Thanks!

Thank you all so much for your encouragement and suggestions! I am happy to report that eliminating soy and greatly limiting wheat/gluten has made for some better days around here. I am going to follow up with a new pediatric allergist and push for some blood tests to see exactly what we are dealing with as far as diet is concerned. Also, I plan to start posting some recipes to share on here with all of you fellow allergy mamas. I am getting some great ideas from my new friend, Gwen. For now, we are just happy that these two...


are back together and we are enjoying lots of time with visiting friends and family! Summers in MB are so much fun!!!

Food Allergies

So, as most of you know Jonathan has been tested for and declared allergic to dairy, eggs, and peanuts. This allergy road is not exactly fun and can be lonely at times. After recent email chats with Head Lima Bean and her son's latest symptoms, I thought I'd give a little back ground on how we ended up here and what is next...

How did we know Jon had food allergies?
Jon had eczema from the beginning (or at least after a week or two of age). I knew it was possible that he would have some kind of intolerance to diary due to the degree that his eczema persisted. At the age of 4 months, I tried cereal with a touch of milk based formula mixed in. Jon's entire mouth was covered in red splotches and bumps. I knew then that I had to cut out all dairy from my diet and we switched him over to soy formula if we supplemented. His eczema lessened greatly and we moved forward with eliminating all dairy from his diet. At the age of 10 months he accidently ate egg off the floor (don't ask!) and he was covered in hives within minutes. So we added eggs to the list, but were advised by my pediatrician to wait until one year of age to do any testing. At one, Jon was skin tested and we added peanuts to the list. We are armed with an epi-pen and benadryl at all times. However, Jon does not seem to have a deathly reaction to any of the above items. He does not break out if he touches the products, nor has he ever had an episode where he stopped breathing.

What does he eat?
Jon is basically a vegan. He won't eat meat by choice, he can't eat eggs, dairy, or peanuts, therefore we feed him what we can... his daily diet consists of:
wheatberries & honey
cheerios
soy milk
any fruit... he loves fruit!
couscous with added veggies
organic spaghetti with added veggies
applesauce
toast with honey
vegan pancakes
tortillas
yeah... not a great diet.

So we add supplements:
whole food vitamins (2x's a day)
rice protein to his soy milk
flaxseed to his couscous and spaghetti


Does this help Jon and is he completely "allergy free"?
Well, honestly I thought he was... but skin tests are not conclusive so I am afraid we might be adding more to the list of allergens. Jon has been suffering from chronic diarrhea off and on for many months. Yes, his diet is high in fiber, but I cut out a lot of the fiber for weeks at a time, including limiting his sugar even more so and it doesn't subside. I've been told it is everything from simple toddler diarrhea to needing to see a specialist in Charleston. Also, his eczema is starting to flare again. I've done enough research to know that he doesn't take in any probiotics from his diet. We add those in as well with special "non-diary" probiotic supplements. However, they don't seem to be working. We cloth diaper at home to help with the rashes that accompany the diarrhea but I know it is an internal problem, not an external one.

So what is next?
Soy. We are going to see if switching to almond and/or rice milk and eliminating as much soy as possible from his diet will work. I've been doing a lot of research on soy and you can read one great article here. I've found I have to be careful as the internet is full of "articles" that contradict one another. So, we are trying new things and hoping one will work!

I welcome advice or suggestions if any of my readers have children with allergies. I would love recipes that your allergic children enjoy. The hardest part now is that he is a hungry toddler who is picky... that and I MISS cheese desperately :)!!!

Jonathan 18 months

I know parents say it all the time, but where does the time go?!? Jon-Jon is already 18 months old and is quite the wild man :)! I guess most 18 month olds can be described this way, but Jon certainly has a lot of, ahem, PASSION. Like his brother, he knows what he wants and you can't change his mind easily or distract him either. Only, Jon responds with a full fit if you don't understand or the answer is no... we're working on it and he has already gotten better since he can say a few more words. And, while he is passionate about his thoughts he also loves deeply... he cuddles, hugs, kisses, and laughs with abandonment. He reminds me daily that God sent his Son so that we may have life to the fullest. Jon lives that way already. What a joy! Here are some 18 month stats:

Words: mama, dada, david, most other immediate family, crackers, drink, snack, truck, duck, banana, apple, dog, where is it?, no, trash, spiderman, batman, Jesus, help, stuck, potty... I'm sure there are more but I can't think of it all right now.
Favorite foods: bananas, crackers, couscous, apples, pears, spaghetti, vegan pancakes
Favorite books: any Wiggles (ugh.), Goodnight Moon, Colors, Farm Animals, Baseball ABC/123
Favorite movie: any Wiggles (ugh again.)
Favorite activities: whatever David is doing, block, beach (jumping waves/digging in the sand/chasing birds), slides, jump houses.
Potty Training: Yes... he seems to show signs of being ready. He asks to go and points to his diaper when it is dirty. He wants to be just like David so I'm guessing this plus the fact that we do some cloth diapering has helped. Only problem... I don't know how to teach a kid this young!!! Suggestions are welcomed!

A few more...
He only likes to sit on the stools like a big boy.

He loves to play outside, including wagon rides and watching neighbors walk their dogs. He LOVES dogs!

He sleeps like this... his yellow "night, night", a paci, and his feet tucked under. He loves to bring you his blanket and cuddle any time of day!

This was taken on his last day of school. Due to his birthdate he will be in the 1's class again next year... he is excited to not be the baby of the class, but instead one of the oldest!

*I am preparing an allergy post soon... we are still eliminating dairy, eggs, and peanuts from his diet. However, he still has bad issues with diarrhea and his eczema has been flaring up again so it's back to the drawing board. I have a whole list of this part of Jon's world to share!

Just funny...

(This picture was taken a few weeks ago... Jon is laughing, not choking... promise!)


So, last night I was reading a book to Jon-Jon. David is away with family and Jon is enjoying all of his extra reading time, he truly loves books. The book I was reading was a counting book and at the end it reviews all the numbers in order. Well, I started counting "1, 2..." and Jon goes "DAVID!!!" really loud. I guess the poor baby had never heard me count other than to warn his brother he was about to be in big trouble :)! What a funny guy.

Spring Break Revisited, Part 2

I believe the second leg of our spring break tour was to my parents (aka, Daddy T and Dee Dee) house in Bishopville. We had a blast hugging cousins, trying to take a picture of all 4 boys, having sleepovers...

... dying Easter eggs with Dee Dee (David's first time!), playing with cousins, eating lots of yummy food...

... hunting above Easter eggs, seeing Uncle Rob and Aunt Risha, swinging on the front porch, reading books...

(skip to the next picture, blogger would only let me download 3 pics at a time.)

... we road the "4 wheeler", jumped on the trampoline, blew bubbles, played in the fountain...

... attempted more group pictures with 4 wild boys, played baseball with Daddy T, got really, really dirty...

... and hugged our cousins some more! Thank you Daddy T and Dee Dee for letting us come visit. The boys and I always have fun exploring in the country!

Spring Break Revisited, Part 1

IF I remember correctly, we spent the first part of spring break at Mimi's house. We read books, shared beds (Mimi & David), played ball in the yard...

... had tickle fights with Boo Boo (Trey's aunt), blew bubbles, stayed up late...

... visited EdVenture (one of our favorites!), froze to death at the zoo, saw Amanda, Aaron, and Sarah (but missed a picture with everyone!), and had tears when we left. Thanks, Mimi! We always have fun in Columbia doing special things with you!