Tuesday, March 11, 2008

hard to post

it has been hard to post since there has been so much turmoil around here. so far the tests have either not come back yet, waiting to take the test, came back inconclusive or came back negative. we have another big test on the twentieth of march in st. louis. toly's medicine seems to have kicked in. he is a happier boy. we just need to know what is causing this. whatever it is maybe we can stop it and take him off these powerful drugs.

we plan to stay with tansy again on the twentieth. what a wonderfully comforting and inviting home she has. this last time i brought some of my tools and intended to help her with any small jobs around her place. alas i was too overcome with stress to be of any use. i was mostly a zombie. thank you tansy for your warm welcome.

i have managed to keep myself busy around here. i put some of the wall base around the bathroom floor and finished the trim around the bedroom door. after working with this wall base i have decided to change one little thing at the only exterior facing corner. i need to fabricate a matching piece of wooden trim then i can finish the back wall behind the bathtub. the completed sections look great. we are closing in on having this room finished.

the tomato seedlings are doing great. i set a timer for their light while we were away. tabitha transplanted the cabbage and broccoli into the cold and hot frame. we forgot to take the top off one cloudy day and almost killed them all--steamed. some will be stunted but hopefully we'll get a good harvest anyway.

my kombucha exploits are progressing far too slowly for my taste. i have a gallon going right now but will likely need three gallons going at any one point to keep up with my craving for the stuff. we'll split the scoby after this batch is done. i might try green tea this next time around. i have three bottles from the last batch that are getting bubbly. to be drank very soon...

i'll keep the tarps on the garden until the ides of march. hopefully sunday we'll get in there with the garden tiller and plant some beets and onions. i might get in a little sooner we'll have to see how the weather does.

the older kids are doing great. tristan and kassi have been wonderful. they have been playing and learning and keeping spirits bright around here. kassi is taking an interest in technology. i hope that she learns to use the computer very soon. learning reading will so much easier with the help of starfall.com

after the test on the twentieth we plan to go on an extreme exclusion diet. we hope that toly will respond to one of the following: no gluten, no milk, no eggs, no nuts, no anything we can think of. it will be a family affair sine it will only be fair if we all have to do it. plus there won't be the possibility of sneaking any contraband food if it isn't available.

thank you for your thoughts and prayers. they are working. although we are still in this damnedable holding pattern.

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

I hope things turn out for you guys. Can you stay at the Ronald McDonald House when you're in STL?

Woody said...

Karl... We will keep ya'll in our prayers for the long haul.

The Polar Bear said...

We are thinking of you guys over here at Dogfight. Hopefully some spring weather will come and help distract, if that's possible.

tansy said...

it was my pleasure having you stay with me...i really enjoyed the company and my little ones did too. don't worry about trying to help out, you have enough on your mind!

i'm sorry that nothing has come of the tests so far. i hope you get some answers soon.

Madeline Rains said...

Hang in there. It is so hard being tested and waiting. We went through this with our now 10 yo when he was 10 months and it went from looking like a GI tube might have be put in to being a sensory disorder issue that is now gone. Oh the stress of testing. May your results be simple as well. For when you do the gluten free - the book "Gluten-Free Girl" is really great. I'll lend you mine if you send me your address - madnic@gmail.com

Christy said...

You are in my thoughts. Hang in there!

Anonymous said...

Karl,

the exclusion diet is tuff... we've done it... but our boy definitely does better on a gluten-free diet. No wheat, no spelt, etc, etc. At least you can make excellent pancakes from fresh-ground buckwheat.

Also, if you haven't seen it, you might want to read Gut and Psychology by Natalie Campbell-McBride. I don't know much about what you're dealing with, but it's a very interesting take on digestive disorders.

Best of luck.

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