Dancin' Queen

Kaylee started dance class today.  She is doing a combination tap and ballet class.  I have a feeling this is totally going to be her thing.  She loves to dance.  Nathan's hopes of her being the next Mia Hamm dwindled when she started dancing on the soccer field last year.  However, during dance class, she glowed.  I hope she continues to enjoy it.  Now, if we can just work on her listening skills!!

Fun with Friends

I had a great time last night with my friends from college.  We had dinner at a Mexican restaurant and then went bowling.  It had been like 10 years since I went bowling (other than playing on the Wii).  It was not a pretty sight.  The gutter is my friend.  Please check out my friend Jennifer's blog for some great pictures of last night and college.  I love these girls and had so much fun!!

Allergy Update

Nolan tested negative for Celiac disease.  Yea!!  However, the doctor referred us to an allergist today at Dallas Medical City.  We were lucky enough to get in today.  Quick synopsis:  We spent about 3 hours at Dr. W's office.  It was very educational.  They first did a complete history and interview. Then, the doctor examined him and looked over his latex reaction.  After examining him, he said, "I am going to have one of my team members take the kids into another room to play because we have a lot to talk about."  My heart sank.  I began the worrying process.  He started by educating us on all allergies.  Then, he discussed what his concerns were for Nolan.  We were told what to avoid and that we would become very acquainted with Whole Foods.  He had one of his educators come in and teach us several things such as: asthma signs to look for, allergy signs to look for, how to use the EpiPen we were given along with a DVD to take home, and 5 yellow credit cards that list all the ingredients he cannot have.  There is a card for milk, wheat, soy, peanut, and egg.  Each card has about 20-30 items to avoid on it.  We were also given instructions on how to bathe him and treat his eczema.  We were given three prescriptions and told to avoid all of these foods for a month.  Then, we will go back and meet with him.  We may be able to begin re-introducing some of the foods (wheat, egg).  However, milk will not be re-introduced until he is at least 4 and that will be a Food Challenge in the office.  He will be closely monitored by medical professionals as spends several hours taking sips of milk every few hours.  Anyway, there is a TON more information, but my brain is overloaded right now.  I promised an update, so I just wanted to give everyone  a quick rundown.  I tried to go to Sprouts tonight and had a bit of a mini-meltdown as I picked up every label to read.  Almost everything I picked up had something on one of the yellow cards.  We may live on fruits and veggies around here for awhile.  Thank goodness Nolan loves fruit and he is getting most of his nutrients from Alimentum right now.  Thank you for all of your support during this new era in our lives!!

Allergies are no fun!

Please say a little prayer for Nolan.  We are waiting on some test results for him.  We went to the doctor last week and she sent us to get bloodwork done to determine what all he is allergic to.  Well, to start off with, we know he is allergic to latex now.  He had a reaction to the latex gloves they used when drawing the blood.  He has all of these sores all over his arms.  You can see where the nurse's fingertips were touching him.  They look like little burns on his arm.  Then, he had scraped his knee last week and I put a band-aid on him.  What started out as a sore the size of a pencil eraser turned into a sore bigger than a quarter and you could see where the band-aid was stuck to him.  The band-aid had latex in it.  So, now we have to find latex-free band-aids.  We got some results on Friday.  Nolan is mildly allergic to egg whites, he is never to let a peanut touch him, and allergic to wheat, corn, and soy.  Those last three things are in every label you pick up!!  I am having a hard time finding snacks for this boy!  We should get the rest of the results today or tomorrow and then discuss more of this with the doctor.  They are testing him for Celiac Disease.  I can live with food allergies, but if it is Celiac disease, which is basically a gluten allergy, that is something he can never outgrow. And, the whole family will have to change our diet to avoid cross-contamination.  At least he is a very happy little boy!  So, please say a little prayer for us.  I will keep everyone updated when we find out.