On Sunday, we piled our bikes in the back of the truck and drove to a local nature preserve. We took the 4.4-mile path and enjoyed the wetlands, wildlife, and beautiful 70-degree weather. Poor Mason had to work harder than anyone. While the rest of us have bikes with gears that allow us to stop pedaling and glide when we need a pedaling break, Mason’s tiny bike has training wheels. His pedals never stop turning so he can’t glide. Also, his gears are so small that he has to pedal twice as much as the rest of us. I kept asking if he was tired and he said no. He was determined to keep up with is big brothers and he sure was enjoying the race! At the very end of the 4.4-mile path, Mason stopped his bike suddenly and said, “Mom! I can’t breathe! I’m going to die!” I jumped off my bike and realized Mason was wheezing. He was having a hard time getting air in and out and he was making a high-pitched whistling sound. I just about had a heart attack!! While silently panicking, I gently told him to calm down and to breathe slowly and I pulled a bottle of water out of the bag for him. He took a very long drink (gulp, gulp, gulp – several times without breathing) and he seemed okay after that but he was pretty upset. I kept talking calmy but inside I was FREAKING OUT! Richard had been putting bikes in the truck and arrived on the scene after the wheezing ended.

Later, in the truck, Mason said, “My brain tried to suffocate me!” He was upset the rest of the evening despite our attempts to get his mind off it. Of course, I Googled it his symptoms and thought perhaps he had an episode of Exercise Induced Asthma. Mason is pretty small. At 6 1/2, he still wears a size 4T. He weighs 47 lbs and is 45 inches tall. People who see him can’t believe he’s 6 1/2. He is several inches shorter than most other children his age but he is extremely healthy. His best friend is HUGE for her age and she’s a foot taller than Mason. They make quite a pair! The docs aren’t worried about Mason and never have been (though I have). They say he’ll probably top off at 5′ 8″ someday. Mason never sits still. He is in constant motion and he runs ALL the time. He likes to go out in the front yard just so he can RUN, RUN, RUN! Every calorie we cajole into that boy gets expended instantly. He’s very lean and has excellent muscle tone. Not an ounce of fat on that him at all. So, it’s not surprising that I was stunned when he had an asthma attack from riding his bike.

We took him to the doc on Tuesday and she agreed that Exercise Induced Asthma was likely what happened. They prescribed an inhaler just in case and, if he has another incident, they’ll send him to a Pulmonologist just to rule out regular Asthma. If any of you have ever had Exercise Induced Asthma, I’d love to hear from you! 🙂

Mason is just fine today and he can’t wait to race his brothers on his bike again this weekend!

This week’s Masonism:

During homeschooling math, Mason has a number line but he prefers to use his fingers. Recently, he advanced to bigger math problems. After I handed him a new worksheet, he started the first problem and said, “Mom, I don’t have enough fingers for this one!”

Angela

P.S. I want to “follow” you!

ANGELA ON TWITTER
@AngelaHoy

ANGELA ON FACEBOOK

ADVERTISEMENT

HOW TO REMEMBER, WRITE AND PUBLISH YOUR LIFE STORY! by Angela Hoy
Using Angela’s MEMORY TRIGGERS, recall memories that have been dormant for years, and record those memories in chronological order in your memory notebook. Using the memory notebook as your outline, write your autobiography! **Also works for biographies and memoirs.**