FX:EICOMPF211.4"0:161011ELPIEM MEM vi "We Watch 1 When You Can't" WE PROVIDE THE FOLLOWING SERVICES: • Sitter surveillance (hidden camera rental and set-up). The Summer Birthday • In home consultation and literature on hiring a sitter & general child safety. GAIL ZIMMERMAN SPECIAL TO THE APPLETREE • Background checks by a licensed P. I. Contact Baby's Private Eye for a free phone consultation to answer questions and assess your service needs. All services will be provided in your home by a child psychologist and/or a licensed private investigator. Baby's Private Eye 1•890•399•13ABY laraliP/PrerMairtrellIMAILIPTIZAWS. Winter Walden Ski & Snowboarding Club for Children * Professional instructions * Classes for all skill levels - beginner to expert Special program for the younger skiers (ages 7-8) * Small classes --..* Adult classes too! -* Charter buses Saturday & Sunday winter wo den 810 855-1075 T H E AP P LE T R EE Celebrating our 22nd Season! Z8 ski club Teaching Kids to Ski is Our Business SKIING M y son Daniel was born on a blustery March day. It was the first March birthday in our family, and I quickly learned about the unpredictability of the weather. Some birthdays were mild and sunny. Others brought blizzards. Birthday party plan- ning was a challenge. No matter how creative we got, though, Danny never could have exactly the kind of birth- day party he wanted: one that took place out-of-doors. "Why can't we go to a baseball game or have a pool party?" he'd ask year after year. "Because you don't have a summer birthday," I'd reply. And I'd make reservations at Chuck E. Cheese or the Burger King with the magician or some other indoor venue that would hold 15 or so active little boys. As Danny's 7th birthday ap- proached, we sent out invita- tions to another "indoor" birthday party. It was February, and he and his younger sister Julie were both home sick. Julie got better and returned to nurs- ery school. Danny just couldn't seem to shake it. We'd visit the pediatrician every few days. "It's just a virus," one doctor assured me. A few days later, the diagnosis was bronchitis. My son grew more and more lethargic. He fell asleep putting on his paja- mas. "Just give him plenty of liq- uids and keep an eye on him," the doctor said. I stayed home from work the next day, and Danny and I sat on the couch watching TV. I heard a gurgling sound. I called my son's name, and he didn't respond. My husband met us at the hospital as we pulled up in the ambulance. They took our child away and put us in a special room. A doctor came in to speak with us. "Your son is hav- ing a seizure," he said. "We're trying to stop it" They finally stabilized Danny and tested him for every con- ceivable kind of infection. They gave him spinal taps and blood tests. They brought in specialist after special- ist, all trying to figure out what -4( was wrong with Danny, why he wouldn't wake up. For four days, Danny slept After ruling out every- thing else, the doctors deter- mined that Danny had a "para-infectious encephalopa- thy." He'd had an autoimmune reaction. In fighting the virus, his immune system had timed on Danny himself, causing en- cephalitis-like symptoms. "When he wakes up, it will take two weeks to two years for your son to recover," the doc- tors said. "He may have brain damage, paralysis, speech diffi- culties, hearing loss or amne- sia." When Danny woke up, he was like a stroke victim. His movements were awkward and slow, his speech slurred. In two weeks, he was perfectly back to normal, back in school and looking forward to his birthday party — even if it was to be held indoors. But about a week before the party, Danny didn't seem quite right For the first time since I could remember, I beat him in Connect Four, and I was win- ning at Sorry!, too. I insisted the pediatrician meet us at the emergency room. "There is no way this can be happening again," she said. She was wrong. ■ Danny was show- / ing signs of an au- / toimmune reaction and was readmit- ted to the hospi- tal. The doctors weren't sure if he had an allergic reaction to medication or an intermit- tent encephalopathy. If the latter were true, then every time he caught a cold or other virus, the same autoimmune reaction would occur. The doctors took him off the medication, and he seemed to improve. He was released from the hospital, but the doctors weren't taking any chances. For two months Danny would have (, to stay home from school and have no contact with other chil- dren his age. The risk of infec- tion was too great Missing school wasn't a prob- lem for Danny. "But what about my birthday?" he asked. "This Gail Zimmerman is assistant editor at The Jewish News. Her son Dan is a college freshman.