June 11, 2010

Tanner told me in the car on the way home from the pediatrician’s office this morning that it was the worst day of her life. I believed her. She woke up this morning with a red, swollen throat and a quick trip to the pediatrician’s office confirmed that she has strep throat. Say goodbye to her theatre camp show today.

In a cruel twist of fate, it was not the risk of her catching something, but the risk of her giving something to someone else that kept her from doing something she really wanted to do this time. It was another disappointment in a year of crappy disappointments. I heard her in the back seat of the car talking to herself while I was on the phone with the clinic, sobbing, “Another year… I have a whole year more of this… I can’t do it, I just can’t.” Talk about heartbreaking. I don’t think I’ve ever felt so horrible about making the right decision before.

She was pretty mad at me for a while. She kept telling me that the doctors were not the boss of me and that I could just do what I wanted because I was a grown up. I told her that she was right and I cried with her, but said I still had to do what was right and it wasn’t right to knowingly expose other kids to strep.

Then, I had a brainstorm! There were other dates for dance camp and she could go again! We drove to the theater where the performance was being held to tell the director she couldn’t come. Sure enough, they said she could come to another camp and do the show then. Tanner cheered up considerably and felt a lot better. We decided that maybe it was cool to be able to go to camp twice and that she might make a whole new group of friends.

So, it was still a bummer, but a little less so. She’s feeling pretty good for someone with strep throat. It’s a little worrisome with her counts so low, but so far, no fever. We’re trying to keep her and Jake separated so he doesn’t get it, too, but it may be too late.

Thanks to Jan Williams School of Music for being so understanding of Tanner’s unique situation, and for giving a little girl a second chance at her dream.

Love,
Beth