Corn Bean Dip

2 cups cooked black beans
2 cups cooked corn
1 16-oz jar salsa
1 red onion, chopped
1 red bell pepper, chopped
1 Tbsp cumin
Juice of 1 Lime
1 tsp garlic, chopped


Mix together beans and corn. Add remaining ingredients and mix well.

Ratatouille

I'm not usually an eggplant fan (it's a texture thing) but I do enjoy this ratatouille.

Ratatouille

1 Tbsp olive oil
1 lge onion, diced
1 bay leaf
4 Tbsp water or red wine
1 cup tomato juice
5 garlic cloves, peeled & minced
1 Tbsp dried basil
1/2 Tbsp dried marjoram
1/4 tsp dried rosemary
1/2 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
2 med zucchini, sliced
1 med yellow squash, sliced
1 green bell pepper, chopped
1 red bell pepper, chopped
1 yellow bell pepper, chopped
2 small eggplant, cubed
28 oz chopped tomatoes
4 oz tomato paste

Brown rice, cooked



Heat the olive oil and a little water in a large saucepan over medium
heat. Sauté the onion until translucent, about 5-7 minutes.
Add the bay leaf, water, and tomato juice and stir well. Add the
garlic, herbs, sea salt and pepper, and mix well. Cover and simmer for 10
minutes on low.

Add zucchini, yellow squash, and yellow, green, and red peppers. Mix
well, cover and simmer for 5 minutes. Add the eggplant, tomatoes, and
tomato paste; mix well. Cover and simmer until vegetables are tender,
about 15 minutes.

Serve over brown rice.

Allergy Progress!

E passed his egg challenge!

This means that he can now eat baked goods with eggs in them, as long as they have been baked for at least a half-hour at a temperature of at least 325 degrees.

I was thinking (mistakenly) that he would now be allowed to have pancakes and waffles, but that's not the case. But at least he can have birthday cakes and bar cookies...as long as there aren't any nuts in them!

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Rice and Bean Salad

3 cups cooked brown rice
2 cups cooked black beans
2 cups cooked cannellini
1 red onion, chopped
2 stalks celery, sliced
1 red bell pepper, chopped
4 oz green chilies, chopped (opt)
1 cup frozen corn,
1 cup frozen peas, thawed
1/4 cup fresh parsley, minced
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
1/4 cup tamari
1/4 cup water
1 tsp Dijon mustard
Hot sauce to taste



Mix vinegar, tamari, water, Dijon mustard, and several dashes of hot
sauce in a jar; shake well to mix.

Combine all salad ingredients in a large bowl and mix well. Shake
dressing and add to salad, mixing gently. Cover and refrigerate for
at least two hours, preferably overnight.

Full

They say that humans use only 10% or less of our brains' capacity, but apparently I am the exception. I'm convinced that I have used 100%. My brain is full. I simply cannot remember or deal with one more thing!

Last night, Nick went to the store for an Angel Food cake mix. I had to make a cake for E to take to the allergist's office today for an Egg Challenge. The store didn't sell a mix! I didn't want to make it from scratch because we bake gluten-free and I don't even keep wheat flour or white sugar in the house. I didn't have a choice, so I asked Nick to get a small box of cake flour and a small box of white sugar.

As is typical, I didn't have the energy to bake last night, so I procrastinated. I ended up beating a dozen egg whites at 1:00AM and trying to sift the flour and sugar five times! I don't even own a sifter so Nick pulled one out of the kids' play kitchen stuff. :)

So...I got the cake in the oven and let it bake for an hour.

Since I had a bunch of egg yolks staring at me, I decided to make a banana cream pie. I rarely bake anymore and J had commented awhile ago that he'd never really had pie except pumpkin pie on Thanksgiving and he doesn't even like pumpkin pie! My mom used to bake all the time and I baked when I was growing up, and I felt sad that my kids hadn't even tried some of these homemade baked goods!

Nick had gotten a premade pie crust, so I stirred away and made the filling. I was hurting and was getting cranky, so I asked him to come back downstairs and help. We baked and worked on the computer together...and I think it was going on 4:00 AM when we got to bed.

This morning, shortly before E's appointment, Nick looked at me and said, "E had to be off of antihistamines before this challenge, right?"

My jaw dropped. I'd completely forgotten about that!

I begged him to call the doctor for me, but he refused. So I called the office and left a ranting message about how I'd stayed up half the night making the cake but that my brain just doesn't work anymore and I'd forgotten to stop E's allergy meds! Thankfully, the nurse was so nice and said that I was actually the second person that had called today saying that they'd forgotten to stop the meds.

I used to be efficient and organized. Those days are long gone. Thankfully, we'll be finished with school tomorrow which takes away so much pressure. Maybe my brain start functioning again over the summer. I have to hope so...

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Weekend Sleep and Test Results

Nick and I have had a much-needed relaxing weekend. I knew I needed a break when I went to call my in-laws and couldn't remember their last name! Thankfully, my son reminded me that I share a last name with them, so I was able to call them. :) They picked up the children on Friday and took them to their house for a long weekend. I'd forgotten what it was like to sleep all night long, without being woken up by screams in the night or being kicked in the side or hit in the face while sleeping. Amazing how much better I feel after a good night's sleep...

We did some crazy things like order Vietnamese takeout, which meant that we ate PEANUTS in the house!!! Honestly, I felt like we were doing something illegal! We also worked on the business, visited my mom in the hospital, and cleaned up/organized the house. Nothing exciting, but I'm happy!

We did get some test results last week. The allergist called and said that E's blood tests showed the same thing as the skin tests: he's extremely allergic to peanuts, all tree nuts (sadly, even almonds), and sesame seeds. Eggs were also high, but he wants to do a cooked egg challenge in his office. He said that I have to make angel food cake, making sure to bring in enough for the entire staff. (He's so funny!) He assured me that he would have any needed meds right there, and he'd start by touching the cake to E's lips and then waiting to see if there's a reaction. Then he'll touch it to his tongue and wait again. Next, E will actually eat a little bit of it. Not only will this determine if E can handle cooked eggs, it may also help him outgrow his egg allergy sooner. So, we'll see what happens. My gut tells me that he'll be able to handle cooked eggs, but that may just be wishful thinking, especially since our grocery store just stopped carrying Egg Replacer!

GracieGirl's Celiac test came back a few days later. Negative. I was really surprised. So was her allergist. She's going back to see him this week, so we'll find out what to do next. I, of course, started researching online and came across this info on NCGS (Non-Celiac Gluten Sensitivity). The logical solution seems to be to take her off of all gluten again but I want to get as much medical information as I can before doing so.

I'm thankful that we continue to get answers, even when they're not always the answers we'd like to hear! :)

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Catching Up

Our business, Truly Pure & Natural is finally up and running. We've had a good time working on it, even though Nick has done the vast majority of the work. Some people have asked if it's a Multi-Level Marketing company, such as Shaklee or Arbonne, and it definitely is not! It's simply an eclectic collection of natural products that we use and that work for us. We're slowly adding new products that we want to share with others.

GracieGirl and E both had to have bloodwork at the beginning of the week. I dreaded it because last time, E's screams could be heard three counties away! So, I did the wise thing this time...and stayed in the car while Nick took him in. :) Amazingly, he didn't struggle or cry. Nick brought him out to the car and took GracieGirl in. Same result, not even a whimper. I want to get that tech's name and ask for her every time!

E was having blood tests to confirm the skin tests for his allergies. I was hoping and praying that he wouldn't be allergic to almonds because I'd love to be able to use almond flour as an alternative to wheat and other grains. No such luck. The doctor will call us on Monday but the nurse said that he is highly allergic to all tree nuts and eggs. Unfortunately, in E's head, the doctor said he won't die if he eats nuts! So, I've been working on convincing him that the doctor most definitely did not say that. He's been really good about asking before eating anything, and I want him to continue doing that!

GracieGirl's Celiac test didn't come back yet. I'm hoping to hear something on Monday. She's been complaining of a hurt tummy for the past few days, so I'm just praying that the test shows whether or not it's Celiac.

Jay got his sleep study results and he does not have sleep apnea and his adenoids do not need to come out. So...back to the drawing board. I'm still waiting to hear back from the sleep specialist, and he sees his autism doctor in a few days, so we continue trying to find some answers!

I don't even know what to say about E. His behavior continues to worsen. I asked Nick if it was me, thinking that maybe I'm just getting too old and burnt out for all of this. He said that it definitely was not me! (I knew that, but I just had to confirm it!) The good news is that I'm getting support, which means so much. People have suggested things like bi-polar, RAD, and ODD. Hard to hear at first, but now I just want answers. I filled out a 15-page request for evaluation and sent that off. It's just hard because he has such a wonderful side, so I keep thinking that I must have been exaggerating his other behavior, and it really wasn't that bad. But then he gets violent, often without warning, and I'm reminded that things really are bad. I'm just praying that we can find the right help for him because there's a side of him that really is so sweet.

Besides being busy, the other reason that I don't generally blog during the day is that I pay for it afterwards. This time, GracieGirl and E have gotten into the crafts box. Judging by the creative mess they've made so far, I really should be focused on them, rather than on this blog! Off to survey the rest of the damage... ;)

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