So Corny

Well, since nailing the corn allergy diagnosis, there's been a lot that has changed! So much is making sense, and I no longer feel like my body has so many short comings and failures...just a REALLY bad allergy that manifests itself in different ways. For instance:

1. We thought I was becoming allergic to dogs. Honey, in particular. Every time she gave me puppy kisses I would break out in a rash where her tongue licked me. It was very itchy, and very hive-y. She is now on a corn-free, grain-free all natural dog food. It's more expensive, but she's healthier and...no more rash from being around my dog!

2. For a long time I thought my body had an adverse reaction to the chemicals in deodorants. I went through a few dozen brands and types, and every kind caused a severe rash in my underarms, complete with hives, peeling skin, and bleeding. I found one brand a few years ago that caused no discomfort or abnormality at all. Turns out, it's one of the only brands out there that isn't made of corn-based chemicals!

3. I really thought I was dairy sensitive. Whenever I ate the more affordable cheeses, creams, milks or creamy sauces, my face would break out and I would have some embarrassing and uncomfortable digestive issues that followed. Turns out, it's not the dairy, but the cows' diets! How wild. If I eat dairy from cows that are exclusively grass-fed and free-grazing, I have no reaction. Corn fed cows, on the other hand, trigger a strong reaction. Who knew!

4. Since trying a new all-natural fabric softener for our sheets a few weeks ago, I had been waking up with hives and a rash all over my body. I read the label and found out it had corn alcohol in it. I switched to a corn-free natural brand and had my first morning today without an all-over rash. Good change of pace.

I have been HFCS (high fructose corn syrup) free for a long time, and never baked much with corn starches. I also never really enjoyed corn as a food, so I never ate it much. If I had, I imagine I would have made stronger connections sooner. It turns out this allergy thing is pretty far-reaching. I still eat gluten free, and have the hang of it...but cross contamination hasn't seemed to be a problem to the same extent. So my gluten intolerance isn't nearly as severe. But now I engage on the life long journey of learning what chemicals and ingredients are derived from corn, looking out for them, and avoiding them.

I know it sounds like a bummer, but it feels like a victory. I'm not some weakling invalid who gets sick all the time. I'm just someone with a really intense allergy. And now that I am empowered with the information to work around it, I am going to have a much higher quality of life. 

Our Expanding Family

Consider this your announcement...that we are adopting another dog!

Isaac has been wanting a golden or golden mix for some time. A coworkers dog conveniently knocked up a golden, whose owner (+the dog) has been living with them. In August little Hiro will come home with us. He is 1/2 golden, 1/4 German Shepherd and 1/4 black lab.

The dad has a very similar temperament to Honey... all play and affection. The mom is very sweet, polite, and mellow.

Since Honey is 1/2 German Shepherd, I think they will be great siblings.

I picked this little guy before his eyes were even open. He is so super ticklish, stretchy, and cuddle-seeking, I could not resist!

A Yard In the Making...in pictures!

Our yard has gone from being an unlevel mess of rocks and weeds, to a level mess of lava rocks and far fewer weeds, to a fenced in mess of leveled lava rock. We're getting there. It's taking a lot of time, a lot of money, and LOTS of hard work. And that's just our back yard!

Peter came out in April for Spring Break and to help us level the yard. Madeline has been here for the summer and helped Isaac put up the fence. I am glad we finally got some pictures loaded. It's interesting seeing the progress.

We still have a long way to go, as you can see. Next step is renting a compactor and putting down mulch, soil, and eventually planting plants, trees and laying down grass seed. I've already bought about 1/4 of the vegetables we'll be growing in raised beds on either side of the house. Hopefully we get enough done in the yard that I will be able to transplant them in July!

Early Summer Update

Madeline is in town for most of the summer. She's been working for her keep, that's for sure. Every day while I am at work, she and Isaac work their butts off putting the fence up in our back yard.

Since being here we've spent ample time at the beach with Madeline. She tried her hand at surfing but wasn't a fan of some of the more aggressive or hostile surfer's out on the waves so she retreated back to shore. One of the guys (carelessly) put a dent in the board she was on. Fortunately, it was reparable and on a board we don't use much anyway.

I also had the chance to take her up in a company helicopter, where we went over the volcano (Kilauea) and into the valley. The lava activity was really going off. I got a recording of the flight so if I can figure out how to load the DVD on the computer and pull a few short clips from it, maybe I will be able to post them soon.

Other than that, we've been swimming laps in the pool or going on long hilly runs every evening. A few mornings a week we make it to some of the more intense yoga classes in town, taught by Jen or Tasha.

I am glad she relishes exercise to the same extent Isaac and I do. 

My Husband the Closet Photographer

Initially I was going to write a post about the progress of our yard...with photos! But as I was going into iPhoto to pull up the pictures we have recently taken of the yard, and the photos I took about a month ago, I came across some pictures Isaac must have shot just for the fun of it. And I realized...he's a pretty gosh-darned good photographer, especially considering it's not a real hobby or pursuit of his!

He's good at a lot of things. Patience being a specialty. And even though he does lose his cool on occasion, he has the patience to be a good teacher, a good boss, and a good husband.

He had the patience to wait and be sneaky and not scare the geckos when he wanted some good shots of them. They are extremely shy and skittish, so to get up in their personal space long enough to get a picture is pretty tricky. You have to stay still long enough to not seem human, or they flit away before you can blink.

Anyway, I love geckos and I love these pictures. So without further ado (or Isaac's permission), here are some pictures he got of some geckos [I recommend clicking on them to see the full size image]:

Gluten and Corn

Well, it looks like we are getting much closer to narrowing down some of the causes behind all my nasty symptoms.

When I went gluten free, initially I felt better. I avoided grains for a while (until I could find mixes and recipes that allowed me to experiment) and notice a fairly swift change in my body. Once I started seeking gluten product substitutes and recipes however, I began feeling pretty gross again, although the symptoms varied from the initial stuff that was going on.

Turns out that I am very allergic to corn! Which makes navigating the gluten free world a little trickier as flour tortillas/chips are often subbed for corn ones in a gf diet, and many recipes call for corn starches.

It will also make giving up any product with corn syrup in it a mandatory thing for me, not just something I do to give my healthy lifestyle an edge.

But...I have been feeling much better now. Lots more energy, I can stay up past 8pm again...it's nice. [I just wish there were more gf-friendly food venues out here]. Now all I have to do is combine that energy with some motivation and get back to beautifying our slowly progressing yard!

A few more new house photos

Sorry, we haven't hung much art yet. With my art history background and Isaac's taste in poster style art, we have a hard time agreeing on things. So it will be a while before we procure more wall adornment.:-)

In the meantime, here are some recently taken low-quality photos of our living room, dining room and kitchen.

We decided we didn't want television to be the main focus of the space we spend most of our time, hence the cozy library set up. We are old fashioned. And I hate television.(we won't be subscribing to cable either. I know, how un American).

We do have an entertainment room to watch movies in, but its not quite finished. Photos soon-ish.

Getting Closer

Well, there are some ideas as to what the doctors can start testing me for. Some of the issues would create a dramatic lifestyle change and others wouldn't. Nerve racking to wait for answers.

In the meantime, they know one thing: there is lots and lots of inflammation in my body. The worst of it in the tissue around my heart and lungs. Lots of other swollen up tissue in other places too. So, before we start the route of extensive and expensive testing for diseases related to these awful symptoms, we are going to start a new diet and a few medicinal remedies. If the diet works I may just have to eat differently forever, which wouldn't be as bad as taking a massive amount of drugs on a daily basis.

First, I am gluten free now. Doc's orders. I am also corn free, dairy free, sugar free and caffeine free. Glad I knew about the gluten free girl already...I guess i will be referring to her blog frequently so I don't starve!

Home picture number one

Things are slowly coming together. Lots of finishing touches to go. Unfortunately, with my yet to be diagnosed chest and breathing issues, I haven't had a lot of gusto to put the house together. But the master bath was mostly finished before any of that happened.

Bonus points if you can guess where the glass balls are from.