Ice Cream for Breakfast

He passed!  The Wee Man passed his soya challenge.  I cannot quite believe it.  I need to monitor him for the next 36 hours in case he has a delayed reaction.  But all being well, come Monday I can introduce soya into his diet.

It was a bit touch and go during the test.  At one point he complained of an itchy tongue and started scratching it quite vigorously.  That's never happened before and it's one of the signs of anaphylaxis.  The Big Man and I got a wee bit anxious at that point.  But the itch came and went quite quickly.  We think there must have been an allergen on the straw he was given.  A straw as it turns out that is left out in the open so it was very likely to have been contaminated with something.  Most likely milk.  

The contaminated straw!

He also had blemishes appear around his mouth.  Not so much hives but red irritations that were itchy.  And again they came and went quite quickly.

A quick phone call to the Consultant to discuss these strange goings on and she confirmed that they do not constitute an allergic reaction and the challenge test had been passed.  We were told to wait 72 hours and watch for any signs of a delayed reaction.  If after all that, nothing untoward happens then it is a big fat pass! 

I am ecstatic!  I cannot begin to tell you how much of a difference incorporating soya into his diet will make.  Pretty much every free from food has soya in it, in one form or another. I've spent the last couple of days surfing the internet for new foods he can eat.
 
He can finally, finally have ice cream.  It's the one thing I have been unable to find or make an alternative for.  We did once find a rice ice cream but the Wee Man thought it tasted "Yuk!" and I haven't been able to find it anywhere since.  I've also found an egg, wheat and dairy free ice cream cone he can have.  So finally after five and a half years the Wee Man will be able to eat an ice cream cone.  And he can now eat chocolate!

That is why on Monday he will have ice cream for breakfast (with chocolate of course).

As always the Wee Man was great at the hospital despite spending eight very long hours there.  His favourite activity?  Painting and glittering in bed!   

Chequered Cake Tin - The Result

A couple of weeks ago I bought an interesting chequered cake thingie with the hopes of making the Wee Man a little treat.

Well last week after school, the Wee Man insisted we make a chequered cake and I know I could have put my foot down and refused but I secretly wanted to give it a go too.  So without the right amount of ingredients to make the full size version.  I played about with the recipe and quantities to make a two tiered one. 

It kinda worked out.

We had to kind of squish the cake mixture into the rings.  This was very fiddly and frustrating.  

Carefully ease the rings out...phew!  The white cake batter is lumpy cos it has banana in it.  Just so you don't think I didn't mix it right.  

Ta-Dah!  Baked and out the tin.  Marvel at how the rings have baked into each other but not actually "bled" into each other. 

The second tier. 

Some butter icing between the layers and....Voila a chequered cake!  

A definite hit with the Wee Man and all the kids at school the next day.

This post is shared on Ta-Dah Tuesday.

Numb Bum Day - The Follow Up

We'll we had Numb Bum day a couple of days ago and I'm pleased to report we are home and the Wee Man is at school. 

It was a long, hard, anxiety filled day, to put it nicely.  I've learned how much of a performance nurses and doctors go through on a daily basis.  The words "putting on a brave face" seem irrelevant when you realise what they have to do to placate parents and young patients. I think the Wee Man's medical team deserve an Oscar for their acting performance. 

It wasn't until we were finally discharged that the nurses and doctors let on how dangerous Numb Bum day really was.  We knew it was dangerous, otherwise why do it in a hospital.  But there was that bit in my brain that thought it would be ok since we were in a hospital filled with nurses and doctors.  His Consultant was on the ward all day who is an allergy speicailst, his allergy nurse was within ten feet of us all day.  So all was well in my uneducated mind.  But throughout the day we had little indications that what was happening to the Wee Man was pretty much as life threatening as you can get, short of sticking your finger in a socket whilst sitting in a bath of water.

So what made me think all was not as rosy as I had thought?  Well...

1/ The Consultant's instruction to give the Wee Man a good dose of his anti-histamine before anything was done to him was the first indication.  Seemed a sensible idea to me though.

2/ Then we were advised that a cannula was to be put in...just in case.  That was the first real warning that the day wasn't to be as "easy" as I had first thought.

3/ The Wee Man was given the bed directly facing the nursing station, despite there being lots of other available beds, again innocent enough until I realised that all the nurses were keeping a very vigilant eye on us.

4/ The extra, careful scrutiny the nurses and doctors had on what each other were doing whilst they were with the Wee Man.  I'm pretty sure it's not "normal" for nurses to ask, and ask and ask doctors if their gloves are latex free or for them to order doctors to "wash your hands!".

5/ At the end of the day, Nurse K the allergy nurse, revealed to us that she had been carrying Epipens with her all day.  This is a Nurse who on a daily basis performs food challenges on allergic children.  Literally feeding allergic foods to children with proven allergies to the food and who are at a very high risk of anaphylaxis from any contact with the food.  Carrying Epipens on her person is not "normal" for her even in those life threatening situations, so for her to do so on Numb Bum Day made me realise just how much danger the Wee Man had been in. 

And finally the biggest indication that Numb Bum Day was indeed a Big day was when we were finally given the all clear and the whole medical team physically relaxed into themselves.  It was so strange to watch and experience.  I could see the tension ebb away from Nurse K.  She slumped into her chair and her whole body just ..relaxed.  The tension on her face melted away and she was our Nurse K again.  The smile on her face was nothing like the forced grin she was displaying all day.  She was herself again. 

I had a chat with Dr. H., the Wee Man's Consultant, and even she showed physical signs of relief.  This woman is a first class Consultant who's seen and dealt with just about anything you could imagine an allergy Consultant would have to deal with.

I thought maybe I was projecting my own sense of relief onto everyone but thinking back to what was being said, how it was being said and their physical demeanour, I'm pretty sure the relief the medical team felt far outweighed the relief I felt.  They must have been pretty stressed. 

Despite all of that the Wee Man took everything in his stride as usual.  The cannula was dismissed as a nuisance.  Just before Nurse K assisted the doctor in putting the cannula in she looked at the Wee Man and made him promise he'd "still like me after I've done this?".  The Wee Man gave her his "Are you crazy?!" look.  The Play Nurse anxiously advised me to hold a book between his face and his hand so he wouldn't see what was happening.  I told her there was no need and she thought I was insane and looked on anxiously.  The cannula was in and his hand bandaged without so much as a wince or a whimper from him.

He completely ignored the actual injections of the vaccine.  The adventure story I was reading to him was much more exciting.  In fact his only complaint from the day was that the cannula inhibited his ability to play with the toys in the toy room.

The medical staff were full of praise for his "braveness" and they were in awe of his maturity.  I must admit I do think the medical staff were being overly anxious about the procedures being done to the Wee Man.  I do believe that anxiety breeds anxiety.  There were many a time I had to sugar coat whatever the medical team were saying and dismiss them as "crazy".

In all it was an experience I would not wish to go through again.  Unfortunately we're back into the hospital next month for a soya challenge.  I hope, hope, hope the Wee Man passes.  Introducing soya into his diet would open up so much more variety for him.  Not just the yoghurts, cheese and ice cream but all the things with hidden soya in them.

Maybe, just maybe the Wee Man will soon be able to eat some chocolate! 

Numb Bum Day

It's been a while since I wrote an update on the Wee Man's allergies so I thought this was an oppotune time to do so.  You see tomorrow the Wee Man goes into hospital to have his immunisations.  Not something that a child would normally go into hospital to have but for the Wee Man it's a big day. 

For a couple of years now Dr. H his Consultant Peditrician and allergy speicalist has been trying to source latex free vaccinations for him.  Her searched failed miserably and she's been consulting other allergy experts worldwide for solutions to our dilemma. 

With the Wee Man's latex allergy it means any jabs of any kind are life threatening.  All vaccinations have a latex bung on the bottles that the needle passes through to get to the solution inside.  That needle is then usually inserted into the patient and injected.  That plus the fact the solution has been swilling around latex makes the whole thing rather risky for a person with a latex allergy! 

So after much consultation she concluded that the best course of action was to take the bung out of the bottle and get to the solution directly.  The Wee Man will get 10% of the solution initially and after a period of observation, if there are no adverse effects he'll get the full dose. 

The Wee Man is not too thrilled with the idea of the needle.  Up until a couple of months ago he had no fear of needles whatsoever.  In fact he loved having blood tests as it usually meant a lot of female attention from all the nurses (he's such a ladies man!).  But a couple of months ago he had a bad experience with a blood test where he didn't have the numbing cream and the person taking the blood was, to put it bluntly a sadistic bastard.  He was literally poking the needle about inside the Wee Man's arm.  Jabbing the needle in and out and wriggling it around whilst inside his arm.   He failed to get to a vein and then inisisted he try the other arm.  I had to put my hand over the Wee Man's arm to stop him from continuing.  Since then the Wee Man has been wary of needles. 

Fortunately the Wee Man has been blessed with parents with the ability to make any situation funny! ;0)  We have allayed his fears by advising him that we will ask for numbing cream to be applied before any needles go anywhere near him.  But of course, jabs are usually given in the bum region.  For the cream to work it has to be applied to the area for at least 45 minutes and cling filmed on.  So we have told the Wee Man he must have his bum cling filmed.  Plus the numbing cream, really is numbing, so he won't feel his bum for a few hours afterwards.  So he won't know that he is sitting down and also because he won't be able to feel his bum this gives his parents the right to tickle his bum to their hearts content.  ;0)

That is why, tomorrow is affectionatley known as "Numb Bum Day".

Floating in a cloud of gingerbread

For the past couple of days I've been a gingerbread man making machine.  The Wee Man's school teacher asked if I could make gingerbread men with her class.  Without hesitation I agreed and also agreed to make them with the other Reception class too.  That's sixty kids in total. 

It was hectic, frantic and a whole lot of fun.  For two days the entire school smelled yummy with gingerbread and even after I left the school I could still smell it.  It must have been clinging to my clothes and hair and yummy scrummy they smelled too.

I couldn't take any pics of the kids making the gingerbread men obviously so I took some pics of the men (and ladies) themselves.  All the kids and the teachers gave them a big thumbs up.  Not bad for their first taste of wheat free, dairy free, egg free and soya free gingerbread men.

I think in all honesty the teachers were amazed how good they tasted.  I think like many adults they hear of the Wee Man's allergies and suspect he "misses out" on a lot of treats that other children get.  When in actual fact he gets way better treats than "normal" kids.  How many other kids get a regular supply of homemade goodies?  

Gingerbread Men Recipe - Free from wheat, gluten, dairy, egg, soya

I've been asked to bake some gingerbread men with the Wee Man's class plus the other reception class, next week. That's sixty kids in total.  So earlier this week, the Wee Man and I had a play in the kitchen and we came up with this very easy recipe for wheat, gluten, dairy, egg and soya free Gingerbread Men. 


(Because of the Wee Man's allergies the recipe for school needed to be allergen free.  The risk of cross contamination from ingredients is too scary to think about)

"This one's got a belt , Mum!"

Makes approx. 10 gingerbread men

350g/ 12oz “Doves Farm Gluten Free Plain Flour”

1 ½ tsps “Doves Farm Xanthan Gum”

100g/ 4oz “Pure Sunflower Spread”

1 ½ tsp ground ginger

1 tsp bicarbonate of soda

175g/ 6oz light soft brown sugar

4 tbsp golden syrup

1 tsp “Orgran No Egg” whisked with 2 tbsp cold water

1.      Pre-heat oven to 180C/ 350F/ Gas Mark 4

2.      In a mixing bowl add the flour, “Pure” spread, ground ginger, bicarbonate of soda and the xanthan gum.  Using finger tips, rub the mixture until it resembles bread crumbs.

3.      Add the sugar, syrup and the “No-Egg” mixture.  Mix until a firm pastry mix is formed.  At first it looks like the mixture won’t combine but keep kneading and it will all come together.

4.      Roll out the dough to about 5mm thick, on a well floured surface. 

5.      Cut out shapes using cutters and transfer onto a greased or non stick baking sheet and bake for 10-13 mins.

6.      Allow the gingerbread men to cool before decorating. The Wee Man decorated his Gingerbread Men with raisins and white icing.  It's amazing what you can do with raisins.  


These were thoroughly enjoyed by the Wee Man and we gave some to his teachers to sample too. They  taste very much like "ordinary" gingerbread men.  I'm excited and nervous about beking with all those kids.  I can see myself being completely stressed out but I'm sure I'll have fun (I hope).

Banana Cinnamon Bread - Free from wheat, egg, dairy, soya

Who doesn't love the smell of banana bread baking in their oven?  The smell makes me feel homely and smug.  Smug in the " I made that gorgeous smell" sense.

The Wee Man and I have made banana bread a few times now and each time it seems to disappear more quickly than the last.  Maybe it's magic?  ;0)

I've adapted this recipe from a great blog called mywoklife.  Go check it out.

Here's what you'll need:

125g Dairy and soya free spread (I use Pure Sunflower spread)
130g soft brown sugar
1tsp vanilla exract
2 tsps of Orgran No Egg whisked with 4 tbsp water
2 ripe bananas masked
50ml Non dairy or non soya milk (I use Oatly oat milk)
1tsp bicarbonate of soda
175g Gluten Free self raising flour ( I use Doves Farm)
1tsp Xanthan Gum 
1tsp cinnamon (or less if you don't want it too cinnamoney)

1/ Preheat the oven to 180C
2/ Cream the dairy and soya free spread, the sugar and the vanilla extract.
3/ Add the Orgran No Egg mixure a bit at a time and mix together.  Add the mashed banana and ensure they are all well combined.
4/ Dissolve the bicarbonate of soda in the milk.
5/ Sieve the flour and add the cinnamon and xanthan gum.
6/ Add the flour mixture and milk mixture to the creamed spread and sugar a bit at a time.  Ensure the mixture is well combined.
7/ Pour the mixture into a greased loaf tin.
8/ Bake in the pre-heated oven for 45 mins.

This gets a big thumbs up from the Wee Man.

This recipe is shared on Momnivore's Dillema

Ginger Snap Biscuit Cookies - Free from wheat, gluten, dairy and soya

My favourite, favourite biccy with a cuppa is a good old fashioned ginger snap.  I love the crunch and the sweetness and the gingeriness.  So I thought I would inflict my love of the ginger one on the Wee Man and make him his own version.

Of course I had to change it's name from ginger nut to ginger snap as there really is no nut in it and I wouldn't want the Wee Man to think he was eating nuts.  That would be disastrous.  I wonder why they are called ginger nuts if there aren't any nuts in them.  Anyone know?

What you'll need

4oz Gluten free self raising flour ( I use Doves Farm)
1/2 tsp Xanthan Gum
1 tsp heaped ground ginger
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1 1/2 oz caster sugar
2 oz Dairy free and Soya Free spread ( I used Pure Sunflower spread)
2 oz Golden Syrup

Firstly sift and mix the flour, xanthan gum, ginger and bicarbonate of soda.
Then add the sugar and butter and rub until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs.
Next add the golden syrup and mix until you get a smooth paste.
Using oiled teaspoons (oiling them means the mixture is less likely to stick), spoon teaspoon fulls onto a lined baking sheet.  Be sure to keep them well apart as they do spread.  Flatten the top of the mounds.
Bake in a preheated 180C/ 350F oven for 10 mins - 15 mins.  For a soft chewy texture bake for 10 mins and for a more crunchy texture bake them for 15 mins.

The Wee Man gave them a big thumbs up and has asked to make more today.

This recipe is shared on Momnivore's Dilemma, Cowgirl Up 

Week 1 - Corn Bread (Free from wheat, egg, dairy, soya, gluten)

Here goes with the first recipe in my Allergy Free Recipe Challenge.

The Big Man and I love watching "Diners, Drive-ins and Dives" on the Food Network Channel.  Always  dangerous as we tend to drool and raid the biscuit tin, (not the most intelligent thing to do at 10 o'clock in the evening).

It was on there I learned about cornbread and saw how easy it was to make since it's yeast free.  So here's my version of allergy free corn bread.

Ingredients

1 cup Gluten Free Plain Flour (Doves Farm)
1 cup fine cornmeal
2/3 cup caster sugar
1tsp salt
3 1/2 tsp baking powder (wheat free)
1 tsp Orgran No Egg whisked with 2 tbsp water
1 cup Oatly Oat Milk (dairy and soya free)
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1/2 tsp Xanthan Gum

1. Preheat oven to 200C
2. Combine flour, cornmeal, sugar, salt, baking powder and xanthan gum in a bowl
3. Stir in the oat milk, vegetable oil and the egg mixture. 
4. Pour the batter into a small greased loaf tin and a muffin tin*
5. Bake for 20 - 25 minutes or until a skewer comes out dry. 

* I decided to make little corn bread rolls using the muffin tins and poured the remaining batter into a small loaf tin.  You could just pour all the batter into a large loaf tin.

The Wee Man gave it a bug thumbs up and has happily gone to school today with a cornbread "roll" in his lunch box.   I found the end result to be more of a muffin/ cake texture than a traditional bread texture.  It was more crumbly despite the use of the xanthan gum.  Maybe it is suppose to be more cakey than bready.  But the Wee Man loved it and the recipe is going in my recipe book.

The "rolls" can't really be filled and used as a bread roll as it is so crumbly.  So my quest for the perfect allergy free bread roll continues.

52 Week Allergy Free Recipe Challenge

I've been toying with the idea of setting myself a recipe challenge for a while.  Now with the new year here, I've decided to jump in with both size 6s and see where it takes me.

The Wee Man pretty much eats the same food on a rota system.  I tend to stick to the things I know he's safe to eat and prepare them the way I have done for the past four years.  So to expand his and my repertoire I'm setting myself a challenge to try out one new recipe/ food product each week.

The rules I've set myself are:

1. Each recipe will be free from wheat, dairy, egg, soya, nuts, beef, citrus, berries, gelatine and chestnut mushrooms.   
2. By "food product" I mean shop bought mixes e.g. bread mix, gravy mixes.  There are a lot of products out there that should be ok for the Wee Man to eat but I tend to  steer clear of them for fear of the unknown.  There are usually a lot of mystery ingredients in them whose origins can only be found with an extensive google search.  
3. I will try something new each week and post about it
4. Sometimes life will get in the way of my Challenge so if I ever do miss a week or two then I have to make up for it in the following weeks.  So if I miss a week then the following week I need to do two recipes. 

I think that about covers it.  If anyone wants to join in please do.  I would love to get ideas and recipes from other allergy cooks.  Just write a comment and I can visit your blog.  I think it's such a minefield out there and any help and support is always welcome.

Anyone want some support?

Well, I've only gone and done it.

All too often I've lamented the fact that the Big Man and I are on this allergy journey alone and scrambling around in the dark.  I'm a talker (gossiper) and would love nothing more than to have a moan with someone about this and that.  With someone who understands what I'm going through and what life is like with allergies.  Living life with the knowledge that your little one's lungs and heart could suddenly stop working.  I have tried in the past to talk to my friends about it but all too often I get the feeling they see me as an overprotective helicopter Mum with a crumb phobia.  A slight roll of the eyes and a twitch of the mouth is enough to convince me of their thoughts on the matter.

I was introduced to the Anaphylaxis Campaign by the Wee Man's school nurse.  They are a fantastic charity who are:  "the only UK wide charity to exclusively meet the needs of the growing numbers of people at risk from severe allergic reactions (anaphylaxis) by providing information and support relating to foods and other triggers such as latex, drugs and insect stings"

Amongst the many services they provide, they run workshops for parents and young people and also support groups.  I'm so glad I've become a member of the charity but I was very disappointed to find out that there wasn't a support group near me.

So, I went and did it.  I've volunteered to run a new support group for my area.  Yikes!  I've never, ever run anything like this before.  If it were a testosterone filled company directors meeting, I wouldn't flinch.  I could run them in my sleep.  But a support group?

I have images of sitting alone in a dark, damp room with only the sound of a dripping tap to keep me company.  What if no one turns up?  What if it is just me, talking to myself?  Worse still what if there's loads of people and they all sit in silence staring at me, waiting for me to "perform"?

The first meeting is in six weeks and in that time I have to drum up some people, otherwise I may well be making conversation with the walls.

...wheat free, dairy free, soya free wraps

It's been an age since I last posted an allergy recipe.  I did start this blog to note down all my allergy recipes and life kind of got in the way i.e. buying lots of lovelies at car boots, crafting and the Wee Man in general.  So to make amends here's a very quick recipe for wraps, of the lunch time sandwich kind.

The original recipe is from the Doves Farm website but I've adapted it a little to add some more nutrition to them and to make it a little quicker and easier. Not that is wasn't so in the first place, but when you have a hungry child demanding his lunch you can't be faffing around with scales.  At least that's what I tell myself when I use my trusty short sighted eyes as a measuring implement.

You will note that there are no definite measurements.  It really is all about a slug of this and a shake of that to get the consistency you want.  It's all part of the fun.

What you'll need.

Doves Farm Gluten Free Bread flour or Gluten Free Plain Flour
Oatly Oat Milk
Olive Oil
Powdered Garlic
Vegetable Oil

1/  In a bowl throw in about half a cup of flour.

2/ Glug in some olive oil to the flour, about a tablespoon and add bit of powdered garlic for flavour.

3/ Warm about a cup of oat milk (in the microwave for ease).  It should be on the warm side of luke warm.

4/ Slowly add the milk a bit at a time and whisk.  Keep adding milk until you get a runny consistency, like a crepe batter.

5/ Grease a medium hot frying pan with some vegetable oil.

6/ With a spoon pour in about two spoonfuls of the batter and spread it into a circle as you would a crepe.

7/ Cook for about two minutes on each side.  The wrap should start to puff up, but it's not essential that it does.

8/ Fill with your favourite filling, roll and enjoy.

Note the two spoonfuls of batter make a child size wrap.  Adding more batter will make a larger wrap.  Bit obvious but I just thought I should mention it.

The Wee Man loves these and we always play about with the fillings.  His favourite is tinned sardines.  Have I ever mentioned he's a fish freak?

"I have a dream, a fantasy..."

"I have a dream, a fantasy 

To help me through reality

And my destination makes it worth the while

Pushing through the darkness still another mile"

(ABBA "I have a dream")

It's been a while and I have missed blogging.  I had a dream a couple of nights ago about one of the blogs I follow.  It was one of my usual psychadelic, LSD-esque dreams.  The Big Man is often heard asking "What drugs are you on?!", when I recall dreams to him.  

In my dream last night I was walking along a street when a huge, gorgeous, pastel coloured shop front caught my eye.  The shop was called "Momnivore".  I stopped and stared and realised the shop belonged to one of the bloggers I follow.  Standing in my amazed daze I then noticed a scantily clad couple walking towards the store.  There was a sort of huge grid next to the store front, like scaffolding.  Then music started and the scantily clad couple climbed onto the scaffolding and started dancing on it.  Like this...

You still with me?

I then went into the "Momnivore" shop and inside they sold holidays which you could pay for by having massages.  The more free massages you had the more your holiday would be paid for.  Free massages and a holiday.  Sounds like the ideal shop to me.

Anyway, so that's my dream.  But what is my subconscious telling me?  How do I interpret this?

I've given it some thought and I think the scaffold dancing couple represents my struggle with the Wee Man's allergies.  The intricate and delcate dance that needs to be weaved on a daily basis, but with a strong arm and iron resolve the dance is successful.  The holiday and free massages speak for themselves.  I see blogging as a means of relaxation and my subconscious is telling me that is what is needed to be more relaxed.  A form of escape maybe.

So here I am blogging whilst the Wee Man munches on his breakfast.  Not much loving on a Wee Man when he has his rice krispies in front of him.  Thank you to all those who shared in my concerns about him.  He's fine, we've had a fun and very tiring couple of weeks.  Just where he gets his energy from I do not know.  I hope to blog more regularly again.

It's good to be back.  

Put Up and Shut Up - A Disappearing Act

I thought I should post a little something before I disappear for a while.  I've been going through a bit of a time of it recently.  I won't say hard as I am not the type that complains or whinges.  I am one who "puts up and shuts up".

The Wee Man is starting school in September which has meant a lot of heartache and planning.  Because of his life threatening allergies we have had to make plans to reduce the risks and also plans should anything happen.  For some reason this has thrown up a lot of emotions for me.  None of them good.  Where starting school should be a happy time for us it has become a time fraught with anguish and terror, both our own and the school's.  Thankfully the Wee Man is oblivious to all of this and is happily scoring off the days on his homemade countdown calender until he starts school.  Forty two sleeps and counting.

The past month has been spent in countless meetings with various people from the school and beyond, assessing the risks and writing his care plan.  I am a person who very, very rarely cries and I have been shocked to find myself crying at a couple of these meetings.  Once with the school nurse who herself has unexplained anaphylaxic episodes.  She was the first person I have ever met who has ever experienced anaphylaxis and I asked her how it felt.  Her description was enough to send me well over that edge and I ended up teary and shaking with fear.

The Wee Man has never experienced anaphylaxis, something I and his medical team are truly thankful for.  And whilst I harbour a small hope that, somehow the Wee Man's allergic reactions are only "mild" and would never go to that extreme, my recent talk with his allergy nurse and subsequent research on Dr. Google has well and truly quashed that hope.  It is, as the school nurse said, only because of my vigilance and hard work that the Wee Man has never experienced anaphylaxis.  So basically sheer luck.

Fear has arrived and is firmly camped in my already fragile heart.  I find myself constantly thinking of the Wee Man's mortality and have become "Helicopter Mum", continually hovering over him, stealing cuddles and kisses when I can.  His life is fragile and I fear, however unreasonably, that it will be short.

So this summer will be spent spending every moment with the Wee Man and making it as fun filled and memorable as I can.  I will endeavour to stay upbeat and not show my true feelings to the Wee Man who remains forever positive and matter of fact about his allergies.

I will no doubt do the occasional post as I do have a couple that needs to be written.  Specifically, a thank you post to Aija for her fantastic swap parcel which did make me smile.  Thank you Aija.

Have a great summer everyone and I will hopefully still be able to read your lovely blogs and post comments.

Madison xxx

... a date at the allergy clinic.

On Wednesday the Wee Man had his twice yearly appointment with the Consultant Pediatrician that's in charge of his case.  His doctor is an allergy specialist and is by far the best doctor we have seen.  She really is marvelous.  So often the doctors we have seen view us as just another name on a list to be ticked off and out their office asap.

Dr. H on the other hand takes her time and explains everything over and over again until she is sure we understand.  No question is too silly, no request is too much.  There have been many a time where we have spent well over an hour with her and we always leave to a roomful of annoyed, waiting patients who are anything but patient.  The Wee Man loves her and her allergy nurse K.  In fact he views them as his friends and insists that we give them a present every time we visit them.  This visit they each got a Wee Man made paper nest filled with chocolate eggs and a chocolate bunny.

The main objective of Wednesday's appointment was to see if he was still as allergic as he was 6 months ago and to check for any other allergies.  This was to be achieved by checking the blood test results from a few weeks ago and also performing his twice yearly skin prick test.  The main allergen we wanted to check was latex.  He is currently unable to have any vaccinations because of his latex allergy.  All vaccinations use a latex bung/ stopper on the vaccination bottle.  So basically the needle pierces the bung/ stopper to get to the vaccination and then the needle is inserted into your arm.  Not a very good scenario for someone with a latex allergy.

Anyway, this post seems to be getting a bit technical so will stop all that and give you a pic of my very brave, patient and good boy.  He had in all 26 allergens tested on his little arms.  Both of his forearms were covered and only because K ran out of space, she was unable to test anymore.

Within a few minutes his arms came out in hives.  He was dying to scratch them but resisted.  Such resolve and determination.

The results showed that he is still very allergic to the allergens we already know of but the good news is that we are having a latex challenge next month.  A challenge in simple terms is that we go into hospital and they test a little of the allergen on his arm, wait 30 mins for any reaction, then follow on with a bit on the Wee Man's cheek, wait 30 mins then some on his lip, wait 30 mins, then some on his tongue, wait 30 mins and then  he gets to swallow some.  At the sign of any reaction during the challenge, the challenge is stopped and he is given whatever medication is required be it Cetirizine or an epipen.  With the latex challenge he is going to be given a balloon to blow up.

Challenges are very arduous and hard going.  It's a lot of waiting around and stress for the Big Man and me.  The Wee Man loves them as he gets to play with his hospital bed and in the enormous hospital play room!

Again I think I've gone a bit too technical.  All in all, not much has changed for the Wee Man.  Hopefully his latex challenge will go well.  There are so many toys that have rubbery bits on it that may be latex that even playing with toys can be nerve wracking.

So I'll finish by saying how wonderful the Wee Man is.  He really is such a good patient.  Listens to Dr. H and Nurse K and performs any tasks they ask of him without a grumble.  He's brave, patient and just plain perfect.

I love you Wee Man.  xxx

...Welsh cakes (wheat free, dairy free, egg free)

I'm all for trying new recipes with an allergy free twist to them as you know.  Every time I watch a cookery show or read a recipe I always think "How can I make this for the Wee Man?".  Well last night I was watching the Hairy Bikers show and they were making Welsh cakes.  I thought they looked delicious and I could definitely make a Wee Man version.

So this afternoon the Wee Man and I decided to try our hand at making Welsh cakes.  I found a recipe on the BBC recipe website and adapted it to suit the Wee Man.

What you'll need

• 225g/8oz Doves Farm Gluten Free Self Raising Flour, sieved
  110g/4oz Pure Sunflower Spread
• Orgran No Egg
• handful of raisins
• Oatly oat milk, if needed
• 85g/3oz caster sugar
• extra Pure, for the pan 
  
  
  
  Rub the flour and Pure together until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  Add two tablespoons of water to one teaspoon of No Egg and whisk with a fork until the mixture is frothy.
  
  
  
  
  
  Add the No Egg mixture, the sugar and the raisins to the flour and Pure mixture and mix together until a dough is formed.  If the dough is not forming, use some oat milk to moisten the mixture. 
  
  
  Roll out the dough on a floured surface to a 5mm/ 1/4inch thickness.  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  Using a cookie cutter cut out some rounds.  That's the Wee Man's favourite job. 
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  Rub a heavy iron griddle or heavy bottomed frying pan with some Pure and put on a low/ medium heat.  When the griddle is hot put the cakes on and let each side cook for two to three minutes, turning only once.  
  
  
  Each side should be golden brown.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  Remove from pan and dust with some caster sugar.
  
  

  

  
  

  

  
  Warm Welsh cakes with a cup of warm oat milk brought a huge grin to the Wee Man's face.  Another recipe that will go into my recipe book.
  
  
  

...wheat free, egg free, Crunchy Garlic Chicken Fingers/ Goujons

I think one of the reasons the Wee Man accepts his allergies so well is because I try to make him food that is the same as what everyone else is eating.  More so now that he is at school.  Pretty soon peer pressure will rear it's ugly head and I for one will be ready for it.  (GULP!)

One of the Wee Man's favourites is Crunchy Chicken, which is an allergy free alternative to chicken nuggets.  A lot healthier than the shop bought ones and a lot tastier.  Jamie Oliver taught me that.  There's a lot of yucky things in shop bought chicken nuggets.  

Ingredients 

One Chicken thigh deboned
Doves Farm Plain White Flour
Corn Flakes
Orgran ' No Egg'
Dried Garlic Flakes (I bought this from Lidl.  But if you can't find it a garlic clove finely chopped will do)

First put a couple of cups of cornflakes into a bag and using a rolling pin, crush the cornflakes until you get a fine crumb.  That's the Wee Man's job.

I like to keep some crushed cornflakes in the fridge for use with other recipes.  Keep in an air tight container.

Sprinkle some crushed cornflakes onto a plate and mix in some dried garlic powder to taste.  The Wee Man loves garlic so I let him put as much as he like on (within reason).

Add 1tsp of No Egg to 2tbsp of water and whisk until the mixture is frothy.

Dust the chicken pieces in the flour, dip it in the no egg and then the cornflakes.  Make sure the chicken is well covered with the crumbs to ensure a good crunch.  This is the messy bit.  Expect lots of sticky fingers and uncontrollable giggles if you have a 4yr old helping!

Bake in a preheated 180C oven for 15 to 20 mins.  Time depends on the size of the chicken pieces.  Check to see if the chicken is cooked after 15 mins.  Alternatively you can fry them on a med-high heat until the chicken is cooked.

A very quick recipe and one that the Wee Man loves making and eating.