Easy Gluten Free Smoothies

With the discovery of Michael's serious and complex food allergies, I have created my first gluten free recipes for him. We enjoyed them and found them very filling. You can easily take this recipe and pour them into either popsicle molds or ice cube trays to make juice bars or chocolate popsicles for treats.

Pear and Applesauce Smoothie:

1 can of sliced pears with juice (or for a sugar free version use 2 whole pears and cut in slices)
( I used Del Monte since the ingredients are very simple)
1 cup of applesauce or 1 whole apple cut in slices
8 ice cubes
1 tablespoon orange honey

Blend and serve. Makes about 2 small cups. For more servings, double the ingredients.

Alternatively, for a chocolate version, you can vary this recipe easily.

Chocolate Pear and Applesauce Smoothie:

1 can of sliced pears with juice
( I used Del Monte since the ingredients are very simple)
1 cup of applesauce or 1 whole apple cut in slices
8 ice cubes
2 tablespoon orange honey
1 tablespoon cocoa powder

Blend and Serve. Makes about 2 small cups. For more servings, double the ingredients.

Recipes Created by Jennifer Richardson
www.academyofthepossible.com
www.richardsonstudios.com

Thank you Lord that you are not done with me yet.

Thank you dear Lord for the opportunities you give me every day to practice patience, to act more loving, to be kinder, to show greater compassion, and to learn better how to follow you.
Thank you Lord for loving me in my imperfection for who I am.
Thank you Lord that you are not done with me yet.
Amen.

Jennifer

"...most beloved, remember what the apostles of Christ Jesus, our Lord, announced to you.But, dearly beloved, build your life on the foundation of your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit. Remain firm in the love of God, welcoming the mercy of Jesus Christ, our Lord, which leads to eternal life."Jd 1:17, 20b-25

Dreams and Determination

Shawna was counting her money. Michael walked over to her and said "If you save your money, you can buy (something for her gameboy) at the store." Shawna assertively and clearly said, " No, I am saving all my money, so I can buy my own unicorn or a baby unicorn!"

Oh, that is so cute.

Jennifer Richardson RN
www.academyofthepossible.com
www.richardsonstudios.com

Praise Report

Thank you Lord!
Joseph had a wish day and became a police officer.
Thank you Lord!
Michael had a wish trip and went to Walt Disney World in Florida.
Thank you Lord!
We all managed to get home after a tumultous adventure. (Read my earlier post on this.)
Thank you Lord!
The wish team was just awesome. We were blessed by angels who kept us safe.
Thank you Lord!
Mark and Roberta came home safely after being gone for several weeks.
Thank you Lord for the blessing of friends.
Daniel, Cecile and Brian have been incredible in keeping the worship, pray, and bible study going.
Thank you Lord!
Gabriela has taken a more active role in washing, brushing, feeding and watering the dogs.
Thank you Lord!
Michael got both of his wheelchairs, electric and manual.
Thank you Lord!
Michael's wheelchairs save him so much energy.
Thank you Lord!
We have been blessed by free boxes for packing.
Thank you Lord!
We have water, electricity, and food in the frig.
Thank you Lord!
We have clean clothes and a roof.
Thank you Lord!
We have friends who love us.
Thank you Lord!
We have SSI who helps keep the lights on etc.
Thank you Lord!
Physical therapy is helping Michael maintain the strength in his muscles, gain strength he has lost from having multiple daily seizures, and works on his balance and gait.
Thank you Lord!
We had the wonderful opportunity to give household items and clothes we no longer need to the ministry for Mexico.
Thank you Lord!
We have two beautiful daughters.
Thank you Lord!
We have three handsome sons.
Thank you Lord!
Scott and I have been married 11 years (12 in December).
Thank you Lord!
We caught a mouse the other day. Uggggh!
Thank you Lord anyway.
We shredded a lot of unnecessary paper we had been saving.
Thank you Lord!
We gave books we no longer read to the library.
Thank you Lord!
We had a garage sale, didn't make a dime, but the neighbors enjoyed receiving some items they could use.
Thank you Lord!
Thank you Lord!
Thank you Lord!

Ages

Michael is now 14. Gabriela is now 12. Joshua is now 7. Shawna is now 4. Joseph will soon be 9.

Yeah!!!! I cannot believe how big they are all getting.

Jennifer
www.richardsonstudios.com
www.academyofthepossible.com

Birthdays

Birthday are quite a feat for us because they are all so close together 6 of them plus Easter all with about 2 months of each other. Joseph is the last of the family within the calender year, so waiting is the hardest for him. We have a calender to count down the days, which really helps a lot. He is faithful at circling each day that goes by.

We gave the kids a choice this year as to what kind of cake they wanted. With all the craziness, I didn't make them. We just bought them. With so many birthdays close together, we let the kids choose a larger cake to share or a smaller cake personal sized cake just for themselves. Joshua chose a personal spiderman cake. Michael chose a large spiderman cake. Shawna chose a personal Tinkerbell cake. Gabriela chose a large chocolate cake with oreo cookies on top. It will be interesting to see what Joseph chooses.

Happy Birthday to all my beautiful kids.

Jennifer Richardson
www.richardsonstudios.com
www.academyofthepossible.com

Clean Groomed Pooches

Our pet sitter and her friend surprised us with a gift and had all 3 dogs washed and groomed at our house. They all our nice and fresh, clean and cut. I have learned how to cut them myself, but just have not quite got the nack of their faces. It was very nice to have the feet and face of the poodles shaven, and all their nails cut. They gave us the works.

Jennifer Richardson
www.richardsonstudios.com
www.academyofthepossible.com

Kittens in the Engine

Yes, seriously. We have 3 stray cats in the neighborhood that come in and through our yard frequently. Well, they had a lot of kittens. 10, we think. 3 of them decided to climb up into the engine of Scott's car under the engine block. We had quite a time getting them out. We asked animal control if they would help. No, they said. They don't deal with cars. Of course, the mechanic doesn't deal with cats either. We finally dawned heavy gardening gloves and lured them out with smelly fish and tuna kitten food. It took 3 solid days to catch all 3. We took them to the animal shelter who said they would be fixed, washed, fed and hopefully adopted out. They were entirely cute. The kids, of course, fell in love with them.

Jennifer Richardson RN
www.richardsonstudios.com

Possible Move to Fl.

I have not been able to reach anyone at all in the office after calling, emailing and leaving messages. My experience tells me that that means I probably didn't get the job because someone should be able to answer the phone, but maybe they are on vacation. Meantime, Scott is actively looking for full time work in computers or electronics. We are still looking for a house we can afford to live in with 5 kids and 3 dogs. Please pray the Lord will guide us and show us where he is leading us and open divine doors for where to move.

Jennifer

You ask me a method of attaining perfection. I know of love - and only love. Love can do all things. -- St Therese of Lisieux

Anhidrosis

Can the lack of sweating be dangerous? The answer is yes. This condition is called hypohydrosis or anhidrosis. To learn more, click on the link above and read the article from the Mayo Clinic.

Why information on anhidrosis?

Well, anhidrosis can be very difficult to diagnose. I had to hunt to find the name of this disease. There is more than one cause.

Scott and I have noticed though that Michael does not sweat at all except the back of his legs in his braces. Otherwise, his skin gets hot and dry and red. This is particularly noticeable in his face. We also have noticed that ice or cold water applied to Michael's face stops his seizures. It has worked every time I have tried this with him. I am wondering if there is a connection. I have started inquiring with the doctors.

Jennifer Richardson RN

Epilepsy Misunderstood

I think to have someone tell you that you need to discipline your child better and teach them how to behave properly after they have just had a seizure is evidence of the lack of education the public has on epilepsy and how devastating this disease can be to families. I also believe it is just cold hearted. Epileptics need control of seizures without side effects, but EPILEPTICS NEED A CURE! I personally believe it is the responsibility of the neurological, neuroscience, epileptoligists and neurosurgical community to not only try to find a treatment, but to also try to find the cause and the cure. Often there is a cause which is treatable. Many times there is not, but you won't know unless you check.

Jennifer Richardson RN

“To fall in love with God is the greatest of all romances; to seek Him, the greatest adventure; to find Him, the greatest human achievement.” -- St. Augustine

Wish Trip

Michael was amazingly blessed to receive his wish to go to Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida this past April 2010. The trip to Florida was a challenge and an adventure. Although Michael still says he wishes he could have had his first wish for ABC Extreme Makeover to come or an RV to live in since we are losing our home, he definitely had a fun time there. The staff and all the people involved to make this happen were just amazing. Michael's favorite ride was Space Mountain and Test Track was a close second. I enjoyed Test Track as well. There was plenty to do, and the free all you can eat ice cream shop at Give Kids The World was a favorite. Make-A-Wish tried really hard to make the trip extra special. What an awesome group of people. The kids enjoyed it. Shawna liked the Cat in the Hat ride at Universal Studios Dr. Seuss land. Michael got to meet Spiderman, Captain America, Rogue and Storm superheros backstage with a picture and autographs as well as Mickey, Pluto etc at Disney. I thought that was superbly cool. My suitcase was lost the first two days by Southwest who found it later and sent it to me. My saving grace was the washer and dryer in the villa we stayed at in Give Kids The World resort with free laundry detergent. Scott enjoyed the tour at Kennedy Space Center until they lost Michael's wheelchair. Some park guest had stolen it out of their secure area. Praise the Lord, they found it about an hour and a half later. Joseph liked the Spiderman ride. Joshua liked the Mission to Space ride. Gabriela says she also enjoyed Space Mountain the best. Between wheelchairs, medications, reactions to chlorine in the swimming pool, Michael's food getting stuck (esophagitis), breathing treatments, oxygen on the airline for Joseph, seizures and daily poopy accidents with some of the kids, honestly I was quite tired. We went to Epcot on Spaceship Earth. Shawna had a blast pressing buttons and pressed Spanish. The whole ride I could not understand it. There was no way to change it to English, and I was nearly in tears. I liked the Ferry ride Disney had between the ticket area and the park entrances mostly because all I had to do was stand there and enjoy the water and the evening view of the lights. It was pretty and relaxing. Getting home was interesting. Joseph had trouble breathing at the end of the flight, so when the plane landed in Kansas City, MO, we called cardiology. He was already on oxygen, so he could not fly. We drove home because he seemed stable on room air. We thought it was just altitude on the plane. Well, as we got into OK and TX, Joseph had trouble breathing (RR78, pale, complains he can't breath, O2 sats in the 70's in the literal middle of nowhere while we are driving). We put him back on oxygen at 2.5L with the oxygen concentrator that had been rented for us. He stabilized, so we kept going. He was ok as long as on the O2. Not thinking anything about the altitude of the states we were in, we finally figured out that was the issue. Altitudes ranged from 3600 to 7700+ feet in elevation. When we hit New Mexico, the oxygen concentrator failed. We had to wait for another one to be overnighted as we had become aware that from Santa Rosa NM to Flagstaff AZ elevation only continued to go up from 4400+ feet to over 7700+ feet. Joseph could not make it home without it. We were only glad to finally make it home on Michael's last $50.00 for gas without having to lifeflight Joseph out to an out of state hospital. Michael was pleasantly surprised by a limo ride home when we returned the rental car they provided. We were pleased to learn they would reimburse us for all our expenses on the trip home. The emergency contact person stayed in regular contact with us while we drove home and was our guardian angel. I feel like I need a shirt that says I survived Walt Disney World or something. It makes me appreciate the simplicity, if you will, of relatively local vacations. Joseph can't fly ever without being on high rate oxygen because a concentrator won't cut it for him. His left ventricle is weak. Pulmonary saw him when we got home. It appears he may have some asthmatic type of component to his heart and lung problems, so he is on breathing treatments twice daily and for difficulty breathing as needed. He is not your typical asthmatic, so I didn't even guess. We found out he actually strained the sternocleidomastoideous muscles in his neck from working so hard to breath, and is still recovering from that. The pediatrician says Joseph should simply not be going to altitude. Pulmonary is trying to get us oxygen for him for his episodes when he desaturates into the 80's; and so far, he is not in the hospital or emergency room and relatively stable. Considering that he has already had two close calls in his life, once being "reanimated" after heart surgery at 9 months old and once after a heart cath, Joseph is a miracle boy. Michael is still having seizures, and will be going back into the hospital the end of this month or beginning of June to try again and figure out why. We are trying to short sale the house. We don't know where we are going. Not being able to move to elevation and needing to stay close to good medical care really limits us a lot. At least, we have until the 28th. We know there is no sale date for the house between now and then. As far as mortgage companies go, HSBC sucks. They are cold hearted. Their idea of a "modification" was a payment $600 over what we even bring in in a month. On the brighter side, Michael gets his electric wheelchair tomorrow. I am thrilled to not have to carry him anymore; his 83 pounds have taken their toll on my back. He just is way to big now for strollers and grocery carts. Poor kid. I will be glad to let him do things that make him feel more independent and "walk" in the store or mall without help. I don't understand the problem with his muscles, but he gets so tired that he falls a lot and has resorted to crawling on his knees. With all the medical complications, Scott and I have decided it is simply a medical necessity for me to be home with the kids. Scott is still looking for work, so we are trying to find a way to make it on one income. I didn't think I would be so long winded, but there you have it. His trip to Walt Disney World was extremely trying and extremely fabulous at the same time. I am so glad that he got to go, and I must admit I enjoyed being able to get a chocolate milkshake any time I wanted. If I ever had to do it again, I would insist on helpers to come with us.

God Bless You,
Jennifer Richardson

Eosinophilic Esophagitis

Michael has Eosinophilic Esophagitis. It makes eating quite a challenge for him. I found it interesting that many symptoms we thought we separate disorders like GERD are actually all related to this. According to the American Partnership for Eosinophilic Disorders at http://www.apfed.org/ee.htm ,

"Common symptoms include:
Reflux that does not respond to usual therapy (medicines which stop acid production in the stomach)
Dysphagia (difficulty swallowing)
Food impactions (food gets stuck in the esophagus)
Nausea and Vomiting
Failure to thrive (poor growth, malnutrition, or weight loss) and poor appetite
Abdominal or chest pain
Feeding refusal/intolerance or poor appetite
Difficulty sleeping

The reactions to foods are not always ‘immediate hypersensitivity’ (IgE-mediated). This means that a food can be consumed with no obvious reaction to it, but over a period of days to weeks the eosinophils triggered by the food will cause inflammation and injury to the esophagus. For this reason, food logs (keeping track of foods and symptoms) may not identify the offending food."

Testing is in progress to determine the best treatment for Michael, and we will know more at the end of the month. I pray whatever the treatment is helps relieve his symptoms, the gagging, the food getting stuck, and the choking on food that he deals with every day. Michael has every single symptom on that list, and I was amazed they are all related to this EE.

Jennifer