Millet Mash

Who knew feeding your babe could be so much fun?!!! AND MESSY!!! We're getting creative around here and Jake is really liking it!

Jake FPIES Update-I believe in Magic!!!

Jake has overcome some amazing milestones with his FPIES. While in Oklahoma, a dear friend told me about a holistic doctor (chiropractor) who tests for allergies using a method called N.E.A.T. (Natural Energy Allergy Testing) on her kids. In a nut shell, the chiropractor tests your muscles and how they react to certain energies in food. If your chi (natural energy) from you body reacts poorly to the force field of certain foods, your muscles have no strength. Sounds crazy, but I swear by it! Before you get all, oh whatever on me, just wait...

I held Jake on my stomach while we tested several foods. Let me tell you, if there was a food that is not considered safe for Jake, I had ZERO strength in my arm as the chiropractor asked me to pull against his arm with mine. Some people call it voodoo, I call it magic. If the food is considered a "pass" then we wrote it down to trial. If it is a "fail" we will stay away from it for some time. I had nothing to loose, considering the copious amounts of food that I was trying to figure out if we should trial or not. Foods such as wheat, eggs, soy, nuts, tomatoes that I try my best to rule out of my diet, were considered fails. It confirmed what I already suspected as for nursing goes. Although, a food is a "pass" we still have to trial it with caution, but have been lucky so far.

Jake now has a small list of safe foods we can work from! So far, so great!

The chiropractor said that millet was a go, so I decided to start millet first. I had already read many success stories from other FPIES mammas. Millet is very versatile. It can be cooked like pasta, eaten in a puffed cereal form, or served as a baby cereal to name a few. I knew it would help Jake with textures and be easy on his tummy. It has amazing properties that help many people who have gluten intolerance and helps regulate and calm inflammation of the gut. It has been heaven sent. After three days of trialing millet, Jake started sleeping better and acting so much happier. We had not one single side effect. Wonderful!!

We just finished a banana trial and Jake did beautifully!!! He LOVES them and has done well with them.

Today, we started sweet potatoes. We had no projectile vomiting, and so far no side effects. Each food trial is two weeks. Lets hope this continues!!

We are grateful our little boy is eating even if his menu is small. It has been such a blessing. It is nice to now have a list to work off of, and a list to stay away from. Holistic medicine follows a lot of what the Chinese have been doing in their culture for centuries, and Chinese people generally live long and healthy lives and are very good to their bodies, so there's got to be something to it!! Right now, I am so happy that my boy is getting some nutrition and that things are looking up for him! He has a long way to go, and has had some other health challenges, but for right now, we couldn't be more thankful.

Petit Prince Birthday Party

For Jake's 1st birthday party we chose the theme "Le Petit Prince", The Little Prince, for two reasons: He is called little prince by both his grandmas, and we LOVE the book by Antoine de Saint-Exupery. Dear family and friends join Jake in celebrating his first year of life! Jake felt the love. He didnt nap that afternoon so I was so afraid he would come unhinged, but that boy grinned ear to ear.

A big shout out to my mom and mother in law for helping with the food and decor. It was so much fun! His cake was not really cake because I have no idea how to make a cake that cannot include eggs, flour, soy, nuts, and most any other ingredient that you need, so instead he got a banana sliced cut in the shape of little stars! Great idea Grandma Carson! We trailed bananas over the last two weeks and he devoured his new special treat! It was an exciting moment!!!

He got some wonderful new toys and lots of pictures of his special day. He may not remember it, but he will look at those pictures and know he was loved a million times over!

Happy First Birthday Jake!

Our sweet boy celebrated his first birthday! Our hearts are full of love and gratitude for him. We adore this angel. He is making amazing progress. He shares lots of giggles and smiles, kisses and hugs. We cant get enough of him. Happy Birthday Jake! We love every day we have the privilege of spending with you.

I'll Love You Forever

Sometimes I really cant believe how big Jake has gotten. He will always be my sweet baby boy, but I may need a chiropractor. ;-)

10 Month Old

10 month old baby bear Jake and his book!

Jake is growing!!! We are grateful for him. He is climbing, standing, cruising, and bouncing his way around. He is eating PEARS, his one and only safe solid food! He is clapping. He is getting more and more hair. He loves books and stories. He loves feeling the pages of the touch books with little animals. He concentrates really hard and has a thinking face where he sticks his bottom lip out a bit and crinkles his brow and tries to look over those big kissy cheeks of his to see the pages. He is afraid of being away from mom and dad, but he loves people. He has a funny little laugh that sounds more like a hoarse cough and it only comes out once, but he does it the moment he is picked up and walked outside or sees a smiling face. He loves the wind gently on his face and watching the cars go by outside. He loves his daddy. His first word was 'dada'. He is our sweet, sweet boy. He is doing better with his tummy, but we haven't tried new foods. We need to be brave and try new foods, but his happiness has been amazing and I don't want his tummy to hurt. His personality is really getting to be so much fun. He is super determined and if a "road block" is placed between him and any dangerous object in the house, he will scale it and push it and do all he can to climb over it. He will even cry is protest. He squeals with delight and buzzes his lips when he is happy. He just started standing and pushing around a little toy walker. He is so much fun!

FPIES Follow-up

Things are looking up Jake!!!

So, about two weeks ago, I decided to go on an elimination diet. You may be asking, "How is it going?!" To which I would respond, "Good, Jake is doing better at least for now! ha ha!" I have made some major diet changes. You may be asking other questions and here are a few possible ones I would ask myself! ha ha!

What do you eat?

I tried millet cereal for the first few days and I wasn't such a huge fan. It's supposed to be on the low end of the allergy scale, but yuck. I went to trader joes and bought steel cut oats. I eat them every morning with coconut milk and agave. I eat most fruits and veggies, and lots and lots of pears and avocados. They are pretty allergy friendly and they dont seem to bug little man too much. Dinner usually includes a salad with chicken or turkey.

Why are you doing this?

I'm desperate to help my little man eat. His stomach needed a break.

Well, what's going on with Jake? It is really helping him?

His problems start and begin with food. They are strictly food related. He has really good days when he isn't having a hurt tummy. He has sensitivity and severe reactions to food proteins.

Without jumping the gun, Jake has been sleeping better. Not perfect, but better AND we have started pears again with much success. He gets a tiny lick every day and today...ok I may shed a tear here, I shared a pear with him and he licked it and gnawing at it, and I waited for a reaction and nothing!! My heart rejoiced. There is something really special about sharing food with your baby. Maybe because I want it really bad. Well, I don't want to get my hopes up, but I think there is progress being made. Tomorrow I will cut up some pieces and see what he thinks about that.

What does Jake sleeping better have ANYTHING to do with your eating?

MMMKay, FPIES babies are super sensitive to food proteins. It is a guessing game with each baby. One baby may react to peaches, another may not. There is no list on what works and what doesn't. Eliminating common offending foods causing stomach irritation such as dairy, soy, nuts, etc etc helps to minimize inflammation of the gut. Nursing FPIES babies seem to have a reaction to what their moms eat. Some doctors disagree. They probably dont have FPIES babies or have even heard of it.

Jake had sleep issues from the beginning and wakes up frequently from a dead sleep screeching. Sometimes he will have really good nights and we get so excited, then he will have bad ones. We think it may be related to stomach issues. That is the whole thing I am trying to prove. It's an experiment of sorts.

Are you just overreacting because you are tired?

No. I will sleep when I am dead.

How do you do it?

I have learned that sleep is overrated and I love my under eye concealer. Anyone can do anything they set their mind to even if you are sleep deprived. That and prayer and love from family and friends really helps. ;-) Awwww, shout out to all you wonderful peeps who keep us breathing!

Is Jake just being a cranky baby and you are just a silly first time mom?

Please, dont even go there. He's a wonderful baby who is doing better, and becoming less and less cranky with age and with some nutritional research.

No, really?

I have a somewhat rational brain and I think A LOT, I read A LOT and I really think he is doing better and becoming a normal toddler that I love and laugh with all the time. His normal baby antics have nothing to do with him throwing up two hours after eating food. I can deal with a squirmy baby, a baby who is constipated, a baby who cries. What I worry about his him being able to eat and missing that window of opportunity. Food therapy is very costly and tricky. Babies must learn that different tastes and textures are part of eating. We all had to learn that at one point.

The whole puking and passing out thing is really no fun.

What now?

One step in front of the other. I hope to have him eating at least 3 foods by the time he is one year old. I just ordered millet porridge from Australia. Desperate? Perhaps. Love my baby?Yes.