Confirmed

We got a phone call on Wednesday from the summer school health office informing us that Eliana had poison ivy...which confused a little because she hadn't been outside for four days because it had been raining out. Delayed poison Ivy???

Anyway they called a second time because they were concerned that it was near or in her eye. So I left work a little early to pick her up (after I stopped at Target for anti-itch cream). As soon as I saw her I knew it wasn't poison ivy...but hives. Her forehead was swollen, her arm and tummy were itchy and red and she had a big red splotch on her cheek. She has had a few allergic reactions in the past but because they were so few and so minor her doctor didn't recommend going through the rigmarole of allergy testing.

As were were driving home, and I was on the phone with Andrew filling him in on the not-poison-ivy-but-instead-hives situation I asked Ellie what she ate that day. 

Me: "Eliana what was for lunch today?"

Ellie: "Sloppy Joes....and chips".

Me: "Did you have juice?"

Ellie: "No...just milk."

Me: "Did you guys have a Popsicle or candy?"

Ellie: "No...those are only for parties."

Ellie: "Oh wait...we had Jello too for lunch."

Me: "You had Jello???"

Andrew and I: "What color was the Jello??"

Ellie: "Red".

Aha. We had suspected in the past that she has had a reaction to red food dye but this pretty much confirmed it. We talked with her about being careful about eating foods that were not naturally red for now. We will revisit this situation with her doctor sometime soon but in the meantime Eliana is having a blast telling people that she really is allergic to something (instead of telling her kindergarten class that she was allergic to white milk...but not chocolate milk).