Hop On Pop

We're so glad when Daddy comes home.

Glad as we can be!

Clap our hands and shout for joy and...

Got Soy?

We took Ryker to the allergist today to have him tested. They tested him for milk, soy, peanut, wheat, egg, and casein (I think it's a form of dairy added to some products). The good news is that he doesn't have any soy or peanut allergies. However, he is very allergic to milk (which we were already pretty certain about) and eggs. The wheat caused a slight reaction so we had some blood drawn to see how extensive the wheat allergy is. Hopefully it's nothing. About 80% of kids outgrow the dairy allergy by the time they turn five. I'm not sure if the egg allergy will go away or not.

We go back in two weeks for a follow-up. For the next couple of months (or until Ryker is no longer nursing) I am also off dairy. No milk. No ice cream. No yogurt. No cheese. Even though it's going to take some time and some major product label reading it's totally worth it. I would do a lot more than just give up dairy for my little bean. I can drink soy...though I don't think there will be any of that going on. Ü

Here is a small sample of the things that Ryker won't be consuming in the next few years (I was really surprised about some of the things that have milk/eggs):
donuts, ice cream, root beer, pretzels, cake, cookies, french toast, egg noodles or pasta, meatloaf, frosting, pancakes, waffles, butter, margarine, mayonnaise. Will he ever gain weight?

Any ideas on what to serve for his first birthday? I suppose I can make a milk-free, egg-free, and frosting-free cake. The internet has to have something, right?

9 Months

• 15 lbs 2 oz
• 28 inches
• 100% lovable

The doctor is pretty sure that it's not a wheat allergy, but could be a penicillin allergy instead. Ryker had an ear infection and was on ammoxcillin a few weeks ago. He had finished his antibiotic two days before he started with the hives so we didn't think to tie them together. Since it was his first exposure to the penicillin it would take a few weeks for his body to react...about the time that he started with hives. We may never know what caused the reaction, but we have an appointment on Tuesday with an allergist to have a panel done. Hopefully we'll leave with some answers and peace of mind.

Looking For Answers

Last Monday morning I noticed that Ryker had a little red welty spot on his face. It was gone within about 15 minutes so I didn't think much of it. It was probably just his skin being sensitive (poor kid get my terrible skin). When he woke up from his nap a few hours later he had two larger spots on his forehead (about the size of silver dollars). I was immediately worried. Brian reassured me that he was probably okay and just to watch him. Just like the spot early they were gone with the half hour.

Hours later we were running errands. Ryker was really upset as we were trying to make the last few stops...but that's not unusual, he doesn't care much for his car seat. The last stop was dinner. Jaxon and I went into Quizno's to get dinner while Brian stayed in the car with Ryker. We had only been in line for a minute or two when Brian came in holding Ryker. Ryker's entire face was covered in hives...he looked so swollen and miserable. I quickly grabbed Jaxon and we headed for the door. I insisted we go straight to Wee Care or the ER....I was a nervous wreck! Again Brian calmed me down and told me that they would just give him Benadryl and tell us to watch him. We stopped at Walmart and dosed him with Benadryl right there in the parking lot. The hives started improving within minutes.

We tried to think through the day to determine if he had eaten anything new, been exposed to anything. We couldn't think of anything.

The next two days were the same. None of the reactions were quite as bad as that first night, but he would still break out in hives. Nothing was consistent. We monitored the food he was eating. Nothing new and it didn't always end in hives. Sometimes he woke up with hives, sometimes he didn't. We moved him into our room to see if it was something in his room that was bothering him. We bought dye and fragrance free detergent and washed all of his clothes, blankets, stuffed animals. Still nothing.

The only change we could figure was that I had made wheat bread on Monday for the first time. Monday was the worst day and it was the day that I had my hands in the wheat dough. Monday and Tuesday I ate some of the bread. We knew that it would take a few days for the wheat to be out of my system. Brian broke open one of the wheat grains and put it on Ryker's back to test our theory. Sure enough, he got a hive right where the wheat had been.

We are going to the doctor tomorrow for Ryker's 9 month well-check visit. Hopefully the doc will give us some answers. I sure hope Ryker doesn't have a wheat allergy (wheat is in everything!) but I suppose it could be worse. I would like to have him go through some allergy testing to see if there are other allergies. I would hate for him to have a serious allergic reaction (anaphylactic shock or something) to something that could have been prevented.

This was taken on Wednesday. It was hard to get a good picture, but you can kind of see the hives on his cheek, arm, and neck.

Because He Dreamed...

Because he was willing to take a stand for something he believed in. Because he had the courage to let his voice be heard in the crowd. Because he dreamed...and then did something about it...

... So many other dreams have come true.

"For as much as government can do and must do, it is ultimately the faith and determination of the American people upon which this nation relies. It is the kindness to take in a stranger when the levees break, the selflessness of workers who would rather cut their hours than see a friend lose their job which sees us through our darkest hours. It is the firefighter's courage to storm a stairway filled with smoke, but also a parent's willingness to nurture a child, that finally decides our fate."

-President Barack Obama Inauguration speech

The Last Hoorah

There's a certain feeling in the air when thousands of people gather with one purpose...

Unity, love, loyalty, admiration
Thank you Utah for an exceptional season!

Ringing In The New Year

Every New Year's Eve we get together with Brian's family....brothers, sisters, mom, dad, aunts, uncles, cousins...the whole kit and kaboodle. We always have a fun time and this year was no exception.

Brian and Jaxon watching a sports program in the hotel room.B.I.N.G.O

We play a gazillion rounds of Bingo to kill the time before midnight. In the past one family was in charge of all the bingo prizes. This year every family brought a few bingo prizes to throw in the pot. There were some fun prizes this year. Movies, hair-care products, candy, playdough, toys.Jaxon with one of his prizes. We thought it was going to be a big Laffy Taffy. Ended up being a Slim Jim...gross! I'm not sure who, if anyone, ended up eating it. It certainly wasn't Jaxon!
Ryker enjoyed being held by all his surrogate mothers and fathers...and chewing on hotwheels.

Emily and Julie being cute....

Tyler being...Tyler! Ryker didn't quite make it to welcome in the new year.... Jaxon and Carter, however, were wrestling well into 2009!

2008 was absolutely great! Here are a few of our big milestones:

• January/February-Jaxon and I survived 4 weeks with Brian in Denver

• April 21st- Ryker joined our family, I survived a c-section

• July- I left the classroom to be home with the boys full-time

• August- Brian graduated from the U of U as a Physician's Assistant, Jaxon turned 4

• September-Jaxon started preschool, Brian passed his board exams

• October-Brian started work with Excell Medical

What's in store for 2009?

Cinco Cinco

5 Things I was doing 10 years ago...
(I just had to consult my journal to know what was going on in my life 10 years ago...shows how exciting my life was!)
1. Attending WSU (studying journalism...it didn't last long)
2. Skiing at least once a week...ah, those were the days!
3. Writing a missionary (and apparently I didn't know how I was going to survive if a letter didn't come soon! Sure am glad that didn't work out!)
4. Planning a trip to Hawaii with friends
5. Getting excited for my sister's upcoming wedding (Happy 10th Jen and Dave!)

5 Things on my "to do list" tomorrow(since it's 10 o'clock Sunday night)...
1. Make bread
2. Update this blog {finally}
3. Change the sheets
4. Wash the kitchen floor
5. Play with my boys

5 Snacks I Love...
1. Swedish Fish
2. Tootsie Rolls (especially the fruity ones)
3. Bread
4. Clementines (Cuties!)
5. Kettle Corn Popcorn

5 Things I would do if I was a billionaire...
1. Hand out ridiculously large sums of money to random people (Did you hear about the man handing out hundred-dollar bills at the D.I.? I want to be that guy!)
2. Buy Brian a real helicopter (it would have to be crash-proof ;)
3. Build our dream house and actually decorate it (meaning hire Katee, Heather, and Kristin to do it for me!)
4. Travel to all the exotic places I've only read about in books
5. Save most of it (I know, how boring! But really that's probably what I would do!)

5 Friends that I will tag...
1.Eenie
2.Meenie
3. Minie
4. Moe and...
5. You!