Mino and zith both pack a punch. Poor girl, she's going to herx. Zith always knocked my socks off. Did she start both meds at once? You might consider asking her LLMD about staggering the start dates. Mine always had me start one med, give it a week, then start the next. Just a thought, I wouldn't do it without running it past your own LLMD. All the detox you can think of for her... And stay super hydrated.

Depending on what she's taking, and the dose, and her body chemistry... She could react fairly quickly. You're familiar with the concept of a Jarrisch-Herxheimer reaction, right? Fondly called herxing... Within a few hours is very quick, but I have reacted that quickly. The worst of it usually comes on day 3, and then at the three week mark. It could be that her dose is high, for her, some people suggest working up to a bactericidal dose. Just do what her LLMD suggests, but keep him/her in the loop re: symptoms and reactions. She could be dehydrated... Oh, actually, that's not unlikely! That can make one's muscles ache. Work on hydration a lot. Also, focus on detox. Epsom salt baths, lemon water, whatever supportive supplements have been suggested by her LLMD. And if you need questions answered ... Do call the LLMD. Big hugs to your DD from one who's lived it...

Mmmmmm... chili. I love this one: http://allrecipes.com/recipe/flatlander-chili/ It's got a ton of good reviews (1200+), and my family loves it. Now I'm off to see if we have all the ingredients for baked beans! Yum.

I agree with you. It does seem silly. They sound a bit like my in laws - the ones who need the specific invitation. They generally come to us once a year, even with the specific invitations, which have to be spelled out so explicitly. [sigh] But my in laws are not in good health, and they are in their mid-70s, so we worry about them driving anyway, and will probably go to them more often from now on. They are closer though. One more idea, that you've probably tried already - do the kids have activities the in laws could attend? A play? A concert? A big game? Maybe an invitation from a kiddo would prompt them to visit, and do some of the travel? Just a random thought, and you've likely tried it!

My mother is about 5 hrs away, and she comes to visit us every 6 weeks or so. She travels often (exhibiting artist), and swings by our house as often as possible. Obviously, she's healthy, sharp as a tack, and adventurous. :) (She's in her 70s, by the way, since age has been part of the discussions.) We don't go see her often at all. She has cats, and we have severe allergies - severe enough that DS cannot step foot in her house. Last time he spent the night there he was hospitalized due to asthma. So visiting would mean a hotel, etc, and she just comes here. She likes to see the kids in their environment. What about extending a specific invitation to your in laws? I've found that's the only way my in laws will visit. They don't do well with open invitations like my mother. We have to state that we'd like them to come from X to Y, and we will be serving dinner on X at such and such time.

Am I too late to join in? I have a huge list but can't tackle too much till Nov 1. But after that - I'm on it! What are the parameters here? 20 minutes per day? I can handle that. :) Of course, I'd like to do more. My short list: - sort and organize kitchen desk area - sort and organize kitchen school area - kids clothes - cull and send a bag to ThredUp - tackle the toddler's closet (eek) - encourage/assist the big kiddo to tackle his own closet There's a lot more, too. Yikes.

Oh, goodness! I hope you feel better today, too. :grouphug: I hope you managed to talk to the allergist a tiny bit re: the crab allergy? Or was that pushed off for another day, as the BP was more important? You poor thing.

We deal with a lot of allergies, some life-threatening, some worrisome but not life-threatening (exacerbating asthma/eczema, etc), some are just ... odd ... like the above (we have exactly the same situation you described on four foods). I've asked those same questions about an unexpected IgE allergy result. First, was the testing done by a board certified allergist? And why was she tested for those foods? Even if it wasn't an allergist, why was the test done? I'm thinking there must have been a suspicion, or something that made the doc order the test? Generally, our allergists take into account a patient's past history with the food before testing, because a diagnosis ideally isn't made on a test result alone but on a combination of past reactions and the tests. That doesn't always work out in practice, though. For example, DS reacted to peanuts and walnuts (among other things). So that triggered testing for all tree nuts because why would we want to risk tasting each one to see if he goes into anaphylaxis again? IgE allergies are the worrisome kind, as you know, but what were the RAST numbers on those tests? Were they fairly low? If the RAST numbers were low, and DD tolerates a food well, then my allergist would say she is sensitized to that food, and to try an elimination diet. I asked what that meant, as DS has IgE antibodies to milk, wheat, corn, and soy - and frankly, if we cut those out I don't know what he'll eat! Basically, we did the elimination diet for 2 weeks, to watch for any improvement. Then we added the foods back in to observe the effects. 2 of the foods he for which had IgE antibodies caused a significant increase in asthma and eczema. So we avoid those foods, but don't worry the way we do about cross-contamination ("made in the same facility as...") issues because he is not anaphylactic to those foods. I don't know if your DD could be outgrowing or developing the allergy. On the egg white, it may make a difference if it's cooked or not (and who eats raw egg these days?). Or maybe it is contributing to GI issues, or something you're not connecting to the egg white? You could try the elimination diet and see. On the sesame... My DS is anaphylactic to sesame, and it can be every bit as serious as peanut/tree nut (actually egg can, too, but she's consuming those every day so that changes the picture). Does she consume sesame regularly with no reaction? If so, then that's good. I'd ask the doc about that. It could be that you want her to keep consuming it weekly to make sure she doesn't develop a more severe reaction (we do that with a recently outgrown anaphylactic allergy), or avoid them, or something else. Or you may want to keep an epipen on hand. Actually, I'm all for epipens on hand! I think I just babbled... Not sure any of that will be helpful, but maybe... :) Feel free to ask for clarification. It's been a long day, I might not be making sense. (Oh, and on your DS's IgG antibodies... I have no idea. Our allergist doesn't usually do those tests... but it looks like you got lots of input there anyway.)

It's like a real life treasure hunt. :) http://www.geocaching.com Put your zip code into the site to find nearby caches, then use your GPS or smartphone to go to coordinates, then hunt for a hidden box or "cache." Definitely choose the ones marked "easy" to start off! A cache can be a small box of trinkets (the general rule is if you take one, leave one) or just a small log - so take along a pen and sign your name to the list of people who've found the cache. There are also virtual caches on the site, and once you find the answer to a question, you email it in. It is really fun!

Fun! I am going to try to find a rink in our area. :) Thanks! Our latest fairly cheap family addiction is geocaching. It's not new, and it's not technically free since a GPS is needed, but it's fun. :D Of course, if you ask the turtle we found last weekend, it might disagree. Some of us were convinced it was a camouflaged cache, so that little turtle was poked and prodded till it was ascertained that the shell was, in fact, inhabited. That's what happens when a turtle camps out under a cache on a tree. Hoping to see more ideas soon. Oh! And we hit the free museums a lot - but we have a wealth of those in our area. Not sure everyone will have those. Anyone near DC might enjoy this: http://www.kidseurofestival.org Lots of free activities at embassies, etc.

Whew. Glad you are okay. This might be a good time to call the doc for a new epi, and to refresh your Benadryl. ;)

Yes, please tell him, and if you need some links so he can read up and know what to watch for, I will try to dig some up. Typing from my phone, so just trying to give you the basics. Don't panic. You sound good. :) But be watchful, especially when the time for a biphasic reaction hits in a few hours. Stay ahead of it with the benadryl, even if you have to set a clock. We deal with allergies all the time... Not fun. I sure hope this passes quickly.

Also... Do you have asthma? Check your peak flow readings if you do. And please go in if it gets worse. Make a plan for the kiddos now, just in case you need to go later... Hoping it's better quickly.

Please be vigilant. Breathing issues are the obvious, but if you should have two body systems involved ... Our allergist says to epi. So should you develop hives or GI issues... Well... Just don't, ok? Try to relax. Lie down, watch a movie... Just be aware. There can be a biphasic reaction 4 - 8 hours later, which can be worse. So take more Benadryl when this dose wears off and have dh monitor you. Big hugs!!!!!

:lol: Only one kid in bed last night here, too. The littlest slept till 6:30 in her room, and it was blissful. DS rocked through his schoolwork and has been hard at work on an engineering project all day for fun. Little one is doing little one things. :) We had a healthy breakfast and lunch here, too, and that always makes for a good day. Oh, and after setting the oven on fire over the weekend, I managed to keep our house smoke-free today. Always an accomplishment. I am tired. New meds are kicking my butt and I visit the doc tomorrow for an adjustment. Happy dinner-time everyone!

I think we had our subscription through G3 last year. That might be the "virtual academy" referenced above, though it might not. Sadly, G3 no longer offers it. We love brainpop, but I haven't found a good discount recently, so we've opted to take a break. Hoping there will be a discounted way to purchase again soon. The app is interesting sometimes, if you have that - a free clip per day.

I am eyeing some castle/knight sets in the playmobil department. Our biggest hits here have been the Egyptian themed sets. If you are doing Ancients, it's a great time to tie in those sets. I think they are being discontinued, so you can find them discounted on the playmobil website. We have the pyramid, and a ton of the smaller sets - they all get lots of play. DS likes to listen to Jim Weiss recordings about Egypt (chapters from SOTW and his Egyptian Myth CD) while making set ups and playing. (Of course, yesterday Peter Pan and Wendy crash landed their helicopter at the pyramid and were trapped, so it's not all so educational!) The one playmobil set that has not been a hit here: the Roman arena. We don't have a large space to leave it set up, and the putting it away/setting it up is just too much. YMMV. Wish we knew a local builder to make builder boards - we are not quite that handy either! If you come up with more ideas, I'd love to hear them. :) Oh, what about a fort-building kit? I think there are some on etsy, or you can make your own if you are the sewing type (I'm not).

Same boat here. We want a gift that spans the almost 2 year old range to almost 9. :) We are doing the play kitchen idea, because I got a great deal through woot kids for a nice wooden kitchen. Not convinced that the big kid is going to love it though, so still on the lookout for more ideas. I like the playmobil idea. :) (Playmobil geek here.) If your littlest people won't eat the pieces, like mine, then that's a great idea and you can add to it later. Keva Blocks are going over big here, with both ages. Building toys are good. Games? We are also doing a picnic backpack, as we do a lot of picnics... But that's not a great kid gift, more of a family gift. :bigear: ETA: Ooooooh, I love the builder boards!!!!!

:grouphug::grouphug::grouphug:

If he has an iPhone he can stream videos from that, too. :)

Mom2Es, I hope you do come back and revisit. I would love to read more about how you did DR, and how it all works out. I'll even make time to read your life story. :) Inspiration is good. We are doing DR light, since we're tweaking it a bit. Still chunking money into retirement, though, to take advantage of company matching. I can't get Suze Orman out of my head, talking about throwing away free money.

Can you freecycle it? Or post it for free on Craigslist? Just state in the posting that they must bring strong people to do the moving, and a big truck. Good luck!

Thanks! I'll keep watching reviews, too. As of right now, I'm leaning toward the Paperwhite. :)

Thanks! I will pass that along, too.

Thanks, that's exactly what I needed. I could not articulate the explanation, though I knew it was correct.