That would make me nervous, too. I would be most concerned about the new foods, but allergies can develop at any time. If you are worried about anaphylaxis, conducting one's own trials is risky. :( Can you get to an allergist? Throat involvement plus vomiting... Yikes. I would give her the allergy liquid now, but please keep in mind that allergy liquid will not stop anaphylaxis. Watch her carefully. We have had several mild cases of anaphylaxis here lately, and we lucked out. Truly. We did not epi, but went with allergy liquid and inhaler puffs. In hindsight, and discussing with allergist, we should have epi'ed. We were lucky.

Thanks! That makes sense. I will relay this info to the guys, and then I'm betting I'll be looking for the facebook and twitter for dummies books!

Help me think this through? Last summer DS wanted to make an app. So DH and I helped him, and we all had a lot of fun. It's not some big money making machine, we are not dreaming of a Flappy Bird here, it's just a little kids' app about counting. Learning the process has been fun for all of us, mostly DS and DH. It's taken a long time. :) Now the app is ready to be launched (DS picked March 1st as our date), and we just have to put up a website. So... everything we are reading says that an app should have a facebook and twitter page, maybe even a linked in page? Really?! DH and I are social media hold outs. No facebook. No twitter. DH's linked in is purely professional. So I am clueless. Is all this necessary for an app? Do you ever access those pages for apps you use? (I don't, and I'm an apple geek.) My thought right now is to do the website (required to launch the app, so it's not up for debate), and that's it. None of us want to maintain the other accounts, you know? What do you think? Thanks for any thoughts on this!

:grouphug: :grouphug: :grouphug:

After reading the entire thread, I'm going to refrain from commenting on the original question. But I do want to point out that a gift card for make up or something I'd regularly buy for myself would be off of my DH's radar as a potential gift. He doesn't see those things as gift material. OP, maybe you can find a way to hint on those. Also, my DH would never, never give a household item as a gift. Vacuums are simply not something he'd consider a gift. He would need a hint on that, too. A big one. In fact, it reminds me of one of the bitter stories about my mother's former marriage ... "He gave me an iron for my birthday, can you imagine?? An iron!!" So in my mother's world, not receiving that vacuum would be a great gift! :) I hope this Valentine's day brings you joy, OP, and that you have a wonderful time with your DH, whatever you do. This from the girl sick in bed and planning a run to CVS for a card, and a quick trip into the wine store for a gift. [blushing] ...Valentine's is low key for us because our anniversary was last week, so I'm off the hook, whew.

Interested in the responses. I had the unfortunate experience of moving back east from NM and having my health fall apart. Needless to say, the SW is very appealing, as my body seemed better able to cope. FWIW, I was diagnosed with fibro and myofascial pain, among other things. Miserable. About 5 years in, a series of coincidental events led me to the root cause of the issues for me. Treating that made a huge difference, and life is better now - though by no means perfect. I would encourage you and your DH to keep seeking answers because fibro and the like can be symptoms of other things, and if you treat those other issues, there might be some relief. Of course, it may be that finding the root cause is next to impossible. Or feel that way. I know I was incredibly lucky. I hope you and your DH find the right answers for him, and that there is relief. Good luck on your journey! You might like a book that my DH found helpful: Beyond Chaos; One Man's Journey Alongside His Chronically Ill Wife. It was nice to have his journey recognized, and it was good for me to read it and appreciate his journey. That's a random aside that may or may not be interesting...

Tread carefully here. My oldest friend is the product of a rape, and I have seen the impact of that knowledge on his life. His parents did not get him counseling, or support, and he has struggled with it for his entire life. I, personally, would not share that info about my MIL, even once deceased. If your DH and his siblings make contact with the adoptee, and they decide to share, then that's their place to do so. I am an adoptive mom in 2 open adoptions, and married to an adoptee who has recently found his birthfamily, and my aunt has reunited with my birthcousin. So while I'm not adopted, I have lots of experience with birthfamilies. I, too, think that contact needs to come from your DH and his siblings, not from you. If you want to share what you've found with your DH, great. He and his siblings can proceed or not. Otherwise, this needs to just fizzle. It isn't fair to any of them to open something up without the consent of all. Opening an adoption is about more than just the adoptee, it impacts everyone.

Was this a model that the company claims will last longer than 4 years? I'd look at that literature. Was this very expensive, and marketed to last a long time? Honestly, 4 years, and I'd not even consider returning a humidifier. I try not to take advantage of stores with generous return policies so those policies stay generous, and I'd probably think that 4 years of use on a humidifier was a fair return on the investment. (Unless, of course, it was marketed to last longer and you bought it for that reason, which is why I'd be looking at the literature.) We have the same sort of dilemma going right now. We have a fairly expensive leather furniture set from Costco that should have lasted longer than 4 years. But ... It is in terrible shape. Our research has shown that the company that made it is no longer in business due to the same issues we're having. We saw that some people had returned it to Costco after the 5 year mark, and gotten refunds. But we feel uncomfortable about returning an item after using it that long. So we are sitting on our furniture while we decide. Pun intended. :) Most likely, we will chalk this up to a learning experience because neither DH nor I can see returning something we've clearly used for this amount of time. One year out, fine. 4 years ... No.

Totally agree. There are not enough words for the dislike I felt! :)

Yes, I have a bizarre, complex medical history. Not a connective tissue disorder, but a few (yes, few) other disorders connected with POTS. I sort of view POTS as a symptom. Mine started when I had a raging case of babesiosis, and I still have issues. The severity comes and goes. Staying hydrated helps the most. I also take fludricortisone, which I think helps the POTS, or it may be that I take it for Addison's, goodness, I am mixed up tonight! I hope your DD found good coping mechanisms!

Packing for Disney World!

Does she have a good allergist to help her navigate this? I hope so!

A 30 beat per minute increase is a big one. Wow. Has the dizziness improved at all, recently? I hope so. It's so frightening. I hope you find the cause soon. :grouphug: (Random thought: did you know that Greg, the yellow Wiggle, stopped wiggling due to POTS? Small world!)

That cookie Rx sounds terribly appealing, doesn't it? How did they figure out the difference for you? I ended up on a tilt table - oh, the joy! I guess maybe that would have shown the difference. Either way, not fun. Hmmm... In the midst of packing for a trip, but I feel an uncontrollable urge to go make cookies!

Someone here recommended White Lotus when we were looking last year. We now have 2 organic cotton and wool mattresses from them, and love them! DS had been sleeping on a brand new sealy, and his asthma was out of control. Buying organic, without the chemical flame retardant (ours uses wool instead) was one of our many steps in controlling his asthma. Funny thing is DH no longer snores as much (!), and doesn't wake with a runny nose. :) They always have specials and sales, and our shipping was free. It's kind of cool to have a handmade mattress. :)

The OP asked for help for a friend who is putting together a party for her co-op. If a child is in the co-op, and is excluded from a party for the co-op because of allergies, I find that sad. My son has life threatening allergies. Not an intolerance. Not a parent with an aversion to sugar. He doesn't expect to eat everything at a party, he doesn't make a scene, and neither do I. I bring safe food for him, and he's just happy to be part of a party. I'm sorry for people like Homeschool Mom in AZ, who've had such bad experiences with parents who have no manners. That's a shame. And for private parties - of course, that's a different ballgame. It's your party, invite whomever you wish. :)

How sad. :( Most people with food allergies (and I know dozens) have a system for dealing with parties. Either they don't attend, so no one has to deal with it, or they know how to navigate it in a way so their kids still have fun. Either way, the thought of deliberately excluding someone based on their allergies makes me sad. I understand that some people don't want to deal with it, but, really, these are children. If it's a co-op party, why exclude a child who is part of co-op just because of his/her allergies? Yes, my son has allergies. He loves Valentine parties.

Oh, how sad. I'm sorry they are all in this position.

Who is the father, then? Don't they think that baby L deserves to know? And the bio father, too? In some states, if a man assumes responsibility for a baby for long enough, it essentially becomes legal. Something to consider.

I'm on a high fluid, high salt diet for POTS. Why didn't I get the cookie Rx?? POTS makes me dizzy. I take meds for it now. Check out Potsplace dot org. Or is it net? Something like that. Lots of good dizziness info there.

I hope your pipes don't burst. :( I have family in GSO, and have heard horror stories about frozen pipes lately. You're not alone.

Thank you! I have been drooling over Lamping dominos. DS will thank you, too. :)

:grouphug: :grouphug: :grouphug: You're my hero for recognizing it so fast. It's not a failure. This isn't something you can think yourself out of.

Mine wasn't because of vomiting or diarrhea, so maybe this won't apply ... but just to throw it out there: when I was rehydrated via IV, I was sent home soon after, and did not have to stay overnight. (Mine was due to ongoing medical treatments that can cause dehydration.)

Yes. It does. :grouphug: :grouphug: :grouphug: There was a great piece on NPR years ago ... a series documenting a family and their journey with Alzheimer's. Interviews with all family members. It was a good series. Might be worth a search, and a listen, for anyone who hasn't heard it.