The Big Psych Out and other new developments

Life is busy here in FnkyGreenMamaLand, and Lovey keeps me hopping. He also keeps me up at night for the past few nights, which is not typical for him, so I am a very, very, extremely tired mama tonight. The Big Psych Out is also keeping us on our toes ... this is each and every time Lovey, an excellent cruiser and crawler, stands holding onto one piece of furniture, person, or other item and reaches over to another item (or person) just so barely out of his grasp - reaches, reaches, considers the options and, for the briefest of moments, it looks like he’s going to do it (take.that.First.Step) but then he drops down and crawls! It is a breath-holding moment and it’s exciting. He has gotten up to standing on his own and he often lets go of supports and can stand for a good while, though he seems somehow unaware that he is doing so, and he certainly loves pushing around his walker-toy-thing all over the place (and can even steer it well now, too!). So it really is no surprise that he hasn’t taken a step on his own yet - he has no need to! But, we are certain that it is going to happen any time, now, so we keep the batteries charged and the camera and camcorder at the ready.

I have been wanting to type this out for the last few weeks but feeling so nervous to do so, but here goes - the diaper rash is gone. Yes, gone. After 6 months. We are back to using cloth diapers part-time (YAY!) and now I know what his bum is supposed to look like!!! The bad news is that he has developed a different rash on his back, arms and legs. Can you believe it? It`s almost laughable, isn`t it? We finally have all of these other things figured out and under control with the food sensitivities and the diaper rash, and something new pops up. Literally. We aren`t sure if this might be a reaction to a new food because, of course, I am now crazy mama who thinks that everything is related to food reactions, right? Right now, I`m just hoping it doesn`t spread or worsen.

I`ve decided that, so far, the hardest thing about parenting a baby is figuring out what is causing what. Like the past few sleepless nights, for example - was it teething, a missed nap, discomfort from the rash, food sensitivity-related, reflux or gas,

Did his diapers get better because his system finally cleared of the allergens or because mine did, because he has healed or I have, because his gut is maturing, because of the homeopathic remedy we gave him? I`m not naive to believe that there is always just one answer, but I sure wish that it was easier to narrow it down sometimes.

YAY! I Figured It Out!

I added the photo slideshow and the hit counter! It seems that I was making the task a lot more difficult than it had to be, as I tend to do. Nevertheless, you can now see pictures of my adorable Lovey front and center on this page. Hurray!

I thought this might happen ...

Well, I'm not doing a very good job of keeping up with this blog. I had a feeling that I had bitten off more than I could chew. Fortunately there are very few readers, if any, waiting with bated breath for updates. It's not that I don't like to write - I LOVE writing. Always have. Excelled at it in high school, dabbled in it in university, and have a plastic bin full of old notebooks and binders of poems, stories, letters, you name it, dating back at least 20 years. I think what is happening is this: I get an idea of something to post, never get around to it because of *life*, and then when I have a moment to sit and do it, I have trouble deciding on a topic from the huge variety of extremely interesting things that I have to write about (yes, I'm being a tad sarcastic). Damn this indecision! Sometimes it really drives me nuts. I did spend some time trying to figure out how to add a slideshow and a hit counter, but was surprisingly unsuccessful for someone who is as techie as I am. But I do have less and less free time to play around with these types of things.

What's new? I have recently had the opportunity to order a bunch of stuff online, which is exciting because I love to receive packages in the mail. Is that weird? I have ordered and received a new cell phone (sweet!), and I am waiting for a brand new laptop and a couple of nursing bras. Ha, ha. Is that too much information? I won't go into detail about the bras, if that makes you feel any better. The laptop, of course, is a really big deal and I am so lucky that I actually am not even going to be paying for this fine piece of computery goodness. The organization for which I am newsletter editor has kindly picked up the tab. It is to be used for the newsletter (twice a year) but I am also welcome to use it for personal and business purposes. How awesome is that??!! Also, we have found the person who will be looking after Lovey when I go back to work part-time in September. She seems like a good fit for us, and I am so relieved that we have someone we can trust and feel comfortable with.

I have delayed writing about Lovey's food sensitivities and rash because it always ends up being this long, drawn-out story. What I will say is that we are in a really good place right now with both of our healing. He is really doing awesome. I am finally (FINALLY!) beginning to truly relax and let go of some of my worries as a mother. I feel so much hope and gratitude! Coincidentally, it is officially Spring - the perfect time for new beginnings and to look ahead to brighter days. Enjoy the warmer weather and the brighter sun :)

Back to reality ...

We are back from our vacation in Cuba. It was lovely and relaxing (for the most part) and too short! I posted a review on Trip Advisor here - hopefully the link will work for a while. It was really nice to spend time with my family and get away from the wintery weather. Lovey was an awesome traveler (again) and may well have been the most popular person on the resort. The day before we left he gave his first official wave goodbye, and he took every opportunity to practice his hello and goodbye waving with all of the staff and guests. He also became addicted to "nanas" (bananas) and ate A LOT of solid foods. And he did well with them. I think that he has turned a corner with this allergic colitis thing. I'm pretty sure that we were exposed to some dairy and soy in Cuba. I obviously couldn't follow the rotation diet. In fact, I pretty much ate the same foods every day. Lovey ate some sand ...


Now that we're back, I'm struggling a little bit to get back onto the rotation diet again. We have 2 appointments this week - the follow-up with the gastroenterology team and, on Friday, the follow-up with the homeopath. I don't expect much from the GI team. I'm rather excited to see the homeopath again because he will have our constitutional remedies - 1 for me and 1 for Lovey. I may write more about homeopathy later. Let's just say I have my fingers crossed ...