Wild Wednesday

We went back to Winston today for Katie's allergy testing, and she was such a trooper! Forty-three scratch tests on her poor little back, and eight more injected in her arm, and she was So good. She did cry after the first few injections, but I had them give me one, just so I'd know what it was like, and I might have cried at eight too. And the not-too-surprising results of all this testing? She is allergic to trees (pollen), ragweed, and mold, and some other stuff to a lesser extent. Her biggest reaction was to beech trees, which, fortunately, we don't have.

Anyway, the doctor says her allergies are pretty dreadful (no kidding), and likely to get worse, and he says allergy shots are the answer. He says they will help her build immunities to the things that make her sick. That sounded good, so we signed on, but now I'm having buyer's remorse. Katie will have to have two shots, twice a week, for five months, and then continue on a less frequent schedule for an unspecified number of years. That is a lot of shots for a little girl who Really doesn't like shots. And I was pretty taken aback when they happened to let drop, just before we left, that we have to wait in the doctor's office for 30 minutes after every shot, in case she has some sort of terrible reaction. But, on the other hand, she has days when she doesn't get any school done because her eyes and nose are so bad. And the pills aren't doing the trick. I just don't know. Words of encouragement (or warnings against!) would be appreciated!

After the doctor's, we stopped by Barnes & Nobles for a quick browse and some cookies (the promise of which helped Katie be so good through her ordeal). Then, on the way home, we stopped by my favorite rose nursery, just to look. It was inspiring -- the roses there are just Spectacular -- but "just looking" at roses isn't probably a great idea for me. There were a couple that I really Wanted.

Finally, to please Travis, we stopped by the brand new Walmart, which was having its Grand Opening today. Personally, the idea of wandering around Walmart when I'm not buying is as appealing to me as a little gratuitous dental work, but Travis was all excited about the Rock Climbing Wall and other advertised delights. The kids actually did do the rock climbing, which the NC National Guard was offering. Katie went up about five feet, and Travis was probably a little over ten feet when he decided that he wanted to come down. They also got to meet Chester Cheetah, who hawks Cheetoes. Pretty thrilling. It will be nice to have a SuperWalmart nearby (20 minutes, which is Plenty near enough!), given that the shopping options in our area are very limited and gas prices don't appear to be coming down any time soon.