Yeah, time flies! Got super busy with the Etsy shop holiday sales in Nov/Dec, then had a nice vacation with friends down in Missouri. Got home just in time for Kaiden to start preschool . . . yes, that's right! Kaiden's in preschool!! He's not even 3 yet! Close, anyway, in a few weeks he'll be 3.
Kaiden's up to 5 walking steps unassisted; he doesn't do it often though. But, with preschool 3x per week, he gets to be around other very mobile kids and should pick up some motivation and skills from them. He has 5 other classmates, 2 boys and 3 girls. I sat thru Kaiden's first day (fairly out of his sight) just in case he had any issues. He did pretty good; they have a good program and the kids stay busy all the time.
We are still working on self-feeding; Kaiden will easily feed himself as long as we provide the loaded spoon. He isn't yet scooping the food himself and still refuses to finger feed. He'll touch the food and pick it up, squish it and throw it or feed it to Lola, but will not bring it to his own mouth.
On the cookbook front, I think I have enough recipes to publish, but now I need to get a few nice place settings so I can start photographing the meals to go with the recipes. It's going to be a long process! I doubt everything will have a photo, but I'll provide as many as I can.
Right now I'm trying to sit back and take it easy; the last few months have been such a whirlwind of activity and taking a few days off and doing pretty much nothing sounds very appealing! Whether or not I can sit still that long . . . I don't know. I already have a list of stuff to do piling up!
Saturday, January 14, 2012
Monday, October 17, 2011
So it appears my bathroom has fleas.
Not what I expected! YUCK!! Weird thing is, the dog doesn't appear to have fleas. My couch doesn't have fleas. Both her beds, upstairs and down, don't have fleas. The rest of my house doesn't have fleas. But my upstairs bathroom where she rarely resides? I caught and flushed 2 fleas this morning! To be fair, in early September Lola was outside in a known flea friendly area and I hadn't treated her before or after. So the plan for today: run to Walmart and get a spray bottle. Then I am making a natural flea repellant for the dog and the house. This is supposed to work on ticks and mosquitoes as well. I sure hope it works on those horrible little black biting bugs that are out enmasse right now.
Essential oils to use in a recipe I found:
Lavender
Citronella
Cedar - I have cypress, that should be close enough
Peppermint
Eucalyptus
Lemongrass
I think I'll add some tea tree, oregano, geranium, and rosemary. Depending on the scent, I may add some sweet orange, but the lemongrass and lavender should react nicely with the oregano essential oil. That one, while highly useful, in my opinion, stinks!
I gotta say though, this is a benefit of raw feeding. With all our other dogs, they were all on kibble and every one of them had dry flaky skin and could definitely use a bath at least once per month, preferably more often. They would get that greasy buildup and dander - but Lola? Not since switching to raw feeding. Her skin is beautiful, no greasy buildup, and even better - she smells rather pleasant and not dog-like! This is probably why I found only 2 fleas and not 1,000. :)
Essential oils to use in a recipe I found:
Lavender
Citronella
Cedar - I have cypress, that should be close enough
Peppermint
Eucalyptus
Lemongrass
I think I'll add some tea tree, oregano, geranium, and rosemary. Depending on the scent, I may add some sweet orange, but the lemongrass and lavender should react nicely with the oregano essential oil. That one, while highly useful, in my opinion, stinks!
I gotta say though, this is a benefit of raw feeding. With all our other dogs, they were all on kibble and every one of them had dry flaky skin and could definitely use a bath at least once per month, preferably more often. They would get that greasy buildup and dander - but Lola? Not since switching to raw feeding. Her skin is beautiful, no greasy buildup, and even better - she smells rather pleasant and not dog-like! This is probably why I found only 2 fleas and not 1,000. :)
Sunday, October 9, 2011
Evolution or De-Evolution?
More from my "I'm wide awake in the middle of the night" thoughts . . . Is the human race continuing to evolve, or are we de-evolving?
With all the advancements in modern medicine (hey, I don't hate it ALL) look how many people are able to lead happy healthy productive lives and produce children of their own . . . people that without medical intervention would never have survived to procreate. Since we value people so highly, most people think this is a wonderful thing! And it is. :) But thinking about it strictly from a Survival of the Fittest approach . . . what kind of genetics have those people passed on to the next generations? Some genetics don't seem to matter too much while others do.
Look at all the kids born in today's world that become autistic, have Down Syndrome, ADD, ADHD, or any number of other issues that I can't remember the acronyms for. Looking back at the last 100 years or even further, we didn't use to have THAT many of these kids with issues. So . . .what's causing this? Is it strictly genetic, strictly environmental, or both? Well, with the discovery of autism related genes and we know that Down's is the extra 21st chromosome (that most agree now happens at conception but still don't know WHY it happens) . . . let's go genetic.
But, seeing how going back to the basics of GFCF, Specific Carbhydrate, and nightshade free diets, along with the help of therapies and supplements, has helped so many kids recover significantly if not fully recover . . . it has to be environmental too since they get worse on today's Standard American Diet that doctors so highly recommend.
So how did we get here? Did we evolve to have those genetic predispositions by way of helping those to survive that under "Survival of the Fittest" would otherwise not have survived? Is it that the older generations adapted to the new processed foods, but it changed their genetics giving rise to these new genetics? And can you really call it "evolution" thinking it means moving forward when we have to go back to basics to heal our kids . . . should it be called de-evolution because we need simpler, unprocessed foods?
Yeah, this is the kind of thing I think about when I'm wide awake at night . . .
With all the advancements in modern medicine (hey, I don't hate it ALL) look how many people are able to lead happy healthy productive lives and produce children of their own . . . people that without medical intervention would never have survived to procreate. Since we value people so highly, most people think this is a wonderful thing! And it is. :) But thinking about it strictly from a Survival of the Fittest approach . . . what kind of genetics have those people passed on to the next generations? Some genetics don't seem to matter too much while others do.
Look at all the kids born in today's world that become autistic, have Down Syndrome, ADD, ADHD, or any number of other issues that I can't remember the acronyms for. Looking back at the last 100 years or even further, we didn't use to have THAT many of these kids with issues. So . . .what's causing this? Is it strictly genetic, strictly environmental, or both? Well, with the discovery of autism related genes and we know that Down's is the extra 21st chromosome (that most agree now happens at conception but still don't know WHY it happens) . . . let's go genetic.
But, seeing how going back to the basics of GFCF, Specific Carbhydrate, and nightshade free diets, along with the help of therapies and supplements, has helped so many kids recover significantly if not fully recover . . . it has to be environmental too since they get worse on today's Standard American Diet that doctors so highly recommend.
So how did we get here? Did we evolve to have those genetic predispositions by way of helping those to survive that under "Survival of the Fittest" would otherwise not have survived? Is it that the older generations adapted to the new processed foods, but it changed their genetics giving rise to these new genetics? And can you really call it "evolution" thinking it means moving forward when we have to go back to basics to heal our kids . . . should it be called de-evolution because we need simpler, unprocessed foods?
Yeah, this is the kind of thing I think about when I'm wide awake at night . . .
Saturday, October 8, 2011
Serious stuff for the day
I was reading a blog interview with the creator of Crappy Pictures (which are totally hilarious, by the way!). She talked about seeing that "perfect mom" in the grocery store who is always put together; her kids are spotless and well behaved. Huh. This just made me think a little since Kaiden is getting much more mobile and is very store-shelf grabby. Right now I think he's fun to shop with . . . although I'm sure that's going to change and soon I'll be begging people to babysit just so I can spend a few peaceul moments by myself at the grocery store!
Sometimes I feel like I try to project that Perfect Mom image. When I get dressed for the day, I try to look "put together", I like it and it makes me feel like I can accomplish more . . . I don't know why, but everyone likes to look good, right? So when I think Kaiden's going to be messy, I don my apron to save my clothes - which really is just because I don't care if the apron gets stained, but I don't want to have to do special laundry for a stained shirt. I'm lazy like that. And my apron is pretty, so of course I like wearing it. I do make sure Kaiden is clean before we head out the door anyway. Or at least in a clean diaper with a clean face. And Kaiden is fairly well-behaved in the stores . . . as long as I keep the cart moving.
But this isn't my point.
My point is, back when Kaiden was having seizures and wasn't doing much of anything at all . . . it was easy to look like that Perfect Mom. But little did anyone that saw us know how frustrating life with a special needs child can be. While that was a really rough time, I am thankful for it since it makes me REALLY appreciate how Kaiden is now.
So, the next time you see that Perfect Mom and think she's got it all and you sometimes wish you had that life . . . remember that things aren't always what they seem.
Sometimes I feel like I try to project that Perfect Mom image. When I get dressed for the day, I try to look "put together", I like it and it makes me feel like I can accomplish more . . . I don't know why, but everyone likes to look good, right? So when I think Kaiden's going to be messy, I don my apron to save my clothes - which really is just because I don't care if the apron gets stained, but I don't want to have to do special laundry for a stained shirt. I'm lazy like that. And my apron is pretty, so of course I like wearing it. I do make sure Kaiden is clean before we head out the door anyway. Or at least in a clean diaper with a clean face. And Kaiden is fairly well-behaved in the stores . . . as long as I keep the cart moving.
But this isn't my point.
My point is, back when Kaiden was having seizures and wasn't doing much of anything at all . . . it was easy to look like that Perfect Mom. But little did anyone that saw us know how frustrating life with a special needs child can be. While that was a really rough time, I am thankful for it since it makes me REALLY appreciate how Kaiden is now.
So, the next time you see that Perfect Mom and think she's got it all and you sometimes wish you had that life . . . remember that things aren't always what they seem.
Wednesday, September 14, 2011
Sept already?
I know, I know, I really need to update more often. Today is Sept 14th and on the news they're talking possibly a killing frost tonight! Early winter??? Kaiden got to sleep in his zip up fleece pj's with feet last night. They still fit . . . for now . . . good thing I have the next size up stored away.
The self feeding is going well. This week marks 5 weeks into it. The refusal is totally gone, so now we're just focusing on improving his skills. He will now bring a loaded spoon to his mouth and eat no problem all by himself, but occasionally flips the spoon like any toddler. We're still working on getting him to load the spoon; he doesn't dip the spoon far enough into the food.
For those out there that think working with crystals (aka rocks) is total bunk, let me tell you it isn't! The weekend before last we spent down in Missouri with friends and 3 of us did some energy work on Kaiden, focusing on his arms. Part of the self feeding issue was that he would not move his upper right arm - not that he couldn't, but wouldn't. I had to pull his arm away from his body. I didn't tell my friends about the upper arm thing; and both of them once we were done mentioned their upper right arms hurt. The next day, Kaiden's upper arm movement was free. Last night since the moon was still nice and full (yeah, yeah, I hear you, it's all crap . . . really, no it isn't. Unless you've had personal experience with it please don't denounce it. I could go into detail about all the amazing things that happened during our energy session, but that's for another time/place.) I recharged the crystals and did more energy work, this time focusing on his fingers to help improve his fine motor skills.
Part of my theory with Kaiden and the energy work - his therapists have introduced us to the Masgutova Method, which has to do with reflexes. The theory there is that preemies (regardless of genetic condition) don't get that scrunched up time in the womb and because of that, have issues with movement and motor skills. There's a lot more to the Masgutova Method but this is the part that applies here; Kaiden's body movements have been, well, not quite right. We've been working with this method and seen improvements so it stands to reason as to why the energy work has been successful as well.
That's it for now; today is a super busy day!
The self feeding is going well. This week marks 5 weeks into it. The refusal is totally gone, so now we're just focusing on improving his skills. He will now bring a loaded spoon to his mouth and eat no problem all by himself, but occasionally flips the spoon like any toddler. We're still working on getting him to load the spoon; he doesn't dip the spoon far enough into the food.
For those out there that think working with crystals (aka rocks) is total bunk, let me tell you it isn't! The weekend before last we spent down in Missouri with friends and 3 of us did some energy work on Kaiden, focusing on his arms. Part of the self feeding issue was that he would not move his upper right arm - not that he couldn't, but wouldn't. I had to pull his arm away from his body. I didn't tell my friends about the upper arm thing; and both of them once we were done mentioned their upper right arms hurt. The next day, Kaiden's upper arm movement was free. Last night since the moon was still nice and full (yeah, yeah, I hear you, it's all crap . . . really, no it isn't. Unless you've had personal experience with it please don't denounce it. I could go into detail about all the amazing things that happened during our energy session, but that's for another time/place.) I recharged the crystals and did more energy work, this time focusing on his fingers to help improve his fine motor skills.
Part of my theory with Kaiden and the energy work - his therapists have introduced us to the Masgutova Method, which has to do with reflexes. The theory there is that preemies (regardless of genetic condition) don't get that scrunched up time in the womb and because of that, have issues with movement and motor skills. There's a lot more to the Masgutova Method but this is the part that applies here; Kaiden's body movements have been, well, not quite right. We've been working with this method and seen improvements so it stands to reason as to why the energy work has been successful as well.
That's it for now; today is a super busy day!
Friday, August 12, 2011
Self-feeding
oh yeah, I almost forgot - and how could I seeing as this has consumed us this week!
Monday Kaiden threw the worst all-day tantrum, ever. All because I'd held his spoon in my left hand instead of my right, in hopes that he would begin to immitate me that way (mirror image) since I think he's right handed.
So . . . after all that drama out of a 2 yr old where he clearly let me know he could, he just doesn't WANT to self feed. . . I'd had enough and decided he WILL begin self feeding, NOW. I've tried every method I could think of and nothing has worked; now I get to out-stubborn him. I strongarmed him, and forced hand-over-hand feeding. I had to pull his little arm away from his side, wrap his little fingers around the spoon, bend his little elbow, and force the spoon to his mouth. Then get him to open his mouth and accept the food. And lots and lots of praise for anything that went right! I've been documenting his progress with pictures on Facebook. Yesterday was the first day that didn't involve screaming and tears but we still had plenty of "mad face" and whining; today at lunch was the first meal that didn't involve screaming/tears/mad face/whining! And we even had cooperation! I only had to prompt him to pick up the spoon about 25% of the time.
I imagine I'll be doing hand over hand guiding the spoon to his mouth for awhile until his aim is reliable but I'm okay with that. We're making progress!
Monday Kaiden threw the worst all-day tantrum, ever. All because I'd held his spoon in my left hand instead of my right, in hopes that he would begin to immitate me that way (mirror image) since I think he's right handed.
So . . . after all that drama out of a 2 yr old where he clearly let me know he could, he just doesn't WANT to self feed. . . I'd had enough and decided he WILL begin self feeding, NOW. I've tried every method I could think of and nothing has worked; now I get to out-stubborn him. I strongarmed him, and forced hand-over-hand feeding. I had to pull his little arm away from his side, wrap his little fingers around the spoon, bend his little elbow, and force the spoon to his mouth. Then get him to open his mouth and accept the food. And lots and lots of praise for anything that went right! I've been documenting his progress with pictures on Facebook. Yesterday was the first day that didn't involve screaming and tears but we still had plenty of "mad face" and whining; today at lunch was the first meal that didn't involve screaming/tears/mad face/whining! And we even had cooperation! I only had to prompt him to pick up the spoon about 25% of the time.
I imagine I'll be doing hand over hand guiding the spoon to his mouth for awhile until his aim is reliable but I'm okay with that. We're making progress!
Clinoptilolite Zeolite, anyone?
Really, I was only looking for the ingredient list to Rockin' Green's new "ammonia bouncer" stuff, as we are currently experiencing some cloth diaper ammonia issues thanks to a laundring mistake I made in June. Since no one else online can find the list, they must not list it on the package. I don't have a package, and I'm not going to order one just to find out - so I did my best looking at pictures of the package online.
** I get proprietary information and all, but is it fair to the consumer to list your product as all natural if you won't disclose the ingredients? **
ANYWAY . . . since it didn't list what they use, I looked up "natural ammonia remover" and came up with clinoptilolite zeolite, which forms (over 50,000 years) when volcanic stuff meets seawater. And then I read about its uses as a garden aid, dietary supplement for livestock, even dietary supplement for humans. And it's been touted as a cure for everything (really, what natural product hasn't, these days!!) and says on many websites that it is used in the treatment of autism and down syndrome. It doesn't say anything about clinical trials, just a few peoples' online testimony. It's also sold as cat litter (not the clumping kind). Oh, and don't forget, a cure for cancer. (But don't inhale it or you'll likely end up with mesothelioma.)
What it does is adsorb (not absorb) ammonia (among many other things) and transport it out of the body. With regard to cat litter, it's supposed to cut down the odor. Alright, so since this stuff has so many widespread uses, I thought I'd try it. If nothing else, it should make for great garden fertilizer!
I purchased a 25lb "garden aid" bag off Amazon (since nobody here in town carries it) for under $9. Shipping was expensive due to the weight, but still cheaper than buying the exact same single ingredient sold as a dietary supplement for 4x the price, yet less than 1/25th the size. Nice, right?
So, I'll try adding it to the water when washing diapers. Hopefully it will take care of the ammonia issue there. I can sprinkle some out in Lola's outdoor area. Should keep down what little stink we do have out there (although raw feeding has gone a long way to cutting down the stink!). I'll probably even add some to the garden this fall as fertilizer.
And on to Kaiden . . . I'll give it a try myself first to see if I notice any difference - but in regards to T21, ammonia is supposed to accumulate in the brain thanks to the overabundance of glutamate from the extra chromosome. And clinoptilolite zeolite is supposed to adsorb ammonia and transport it out of the body. We'll see what happens. If nothing else, it certainly can't hurt Kaiden unless he sticks his nose in the bag and inhales, repeatedly.
** I get proprietary information and all, but is it fair to the consumer to list your product as all natural if you won't disclose the ingredients? **
ANYWAY . . . since it didn't list what they use, I looked up "natural ammonia remover" and came up with clinoptilolite zeolite, which forms (over 50,000 years) when volcanic stuff meets seawater. And then I read about its uses as a garden aid, dietary supplement for livestock, even dietary supplement for humans. And it's been touted as a cure for everything (really, what natural product hasn't, these days!!) and says on many websites that it is used in the treatment of autism and down syndrome. It doesn't say anything about clinical trials, just a few peoples' online testimony. It's also sold as cat litter (not the clumping kind). Oh, and don't forget, a cure for cancer. (But don't inhale it or you'll likely end up with mesothelioma.)
What it does is adsorb (not absorb) ammonia (among many other things) and transport it out of the body. With regard to cat litter, it's supposed to cut down the odor. Alright, so since this stuff has so many widespread uses, I thought I'd try it. If nothing else, it should make for great garden fertilizer!
I purchased a 25lb "garden aid" bag off Amazon (since nobody here in town carries it) for under $9. Shipping was expensive due to the weight, but still cheaper than buying the exact same single ingredient sold as a dietary supplement for 4x the price, yet less than 1/25th the size. Nice, right?
So, I'll try adding it to the water when washing diapers. Hopefully it will take care of the ammonia issue there. I can sprinkle some out in Lola's outdoor area. Should keep down what little stink we do have out there (although raw feeding has gone a long way to cutting down the stink!). I'll probably even add some to the garden this fall as fertilizer.
And on to Kaiden . . . I'll give it a try myself first to see if I notice any difference - but in regards to T21, ammonia is supposed to accumulate in the brain thanks to the overabundance of glutamate from the extra chromosome. And clinoptilolite zeolite is supposed to adsorb ammonia and transport it out of the body. We'll see what happens. If nothing else, it certainly can't hurt Kaiden unless he sticks his nose in the bag and inhales, repeatedly.
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