My morning

  So I woke up and while nursing little guy checked Facebook.  I wanted to see how a friend was doing.  Imagine my surprise when I see a post attacking me from a barber shop.  The barber shop took one of my Facebook profile pictures (thankfully they cropped out my child) and called me fat.  They were upset because they assumed I had never used their services yet I rated them one-star.  I take responsibility for that rating.  It took place several months ago.  I believe I clicked on their Facebook profile and checked their reviews.  I accidentally clicked on the star rating system (hazards of using a phone to check Facebook) and entered a rating.  I didn't find a way to delete or change my rating so I left it (I was able to delete it today).  They're right--I've never used their services and they're not even nearby.  They are however in a town I visit a few times a year.  

  While I will most likely never use their services I hope they can learn a bit about working with the public, especially if they hope to be a long-term successful business in the small town in which they're located.  My first reaction was to be very snarky, especially since I know I'm fat.  My next reaction was a wee bit of depression.  Am I bummed I weigh more than is healthy?  Yep.  Then anger found its way into the picture.  Angry at them?  Hell yes.  Angry at myself?  Yep, for not taking care of myself as well as I should.

  There are a few things the person who labeled me as fat could learn.  Asking questions would have gotten them much further than trying to humiliate me.  Asking why I rated them so low would have had me explaining what happened, as well as looking to see if there was a way to remove my error along with an apology.  It probably would have also motivated me to suggest them to people I know who live in the area or even to hubby during a future visit.  Finding solutions to issues will probably get you further than publicly attacking someone.

   Here are a few things they don't know about me.  The picture you copied from my Facebook and then wrote fat on is very special to me.  It was taken on Mother's Day with my daughter and I was four and a half months pregnant. I'm not the happiest about my body.  Currently I'm frustrated with my health.  You see, I have thyroid issues.  After having little guy my thyroid levels went way up so my meds have been drastically reduced.  While waiting for my next blood draw I already know my levels are too low now as my feet hurt, I'm cold, I'm cranky, I have terrible heartburn, feel generally miserable, and I gain weight even if I eat the same as I always do and exercise the same.  Yep, it's a bitch dealing with thyroid issues.  Even with all of this I'm glad my body has been able to bring two healthy children into this world as well as nourish them.  Even though I was harsh on my knees playing tennis my freshman year of high school and several years of snow skiing, they still work and I can go for walks with my kiddos and chase after them.  My little guy looks at me with eyes that exude love.  Yesterday my girl slipped while exiting the tub and hit her chin.  Today she asked me to help her get out.  She doesn't care that I have some flab on my arms.  I'm grateful my arms are strong enough to lift her and hold her safely.  And that's what it's all about, my two incredibly wonderful children as I work to raise them to be caring, responsible adults who try not to judge or hurt others.

   

Wow, the middle of February is here.  Have enjoyed the snow this year.  It doesn't stay too long and maybe that's why it always seems magical.

We're pretty much back to being totally dairy free (little guy and I are 100% dairy free).  Kiddo  had been eating regular dairy Greek yogurt every morning for a few weeks but she was getting some stinky toots and eczema.  I figure she's having some inflammation in her gut with those types of issue even though she never complained of tummy pains.  I feel bad because she really liked the yogurt.  At the grocery store we most often visit, the only alternative is soy yogurt which I try not to give her much soy.  I feel so granola these days for all the stuff I try to avoid.  For the time being I'm going to continue to educate kiddo about her allergy but I'm so very thankful that the reaction for both kids is not anaphylaxis.  A lot of people think the kids are just lactose intolerant as they don't understand that a dairy allergy can have other symptoms. I try to explain that lactose intolerance is due to not being able to properly break down the sugar in milk and if the kids had it, they wouldn't be able to (or have been able to) breast feed and that it is very very rare in infants.  For the dairy allergy, the protein in the cow's milk causes severe stomach/intestinal problems (gas, gas pains, diarrhea, mucous in the stool, and blood in the stool) that can take several weeks to resolve.  

In November I was feeling either incredibly brave or incredibly foolish as I booked tickets for the kids and I to fly to visit my family in December.  The trip was good and we all had fun.  Very glad the flight is a direct flight and only about an hour long.  Amazed at how grown up kiddo looked as she sat across the aisle from me and happily enjoyed her snack.

Enjoyed Christmas at home this year.  Missed being with my mom's side of the family like crazy but enjoyed watching kiddo take in the wonder of the season.

I feel like I've turned into "that mom" this winter.  I've turned into quite the germaphobe.  Little guy won't be old enough for the flu shot until the flu season is mostly over so we've been washing our hands like crazy and avoiding public places.  Kiddo gets cabin fever like any young child would.  I also fear getting Norovirus.  I've had it twice in the last few years (first time I was still breast feeding kiddo and I think that helped her stay well while she also suffered the second time I had it).  With the flu I just monitor local activity but if I hear of an outbreak of Norovirus across the country I can feel my anxiety level increase. 

As we celebrated the New Year we enjoyed the sparkling cider the hospital gave us when little guy was born.  Hubby and I looked at our little guy with awe and wonder as we are certain he was conceived on New Years Day 2013.  Thirteen is my lucky number and 2013 brought much better things to us. 

Hubby really enjoyed the Super Bowl as he's been a life long Seahawks fan.  We of course ate too much yummy food including a recipe I found for "cheeze" sauce made from cashews.  I hadn't tried any cheese substitutes when being dairy free with kiddo but decided to try this as I know it could be another year and a half or more before I get cheese again.  It tasted like the stuff you see in jar in the chip aisle.  Hubby even thought it was good.  I think I'll try some other "cheeze" recipes.  

While I do enjoy the snow I'm ready for warmer weather as I don't like telling kiddo no to going out in the snow as I don't want to take little guy out in it.  I know kiddo would love visiting the park.  Plus, warm weather decreases the threat of flu and Norovirus usually.  

Here's my review of the hazel wood necklace.  I don't think it has really helped.  It is very cute on my little guy though so I keep it on him.  He was having some more reflux symptoms recently so I looked at the dosing instructions again and adjusted his dose since he weighs more.  So glad he likes to eat since he was so little when he was born.

The last few days have been rough.  We went to Hubby's relatives for Thanksgiving and something I ate must of had dairy milk in it as little guy has been having lots of symptoms. Frustrated at myself for next checking more carefully.  I decided to go ahead and let my 3.5 year old kiddo try dairy milk food and so far she's been feeling great.  Not pushing things as she's not had a glass of milk or bowl of ice cream yet.  Crossing my fingers that little guy will follow a similar path.

The Christmas tree is up but I don't think lights will be up outside this year.  Its been too chilly this last week and I'd much rather hold little guy.

Sleeping on a plane

I've slept on planes in the past.  I didn't think my little guy would be sleeping on one at a month old but he is, just not the type that takes you any where.  He needs to sleep on an incline plane, meaning his head is higher than his body.  Luckily it's not been that hard to do since I co-sleep and his head lays on my arm, near my shoulder.  He's developed silent reflux so laying like that helps keep the reflux from happening as often or from going as far up as it could if he was laying flat.  I feel so bad for the little guy.  He doesn't know why he feels miserable sometimes and why I give him medicine that doesn't taste all that great.  I'm grateful to live in this day and age though where we can find out so much by just completing a quick search on the internet. I was able to make his medicine, find dosing information for pain relief, and even ordered a necklace made out of hazel wood that could help (I'll post a review after we receive it and use it for a while).  He's feeling better but still has some reflux.  At least the crying has been reduced greatly and the majority of the crying now isn't the kind where he's clearly in pain.  

I don't know how my aunt did it with her youngest, who's now in his early twenties.  I can remember holding him a lot when he was an infant as he just wanted to be held all the time.  The meds that are commonly prescribed now weren't available then so there wasn't too much he could be given.  I know there were lots of late-night car rides, which couldn't have been easy with two other kiddos.  

I know little guy will get better with time as his body grows and that's what helps me get through the tough times now.  Looking forward to seeing him smile more and more.

Those darn cows!

Yep, that cow is cute.  Problem is, it's also been the cause of distress around this house.  Okay not this particular cow but the milk consumed from cows.  As I type this I'm holding my three week old infant as he sleeps fitfully due to my having eaten dairy products a few days ago. It breaks my heart to see him in so much pain as he cries and writhes when awake.  The good news for us is that we've been here before so we have experience and knowledge about the situation.  Our three year old kiddo is also allergic to dairy but it took about two and a half months to figure out.  A little bummed that I'll be missing out on cheese and ice cream again for quite some time but it's so worth it when I have a happy baby.  Hopefully in a few more days our baby will be feeling better.