CONFESSIONS OF A FOOD ALLERGY MOM

It was between speakers at our CFA conference in Dallas a couple of weeks ago when my phone rang.  The nurse from the twins' school was calling, which always sets off alarm bells - especially when I'm out of town.  She immediately set me at ease by saying that there was no emergency.  (We are, of course, on first name basis, because she sees one of my kids for daily meds, and we have had at least one health scare where I had to rush up to the school for an impromptu breathing treatment for the other twin.)  However, she was calling to say that the school was in the process of re-evaulating all food allergies and would from here on out be strictly adhering to all doctor recommended protocol.  In our case, this means no milk or eggs for William and Violet at all.

For me - this was a super bummer.  They have no immediate reaction to these ingredients when in prepared food, so we've been pretty lax.  Because of the new policies, instead of them being served the daily provided lunch, it is now up to me to bring their entrees.  I completely understand that I have been so spoiled up to this point, and I also fully comprehend why the school is making this move.  But - it seemed like such an inconvenience to me when I first started thinking about it.

However, the more I thought about it, the different it looked.  John and I talked about it, and we decided that this was as good a time as ever to pull some stuff from our family's diet to see if it doesn't help some of the other issues (mainly skin related) to clear up.  Since our hand was being forced at school, we decided to take it the rest of the way at home - especially with Miss V who seems to have a pretty fragile little ecosystem.

Why is milk in EVERYTHING?  It is, you know.  All the good stuff.  Cheese, chocolate, cheese, yogurt, ice cream, cheese.  You may be picking up a theme here.  And guess who loves cheese?  Everyone in this family, except Lily who will eat grilled cheese and mac and cheese but will not eat pizza with cheese.  This is unexplainable and also annoying, but I digress.  The idea of actually cutting dairy was pretty hard to swallow and wrap my mind around.  I'm not great at being real disciplined, and doing this all the way takes much more focus than I naturally have on such things.

So, the first day that I was sending lunch, I automatically sent a Wowbutter and Nutella sandwich for William and Violet to school, since V is also allergic to peanuts, and their class is nut free.  The teacher had to gently tell me that Nutella is made of hazelnuts, and then I came home to read the ingredient label to realize that it also has milk, because it tastes good and of course it does.  The teacher was so sweet about it, but really, she had to have wondered about me and not for the first time.

🤣🤣🤣🤣

We are hardcore doing this thing now.  I'm reading all the labels.  And while I am still eating cheese/milk products occasionally, it is not around Violet.  I went to Whole Foods and did find dairy free chocolate chips, as well as dairy free "Cheezy" Mac.  The chocolate chips are really good, and the "cheezy" mac is mostly okay.  It's also gluten free, so I am not sure what it is actually made of, but it came from Whole Foods, so it must be healthy. 😜

Thankfully, I was already subscribed to a meal-planning service this year (Prep Dish, love it!), and I've been preparing Paleo meals for us at home where dairy is always optional.  This is a lifesaver in the face of this change.

I have never wanted to be THAT mom - the one with the highly allergic kid who is on high-alert and needs to watch every single thing.  I certainly don't feel equipped to be her.  I've carried epi-pens with us for years, but I've never had to use one.  Because the worst thing that has happened is flat out vomit and nothing life-threatening, I've been able to skate by without too much real skin off my back.  But, times change, and while dairy is certainly not life-threatening to us, we need to know if actually cutting it all the way will make a real difference in some of the issues we face.  I'm gonna be THAT mom.

Sorry for the over-dramatic tone of this entire post - losing cheese dip at our weekly family Mexican meal out is not the worst thing that has ever happened - far from it.  But it is an adjustment for everyone, and I'm working hard to make it work. 😝💪🏻👊🏻  Wish me luck and send me any tips you might have!

GUYS CAMPING & GIRLS SUSHI-ING

Every year, the guys from our D-group head off for a getaway at the Buffalo river, and we girls hold down the home front.  This year, it came up suddenly, and they managed to squeeze it into the last part of a week so as to be home most of the weekend, which we all certainly appreciated.  Though some guys couldn't attend because of sickness or work, several managed to make it and had a great time.  They stayed in a cabin and canoed 20.8 miles on the Buffalo and spent a lot of time around a camp fire.  All in all, a great couple days of guy bonding.

As always, I am so incredibly grateful that John has other men to spend quality time with - we are richly blessed with relationships that lead us closer to the Lord and also happen to be a lot of fun - something I will never take for granted.  On Thursday night, several of us ladies got together with a bunch of the kiddos for taco night at Court's house - something my children were SUPER excited about.  They also showed some love on the way over.




Then, on Friday night, we got sitters and headed out for sushi and a movie!



(apparently we all got the neutrals memo)

Several of us saw Hidden Figures, and it was just a great as I had heard it was.  I loved it, and I am looking forward to showing it to the girls when it comes out for rental.  These friendships are treasures in our life, and I am so thankful for the time that God allows for us!

Past D-Group Weekends
{2016} {2015} {2014} {2013}

DAFFODILS IN FEBRUARY

Spring has arrived rather early this year, and no one in this house is complaining.  It's been a weird winter, but I will take that over lots of cold and snow any year.  Bring on the flowers!

Our schedule over the next couple of weeks is a bit stacked, so when I looked at the field of flowers on Facebook and saw it was a go - we took our first ever trip to Wye Mountain in February.  Though it was a tiny bit chilly, it was still a beautiful day to visit.  Both William and Violet fell asleep on the way out there, so they were not super up for taking pictures.  However, I still managed to snag some fun ones, and I love having this little early spring tradition.  Even in February.




The big girls really love coming to the field, and Bella even brought along bubbles for extra fun.  They also are good at smiling for pictures, which gives me hope for the future.  And though the twins were not really down for posed pictures, Violet did enjoy walking around.

William really just wanted to be held by John.  Can't say that I entirely blame him, but it did make getting pics hard.  These pics do sum up three year old William, though usually he is a bit smilier.

(That lip tho.)

Getting a picture of all four was an absolute no-go, but I will show the attempts.

Also, Violet did agree to smile for a selfie with me, but she also kept getting concerned about her lip, which is thankfully healing up really well.

Don't worry, Wye Mountain - we'll be back!

For a trip down daffodil memory lane, here are our past visits!

{2016} {2015} {2014} {2013} {2012} {2011}

OUR BEAUTIFUL WEEKEND THAT ENDED IN THE ER

This weekend, so many things went right - truly, they did.  The girls went to work with John for a bit on Saturday and fulfilled their dreams of making fruit cups.  (They were ridiculously excited about this.)





We saw the Lego Batman movie, which was so very funny.



And on Sunday afternoon, we enjoyed the most beautiful afternoon riding bikes in the glorious sunshine in February.  Best February weather ever.  You will not find me complaining about an early spring - it's been gorgeous.  The kiddos mostly had a fabulous time, and John and I enjoyed ourselves, and it felt like we are making progress as a family.  Something that we used to do a lot is becoming fun again, because our kids are getting a tiny bit older.  Makes all the difference.




Both big girls are awesome at bike-riding!

And the twins hot-wheeled for a couple of miles, until Violet was done.  But, John to the rescue!



(William's pouty face  😂)

We spent about 30 minutes letting the kids ride down a big grassy hill - a pursuit thoroughly enjoyed by all.  There were a few spills, but all in all, it was on the grass and no one got hurt.  We were headed toward the car planning out our Sonic choices when disaster struck.  Violet was riding the Strider, and we were going down the hill on the sidewalk this time.  She was gaining speed, and it dawned on me slowly, then all at once, that this hill was too steep for a bike with no pedals and no brakes.  She started careening out of control as I chased after her yelling for help.  I couldn't catch up.  She hit the sidewalk face first, and we both started screaming.

It was as bad as it sounds, but in retrospect, it could have been much worse.  We rushed to the ER instead of to Sonic, and this was traumatizing to the other kids on all fronts.  The nurses at the ER were much less alarmed than I was, which calmed me down a tiny bit while also frustrating me.  There ended up being a bit of drama determining whether or not to sedate Violet for the lip fixing, but in the end, they ended up numbing it locally while also giving her some pain meds.



In what I can only attribute to God's direct intervention on behalf of all those praying for us, Violet sat almost completely still while they sewed up her lip.  It was astounding.  She even sang along to the Moana song the nurse had playing on my phone to help distract her - sweet, brave, warrior girl.

I wheeled Violet out of the ER around 10 pm, and she is healing up quite beautifully.  Her teeth were firmly in place, and they said there should be no permanent scarring because she is young, and the mouth has so much blood flow that it heals even more quickly - all of which I am forever grateful for.

It was all a vivid reminder of how quickly anything can change.  It was an instant, and it changed the course of our week.  I praise the Lord for his protection of Violet when I could not run quickly enough to grab her.  I spent a little time blaming myself, but ultimately, I know that I cannot shield my children from all accidents and pain - a harsh reality that I wish didn't exist.  So many things are outside of our control, and I have to ultimately place my trust in the Lord.  He loves and cares for my children far more than I do, and his plans for them are perfect, even when I don't understand them.

In the end, I'm so very glad that she is okay and humbled by God's graciousness to our family on Violet's account.  I'm also hoping to make it a little longer between ER visits this time. 🤣