A This-kit a That-skit...

I'll assume you all got the reference up there and shall continue.. ; )

At the beginning of the day I felt like there was a whole lot I wanted to post about... but now that it's later I may not be able to remember it all. (Warning: this will be long and probably unorganized.) Let's see...

Well, for one we're getting a new roof! Hoh yeah.. it's going to be awesome. I picked the color out myself... teak.. whatever that means. It's a brownish color that looks better than the one Drew picked out. I wanted it to be even more chocolate-y brown, but Drew was like, "I don't know about a brown roof with a green house." I was like, "Are you kidding?.. green and brown?.. that's what all of nature is!" Well, I still didn't get that awesome color, but I got the next best thing. Teak. The roofing guy said our install should be set up within two weeks! Woo woo! That hail storm really did us in. Insurance is covering it and everything. Thank goodness.. we were going to have to get a new roof next year as it was!

Next up is my wheat and dairy trial. So as I may or may not have already said in a previous post, at one of Ari's recent checkups (I think it was the head rash one, or maybe it was the 9 month one on Monday?..) our doctor told me to start trying to reintroduce wheat/dairy one at a time as I could handle it. She wants Ari to start being exposed to it via nursing so that he hopefully won't be allergic to it also once he starts eating it after around a year old. She wanted me to begin with trying to eat something with wheat in it every other day.

So, I have followed what she said, and it has been going pretty well. My stomach hasn't been hurting at all! I have been experiencing some gas (sorry) after eating wheat. But in the past few days I have also started to get more congested. This morning, I woke up with a scratchy throat and feeling even more congested. Are they related, or do I just have a cold? If I do have a cold, did I get it because my immune system was compromised by trying to deal with the allergens I've been giving it? And if it is only a cold, could my eating wheat (which I am allergic to) be making my congestion worse? I don't know the answer to any of these things, or what to do about it. I think I will give myself an additional day or two between wheat ingestions and maybe decrease the amount of wheat I eat for a couple of dosages as well. I hope that I will feel better soon, and that Drew and Ari won't get sick as well.

Okay, so on to my most recent A & P II test... hold on.. before I moan about how my grade is still not posted, I'm going to double check here and make sure he didn't snake it in while I'm writing this...(*one-minute-pause*).. WOAH! He actually did snake it in while I was writing this!! Okay.. so I did not do as well this time. 89/100 percent, which in case you don't know.. is not quite an A.

Grrrr. I totally deserve it though. I waited to the last minute to study again, and it was a HARD test. In my opinion, much harder than the first one. Ugh. Maybe I can argue my way into a few more points and sneak into the A-range. There were some questions that were really unclear. (and I'm not just saying that because of my grade.. they were really confusing) I'm still happy though. I'm getting an A overall, and I think this just might be the motivation I needed to get my butt in gear and stop procrastinating so much (I'm going to have to add a "procrastination" label to this blog). I swear I will try to do better and study in manageable chunks this time. Anyways, so glad to know my grade... I will sleep better tonight. = D

What else... oh! That's right.. the darn food issue again. Okay, so I will preface this by saying that I feel sooo blessed. Many new moms have trouble figuring out nursing/latching/all that stuff. I never did. Nursing has really been a breeze overall for me. But I am telling you, this darn switching over to semi-real (baby food) and real foods is giving me such a headache!! Ugh. It seriously just makes me want to go back to 100% nursing. Of course I won't. I'm just venting. But really, what is so hard about this for me?

I think it's the "don't feed him this yet because of allergies", "don't feed him that because he can choke on it", "don't feed him more than one thing at a time and three days in between new foods because then you'll know what caused a reaction if he has one", "but make sure that you're exposing him to a much wider variety of foods now". One book tells me to feed him X, the next says not to. Another book tells me to feed him cheerios at 9 months for finger foods but to wait until one year old to give him wheat. HELLO!!! CHEERIOS HAVE WHEAT STARCH IN THEM, which is from WHEAT!!!

Okay.. give me a second here... (*deep inhale... deep exhale*)..

..alright, I'm back. So anyways, perhaps you can understand my frustration. Or perhaps your baby came with a manual that does not have conflicting information. I dunno. I AM going to start trying to make my own foods for Ari. The canned Gerber foods don't have enough variety. I think I will try freezing little ice cube trays of mushed up cooked foods for him so that they are readily accessible.

You know, it's funny. When you're up at 1am in the morning feeding a newborn, and then up at 4am again, and 7am, etc, etc.. you think, "Gosh, I sure can't wait until he doesn't need to feed this often, and I get more sleep, and it gets easier".. but it really never does. I mean, you do get more sleep, which should theoretically help you deal with the stress of figuring things out better.. but if it's not one thing, it's another! There's always something else that comes along that you are unprepared for and you have to start from point A all over again until you figure that thing out, and then the next thing comes...

I really do love being a mom though, I just really hate this whole FOOD thing. If you got a different idea from the previous couple of paragraphs, then you misunderstand me. You see, this is my blog... a place where I can vent and people don't HAVE to hear it. I can emote and it doesn't HAVE to ruin someone else's mood. You can just go to a different website if I'm boring you or stressing you out.. which maybe some of you already have. I say, good for you. I'm just super glad that I can get all of this off my chest and fall asleep easily, rather than mulling it all over again and again in my brain as I lie in bed tonight. Tomorrow is a new day and I will again try to do the best I can do with what is given to me. = )

So thanks for listening.. blog. Goodnight. = D

Test Today...

I have an A&P II test this evening. But all I want to do is crawl back in bed. I am SOOO tired!!

Ugh. I am going to exercise every bit of power I have to go over to the table, sit down and start studying.

I studied for about an hour yesterday, but that's about it so far. I have a feeling that I have done myself in this time. Only God and 6 hours of studying (minus all the time Ari will consume) can help me now.

Off I go. I'll let you know how it went... after the test. ; )

Ari's 9-month Checkup!

Ari had his 9-month checkup today!

I cannot believe he is already 9 months old. It seems like just yesterday that I was finishing packing my hospital bag to head to the hospital when my water broke! (I did not pack my bag ahead of time...and I advise against it)

I didn't realize it, but Ari wasn't due for any immunizations for this checkup, so that was nice! I did have the option to get him the flu vaccine, but after talking to my doctor about all factors involved, we decided it was not the best decision to give it to him right now.

So, his stats. Ari now weights 20 lbs 7 oz and is 29.25 inches long! He is in the 50th percentile for weight (still), and now the 82nd percentile for height. Still a very tall little guy!

The funnest part about this visit (not) was that Ari got to have his penile adhesion separated. Oh joy. We have been putting hydrocortisone on the area at night for a few months now. As also instructed, I gave him a nice warm bath right before bringing him in so that the skin would be softer. He really didn't cry a whole lot at all when she pulled it apart. We're supposed to continue with hydrocortisone for a while until the skin heals. We're also supposed to MAKE SURE to pull back the shaft skin all the way each time we change his diaper so that the skin won't reattach. Why wasn't I taught all of this in the first place at the hospital after he got circumcised? Grrr.

Not all of the skin was ready to be freed, so we're supposed to continue to put hydrocortisone on for another month or so and do the bath/pull apart thing again. After watching his pediatrician to it this time, I feel confident that I can do it myself next time. It's a much smaller part that needs to be set free now.

His doctor told me that Ari doesn't need to have easy to swallow babyfood anymore, and that he can also start having a much wider variety of foods. She said that I can just make them myself at home and grind them to a consistency that he can handle. That's nice.. but a lot more work for me. ; )

So, I think that's it. My brain is not feeling very creative today. I still have a bunch of school stuff to do, so... I'm out! Peace. = )

Good Things... Gooood Things

Phew!! I am EXHAUSTED. I have been really exhausted a lot lately. For about the past week or two actually. I'm sure part of it is that Ari is getting a lot more active now (and is gaining a pound a day, I swear), school has really been picking up and I'm trying to not drink quite as much coffee each morning. Ugh.

Anyways, I just got back from a date night with Drew! It was so much fun. I'm telling you, I never knew how valuable dates were until they were so hard to come by! Drew and I have maybe had three dates involving just the two of us since Ari was born, and I'm pretty sure I've almost cried each time. It seems so silly, but each time we're out together it feels like our relationship is new again and I feel like my old self!

At one point tonight, I thought for a second how nice it would be if we never had kids, but within a blink (and not related to the prior thought) I found myself missing Ari so much and wanting to text my mom to see how he was doing. It's a strange mix of emotions that accompanies a kid coming into the picture. I just try to roll with the punches. = )

Earlier today Drew and I had a budget meeting. It went so well, and I am actually excited about our goals and where we're headed financially! This is such a stark contrast to my feelings at the end of many budget discussions in the past that I had to take the time to bask in the glow of how much our relationship and communication skills having grown this past year. I commented on it to Drew and he agreed that we have improved a lot and is also very glad that we have. = D

On a drier note, I have another A&P II exam coming up on Wednesday evening. I have not been doing a good job of studying AT ALL. Tomorrow is completely booked, but at least Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday are pretty much free. I will try to whip myself into submission and study a bunch on those days. I also have a group presentation for Lab the following Monday, so I have my work cut out for me. You may not see me posting as much until then if I'm behaving. ; D

Alright.. headed off to bed now. Had to charge my iTouch (alarm clock) on my laptop because the power is off in half of our house tonight. Drew's working on creating an electrical outlet behind the flat screen TV so that cords don't hang down to the existing outlet anymore. That little boy Ari is into EVERYTHING. Seriously guys.. I swear that he is no more than a month away from walking and he's only going to be 9 months on Monday. He's crazy! I love it. = D

Ari's Third Checkup!!

Ari's third CranioCap checkup was on Tuesday! Sorry it's taken me a while to write about it.. I've been a pinch busy. = D

When we got there, the specialist was so happy to see Ari to find out if his head rash was improving. She said she had been thinking about "this poor baby" (she is so sweet and has a foreign accent that is so endearing). She looked at his head and was very pleased to see that his head rash is almost gone (held at bay by daily application of anti-fungal cream). I explained all that the doctor had said, and she was very interested to hear about it. She said that Ari has had a harder time with the helmet than most babies and that she is so impressed with how easy-going and happy he has remained during all of this. I'm so proud of him. = )

After this, the specialist took the helmet back to adjust it. She pushed out the back some more to relieve pressure points at the top back of his head, expanded the base of the helmet by his neck where it was chaffing too much, and also tried to push in one of the anchor buttons for the velcro slot which had recently caused a blister. I'm hoping that this will help so that we don't have to put gauze over the button under the helmet, which is what helped his blister to heal.

When she got back, she explained that when she sees us in two more weeks we will be about halfway done with the treatment if all continues to go well. She said that when we come, we will compare his head against a foam mold of the original shape of his head to see how much progress we have made. That should be interesting!! = D

While we were waiting for her to adjust the helmet, Ari played with his reflection in the mirror. I've included a few photos of this playdate. ; )

Helmet Decorating (or rather) Decoupaging!

Taken the morning after in his pj's. = )

Yesterday Ari had a date with a professional helmet decorator (*wink*) to get his helmet decoupaged!

Our friend Megan is a master crafter and when I thought about decorating Ari's helmet, she was the first person that came to mind. She has her own blog, Polish the Stars, where she blogs about the crafty things she does, so I knew she would be able to figure out how to make the project successful and look awesome. = D

Ari and I headed over to her house yesterday afternoon. I was running late, as usual, so we landed there right at lunchtime. We all ate lunch together (Ari played with a toy in his portable high chair, which ROCKS) and then got down to business.

While Megan figured out how to miniaturize the photos Drew and I had decided we liked, I chatted with her and took pictures of her working. (I'm a very good helper!) Based on your votes during the Helmet Poll, we chose to do some classic "Sailor Jerry" style tattoos. = D

I also kept a very close eye on Ari while he explored. That boy is a dare-devil already! When he did have his helmet on, I swear I counted about 15 incidents that would have resulted in a bruise and intense crying. So, when we took it off, I really had to watch him as he crawled and cruised around, working on developing. ; )

Jeremy, Megan's son, was really excited about Ari being there... although his excitement slightly dwindled once he fully understood that Ari would not be able to run around the house and chase him. I did attempt to help Ari do this once, but wore out quickly. Ari loved it though. = D

Jeremy was very interested in Ari, asking questions about his eating habits, pooping habits, sleeping habits, physical abilities. Trying to explain everything in a way he would understand was good practice for me and very entertaining. = )

After Megan was done, and had given the helmet a little hairdryer action to speed up the drying process, Ari got to try his awesome helmet on. He felt like a new man.. empowered really! ; )

After a little bit more eating and playtime, we were on our way. We had to get Ari back home for his nap. Jeremy decided that Ari should sleep at his house, but I told him that I had to get back home because I also had studying to do. (I totally ended up flaking out on that and instead edited my fun pictures.. *sigh*)

Ari and I are so thankful for Megan's awesome gift to us! I am not blogging details about how Megan decorated his helmet, because I didn't really help, and I know she will be blogging about it when she has the time. When she does, I will let you know so that you can check it out!

Here are some pictures though, both of the process and the final result. = D

Watch out everyone... Ari now thinks he's a bad mother.... ; D

Rocked the Lab Exam!!

Woo woo!! Finally, after almost a whole week, I found out what I got on my A&P II Lab Exam. I am so proud of myself.. 97/100!

I am completely attributing my incredibly awesome grade to the fact that I refined my studying methods to fit my newly discovered learning styles. (I talked about them in a previous post, here) This is the best I have done on an A&P lab exam yet!

This will be a short-lived period of euphoria though, because I have another lecture exam in about a week-and-a-half, and I am admitting to you that I have not continued to succeed on my study goal.

My next lecture is on Wednesday, and as of right now, I have 2 lectures to review before then in order to catch up. I got a little behind from studying up for the Lab exam, but now that that's over I have no more excuses.

So, tonight before Lab and tomorrow, it's *"hammer time".

*(**time to get down to business)
**(time to study)

Ari's First Pho!!

Ari had his first taste of Pho!! Or at least direct taste of Pho. ; D

Pho, for those of you who have not had the pleasure, is a Vietnamese soup and one of my favorite foods in the WORLD!! = D

My favorite Pho in the Twin Cities area is Pho Quan. (the photo is from the internet, not Pho Quan) It is a little hole in the wall place in Minneapolis. The lady who runs it works there for like 11 hrs a day all by herself. It is made fresh and comes out steamy hot!

Drew, Ari and I went there for lunch today. Drew had to quick leave because the insurance people were on their way to check out the hail damage on our roof, and Ari and I stayed and ate while we waited for him to return.

Ari started getting fussy, so I gave him some plain rice noodles. It was so cute watching him try and pick them up and get them in his mouth! He was so proud of himself for eating them. Lol!

Here's some pictures of him and his first Pho experience for all of you to see. So cute! I'm sure he will be eating Pho for years to come.. just like me. = D

Life Has Turned Around; No More Turnaround!!!

Drew is done with turnaround at work!! Woo hoo!!

Oh my gosh.. my life has vastly improved in the past few days! = D This month of 14 hr days/7 days a week has really been a bummer. But it has at least shown me just how much I still like Drew. It has been sooo nice having him back in my life! = )

Drew took a day off on Monday, and then surprised me by taking another half day off yesterday! We relaxed, watched movies, went to the Mall of America and walked around and even bought him a new pair of running shoes! (he must be in a good mood to be willing to spend money on himself!) ; )

Unfortunately since he's been back in my life, my emotions have been a little crazy. It's like I've been in survival mode for a month, stocking everything up, and now all the stresses I've been carrying are stampeding forth like water from a broken levee. I had a panic attack on Tuesday night and another small one yesterday, which at least resulted in tons of tears so I felt better. I am feeling much less crazy today, so I hope all that mess is over with. Phew! = )

So anyways, to catch you up..

As I was studying this past week, I learned that my primary learning preferences are visual and aural. This didn't really surprise me, but it has helped me to focus my studying to methods that will help me the most, like doing matching exercises (words to pictures of structures), and really trying to take in as much from lecture as possible (listening).

Monday was my first A&P II Lab Exam and I think it went really well. I felt confident and relaxed because I had studied so effectively. Still haven't seen my grade yet though.. arg. I think it's supposed to be up no later than tomorrow afternoon.

On to Ari..

His head is doing MUCH better. We have been using the anti-fungal cream the doctor gave us and almost all of his scalp is back to normal skin color! It is much drier though, and it seems his cradle cap is back. Drat. But, it's not raw red, so that's awesome. I'll take dry over raw ANY day. = ) He does have a couple areas that are red from chaffing now though. His next checkup with the helmet specialist will be on Tuesday, so we can address those problems then. I guess my boy's head is growing, which is what we want for his cranial bones to move! Woo hoo! = D

The stuff under Ari's chin and on his neck doesn't seem to be improving though. The doctor thought it might be ringworm, but the anti-fungal stuff is not working on that. We'll see what she thinks in a half a month or so for his 9 months appointment. Aaaa, 9 months?!! Holy cow... life is going by sooo fast...

I Have "Special" Teeth

I LOVE my dentist. I see Dr. Michael Schafhauser W DDS at Capitol Dental Center in St. Paul. I've been going to him ever since I had teeth and never had a problem being scared to go to him for anything... until I moved back from Louisiana. I had a few very bad dental experiences down there, and now my nerves start freaking out at the mere thought of a dentist office.

A couple months ago I scheduled a visit to see Dr. Mike for a routine cleaning. It was going to be my first time going to the dentist since having Ari, and I had a bad feeling about it. As some you may know, I experienced a lot of morning sickness while I was pregnant. Well, when I would try to brush my teeth, and especially when I would try to floss, I would gag and sometimes even vomit. I hate to say it.. but I definitely started slacking, big time.

So, I went in to get my teeth cleaned, and decided to get gassed up because my nerves were so frazzled. They found 3 cavities and I made a followup appointment to get them filled.

About a month ago I got them filled, and definitely got gassed for that too. (ah, so much more relaxing) After he was done filling them, Dr. Mike told me that he was really worried about one of my teeth in particular. He said that if it didn't get better, I might have to have a root canal. WHAT?!! But... I like my roots! I want to keep them! He also told me that there were 6 other areas that he was concerned about, that could turn into cavities if we didn't do something about it. Eeek!

He prescribed me a super-duper strength fluoride toothpaste to use once a day before bedtime, in hopes that it will prevent those little spots from getting worse. I'm supposed to floss first, then brush with the toothpaste using no water, and finally spit but not rinse out my mouth. That part creeps me out the most. When I was young I was taught to always rinse my mouth out after brushing, so now when I don't rinse at night, the little girl in me feels like I'm disobeying. I'm also not supposed to drink water afterward, so I have to try hard to remember to drink all the water I want at night before brushing.

Ugh.. what a pain. So yeah, I have "special" teeth. My teeth apparently hate me and no longer want to be in my mouth. I am actually looking forward to going to the dentist again for my next checkup in a few months or so.. only to see if all this effort is making a difference. I really don't think it is, because ever since I got my cavities filled, that one bad tooth especially has been even more sensitive to heat and cold. I think this is a big contributing factor in the disappearance of my desire to eat; it's been missing for the most part for the last month or so. = /

So in conclusion, I have some words for the wise: brush your teeth twice daily. Floss twice daily. Rinse with mouthwash/flouride rinse twice daily. Do not eat lemons. Do not chew ice. Do not drink sugary beverages, or if you do, rinse your mouth out with water afterward. Heed these warnings, lest you end up like me... being threatened with a root canal. = \


photo from www.freeclipartisland.com

Helmet Poll Closed!!

The helmet poll is closed!! Thanks to everyone who voted! You definitely made decision-making easier. = D

Classic tattoo design has won! Drew and I have picked out some designs we like, and within the next couple of weeks, it will become reality. My friend Megan is going to be helping me with the project, because she is much more crafty than I. Once she gets back into town, the fun will begin. Then I will post pictures. = D

We saw Ari's doctor on Friday, and she said that it looked like he might have a fungal infection on his head and under his chin. So she prescribed us some medicine for that, and also some hydrocortisone cream to use sparingly on his bad eczema areas. That has helped almost immediately! I can't tell if the antifungal cream is helping yet.. but we only started that yesterday. I think I used too much the first time, so it was way too gooey under his helmet. Today I think I've figured it out. Hopefully it will help too!

Friday night Ari and I went camping with my mom, two of my sisters and my twin nephews. It was a lot of fun! Ari's first camping trip, and I think he enjoyed it. The picture at the top was taken after he finished his breakfast. = D

Well that's all I can post for now.. I have my first Anatomy & Physiology II Lab exam tomorrow night and I have a LOT of studying to do. Blood drop practice exercises, here I come!!

[Currently] FREE Gluten-free Thanksgiving Cookbook!

Gluten-free friends (or friends of gluten-free people)! I had to inform you of this as soon as I heard about it. Thank you Julie for sending me the info!

There is an Gluten-free Thanksgiving e-cookbook for FREE right now until October 12th! Check it out here at the blog "Regarding Nannies".

Now you can have your Thanksgiving meal and EAT it too! ; D

Oh, I'm so excited!! = D

Meet My Friend, George

Meet my friend George. He is a sock puppet I made tonight at Mom's Group. That's right. A bunch of us moms got together tonight to chat, pray for one another and make sock puppets. We are awesome! = D

It was so nice to hang out with other moms and be crafty. I am super crafty and artistic.. but not a very good starter. That is, I'm not good at starting anything (crafty, or otherwise really) unless it is on a impulse or whim. If I "plan" to do something crafty, it will almost NEVER happen. But I am super good at participating when others plan and organize things!

I hope to do more crafty things in the future, especially with moms. Hanging out with fellow moms is awesome. They make me feel loved, supported, and like I am not alone in this crazy journey of motherhood. = D

So tonight, here's a shout out to all the moms out there: you rock my world! (so do sock puppets) = D

*As a side note, I would like to add that Ari chuckled so hard when George played with him this evening. Success!!*

[Insert Interesting Title About Studying]...

Just a short post tonight. My head hurts too much from trying to learn about the Lymphatic System this evening in A&P II. (see silly lymph guy to the left with all his ducts and nodes and... darn it...)

Anyways, I wanted to comment on how my recent study goal is going. As you may recall, my goal was to study the material covered in last week's lecture before the next lecture, which was this evening.

It was SO hard, let me tell you. This whole week, any time I would even start thinking about studying, my impulses would begin to plan my academic demise. At one point I even started contemplating how I was going to deep clean the bathroom (which is my least favorite thing in the WORLD to do!) all in an attempt to push off studying.

But I did it! I am so impressed with myself. I covered all of last week's material and even studied a bit for my LAB exam coming up on MONDAY!! Eeeek.. not ready for THAT yet...

So thank you GOD for helping me overcome all my instincts to flee and hide and to stay and fight instead! Okay, so maybe it's not all that dramatic... but it still was a big deal for me. Drew's proud of me too. ; )

Ari's Second Checkup!

Ari's second CranioCap checkup was today!

It went very well! The specialist said that his head is improving, and that his cranial bones are starting to make their way in the direction they're supposed to be heading. YAY!

She said that she had been thinking about "this baby" and his rash, and wondered how he has been doing. = ) I told her that his rash had been really improving, but that now it seems that all his eczema is doing worse, and new spots are popping up on his head, under his chin and on his face. She told me that I should make an appointment for him to see his pediatrician and see if there is some cream that we can get for him. She said that we really don't want it to spread anymore because he may have to take a break from helmet wearing if it gets worse, and the age he is right now is still optimal time for head growth. (He is 8 months old now, by the way) She also said that I can continue to put gauze under the helmet in the areas I have been, if it seems to help, as long as he's not getting pressure sores from the gauze bunching up.

After we talked, she took Ari's helmet to the back room and expanded it more on the sides where it was too tight (his head has been growing!) and also higher up in the back so that his bones will start moving up that way now. Very exciting!! = D

So, I have made an appointment for Friday to have Ari seen for his eczema. It really does seem to be spreading like wildfire.. poor boy. Although, as usual, he doesn't seem to mind. I look forward to finding out how much he weighs while we're there! I swear, he must be over 20 lbs by now! My chunky little cutie... = D

Here's a few casual shots of Ari's head for kicks and giggles.. you can see that we're making some progress!

(check out "Ari, Pre-Helmet" to see the before pics)

Upcoming Checkup!

Tomorrow is Ari's second CranioCap checkup!

I am really excited about it. It has been two weeks since his first followup appointment, and I really do feel like I can tell a difference. I am hoping that the specialist will confirm that she also sees an improvement!

Helmet wearing has been going pretty well. Ari still doesn't care about the helmet. He's indifferent to it being on, and simply rubs his forehead a lot when it's off. He uses his hands, the netting on his crib, my shoulder or any other surface he can find, which is kind of funny. I guess it does itch under there, but he never complains.

Ari's forehead rash had gone away after we started only washing his head every-other day and his helmet out once a day with rubbing alcohol, not soap. But, the past few days it has resurfaced, and brought along with it what looks to be some eczema on the right side of his head above his ear. That got really bad at one point. The skin was raw, and I couldn't figure out what to do about it. Every time we would take the helmet off, his hair would be crusted onto his head in that area from the fluid accumulating over the raw area. And I wasn't supposed to wash it, so I was stumped. Then Drew suggested putting gauze on that area under the helmet. I had thought about that, but didn't think it would work since the helmet fits so snugly. But with our powers combined, we were able to figure out how to get it under there. It helped a LOT. I've actually been considering putting some gauze under the helmet on his forehead too, to see if that makes any difference with his forehead rash. I need to buy more gauze today.

So, it has been about 3 weeks now since Ari got his helmet... one week short of a month. I am surprised with how quickly the time has gone by, and very thankful. It gives me hope that the next month to three months will go by quickly also. = )


*Above right is a fun photo of Ari playing with my sister's dog Choshi's collar, while his cousin Caleb plays with the velcro on his helmet. Helmets provide fun times for all! ; ) *

Udi's Gluten-Free Breads!!

Oh my goodness.. I have just discovered a new favorite gluten-free bread! I guess this is just a weekend of discovery for me! = )

So, Cub Foods apparently just switched gluten-free bread brands on me. I have been buying Food For Life- Almond & Brown Rice Bread. It was quite tasty, but definitely had a more pound cake texture, and was best when you toasted it. Well, I went shopping this past week and they didn't have it. I was like, "ARG!!, now I can't have sandwiches this week..." when I noticed that they had a different brand of gluten-free bread, so I picked some up to try.

Udi's Gluten-free Whole Grain Bread is AWESOME! You don't even have to toast it if you don't want to! It's has a much more "normal bread" texture. Toasted, it even reminded me of a bread you would use for bruschetta; very light but moist! (I am currently envisioning using it to make croutons so that I can have stuffing for Thanksgiving!!...)

This bread is not only gluten-free, but it is also wheat-free and soy-free. It does contain eggs though. Although I am sensitive to eggs, I have never had a problem eating the small amount that is in most baked goods such as bread.

Buying gluten-free bread is pricey, but I have decided for myself that the standard of living I experience by getting to eat sandwiches daily is very worth the cost, because even though I would like to think I'm domestic enough to bake my own gluten-free bread on a regular basis someday, the reality is that I probably won't. = )




Also, check out Udi's Gluten-Free Bread Products at their website here, because they have a handful of other products that look amazing, and you can order everything online!

Roma di Luna!!

Oh my gosh.. so, I just discovered the band Roma di Luna. I can't believe I haven't heard of them before! They are SO GOOD!

I was driving back to St. Paul yesterday from my friend's house, all the way over in Chanhassen during RUSH HOUR (she did warn me about timing) and I turned on MPR, 91.1 FM, to keep of dying of rage or boredom. They were playing a segment about Roma di Luna. It was about how they got started, a little bit about where they've come, and about how they have this new CD that's coming out called Then the Morning Came. They played little bits of various songs spanning the history of the group, and I was HOOKED.

P.S, did I mention that they are from Minnesota?! Even more in love. = D

I cannot wait until this CD is available, because I am going to purchase the mess out of it... well, I don't know how that would work... but I am going to REALLY purchase it.

Anyways, I'm going to try to embed the video here.. hopefully it will work so you can all fall in love with them too. Enjoy! = D (gosh I wish I could sing like her..)

Check out their homepage here!

City of Music: Roma di Luna from MPLS.TV on Vimeo.

(this song is called "Starling", I believe)

Woo Hoo!!

Woo hoo!!! Got a 93/100 on this first A&P 2 test! I got an A!!! Oh my gosh.. I feel so grateful. Thank you God that my bad planning/choices hasn't landed me in the dumps this time.

I am not really a grade snob.. at least I don't think that I am. I do not think a "B" is "the dumps", and would be happy with "B's" except for that a) I know I am capable in most cases of "A" work, and my parents taught me that giving 100 percent effort is more important than the grade that you get, and b) to get into the nursing program I am trying to get into, I really need to be getting A's in all my science courses. So anyways, like I said in my last post, I am going to try and change my ways and not wait until the last minute to study for this next test. It is just NOT worth the stress. What you sow, you shall reap... and I want to reap peace.

On another note, I was supposed to work night shift tonight, but they just canceled on me... an hour before I would have left and as I was laying in bed resting up for going in. I'm kindof bummed out, even though I would much rather sleep. I was going to use the money I made to, first pay my sister Esther for watching Ari tomorrow while I would be sleeping, and secondly to pay for Drew and I to have an awesome date day once his turnaround at the plant is over. He thinks he's going to get done this Friday, which is earlier than expected. I sure hope he is right. I guess I will just try and do a little extra deep cleaning for my mom this week to make some money instead. It won't be as much, but it will still be something. = )

Esther is still sleeping over though... and... she's actually already fallen asleep here on the couch... so we're probably going to try and do some cleaning around my house tomorrow and maybe see how the dogs do at a dog park tomorrow. Hopefully they won't die. (my dogs are 6 and 8 lbs)

On a weirder note... as I was laying in bed resting up for work (before I was so rudely canceled) I was having this weird feeling in my chest. A bubbling feeling, like a heart flutter or some weird fluttering in my lungs, and for a second I had this feeling that I was pregnant. Which shouldn't be possible, as those of you who read my post "The Bitch is Back" would already know. I started to panic, and was like "oh my gosh.. am I one of those girls who didn't know she was pregnant, and that's the baby moving?!!!" It was totally weird. I think it's actually just indigestion bubbling up from the awesome onions and potatoes that Drew made us for dinner. (it's still going on...)

But anyways, it made me realize how NOT ready I am to be pregnant again yet. I am completely content waiting a bit longer before going down that road again.. sheesh! (watch.. with my luck my next post will be that I am actually pregnant and that was implantation bleeding I've been having... NOOOOOOO!!!!) = D

Well I'll leave you with that pleasant thought as I go drift off to sleep instead of drive off to work. Sweet dreams!