It is winter here in Redwood City
(if we can call it winter with temperatures of 50 degrees).
But it is cold enough to crank up the heater at night and as a result
Addison has broken out in his worst case of winter eczema ever.
Bless his heart.
This led to a trip to see his allergist.
Who promptly reminded me
that I have yet to buy an epi-pen for his cashew allergy.
(An epi-pin is a syringe-like gadget that administers
epinephrine in case of a person goes into anaphylactic shock
due to a severe allergic reaction)
So after getting recommendations for lotions and moisturizing techniques
and watching a riveting video on how to administer the epi-pen,
Addie and I went to pharmacy to pick it up.
When the pharmacist asked for my payment of $150 I almost...
almost.... had a heart attack and needed to use the epi-pen on myself.
I called Scott from the car and broke the news.
He also was in shock....good thing the epi-pen comes in a two pack.
One for him and one for me.
Needless to say epinephrine was not in the Christmas budget.
I told my friend, Paula,
"I think I just bought the boys an epi-pen for Christmas.
I hope they like it and that it is all they ever dreamed of having."
I can tend to get caught up in the negatives...
like what if the boys feel like an epi-pen wasn't exactly
what they had in mind when they asked
Santa for a playstation 3 and Lego starwars sets?
I know by talking to friends that we are not the only family experiencing
the tightening of the economic belt this Christmas.
And while there are a lot of folks who have more than us
there are millions that have less.
So that being said,
I am making a conscious decision to dwell on all we have,
and the richness of this life we've been given despite how
many presents are stacked under the tree.
We have far more to be thankful for than to complain about.
We have more than enough food to eat
and more than enough cookies to share.
Even now we are feasting
on a new peppermint chocolate cookie recipe that I found.
Hello, lovely dollops of Christmas goodness!
We are all healthy with not a flu bug in sight.
(I may be making the children wear surgical masks so that this stays true.)
We have a warm house and blankets to cuddle under.
We have a lot of things to laugh about.
Just the other night, Will did an impromptu dance
that brought tears of joy to my eye. The kid has some sweet moves.
We are rich beyond measure with friends and family.
The stack of Christmas cards bringing photos and well wishes continues to grow.
(I'm not going to lie...
I'm a sucker for a good Christmas photo and newsletter.)
In a few short weeks, we will wing our way across the sky
to Colorado to be with brothers and sisters and parents and cousins and
the anticipation is already building.
The advent calendar countdown is fully operational with excitement
mounting each day. I was informed this morning,
"Just 12 more days, Mom! 12!"
Last night at church,
Scott reminded us that God chose to tell the good news
first to the commoners of the day, the shepherds,
reminding us that he is bringing peace and favor
to ordinary people just like us.
He called to mind that we have hope in Jesus and
a knowledge of mercy and forgiveness that
offers light and life in this holiday season.
Last night as I was tucking them in
(and threatened to close their doors if they came out again)
three little boys told me they loved me.
Clearly, I have riches beyond measure and nothing can change that.
Not even an epi-pen.
4 comments:
Amen and Amen!
The epi-pen story was priceless. Great reminder girl!
good reminder...thanks
Some advice from the mom of an epi-pen non-user:
Don't let the kids play with the epi-pen even if you decide to put it in their stocking. Once they 'practice' discharging it into the car upholstery it will be of no value if you really need it and you will have to buy a new one. Of course, my kids would never do this. Hopefully you will never need to use yours either.
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