Project: Little Miss Dress-up

I am a project girl.  I categorize things into projects.  That’s why jobs with a lot of little unrelated tasks do not suit me.  My mind is not able to organize things in that way.  I suppose that is also why my computer desk at home is littered with little pieces of paper, and unrelated “other things”, and probably why whenever I play MMORPG games, I am quite dedicated to the storyline content (assuming it’s a good storyline) and to the missions and quests that I collect.  There is a purpose and objective and I like completing them.

Having said that, I have many major projects going on.  Forget the ongoing never-to-be-finished writing project I have going because really, it’s not going.   It’s beyond dormant.  That thing is in a coma.  But I do collect projects from time to time.  The latest one I have in my head was sparked by a comment this week, that my 3.5 year old wants to be a unicorn for Halloween.

My first thought…how in the world am I going to find a Unicorn costume???  I told her we might not be able to find one, and I might have to make it.  I also covered my own butt and said that I might not be able to make it, and we will have to see.

So now I’m on a mission to MAKE a unicorn costume!  One: I doubt I would be able to find a unicorn costume. Two: Even if I found one, I don’t think I’d want to actually pay for it (because it’s bound to be expensive).

I would like to say that Pinterest is wonderful.  I looked up “Unicorn costume” and lots of great ideas appeared on my screen – some very elaborate and some very simple that I could adapt for my own DIY ideas.

So here is what the unicorn costume is going to comprise of:

–          A party cone (store bought or home-made) decorated with ribbon.  I will attach this to either a head band, or pin it to an old hoodie – possibly pink.

–          Colourful hair clips with hair extensions on them for the mane – easily purchased at a hair accessory store or the Dollarama.

–          Leg warmers which I will either knit myself or I will ask a certain favourite auntie to knit, or I bite the bullet and purchase a pair at an accessory store.

–          A tail made out of a feathered boa, tied to, or pinned to jogging pants (I’ll have to figure that part out).

Voila! Unicorn costume!  Hopefully it will be as nice as I think it will be but I really think it might not be…..  I would rather her not be a princess or other “standard” little girl store-bought costume so I’m going to give it a try.  It’s not like the whole things is going to be expensive….I foresee spending $15 to $20, with the most expensive items being the leg warmers themselves (or the yarn for the leg warmers).

So now I am holding myself back from actually getting started and purchasing all the items.  Yes, I am like that.  Even though Halloween is months away, I am excited by the fact that my daughter actually asked for a certain costume, but I am holding back.  Like I told my co-worker, she is 3.5 years old, and who knows if she’ll ask to be something else in a few more weeks…..then I’d have to start all over.  I’m sure I’d have fun though.

However, despite having that one Halloween costume out of the way (or at least the planning of it), I have to think about what kind of costume my little 2 year old boy should have.  It can’t be too expensive, and I don’t want it to be a “standard” little boy Halloween costume either.  Anyone have ideas?  What do little boys like to dress up as???  It looks like this one’s going to be my next project…..

Stunned. Hit pause please.

Tags

allergies, blood test, Chronic urticaria and angioedema, food allergies, idiopathic angiodema

I haven’t written a post in awhile, and for that I apologize.  Life has been fairly busy and with all the editing I’ve been doing at work (mostly graphic-related) my eyes get all buggy by the time I get home and the last thing I want to do is sit down and stare at the computer.  Things at work have improved just a little.  The major brochures are either online or waiting to go online, so while my eyeballs are still trained on the computer at work, I am no longer scrutinizing things to the point where I am ignoring all other things around me, including a hungry stomach.

My home life has also become suddenly busy with my other half out of town on training and me taking care of the two kiddos.  I do have lots of help from family though so it absolutely makes life easier.  But with only one parent in the house, there is a lot more work.

Then of course, there are my health issues.  As you recall, I’ve had a visit to the hospital related to allergies, which resulted in me getting some potent medicine that was giving me mood swings as a crazy side-effect, and that also gave me in-roads to a quick specialist appointment (which normally takes several months to get).  I won’t go into too much detail about the actual doctor appointment as I do like to keep some things private (aren’t I private enough though?  But seriously, do you really need a play-by-play of my doctor appointment?).  Let’s just say skin prick test was done, and I was sent to do some blood tests.  In addition to this, a follow-up appointment was made where I was scheduled for an oral food allergy challenge.  I was told to bring 100% whole wheat bread, abstain from anti-histamines for 5 days prior and to expect the appointment to take up to 3 hours so bring something to read.

So I went. And I ate.  And I passed.  Wheat is not my enemy.

Stunned.

This doctor thinks I was never allergic to wheat.  The initial blood test that indicated that I had an allergy to wheat AND dairy were probably false positives.  Although I do have to say that this most recent blood test I took showed a slight positive allergy to wheat but since I was able to eat a whole slice of 100% whole wheat bread without any issues, it was safe to say that I did not react to wheat, and could eat it safely.

Very stunned.

Then I learned that the blood test results showed I was NOT allergic to cow’s milk.  Along with the negative results to the skin prick test, this mean that I would have less than 2% chance of reacting to milk.  He said with that knowledge I could try an oral food allergy challenge of milk at home (but with people around).

Seriously?  I have been wheat and dairy free for these past few years for no reason (although I was feeling quite healthy on a wheat and dairy free diet – I certainly ATE a lot healthier).

Anyway, I don’t think the doctor actually realized how life-changing this information was.  When I said “That’s life changing,” his whole demeanor seemed to change to more, I don’t know, personable?  Less clinical I should say.

So yes, if there is a pause button that I could push to allow me to fully process this information, that would have been the time for it.

At the moment, I have accepted the news fully.  This past weekend, I had whole wheat bread for the first time in AGES!  I also had udon noodles and instant ramen noodles.  Seriously, I have forgotten how good instant noodles can be.  It has literally been YEARS since I’ve had that.  Are instant noodles really that good?  Maybe, or its just my palate exploding with joy that I was eating my childhood comfort food once more.  I think I’ll go with that one, or a combination of the two.

So I have been extremely happy having learned this news but still restraining myself as I don’t think filling my stomach with wheat products is very healthy, so I’ve been “taking it slow” in reintroducing wheat.  As for the dairy, my thoughts were that I would wait until next weekend.  That didn’t last long though…..

Today, a coworker of mine returned from a vacation in Italy.  She brought back treats for everyone – a wheel of Italian cheese, and chocolates.  I LOVE cheese.  Italian cheese, cheese from Italy could not be passed up, not to mention the chocolate!  So I dove right in and had a piece of cheese, and chocolates at work. No reaction.

I am so happy!

Am I mad that I’ve been needlessly wheat and dairy free?  I am not mad.  LIke I said, we were going on what we knew at the time so I cannot fault the other doctor.  Being wheat and dairy free actually opened me up to a whole different kind of culinary world.  I appreciate the struggles of people with food allergies and intolerances, and I have come to know more about the nutritious value of certain foods.  I would never have tried quinoa unless I had to.  Same with almond milk, which is actually quite nutritious.  And I would have never learned that feta cheese is made from goat’s milk and not cow’s milk.

I can’t say I am mad but maybe just a little grateful for the experience, since my experience was temporary.

So now the other question is WHY was I getting swelling and hives.  What triggers it if not food allergies?

The doctor gave me a term for the condition which basically means chronic hives and soft tissue swelling.  And that it is idiopathic – aka there is no known trigger.

Now THAT I am upset about.  I’m back to square one.  Mystery trigger causes hives and swelling.  Thanks.  I think life was easier when I THOUGHT I was allergic to wheat and dairy.  At least I had definitive answers and an action plan.

Now the answer is “there’s no known trigger” or in other words “we don’t know”.

Stunned again.  I don’t want to hit pause on this one though.  But I’m not sure I can live with “we don’t know”.  Can we pretend that there is an answer somewhere?  In some ways I think not having answers is worse than a false positive on an allergy test, because there is nothing I can do about a “we don’t know” answer.

I liked having an action plan…..

There’s the line buddy.

Tags

pet peeve, public transit, rant, skytrain, TransLink

This is just a rant post.

To the young fellow who was in the line-up behind me at the bus stop,

You were third in line.

DO NOT BUDGE!

At the time I was in denial that your inching forward when the bus arrived, was a sign that you were going to budge in front of me.  I was thinking….dude is 3rd in line, why would he budge?  And he did.

Was his need to get a seat or be the first or second person on the bus so great?  Let’s see here.

• The fellow is young.  Around my age, in his 30s or so, so he is not a senior citizen.  And of course he cannot be pregnant.
• The fellow looks healthy, and does not appear to have any sort of disability.  He certainly moved fast enough.
• He did not have a baby, toddler or young child with him.

So he is just another rude person on the bus.  Unfortunately, he is also a rude person in life.

If I ever see him again, and if he does that to me again, I will most likely say something.  Seriously, he was 3rd in line.  Would it really have been that much of an inconvenience to STAY in the line??

THIRD in line.  Seriously.

What a jerk!

 

Negative! False positive! What????!

Tags

allergies, allergy challenge, food allergies

So according to the latest allergist I saw, the blood test I had previously, which resulted in a positive allergy test to wheat and dairy, could have been a false positive.

According to the latest skin prick test I had, I am NOT allergic to wheat and dairy and this doctor seems skeptical that I ever was allergic to wheat and dairy.

So….I’ve been avoiding wheat and dairy for a few years now.  I have been learning to cook wheat and dairy free and am at a place where I can make yummy food that is wheat and dairy free.  My grocery bills have been fairly high for the past few years to accommodate my allergies…..my social habits have been adjusted drastically to accommodate these supposed allergies, and now I learn that I might not be allergic at all.

Ok….so….WHY oh WHY was I getting hives, and swelling?  *sigh*

Don’t get me wrong.  I am ECSTATIC that I may be able to eat wheat and dairy again. (Real cheese please!!!!  Soft squishy bread please!!!!!)  I am sure wonton noodles and Chinese donuts will be at the TOP of my “to eat” list if it is confirmed that I can eat wheat.   And anything with cheese on it will be at the top of my dairy food list.  But seriously…..that doesn’t give me any answers as to WHY IN THE WORLD did I get hives and swelling?????  *BIG SIGH*

Was this the magic cure that I wanted?  Well…..a “cure” would have been nice if it was what was really wrong with me.  Now it’s just another mystery game.

Well, the real answer will be given when I do the oral allergy challenge (or whatever it’s officially called) where I sit at the doctor’s office and eat wheat bread.  And I’m sure he’ll have me do the same for dairy where I’ll sit in his office and drink milk.  Then we’ll know for sure whether I’m allergic.

*big BIG BIIIIIIGGEST SIGH EVER*

 

Work, work….what is that?

Tags

allergies, weekend, work place culture

So it has been awhile since my last post.  (I was on a roll there with at least one post a week….yes I’m horrible at committing to writing.)  But I am back and feeling MOSTLY better.  Today is the last day of my meds that were given to me after the ER visit I had, and I am looking forward to it!  No more mood swings and short temper and snapping at the kids at the littlest things.  That’s what bothered me the most….physiological side effects I can accept but snapping at the kids at the littlest things, no way!  Anyway, tonight at dinner time will be my last pills and I think everyone will be happier.

Today is also the first day I need to abstain from anti-histamines in anticipation of an upcoming allergist appointment.  Yay for a quick specialist appointment!  Usually it takes months to get an appointment (at least that’s been my past experience) but I guess me going to the hospital and then having distress at my follow-up appointment told my doctor that I need to see an allergist ASAP  That or I am a lucky beneficiary of a cancelled appointment.  Either way, I`ll take it.

So these past few weeks have been pretty interesting….medical emergencies, medicine that gives me horrible side effects, and since I’m drugged almost all day, I have been feeling completely off my game and not as efficient….although I was still fairly efficient if I say so myself.  I managed to function at work and stay awake with benadryl in my system.

But these past few days have made me wonder….am I at work?  Really?  These past few days seem to have brought out the umm….very social side of people at work, including the CEO.  Was it the horrible rainy weather we’ve had this week? Although I’m not sure social is the word to use….chatty perhaps?

For example, yesterday there was a half hour conversation on my side of the office about childhood experiences and things that influence our kids.  Shopping, shopping habits, laundromats, clothing, childhood foods etc. was all discussed.  The CEO was involved (she actually instigated the conversation), two of the managers were involved, as well as myself and another colleague.  That’s about half of the office right there standing around, reminiscing and conversing about whatever came to mind.

And today, for another half hour, the same group of people talked about food trends, including coconut water, coconut oil, and the various activities and festivals happening this long weekend and next long weekend, as well as the various shows in town (Salmon festival, Vancouver Aquarium shows, Canada Day events etc), as well as the pending heat wave this weekend.

And when that conversation was over the CEO simply said, “Well, that was a welcome distraction! And I mean it.”  Then it was back to work.

I have to say, these past few weeks have made me like my work place even more, and I think its because the people I work with actually make you feel like they care about you, and that you matter.  And it all feels very genuine.

So far, I’m really liking where I work, and my job.  I have always said that the best thing about working in non-profit is the people, and this place proves it.

I can’t resist the cheese

Tags

allergies

Literally, I can’t resist the cheese.  Not cheese as in cheesy movies or cheesy tv, but literally yummy cheese sitting on a platter all sliced up nicely and displayed in a very tempting delicious way.  That cheese.

Unfortunately for me, I have a dairy allergy, whereby eating cheese will give me an allergic reaction that will result in me having to take benadryl.  I also have a wheat allergy, which I can tolerate better than cheeses, whereby I am able to have regular soy sauce without feeling any major effects.  But I will still take anti-histamines just in case.

Even more unfortunate for me, I have environmental allergies to various tree pollens, as well as grass pollen.  Summer is not my friend.  Combine all of these together with a horrible pollen season and you get a medical emergency waiting to happen.

And it happened.  I’m not sure what I ate but I had been feeling quite “allergic” all last week with swollen eyes, slightly swollen throat and face feeling, hayfever etc.  The allergic symptoms have been persistent and I was taking benadryl and extra strength reactine to feel “better”.  My colleagues knew of my allergies.  I even took one sick day prior to the medical emergency due to my allergies….swollen eyes.
I was on benadryl all day that day, and for many days afterwards.

Then Monday evening, after having dinner at the inlaws, my allergies began to act up pretty badly, but I have always had bad allergies around their house because of the trees in their neighborhood.  It can’t be helped, really, unless they move, which I don’t see happening anytime soon.  My eyes started to itch very badly and I started to rub them….and my eyes started to swell and swell until I was a horrible looking thing with slits for eyeballs.  We made a decision to cancel my exercise spin class because there was no way I’d be able to function, and then my hubby and I packed up the kids in the van and proceeded to go home where the plan was for me to go home, shower immediately to wash off any pollen and retreat to our bedroom where the air purifier has been waiting for me all day.  That was the plan.

The plan was altered shortly after we left the inlaws’ house.  My husband would drop the kids off at my sister’s and he would drive me to the hospital.  Then the plan changed again, as we parked in front of my sister’s house.  I could literally feel my throat swell and I was no longer able to “breathe normally.”  I’ve had a swollen throat before, but the speed of which this was all happening was extremely alarming.  I did not hesitate to tell my husband to call 911, and I calmly told him that I was going inside to my sister’s and I would wait there.

So that was the plan.

What did I eat??  My guess is there was cross contamination somewhere along the way.  It doesn’t help that people at work put out snacks sometimes to share.  That week, there was popcorn, not once, but twice!  And it was delicious!  Perhaps there was cross contamination, or perhaps there was butter on it or whey powder (yes, whey is an ingredient in some flavoured popcorn).  Or maybe it was the mystery soup that my inlaws made or soy sauce that triggered the allergic reaction.  Either way, I got an allergic reaction, met some nice paramedics who were great at keeping me calm, went to the hospital where everyone was half occupied with the hockey game on TV (including patients and nurses – don’t worry, it was a quiet night), and I met a nice doctor who really couldn’t do anything for me because my vitals were fine, and I already had enough benadryl in me (paramedics made me take benadryl when they arrived) that she couldn’t give me any more.  So I sat for awhile and they waited for things to calm down, then I was sent out the door with discharge papers and instructions to come back in if I get x, y, z, symptoms.

So…will I now be able to resist the cheese?  I will certainly try even harder.  But it definitely IS difficult when cheese was one of my favourite foods before I became allergic.

But for now, I guess I’ll stick with snacking on plain potato chips at work.  And I guess I’ll be avoiding going out to eat for quite awhile.  Maybe I should just become a hermit.  Does anyone have an isolation pod I can use?  Or even better, a magical cure.  That’s been on my wishlist for years….

My thoughts in haiku’s

Tags

haiku, poems, poetry

On the bus to home,

I can’t help but summarize

My thoughts in Haiku’s.

 

Here are some haiku’s,

Of events from this week’s past.

I need to write more.

 

Coyote stands poised,

On the corner down the street.

I keep my kids close.

 

Flowers on my desk,

Lovely beauties in full bloom,

But you make me sneeze.

 

Spinning on my bike,

I don’t feel like a hamster,

But like a rock star!

 

Do not ask me why

I like to think in haiku’s.

Life is poetry.

(Yes I actually do try to think in haiku’s sometimes. I can be an oddball. I view it as a mental exercise and a great way of viewing life and succinctly summarizing thoughts and observations.)

Suicidal Bird

Tags

bird, poem, poetry, road kill

Why oh why bird, were you standing in the middle of the road?

I saw no food on the ground.  There was no reason for you to be there.

But you stood still, not moving.

Even as I approached.

The front of the white van even went over your head, but you did not move.

I backed up, and you did not move.

I did not want blood on my car.

So I took a detour.

As I backed up, I watched in wonderment as another car approached and drove.

Right over you.

All you did was duck.

Crazy, suicidal bird.

 

(And yes, this actually happened.  Has anyone encountered a “suicidal bird” before???)

The art and etiquette of hosting

Tags

birthday party, entertaining, etiquette, hosting, how to be a good host, life-skills

Learning life-skills

In highschool, as part of our “life-skills” education, my cohorts and I received education in various subjects as a way to introduce us to various skills that would/could be useful to us as adults.  They included woodworking, metalwork, drafting, art, drama, cooking and sewing.  And at one point in time, knitting was thrown into the mix as well.  This was all in grade 8, our first year of highschool and too early in our lives, I think, to be considering that basic sewing or woodworking skills would be useful as an adult.  (I would also like to point out that many of my cohorts’ parents completed the sewing projects – I would like to add that I did my own sewing project and got a C- as a result of not completing my final sewing project).

Beyond grade 8, we were given many options for our elective courses, including auto-shop, and data management.  Yes, data management.  This was in the 90s when computer skills were not mandatory, and html was considered cutting edge.  Google did not exist, Yahoo was a leading search engine, and console gaming was a trend.

Foods & Nutrition and Data Management were the “life skills” courses I chose to continue with, and they have so far proven to be very useful.  I don’t find myself as “fearful” of new technology, though I am often resistant to change.  My basic html knowledge and understanding of the internet has proven to be useful at work.  I also enjoy cooking and pride myself on being able to cook a tasty and healthy meal (although some don’t think it’s tasty without the extra unneeded salt and oil).  This has proven very useful with the various food allergies that I need to work around (wheat, dairy and egg).

But I am still lacking many skills to be as product-full as I would like.  My sewing skills are very weak – I cannot even hem my own pants – at least not straight;  I do not know how to knit except for the standard perl and knit (and I have no idea how to make an extra row or even how to end the knitting project!);  I enjoy gardening (I call myself a tinkerer in this area) but do not know anything about ph of soil or even what “zone” I live in; and even though I know how to use the standard house-hold tools, I cannot hang a picture straight.  Over-all, these are all tangible skills that I can still learn.  There are courses and workshops available.  There are experts on these subjects / areas of knowledge.

The act of hosting

But what about the art of being a good host?  Etiquette is a subject that is not taught at all in school.  Few courses are available on this subject, if at all.  What I have learned about being a good host is through television, through Martha Stewart, through The Learning Channel, through Food Network Canada, and through event planning experience at work.  But what does being a good host mean?  In short, it means entertaining your guests.  It means ensuring all the party prep is done before the guests arrive so you can spend time with your guests.  It means having good food and entertainment, and it means engaging your guests when they arrive.  Am I a good host?  I believe I am a decent host but there is always room for improvement and I learn something with each event that I host.

This past weekend, my husband and I hosted a birthday bash for my 2 year old boy.  I won’t go into details of the party but the main thing I learned is my husband has no idea what being a good host means.  For his part though, he hasn’t had a lot of experience in this area.  He does not manage meetings or organize events in his line of work.  I believe our wedding was the first event he had to think about managing, and I`m not even sure how much thought he gave that!

For the birthday party itself, he didn’t give too much thought into the planning or logistics of it, except for what day and time to host it, and except for wondering if we would have enough food.  The entertainment and activities for the kids, the menu planning was all me.  So when he said at the end of the party “I don’t think we were very good hosts” was surprising to me.  I didn’t even think he thought about that at all, but that statement alone showed me that he did think about it, and was perhaps concerned about it.

But were we good hosts?  I think we were ok.  Yes, there were areas for improvement.  I am not a social butterfly and am an innately shy person.  Opening up one’s house does take work, and planning an event, big or small, does take time and thought.  I am glad though, that my husband actually was thinking about what it takes to be a good host.   Next time we will probably be better hosts, but maybe not.

His comment about being a good host though, was a big surprise to me at the end of the night.  I don’t think he actually worried about things like that, but I guess everyone worries about this when they plan an event, or welcomes people into their own homes – which brings me back to the subject of education.  Hosting is a life-skill.  Hosting is not a tangible life-skill, but it is a life-skill nonetheless.  Is it something that needs to be taught in school?  I don’t think it deserves a full course, but I think event planning needs to be experienced in school.

For my “hosting” education, the majority of my career has involved event planning – Board meetings, and community events – I have been involved in many aspects including sending out invitations to organizing logistics.  But each event IS different, with different requirements, different expectations and different people.  A business meeting, though, is different from a social event, and is different from a media event, and is different from a community event; but the basics are generally the same and the goal is basically the same.  Identify the objective, and ensure the objective is met.  In the case of a birthday party, the objective is to ensure everyone is entertained and involved.  I certainly hope the objective was met this weekend.  At least I know everyone enjoyed the food!

I do need to remember to introduce everyone though.  Unfortunately, that was something I forgot to do.  I definitely need to remember to do that next time.  As I mentioned before, hosting is a life-skill that I am still learning.  One-day it will be perfected.  Let’s just hope it’s not when I am old and gray.  I do want to be able to teach my children how to be good hosts!  Afterall, being a good host is mostly about good manners!

Hear me ROAR!

I have always wanted to be a superhero.  That was what I wanted to be when I was a little girl.  I’m not sure what little girls are supposed to want to be when they grow up.  Some dream of being a princess.  Some dream of wedding gowns.  Some want to be doctors and teachers and firefighters.

I always wanted to be a superhero or spy.

I think it comes from all the Chinese movies and series that my parents used to watch.  There were kung fu heroes doing stunts that no normal person can do, wielding swords and staffs, rendering people unconscious with just a pinch on the proper nerve…. And there were police series following cops that always conquered over the bad guys. And of course I remember watching the Olympics and wanting to be able to be as strong and flexible as the gymnasts, and as amazing as the ice skaters.

Even the imaginary and pretend games I played with my twin sis would involve our bears being super spies while going to elementary school.  You read that right.  Our bears would be in school and we invented scenarios for them that involved going out to save somebody and fighting bad guys.  In our games, we even invented digital cameras before they existed.  Our little blue and pink bears could take pictures of the chalk board and do their homework later so they could go off on a spy adventure.  We also invented scanners in our games, that could scan pages of books. (Too bad we were only 7….and too young to even invent any of that stuff.)  🙂

And in our imaginary play, without our trusty bear companions, we would be the Chinese martial artists fighting the bad guys.  We even had sword fights with our batons….unfortunately we did dent them and they were taken away from us (although we did sneak them out to play once in awhile).

So what am I now?  My career seems to have been dedicated to working in non-profit and I’m sure it will stay that way.  In my own way, that is how I’m being a superhero.  I am a mom to two little ones.  That is how I am being a superhero. I am trying to teach my kids to be healthy, and to keep the world healthy, and I am trying to be a good example of how to live healthy.  That is how I am being a superhero.  That’s right.  Somehow, I DID become a superhero.  At the moment, I am also sidekick to my oldest sister who is training to climb Mount DOOM!  We are superheroes training together!

And now with exercising and starting cardio kick-boxing, I am feeling MORE like a superhero.  And I plan to keep it up.

I am Ninja Mom.  Hear me ROAR!!!  🙂