This crazy thing called ECZEMA!

Everybody Loves Papa!

It has been so much easier getting out of the house sans the kids. Bella just LOVES her papa, which means I can leave her with him and not worry like I did with Max. When Max was a baby, he would not give Hal a chance to comfort him and pretty much cried any time I left him with his papa… or anyone, really. Remember that, Auntie Liz? Bella can be comforted and entertained by just about anyone interested. Isn’t that awesome, Auntie Liz?!

Now, both the kids enjoy their papa-time.

Bella is really trying to walk. She will let go of her support (often by shooing away my hands) and take 2-3 steps on her own before loosing balance. Its quite amazing. My baby girl will soon be a toddler. I am so excited about this because the infant and baby stage has not been my favorite time with the kiddos. It has consistently proven to be the most stressful time.

Look momma! I got the socks off my hands!!!

Now that Bella is playing with Max, by herself, and with toys… now that I can get out of the house by myself and get stuff done in the house… life is getting so much nicer. That tiny bit of independence in their lives means a world of difference in the independence of my life. I still soak up every moment with my children, but I’m simultaneously excited by each new development and by what is to come. It really is a blessing to be around them so much and to be such a huge part of this time in their lives.

This is what we are currently doing for Bella’s eczema…

Monday, Hal and I took Bella to have her blood drawn. We are starting the testing part of figuring out what is going on with her skin (…since my efforts have not completely healed her, gawd-dammit). Her skin has cleared up quite a bit since infancy, however, [unfortunately] she is still itching all the time.

The homeopathic medicine is hard to read. We are not sure if it is helping but are okay with using it because it certainly isn’t hurting. It is also very inexpensive at 10 bucks a bottle (so-far, only one bottle of the stuff) and 75$ a visit (with only a few visits needed). I have temporarily stopped acupuncture but feel that needs to be started again. I’m still eating the restricted diet (…and have gotten used to it! I’ve also started cooking, again, for the whole family – that only took 13 months after giving birth to Bella). We are getting our carpet changed out to wood next week – Hal and I think this will make a huge difference because when we keep her off the carpet… her skin is perfect. And we have also added probiotics to her diet, slipping them into her banana mush.

The healing process with eczema is often slow and that has proven to be true with Bella. We are having the, RAST, blood test done so we can find out exactly what she is allergic too. She took that blood drawl like a brave and strong woman – to our great relief. We are also going to do a Celiac test on her. When the nurse at the lab saw the blood drawl order, she was like, WOW, so many test! I guess its not that common to test for so many things?

A little scare… then, ah humbug…

Since Bella’s 9 month check up, she has grown taller but has lost two pounds. Her pediatrician saw this as a red flag and said some shit that frightened me. Then, after I thought about it (once I got out of that office)… Bella was sick for two weeks with a fever for one of those weeks, and I have stopped nursing her at night. This is most likely the cause of her dropping some weight. Of-course I will run it by the good’Dr., but I’m sure she’ll agree.

Her pediatrician recommended a formula that cost $130 bucks a can to help her gain weight. I looked into it and have decided to not go that route. Not because of the cost or the grossness I feel when I think about giving my baby formula (don’t get me wrong, I’d do it in a heartbeat if I felt it was the best thing to do), but because I can help her gain weight with the right foods. I have started adding more food to her diet and to my great delight… she loves it! She is eating like a champ and fortunately, she loves avocados – which is adding some much needed fat to her food source.

Because my diet doesn’t include very much fat, Bella wasn’t getting a lot of fat through my breast milk. The rest of her development is right on track, but her weight is in the 5th percentile (height in the 50th percentile). I’m not sure if that is based on the chart for breast fed babies or formula fed babies (a new development from the World Health Organization because the two forms of food are radically different). I’m assuming the good Dr. was using the bf’ing chart, because she is a good doctor. However, those charts are still subject to a certain group of women and the average Western diet… which is not my diet, right now.

The first step is to get all the blood work back. Then, we will go from there with our next decision.

Having house guests and going out… life is good right now…

Thank you, Nicole, for the wonderful visit! Max’s book…

And thank you, lovely ladies, for the night out on the town…

http://www.flickr.com/photos/sarahbelle/sets/72157604021080006/