Daydreaming while waiting impatiently!

[tortoise]

The saga continues.... GI doc wants me to try low-FODMAP diet and ran screening test for autoimmune diseases including Celiac, and Lyme. So far, my initial Lyme test is not negative, so they're running the second test. I wasn't expecting that, but I'm not surprised either. I've lived in a Lyme-endemic area my whole life and have had more ticks on me than I could count.

So far, I've eliminated fructans (a carbohydrate in onions, garlic, wheat, my fiber supplements, and whole bunch of foods I don't eat anyway.) I'm on day 3 and feel much better already. I have another week or so to go before I have to test out which of the foods is/are the culprit making me sick. Awesome.

DS2 has croup. It came on suddenly and I took him to urgent care where we got a nebulizer. He is comfortable during the day, but nighttime is rough. DH and I haven't been getting much sleep! I have a sore throat today - not bad (yet?). I'm resting, drinking orange juice. I'd drink cola if I had any. My theory is the acid kills off the microorganisms in the back of my throat.

My house is pretty much a disaster since being gone for doctor stuff. I'm catching up slowly today. DS10 washed dishes yesterday. DH brought home take-and-bake pizza for lunch. Gesture appreciated, but I can't eat it due to new diet restrictions.

We are done with meat processing for now until DH shoots another deer (and then we'll process a lamb too) or we catch more chickens in the barn. We are not raising meat birds loose again! It's awful! Our neighbor found the deer DH lost the track of. She was about 80 yards from the end of the blood trail in heavily wooded area. DH is upset; coyotes are happy.

Not much else news around here.

 

[frustratedearthmother]

Oh wow! A whole new diet - and restrictive...? Ick!

I'd drink cola if I had any. My theory is the acid kills off the microorganisms in the back of my throat.

I like the way you think, lol!

Lyme disease? That's scary! Hope the test is negative - but wouldn't that be a good explanation?

Poor DS2...croup is NO fun. Hope he gets better quickly.

Shame about the deer.. but stuff happens.

 

[NH Homesteader]

Bummer on the new restrictions! Lyme sucks, I hope it's not that. We have major Lyme issues here too, and I'm used to picking ticks off myself, the dogs, etc. Always a worry.

Hope DS2 feels better soon, and you get some rest!

 

[sumi]

I hope DS gets better soon Glad you are feeling better, but these diet restrictions suck!

for a positive negative on the lyme disease tests

 

[NH Homesteader]

You would be very sad to see the state of my 40+ year old ivy. It desperately needs someone to pay attention to it, and seriously needs repotting!

So how was the pie?

 

[tortoise]

I kinda crashed there for a while. My fault - forgetting medication and not getting enough sleep. Well, I haven't gotten enough sleep since mid-October, but it work me until now to figure it out. (I'm a real bright one. ) I took my med two days in a row and took a good long nap today. Much better now.

Our chickens have had me overrun with eggs! DH gave a couple hens to a friend. She was down to one or two - not enough to stay warm in her coop. I've started cooking with eggs again. I'm making French Toast casserole for my kids - using 20 eggs. That's a good start.

DS10 grade-skipped after Thanksgiving. He's in middle school now. I've been picking him up after school, going in and having him sort through his stuff, check his assignment notebook/planner, make sure he has all his stuff in order. Today he'd forgotten his binder and textbook in one class and had to run back and get it. It's difficult and time-consuming, but much better than the alternative. He had been lying to his 5th grade teacher that he had his homework in his bag and then coming home and lying about "forgetting" his homework. The middle school has much better accountability for students and transparency for parents. I was able to block his lunch account so he'd stop "forgetting" to pack a lunch (every day for a month, pretty sure that's not forgetting anymore). I have a parent portal login so I can see his attendance in real time, his grades, and upcoming learning targets. I'm happy. He struggled this first week - in a good way. He's going to learn those study skills that have been lagging. He also is learning that precision counts, and a passing familiarity is not the same as mastering content. thank goodness!

I am relearning to cook and refiguring out meal planning now that 2017 food preservation is done. We have different cuts of meat this year and I'm going to learn some new meals. We have a lot of bone-in meat this year, we've never processed this way before.

I have a growing fascination with holiday cactus - that's not being politically correct, there are three species, commonly called after the holidays they bloom near - thanksgiving, christmas and Easter. The one we think of as "christmas" cactus is actually the thanksgiving cactus! They're easier to force to bloom at different times of the year. I'm working on mine to try to make it bloom mid-summer for the county fair. Not next year, I pruned it back harshly. I have a vision for that plant! I have two thanksgiving cactus (one is technically DS10's) and an Easter cactus. ALDI will have "christmas" cactus in on Wednesday so I'm hoping to go and look for a color I don't have!

I also ordered a variety pack of about 30 succulent cuttings! They're so fun! I hope they root well! I mixed up the right potting soil for them, so I'm feeling hopeful. I had minimized most of my houseplants earlier this year, but have decided that I don't mind keeping succulents. They're easy enough to care for and I don't have to keep track of multiple watering schedules if all my houseplants have the same care instructions.

 

[frustratedearthmother]

Wow - you've had a lot going on! Glad you're better and glad you're back! Hope the succulents do well for you.

 

[tortoise]

Succulents are great fun to grow and so easy! I used to grow them in S.A. for our garden nursery and got a bit carried away… I ended up with more than 80 different ones and even sold some to collectors.

Doesn't sounds excessive to me! I can envision myself amassing a huge collection of succulents and selling. I need to start by identifying what I have - and keeping them alive.

 

[frustratedearthmother]

I've never seen anything like that - it's so unique and quite beautiful!

 

[sumi]

Behind the flower, to the left, is the bud of the next flower. It opens one petal at a time