Christmas Past and Present...

It was Christmas Day of 2007 that Jackson took some of his first steps. Now, one year later, the boy is running all over the place, making it hard for anyone to keep up. I can't believe how much a year can change things, and how fast this kid is learning new things. He's a special little guy and certainly makes Christmas time far more fun for all!

Christmas 2007

Christmas 2008

A brief tale of Christmas, in photos...

Jackson really had fun tearing the gifts open, though he tired of it quickly and wanted to play with the one he just opened.

We put out cookies for Santa the night before. When Jackson woke up he wanted to know if Santa ate the cookies... and he did!

Jackson got a bike for Christmas.


We spent Christmas afternoon at The Como Conservatory and Zoo

Jackson really likes the fish at The Conservatory and got a camel at the gift shop on the way out



Jackson had fun with power tools... just like daddy's

Christmas Tree...

On Sunday Jackson and I decided to set up our Christmas tree. He was a great help bringing me branches and helping to decorate. Jackson would go back to the tree box and ask "Coupa more mommy?" "Yeah, bring mommy a couple more branches please."

Ron came home just in time to get a snap shot of Jackson putting the star on top.



Jackson had to check the next morning to be sure the tree was still standing...



Merry Christmas All.

Peek a boo...

Now you see me...


Now you don't...

I'm not cut out to change diapers...

Jackson must have been so engrossed in listening to music on Dad's phone that he failed to mention that he was about to poop. It's been a long time since Jackson pooped in his diaper, and thank goodness!! As I was wiping his little behind, all I could do was gag, and gag I did. All the boy had for dinner was some chicken, toast and lima beans and baked apples for dessert... but something in him let off a terrible, nose-plugging odor. Ron finally had to take over so I could leave the room for fresh air! I hope he doesn't make a habit of this, I won't be able to take it. Baby poop, no problem. Almost 2 year old poop, no thanks.

The past few weeks in photos...

I've been slacking lately on adding photos to the blog. Here is a couple to see how the little guy is growing up:

"Turn the volume up Mommy!" This is Jackson's latest trick, and I'm doing all that I can to discourage it!

Painting on construction paper with water is far easier to clean up, especially when he knocks the bowl of "paint" over. (Thanks Darcie for this idea.)

Most Oreos (brand name has to be Oreos and the mini packets don't count) are dairy free.

Jackson found the big ol' bag of Christmas presents

A family update...

Jackson's Allergies: Many have asked what the final word was on Jackson's allergies, as I have not made it back to the blog often to update you. Jackson is allergic to all dairy, tree nuts, and things high in citric acid. He also reacts to rice bran extract and wheat germ, but not processed wheat. And he does not react to soy. The results on egg are still inconclusive, and need to be tried again. That's the skinny on food related allergies, but he does have some environmental allergies as well. He is reacting to detergents and dryer sheets with perfumes and dyes. We are able to elimintate all of these things at home, by using Tide Free and refraining from dryer sheets entirely, but in the world it's hard to avoid. He is continuing to break out at school, even given we are providing all wash cloths, bibs and blankets. Conclusion: it must be from rubbing on teachers' and friends' clothes.

Potty Training: Jackson is pretty consistent at going number two on the toilet and not in his diaper. If he doesn't go right away in the morning, we pay attention to the clues and he's usually pretty good about telling us he needs to go. As for going pee, on the other hand, he's taking it and leaving it. Some times he makes it a couple hours being dry, and other days, our timing must be completely off.

The Singer in the Family: And lately it isn't Ron. Jackson is singing up a storm. His lyrics are a bit modified, but he is always in tune. He's running around the house belting out Baa Baa Black Sheep, Twinkle, Twinkle, Jingle Bells, We wish you a Merry Christmas, 5 Little Monkeys, The Alligator and The Monkey Song (which he is teaching me), This Old Man, ABC's, Bob the Builder, Elmo's Song and Chicka Chicka Boom Boom.

Sara's World: Two more days and I will hopefully be done with my last final, if not, the class will end without me. :) But really, I have a couple of things left to do for the final and I will have made it through my first term at St. Scholastica. Classes will start up again for me January 5. In my other spare time, I'm working on Jackson's scrapbook and making birthday invitations, I enjoy working with paper. I am hating winter more than ever and trying to propose a move south... Ron has budged another .5 centimeter... so I may get him to make the plunge sometime in 2028!

Ron's Task's: Ron has been hard at work on a toy box in the shape of a van for Jackson's Christmas gift. My basement has been turned into a work shop with saw dust being tracked up daily... but the toy box will be worth it in the end. He's also keeping active playing on his co-ed volleyball team on Thursday nights... it seems to me though, that they aren't going to take the championship.

Monday Feature: Likes and Dislikes

Jackson's Likes: Cookies, putting money in his piggy bank, juice, singing twinkle twinkle and ba ba black sheep, reading books, watching youtube videos, The Elephant Song, gluing, coloring, doing things by himself, playing hide and go seek, twinkle lights, opening Christmas cards, breaking color crayons, The Java Train, giving kisses, playing with choo-choo tracks, and singing jingle bells.

Jackson's Dislikes: His remote control truck (it scares the crap out of him), walking on snow and leaving the Java Train.

Elephant song...

Jackson and I have been watching this adorable video lately. Check out The Elephant Song.

Working from home...

One evening Jackson wanted to spend time with me. On the laptop we had an Elmo video in one corner and Photoshop open in the other. It worked out pretty well, for awhile.

Snow

Snow
It won't be long before we'll all be there with snow
Snow
I want to wash my hands, my face and hair with snow

Snow
I long to clear a path and lift a spade of snow
Snow
Oh, to see a great big man entirely made of snow

Where it's snowing
All winter through
That's where I want to be
Snowball throwing
That's what I'll do
How I'm longing to ski
Through the snow-oh-oh-oh-oh


Those glist'ning houses that seem to be built of snow
Snow
Oh, to see a mountain covered with a quilt of snow

What is Christmas with no snow
No white Christmas with no snow
Snow

I'll soon be there with snow
I'll wash my hair with snow
And with a spade of snow
I'll build a man that's made of snow
I'd love to stay up with you but I recommend a little shuteye
Go to sleep
And dream
Of snow

Playdate...

Jackson had a playdate with his friends Maddy, Grayson and Amelia on Saturday night. The kids played well together, running between Jackson's bedroom and the living room, a tornado of toys following them. Jackson was tuckered out when his friends left and crashed on his bedroom floor, which is become somewhat of a habit for him. Here are some photos from the event, we did pretty well getting them all in one place so that moms could snap memory shots for our scrapbooks! Believe it or not, the kids posed on their own for the first photo.

We have another set of friends that are usually with us in this gang. Elise and Anja were missing from our playdate, and we talked about options to get us all together once again. Jason and Darcie and their family moved to south eastern Minnesota late this summer and are missed.

Thanksgiving Day

We hope that you all had a Happy Thanksgiving. We are full and happy after two days of turkey dinners! Jackson had a great time, and enjoyed the meals immensely. His favorite dish on the Thanksgiving table, this year: cranberries!

Jackson watched the Macy's Thanksgiving parade with me. I didn't think he'd sit for it, but I was so excited that we were able to watch parts of it together. He liked seeing the Snoopy and Dora balloons.


To keep the boys busy while the dishes were being done, Ron read the boys a book


Luke and Jackson, Thanksgiving 2008

Como Conservatory

It is so nice that we can head to the warmth of the Como Conservatory to feel like we are somewhere warm. Jackson really liked the fish and can't wait to return.

Pop Goes the Weasel...

Baa Baa Black Sheep...

This week in pictures...

We played hide and seek. It took me a while to find him on this round.



Played mini golf at the Children's Museum



We made colorful snowflakes and hung them in the window.



And he was just plain cute

I feel in love with the drummer...

Last weekend we had our friends Russ, Heather and Grayson over for pizza and play. The boys had a great time together and even decided to start up a band together. They just need to decide who will be the drummer:

Allergy Update

The time at home has been going well, we are having a lot of fun when we can. Though we are starting to get a little stir crazy, and I welcome the adult conversations like you wouldn't believe. The schedule is a little nuts and goes something like this:

7:30 - 9 Try to get some work done
9 - 12 Take care of Jackson, pick up the house and run errands
12 - 2 Work
2-5:30 Keep Jackson busy
5:30 - 7:30 Eat and spend time with my family
7:30 - 10 Work or do homework, depending on the day

We are slowly finding out what Jackson is allergic to. On the no list so far are strawberries, tree nuts and caramel color (which could be dairy or gluten). We are trying gluten today, so we'll have the answer to this very soon.

We are also sure that he is allergic to our old detergent or dryer sheets. We've switched to Tide Free and stopped using dryer sheets and that has put an end to that reaction.

Monday Feature: Likes and Dislikes

Jackson's Likes: steak, sleeping on the floor of his bedroom, apricot fruit leathers, dump trucks, gluten-free, dairy-free pancakes, the rollercoaster at the MOA, honey roasted chick peas, playing guitar at The Children's Museum, colors, the library, putting on his coat all by himself, cooking, playing with Grayson, Baby Hank, the ball pit at Eagle's Nest and tow trucks

Dislikes: getting his hair cut, asparagus and nose wipes

What do we do with our time...

So, some of you may be wondering what we are doing with all of our time together, and I thought I would show you, in pictures.

We are playing in the ballpit at Eagle's Nest in New Brighton

And rockclimbing at Eagle's Nest

Making giraffes out of Duplos

And flying Duplo made airplanes around the dining room table

Apples the size of his head...

Ron's uncle works at an apple orchard, and maintains apple trees in his yard. This apple comes from one of his trees. Isn't it crazy?

Cheese

This is what Jackson does now when someone says "say cheese!"

Cheese!

Strawberry Fields Forever

We've confirmed Jackson's first allergy, strawberries. We tried a small amount pureed in his cereal this morning and he seemed to get flushed right after breakfast. But seeing as how I am never quite sure that it's the food he's eaten, we tried it again at snack time. He had two small strawberries and within minutes his cheeks were bright red and splotchy. So strawberries move to the not safe foods, poor kid.

Safe Foods:
Alum
Apples
Aspagargus
Bananas
Banana juice
Black Beans
Blueberries
Brocolli
Carrots
Carrot Juice
Chicken
Chocolate Chip Cookies -- Enjoy life (allergen free)
Corn
Fruit leathers organic -- Peach, grape, pineapple, apricot
Fruit Snacks -- Annies organic fruit bunnies
Granola -- Back to Nature Apple Cinnmon
Grapes
Green beans
Gyro Meat
Hamburger
Lima Beans
Mango Juice
Mashed potatoes (made with rice milk, no butter)
Oats
Pears
Peas
Pickles
Pinto Beans
Pork
Potato
Raisins
Rice
Rice crackers -- Hol Grain Brown Rice
Rice flour
Rice Milk
Rice Poofs
Sorghum Flour
Spinach
Squash
Sweetpotato
Tapioca Flour

Not Safe
Strawberries

Bye Bye...

Picture this:
Jackson takes his red school bag off the doorknob, throws it over his shoulder then he's off to the kitchen. He finds his tin lunch box and carries it in his other hand. Next, he comes up to me and says "bye-bye Mommy, kiss?". So I bend down and give him a kiss. Then he's off to find Daddy for a repeat of this routine, then he heads to the back door. It's adorable, he's completely copying the routine that happens on the days that Mommy goes to work, or Daddy goes to work.

Some days he even does this while wearing just a diaper... like he's off to work without any clothes on!

Calling home...

I called home today to check on Jackson and talked to him for a bit on the phone, and while I did, Ron sent me this picture.

Rainy days and Mondays...

Allergy progress: On Friday we tried soy milk. A little bit for breakfast, a glass at lunch and one at dinner. It looked like he did fine, though he did have two tiny little red spots at bed time, but I don't think it was related. So, we tried the same thing on Saturday, and all went well. We'll put it on the maybe list (because of the two red spots) and take him back off for now.

Today is officially the start of our new schedule. I will be working a long day in the office on Mondays (while Ron is home with Jackson), staying home with Jackson the rest of the week, and working from home in the early mornings and evenings. It's a full schedule, and leaves basically no time to play, any free time will be used to do homework. I'm doing all of this to get a handle on Jackson's food allergies.

However, for the start of our "project", Jackson woke up with a rash all over his face! Ugh. And it looks as though Ron is going to have to go into work, because one of his lifeguards has injured himself. So we aren't really starting off on the foot I had hoped for, the right one.

It's possible that the lunch meat that we got could have been the culprit, though I have doubts. It's an organic product, contains chicken and sodium lactate (my research showed that this was not a potential allergy). The label also said that good practices were used to prevent any contamintation from other allergens. He ate the lunch meat at 5:30pm and at 8:30 when Ron put him to bed he was just fine.

Is it possible that something in his bed irritated him? I suppose so, so I took everything out and put it in the washing machine with Tide Free again this morning.

Or is it the fact that he has a cold of some sort and is pretty snotty? He potentially slept with snot all over his face during the night. Or maybe it has something to do with cutting his canine teeth.

We are going to do everything we can to get his face cleared up today so that we can try a new food tomorrow.

Ron's Birthday

Ron's Birthday...

Happy birthday to the husband and the daddy at our house!

Allergies scratched...

We took Jackson to see the allergist again on Monday and she decided to do another skin test. During these tests, his skin is exposed to allergy-causing substances (allergens) and then is observed for signs of an allergic reaction. The results came back that we should stay clear of treenuts, he had a reaction to three of the tree nuts that were tested. However, this still does not solve our issue and the doctor wants us to continue to completely limit dairy for the next 6 mos. Dairy is a known allergen for coming up negative in blood and skin tests.

Today and tomorrow are Jackson's last days at childcare. Starting next week I will stay home and keep a close eye on Jackson's diet. The last few weeks now that he has had an allergen free diet he has been doing great! Next week I will start by adding soy back into his diet and see what happens. I am looking forward to being home with him, but am going to have to find some stuff to keep us busy. If you are looking for a playdate during the week, give us a ring!

Trick or treat...

I have not been very good about uploading photos lately, as I just haven't found the time. Here is one of Jackson in his Halloween costume, he was a puppy dog, woof-woof!

An allergy update...

After another weekend of getting the boy back to the basics, we were successful in clearing up all of his symptoms. Today we sent him off to school rash-free and are anticipating he will get into something there and come home with another reaction. However, it is promising to know that we only have to go through two more weeks of this.

In two weeks we will be pulling Jackson out of childcare and I will stay at home with him during the day. This way I can monitor his food intake and start to introduce potential allergens into his diet so we can see how he reacts and narrow down his food allergies. I have a feeling it's going to be a complicated process, but I am very excited that we are on our way to our final destination. The schedule will be temporary, and we hope to get him enrolled in childcare again after four weeks.

During this time, I will continue to work, just doing so from home on a flexible schedule. I hope to put in a couple hours in the morning, at nap time and in the evening. The real hard part is going to be finding time in there to get my school work done as well. For the next four weeks I am enrolled in one class at Century and two classes at St. Scholastica. After these four week I'll be down to one class at Century and one at St. Scholastica.

Here is what we know Jackson can eat without reaction (updated):
Oats
Rice
Apples
Pears
Chicken
Hamburger
Gyro Meat
Enjoy life Chocolate Chip Cookies (allergen free)
Rice Krispies
Black Beans
Pinto Beans
Rice noodles
Bananas
Annie's organic fruit bunnies
Peas
Aspagargus
Squash
Sweetpotato
Rice Milk
Potato
Back to Nature Apple Cinnmon granola
Hol Grain Brown Rice crackers
Lima Beans
Spinach
Mashed potatoes (made with rice milk, no butter)
Green beans
Brocolli
Mango juice
Pork
Raisins
Fruit leathers
Banana juice
Pickles

Another rough day, for me, not him...

This a picture of Thursday's reaction

Jackson broke out again pretty bad from something yesterday, but of course I don't know what, as he was at school all day. It seems the harder we try, the worse he gets. I know that we have the weekend to go back to the basics and hopefully get him clear. He itched a bit from this reaction, but for the most part, he didn't mind.

It was me that got frustated last night. The list of ingredients that contain allerens is endless, and hard to figure out: stabilizer, kamut, binder, starch, monosodium glutamate, guar gum, gum arabic, lecithin, cassein, albumin and that is just a tiny portion of the monster list!

But as usual, Jackson is making us smile. He is counting to 10 now, all by himself. Though he does occasionally forget about number nine.

A Jackson Update

Food allergies: We have taken a couple steps backwards, but we have found that Jackson reacts to anything with the ingredient "caramel color". So that's something we will read labels for, and hope he is cleared up by this weekend so we can try soy. It seems that a lot of foods contain either soy or dairy, so it would be great if we could add one or the other.

Coborn's Delievers: I was a big fan of SimonDelivers and was so sad to see it go out of business. Now Coborn's has bought Simon and we will see our first delivery tomorrow. Here's the best part: Coborn's has Fleishmanns light margarine which contains no soy or dairy!! I've been hunting all over town for this product. If all goes as planned, Jackson will be eating Rice Krispie bars this weekend, I'll keep you posted.

Halloween: I'm trying hard to find treats that will make-up for Jackson missing out on Halloween treats that all his friends will be eating! Maybe if he's eating a yummy Rice Krispie bar he won't be so likely to steal candy bars from friends (our kid is a thief for food). This year we have a couple Halloween events to attend, so we'll see if we can get Jackson to enjoy wearing his Halloween costume before the big night. This Friday we are heading to ZooBoo at Como Park, and next week is his Halloween party at school.

School Photos: It's picture day for Jackson today! Unfortunately the caramel color knowledge was not learned until it was too late, so we may have proof of Jackson's allergy in his school photo. We sent him off to school with his hair combed and a cute little sweater... we'll see what kind of shape he ended up in by the time the photographer came around.

Monday Feature: Likes and Dislikes

The Boy's likes and dislikes change so frequently and this feature is such proof of that. It is so nice to see that his likes are always more than his dislikes!

Likes: Caterpillars, driving the bus, puzzles, reading The Very Hungry Caterpillar, watching baseball, the farmer's market, Caliou, climbing into cupboards, pushing buttons on the computer, raking and jumping into leaves, singing ABCs, reading books on the LeapFrog LeapPad, animal pajamas, watching the rollercoaster at MOA, taking showers with Mama and rice crackers.

Dislikes: Pumpkin insides, spinach, brushing his teeth, wearing clothes and the scuba diver that talks from the aquarium at the MN Zoo!

The Food List: Updated

Lately, I've been using this blog as a record to keep track of Jackson's food allergies/intollerances. So while some of these posts may be quite boring for you, it's good information for me to have written down somewhere other than on sticky notes on our fridge.

Here is what we know Jackson can eat without reaction:
Oats
Rice
Apples
Pears
Chicken
Hamburger
Gyro Meat
Enjoy life Chocolate Chip Cookies (allergen free)
Rice Krispies
Black Beans
Pinto Beans
Rice noodles
Bananas
Annie's organic fruit bunnies
Peas
Aspagargus
Squash
Sweetpotato
Rice Milk
Potato
Back to Nature Apple Cinnmon granola
Hol Grain Brown Rice crackers
Lima Beans
Spinach
Mashed potatoes (made with rice milk, no butter)
Green beans
Brocolli
Mango juice

Another week of the same...

After 8 days of Jackson being clear from his zero allergen diet, I was super excited to give soy a try this evening. I stopped on my way home for some dairy free margarine that still contained soy, so that I could make Rice Krispie treats for the boy, a reward I thought was well earned after 8 days of an extremely bland diet. But when I picked him up from childcare, he was all broken out. He had gotten a hold of a chunck of an apple cinnamon nutrigrain bar off the floor. I have to admit, I was quite bummed. Now we are back to square one, another week of the very limited diet before we can try soy. If he had gotten a hold of something with just one of the allergens we would have a better idea of what he is allergic to, but nutrigrain bars contain wheat, soy and dairy, so we still do not know the culprit.

Food List

Lately, I've been using this blog as a record to keep track of Jackson's food allergies/intollerances. So while some of these posts may be quite boring for you, it's good information for me to have written down somewhere other than on sticky notes on our fridge.

Here is what we know Jackson can eat without reaction:
Oats
Rice
Apples
Pears
Chicken
Hamburger
Gyro Meat
Enjoy life Chocolate Chip Cookies (allergen free)
Rice Krispies
Black Beans
Pinto Beans
Rice noodles
Bananas
Annie's organic fruit bunnies
Peas
Aspagargus
Squash
Sweetpotato
Rice Milk
Potato
Back to Nature Apple Cinnmon granola
Hol Grain Brown Rice crackers

The Results are In...

The bloodwork has come back for Jackson, which unfortunately doesn't tell us anything. I had a lengthy conversation with the doctor just now and she said it's very common for these food allergies not to show up in blood tests at this age and we just have to start with a trial and error process, being very careful to read labels so he is not exposed to something we are unaware of.

His blood was not tested for tree nuts though, so the blood will go back to the lab for additional testing.

We are to continue the strict diet minus the top allergens -- no wheat, soy, dairy, fish, shellfish, nuts, strawberries, raspberries, tomatoes and eggs -- for the next couple of days while he is at childcare. This weekend we can start with soy and watch him for 5-7 days to see if he has any reaction. We'll do this for a while, trying wheat and dairy last.

She advises not giving him nuts, tree nuts, fish, shellfish, or egg until he is at least three.

We also talked about his platelets levels being high (404). It's nothing to worry about at this time, but she will check his past platelet levels and see if there is anything to be concerned about.

A Horwath Update:

Jackson's allergies: We have gone back to the basics and removed any potential allergen from Jackson's diet. So this means, no wheat, soy, dairy, fish, shellfish, nuts, strawberries, raspberries, tomatoes and eggs. What CAN he eat? Good question, the diet is a bit trying, he can have meat, vegetables, rice and any of the fruit not mentioned. It doesn't leave a lot of options, but the good news is that Jackson's face has completely cleared. Now we will just wait for the results of the blood test before deciding what to do next.

Jackson's song list: He now has his ABCs down, though still working on the "Next time won't you sing with me" part. And he mumbles a bit through L-M-N. He is also known to belt out Wheels on the Bus, 5 Little Monkeys, Twinkle Twinkle and Ring around the Rosie from the back seat.

Jackson's vocab: Is doubling daily. Ron dropped 100 as the number of words Jackson knows, I knew it was way more than that, so we wandered around the house pointing out objects and Jackson got close to 100 in under 5 minutes and that didn't count any of the objects outside of our home. Here is just a list of my favorite additions lately: Crocodile, Elephant, Obama, Trick or Treat, Stand Up Please, Possum, TV Show, Motorcycle, Bumblebee, Asparagus, Computer and FireMan Sam.

Favorite toys: Jackson doesn't play much with toys. It'd kind of strange but he skips over his toy corner for things like: Ron's wallet, keys, cardboard boxes, toilet paper rolls, bottle coozies, cellphones, radios and such. But when he does play with his toys he likes to color, play catch, work on his toolbench, vacuum, read books, or play with his Bob the Builder digger, Scoop.

Ron: Ron has been working a lot lately, putting in hours for special events and in-services. His favorite new find is the woodworking section of our local library, so every couple of weeks Ron gets a new stack of books and magazines to bring home and peruse. He is also trying out his skills in the home decorating world. He finally talked me into moving our furniture around in the living room and the new layout is a fresh change, and I like it!

Sara: I was accepted into the Accelerated Bachelor's Program at St. Scholastica. It's going to be a lot of work, but I am ready for the challenge, which is good because classes start October 27. I'm still taking a Macroeconomics class at Century, which is proving especially interesting during this time of financial crisis. This weekend I will be attending the Mason Jennings show at The Orpheum with my friends Bob and Libby.

Go Obama!

Fall fun...

Another weekend in pictures:

Playing in the leaves


At the MN Zoo


Carving pumpkins. Jackson did not like this, when we opened up the pumpkins and started pulling the "guts" out, he started to gag!


The final product

We found cookies that Jackson can eat at Whole Foods. They are free of the top eight allergens

Slimey and Slippery...

While we were transplanting an abundance of raspberry bushes in our back yard this weekend, I gave Jackson this nightcrawler to play around with (keeping my eye on him every second, incase he got curious enough to see what worm soup tasted like). Well he never thought to eat the worm, thank goodness, he just held it in his hands for quite some time. You can kind of see in this picture that the worm was trying to make his way up Jackson's jacket sleeve. Eventually worm made it a good way up his sleeve and Jackson didn't like these tricks, but he never dropped the worm, only kept his grip and screeched!

Allergies Tested

This morning we took Jackson to an allergist. After many many days and weeks of hives from head to toe and rashes on his face, we made an appointment with a specialist.

It was obvious to the doctor that he was an "allergy kid" and she also thought that his snoring and cough were probably asthma related. While Jackson sat on my lap and ate a Nilla wafer, the nurse did a scratch test (picture) that unfortunately didn't come out with any definitive results (a small reaction to subjects 3 and 4). After already spending an hour and 45 minutes in the doctor's office it was decided that he would go in for a blood test to get some better results and to also check in on his immune system. Jackson was a real trooper and didn't complain with any of the pokes or pricks.

The doctor also found that his left ear was infected, which I had suspected. His ear was draining yellow/brown fluid over the weekend.

While he was a great little kid, all of this got him well off schedule and feeling a bit out of sorts. Which meant for a ROUGH afternoon. After FINALLY getting down for a nap after many tears, Jackson woke up thrashing in his crib from what we believe to be a nightmare. Loads of whimpering, whining and crying later, Ron and I were plum tuckered out!

We headed to Target to get all of his presciptions filled anyway. He'll be taking Singulair every day to help control the asthma, and he's on another antibiotic for the ear infection. We also have some Zyrtec for when the allergy symptoms start kicking in. At Target, we checked out hepa filters while waiting for the prescriptions to be filled. The doctor suggested a hepa filter run in his bedroom all the time to clear out any allergens, along with special pillow and mattress protectors (the filter she suggested costs $300!!). She suggested using a different detergent, but I already don't purchase anything with any dyes or perfumes, so I am not sure that a more expensive brand of the same thing will do any good, but we will discontinue use of dryer sheets in his laundry. It's all a bit overwhelming presently and we'll be digesting this over the week and deciding on how many of these precautions we'll be taking.

The blood tests will come back in a week, and we will have a follow up appointment wiht the allergist in 4-6 weeks. Whew! That's a load of information to share.

Brain cells on the loose...

There was a time not so long ago that I was pretty much on top of it. I didn't need to be reminded of doctor's appointments or work meetings. I never locked myself out of the house or my keys in the ignition while I stood outside peering in. I didn't misplace my car keys, my sunglasses or my mittens or even an entire book of stamps. I mostly knew what was on my calendar for months at a time and I didn't need to keep a daily lists.

Since having Jackson all of this has changed. Now, a day isn't started without a list made. I can tell myself to stop at the gas station on the way to work as I pull out of my driveway, but forget by the time I come upon the nearest gas station just two miles down the road.

So, this weekend's misstep was no surprise, and the thing that managed to remind me of how forgetful I am these days, was also ridiculously funny, which is why I felt the need to share.

The brisk fall has started to set in, which typically means that the hardwood floors throughout our house can be a bit chilly. While I cleaned up our bedroom during Jackson's naptime I came across my Cabela's slippers and decided to slip them on my feet to keep my toes warm. I spent the rest of naptime indoors, doing homework and a bit of picking up, then I fixed a snack for Jackson when he woke up from his nap. I thought it would be fun to take the boy to Como Zoo since the weather was so beautiful. I packed up Jackson and myself into the car and zipped down 94 to the zoo. I found a good parking spot and stepped onto the road, got Jackson's stroller out of the back and flipped it open on the sidewalk. Believe it or not, it was only then that I realized, those wonderful Cabella's slippers were still on my feet. Now what?!?

There was no way we were going to drive all the way home so that I could put on proper shoes, I can't imagine the look Jackson would have on his face after I told him that it was going to be awhile before we could go in search of lions and tigers. No one seemed to notice and they were actually relatively comfortable footwear to stroll around looking at the zebras and giraffes!