenience...which, apparently, was after a dinner break, a restroom break, and perhaps a cigarette break. At this point B was not in any pain or discomfort, but I wasn't sure if there was more reaction to come. Needless to say, I was very concerned. After B took his bath and about thirty minutes after the reaction, his face had mostly cleared. I was relieved but concerned that we had identified a food allergy that would be difficult to avoid: oranges.

I remembered reading something about citrus fruits and infants, so I set out to find that point of reference. After skimming two of my books on baby health, I found my answer. There is something in the oils of the orange rind which commonly causes this topical reaction, but IT IS NOT AN ALLERGY! I was finally relieved. Food allergies are VERY frightening to me, and I'm counting on my friend, Peanut Butter, to get me through B's childhood years!

After B was asleep the nurses finally called back. Basically, they told me not to give him any more of the juice and to call 911 if he couldn't breathe. Wow. I'm glad I waited on pins and needles for that call.