Bird and Little Bird

On Going Gluten-Free.

I know that I've mentioned in the past that we are a food allergy family.  Dan has a serious allergy to tree nuts (not to mention various other things like blue cheese), and his mom has celiac disease.  Because of the genetic component, Dan is supposed to be tested for celiac annually, but so far has always tested negative.  It was originally suggested to us by someone (I can't remember who) that Mariam also be tested annually, but we've in the past we've met resistance from our pediatricians when we asked about testing.  The prevailing opinion of her doctors so far has been that she doesn't have any severe symptoms and she isn't a first-degree relative of someone who has celiac.

When we switched pediatricians about this time last year (for a number of reasons) the new doctor's office noticed, as we have, that Mariam is really small for her age.  Her height is probably just a bit below average, but her weight is considerably lower than that.  In the last two and a half years, she's gained about five pounds total and at almost eight years old, is just above forty pounds.  The new doctor suggested that if she was still tiny in a year's time, we could go ahead and do the celiac test.  And, last week we did. 

Here's where it gets a little complicated.  I won't bore you all with technical details and test acronyms, but essentially, there are about four different blood tests which are commonly used in a particular order in the diagnosis of celiac.  That is, if I have any understanding of what's going on here, which I might very well not.  But Dan does, so that helps.  Mariam was supposed to be given two of the four tests, but for some reason, results only came back on one.  On that test, a value of four or less is negative for celiac, a value of nine or above is positive.  Mariam's result was an 8.4, or what the Mayo Clinic (who ran the test) calls a "weak positive." 

What does this mean? Well, that's the part that comes next.  Mariam's is basically a positive result, but the fact that the result from the other test never appeared isn't super helpful when it comes to making a solid diagnosis.  Which means that more tests are needed.  The nurse practitioner who called with the results wants to talk to a pediatric gastroenterologist before ordering the next set of tests, which is slightly maddening because they are a very clear next step as far as anyone else can tell.  Plus, she works part time, so getting in touch with a specialist and then getting tests ordered if she gets the okay will take until at least the middle of next week, if not longer.  Blood samples are sent to Mayo for testing, which takes an additional week.  So, right now, there isn't any real certainty.  But in all likelihood, Mariam has celiac disease. 

I'm pushing for us to have any necessary follow up appointments or additional testing done as soon as possible.  Knowing that we are having a new baby in about six weeks makes me especially motivated; I don't want to be in the beginning stages of a major family diet shift just as we're welcoming a newborn.  A bit much all at once, you know? But it could still be a number of weeks before we have concrete answers to this little puzzle.  And, we can't make any dietary changes for Mariam until after the next round of tests are complete or we risk false negative results which could further confuse the situation.  I think it goes without saying that further confusion is not really an appealing option.

So, we wait.  I won't say anything about waiting patiently.  Just waiting.  And while we do, I could definitely use help finding resources related to going gluten-free.  I'm more than aware that the internet is overflowing with potential sources for information on gluten-free living.  But, there is more there than I feel like I even want to attempt navigating on my own right now.  I would love to have some help knowing where to begin and what resources are worthwhile.  I'm especially concerned with the fact that we will need to have our household be both gluten-free and nut-free since so many gluten-free recipes (especially baking) seem to include nuts. If you have a favorite gluten-free cookbook, blog, website or magazine recommendation, I'd love to know about it.  Especially anything that covers the basics of this whole business. 

I think what I am trying to say here is this: help?!?

The Magnifying Glass Nature Exchange.

In an attempt to capture the spirit of fall before it is suddenly winter, we're organizing a very cool nature exchange over at The Magnifying Glass.  Okay, really Dawn is the one organizing it, because she's good like that!  Either way, if you and yours might be interested in sharing some bits of nature from your corner of the world with another family, pop on over to check out the details and to find out how to get signed up.  

Buckets for Baby Things.

 

With only about six weeks left to go, I'm starting to realize that the pre-baby to-do list is a little on the lengthy side.  The crib is assembled and nestled into a little alcove opposite our bed, and the bedroom walls have been repainted, so a few things have gotten done.  But there are quite a few more.  One item that had been hanging out near the top of my list was stitching up some fabric buckets for storing baby clothes.  We are using up what little space we have for furniture on the mini-crib, so the little guy won't have a dresser of his own.  Instead, I found a small, low bookshelf that I'm planning to line with baskets and bins to hold all the little socks and onesies and whatnot.  Goodness, I do love the little socks.  I finished the first couple of buckets today, using the incredibly simple but perfectly genius nesting buckets pattern from Maya.  Do you read Maya's blog?  If not, you should.  She is one of the nicest gals on the interwebs as far as I'm concerned. 

Anyway, I used a natural colored linen for the main fabric for the buckets, and some Heather Ross Far, Far Away III for the rest.  For the middle layer, I used The Mystery Batting.  The Mystery Batting is a random cut of batting made from unknown material that I picked up at a fabric warehouse sale a few years back.  I've always suspected it was wool, but had no proof.  Anyway, The Mystery Batting is pretty fluffy, floppy stuff, so for the next round of bucket sewing I will probably go with something a little stiffer.  But since I'm assuming that these buckets will be fairly well filled, I think that having such soft sides won't really be a problem for them. 

Longer than necessary story made short: I'm really happy with how these turned out and am planning to make a bunch more in different sizes. 

 

Oh, and if you don't need buckets for baby clothes, you could absolutely put other things in them instead.

The Week That Was.

Last week:

- I started gathering titles for the winter booklists for the upcoming issue of Alphabet Glue.  Winter might just be the very best season for great kids books. So many fantastic reads!

- We had our 32 week ultrasound and the baby looks very happy.  And healthy.  As in the "already weighs about five pounds" sort of healthy.

- Which explains why complete strangers keep asking me if I'm having twins.  And why I keep having to resist the urge to kick complete strangers.

- The storm windows went on and we started using the heat in earnest.  Winter is on her way.  Honestly, I'm kind of looking forward to it this year.

- I discovered this cardigan pattern online and realized that my attraction to knitting patterns that require the use of tiny, tiny needles is really neither practical or good for my sanity.

- We realized that we have been totally remiss in our celebration of the season this year.  Pumpkin carving is on deck for this week.  Even though I am totally lacking in skill in the decorative winter squash department.

 

Unexpected Company.

 

 

I went with Mariam's class on a field trip to the Shelburne Museum yesterday.  It was supposed to rain proverbial cats and dogs all day long, but somehow, didn't end up raining at all and instead was unseasonably warm with occasional moments of bright sunshine. Apparently, the local ladybugs were as surprised as the rest of us, because they came out of hibernation for the day and were flying around in certifiable droves. Or swarms.  Or whatever you call a large group of many, many ladybugs.  There were so many in the air that if you just stood still, they would land all over your body.  Which is a little strange, but actually fine as long as we're talking ladybugs and not yellowjackets or some such more devious beastie. 

One Hundred Days.

Some of you might remember this post from last summer where I talked a bit about our attempts to get into a consistent routine with Mariam's music practice.  I promised an update, and so I thought that I would share the fact that Monday was Mariam's 100th day of practice in a row.  It isn't a small thing, this playing of the violin every single day without fail for months.  It took some serious dedication on both her part and mine, and I am admittedly a little bit proud that we managed to pull the whole thing off.

We started off practicing each morning, with an agreement that we didn't leave the house for any activity or event until practice was out of the way.  Over time this evolved just slightly, and now we practice in the morning on days when we have an afterschool activity and on the weekends, and in the afternoons on the other days.  Each time of day seems to have its own advantages, and I'm still sorting out which might be better in the long term.  I'll admit that there were days where we were a few minutes late for school as a result of prioritizing violin above timeliness, and there were certainly days when either or both of us would have been happy to skip practice all together.  But we didn't.  Which is honestly kind of remarkable.

I was wary of promising any kind of reward for meeting the 100 day goal ahead of time; I wanted meeting the goal to be meaningful in and of itself.  But, of course, when the day rolled around there was a celebration of sorts with a favorite dinner and ice cream sundaes with second helpings allowed.  Also, I ordered her one of these mineral kits.  If you have been hanging around this space for very long, you are probably aware that Mariam's love of minerals is wide and deep (as well as a little odd and hilarious, but we all like what we do, I suppose). It is definitely her idea of a fantastic present.

Okay, off I go then.  Dan appears to be trying to give Mariam and introductory Latin lesson when he really should be doing homework and she should be getting in her pajamas.  Apparently my new found skills as disciplinarian may be needed.

Library Monday: Ocean.

As soon as we brought this book home from the library last week, I knew that I wanted to share it here.  But I wasn't quite sure how to categorize it in the bookshop for you all.  Ocean isn't a read-aloud per se, although we have certainly been reading certain sections of it as a family.  Indeed, particularly for the smaller set, this is more of a browsing book.  And, a beautiful one at that.  In the end, I decided to let it live with the Kitchen Table Science books that I've been adding to the bookshop over the last couple of weeks. 

Ocean: The World's Last Wilderness Revealed is what many people might call a coffee table book.  A beautiful assemblage of photographs and factual information about the oceans of the world, Ocean covers everything from the creatures that dwell beneath the surface to the relationships that people have cultivated with their waters and beaches around the world.  There are whales, sharks, jellyfish and various things that I have never heard of and honestly, hope never to meet.  Mariam finds the book fascinating and over the last week she has spent hours flipping through the pages while nested on the couch.  This book very nearly came between us and homework completion last week. 

Ocean is a hefty volume, and not inexpensive.  It is something special, after all.  So, I'd encourage you to make a library trip for this one.  It has been around for a few years, but is still relatively recent, so it should be widely available.  Both myself and the resident little person around here highly recommend it.

Fall Afternoons (and Some Knitting Talk).

 

Goodness, the days are getting shorter here and quickly.  It isn't that I don't know this will happen, obviously I do, it is just that I forget how dramatic it can be.  There isn't any way to doubt that the season is really and truly changing when all of a sudden it is dark outside before dinner time.  This week we've been lucky enough to have a few of those clear, shining fall afternoons where the sun comes through the windows and lights up everything in its path.  I love that, and I'm trying to soak it all up since I know that it won't be quite the same once the sun is much lower in the sky. 

The problem with the shorter, cooler days is that I find myself really just wanting to sit around and knit all the time.  Of course, the folks I live with seem to have all these funny ideas about regular meals and clean laundry.  Knitting is kind of both the best thing ever and the worst.  Why is it so addictive?  I don't know.  But here's what we've got going at the moment:

- A Jane Richmond pullover. Okay, maybe two. Both in Osprey. One in peacoat and one in lupine. And can I just say that small people knitting patterns are the best because they give such a wonderful sense of false efficiency? Thank you.   

- I may or may not be knitting someone that I really like a secret pair of socks with this self-striping sock yarn.  Honestly, you have to have serious enthusiasm for a person to knit them something out of fingering weight yarn. 

- Next up I think will be this little cardigan for the small guy.  I love the Madeline Tosh merino but also must admit that I am still adjusting to this "knitting for boys" business. I'm just not all that confident with color choices yet. 

- This vest is also a very good possibilty, and the word on the street is that it knits up really quickly.  However, I haven't yet determined how afraid of buttonholes I am.  On a scale of one to ten, how scary are they?

Weekend Handmade Book Signing at nido.

Here's a bit of news for all of you Burlington area folks:

As some of you already know, my friend Phiona owns a really fantastic fabric and yarn store in downtown Burlington called nido.  Next Monday, October 17th,  Kelly Wilkinson from Make Grow Gather will be visiting nido to sign copies of her beautiful new book, Weekend Handmade.  She'll also be doing a demonstration of one of the projects from the book, a pressed flower luminaria and will be hanging around for awhile afterwards to talk about the book or answer questions about the lovely projects inside.  It is also happens to be nido's two year anniversary, so to make things extra festive Phiona is going to have cupcakes, sparkly soda and a storewide sale on Monday evening as well.  Kelly's demonstration begins at 5:30 p.m. so if you are in the area, stop on by for a little crafting and a cupcake!

On Tuesday.

Well, hello.  I don't think that I meant to take so many days away from here, but the end of last week (and pretty much all weekend) were dedicated to the cause of being really, really tired and complaining a lot about it, a combination of activities that kept me pretty busy.  Oh, and there was also repainting the bedroom and doing way too much homework.  Somehow I woke up this morning and it was Tuesday, even though I was pretty sure that it was still supposed to be last Friday.  Anyhow, here are a few little Tuesday tidbits for you:

- This post about pregnancy from Amanda's blog is kind of cracking me up.  I so know where she's coming from.  I still have two months to go and yet the general public seems to be all about telling me that I "must be due any day now!"  Um, no.  But thanks for that.  I feel awesome now.

- Dan's friend Lindsey recently self-published her first children's book.  It's called While Della Sleeps and is available through her Etsy shop.  Lindsey is an amazing artist and we actually have one of her prints framed and hung on the wall near our dining room table.  It is a picture of fluffy little sheep surfing and it's fantastic.

- All the busy has also meant that I keep forgetting to say what I have been meaning to say here, which is this: thank you all a million times over for the incredibly warm reception that you've given the newest issue of Alphabet Glue!  So many lovely posts have been written around blogland and the enthusiasm that people have shown has made all of the work on this volume feel completely worthwhile.  So thanks for that.  Really.

- I have decided that the accessory that every knitter really needs is a friend who is a better knitter.  I made a goofy mistake on a sweater that I'm knitting which required frogging about four inches of knitting in the round. This makes me kind of nervous because I always struggle to get the thing back on the needles without dropping stitches, especially when I'm working with dark colored yarn. Enter Sarah. She came over this morning, did said frogging for me and had my project back on the needles in about four minutes flat.  I will get this sweater done yet!