I used to love Texas. Up until a few hours ago. Up until it's indestructible resident pest decided to attack my baby.
I was inside with Abby while Kate was outside with the dogs. Everything was just fine until I heard screaming.
I ran outside to Kate screaming and crying as she's trying to get fire ants off of her. I immediately take her clothes off and get all the ants off. My friend's little boy had the same thing happen last summer. He ended up getting a fever from all the bites so I put Kate up on the counter, gave her a dose of Tylenol and started rubbing hydrocortisone on her ant bites. Kate is still crying but is now itching all over.
I start to notice red splotches all over. Then bumps start to pop up. Then Kate's face starts to swell. Her nose, eyes, cheeks, lips, ears.
I immediately start to cry and freak out. Andrew tells me to calm down and get ready to go to the doctor. He's home on medical leave for getting his appendix removed last week. That's a whole 'nother story. Anyhow, we get the girls in the car and head over to the clinic.
I go inside with Kate while Andrew stays in the car with Abby. I'm crying as I walk to the front desk and ask if I need to take my baby girl to the ER. They immediately go get the doctor. I'm taken to a room where Kate is checked out and given a shot within 10 minutes. Her swelling starts to go down fairly quickly. We stay there to make sure the swelling continues to go down. Kate is given a steroid an hour later and we continue to wait. She is finally starting to look so much better. Her face is still a bit swollen but not quite so worrying.
I learned quite a bit while there. Fire ants don't drown. Usually. When it rains, they clump together and float to wherever the rain takes them and then build a new fort wherever they land. So if you're in a lake or river and you see a pile of ants floating along, don't touch them. Because once they crawl onto you, jumping into the water won't make the damn things let go. They are the devils pest. Good for nothing but making your life hell.
This new knowledge of how they travel connects a few dots in my mind because I've noticed before how there always seems to be new piles of ants after it rains. Now I know. And now I will be more diligent about decimating ant piles after it rains.
Kate will continue to be on benadryl and steroids for the next 3 days and I now have an epi pin for her, just in case. Her face is still a bit swollen. And her ear. She has rashes on her arms, chest, and back. But it is so much less than before. My poor baby girl.
Hate those damn fire ants.
