Here it goes again...

I have had a lot of people ask me lately what's been going on with Wilson, so the easiest thing is just to write this out. Saturday night, after Trick or Treating with some friends, we got home to find Wilson was having severe diarrhea. It was several times an hour for 48 hours, and is till happening, but less often now. All of the specialists agree that it is not a virus of any type, nor is it an allergic reaction (which was our original guess.) At this point, we are lost and confused. I am tired of this hitting us all of the time. I want my baby to be better, so we have decided to do another surgical procedure November 17. It will be at Children's hospital Liberty Twp campus. This is the soonest we can get him in, and until then, the doctors worry Wilson will stay this way. Hopefully when they search Wilson's body, they will be able to find whatever's causing his body to react this way. He is still happy, energetic, and typical Wilson. We just want to know what is causing the abnormal reaction to foods, whether it be diarrhea or allergies. Our main concern at this time is dehydration; Wilson does not like juice, pedialyte, Gatorade, etc. He mainly likes milk and water, so I am encouraging it as much as possible. I fear potty-training, which has been going well, will also have to be put on hold. There is no way we can expect him to make it to the restroom at this point. This procedure is similar to the one they did last December, but the doctors are hopeful they can find something at this point and go from there treating Wilson. There are numerous things that could be going on, we're just not sure at this point what is what. Several of his stool samples have returned elevated, which is causing a bit of alarm. The MD performing the procedure is out of town until the 16th, which is the reason for the delay, otherwise they way the nurses have spoken, I think they would want it to be done sooner. Please keep us in your prayers as the next two weeks come, I'm just not sure where to go.

Blessings, wilsonsmom

I really am a slacker.

"Hello friend." That's how my two and a half year old (!) says hi to our friends now. My, what an adventure we have been on lately. We have successfully introduced soy into his diet, started him at a new school (both which have been tremendous successes,) and Wilson decided he didn't want to wear diapers anymore. Most parents would rejoice, however, most parents do not have such a stubborn child. He is doing quite well with the #1 part of it, however the twosies are just not working out for us. In fact, I just had to change him in the middle of a park shelter because he wouldn't go on the potty and instead dropped one in his undies. Right before daddy's surprise birthday lunch. Aaahhh, memories! Regardless, I am thankful that he is working on this huge milestone, and that we get to be a part of his life.

I am amazed and humbled by the growth and changes I have seen in him lately. It's easier to understand why people have children 2-3 years apart now, he is no longer a baby but a little boy. What a difference that is. He is having full conversations with us, involving himself in our daily activities, and helping us out. This morning, we decided to surprise hubby with cupcakes and Chipotle at the park where he and uncle Scott were supposed to be playing basketball. We went to Kroger, where he got the little man shopping cart, put the ingredients he needed into his cart, up onto the conveyor belt, and handed the lady the money. All the while, saying "please, thank you, excuse me, etc." What a little Mr. Manners we have! Every time we go to the grocery together, the young cashiers always comment on his flirting abilities, which are quite stellar. Hey, not everything was from dad. ; )

In other news, please be praying for a good friend of ours, Krugie. She has been diagnosed with multiple allergies at the age of 23. Man, if she would have only listened to me a year ago...I digress. This is understandably an overwhelming and frightening time for her, so please pray for guidance, comfort, and knowledge for her to get through this.

Also, welcome to the family, Josh. He married hubby's baby sis last weekend in AZ. There are pics up on her facebook page if you are her friend. Unfortunately, we were not there, but she looked lovely.

So, how have you guys been?

Blessings, Wilsonsmom

Community

God calls us to live life as the Church. Emphasis on the capital C. This is not some place we attend on a weekly basis, this is a group of passionate followers of Jesus who band together as a community and grow as much as possible. We have been working on what exactly that looks like for us as a family lately.

Today, we found out precisely what it is. While changing the monster's diaper this morning, I noticed his stool was quite runnier than normal, and there were peas in his stool. Mind you we haven't had those in months, so I was quite surprised. I called the daycare and discovered that they had in fact served peas yesterday for lunch. Knowing hubby didn't serve them to him, I realized he ate some at school. When I asked his teacher about it, I was told that they didn't have time to worry about things like that. So, needlessly to say he will no longer be attending that particular school.

I do have a meeting with the owner of the school today to let them know that this should not happen and to further discuss other issues we have come across with them so they can improve. I pray that God gives me the strength and the words to accurately and calmly describe things to her so she can keep this from happening again.

We also have an interview with another daycare tomorrow that specializes in children with sensory issues and exceptional needs. I am praying this is the opportunity we have been looking for all of this time, somewhere he can be the sweet loving boy we all know he is.

Through all of this, I have needed to find somewhere to send him for the next three weeks until the other center has an opening for him and fortunately through the gifts of God's faithfulness, we have someone to watch him every day except one, and I have tow available people for that, just determining which will do that.

So thank you Father for your grace, protection, and love. Thank You for guiding us into a community of followers who want to help one another and to serve You.

Blessings, wilsonsmom

I'm a bad blogger

Well, hello friends. It's been a while, and for that I apologize. But at least we have a good excuse, we've been playing! The weather has finally turned nice and we've been trying to maximize our fun time.

We have also been to Childrens Hospital recently. Our allergist asked us to start reintroducing soy seriously, and while I am hesitant, we are following the doc's orders. And so far we're doing well. We also let him try a bit of a mild, flaky fish with success (thus far.)

Now onto the big news, Wilsonsparents are taking our first family vacation! Hubby's grandma is not doing well, so we are going to fly to Florida soon and visit. Wilson is so excited about flying in an airplane! He keeps telling us he'll be like the birds. I'm certain Wilson will get to try more fish while we're down there.

This month, the monster will be two and a half, and while the time is flying by, I'm finding myself even more in love with my monster than I thought possible. He just has the best personality (most of the time,) and he is starting to love his momma! This means not everything is all about "my daddy, my daddy" as it has been. This morning we've been "nuggling" and watching a bit of television while deciding what we're going to do today. I just didn't realize I would enjoy him as much as I do.

So go outside, enjoy a nice time swinging or sliding, and think of us!

Blessings, wilsonsmom

So there was this boy...

One night, I went to this guy's house to hang out with his friends and gently blow him off. Two of his friends showed up as well, and one of them was really cute, but he was growing a mullet (HUGE turn off.) The next night, the original guy called and invited me out to a movie with him and the same friends. He asked me to bring a girl for each of his two friends. I decided not to, since the cute guy was going (sneaky, right?!?) and I ended up hanging out with him, his best friend, and baby brother all night. I got to kiss him that night too!

Little did I know that six years later I would be sitting in our house having a delicious dinner and glass of wine, snuggling and watching TV with our son asleep upstairs. In just a few short years we have gone through death, life, friends, childbirth, among other things.

So happy sixth anniversary baby. I love you so much.

Spring has arrived!

Spring is here, and boy are we ready to play outside! I have been trying to take Wilson to the park as much as possible, and I think it's as good for me as it is for him! He just got his first soccer ball, and it might have replaced J as his best friend. Everything right now is about soccer and "my soccer ball." It's the funniest thing, and I can't wait till fall when he can start soccer.

We found out last week that Wilson has Sensory Processing Disorder, but I'm not exactly sure what that means yet. A book I was directed to by one of our therapists, "The Out of Sync Child" tells me that it is "the inability to use information received through the senses in order to function smoothly in daily life." I haven't gotten too far yet, but so far, everything describing a sensory-seeking child seems to be all Wilson. I am certainly interested to see what else this book has in store. We are also waiting on a report from the wonderful woman who did his assessment on exactly what she saw when she spent time with him at his daycare. I am anticipating this will shed some light as to what we as his parents can do to best satisfy our little monster.

We are working on finding an occupational therapist who is available to take him on as well as wondering exactly how "therapy-friendly" his daycare truly is. As of now, they are showing quite a bit of resistance and a serious lack of concern for his best interest (IMO.) While I realize they have a job to do, we need to do what's best for him. I am currently exploring options recommended by his PSC and assessor.

At this point, I'm just praying that we get things moving quickly and in a direction that is the most effective method for Wilson.

On a side note, Happy Happy Birthday to our friend Jill. Our family loves you and your boys, and we hope today is fabulous.

GI Follow-Up

Greetings, I come to you first in prayer that the God who is bigger than any of us has a plan. A big plan, because no one else seems to.

We have been working on the sweet potatoes, and Tuesday night, right after dinner, Wilson broke out into hives, as I posted. They went away, but at four o'clock this morning, we heard him coughing and crying, so hubby went in to check up on him, and found he had vomited and had a very high fever. We gave him Tylenol, then Motrin a few hours later when it wasn't going down. I just prayed for it to at least go down, then we started our morning.

This morning, my wonderful friend, Jessica, accompanied us to Children's Hospital for Wilson's GI follow-up from two months ago. Hubby had a very important meeting at work he wasn't able to miss, and her joining us was such a blessing and help, because it enabled me to talk to the doctor without worrying about his behavior (or his obsession with the phone in the offices or washing his hands one thousand times while he's there.)

Dr. Franciosi basically told us that he was quite certain Wilson should not be eating sweet potatoes, and he wanted me to call the allergist about it. He then proceeded to tell us that he is fine, we should be thankful for his size (36 3/4 inches and 35 lbs.) and not worry so much about the allergies.

*Mom time* This doctor obviously has never had to take a child with 15+ food allergies to a family dinner with absolutely no knowledge of how he was going to feed them and keep the child safe. He has never had to worry every minute of his day that someone ate an egg then touched him, causing anaphylaxis. But I have, and I know what that is like.

I also know that this doctor sees many many children that are much worse than Wilson and has many more issues than he does. But those are not my children, and fortunately for me, we are not in that circumstance. That doesn't mean I do not want to know what is going on.

So here it is. God, take it. Take my son in your hands and HEAL HIM. HEAL MY BABY. You are the only one who is able to do this. I have nothing without you and everything with you. Please use us, our story, our family for Your glory and Your good. I give up, it's all yours.

Blessings, friends. Thanks for the prayers.

in addition...

Please pray! Wilson is breaking out into serious hives, and we have him an antihistamine to stop them, but I'm going to have to watch them until bed, along with watch his breathing. Just not sure where this is coming from...

Tastes like chicken? Nah...

Greetings, reader (I say that because I know only one of you read this thing. ha.) Last week, we eliminated chicken completely from Wilson's diet, and it worked so well. He didn't bite at school, and while he still ran out of his classroom and his Kid's Club room at church, his behavior was leaps and bounds better than he has been in weeks. I didn't notice a difference at all with meat vs. no meat, so we called to check in with the allergist this morning.

His news was wonderful! We are going to eliminate chicken and beef (meat-wise) for six months and see how everything goes. All foods that he is not testing positive to (including the fabulous five we started this week) are fair game, just one new food per week, and we will check in with him in SIX MONTHS!!! He completely released Wilson unless we have issues with trying the new foods, and he suggested we introduce fish as a way to get more protein in his diet. WOW!! What a change from even a month ago.

Sweet potatoes are going well so far, except I'm not sure if we can get him to stop eating them! Let's see if this happens with peas next week. What a blessing this is to be able to give him the foods he loved so much before we were told he was allergic to them. I'm getting excited about the healthy and yummy foods we will be able to give him in the next few weeks and months.

Thank you so much "reader" for your prayers, love and support while we are on this journey. We will have a follow-up visit with the GI doctor Thursday, and I am hoping for more good news. As always, I will keep you updated.
Blessings.

What a month!

Sorry I haven't been the best blogger every as of late, the last few weeks have been beyond overwhelming. For starters, wilsonsmom got a new job! Praise God for wonderful opportunities!! It is exactly what I need right now, and I am trusting God will provide my clients with a way to find me, and if not, fill those spots with clients He wants me to have.

Next, we have been quite busy with doctors for Wilson. The beginning of this month, I had a long talk with the allergist and explained my frustrations, concerns, etc. He asked us to come in the next morning (about 3 weeks ago) and have some tests done. We checked to ensure his anatomy was working correctly, and it IS!! This basically means his digestive system, intestines, bowel, etc. all are without defects and kinks. Which is excellent news for us, but also leaves us with more questions. While we were there, we also had a RAAST allergy test performed, which is done through blood. The results were astounding.

Wilson is testing "not-allergic" to sweet potatoes, corn, peas, soy, and oats. If you pay attention to ingredients in food you eat, you will realize this is a wonderful victory for our family. We will start next week introducing one new food each week. I will be in constant communication with the allergist during this time, giving results and receiving input for new ideas for what's wrong with this boy. We will be watching out for trouble breathing, hives, vomiting, diarrhea, among other things, which also means we will probably not be going out too much, to avoid a mix-up with these results.

This week we are also eliminating meat for dinner Monday, Wednesday, and Friday in order to try to decipher the reason for his poor behavior. He has been having a lot of difficulties at school with biting and running out of his classroom during lesson times. We are working on the biting, and that is getting better, but his teachers are worried about him nonetheless, so here goes nothing.

I am trusting that God will hold my little monster in His arms and keep him safe during this time and protect him during these trials. I am also praying for more new foods we can give him, and we've already been coming up with creative ways to tell those we love.
Blessings, wilsonsmom

Quick update

We have had a tough time getting Wilson's medications pre-authorized as required by the insurance company, so I have been practically stalking the allergist's office as well as the GI's office. (oops!) We finally got a call back from both, and I expressed concern that I had not yet heard from the allergist as a follow-up, so she had him call me back today. I shouldn't have done that.

We spoke for about fifteen minutes, and I expressed several concerns I am having, and he said he wanted to see us tomorrow. A few minutes later, the GI nurse called and said they had him scheduled for some tests in the morning. Apparently, the doctors want to make sure that his anatomy is correct and functioning properly before we proceed with anything else.

Tomorrow, I am just going to push the allergy issue. I can't figure out why every allergy test pops up more foods. So let's just hope that we can keep him calm for the entire day while he's there.

Blessings.

Adroable

Yesterday morning, we were in the truck driving to church after picking Wilson up from my mom's (yay date night!) when I sneezed. Wilson proceeded to say "Bless you Mamma." Seriously, I melted more than ever. What a sweet sweet boy.

We start speech and feeding therapy tomorrow, which is also our friend Justice's birthday. Hooray for being two. Wilson's Grandma Shelley also arrives in Cincinnati on Wednesday, and they haven't seen each other in about 26 months. How exciting.

Blessings, wilsonsmom

Interesting.

Today, we had an appointment with one of the best pediatric allergists in the world. And we still don't know much. I feel like we had to convince him to do another round of allergy testing, and hubby said he felt like they didn't believe Wilson is as bad as he is. They just kept saying "tell me about his allergies." Gee, that's not the most broad question EVER.

He finally tested for 45 foods, and Wilson tested positive for peanut, milk, egg, almond, banana, beef, chicken, turkey, pork, white potato, and barley. The weird thing is we aren't sure what this means. He isn't having awful reactions right now while eating white meat, so we are going to continue to feed him the same things as before at least for now. The allergist and GI are going to talk Thursday, and call me sometime this week or next and let me know what they think is best and where we need to proceed.

The allergist also says there is very little chance that Wilson has EE. This doesn't rule it out, but it could just be allergies. If it is just allergies, we would start going to see the allergist regularly, and do other forms of allergy testing (we only did the skin prick test, which made hubby and I both much more at ease.) Depending on how those turn out, we may start attempting to reintroduce new foods one at a time.

I know it seems like we got somewhere, but hubby and I still feel stagnant. We keep seeing these specialists, and this one's supposed to be better than the previous, and the next one will have the answers, etc. Except that when we go, there are still no answers, no treatment plans, nothing. We just want something to hold as truth, someone to give us answers, hope, anything.

On a different note, what a funny thing to watch Wilson dance and clap during the Neighborhood Ball on television tonight. Our President is now "Morebama" according to the monster.

Peace, Wilsonsmom

What a busy week!

We are absolutely blessed to be in the position we are in right now. Yesterday, a dear friend of mine went to the children's museum with monster and me, just to wear off some energy in a warm environment. (For those of you in warmer areas, as I type, it's -6. Gross.) While we were getting ready to head in, I got the phone call I have been awaiting for two weeks. We have an allergy appointment next Tuesday at 10 am.

That's just the beginning of the good news. The allergist we are seeing is world-renowned. This brings such a comforting feeling to me that I didn't have before our last visit. Our original allergist is fine, but this man is the best at what he does, and he's going to see our kid. It's a strange feeling, and I'm not quite sure how to explain it, I'm just so humbled by the ability to see this man and have him treat Wilson. This appointment will be different in many ways, it will take about 4 hours total, and we will also do a patch test. The allergist will place the foods he tested negative to in the original test on his back and leave them there for 48 hours. During that time, his body will be able to react to the food and register either safe or unsafe. This is something that isn't done terribly often, unless it's a person with multiple allergies or they suspect something unique is going on in the body. Typically, an allergy reacts immedeately, but there are instances where the body can react over time.

I am asking for prayers Tuesday for Wilson. 4 hours is so much longer than we are used to, and it's right into nap time, which he DOESN'T miss. You really don't want him to miss nap, trust me. My prayer is that the doctors and nurses are able to treat and diagnose him accurately and efficiently and Wilson stays calm enough to endure the entire series of tests.

We will return to the hospital Friday to read the results of the patch test, and I also hope that the results are clear to read and understand for the doctors, and that we as a family adjust quickly and in the best way possible.

Wednesday, we also have his meeting to plan out this occupational therapy schedule, give our short-term and long-term goals. At this point, I just want him to stop biting and to eat more. It's getting harder and harder to make food for him. We're trying lots of new foods every week, and some work better than others. Hubby fried some "eggplant french fries" that he loved and devoured. Mushrooms worked once, but the rest of the time he throws it, and broccoli is a joke. But eventually it will get better, I know this. We just have to continue to introduce foods and be consistent with him.


Have a great weekend, and stay warm. Wilsonsmom

A New Year, A New Purpose

Well, hello there! For those of you who don't know who I am, I am wilsonsmom. Simply put, my son is Wilson, monster, booger, etc. He is a fantastic little two year old who happens to be allergic to LOTS and LOTS of things (peanuts, tree nuts, milk, egg, soy, bananas, peas, beef, oats, barley, corn, potatoes, shellfish, legumes, dogs, and cats.) We are currently working with some of the top doctors in the country to find a reason for all of the allergies and more importantly to help our little man have the most normal way of life possible.

Lots of my previous posts have been in regard to this, but from here on out, I will be blogging exclusively about him, doctors appointments, therapies, and what God is doing in our lives to show is His power. This is the easiest thing we can do to let you all know what is happening, how Wilson is doing, and how we are. We are so fortunate to have such a wonderful support system and people who love us, but it often overwhelms us to wonder who we've told what, who we've called, etc. This doesn't mean some of you won't get personal updates, but this is much easier, especially after a difficult day like we had last week.

Last weekend, we went to a friend's graduation party, without Wilson. As we were introduced to their friends, they gave our names, as well as "They're Wilson's parents." At this point, someone said, "Wait, this is the boy everyone fasted for, right?" and it made me realize that at one point, I had an amazing way for people to know about who we are, who God is, and how we are doing all at the same time. And I let that go, because I'm lazy and didn't use that opportunity. So here goes nothing.

Wilson was born a pretty normal, slightly chubby boy with bright blue eyes and a head full of black curly hair (which I LOVED and miss so much!) Everything was pretty normal for the first four months, until he started vomiting and stopped gaining weight. Let me clarify what this means, because this was key. He gained nothing for several months, and with infants, it's crucial for babies to gain weight; it's how they monitor their health and development. When we went to the pediatrician, they informed us that they wanted to run some tests and check for allergies.

I had heard of peanut allergies more and more lately, especially with my job (I'm a hairstylist,) so I was mindful of that, and I even considered that he might be allergic to our precious dog. When we got back the blood work, we were told he was allergic to peanuts, milk, eggs, wheat, and dogs. Bye bye Makella and peanuts from our lives, my favorite food and our first "baby." What a blow, but we held on.

My brother in law graduated from basic training in September 2007, and we were lucky enough to get to go, and travel on standby for next to nothing, and decided it probably wouldn't be safe for him to tag along, so my mom and sister helped watch him for the three days we were gone. Let me tell you, those were a tough few days away, but now I know why God allowed us to have that time. It was the beginning of the downward spiral that was our lives. After we picked him up from my sisters, I noticed he was pulling to breathe, and asked my sister about it, who told me it had just started minutes earlier. I tried to wait it out until the next morning, and called the pediatrician, who wanted to see him immediately. We started running more tests, and after about six weeks of looking for everything else that could be wrong, we discovered he was allergic to tree nuts, soy (the SOY formula he was on,) bananas, peas, and cherries.

Our lives changed again, watching everything we gave him and what we ate. After some pushing, I called an allergist, who told us it was safe to eat peas, cherries, and wheat. (I've blogged about this in the past.) Last spring we tested again after having a lot of health problems with him, and found peas were a bad allergy, as were cats. Then, this fall (past blogs cover this as well) we found out about oats, barley, corn, potatoes, and beef.

He told us to call Children's Hospital GI department, and look into a disease called EE (Eosinophilic Esophagitis.) We had our first appointment Monday, January 5 at the hospital with a GI, speech pathologist, and nutritionist. After our visit, my husband and I felt like we left with more questions than answers. The GI wants to run a new baseline of allergies to see exactly what he can and can not tolerate, because at this point, he is developing allergies to everything he eats, but with avoidance seems to be able to heal from them. We will be seeing a world-renowned allergist for this, and are just waiting (as patiently as possible) for an appointment with him. The most difficult thing is we wait for them to call us. If I don't hear from them by Friday or Monday, I do get to call their office. (I choose FRIDAY!) We will also be seeing numerous other specialists to ensure he gets better as quickly as possible.

So that's where we are. We also have a meeting next Tuesday with a therapist who will be helping to get to the bottom of his sensory issues (he bites everything he can, especially his friends) and hopefully his eating problems, since he's starting to lose weight again. Through all of this, though, we are trying to keep our eyes on the future and know that God has this all figured out already, we just have to wait for Him to give us answers.