We recently took Robbie to an allergy appointment. We were trying out a new allergist and trying to get some answers about his eczema. I am so happy that we went. This doctor was amazing, and by the time I left I felt that I had a much better understanding of Robbie's condition.
Around a year ago we took Robbie in for allergy tests and he only tested positive for eggs. Truthfully, I was excited about this because it was only one allergy. After Riley's list of multiple allergies I was glad to only have one to deal with for Robbie. We immediately started removing eggs from his diet. That is what we were told to do, so we did it blindly. I didn't research it or question it. I didn't seek a second opinion. I thought, it's just an allergy, he is the doctor he should know. I am sure that in many situations this advice would have worked but with Robbie this was not the case. His eczema continued to be a huge problem.
Our new allergist seemed pretty alarmed at Robbie's eczema. He says it is at a moderate to severe stage and he decided to re-test his allergies. This time Robbie tested positive for ragweed, cats, dust, and eggs. The doctor says that his allergies are progressing very quickly and he could very well end up needing allergy shots for them. He also informed me that children with eczema are 75% more likely to develop a food allergy, and they are 50% more likely to develop asthma. We discussed his snoring and that he sometimes has a cough at night. The doctor says if he coughs during the night we need to use the nebulizer on him.
We also discussed Robbie's current treatment. We use Zyrtec daily, a steroid cream for his bad outbreaks, lotion every where else, we don't bathe him daily, and no eggs in his diet. To start off the doctor upped Robbie's Zyrtec dose, and told us to give it to him at night. Then we discussed the steroid cream. Apparently sometimes a cream will start off helping but after some time it will begin to cause a rash. So we got three new creams. Two are the same kind just different strengths to be used on his eczema depending on what stage it is in. Then a third cream to use on any small itchy places, like the little splotches on his back. We are to continue the lotion everywhere. And we do all of this everyday after his bath. We are to use the "soak and seal" method. He soaks in water for 10 minutes every day. Then we pat him dry and put all the medicine and lotion on him to help seal in the water. He loves it so far. We also have to get a special pillow cover for his pillow to keep the dust away from him. And he can eat eggs! The doctor wants us to start giving him eggs again. If we see that it is breaking him out worse, then we stop for a little while. Then we go back to eggs. We will be trying to teach his body to accept eggs. Since he doesn't start swelling or having breathing problems this is a safe method for him. We hope that we will outgrow the allergy.
I learned so much at this appointment. I would say I was overwhelmed but this doctor explained things so well. He gave me information, pamphlets, and he didn't talk to me in "doctor speak". When we were done I didn't feel stupid. I now understand eczema a little better. I could never understand why Riley and Robbie continued to itch even after they were bleeding. It was so horrible to see and we bandaged them up all the time. The reason they don't stop is because the itch from eczema is worse than the pain from them digging at their skin. It is like a horrible itch under the skin that they just have to get to.
I learned that their have been new studies that show that introducing allergens early can actually help children. Babies need to go outside and be around pollen as much as possible and at a really young age. If the body gets used to the pollen then it doesn't feel "threatened" by it later in life. The same goes for things like eggs and peanut butter. I am supposed to start giving the twins these things now. The doctor says we have a very allergic family and we need to try and help the twins not suffer with these allergies if we can.
Riley will be going on a visit to our new allergist soon. I am worried how her tests will go, and I am worried about what he will say about if she has asthma or not. The ER trips every time she gets a cold may be an indication that she does. We have gone ahead and started the "soak and seal" method with her for her eczema.
Also, after only a few days of this new routine with Robbie, his skin is already improving. He is itching less and the sores are healing. I am very optimistic about this. I hope when we go back in a month he will be much improved.
Friday, January 27, 2012
Tuesday, January 24, 2012
My Material Girl
As Madonna put it "We are living in a material world" and Ashlynn is a material girl. At five years old I did not expect to see a diva when I looked at my daughter. I suppose in some ways I brought this on myself. She was my firstborn. I lavished her in clothes, although we never shopped designer. Wal-mart enjoyed my shopping trips, though. Her first Christmas she had probably three dresses just for the holidays. Easter was the same. She had so many outfits and little shoes. I don't think she even wore half of it before she outgrew it. Some things never even had the tags removed.
Now she is wearing skinny jeans, leggings, those tunic tops, and suede boots. She never wears her tennis shoes any more. She has to have her calf length suede boots on. It is crazy. Lately she says she needs new boots. Apparently there is a new boot fashion out there. One that I am not yet privy to. She absolutely has to have these boots. She needs to have all the latest trends.
I was (and still am) a jeans and t-shirt person. I never had the latest fashions and I never worried about it. I guess I never expected to have such a materialistic child. Where will this go in the future? In a world where our children see is how the famous dress their children, I have a feeling things could get worse. I love my material girl, and I don't mind her looking nice, especially her school clothes. I just hope that she is okay with being fashionable on a budget. With four siblings, she might not have a choice.
Now she is wearing skinny jeans, leggings, those tunic tops, and suede boots. She never wears her tennis shoes any more. She has to have her calf length suede boots on. It is crazy. Lately she says she needs new boots. Apparently there is a new boot fashion out there. One that I am not yet privy to. She absolutely has to have these boots. She needs to have all the latest trends.
I was (and still am) a jeans and t-shirt person. I never had the latest fashions and I never worried about it. I guess I never expected to have such a materialistic child. Where will this go in the future? In a world where our children see is how the famous dress their children, I have a feeling things could get worse. I love my material girl, and I don't mind her looking nice, especially her school clothes. I just hope that she is okay with being fashionable on a budget. With four siblings, she might not have a choice.
Monday, January 23, 2012
Pinterest Monday
I am joining the Pinterest Monday Blog Hop hosted by Musings From a Stay at Home Mom. Since today is National Reading Day I am going to pin some new books I found on Pinterest that I would like to read.
These are just a few of the great books I saw on Pinterest today. Grab a good book and read!
Saturday, January 21, 2012
Gluten, Peanut and Egg Free Life
Like so many people my children suffer from allergies. Ashlynn seems to have been very lucky, and, except for a strange incident of hives after some apple cinnamon oatmeal, she only has typical seasonal allergies. The twins have unknown allergy issues. I hope they don't have any. Riley and Robbie are not so lucky.
When Riley was around a year old she got into one of Ashlynn's peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. She didn't even eat any, she just rubbed it on her face. We wiped her down quickly but didn't think much else about it. Suddenly though, her face started to swell up. We had to rush her to the hospital. We were lucky and the swelling went down on it's own. Our pediatrician sent us to an allergist and we learned that Riley is allergic to peanuts, tree nuts, wheat, cats, and dogs. We now carry an epi-pen for her and they do not expect her allergies to improve. For this reason we are a mostly peanut butter free home. Wheat leads to horrible eczema on Riley. So we started trying to limit wheat for Riley.
Then here comes Robbie and from the start he suffered from eczema. No matter what we did he always had it. So, once again we went to the allergist. The news for him was not quite so bad. He has an egg allergy. The allergist said no eggs and his eczema should improve. Here's the problem with that. We try to give him absolutely no eggs, and he still has horrible eczema. It is so much worse than Riley's has ever been.
Well after all that lovely back story, on to the main point of my post. I have started researching ways to help with these allergies. My sister-in-law also suffers from allergy problems and she told me that I should try gluten free items to see if that helps Riley's eczema. So I did some online searches and I learned that gluten is one of four proteins in wheat that can cause allergies. The bad thing is that wheat and gluten seem to be everywhere. I plan to buy gluten-free flour and we'll be making our own bread at home from now on. As well as cakes, cookies, and anything else that will require flour. I also plan to start replacing eggs in my recipes. Thanks to some fellow moms and Pinterest I found a link to a page on PETA that helps you find replacements for baking, called The Ultimate Vegan Baking Cheat Sheet. I am not a practicing vegan but the tips there were very helpful in finding replacements for eggs based on what the eggs were being used for.
Along with all of this information, my mom happened to find a few cookbooks to help us along in our ventures into gluten-peanut-egg free lives. The first one is the Allergy-Free Cookbook.
When Riley was around a year old she got into one of Ashlynn's peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. She didn't even eat any, she just rubbed it on her face. We wiped her down quickly but didn't think much else about it. Suddenly though, her face started to swell up. We had to rush her to the hospital. We were lucky and the swelling went down on it's own. Our pediatrician sent us to an allergist and we learned that Riley is allergic to peanuts, tree nuts, wheat, cats, and dogs. We now carry an epi-pen for her and they do not expect her allergies to improve. For this reason we are a mostly peanut butter free home. Wheat leads to horrible eczema on Riley. So we started trying to limit wheat for Riley.
Then here comes Robbie and from the start he suffered from eczema. No matter what we did he always had it. So, once again we went to the allergist. The news for him was not quite so bad. He has an egg allergy. The allergist said no eggs and his eczema should improve. Here's the problem with that. We try to give him absolutely no eggs, and he still has horrible eczema. It is so much worse than Riley's has ever been.
Well after all that lovely back story, on to the main point of my post. I have started researching ways to help with these allergies. My sister-in-law also suffers from allergy problems and she told me that I should try gluten free items to see if that helps Riley's eczema. So I did some online searches and I learned that gluten is one of four proteins in wheat that can cause allergies. The bad thing is that wheat and gluten seem to be everywhere. I plan to buy gluten-free flour and we'll be making our own bread at home from now on. As well as cakes, cookies, and anything else that will require flour. I also plan to start replacing eggs in my recipes. Thanks to some fellow moms and Pinterest I found a link to a page on PETA that helps you find replacements for baking, called The Ultimate Vegan Baking Cheat Sheet. I am not a practicing vegan but the tips there were very helpful in finding replacements for eggs based on what the eggs were being used for.
Along with all of this information, my mom happened to find a few cookbooks to help us along in our ventures into gluten-peanut-egg free lives. The first one is the Allergy-Free Cookbook.
I am really excited about this book, it starts out with an introduction to different types of food allergies and items to have so you can cook allergy free. The recipes each have a little symbol that tells you if the recipes is gluten-free, dairy-free, has no nuts, or has no eggs. I cannot wait to start cooking from this cookbook. She found me another one called Gluten-Free 3 Books in 1. It is huge book full of gluten-free main dishes, desserts, and breads. I have a feeling that I will be very busy making our family gluten-free. My first adventure: Make a gluten-free cake! The twins' birthday is in February and Robbie's is in March. I need to find a recipe that tastes good now, so that I can make their cakes gluten and egg free this year.
Tuesday, January 17, 2012
Busy Busy Busy
I haven't posted in a very long time. Life has been pretty wild and finding a schedule that works for me and all the kids isn't always easy. Now the holidays are over and I am hoping to start finding more time to blog (nap time is my friend).
Abigail and Brittany will be turning one in about three weeks! I cannot believe how quickly they are growing. They both stand up and surf all the time. I love watching them talk and play together. I have no idea what they are saying but I can tell that they are definitely having a conversation. They also fight with each other over toys. It doesn't matter that we have been getting two of everything, they still take each others' toys and then cry about it. The only issue we have been having is with eating. They do not seem to want to move up from 2nd foods. They make bad faces and gag on the 3rd foods. I hope this changes soon. I've weaned all of my babies off bottles by the time they were one. It doesn't look like that will be the case with the twins.
Abigail and Brittany will be turning one in about three weeks! I cannot believe how quickly they are growing. They both stand up and surf all the time. I love watching them talk and play together. I have no idea what they are saying but I can tell that they are definitely having a conversation. They also fight with each other over toys. It doesn't matter that we have been getting two of everything, they still take each others' toys and then cry about it. The only issue we have been having is with eating. They do not seem to want to move up from 2nd foods. They make bad faces and gag on the 3rd foods. I hope this changes soon. I've weaned all of my babies off bottles by the time they were one. It doesn't look like that will be the case with the twins.
Abigail and Brittany sleeping. This is one of my favorite pictures.
Robert is a busy little guy. He's finally decided that he wants to work on talking. His new favorite words are "mine" and "no". He also says his own name now and when we count to three for someone to stop being naughty, he counts with us. He is a very musical little guy. He is constantly drumming on everything, dancing, singing in his own little language. He does the funniest little beat boxing thing that always makes me laugh, and he tries to do some weird break dancing thing where he bends over with his head on the ground and walks around in circles. It won't be long and he will be my two year old little man. He isn't my baby any more and he doesn't let me cuddle him nearly as often. It makes me sad and happy at the same time.
Robbie at Christmas this year.
Riley is by far my most aggravating and most entertaining little monster. She has turned into such a little diva and she is such a smarty pants about everything. At least once a day she says something that just cracks me up. I am never sure what to expect from her next. She is so incredibly smart and picks up on everything all the time. She has finally potty trained and I am so proud of her! We didn't have to bribe her or anything. She wanted to wear big girl panties, so she did. That was it, a few accidents, and then completely potty trained. Her biggest goal right now is school. She'll get to start next year and she cannot wait. All I ever hear about is going to school with her big sister. I can only imagine the calls home I will get about this little girl. I just know she is going to go to school and beat someone up.
Ashlynn is doing so amazing in school. They have a smiley face system and she has been doing so great, bringing home green smiley faces almost everyday, only a yellow once in a while. She can read so much and points out words and spells them to me all the time. What makes that better is that she loves to read! I cannot wait to get her some new chapter books that we can read together. I know she's only five, but I'll help her along. She loves math, too, which is something she shares with her daddy. They fire addition problems at each other all the time. She's pretty good at it. She loves to dance, and sing, and make up new songs all the time. I want to hopefully get her into to girl scouts this coming year, and maybe karate if we can. She really wants to do karate.
Ashlynn and Riley at Christmas.
As for me and Stuart, well things have been going goodish. We have had some hurdles this past year and we have made them through with just a few scratches, I think. We have a few more coming but we'll get things figured out. We'll be moving soon, although we haven't completely decided if we'll be staying in South Carolina or moving to Missouri. I think in the end we will do what is best for us and hopefully everything will turn out okay. Stuart is a store manager now, while I still stay at home with all of our monsters. I have started a book review blog though. I may not be able to write a book but I can sure read them and tell other people what I think.
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Tuesday, July 19, 2011
Birthday Party!!!! Not Until September
I plan ahead. I have to with 5 kids. We have been planning Ashlynn's and Riley's joint birthday party since May. It has been a very big ordeal. Ashlynn will be five this year and wanted a party that she could invite her school friends to. Riley will be 3 and just looks forward to the cake and presents.
So we searched for a good party venue (our home will not hold a bunch of screaming 4 and 5 year olds). We priced around 5 different places. Pizza and games at 2 different locations were both around $300. Kids meals and play areas wouldn't cost much but just really wasn't something we wanted. Then we found the perfect place on a sign as we were leaving Wal-Mart.
The girls will be celebrating this year at The Sunshine Ranch! They have a picnic area with a grill. Hot dogs it is!! And since I coupon we got the hot dogs for $0.62 a pack. I won a contest to get invitations made really cheap, so they have picked out Toy Story 3 as their birthday theme. We picked out the cake already, the decorations, and the party favors. I already have plate, napkins, and cups for the party that I got for around $2 with my coupons. There is a play set, tons of animals to pet, and pony rides at the ranch. Entertainment is covered!
Now we just have to wait for the party. Ashlynn is convinced it is tomorrow every day. She is planning out everyone she wants to invite and I really hope she can get it down to 15 kids(that's the pony ride limit). Ashlynn and Riley are so excited. They look at all the pictures of the animals at the ranch and make tons of plans. If only I could get them to understand that their party isn't until September!
So we searched for a good party venue (our home will not hold a bunch of screaming 4 and 5 year olds). We priced around 5 different places. Pizza and games at 2 different locations were both around $300. Kids meals and play areas wouldn't cost much but just really wasn't something we wanted. Then we found the perfect place on a sign as we were leaving Wal-Mart.
The girls will be celebrating this year at The Sunshine Ranch! They have a picnic area with a grill. Hot dogs it is!! And since I coupon we got the hot dogs for $0.62 a pack. I won a contest to get invitations made really cheap, so they have picked out Toy Story 3 as their birthday theme. We picked out the cake already, the decorations, and the party favors. I already have plate, napkins, and cups for the party that I got for around $2 with my coupons. There is a play set, tons of animals to pet, and pony rides at the ranch. Entertainment is covered!
Now we just have to wait for the party. Ashlynn is convinced it is tomorrow every day. She is planning out everyone she wants to invite and I really hope she can get it down to 15 kids(that's the pony ride limit). Ashlynn and Riley are so excited. They look at all the pictures of the animals at the ranch and make tons of plans. If only I could get them to understand that their party isn't until September!
Friday, June 10, 2011
Why Do I Coupon?
Everyone seems to think that "extreme couponers" are bad people. I have seen us called "glorified hoarders". People assume that we all steal inserts, commit coupon fraud, and clear shelves. I have seen a lot of hateful feedback against couponers. And although in some cases these people may be right; usually couponers are honest, hardworking people just trying to save money.
I am a mom of 5 children. 4 of them are in diapers. I recently heard on TV that diapers cost $2000 a year per kid. That is $8000 for us!!! I almost died. I have twins on formula and baby food. Not to mention food, clothes, school costs for my 4 year old, and any extras. In short I try to make my husband's one income support all seven of us and pay all the bills. It's a pretty major stretch and my family has had to chip in more than I would like.
I bet you're thinking I should just go get a job, right? Trust me I have felt that way many times. I loved working. But now I have to consider the cost of daycare or a nanny. For 5 kids?? That would cost my whole paycheck if not more. So I decided I would rather spend time with my children instead of paying someone else to.
So there is still the question of supporting my family. That is why I have decided to coupon. I do not want to need my family's help during the rough times. I want to know that if my husband gets hurt or loses his job that we can make it on our own for a while. My mom raised my sisters and me by herself for a few years. Those were hard years some of the time. My mom worked hard but in some things we still had to do without. I never want that for my kids. And my mom coupons and stockpiles, too, for the same reason. So for us it is something we are doing together, and hey, it's fun! I love saving money. I love getting things for free. It is amazing going into a store and only pay a few dollars for $50 worth of stuff (no I can't go get $3100 for $50, yet).
In response to all the accusations I wrote about in my first paragraph; I do not steal coupons, commit coupon fraud, or clear shelves. Nothing makes me more upset then to walk into a store and find the entire shelf empty of the deal. And the people who are stealing inserts and committing fraud are giving us honest couponers a horrible name. Now as for being a "glorified hoarder", OK, that is your opinion. If it saves me money to have a stockpile then go ahead and call me a hoarder. :)
I am a mom of 5 children. 4 of them are in diapers. I recently heard on TV that diapers cost $2000 a year per kid. That is $8000 for us!!! I almost died. I have twins on formula and baby food. Not to mention food, clothes, school costs for my 4 year old, and any extras. In short I try to make my husband's one income support all seven of us and pay all the bills. It's a pretty major stretch and my family has had to chip in more than I would like.
I bet you're thinking I should just go get a job, right? Trust me I have felt that way many times. I loved working. But now I have to consider the cost of daycare or a nanny. For 5 kids?? That would cost my whole paycheck if not more. So I decided I would rather spend time with my children instead of paying someone else to.
So there is still the question of supporting my family. That is why I have decided to coupon. I do not want to need my family's help during the rough times. I want to know that if my husband gets hurt or loses his job that we can make it on our own for a while. My mom raised my sisters and me by herself for a few years. Those were hard years some of the time. My mom worked hard but in some things we still had to do without. I never want that for my kids. And my mom coupons and stockpiles, too, for the same reason. So for us it is something we are doing together, and hey, it's fun! I love saving money. I love getting things for free. It is amazing going into a store and only pay a few dollars for $50 worth of stuff (no I can't go get $3100 for $50, yet).
In response to all the accusations I wrote about in my first paragraph; I do not steal coupons, commit coupon fraud, or clear shelves. Nothing makes me more upset then to walk into a store and find the entire shelf empty of the deal. And the people who are stealing inserts and committing fraud are giving us honest couponers a horrible name. Now as for being a "glorified hoarder", OK, that is your opinion. If it saves me money to have a stockpile then go ahead and call me a hoarder. :)
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