10 on Monday

• Last Friday Gracie woke up and threw up… three times.  Okay.  No biggie.  Sick kiddo.  EXCEPT that I had committed to paint faces and then attend Elijah’s circus at school.  So after a minor breakdown and Jerry working some stuff out at work.  It all worked out.  I went to school with Elijah.  I painted about 40 faces in a little over an hour and watch my kiddo be a strong man at the circus.  I was so proud.  A year ago there is no way he would have been in front of so many people without freaking out.  I made his costume… and unfortunately these are the only pics I’ll post, since I refuse to post pics of other kids without the permission of the parent… and that’s a lot of permission.    He wore Iron man boots with the costume.  He refused the handlebar mustache, but I think he rocked the whole thing.

• Gracie continued to have GI issues through Saturday.  I think that the poor child has adopted my tolerance for allergies.  I think that they work on her GI tract as well.  Poor thing.  Anyway, we stayed close to bathrooms all weekend just to be on the safe side.  We played tennis and played on the playground and got our oil changed.  Thrilling weekend, but we spent time as a family and that’s what’s important.
• I needed to work on the front yard’s flower garden and so after edging the driveway, I let the kids have the water hose.  They had a blast playing with the water.  And while the pollen has become insane, I even let them play in the, um pollen puddle, at the bottom of the driveway.
  
   
  
  
• Gracie has the ability to amuse herself.  She is so outgoing, but can be very reserved.  In that last picture, she is singing a little song about how her hands and feet are in the water.  I tried SOOO hard to get in there and get a recording about it, but couldn’t get it.  She is CONSTANTLY making up songs.  And she wants you to sing them with her.  Which is a little difficult seeing as she is making it up on the spur of the moment.  It’s very sweet though.
• I am addicted to Grey’s Anatomy.  I haven’t watched it on TV, but I have been catching up on Netflix Instant watch.  I’m almost done with Season 5.  I am so addicted.  It’s a little sad.
• My folks are coming on Thursday!!!!!!  So excited.  I’m excited to see them.  But I’m also excited to get to go out with my husband.  YAYAYAYAY!!!
• There are a couple of kids in our neighborhood who run around playing with other kids.  While I’m, not comfortable allowing MY kids do this, it is kind of nice for the kids to have playmates.  These kids are older.  There is one little boy that Elijah has more fondness.  This little boy doesn’t get that Elijah’s heart breaks when he runs off to play with another kid.  It’s a hard lesson.  Gracie gets upset sometimes too, but has become ambivalent when the little girl doesn’t come to play.  I think that Elijah is actually a good influence on this kid… and I’m glad that Elijah has someone to play with.  It’s really interesting to watch this friendship develop.
• Jerry took the GRE last Thursday.  He rocked it!  Now we just have to wait and see.  He should find out in a couple of weeks if he is accepted in the MBA program.  If he is… he starts in mid-May.  EEEK!  I’m so proud of him!!
• I have a doctor’s appointment on Friday.  I am hoping some light will be shed on what is going on with me.  I will definitely write a post about the horrors that have been happening, though I am sending out a warning now, they are not for the weak of heart nor stomach.  heh.
• And finally…. Today, Elijah learned to ride his bike without training wheels.  He did it himself.  He wanted the wheels off yesterday and he taught himself.  He learned on his own, at his own pace, on his bicycle.  Anyway, here’s the video.

My Battle With Red Dye #40

Shortly after Thanksgiving, I became extraordinarily lazy.  Elijah had been out of school for 5 days straight.  So I gave the kids a Nutragrain bar and some healthy juice for breakfast a couple of mornings in a row.  Go on, call DSS and pretend that you feed your child completely fantastic breakfasts every morning and never have a morning of “sure here are some goldfish and raisins” and go back to bed.  Here’s you mother of the year award.  Go shove it…   NOW, back to me (it is, after all, my blog.)  For the three days I did this, it was a huge struggle to get Elijah to get ready for school.  There was massive breakdown after massive breakdown.  I thought maybe he was getting sick.  I thought maybe the time off and the readjustment was bothering him.  Something.  It didn’t occur to me to think it was something I fed my kid.
Then the case of the Christmas cookie happened.  I made sugar cookies.  I iced them.  I used red icing.  I also used mini cookie cutters.  Elijah picked one with red icing.  After consuming the cookie, after running around the house like a mad man, he stopped.  His eyes looked wild.  Gracie was walking by him and he.punched.her.in.the.chest.  Elijah is 45 pounds of bones, water, blood, and muscle.  He punched her in the chest.  I thought my head was going to explode.  He just looked at me like nothing had happened.  I about lost my mind.  He was (obviously) sent to time out until I could talk to him in complete calm sentences.  The whole time he thrashed in his room.  He kicked the wall.  He threw fits.  And then he calmed down.  And I calmed down.  And I started to do some research.
Red Dye #40.  Sure it could be sugar.  But we aren’t a sugar free house by any means.  He has sugar in juice, he has sugar in cookies, in candy… you get the point.  BUT Red Dye #40.  Now there is something we don’t have THAT often.  And his behavior seems to be linked to this.  Of course, there are definitely days when his behavior is simply because he is 4.  I’m not trying to make excuses for his behavior.  The next time he was exposed to the dye was at his Christmas party at school.  They (amazingly) only had 1 cookie at the entire party. A cookie, they got to decorate…with red icing.  He got in the car and his eyes were wild.  He talked super fast and non stop all the way to pick up Jerry.  It was a little crazy. 
Now here’s the thing.  APPARENTLY, Red Dye #40 in solid candies (like M&Ms or vitamins) tend to not have the same effect on the body as it does when found in softer chewier candies or icing.  The vitamins the kids take have Red Dye #40.  It seems to have no effect on them. 
I feel like next Monday will be a big trail as to whether or not it is indeed Red Dye #40 that has caused the incidents.  It is the day of red and pink… and, of course, candy.  I am going to splurge and buy the Wilton’s red food dye as it doesn’t have the #40 in it.  If he comes home perfect and not looking like he may need electroshock treatment, then the aforementioned incidents are simply those of a 4 (almost 5) year old and so be it.  But if he does… it’s like a big confirmation that Elijah just can’t handle this dye…
It really doesn’t matter.   Either it does, or it doesn’t.  But there is a lot of information out there about this dye and I think it’s worth looking into for anyone whose child shows even a hint of a sign of hyperactivity or behavior that’s out of the ordinary.  We try not to give our kids too much crap. We are by no means an “organic” family, but I do think this thing does have some merit.