2 Girls & 2 Guys (coming in May)

Just wanted to let you in on a little secret. In May, I will be changing my title to "2 Girls & 2 Guys" because we're expecting a baby boy! I'm so excited to add to our little family. We're still thinking about names, but we've got plenty of time to decide.

Yeah for Food!

Things are looking so much better now. We still haven't given L whole milk yet. She just turned 1 and her pediatrician wants to see her for her checkup before we switch her from formula to milk.
Besides milk, we've given L lots of new things to try. She likes mac n cheese and crackers and cupcake and all the other yummy stuff she couldn't have before. A couple of days ago she even had a crumbled up cheeseburger. She eats the "school lunch" (at daycare) so she has been trying lots of new things. She still loves fruit and green beans best though. She hasn't really had junk food so she's learned to have a healthy taste in foods. It's such a relief to know that foods are safe for her now. She loves finger foods and eating is getting much more fun now that we don't have to avoid all the yummy stuff! Thanks to those of you who have been praying for her.

I should be happy, but I'm confused instead!

I should be happy, but instead I’m confused. L’s test results came back negative, showing no allergies. Here’s our story.
At around 4 months (April), we switched to sensitive formula because L was always congested and spit up a lot. Nothing changed except that she spit up less. We then tried soy which made her spit up a lot. So, pediatrician switched us to Allimentum, which doesn’t have dairy. It seemed to make a big difference. I’m not too shocked to find out that she’s not allergic because we always knew she could outgrow it by her 1st birthday. Still, I’m leary to try dairy because I’ve avoided it for so long. I think it’s more of a mental thing for me, but I just don’t know if to trust the test results. Pedi wants her to stay on Allimentum until she sees her for 1 year appt, next month.
In September, we started avoiding wheat because the congestion came back and pedi and I suspected wheat. However, nothing changed, so I was guessing that she didn’t really have an allergy to wheat. So, not surprised to hear she’s not allergic.
A few weeks ago, we brought our dog back home after being at my sisters for several months. The first couple of days, we let him play in the house. L and Aaron both got congestion. L’s was major! So I was totally expecting to find out that she’s allergic to dog and cat like DH.
We also suspected an allergy to dust mites since she gets congestion if she’s around when we dust.
However, all tests were negative. Pedi said numbers weren’t even low, they were 0. She is going to show me the results when I go in next month. I’m so confused because I don’t understand why she is always dealing with congestion or a runny nose. Could it be that she’s not allergic, but just sensitive to certain things?

Food Allergies

Again, I haven't posted in a while. This time it's because I have been overwhelmed with trying to figure out how to deal with L's food allergies. Several months ago, her doctor suggested she had a dairy allergy. A switch to a non-dairy formula proved that to be correct. A reaction to a cracker with butter as an ingredient confirmed it again and made me realize how sensitive she is. We tried soy and she's allergic to that too. Dealing with a dairy allergy has in itself been a struggle. Most recommended finger foods are crackers and pieces of cheese or mac n cheese...stuff with dairy. Now, I am suspecting a possible wheat allergy. If that is the case, it's only going to get worse. You wouldn't believe how much stuff has wheat as an ingredient. I recently joined a website called kidswithfoodallergies.com and it has been a great help for ideas and for emotional support. There are many kids that have way worse food allergies. I'm hoping L is one of the blessed ones that grows out of her allergies. I just don't know how long that will take.
In addition to all this, she now has a cough and cold. Since you can't give babies medicine for congestion, there's not much we can do. We have a doctor's appointment Friday. It's hard not to just break down and cry because I feel so helpless. Through all of this, she is still a happy baby. She plays all the time and goes along with whatever we do. She's an amazing little baby girl.
Please keep us in your prayers as we try to figure out these food allergies and what's best for little L. Thanks!

I'm in love with a vampire!

Okay, so this has nothing to do with being green or being a mom but everything to do with being a girl! My niece recently got me interested in reading Twilight, by Stephenie Meyer. omg! I fell in love with Edward, the vampire, immediately. It was like a high school crush! I'm already on the 3rd book and can't wait til the 4th one comes out August 2nd. The series is about a guy and a girl in love- with all the suspense of a vampire story. Edward always has the perfect words to say to Bella, just like the romance of Romeo and Juliet, which the author refers to. I was thinking about how silly it is that I am obsessing about Edward as much as my niece who is not quite 16 yet. I'm married yet I'm totally crushing on this fictional character. Yesterday, I was texting my niece about trust issues I have with Edward and his promise to Bella. She said she trusts his word and I said maybe my personal experiences are causing me to not trust his promise. And that's when it hit me. Aaron is my Edward! (If you don't know, Aaron is my husband and high school sweetheart!) No, I don't have trust issues with Aaron, but I was meaning my relationship experiences may be influencing how I see Edward and his relationship with Bella. I shared this with Aaron and he was like..."I'm not Edward. I'm Aaron." Of course he doesn't get it because he hasn't read the story and doesn't get why I'm so crazy about this character. I told him some ways that they are similar, but I can't write all these without spoiling the story for anyone who may want to read it. One thing I told him was this: When Aaron and I fell in love the 2nd time (in 2000), we met up for our first group thing/date after not seeing each other in 3 years and when he left, he squeezed my knee and said goodbye. I melted on the inside! And I knew at the moment that my heart was his. I know it's mushy, but it's also so "Edward and Bella-ish"! So, I'm a sucker for romance and sweet (and hot) guys! I love my husband with all of my heart. My obsession with the Twilight saga has a lot to do with my crazy love story with him. But isn't that what makes a book so good?...you can totally see yourself in the character and feel what they feel. I've always told Aaron that I wonder if other people are as in love as we are. I know Bella probably thinks the same about her Edward! So, if you haven't read the book and you want a good clean love story to sink your teeth into (pun intended), check out Twilight.

exploring new things

This morning I was watching L play in her baby einstein musical jumper. she loves playing in it but she's also at the stage where she doesn't want me to go to the other room. I have to stay close to her. So, I was sitting next to her while she played. I changed around a link toy so she could bite on it if she wants to (she's teething). She was so amazed by it. She pulled on it, dropped it, grabbed it again, bit it...she was having fun exploring this new toy. There have been several times that she has had that focused look as she explores a toy. It's so cool to see her learning. She's really into textures right now. She touches everything...couches, doors, walls, floors...she especially enjoys touching a new texture she hasn't felt before. I know it's simple but watching her explore new things is just one of the things I love about being a mother!

Change

I have lots of friends who are green but most of them don't live near me. I've tried talking to some friends around here and some are starting to get it, other's just don't care yet. I talked to a friend who is in his 40s. First of all, he doesn't believe in Global Warming. He thinks it's a Democrat thing and he's a Republican. When I talk about eating organic food and vaccination concerns and stuff like that, he says "it wasn't a big deal before, why is it all of the sudden something we have to do." Hm, maybe because our society is learning more and realizing that everyone before us has had that attitude and that's why the situation is getting worse. As for global warming, he says "I'll be gone and my kids will be gone by then." First, that's not even true. Second, what about your grandkids and their kids? If we don't think about future generations, we are being selfish. We can't hand them a world with severe problems because we just didn't want to make the effort. I'm the first to admit that there is a lot more I could do to be more green. But I am trying to change a little at a time. I'm learning a lot now. Just last night I was talking about getting rid of the Clorox in our house and other junk I don't want used in our house. But what about everywhere else we go? I hope that this green movement really grows, even if it takes the younger generation to make it happen. We can't wait for others to make changes for us, we have to start now.

a mother's strength

I think I sprained my ankle today. I fell outside of Denny's. It was very embarassing but I didn't even care cuz I was in so much pain. I still drove over to my parents with plans on going to SunHarvest after that to get some organic fruits and veggies for L. After "resting" my ankle for over 3 hours, I realized it was hurting more and there was no way I was going to be able to browse the produce section. So I came home. I called Aaron and told him he's going to have to pick up L from day care cuz I can't walk, especially while carrying her.
Now, I'm sitting here at home wondering how things are going to get done. I can't walk without extreme pain. I'm looking at the laundry basket full of L's clothes that needs to be put away. The table needs to be cleared, the dishwasher needs to be emptied, I need to wash our clothes, I need to do a lot of things! Today was so supposed to be cleaning day which is why L is at day care on my day off. (She's allergic to dust and gets sick if she's home when we clean.) I'm not looking forward to sitting here knowing all these things need to be done. I'm a list kind of person and it bugs me if I'm not checking things off my list.
This got me thinking. I'm not expecting this to take too long to heal but even a simple sprained ankle is messing up my routine and list of "mom chores." How am I going to handle it? I have memories of my mom being sick, but it didn't ever stop her. My mom is extremely strong. She's short, petite, and has gone thru more than her share of health struggles, but I don't know anyone stronger than her! She is amazing. Many people in our church know that she has health issues but most don't realize how serious they have been and how often she deals with pain and sickness. She doesn't ever show it. She walks around at church like if everything is fine even though she didn't get much sleep the night before due to the pain she deals with. But she doesn't want sympathy, she wants to enjoy life. She travels and stays active. She doesn't let anything defeat her. When I was a kid, she was always taking care of me no matter what. Here I am worried about how a sprained ankle is going to affect my weekend plans (tomorrow is our 5th anniversary). I just have to accept that I may not be able to do everything I wanted to do but I can still take care of my daughter and love her. I hope that when L is older and she thinks about me she will see me as a strong woman just like the way I see my mom.
And for now, I'll just have to depend on Daddy to help me get some things checked off my list!

A Reflection of My Milestones

Today is my birthday and I’m now 29 years old. Today doesn’t really feel that different from any other Tuesday. I made bottles and packed L’s lunch this morning, dropped her off at day care and got to work late…pretty normal day! So maybe 29 isn’t really a big deal…after all 30 is the BIG ONE! But I keep thinking this is my last year to be “in my 20s”. So what have I accomplished in my 20s? As I think back, I’m proud of myself. I graduated from college, got my master’s degree, got married, bought my first house, had my first kid, traveled to 8 different countries…I’ve done a lot of the things I wanted to do before I hit 30. I still haven’t jumped out of an airplane but I have another year to do it before 30! My 20s have been great and there’s still more to experience!
My daughter is experiencing her own milestones. She just got her first two teeth, she just started stage 2 baby food, and she can almost sit up on her own. These little milestones in her life are so special to me. Someday she’ll be in high school and spend most of her time in her room on her phone, too busy to hang out with mom and dad all the time. But for now, she just loves to enjoy life with us. Having my baby girl is the most precious milestone of my life! I absolutely love being a mother! So this birthday is special after all because it’s my first birthday as “mom”. No birthday present can beat the gift of motherhood!

My New Blog

I'm so excited to have a blog. I don't know why, but it's something new I guess. I've blogged on myspace before but I really want something different. So, for now, I'm trying to figure out what I want to do with this blog. I'll post again once I figure that out.