Excuses or Allergies?

This is not a photographic adventure, but I was wondering if anyone has this problem so I thought I would just post it.

So this year my oldest son was diagnosed with asthma. We had him on a medication but as time wears on he seems to be getting worse and not better. I have some leads on how to fix this and had a great conversation with a preschool mom at the park today about this issue, but that is not my point.

Here is my point. On Monday, I went to the doctor to get allergy testing done to see if my allergies matched up with Erik so I could know if he was having any triggers. Unfortunately none of our allergies matched up and the doctor explained to me that the predisposition to allergies itself is the issue, not what you are allergic too.

What I did find out is very fascinating and might explain a few details about my life. I am basically allergic to every animal with fur including my dog! It also turns out that I am one of the lucky ones, instead of my allergies staying the same or getting the worse from having children they actually got better.

So I asked the doctor about my feelings of feeling fogy, unfocused, etc. Well it turns out that Lovey is more of problem than I thought. Basically she is causing my feelings of fogginess and unfocused brain in two ways and the doctor said there are several generations of studies to back it up.

The first issue with Lovey is just general allergies and sinus problems and why my eyes feel swollen often, I feel congested and its everywhere in my house. Without realizing it I sit where Lovey sits, hold her and its all over me causing me a small reaction. Not the biggest deal in the world and not that annoying in my life, something I can deal with and control.

Here comes the kicker, its the sleep issues. Carl and I have been fighting for a while because I sleep deeply and have problems waking up when the kids cry. Apparently its not my fault and its Lovey's fault. She was sleeping right by my bed, causing my allergies to flare up at night and basically preventing me from REM sleep so instead of feeling rested in the morning I wake up groggy and unfocused like I didn't sleep at all. Here I thought it was the kids, but Lovey was the main culprit.

My doctors recommendations is shower before bed, have dog free clothes, get a air purifier for my room and kick Lovey out of my room. We all doing all of the above, but didn't kick Lovey out, she just can't walk upstairs and her crate is next to Carl's side of the bed and not mine.

I was really thinking about this for a couple reasons. The night I found this out I cleaned everything upstairs, vacuumed, regularly and I slept incredible. I woke up so rested and in a way I hadn't felt in a long time. Yesterday by not vacuuming that night and forgetting to do my netti pot I had the opposite affect. I went to bed early and even got more sleep, but I just feel exhausted the entire day.

I guess sometimes understanding an issue is half the battle, how far I am willing to make myself animal free is a whole other issue, and the big question to me is how could I have not know I was allergic to dogs all these years. The more I thought about it the more I realized I knew, but was in denial. Like everytime Lovey scratched me it swelled up, or if some dogs licked me I would get splotches all over my hand and legs and start sneezing a bit. So Carl and I agree from now on we own small, hyper allergenic dogs with short hair, and I won't deprive them of dogs during their childhood. But now I watch where I sit in my own home and making a few rooms Lovey free just so I can have a little peace and watch tv downstairs in my jammies without waking up foggy headed the next morning.

Easter Portraits

I couldn't resist. I saw these outfits at Target and knew it was going to be a cool enough day on Easter for them to wear them. Since my boys are still young enough I have to dress them up alike while I can because I know there is only a couple more years I can get away with it.

So after I put on these outfits I thought the colors looked really good on them that I HAD take portraits. Of course when I decided this it was noon and Erik has a big bruise on his face from wrestling with his brother, but nothing is ever perfect.

Some days my kids cooperate and some days they just are sick of pictures. I tried everything I could to get my kids to cooperate and take pictures together. On their own they did fantastic and took the cutest pictures ever. It took only a few snaps and knew I got what I want. For the group shot it was nearly impossible! I burned through so many pictures and never got what I wanted. I even bribed them with candy and it still didn't work. It was just one of those days when they feed off each other's energy in a weird way.

As for the lighting it was mid-day, but I found shade and then it started to get overcast. Honestly the best conditions I could hope for in the 10 minutes I had to plan this thing. I found a spot in my backyard that had cement nearby so the light would bounce up on their face and flowers in the background to add a bit of spring and Easter flare. Not my best work, but it got the job done.

Here are Elliot's individual pictures. It definitely shows the sweet and gentle nature of his pretty well.

 

Erik's individual pictures turned out just as well aided by the fact that he hurt his foot and thought he couldn't move. These pictures show his more goofy mischievous side, my little 3.5 year old.

 

It took two session and lots of bribes to even get what I got from the boys. I think they were over tired and sick of everything. These are my favorite shots.

 

Here are the rest of the pictures that I tried to get THE shot, but none of them ever really worked. Some days you just need to get go and realize it isn't going to happen, but at least I got something usable.

 

Kauai, my perspective, my paradise

I have been trying to figure out how to write about our vacation. It was 6 days long and nonstop so there are a lot of pictures. So I broke my pictures into two segments, the family life pictures which I could edit immediately and didn't do any super careful corrections, just basic stuff. Then there are the nature shots which are going to take time. I'll probably post a picture here or a picture there as I develop them, but you won't see them for a while since I have lots going on right now.

When you go on a major vacation there is so much going on that it is hard to capture it or write about everything. I did one detailed blog about the first half, but that it for my details, I am going to just give a brief over view of my favorite or the most memorable moments. This won't include all the pictures, but if you want to see all the family pictures as I know a lot of my family might, here is the link to the album on flickr. Hawaii Pictures

The first moments we spent in Hawaii were near our vacation rental and Poipu Beach. I am in love with this beach and everything about it. We spent the first day at Baby Beach to see how the boys would react to the water and it was perfect. They ran right in and played and showed no fear of the ocean or water which is a step for Erik who is usually leery of the water. These were my first moments in Hawaii so I was very camera and snap happy since I was so excited.

 





 

The next morning after scouring our guides books we thought hiking and viewing Waimea Canyon would be a great way to start so we headed to the western side of the island to see Hawaii's version of the Grand Canyon.

 

Then we decided to walk to a waterfall, but winged it. Really we should have stopped at the nature center to ask for advice. We never made it to the waterfall, but it was fun to be in a rain forest type environment and hike in Hawaii. Its humid and a bit wet, but very lush and green. Erik picked up a hiking stick while on the trail.

 

Then we stopped in town for some lunch and a Kauai speciality, shaved ice. We ordered all the special ones on the menu which came with some rich cream, but they were delicious and Elliot kept saying "yummy" over and over. It seemed to be a big word for him that trip.

The next day I was determined to see a waterfall and found a description in our guide book that there was one only a 10 minute hike away. Perfect I thought to myself, forgetting that with kids, 10 minutes really means 40 minutes, but I got to see a small waterfall and had to settle with that. Another time, same obsession next trip.

 

Then we headed to something we knew the kids would enjoy a train ride and the ability to feed animals. Elliot was so excited he could barely contain himself. Definitely a successful excursion and one they wanted to repeat every time we drove by.

Last but not least a quick visit to spouting horn on our way to dinner. This was our busiest and last busy day of the trip, due to health issues.

After dinner that night Erik complained of being sick to his stomach. We thought nothing of it and all went to sleep. The next day he woke up wheezing and we knew an asthma attack was coming and it would be a very long day. It was the only rainy day on the island so we were lucky in that regard, but we thought if we took Erik out of the condo it might help to distract him, it did some of the time but he mostly felt terrible and kept getting worse. We gave up around 11 am and headed home and I took Elliot out to the beach that afternoon. No pictures from that excursion, but a rough day for all. 

The first thing we did to distract Erik is try to find something to do with a stroller so we headed to the botanical gardens. It was very very boring! We lasted 10 minutes and then decided to head to a park.

We headed to the west side, my sense of direction was off on this island and what I thought was 20 minutes was 40 minutes, but the park was incredible. The boys had a good time, but you could tell Erik was heading downhill.

I won't lie, that night was rough and Carl and I took turns sleeping in Erik's bed and giving him medicine. We even called 911 at some point because he turned blue from being hysterical. But like a trooper, the next morning you could tell he was feeling better so we just headed back to Poipu Beach and fully expected Erik to just dig sandcastles and rest. No this boy was running around and having the time of his life. The beach cured him of any mental asthma effects and the fresh air helped. It was by far our best beach trip. 

We even got to see a sea turtle that day which was awesome. Erik was jealous when I told him Elliot and I saw a monk seal and turtle the day before. I am glad he got to see something.

Then Erik and Elliot found their own personal nirvana, a big hole to play in. Elliot was literally diving head first into the hole. A big sand mess, but totally worth it watching them have to much fun.

The rest of the time we just took it easy and didn't push ourselves or Erik. We stayed close to home and just enjoyed the beach and each other's company, but here are a few more moments I can't forget.

Erik and Elliot playing the kissing game.

Elliot's teddy bear, he literally started tackling and hugging this thing in the store. We couldn't resist the purchase and it was his companion the entire trip. Totally forgotten now with new birthday toys!

I always said to myself that Hawaii was a perfect vacation with kids because you can sit at the beach and not care. Yes,  I saw the ads for kayaking trips, hiking excursion, whale watching, etc. There was so much I wanted to do, but I realized if we are lucky there are more trips like this in the future for me and hanging out at beaches isn't that bad and really really fun!