Here's Hoping....

Yesterday's OB appointment went pretty well.  The midwife asked me to write a letter about the issues we had with the doctor.  I was glad about this because it shows that they are really aware that there are problems and want to deal with them.  She also ordered lab work to check my thyroid and vitamin D levels in case those are negatively impacting my mood.  Also, she thinks that it would be a good idea for me to try giving up dairy for a while to see if that helps Devin be less fussy and sleep better.  She has a grandchild who just recently had similar symptoms that cleared up when his breastfeeding mom stopped eating dairy.

Actually, I had already been coming to that conclusion.  At 3 a.m. that morning I was laying in bed wit the laptop on (sitting in the crib by the bed - what else are we going to use it for?) thinking about how I can manage it without starving.  Devin really needs to feel better and I really need to get some sleep.  The rash, arched back and screaming seem like more than just six week old fussiness.

Before I could give my full attention to that change, though, we had Liam's kindergarten orientation.  We found out more about the pick-up and drop-off schedule as well as the routine they will have during the day and some of the logistics of communication between us and the teacher.  There were six or so other kids at the orientation, although the kids didn't really talk to each other.

It's move-in weekend at the university.  We decided to go out for supper which involved me getting lost on the temporarily-one-way streets on campus and Allen navigating crazy out-of-town traffic.  And me breastfeeding not just in a restaurant, but at the table in the picture window of a local restaurant.

So after another not very restful night and a morning spent trying to find some energy and motivation I took Liam to the grocery store and got some supplies.  I'd been chatting with friends who'd dealt with similar issues over Facebook and had some ideas of what I wanted to cook and what to get in order to do it.

In case the reader has missed this information, the reason it's so tricky for me to go dairy free is that there are so many other foods that I don't eat because of sensitivities or allergies.  I don't eat wheat, soy, corn, beef, pork (other than some ham which for some reason doesn't hurt my stomach), most tree nuts, peanuts, yeast... I thin that covers it.  Unfortunately those foods are in a HUGE percentage of the processed foods available in this country, including most dairy substitutes.  And it means that cutting dairy also eliminates a major source of protein and fat from my diet.

I managed to cook the following foods:

Whole Spelt Orange Muffins.  I actually zested an orange and it was worth the effort.

Summer stew.  We ate quite a bit of this for supper and Liam loved it.

This is intended for my lunches - ground chicken, black-eyed peas, mushrooms and curry spices.  I was thinking of making turnovers, but decided it will work to just put it into a wrap.

Here's what the kitchen table looked like when I got done.  Thankfully Allen had been helping to keep the kitchen clean and he cleaned up after me.

He also did his best to keep Devin calm, but it was an uphill struggle.  His expression in this picture is saying, "Why are you taking pictures and not helping me?  But what could I do?  I'd already nursed him.

 The calm is deceptive.  It only came in brief moments, accompanied by constant effort on the part of a parent.  Walking, patting, jiggling...we've been using the swing A LOT.  In between baby duty Allen worked on getting caught up on laundry and Liam played with Legos.

So in the midst of all this we forgot to go to a cookout for folks from Allen's department.  It's amazing sometimes how life just keeps going on.