Thank you, HyVee

I don't know how many of you are familiar with HyVee grocery stores, but I became a HUGE fan yesterday. I already knew that our store's produce and meat were above average, and it actually has a food court located right there in the store (with Chinese, Italian, American, etc. foods to choose from) with a very clean, large seating area.

The company is very committed to good health. The foods available at the food court are fairly healthy-- for example, the Chinese food contains no MSG.

HyVee stores also have dietitians on staff. Yesterday afternoon K and I met with the dietitian at our local store, and she helped us sort out so much. I can eat a lot more than that I thought!

She was familar with Dr. Sears and had even attended a conference he spoke at. But she discouraged the total elimination diet, because it would just make me crazy. (And I can attest to that-- yesterday I had rice for breakfast, and green beans and an apple for lunch... I was HUNGRY, even though I hadn't even abided by the strict diet!). Instead, she wants me to focus on cutting out dairy (and hidden dairy), soy, nuts, and chocolate. I can do that.

That means I can still eat meat, fruits, vegetables, etc. She told me some to avoid-- but my menu options are more numerous than I thought! So instead of grabbing a handful of hershey kisses, I can have a handful of craisins instead. Again, I can do that.

And did you know that there is such a thing as rice ice cream?! I haven't tried it yet, but I did put rice milk on my cereal (rice chex) this morning-- I couldn't tell the difference at all! Of course, I also put sugar on my cereal, which I don't normally do.... but since I am eating healthier now in all other respects, I think that was okay!

Meet TED

Also known as the "Total Elimination Diet."

That's what this has come to.

After 12 days of no dairy, as well as controlling the oversupply issues, there has been no improvement in ZuZu. In fact, she has gotten worse. She's now having trouble breathing at night; what little sleep pattern she did have is totally gone; and she has a rash that is spreading from her face/head down to her shoulders and arms.

So onto TED. It's a diet advocated by Dr. Sears, one of the world's foremost authorities on breastfeeding issues. Here's what I can eat for the next 2 weeks (breakfast, lunch, and dinner):

range-fed turkey and lamb
baked or boiled potatoes
sweet potatoes
rice
millet
cooked green and yellow squash
pears
diluted pear juice
salt and pepper
(and some moms have reported using olive oil)

Appetizing, eh? But this diet eliminates all common allergens: dairy, soy, eggs, wheat, chocolate, etc., etc. After two weeks, you start adding foods back in.

So if any of you have a love of cooking and want to create a new recipe for me, please do! I am NOT creative in the kitchen, I hate to cook, and I don't even know what some of the utensils are called. I don't think I even know what millet is... I know what a mullet is, and mutton... but what the heck is millet?

K is meeting with a dietitian today at our local grocery store to see if there is any other foods she would suggest, since this is SO restrictive. (Seriously, I don't know what I would do without K-- he's doing everything he can to help). Like green beans or apples. I mean, who's ever heard of an apple allergy?

The "bright side": One mother reported losing 10 pounds in a week...

So I am currently enjoying a hearty breakfast of rice and water. But I did cheat a little, and added cinnamon and sugar... And for lunch? I'm having... rice! And maybe a pear?

I'm thinking about saving some money and instead of buying rice milk, just drinking the little bit of water left after steaming rice. Seriously, that's HOW BAD rice milk tastes...

You can see why we are exhausted...

No news on ZuZu-- an initial test showed she may be slightly allergic to milk protein (in cow's milk), so we have continued the dairy-free diet. There are a lot of things I CAN'T eat (including beef-- WOE is me!). But there are a lot of things I can still eact-- like Oreos!

But ZuZu hasn't improved a whole lot this week. We haven't seen any blood in the last 24 hours, but her stool is still green and runny. But we are thankful that there is at least no visible blood.

Her sleep schedule is still totally non-existant, and that is due to the fact that her digestive system is pained, especially during the night. She sleeps much better if she is on K in the recliner. Just take a look at the way last night went:

9:30 pm- Fed and rocked ZuZu

10:30 pm- ZuZu finally asleep; I followed shortly thereafter

1:15 am- ZuZu awake; fed and rocked

2:00 am- ZuZu awake; fed and rocked

3:00 am- ZuZu awake with nasty green diaper; fed and rocked

-- at this point, I suggested that K just go ahead and take her out to the recliner, so that all 3 of us could sleep better

4:15 am- Moses awake with a nightmare; rocked and put back in bed

4:30 am- Moses awake and requesting a diaper change

4:45 am- Moses awake and calling K in to see the shadow on his floor that looked like a "7"

5:45 am- Moses awake for the day; I tell him it is too early, so he proceeds to yell out and bang around occasionally until...

6:30 am- my alarm goes off; I finally let Moses out of bed, and wake K up in the recliner so I can feed ZuZu.

Sadly, this is pretty much what every night has been for the last couple of weeks. Except that sometimes Moses starts in on his routine at 2:00 or 3:00 am....

*sigh*

Prayers for ZuZu

I haven't mentioned anything about ZuZu's health here lately-- mostly because I haven't had much time to blog and really explain what has been going on, but also because I recognize that there are so many worse things going on in other people's lives. But if you think about it, please pray that God heals ZuZu's digestive system-- and QUICKLY.

For the past four weeks (that's 2/3 of her life), we've been dealing with diarrhea, green stools, foamy stools, and now blood in her stools- at least 8 times since Thursday. At first I thought it was an oversupply problem (if you don't like to hear about breastfeeding, stop reading now!). I produce WAY too much milk-- about 60 ounces a day. When that happens, the baby gets too much of the foremilk (the milk that comes at the beginning of the feeding) and not enough hindmilk (the rich, calorie-filled milk that comes later in the feeding). I adjusted the way I feed her and we were seeing some progress.

Then the blood started. It's not a lot by any means, but enough to really shake a mommy (and a daddy) up. I immediately suspected a dairy allergy, because other moms on a listserv I am on mentinoed it. So since Friday I have had NO dairy. (And for an idea of how hard that diet is, just check out a few labels on foods in your kitchen! Everything has milk, casein, or whey in it...).

But no immediate improvement (I guess it can take diary 2-3 weeks to get out of my system). So we took her to the pediatrician this morning to make sure there wasn't anything else wrong. (By the way, she is only 6 weeks and weighed in at 11 pounds, 10 oz! At least we know she is eating enough!)

The pediatrician confirmed my dairy suspicion. BUT, she wants ZuZu on formula for a MONTH so her digestive system can heal! The thought of that just breaks my heart. I was unable to nurse Moses, so instead I pumped for 3 hours a day in order for him to have breastmilk. We (and I do mean we-- K has been such a supporter through this) have already come through so much with ZuZu to get where we are-- including feeding tubes, formula in the hospital, mastitis, latch issues, oversupply, etc. It's been a rough road (I was tempted to give up so many times), and things were just starting to get comfortable.

I've contacted some other breastfeeding moms, and they agree that the month-long suggestion is crazy. She would never nurse again.

But I just don't know who to trust/believe. Everyone has a different opinion. And would she heal more quickly if I put her on forumla? On the other hand, what if formula doesn't work either, since most forumlas contain milk protein? And am I doing this (breastfeeding) for her, or for me? If formula IS better for her, why can't I be okay with that?

On top of everything, I started back to work part-time today. Now, I DO work from home. But it is still emotional. I no longer have every minute of the day free for Moses and ZuZu.

So if you think about it, just pray that God heals ZuZu QUICKLY, so that we don't have any decisions to make. And pray for me, too-- I am at my emotional wits end...

It's a Blue's Clues Day, Hurray!

Today is Moses' third birthday, and I think I woke up more excited than I ever did for any of my own birthdays. We had a Blue's Clues themed day. It started with breakfast:


Of course, he sang to himself and blew out candles:



He had preschool today, and he wore a special birthday shirt from MaMa. He also took a special birthday snack: sugar cookies with blue frosting, blue plates, Blue's Clues napkins, and Blue's Clues blowout party favors. He was so proud to take his birthday snack to school:


The kids also had Blue's Clues party favor bags in their cubbies after school, complete with silly putty and hand-held fans (Moses has been fascinated with fans of any kind since he was a baby; which makes me feel a little guilty that we removed 5 of the 7 ceiling fans in our house when we moved in....).

After school, he played "Blue's Clues"-- he had to follow the "clues" to find his birthday surprise in the back yard:




He found it! :)


But for some reason, the little guy was almost more interested in playing in the car today. Go figure. So he and Daddy rocked out for a little while.




After HOURS of playing outside, he came in for a McDonald's dinner (one of his favorites, of course). We were going to have cake after he had his bath, but he found his presents first:

Fortunately, I was at least able to get SOME clothes on him before he opened the rest:

He received his first real ball glove today. This initial reaction prompted his baseball-player-Daddy to decide we need to get out the world series DVDs and have him watch...





We ended the night with "cake" (chocolate brownies with frosting, another one of his favorites), and a Word World dvd (we broke with the theme here).


Now it is time to gear up for his Blue's Clues party with family on Sunday!

Out of the Mouths of Babes

As heard in our living room last night (and referring to ZuZu):

Moses: One, two. Two eyes!

Me: Yep, two eyes. How many eyebrows?

Moses: One, two!

Me: How many mouths?

Moses: One!

Me: How many chins?

Moses: One, two!

I have no idea what he is talking about...

Tomorrow is Moses' birthday, and we have all sorts of fun planned! Stay tuned! :)

Baby Girl Camo

Holy Week

I always love the week before Easter-- although it is a little busier now that I am married to a pastor. But it started out extra-special this year, for two reasons.


First, Palm Sunday was Moses' first appearance on the church stage:


Second, we dedicated ZuZu that morning:





It was a long day-- ending in the lenten service at our church that night-- but it was such a great day.


Our church has an annual Maunday-Thursday service, but it started at 7:30 and this year I opted to stay home and make sure Moses and ZuZu got to bed at a decent time.


Good Friday was just the way I like it-- cold and rainy! That always just seems so appropriate.


Our family tradition is to dye Easter eggs on Friday night-- because the Easter Bunny does a special favor for pastors' families: he comes a morning early. You know, so you can enjoy your Easter basket and not have to rush through it before the sunrise service. Plus, that ensures that Easter Sunday is what it is supposed to be about!


Moses was SO GOOD about being gentle with the eggs. And he loved his eggs so much that they went to bed with him. :)










Sunday was beautiful-- again, totally appropriate weather! Both Moses and ZuZu actually woke up before they needed to-- which on Easter Sunday, is a relief. We had a little trouble getting Moses to wear his sweater vest, because he was afraid his tie wouldn't show, but his "girlfriends" (all of which are at least 15 years older than him) at church can be rather persuasive.









It was a total success: Both children came home in tact and with no stains on their Easter clothes! :)

Back into the swing of things?

So much has happened in the last month-- so many things I've intended to blog about, but have just been too busy to type.

Like Moses' first trip to Chuck E. Cheese...

Or ZuZu's first visit from Uncle Jarrett-- who brought her her first gift from Tiffiny's (every baby girl needs one of those little blue bags, after all)...

Or Moses' school Easter party...

Or the time I discovered a nasty blue-green bruise on the top of ZuZu's head. I just about freaked out. Until I realized it was sidewalk chalk...

Hopefully I will get back into a groove this week. It's my last week off, then I go back to work part time for a month-- so we are trying to get back into a "schedule" this week. Ha!

I do have some incentive-- Moses and ZuZu were SO cute on Easter... so stayed tuned for those pics. :)

Rejoice!

How sweet to hold a newborn baby

And feel the pride and joy she gives

But greater still the calm assurance

This child can face uncertain days because He Lives!

Because He lives I can face tomorrow

Because He lives all fear is gone

Because I know He holds the future

And life is worth the living just because He lives!

--Because He Lives, Bill Gaither

My baby is already growing up...

She's one month today! I don't have time to write much now (seems to be the story of this blog recently, doesn't it?), but I did want to post a few pics from today. Our local photographer totally fell through on us, so in desperation we took the kids to Sears today. I was very pleasantly suprised not only with the quality, but also with the fact that for $120 you get all the photos they take, with any enhancements (b&w, etc), on CD-- in high resolution, no less.

Unfortunatley, Moses was NOT going to let the photographer take his pictures today. And in his defense, she was a little loud. I mean, at one point she was making VERY loud silly noices in an effort to get ZuZu to stop crying. I was thinking, "She's one month old, for goodness sake!" Then she started making the same noise to try to get ZuZu to look at the camera. So again I was thinking, "She's one month old, for goodness sake!"

So anyway, here are the pics. The first is the only one with Moses-- and that was taken only because the lady left the room and let me take the picture...