"First" Facts in Family Illnesses

• Tonight was the first night of uninterrupted sleep for us since Saturday. (Linton had a cold and woke up several times Saturday-Tuesday nights, on Tuesday night Kelvin got very sick, coughing and unable to sleep from 4 a.m. on).

• It was the first time in three years that Kelvin had what can be considered an acute asthma attack, although he hasn't been diagnosed with asthma yet. We were at the doctor's office for over two hours last Wednesday where he received a couple of nebulizer treatments. I foolishly didn't think the problem was in his lungs because just three weeks ago Linton had a similar cough (only louder) and "wheezing" and it was just croup (that needed steroids nonetheless).

• For the first time ever one of my sons is taking antibiotics. Besides his asthma and having to take steroids Kelvin tested positive for strep. :( And now I'm worried that Linton (and maybe I) may have caught it, but Linton is on the mend (only coughing nasty stuff up) and I'm OK. Nobody had fever.

• Kelvin was going to have his first lunch out at his favorite buffet restaurant with his school [only 11 kids]. Even Linton and I were invited, but we all missed it because of his illness. :(
  

No more firsts to narrate, I guess... since it's the second bout of colds this winter. I hope not that many come. Oh, and it was the second time Kelvin was away from school, only the first with a valid health reason since the first time he only complained of a pain in his ear, I took him to the doctor and he had nothing! We're yet to have our first year infection in this household, but hopefully it'll never come!

P.S. I'm taking both boys to an asthma specialist soon. I had really bad asthma growing up (starting at 3 years old), but was basically "cured" after I became a vegan at age 18. Now I'm not that strict anymore (I consider myself an "ovo-lacto-vegetarian"), but I avoid dairy foods and don't eat cheese at all and that keeps my asthma completely at bay. Lucky me, I know.