Chocolate Easter Bunnies and other goodies

Easter is right around the corner and I have to admit that the girls never had chocolate Easter Bunnies. Not, because we do not want them to eat chocolate but because I did not find them. Maybe I just did not look hard enough before. Most of the dark chocolate ones contain milk powder and the ones containing butterfat make me just a bit leery, so I stay away from chocolate containing butterfat. In any case, earlier this week we were at New Season's and I did not find any "safe" chocolate bunnies; yesterday we were at Fred Meyer's and you know what they carry a dark chocolate bunny from Lindt. I actually think, that this is the same one they sell for Christmas as Reindeer :) Seriously, I got the girls the Reindeer's for St. Nikolaus and was laughing so hard that the chocolate itself looked like an Easter Bunny. So in any case, Lindt is thankfully selling the Easter Bunny shape not only wrapped as a Reindeer but also rightfully wrapped as an Easter Bunny. Yay....so there it is. First chocolate Easter Bunnies for our girls. Here is the link - and nutritional information is also on this site http://www.lindtusa.com/product-exec/product_id/251/category_id//nm/100g_Gold_Bunny_Dark_Chocolate

The other all time favorite in our house are of course Jelly Beans, and Pez Dispensers. The girls love them. Other "safe" items I found at Fred Meyer's were Bubble Gum Eggs which I don't find that thrilling, but the girls would surely love them :)

Have a great day everyone!

Spring break - Fun at the mountain

It's spring break this week and we just got back from a fun get away to the mountain. The mountain for all of you not living in Portland, is Mt. Hood and the surrounding vicinity. It is actually only an hour drive from our house, but so fun. We stayed for four days at a cabin and had so much fun watching wildlife, walking, sledding, and even hiking...

We looked into a stream at Wildwood. A big window is installed below a stream and you can actually look into the stream. The next day we drove up to the mountain and went sledding. This was the first time we took the girls sledding and both had so much fun. Eventually both of them sled down alone. The only challenge - for Mia Rosie - was getting back up the hill. So we took turns walking or sledding (yup - the parental units loved it too :) ) down the hill to lend Mia Rosie a hand to get back up. Our final activity of the trip was a hike along the Salmon River. It was amazing - the forest is so lush and green; butterflies were everywhere. Alena and I were expecting to see fairies while Ron and Mia Rosie went looking for salamanders. Neither of us succeeded. Mia Rose walked the entire way (we did not go that far) it was great! It feels so good to be able to go back out into nature. We love it!!!

The only issue with going out the mountain is that food is very, very limited. The girls wanted ice cream badly and there is no soy, rice, etc. ice cream available. But, the store sold individual servings of Raspberry Sorbet which both of them loved. Of course they originally wanted chocolate, or strawberry, or lemon but the only flavor that was safe was raspberry. What is amazing to me is that it was not a big deal. They both said "oooohhh that's too bad" but that was it and they were both happy with their raspberry sorbet.

The food options are limiting and we brought everything with us. After sledding went for lunch. The menu had several options for the kids, and even on the kid's menu. The options on the kid's menu were - pizza, or ribs. Both girls chose ribs with french fries. Mia Rose loved the ribs, while Alena loved her fries...So, if you are in Government Camp and are looking for good food for all as well as great beer should check out http://www.iceaxegrill.com/.

Alena on the Trapeze - the Performance

Finally the big performance was here...this little clip shows Alena on the trapeze. It's a little dark but thankfully she is wearing one of her favorite colors :).

This was the beginning of the show....Alena is in front wearing the lavender top and dark pants.

The end of the show :) - I am so proud of my little girl....

Perdue Farms is recalling Sweet Italian Turkey Sausage Due To Undeclared MILK

Please click on Link for details.  

Indiana Firm Recalls Fresh Sweet Italian Turkey Sausage Products Due To an Undeclared Allergen
Fri, 19 Mar 2010 18:15:01 -0500

Perdue Farms, Inc., a Washington, Ind., establishment, is recalling approximately 10,368 pounds of fresh sweet Italian turkey sausage products because they contain an undeclared allergen. The product was prepared using an ingredient blend that contained milk, a known potential allergen, which was not declared on the label.

       

Circus Acrobatics

I think that I wrote about Do Jump! before. Alena has been taking Circus Acrobatics classes there now for about six months. She is loving it and has become so confident. We both are so excited about it. Alena has class once a week, and while she is in class Mia Rosie, a friend of ours, her son, and I usually hang out. Mia Rose has been so adamant that she also wants to go "jumping" as she calls it. "Mama, I want to go jumping auch (German = too)". In my opinion 3 is a little young, but now that she is 4 she will also go "jumping" :). Earlier this week, her and I went to the Do Jump! office and finally signed her up. Mia Rose is so, so, so excited and it is hard for her to wait the two weeks until the next term starts...

So you wonder what Circus Acrobatics is? Well, all I know - parents are not allowed to watch during class - is that Alena has been working a lot on the trapeze. She has been showing us on swings on the playground and I am very amazed on what my girls is doing. This Wednesday however is the last class for the winter term and that means that there will be a performance by the entire class. We are so excited to see what she learned...

To see what Do Jump! is all about click here http://www.dojump.org/ I promise you will not be disappointed.

Oh, I feel like we live such ordinary lives and am so, so happy about it. - Happy Sunday to all of you and remember the glass is always half full :)

RECALL - Fernando's Food Corp. Enchilada products MILK ingredient is NOT on label

Fernando's Food Corporation, a Compton, Calif., establishment, is recalling approximately 9,400 pounds of enchilada products because they were inadvertently mislabeled and contain an undeclared allergen, milk, the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) announced today. Milk is a known potential allergen, which is not declared on the label.

The product subject to recall includes: [View Labels (PDF Only)]

• 9.84-pound cases of "CASA SOLANA BEEF CHICKEN AND TEXTURED VEGETABLE PROTEIN PRODUCT ENCHILADA." Each case contains 90 enchiladas and bears case code numbers "2103745" and "24947," as well as the establishment number "EST. 6492" inside the USDA mark of inspection.

The enchilada products were produced on Jan. 28, 2010, Feb. 16, 2010, and Feb. 28, 2010 and were sent to distributors in Ala., Ark., Calif., Tenn., and Texas.

Consumers with questions regarding the recall should contact Fernando's at 1-800-338-0374. Media with questions regarding the recall should contact Ira Brill, Director of Marketing, at (209) 394-6891.

Great appointment - first of a few this month

This morning we had our eye appointment with Dr. Aaby and I am happy to report, that both girls are doing great!!! Eyes are clear, eye sight is fantastic and nowhere any cataract in sight. I am so happy. Ron asked me earlier whether I was concerned and truth be said that I really was not but then you just never know. It is just always such a relief when things are OK. By the way - both girls absolutely loved the appointment. There is a great playroom complete with a castle, and Sleeping Beauty painted on the wall. The girls loved identifying things even so Mia Rose threw the assistant of for a second when she called the cake a "pancake". Even getting the drops were no big deal.

After the exam, we dropped of Ron at work and I treated us ladies out for breakfast at Jam. Vegan pancakes for the girls with a side of bacon :). Alena is now at school and she proudly is wearing her sunglasses. Have a great day, everyone!

New Research Study in California

Please see below information I have received about a research study being conducted in California. The researchers are looking for individuals between the ages of 5 - 89 as well as parents whose children are between the ages of 5 - 17. We have chosen to participate in this study. Please contact the researches directly with any questions at galactosemiaresearch@gmail.com.

"...Researchers from the Palo Alto University are conducting a study to learn about the impact of having Classical Galactosemia. We propose to extend current work, with the goal of gathering more comprehensive information from as many affected people as possible regarding health-related quality of life, cognitive and executive functioning, and behavior of people with Galactosemia.

We are requesting participation from persons aged 5-89, as well as participation from parents of 5-17 year olds. Wendy Packman, JD, PhD, Sabrina Vierling, B.S., and Susan Gehrig, B.A. at Palo Alto University, are conducting this study.

If you choose to participate, you will be asked to meet with an examiner for assessments and to complete questionnaires about how you or your child are living in the presence of a chronic illness. Participation in this study will take approximately one and a half hours for child, adolescent and adult patients, and only 45 minutes for parents of child/adolescent patients. If you are interested in participating in this study, please email Galactosemiaresearch@gmail.com. We will be happy to answer any questions you may have..."

Dear Insurance Company I really do not like you...

Guess I am in a complaining mode today...Did you know that it costs around $300 a girl to get the blood work done. Can you believe it?! I am sure you can. Now, let me ask you how much do you think our co-pay for that would be? It's an essential exam both kids have Galactosemia so one would think that the deductible would be minimal, but you know what? Totally wrong. Our share for each (!!!) child is over $60. Isn't that appalling ? Tell me please, how can it be - Dear Insurance Company - that you won't cover the entire expense? Did I mention that we already pay a decent amount in premiums each month? Well, it's official I don't like you. Thank you for reading...

Appointments, appointments, appointments

..March and it looks like it will be a crazy month full packed with medical appointements. We started it out yesterday with Mia Rosie's 4 year old check-up coupled with immunizations for both girls. Next week it off to the Ophthalmologist for the routine exam. Neither girls really remember Dr. Aaby so, as our last appointment was two years ago. I am not worried, but thinking about it still makes me a little nervous...wonder why, maybe because deep down inside I am just a wee bit worried, or maybe because - do I really want to admit to this? - I just feel like a bad parent for not taking the girls on an annual basis to see the Ophthalmologist. Then again, we have checked with the Metabolic Clinic and it is clear that they only recommend the visit every couple of years...Aaaahhh, I just need to stop feeling so guilt ridden.

The month will go on with developmental appointments for both girls. Speech, and Occupational Therapist for Alena; Occupational Therapist for Mia Rosie...the final will be the meeting with the Developmental Physician which - as things look now - probably won't be until April. Oh, and then eventually it's time for another draw as well as Metabolic appointment...

Of course, the glass is always half-full - never the other way b/c then I would just get bad wrinkles ;) - never-the-less I still feel a bit uneasy, worried, have a pit in my stomach because it reminds me a little too much for comfort of our little metabolic gig we got going on...

Thank you for reading me whine :) - Have a great weekend.

Little t Baker for breakfast

Yesterday Mia Rose and I met a few people at Little t Baker for breakfast before going to the playground. Their bread is outstanding and all but the Brioche as well as the Pretzel bread are without milk derivatives. Note, that the Pretzel bread (aka Laugenstangen) are available for special order without butter, just "off the shelf" unfortunately does not work for the kiddos.

In any case, we have not been there for a while so yesterday we found a couple of new items the kids can eat. One item is a Green Pea & Bacon Leaf which Mia Rose had. Wow - out of this world!!! Packed full with lovely bits of bacon, and it has a little greenish tint for the peas. So, so good!!! Mia Rosie actually ate the entire thing...and may I add that it it quite large :).

The other item we found yesterday was a Hazelnut Rochet (sp?) it also looked delicious and I was so thrilled to see that there now also is a pastry item available for the girls. BTW - the Green Pea & Bacon Leaf are weekend items only, but the Rochet (sp?) is available everyday. Oh, and if neither appeals to you then order the "Continental Short and Skinny Bread" and skip the butter. Delicious....

Here is the link http://www.littletbaker.com/ Enjoy!!!

Birthday Cake Picture

Look at that beautiful Butterfly. The cake was just amazing. When you are in Portland you must pay visit :) here is the link --> www.sweetpeabaking.com

Mia Rose turns 4...look at that beautiful cake

So my baby turned 4. I can hardly believe it - time goes so fast...but yes, it is great. Mia Rose, just like Alena, also had big Birthday Party complete with entertainment, and a beautiful cake from Sweet Pea Baking. She chose a Lemon-Raspberry Cake, and requested it to look like a butterfly since she lately really is into butterflies :) The cake was - as always - amazing and Mia Rose was so excited that it really did look like a butterfly....look at it - isn't it beautiful...and so delicious.

Kids Night Out

Once a month something fantastic happens at Alena's school....it's called "Kids Night Out". Enrolled students and siblings can spend a Friday night at school. Isn't that fantastic? It starts at 5:30 and the latest the kids can be picked-up is 9:30 pm. They bake pizza for the kids, play games, go out to the playground, or to the gym. It's great - Mia Rose loves it and both are so excited for the night out without parents :) BTW - I would like to add that Ron and I are equally excited for a night on the town...

The girls obviously can't eat the pizza that is served and in the past I have picked up a pie for them at Pizzicato. A couple of month however we started to make our own pizza, and the girls bring it unbaked to school. It's great - we have an activity for Friday afternoon by rolling the pizza dough, piling on the sauce, topping the pizza and they can eat it together with the other kids. Our girls get to eat their pizza and nobody even questions it. It's easy and understood by all. It's no big deal...wow who would have ever thought that the diet becomes so manageable!