Things I learned about poison ivy

Look at that face! Don't you feel sorry for him? That's Lil' Kay with a faceful of poison ivy! Poor little guy! It appeared last night when I picked him up from daycare. This morning at 5 am when I couldn't sleep because I was worrying about whether or not to send him to school. I finally decided I wasn't going to get anymore sleep, so I got up and did some internet research about poison ivy. Here's what I learned:

The rash is not contagious. You can only pass it if you still have the oil on your body or hands and touch another person.

The first time you come in contact with the plant, the rash usually appears in 7-10 days. That perfectly coincides with the day he was playing back in the trees at an auction we attended.

The rash only appears on your body where the oil has come in contact with your skin. (Yeah. I can pretty much tell that Lil' Kay rubbed his face, scratched his ear, and scratched the back of his leg.

You can also get it if an object has touched the poison ivy and then you touch that object.

Today was the first full day of kindergarten, so I was very much not wanting him to have to stay home. Once I found out that it wasn't contagious, I was so relieved! He was itchy, but really wanted to go to school, so off he went with a note in his little backpack.

Here's some more information if you're interested:

WebMD

Mayo Clinic

Poison-Ivy.org - This site has some pretty scary pictures of skin rashes, so proceed with caution!