Michi8

Glad to hear you had a successful thanksgiving!

Michelle

I think our son IS ready, just being lazy.

Is it laziness, or is it just something that he has control over? Parents don't often "win" a potty training battle because it really is up to the child whether they use the toilet or not.

Before my second son decided to use the toilet 100% of the time, he would choose not to poop in his pull up when he was away from home, but there was no way he was going to use the toilet (yet)...he would always wait until he was at home to poop (in his pull up.) He was fully able to control when & where he went, and I couldn't force him to do otherwise.

Michelle

What about overnight? Naps?

(and I am pretending that its impossible for him to get gluttened durring this, that would destroy any chances!)

You can get cloth training pants with a waterproof outer (Motherease makes a wonderful terrycloth training pant with a built-in waterproof cover.) They work well for daytime, but don't hold as much liquid as diapers, so don't work as well for naps. If your son is ready, then you could try elimiating diapers and pullups completely, and letting him go bare-bottomed until he learns to use the toilet consistently.

IME, I've gone through potty training with two boys, and they were completely different in how training went. First son was dry at night first and then daytime followed once we stopped using diapers/pullups at night. He trained at about 3 yo. Second son was capable, but refused until he was good and ready. we continued with pullups, and he decided to stop wearing them at 3.5 yo, just as he was starting preschool (he knew he had to be using the toilet to go to school.) He never had an accident day or night. There was no way either boy was going to train on my schedule...it was completely up to them!

My daughter trained at 2.5 yo because she hated diapers. I told her that she needed to use the toilet then...and so she ran around sans underpants, and we kept a potty in the room where she was hanging out. Didn't take her long to get the hang of it, and she quickly learned to stay completely dry at night too. Again, the process was totally up to her...there was no way I could push it until she was ready.

Michelle

Tiff, I swear, you attract the dumbest doctors! (including mine, I guess)

I can't believe he doesn't think you can reach your cervix!! This is why I have a female ObGyn only policy

Ciminey.

I start NFP/FAM next week...AAACK!!!

FAM is actually quite simple...you'll get used to it quickly. I used FAM before and during the years DH & I had our kids (don't need any such methods now ) I especially liked knowing exactly what was going on with my body/cycles...and knew each time I was pregnant (all three pregnancies were planned) based on fertility signs rather than needing to take pregnancy tests. FAM also helped to time for conceiving our daughter (after having two boys.)

Michelle

(revealing my total non-techno saviness, here)

Can someone tell me what is a listserve? do I write to that email address and ask for something?

A Listserv is like a newsgroup or forum, but all communication is done via email. Members become part of the group, and posts are sent to all members via email.

Michelle

I'm having a party tomorrow, and along with the loads of other foods I'm making, I'd like to roast pumpkin seeds. I also think it will help the whole apartment smell delicious and cozy. What do I have to do once I cut the pumpkin open and shell out all of the gook inside?

You'll want to then separate all the seeds from the strings, and rinse them well before preparing to bake. I don't have a specific recipe for you to try...I made mine last year from a basic recipe I found online. If you do a Google search for pumpkin seed recipes, there should be all sorts of recipes to try. I found one recipe from Martha Stewart for Sweet & Spicy pumpkin seeds: Open Original Shared Link

Happy Roasting!

Michelle

Hi there, I just found out that I'm pregnant (7 weeks, 4 days) and this is my first pregnancy at age 39, so I'm very anxious.

My question is: I have felt intermittent nausea for several weeks - is this normal? I thought the nausea would be pretty constant, and at times, I feel pretty good.

Thanks for any feedback

Congratulations!

It is completely normal to have nausea off and on. You are still very early in the pregnancy yet...you could see the nausea get a bit stronger yet, and more constant, or it just may go away...such an individual thing!

Do keep snacks around to help keep nausea at bay. It's can be especially helpful to have a snack before getting out of bed so that you don't get up feeling hungry and woozy. Finally, you may find that nausea is related to particular foods. I found, when I was pregnant, that I had to avoid foods I normally loved because of stong tastes and smells (especially broccoli)...stuck with very bland foods with my boys. For my third pregnancy, a girl, I craved strong foods, especially pickled ginger, salmon and curries.

Michelle

I'm going to go gluten free after the biopsy, regardless of results. My blood work was negative (and so were my son's) but there are too many symptoms, and a long family history of GI issues to just let it go...when I saw the GI, my history & symptoms were enough to recommend the gastroscopy and biopsy.

Michelle

sounds like it could be a gluten reaction, it could also be another food intolerance creeping in... keeping a detailed food journal might be helpful at this point and maybe you will be able to see a pattern emerge, it could be something else, but being that it occured after eating, it's more likely a food related thing.

other common food intolerances besides gluten are corn, rice, soy, dairy/casein, lectins, nightshades... (well it can go on and on)... usually after we go gluten-free, other food intolerances begin to emerge.

A food log is a good idea. I'm suspecting the bread, because it was whole wheat with wheat berries (and the mouth ulcer happened immediately)...the filling was tuna salad that I prepared myself and know the ingredients.

Michelle

So an hour after eating, I ended up feeling absolutely exhausted (a nap didn't help) and irritable...and had absolutely no patience for my kids. Now I've got an upset stomache. Is this a typical gluten reaction?

Michelle

Hi there,

Just wondering how quickly aphthous ulcers show up after ingesting gluten? I'm still consuming gluten until I have my biopsy at the end of next month. I've pretty much always had some problem with mouth ulcers and canker sores (they come and go), but hadn't paid much attention to what triggers them, just that they are a common symptom of celiac, and one of many symptoms I have.

Today, within seconds of taking a bite of my sandwich, I developed an ulcer on my left cheek and have a sensation of a canker sore or two developing on my tongue. Do these sore spots usually show up this quickly when reacting to wheat products, or could it be something else causing this?

Michelle

I am getting braces next week ... fun, but my TMJ is feeling much better, and this is the next step.

My ortho wants me to take atropine to dry out my mouth 30 min. before my appt. Anyone know if it's gluten-free? Anyone with any experience taking this, it doesn't sound good to me ...

Sorry, no experience with it. I also don't remember having to take any drug like that when I had braces put on. Is it common practice now?

Michelle

I don't remember if I've posted in this thread or not. I'm in Central Alberta.

Michelle

as far as any b vitamin goes, it can help right away or take a few weeks to help as much as it will. you should the subtler affects sooner. but it can't hurt, so i wouldn't stop.

I pray that B12 is never a definciency for me...since I'm allergic to cobalt, I can not take any type of B12 supplement. I haven't been able to find any info on treating B12 definciency in this regard. I assume that it would need to be treated with diet alone.

Michelle

Do some people just not have a memory? Do they just not take much interest in others? How hard should I kick my boyfriend in the shins for not saying something?

Some people can't think beyond themselves, and really cannot even grasp being unable to eat something, especially if they have none of their own allergy/intolerance problems. Take my dad for example...I've had a peanut allergy since childhood, yet he would forget and bring home treats for the family that obviously had peanuts in them. Gosh he must have felt awful to see the hurt look on his little girl's face (and then he'd return to the store to get me something too.)

Michelle

So, do you ever feel like your in-laws just think your over-reacting at times? I think somethimes i feel like that's what they think of me...it makes me feel like a piece if cra*

I do. Apparently I'm the family hypocondriac. That goes for my own parents too.

Michelle

I'm the only one in my family who's been tested celiac yet. But my mom recently told me that when she was carrying me she had a strange, itchy, angry rash EXACTLY as you have described, all over her abdomen and thighs. She only had it with me. Because of my genetic testing I DO know that she has at least one celiac or gluten intolerant gene because I have two. Not sure if this is relevant, but I thought it was interesting when she told me.

That's interesting to hear! My SIL had horrible PUPP on her abdomen that spread to her limbs. She was so itchy and uncomfortable for the last trimester because of it. Her baby daughter has had a lot of problems with dairy and oats (apparently she's outgrown both of those allergies since?!) and now, at 2 years old, she is always sick, and looks sickly and has problems with what is either eczema or fungus. Her father (my brother) has had numerous problems with GI health and other illnesses...I know he needs to be tested for celiac...and I bet his daughter needs to too! Alas, everyone is waiting to see what my test results reveal before proceeding down the path of testing.

Anyway, I do wonder if SIL's PUPP has anything to do with her daughter's health issues?

Michelle

If I may add to Cheri's list:

1 egg

= 2 tablespoons oil plus 1 tablespoon water

or

= 1 teaspoon constarch lus 3 tablespoons more liquid in recipe

I got this info from a book titled Substituting Ingredients: An A to Z Kitchen Reference by Becky Sue Epstein and Hilary Dole Klein. It's very helpful for substituting all sorts of ingredients, plus has guidelines for subsituting dried herbs for fresh, has lists of measurement equivalents, and recipes for natural, homemade cleaning products.

Michelle

Scratch or patch tests don't test for foods we eat. Those only show how our skin reacts to substances. We don't put food under our skin. We put it into our stomaches which sends it on to our intestines which produce antibodies which leak into our blood. So stool (intestinal antibodies) or blood tests more accurately test delayed reaction (IgG or IgA) food allergies.

Yes, scratch testing does test for foods we eat. Food that we react to when eaten can also induce an allergic response when it touches any mucous membrane or open spot in the skin (it's the same histamine response.) For example, I react to apples when I eat them. I also react to them if I touch the juice of an apple and then mistakenly touch my eyes. I have the same allergic response to foods as I do to danders and pollens. The difference is that I don't eat dander or pollen, so I don't have the oral response, and I try really hard not to get food allergens in my eyes. Scratch testing was very helpful for me, it gave me an accurate picture of what my allergens are.

Michelle

Okay folks, my life has gotten a bit to full (and my roommate a bit too pissed off about lack of space in the fridge) for me to be effective doing a rotation diet to figure this stuff out right now.

My student insurance this semester doesn't cover allergy testing, but there'll be a new policy next semester that may cover some of it.

What are the options for getting tested for other food allergies and intolerances? How much do they cost? Are any of them "affordable" (in the sense that the $360 Enterolab test was a wise use of my money even though the insurance didn't cover it) if I decide to do something on my own? How accurate do they seem to be?

You can do the scratch test, and/or patch testing. That will give you an idea of your allergies, but will not show if you have intolerances. The scratch test will show allergies to foods, pollens, molds, dander, etc. Patch testing shows allergies/sensitivies to chemicals, metals, minerals, etc.

I'm not sure of the total cost, though. Our provincial health plan covers standard visits to any doctor/specialist, but does not cover the cost of the actual testing supplies. I believe I paid around $30-$50 out of pocket (extended health plans don't cover the supplies either) for scratch tests. For my patch testing, I paid $90 out of pocket.

Michelle

I make buckwheat pancakes almost every weekend. I don't like straight buckwheat, it tastes too "healthy" for me so I do about 1/3 buckwheat, 1/3 rice flour, 1/3 random mix of flax meal, soy and potato starch.

Far from healthy when it's got bacon and drippings in it! LOL!

Michelle

Here is the recipe!

Buckwheat Kasha

2 cups buckwheat groats

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon butter

5 cups water

Spread buckwheat groats in a pan and place in a slow oven (250F to 275F). Heat, stirring occassionally, until the groats feel dry to the hand and are very lightly toasted. This gives kasha a pleasant nutty flavour.

Combine buckwheat with water, salt and butter. Boil for 15 minutes, then put the pot in a 350F oven. Bake for 30 minutes, lower to 300F and bake 30 minutes more. Kasha may be served with scalded milk as a cereal, or served with a sauce, or with fried, diced bacon and onions.

(Alternately, you can cook them with bacon drippings instead of butter, and/or can cook them in a pot on the stove instead of putting in the oven.)

Michelle

Buckwheat's definitely gluten free, but for some, an aquired taste. I'm not a huge fan of kasha straight up - as I've prepared it so far. But I mix buckwheat flour in some of my recipes.

I suppose it may be an acquired taste. I grew up eating it (it's essentially served with a meal just as rice is) and absolutely love it! Love lots of other Ukrainian food too, except for studenets (headcheese/pigs knuckles) will never, ever get used to that stuff. Blech!

Michelle

Yes, smoking does affect your bowel movements. It also apparently has a protective effect on the gut in terms of celiac (according to some studies)...but that effect is completely negated by the fact that it can cause so many cancers and other health issues.

Once you have quit for a long enough time, your bowels should no longer need the help of cigarettes. You could always take up drinking coffee instead...it helps bowel movements too.

I quit smoking 10 years ago (before I had kids) and am very happy I did...now I can't even stand being around smoke!

Michelle

ok...my body gave my my own answer,.....

I am burping like crazy and coughing now....and I thought I was doing ok.

It's certainly not gluten....but it obviously doesn't agree....

That quick though...within 20 min???

----

I'd still ike to hear what people have done with it....or have experienced with it.

Buckwheat that is.....

You can make buckwheat kasha (a Ukrainian dish) with it. It's got a kind of nutty flavour...you roast the groats before cooking it with water (there's also butter or bacon fat and salt in it.) My mom makes with with pieces of bacon too (yum!) If you're interested in the recipe, let me know and I can type it up. BTW, I've also got a recipe for baked millet kasha.

Michelle