Wednesday, July 18, 2007

Moo Moo Moo


Here is the promised picture of the Udder hat. It was fun to knit, the teats took me longer than I thought they would. I made it so we would have a strike out hat of epic embarresing proportions.
As it turns out we played out year end tournament with out a strike out. We only had one or two strike outs the entire season, so we may have to find another way to get the cows to wear the udders. We will have to figure it out next year as the season is over and the cows are out to pasture until nest year.
I am going to hop up on my soap box and vent for a minute. Here's the set up:
The kids are in soccer camp for the week with the Montessori school. PJ and Q go from 8:30 to 12:00 and Sebass goes from 8:30 to 4:30. It has been hot and unusally humid in the Loops lately.
We sent the kids to camp with juice boxes and cups for water. We sent snacks with all three kids and sent Sebass with a sandwich for lunch as well as the snacks. Paul made Sebass a PB&J for his lunch on Monday.
Nut products are not allowed at the schools these days and Paul forgot this when packing Sebass's lunch. When the kids sat down to lunch the teacher saw Sebass's sandwich had peanut butter on it and they took it away from him. Sebass ate his plum and a small package of yogurt that was also in his lunch. Sebass went on to play the rest of the day (soccer and other physical outdoor activites)
When Paul picked Sebass up at 4:30, the kid was flushed, very hot to the touch and could hardly stand up. By the time Paul got him home (5 minute drive, maybe) Sebass had goose bumps all over his body and was complaining of not feeling well. Paul got him home and into a cool bath and started him on lots of water and some electrolytes. Sebastian slept the rest of the afternoon and through the night with a 103C temperature.
Sebass was obviously suffering from heat exhaustion. I contacted the directress of the Montessori program with my list of questions: Why weren't we called to pick Sebastian up early when the child was in obvious distress? Why were we not called to provide the child with an alternate lunch? Why on earth when Paul picked up the other two kids did the teachers let Paul know that Sebass did not have enough to eat? I can't begin to tell you how upset I was.
The directress informed me that there is indeed a child in the camp who is allergic to peanuts and that is why Sebastian could not eat his lunch. I asked her why the safety of my child and importance of my child's nutrition was overlooked for another. We had this conversation in a private office adjacent to the classroom, why was Sebass not allowed to eat his lunch in the office?
I understand and respect that children have allergies. I don't understand why those children are not taught by their parents and the school system not to eat peanuts...instead the entire school has to modify their diet.
Let's not even talk about how upset I was about the heat exhaustion. The poor kid. You will be happy to know that he is doing just fine lots of rest, water and some food went a long way to make him feel better. He is enjoying soccer camp now but I check with him when I pick up the other kids to ensure he has eaten his lunch, had some water and that he is feeling up to staying for the afternoon.
Another thing that bothers me about the whole issue: Sebass was really looking forward to first grade and now that he has had so much trouble with a long day at camp he is worried about staying at school for the whole day. I explained to him that school is 2 hours shorter than soccer camp so he will be just fine.

8 comments:

angie, party of one said...

Oh my God that would piss me off so bad!!!! You were right to be angry, someone should have called you and let you know his lunch is not allowed and he either needs to be brought a different sandwich or he needs to be taken home at lunch time.
Poor kid, glad to hear he recooperated and is continuing camp.

Shannon said...

I'm glad that Sebastian has made a full recovery. Why didn't the school call you? Did they give a good explaination? I agree with you that it's outrageous that all the other kids have to conform to one child's allergy. That child should be aware to just not eat peanuts. Duh!!!

Wudas said...

Think about a petition that says the parents are responsible for teaching their children to avoid things that they are allergic to. Are there any lactose intolerant kids there and do they still have milk and milk products? Do they have a fine netting over the whole place for the child allergic to bees? Have they pulled up all the plants for the kids allergic to pollen? You guys are both doctors and should be able to bandy about the "s" word and scare the pants off them. As the kids grandmother I'd like to have a few words with them myself. Like you, I'd like to know why one child's health has prioity over another. Not only that, they actually endanger one child for another.

Leanna said...

How frustrating for you and distressing for Sebastian. An alternate lunch sould have been offered or someone should have been contacted. The heat stroke is another matter. Wasn't there extra water available for the kids? Was it encouraged? Kids get so caught up in the moment they can forget to top up. How about shade? Baffling.

Anonymous said...

After I talked to you yesterday, i told wade the story last night. The part he found the strangest is that you can't bring peanut butter sandwiches, i thought that was funny. I totally think the teacher should have called you guys, and they should be teaching the kids about the importance of drinking enough fluids during sports. Hopefully it never happens again.

Anonymous said...

This situation would have been a good time to talk to the kids about life-threatening food allergies. The kid with the food allergy should've been explained only to eat food from home, "no snack sharing", and the reasons why. The kids should have been told to wash hands before and after eating. All the kids would have been fed and walked away with more knowledge. Allergy-causing foods are present in the real world. The school totally slacked in their responsibility. If they took away Sebass's lunch due to peanuts then the school should have provided him with an alternate snack or shared with the others???? - Susan

Anonymous said...

Oh by the way, nice hat chickee!
Susan

Shannon said...

If my kids forget their lunch or lunch money the school provides them with lunch. Morgan did twice in elementry school and they gave him a peanut butter and jelly sandwich.