Miles and the Ambulance Ride April 5, 2009

It happened last night. An ambulance ride for Miles is inevitable at some point in his life due to the severity of his multiple allergies, food and otherwise. However, his first ambulance ride was not of the allergic nature. It was something that we never ever expected.

Miles started getting sick on Friday. It started with a mild cough in the morning. By the evening I could tell that it was full-on bronchitis. Yay. Most of the time Miles gets sick he also comes down with bronchitis. I have asthma and so does his older brother, and while Miles hasn’t been diagnosed with asthma, I’m sure he has it. Hence most colds turning into bronchitis. The cough wasn’t bothering him much and with no other symptoms to speak of, we continued about our day. By 2 am he was up, really feverish, coughing and obviously miserable. A dose of Motrin, some cuddling with mommy and he was back to sleep.

When he awoke yesterday morning he was his mostly his happy self. A little crabbier than usual but nothing alarming. By 12:30 pm his fever was back with a vengance and he was visibly uncomfortable. Another dose of Motrin, more cuddles with mommy and a few popsicles. He was good to go.

My grandmother was staying with us for a few days and we needed to take her over to my aunt’s house, about 45 mins away. We all piled in the car. I didn’t even entertain the thought of having Steve take my grandma to my aunt’s. Miles was playing and having fun. He wasn’t 100%, but he wasn’t miserable either. So, I didn’t see the harm in a car ride while watching movies on the DVD player. Harmless, I thought.

On our way home Miles started getting really warm and whiny again. I was sitting in the back next to him and was able to comfort him. He fell asleep in his carseat and I figured he was getting his fever back and was tired from the night before. Good, get some sleep sweet boy. He woke up when we were on our way home and was happy and talking but still really warm.

When we arrived home it was around 6 pm and I gave him another dose of Motrin, even though I was supposed to wait another half hour. I needed to make dinner, the big kids were getting hungry. Miles was very clingy and just wanted me to hold him so I put off making dinner and I sat on the couch and held him. That’s when it happened.

I really didn’t know what it was at first. Miles was cuddling in my arms one minute, and trembling the next. His face turned away from me and he was unresponsive. I started calling for Steve who was in our bedroom. I noticed that Miles’ lips were turning blue and he was having a hard time breathing. Panic set in. I jumped up off the couch and ran into our bedroom where I ran into Steve at the doorway, he was on his way to see what I was screaming about. I told him what was happening and just kept saying “Something’s wrong!’ over and over. Steve called 911. Miles started to breathe a little better, still shallow but his lips were no longer blue. I was literally freaking out one minute, then calming myself down the next. I was trying not to scare Miles but I was really really scared and I was shaking all over. I’ve never been that scared in my life.

I was pacing around the house with Miles in my arms, trying to get him to talk to me. Anyone that knows Miles knows that he loves to talk! That scared me even more. He had that look, the glazed over eyes that reminds me of a child with severe autism. The 911 operator mentioned to Steve that it could be a seizure and told us to make sure if he vomits to clear his airway. That’s when I realized he was having a seizure.

The fire truck and ambulance arrived at our house within minutes. We live within walking distance to the fire station so they are always prompt. I couldn’t stay in the house, I ran with Miles out onto our front lawn. Our street has many families on it and lots of kids and parents were outside playing when the rescue vehicles arrived. I can’t put into words the fear I felt. Miles has had some wicked, fear inducing allergic reactions of the life threatening nature. I am no stranger to the fear of a child dying but this was so intense. With an allergic reaction I have benadryl and epipens to counteract the effect of the reaction. This time there was nothing I could do to make the seizure go away. I felt absolutely terrified and helpless.

The paramedics got him into the ambulance right away and confirmed he was having a febrile seizure. It lasted more than 5 minutes, I’m not sure how long exactly. The paramedics were asking all sorts of questions about what we did that day etc. They didn’t look for his Medic Alert bracelet but I pointed it out. In all of the chaos it was hard to answer the questions. I couldn’t think straight. My hands were shaking out of control, I was trying to soothe Miles who was confused and scared and really just out of it. The wanted to start an IV. One of the paramedics poked him 3 times in one arm. Another paramedic poked him another 2 times in the other arm. They had to dig around each time and it took all of the fire fighters and paramedics to hold him down. It was awful. Of course they couldn’t get the IV started so they decided to let the hospital do it.

I rode to the hospital in the ambulance while a neighbor took the bigs boys to her house and another neighbor drove Steve to the hospital who was also shaking so hard that he could barely stand. I had to ride in the passenger seat of the ambulance, they wouldn’t let me ride in the back with him. There was a little window where I could see and hear him. At the first red stoplight the paramedic in the back with Miles decided to try the IV again. He got it in but because he was alone and no one could hold Miles down, Miles ripped it out. When I looked back there, blood was rolling down Miles’ arm. I thought I was going to throw up and I couldn’t stop crying. The ambulance drove to the hospital very slowly. It was awful. Miles was singing the Indiana Jones song really loudly, I believe as a coping mechanism. He was scared, I was scared. He started to scream for me just as we were getting to the hospital. I just wanted to be back there with my baby

At the hospital they checked us in. The were asking about all of his allergies. I couldn’t think straight at all. I couldn’t remember what his allergies were. Miles wouldn’t look at me, he wouldn’t talk. It was the weirdest thing. Even in the past when he has had hurty medical procedures, he always wants his mama.

Steve met us at the hospital and the dr confirmed the diagnosis of febrile seizure. He said that because Miles is 4, which is a late age to have an initial febrile seizure, and the fact that it was so long, he wanted to do bloodwork and a chest xray to rule out underlying causes. Bloodwork. Great. So they poked Miles again 2 times in one arm and got it the first time in the other arm. They left a needle and port in just in case they needed an open vein. He was starting to come around finally. The dr explained that after a seizure the person is usually really out of it and disoriented for an hour or so. That explained why Miles was acting so weird. While we were awaiting the results of the bloodwork Miles got to watch Madagascar, one of his favorite movies, and I rocked him. It felt soooooo good to hold him again.

Bloodwork came back normal, xray showed bronchitis. Dr wanted to administer antibiotics through the IV. Good, I thought, no more trauma! Wrong! The IV wouldn’t work. So they had to give him an antibiotic shot. I had to help hold him down this time, along with Steve. Torture. Then we were free to go.

It was a scary night at home, thinking that the seizures could happen again. He got feverish again during the night and required a Tylenol/Motrin combo to control. The dr said if he had another seizure to call 911 again. Steve and I barely slept, worried. Blake and Lance got to spend the night at the neighbor’s house which was so helpful. We were able to completely focus on Miles. Steve and I were both totally shellshocked.

I promised Miles the biggest Indiana Jones Lego set that they make, for all that he went through. We got it for him today and he’s been playing with it ever since. Miles is acting fine, we are treating his fevers agressively to prevent another seizure. I’m glad that he’s ok, that we have awesome, helpful neighbors and medical insurance LOL!

I’m totally drained, physically and mentally. When Miles wouldn’t stop talking in the middle of the night, it was music to my ears. We had an interesting conversation about bad guys (the viruses) and the good guys (white blood cells) and the battle that was taking place in his body. We talked about how the medicine he was taking gave the good guys better weapons and the battle would be won by the good guys soon.

I hope we never have to go through that again.

Lance Turns 9!!! March 6, 2009

Wow. Time fies when you’re having fun!

On Wednesday Lance turned 9! We had sooo much fun celebrating with him! He is such an amazing boy and anyone who knows him can attest to that. He is our second son, looks just like his daddy except for my blue eyes and has a heart of gold. He is ready and willing to help out anyone in need and has an incredible work ethic. Lance’s favorite shows are Extreme Home Makeover, How It’s Made and iCarly. He recently discovered that loves steak, namely filet mignon, and his other favorite food is cheese pizza! Lance enjoys cooking, building, playing legos, reading, watching movies, computers, and taking care of his gecko, Sammy. I’m the luckiest mama alive:)

Lance had been counting down the days until his birthday! He had been marking off the days on the calendar! When his special day finally arrived, he was ecstatic! In the early morning Steve took him to his reading lesson. I told him he didn’t have to go but he loves going so much that he wanted to! When they returned it was present time! Here are the pics…

He got Skate 2 for PS3 and a Lego Power Miners set from us and a Lego Power Miners set from his Aunt Brittany and another Lego Power Miners set from Nana and Uncle William. He was thrilled!!! After the present opening it was time to go to Lance’s favorite restaurant for lunch, Olive Garden. We never ever ever go there because it’s allergen filled but we always make an exception on Lance’s or Blake’s birthday. Lance got breadsticks and shredded cheese and gobbled them up! Miles had his own food and we didn’t have any issues. Phew! On our way home from lunch we stopped at Hobby Lobby to get Lance an electric train set but he didn’t see one that he liked so we are planning on taking him to a different hobby shop soon. He wants to have an “N” scale train set and create the whole spread in his room.

When we got home from lunch we sang happy birthday and had cupcakes. My boys love the allergy free cupcakes that I make (and I’ve gotten lots of other compliments on them, if I do say so myself!) so when Lance had the option of what type of cake he wanted, that’s what he chose. It’s awesome that my older boys are so great about the food allergies. They are fine with the allergy free food so that Miles can feel included.

Lance and the boys played for a while after the cupcakes. Lance built his Lego sets and had a blast!!!! Soon it was time to meet his best friend, Lucas, at Incredible Pizza Company.

Incredible Pizza Company is like Chuck E Cheese on steroids. It boasts an arcade, bowling alley, go carts, laser tag and a full buffet. It literally gives me hives, knowing that all those kids running around with allergy coated hands, playing all the games. Thankfully Lance’s birthday has fallen on weekdays the last couple of years and not a busy weekend, reducing the likelihood of a reaction. It’s nervewracking, nonetheless, and I struggle with the balance of giving my non allergic son the special day he deserves and keeping my youngest, life-threatening food allergic son safe. The last thing I would want to do is to make Miles feel left out due to the allergies he has so we risk it, medicine in hand. We take the appropriate precautions and haven’t had any problems in the 2 years in a row that Lance has requested to go there on his birthday.

We met his best friend, Lucas, at Incredible Pizza Company along with Lucas’ dad and younger brother. We played and played and Lance had an awesome time! Half the time, like true big kids, Lance and Lucas went off and did their own thing, having tons of fun. They pigged out on pizza and ice cream and went back for more fun. It was a great time! Well, from what I could tell from the bench across the arcade. IPC isn’t conducive to a mommy on crutches who needs to keep her foot elevated so it doesn’t swell:)

When we got home, exhausted and partyed out, I reflected on Lance’s birth. A birth that changed my outlook on birth. A birth that set me on a career path, of helping others get the births that they desire. A difficult birth, a home waterbirth. An anticipated and beautiful birth. I’ll never forget what it felt like to give birth to Lance. It was an amazing experience, one that I will cherish forever. I never forget the moment I looked into each of my son’s eyes for the first time. With Lance, I was holding him and could feel his warm body laying on mine. His face was blue, due to his position during labor. He was a brow baby, for all of you birth junkies out there. If I’d been in a hospital, I’d for sure have had a cesarean. His birth was so incredibly empowering that I decided to become a childbirth educator and doula myself. I wouldn’t trade his birthday for the world.

Happy Birthday sweet Lance! I will love you forever:)

Ouch! February 16, 2009

I sprained my ankle badly, third degree. 

Here’s how the incident went down…

We were driving around, looking at houses and we decided to stop by the house that we are about to put a contract on the build. Steve wanted to go into the house and check out the attic and take some more measurements. He pulled us up to the curb and I got out. I opened the side of my van to unbuckle Miles from his carseat, like I’ve done a thousand million times. When I stepped down to the street level, I didn’t realize that there was a drain there and the cement was considerably lower than I anticipated and my foot rolled to the side as I put all of my weight on my ankle. I heard a snap and intense pain. So, after hopping around in the street for a while, I was whisked away to the ER. I was sure I had broken my ankle.

The car ride to the hosptial was rough. The pain was immense, I was literally doing my birthing relaxation techniques. Was it as bad as my last labor and birth? No. But it sucked nonetheless. It really brought back to mind the last time I was frantically on my way to the hospital in lots of pain. I was a homebirth transport and just about to push Miles out. Now, he was sitting in his carseat next to me and visibly worried about his mama. He handled it well though. Once we got to triage, he asked if I was going to have pokes in my back. He was referring to his intradermal insect venom test that he is still traumatized by. He got multiple intradermal injections every 20 minutes for 3 hours. It was awful. Once I assured him that I would receive that and neither would he, he was fine!

The ER visit was bizarre. Random people kept trying to talk to me and when they noticed my ankle that was so swollen that it looked like an orange was busting out of it, they couldn’t help but grimace in pain. Thanks. That makes me feel better. As I hobbled out on crutches and grumbling about how I didn’t know how I was going to survive my upcoming busy week, a young man in a neck brace says “Hope you feel better!”. Who was that person?!?!

Turns out it’s just a sprain. My sister who has both sprained her ankle to the third drgree twice AND broken it says that the sprains were way worse. Yay. Our friend, the orthopedist will be happy to see us again. We haven’t seen him in a couple of months, since Lance broke his foot. I’m glad to know that his 3 little boys will be able to go to college in part, because of us!

So here I sit, bored beyond belief, being waited on hand and foot…pun intended! Am I grateful for my supportive family, willing to take complete care of me? Yes. But I hate daytime TV, my laptop is still broken and I’m awaiting my new Dell to arrive, and I have a million things to do! I hate being bed-bound. It has to be the worst part of this experience.

Tonight I am attending the SAFER Houston meeting, despite the prot

Happy Valentine’s Day! February 14, 2009

Despite Miles being incredibly sick with the flu, we still managed to have a great day!

I stayed up really late last night baking and molding chocolate and wrapping presents. Are we the only ones that spoil our kids for these meaningless Hallmark holidays? It’s a tradition that started with my mom. She always made every holiday super special and yummy! She still sends the kids little treats for Valentine’s Day, this year the boys got cards and gum. They are always thrilled to receive anything from Nana. Thanks Mom!

Unfortunately, Miles has the flu and is m.i.s.e.r.a.b.l.e! He was up a lot last night and arose early, making for one tired mama:( But, I perservere. Isn’t that what makes a mom?

When the boys got up they got to open their presents. Blake got a Lego Bionicle, Lance got a Bakugan set and Miles got an Indiana Jones Lego set. All boys got a chocolate bar, Blake and Lance got Hershey bars, Miles got an Enjoy Life chocolate bar. That was breakfast! I also got them a couple of trays of Peeps but they weren’t interested.

The presents await…

Steve and I had to cancel our date plans because Miles was so sick and we didn’t want to leave him with my sister. I was bummed because I was really looking forward to a night out with Steve! Instead we stayed in and I cooked an awesome filet mignon dinner. Yum! What was really impressive to me was that Lance tried the steak for the first time ever and LOVED it! Miles didn’t want any part of it. The flu has affected his sense of taste and the foods he usually loves don’t taste good to him at all. Right now popsicles and tapioca rolls are sustaining him. Blake, our resident carnivore, also enjoyed the steaks.

After dinner, the kids got to decorate the giant cookie cake that I baked last night. First Miles and Lance helped me make the frosting, then it was time to decorate, which they had all been eagerly anticipating all day! They insisted that I divide the giant cookie into 3 equal parts so they could each decorate their own pieces. Fine. They had a blast and were so good about taking turns. At first I helped Miles but he quickly caught on and was doing it on his own in no time! When it came time for the taste test, the cookie cake got mixed reviews. Blake thought it was really good, Lance thought it was ok and Miles didn’t care much for it. Probably due to the illness as I can’t see this boy disliking anything with chocolate chips! Steve and I didn’t actually try it since we are both on diets but I thought it smelled and looked delicious and as soon as I’m off this diet I’m making one just for me!

Before…

During…

After!

What did Steve and I get each other you ask? Well, being that our anniversary was 2 weeks ago, we didn’ t get each other anything. We usually don’t get each other anything huge for Valentine’s Day. Sometimes I get flowers and chocolates but with the diet this year, no chocolate. We were going to go out to a fancy dinner but with little Miles being super sick, we opted out of that one too. Anyway, nothing can really top the diamond necklace that Steve got me for our 15 year anniversary! We spent the day with our family and we had a lot of fun!

Universal! January 12, 2009

Greetings! I thought I would post a little about our food allergy/special needs experience at Universal and the Hard Rock Hotel where we stayed as there is little to no info online about how these places accomodate food allergies/special needs.

First of all we stayed at the Hard Rock Hotel. OMG it was soooo nice and cool. I was definitely in my element! It’s a 4 start hotel with all of the bells and whistles. I’m not used to that kind of luxury treatment! When the bellhop was unloading our van FULL of suitcases and a huge cooler I mentioned that we had a lot of stuff and he said “You’re at the Hard Rock, baby! No worries! We’ll take care of everything!”. Nice:) The pool area was awesome and although it was too cold to swim they had lots to do, namely table tennis that the older boys had a blast with and Guitar Hero for mommy! I wish we could’ve stayed there much longer!

On to the food…They had a couple of restaurants at the hotel. The Palm was pretty formal and although I’d heard that it is amazing, we chose to dine at The Kitchen, the more casual restaurant. I can’t say enough good things about The Kitchen. We ate dinner there twice and both times we had the same chef who came out and talked us through the menu and what Miles could have. Again, chicken and fries, but the chef made a separate pot of oil to cook the fries in to reduce the risk of cross contamination. The food the rest of us ate was sooooo yummy and the older boys loved eating there since the pool was right outside and they could go out and play while the food was cooking, which took a while due to Miles’ fries.

The chef, Daniel, was so great and mentioned that we should come back for breakfast and he would tell the executive chef  that we were coming and they would make special accomodations for us. So we did, it was great. The breakfast had a huge buffet that had anything and everything that you could ever want for breakfast (even breakfast pizza!). They made all of Miles’ food in the back, no buffets for him! They made him fresh bacon, roasted potatoes and pancakes (which he wouldn’t eat, but I did!). We had the same waitress for both breakfasts, Marie, and she was amazing. Turns out she has a neice with food allergies. Doesn’t everyone know someone with a food allergy these days? Here’s a pic of Miles enjoying his breakfast at the Hard Rock…

The thing that really impressed me the most about this restaurant was the service. The chef called me at my room the night before while he was investigating what Miles could have for breakfast and what he couldn’t. The second time he called he had experimented with a muffin that he made for us but while talking with him we realized that the flour he used had a cross contamination warning and we didn’t want to risk it. Also, the minute we walked into the restaurant the manager was alerted who personally sat us and during breakfast he always sat us with Marie so we wouldn’t have to explain everything again. It was awesome! The only downfall, the price. We spent a LOT of money on our meals there. I guess you get what you pay for! Well worth it to me!

Now for the parks!

After being at Disney for a week, Universal paled in comparison. I was soooooo nervous about going, I had no idea how they would handle our issues. I was pleasantly surprised! We went to guest relations when we got there and they gave us a pass to use our stroller as a wheelchair, just like Disney. They also had available a pass (they looked like the park tickets with different info printed on them) that allowed us to wait in the family wait rooms, which are climate controlled if the weather was hot. We didn’t need it on the first day as it was mild but the next day was really hot and humid and we used it. Unfortunately, Miles had a heat/sweat reaction that required Benadryl anyway, but after that we just took extra precaution to keep him cool.

The boys had fun at the parks. By staying at the Hard Rock Hotel we got upgraded tickets to the express pass tickets where we were able to get in the express line with every ride. That was nice! Universal had a couple of sections designed for little kids but after being at Disney, I wasn’t impressed. Miles made me sit through the Barney show. That was interesting. Those of you who know me well know that I absolutely despise that guy. Ugh. The things you do for your kids!

One counter service restaurant at Islands of Adventure was awesome about the food allergies. The chef came out and spoke with us and we figured out what Miles could have. As a change of pace, he got a hamburger patty and yep, french fries again. He didn’t eat much of the burger but he scarfed the fries. Again, the chef was very aware and took extreme measures to ensure the safety of the food. I was impressed. As for snacks, there weren’t many for Miles at the parks. I was glad that I had brought a few things in with us (always prepared!).

Here are some pics from Universal!

Miles and the Characters! January 11, 2009

*Warning* Lot’s of pictures here! Hope you have a fast internet connection….

One of Miles’ favorite things to do at Disney was have his picture taken with all of the Disney characters. This, of course, drove the older boys insane as they could care less about the people in costumes. Fortunately for them, Miles and I usually stood in the insane lines alone to wait for the characters while Steve and the older boys rode all the rides that contained “drops”. Worked out well! Here are the fruits of our labor!

Lest we forget the Universal Characters…

Our Disney Trip! Parks… January 11, 2009

We had too much fun at the parks! We did the park hopper passes which allowed us to visit each park as many times as we wanted and do different parks in one day. We had the passes for 7 days and hit all the parks twice. We got the maps to all the parks when we checked into the resort so the night before Steve and the older boys would plan out the day, deciding which rides they wanted to do, what was the best path to take, what order to do things in etc. Sometimes it was a little stressful to stick to the “itinerary” but we all got to see and do everything we wanted. Sometimes twice!

When we got to the first park on the first day (Magic Kingdom) we went to guest services to explain Miles’ health issues and see if there were any special accomodations for him. I’ve heard wonderful things about Disney catering to special needs and I wasn’t disappointed! The gave us an assistance card based on his issues. He has severe contact reactions to foods and there are people eating everywhere in Disney. On the card they stamped that we could use his stroller as a wheelchair to keep hom contained and not touching everything in sight. This was sooooo helpful, we were able to use the wheelchair entrances so he could stay in the stroller until we got on the ride. He still had some contact reactions but I can’t even imagine how many more we would’ve had.  Miles also has a severe heat/sweat allergy that produces massive hives. One the card they stamped that a shaded or air conditioned waiting area would be provided if the line wasn’t climate controlled.

Magic Kingdom: Aka Miles’ and Lance’s favorite!

This is the classic! So fun, so much to do, so spread out. We spent 2 whole days there and still could’ve spent more time. Blake and Lance loved Space Mountian, Big Thunder Railroad and Splash Mountain. The first ride we went on was Pirates of the Carribean where Miles declared he didn’t like “drops” after being traumatized by the tiny drop in the ride.  Miles loved the Buzz Lightyear ride the best, I think it was his favorite in the whole park! He loved Fantasyland also, where the rides are more geared to little kids. We rode many of the rides there over and over again! Miles also loved the tea cups and the speedway, where he felt like he was actally driving! Everyone loved the Haunted Mansion as well and Miles still talks about seeing the ghosts sitting next to us at the end of the ride.

 

Epcot Studios: Aka Blake’s favorite!

Epcot was really really fun! The older boys enjoyed all of the rides here with the exception of the Finding Nemo ride. They hated that one, thought it was too boring LOL! They loved the GM Test Track, Soaring, Mars Mission and Spaceship Earth, which was Miles’ one and only ride that he liked at Epcot. We went on it twice, it’s the one in the “golf ball” as Miles refers to it.  We also cavorted around the countries. Steve liked France, where his grandmother was born and raised. We had a parisian wine tasting there. Blake liked Japan as he has an affinity for anything Japanese. Lance and Miles liked the toy train display (can’t remember what country that was in!). I liked them all! We ate at the Biergarten German restaurant and I thought it was really yummy but the rest of my crew was less than impressed. Epcot is the one place that we all want to go back and spend a lot more time. Well, except Miles who is only into the kiddie rides, and Epcot doesn’t offer many!

Hollywood Studios: Aka Steve’s favorite!

I think we did every possible thing that Hollywood Studios has to offer. Steve and the older boys loved the Aerosmith Rock N’ Roller Coaster. We all loved the Toy Story 3D Ride. The Indiana Jones show was cool and contributed to Miles’ new Indiana Jones obsession. Steve loved the Backlot Movie Tour. The Star Wars ride was fun but scared Miles. No one liked the Tower of Terror except Steve. Miles had talked about this ride for weeks before our trip because Steve told him about the elevator that goes up slowly then drops. He took every opportunity to tell people about his upcoming Disney trip and the elevator. When it was time to go on the ride I was shocked that he wanted to go. Especially after the Pirate’s of the Carribean incident, he hated the drop. I tried to expain that this ride had the mother of all drops. But he insisted. So he went, without me, I might add. I sat in the lobby and waiting as I’m petrified of drops myself. He survived. He won’t be going again! The best part of Hollywood Studios for Miles was getting to meet the Power Rangers. Mommy hides her utter dislike for these guys, but Miles loves them. (gag!) He got to meet each of them but the pink one. That was the highlight of his day! There was an awesome Christmas lights display on one of the streets where it “snowed”. The boys LOVED that! And we ate at the Sci0Fi Dine in Theater where you eat in a car table. That was really neat also.

Animal Kingdom: Aka nobody’s favorite!

Animal Kingdom was cool, don’t get me wrong. But it wasn’t the best. First of all, they didn’t have Miles’ favorite popsicle, Itzakadoozie (see previous post). They didn’t have much for little kids to do either. Miles liked the triceratops ride and we went on that over and over again while Steve and the older boys did Expedition Everest a couple of times, which they loved. Steve and the boys say that it was one of the best rides in Disney. The Safari was pretty fun also. We saw a couple of neat shows and we walked and walked. Lance bought a bongo drum. The counter service restaurant wasn’t that great. The table service restaurant was ok. Steve and the older boys also loved the Dinosaur ride. Disney Dinosaur was Blake’s favorite movie when he was 3. He has been obsessed with dinosaurs ever since. He thought it was neat to ride the ride base on the movie!

Lot’s of fun we had!!! We are all looking forward to going back in a couple of years.

Our Disney Trip! Food… January 11, 2009

It’s been a month since we visited Disney and I’m just now getting around to posting about it. What can I say? The holidays are crazy for us!

We went to Disney the Saturday after Thanksgiving. We drove (took 2 days) and stayed at the All Star Music Resort. It was awesome!!! We all had such a good time! The first thing we did when we got to Orlando was to find the new Whole Foods. It was nice and big but they didn’t carry the Ener-G tapioca hamburger buns that I normally buy for Miles. Other than that I was able to get lots of snack foods, some breakfast foods for all of us and a box of Enjoy Life Chocolate Bars, Miles’ favorite thing on the planet. And the older boys love them too!

At the resort we got a suite, which had a kitchenette and allowed us to prepare food for all of us. I had read so many wonderful things about Disney and food allergies and I had emailed the food coordinator of Disney as well as spoke with one of the chefs before we left. Based on what we learned, we decided to let Miles eat the food at Disney. It wasn’t an easy decision, we never let Miles eat restaurant food with few exceptions. If we dine out as a family, we take along a laptop lunch for Miles and I usually include a special treat for Miles. He loves his laptop!

As we were assured, Disney is incredibly food allergy aware! The chefs at the resort would personally come out and take our order. They use a special gluten free blend for the Mickey Waffles and cooked the waffles on a dedicated waffle iron that is free of wheat, dairy and egg. Yippee!!! They were so good! Way better than the allergy free waffles I make at home!

We did the Disney Dining Plan, which allowed us one counter service meal, one table service meal and one snack a day. It worked out beautifully! We got an information sheet that stated all of the counter service locations for each park that would accomodate most allergies. When we went to a counter service restaurant we simply asked to speak with the manager who told us what would be safe for Miles with his particular allergies and then the manager went into the back to prepare the food or oversee the preparation. At one such restaraunt, I was pleasantly surprised to see they had tapioca hot dog buns and a safe hot dog for Miles. He was so happy!

At each of the table service restaurants the host/hostess was aware of our allergies due to the fact we alerted them when we made the reservation. The chef would come out and tell us what they could prepare that was safe for Miles. In a buffet restaurant the chef would pepare Miles’ food in the back, seperately. The chefs are all aware of the risk of cross contamination and they use dedicated, clean utensils and cooking surfaces.

All that said, Miles is allergic to many many things. His meals, with the exception of the hot dog, was always grilled chicken with some form of potato, preferably french fries. Because of the special preparation of his food, dinners always took forever. And I mean f.o.r.e.v.e.r. But, a small price to pay for safe food. The dining plan allows for a dessert with EACH meal (!) and at the counter service restaurants they had nothing that was safe for Miles. This is where the Enjoy Life chocolate bars came in handy! At the table service they always had fresh fruit and occasionally they had an Itzakadoozie popsicle (sold all over Disney, counts as a snack item), which Miles LOVED! Here’s a picture of the Itzakadoozie.

We each had a snack a day which we could use for a drink, a water, fruit, a bag of chips or an ice cream/popsicle. Miles always choose the Itzakadoozie, Blake, Lance and daddy always had a Mickey Mouse ice cream sandwich and I got a water:P The only park that doesn’t have the beloved Itzakadoozie was Animal Kingdom. I was almost went postal on a cast member. When your child can’t eat much, you rely on certain items being available. Thankfully they had an alternative, the orange fruit juice bar. Miles was VERY upset about the whole ordeal, until he learned that he could have the orange bar. Then he was fine:) They also sell a strawberry fruit bar but it may contain traces of dairy. No Thanks! The bagged candy at Disney all have cross contamination warnings but we did find a shop at Animal Planet that sold bulk candy. They had swedish fish and smarties. We hit the jackpot! We also had a cotton candy incident. The bagged cotton candy was fine for Miles to eat, albeit sticky! The cotton candy that comes in a bucket gave him a mild case of hives (req. Benadryl). There must have been some cross contamination issues, despite there not being a warning. I’m still planning on calling Disney to find out what the issue is and alert them to our incident. Hopefully they will change their labeling of this product so other kids will be safe.

Well, that’s our Disney with Food Allergies experience. My post on the parks will come next!

Update! November 23, 2008

Yes, it’s been a while. I’m not the most computer savvy gal and my sd card isn’t downloading onto my computer. What can I say? Blogs without pictures aren’t that much fun to read!

Here’s the cliff notes of the last couple of months…

My sister had a baby! Long, difficult labor. She was awesome, I’m so proud of her. I was priviledged to attend as a support person (doula). Miles and I traveled to Michigan for a few days once she went into labor. We made it in time for the birth but needed to return home.

Here is a pic of my sis holding her sweet baby Annalise and with her stepdaughter Kaitlin.

Aunt Dori and Annalise…

My boys and their brand new cousin!

And a picture from Halloween! Blake was a ghost (again!) Lance was a ninja (again!) and Miles was a firefighter (big surprise!).

Halloween was great, no serious reactions! Miles was incredibly grateful for all of the prepared chocolate and candy I provided at each house. We all had a blast!!!

I have quite a bit to post about Miles’ birthday. He’s 4 years old and I can hardly believe it! But that will come at a later date. Blake is asking for his laptop back

My dad is OK! October 7, 2008

I know, I know. This update is way overdue. That’s the story of my life! I’m one busy mama AND I’m on vacation! I’ll post about my trip soon. Right now, let’s talk about my dad:)

He had his bypass. It ended up being a trip instead of a quadruple because one of his arteries was too small to bypass, so they did an angioplasty instead. They were unable to stop his heart completely because his heart is very weak and they were concerned that they wouldn’t be able to restart it. So they used a procedure that made his heart very still in the area they worked on while the rest of his heart was still able to beat. He is recovering well, better than expected, and that is in part because of that procedure.

My dad is now recovering at home and doing very well. I’m traveling back to TX on Thursday and I’m anxious to see him. He has been given another chance at life and we are all very lucky! I’m vowing to spend more time with him. Even though he lives a mere 45 minutes away, I get caught up in the daily grind of life and raising my three sons and I don’t make enough time for my dad. I didn’t have this opportunity when I lived in Michigan and I need to make the most of it. I love my dad and I’m looking forward to many more years of memories!

Thanks for your well wishes and prayers:)