text:
tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-78172068577445762412015-07-05T22:00:31.331+10:00Allergy Fun - Growing up with multiple food allergiesA resource for parents with children diagnosed with multiple food anaphylaxis and multiple food allergies. Gracehttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-7817206857744576241.post-80887957889606629712015-07-03T15:08:00.005+10:002015-07-03T15:08:54.937+10:00Egg allergy education - Allergy Fun picture book on Amazon.comHow do I teach my child about their egg allergy without scaring them?
How do I teach my child not to eat unsafe food?
How can my child still have fun if they can't eat the birthday cake?

Here's a sneak peak at one of the pages of Allergy Fun - Growing up with multiple food allergies. This page can be used to discuss how some foods can contain egg, without looking like they do. Explaining to kids that they must always check with their parent about the ingredients before they eat any new food. It is also important to explain for example, that the chicken nuggets we have at home don't have egg in them, but others can, and that there is no way to tell, unless you read the ingredients list.

I am proud to say our 3 year old always asks me to "check the ingredients!" One time, he actually located it on the packet before I did! Education can start at any age, and the more books you can read to them about food allergies, the more normal they will feel about having those food allergies.

If you have specific questions or scenarios that you find tricky, tell me about it! The food allergy community needs to lean on eachother for all our everyday challenges :-)

To download Allergy Fun, click here.

Gracehttp://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-7817206857744576241.post-34963411484426460052015-06-24T14:43:00.001+10:002015-06-24T14:43:15.392+10:00Allergy Fun - Growing up with Multiple Food Allegies Facebook pageWe have an official Facebook Page - Please head over to that, LIKE it, and also GET NOTIFICATIONS.

https://www.facebook.com/allergyfun

I will be posting extra tips on how to use our book for further discussion with young children.

As with educating young children in anything, repetition is the key!

Here is a fun page from the book if you have not had a chance to look at it yet :-)

Gracehttp://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-7817206857744576241.post-90729561744603673822015-06-22T22:42:00.001+10:002015-06-22T22:43:00.451+10:00Allergy Fun - NEW RELEASE on Kindle!I am excited to announce that Allergy Fun has been officially released on Kindle today!

As a mother of two children with multiple allergies, I struggled to find good resources to help educate them about allergies. Trying to turn a difficult situation into something good, I set about writing Allergy Fun. It is fun, catchy, and most importantly encourages the children to see themselves as a whole person, not just one with food allergies.

Allergy Fun aims to educate young children about their allergies and why they have to avoid certain foods, but also encourages the reader to focus on friends, family, and fun in order to live a full life. The readers meet a young boy who has multiple food allergies. By learning more about him, the reader is able to realise they are not alone and that allergies are a part of their life, but do not define them.

If you have a tablet or smart phone, you can simply download the Kindle App for free, then download the book.

I will also continue to post information on the facebook page about ways to use the book for further discussion at home and at school.

I look forward to an exciting new chapter in our allergy journey.

Download Allergy Fun - Growing up with multiple food allergies HERE.Gracehttp://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-7817206857744576241.post-42427785491031855292015-04-30T17:03:00.000+10:002015-04-30T17:03:14.761+10:00UPDATE: Allergy Fun will soon be on Kindle!It's been a long time coming, but we will be releasing a new book soon called Allergy Fun. It will be available on Kindle. If you don't have a Kindle, you can simply download their free app onto your phone or tablet to access all their books. Why not download it now, and check out what else is worth reading?

Our oldest son is now six and we have been on this allergy journey for over five years. It seems we will continue to be on this journey for many years to come, for both of our sons.

What started as a very lonely and isolating journey has led to a new path, and the discovery of unexpected friendship and camaraderie. Along the way, especially online, we have made connections with many other families who are travelling the same road. We celebrate the passing of food challenges, we mourn the deletion of a product line, we laugh at the insane hours we are kept in the kitchen, and we marvel at how our young people are growing and thriving, in spite of their many allergies.

Allergy Fun is based on our son who is at risk of anaphylaxis when he consumes any milk, egg, peanut or tree nuts. We struggled in the early days to find books that were relevant or helpful for him. There were a number of books very helpful for parents, but not so many for younger children. Some books had characters with "just" one allergy, while our son had multiple. We were unable to find many books that also encompassed the social and emotional side of living with severe allergies. Allergy Fun aims to fill that gap, with a blend of practical advice about eating safe food, how to enjoy birthday parties, how to still have fun with friends and most of all how to accept and appreciate the uniqueness of each individual.

I hope you enjoy reading the book when it comes out, and I hope it helps any little ones you know affected by allergies.Gracehttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-7817206857744576241.post-44563250095310343652013-05-24T13:06:00.000+10:002013-05-24T13:06:00.377+10:00A side venture - From Our Home To YoursOh, I forgot to mention the other reason for my scarce posts!

I've started making and selling Bandana Bibs using Facebook and Ebay - From Our Home To Yours

Come and check out my bandana bibs - they are great for babies and young children who dribble a lot, especially when they are teething. Or just wear them as an accessory, especially in the cooler months :-)

I'm enjoying the sense of achievement when I can see the product of my efforts. I also love the feel of natural fabrics, so scouring the shops for lovely designs is also a lovely past time. Plus, with two boys, I haven't had the chance to express my own girlyness hiding within... what with lego, transformers and Star Wars ... until now!

Love, care and warm wishes, From Our Home To Yours.

Gracehttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-7817206857744576241.post-10591705274008270882013-05-07T21:54:00.000+10:002013-05-07T21:54:03.001+10:00Allergy NetworksI cannot believe that it is already May. When I started writing this blog, I aimed for 2 posts a month. Then it dwindled to 1 post a month after our second son was born. Now, I have not written a post since January this year! If you read that post, you will be happy to know that I am feeling much better about life in general. Our allergies are still with us, but I have been finding new ways of dealing with it, mainly through the internet!

I remember when our first son was diagnosed with anaphylaxis to 8 of the top 9 foods allergens, I was completely dumbfounded. I searched the internet for blogs, for resources, but hardly found any. I thought we were the only ones suffering. That was one of the reasons for starting this blog. Fast forward 3 years, and I am amazed at the number of blogs out there now. When I check the details, many of them have been started in the last 3 years. I recently found a support group on facebook for others suffering from anaphylaxis. Again, this is less than 3 years old. I read quite a few blogs now, written by other food allergy mums and it is encouraging to read about other families going through similar things, and how they handle life in general. Some posts bring smiles, some bring tears, and some bring more questions.

One of the best things I've experienced this year is the support I've found in starting up a facebook group for allergy mums in our local area. It all happened by chance. I've been checking out a local facebook group for selling second hand children's items when another mum posted a question about allergies. It was totally unrelated to what the site is for, but suddenly lots of allergy mums came out of the woodwork offering advice and support. Thus, our allergy facebook group started and we continue to get new members each month. It differs from a blog because each person is able to voice their ideas and experience for everyone to read. There is a lot of discussion that goes on, thanks to smart phones, 4G, all the technological stuff! We've even had people put out calls for help when there is a shortage of specialty baby milk formula, and others come to the rescue. What a wonderful community we've created.

Amazing isn't it, how technology has enabled us to reach out and touch the lives of so many more. For me, being able to encourage others who travel a similar road to us with multiple food allergies, brings some meaning and purpose to the path we have had to take.

So if you haven't checked out what is available to help you lately, I'd encourage you to put it on your TO DO list. Facebook, blogs, Pinterest - all full of recipe ideas, other people tackling similar issues, and other people looking to hear from you.

Gracehttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-7817206857744576241.post-89972067943723855182013-01-31T14:47:00.002+11:002013-01-31T14:47:45.163+11:002013 - another year ahead of usThe sorrow that is in my heart at the moments seems too much to bear. I look at a year ahead, and am filled with mostly dread about the challenges that lie ahead. It keeps me awake at night, and makes me just want to sleep in the day.

Our gorgeous baby is 8 months old, and is still on a diet of apple and baby rice cereal. We have tried pear, pumpkin and sweet potatoe, but somewhere along the lines, he has continued to break out in rashes, so we've had to start all over again... again. We took a trip to the shops and used a shopping trolley and shopping centre highchair for the first time. Cameron loved sitting up so high and looking around. But, that evening, his body showed signs of an emerging rash. It took over 3 days to heal with the help of steroidal creams. I had taken as many precautions as I could when using the shopping centre things but obviously it wasn't enough. And so the root of my dread reveals itself... what if our gorgeous baby actually has more serious alleriges than our eldest son?

At this point, I'm going to warn you that this post is about to get very long and very detailed. I keep a brave face for our children. I explain allergies, as a way of life for them, trying to teach them that there is more to life than food, and that there are many other ways they can express themselves, have fun and embrace life. For my husband, I keep my complaints brief and practical. What the problems is and how to fix it. Don't get me wrong, he is always supportive, happy to look after the kids so that I can go shopping on my own and read all the the labels. For my friends, I share a little of my burden, but keep it contained. They know it is there, but I dare not empty it out, for fear I may not be able to stop. I don't want my time with them, to be just about me, or just about allergies. So where do I pour out the depth of my feeling and burden? I like to write in my prayer journal, but my hand would get too sore. So typing seems quicker, so here I am. My deepest sorrows, my heaviest burdens, thrust out into cyberspace where it can scatter, so as not to smother another. So stop reading this post whenever you need a breath of fresh air. There will be little to be found in this post. But in other posts, there will be. I promise.

At 8 months, we didn't know about Matthew's allergies. We were careful with introducing foods, and he always had rashes, especially on his face, despite the use of steroidal creams. At 9 months he was diagnosed with anaphylaxis to 8 of the top 9 foods. Life changed in a way I did not think possible.

While breastfeeding, I had to limit those 8 foods from my diet, but I was still able to have a latte with milk, and one serve of wheat a day. Life seemed hard then, but this second time around, I have had to completely eliminate about 20 food categories from my diet. By food categories, I mean that all stone fruit (one category) is out. That includes peaches, plums, nectarines, apricots, cherries etc. I can't have any berries (another category) - no strawberries, blueberries, blackberries, raspberries. There are about 20 of these groups that are out. If you counted the items individually... easily over 100. I drink my coffee straight, I only have rice milk, I don't use pepper or other condiments like mustard, tomatoe sauce, or any asian sauces. The only store bought food I eat is MacDonald's french fries.While this crazy diet does seem to be working for our son... the implications for what it means for his own diet is mind boggling.

He's started to crawl and loves to climb all over me. While it is delightful to watch, and wonderful at times to be climbed on, there is a constant dread that these signs of progress are also signs that life is about to get much more complicated. Every crumb that falls to the ground must be picked up, every spill or smear on our clothes must be washed. Can you imagine keeping things that clean, with a crazy super active 4 year old boy? I feel terrible for our oldest son, who has to constantly wash his hands, is told off all the time, for dropping food, or for kissing his brother before he's properly washed his face.

Our baby's weight gain has significantly slowed compared to the first 3 months of life. The changes in my diet surely mean my breastmilk is not as rich. His current diet would probably be causing some level of malnutrition since growing babies surely need more than what apples and rice have to offer. His sleep is no where near as consistent as our eldest son, probably because his diet is insuffcient and he continues to need night feeds.

The prospect of going overseas is so far from happening that I don't even bother imagining what that would be like. We do go on holidays to visit relatives, but that will continue to get more difficult. Another year of birthday parties, but this time with a baby in tow. Another year of stress. Our eldest son has made a new friend... another birthday party... more special food to prepare... more kids to be wary of... more adults to be mindful of... more people to convince that life really isn't that bad with allergies. Guess what... it really is THAT bad... it really is WORSE! You have got no idea what it is like to think you could lose your kids in an instant because you weren't watching what some other kid did with their cookie.

One time at a park, I decided to let my older son run around on his own. Afterall, he knew the park, he knew where I was and I really needed to feed the baby. So he went off. After about 10 minutes, after I'd finished feeding the baby, I decided to go and look for him. As I pushed the pram, and couldn't see him, I realised what a terrible mistake I had made. What if I find him slumped on the pavement somewhere because he'd picked up a shiny chocolate wrapper out of curiousity? What is another child had dropped their icecream on the slide he was using? How stupid was I to place my son at such risk, just so I could concentrate on feeding our baby? If you think I'm over-reacting, the next time you're at a park, just consider how many children you see walking around with food. Each one of those kids, everything they touch, is a threat to our son's life. I would prefer those children to be carrying rat poison around, not milk, not icecream, not cookies.

What does the future hold for 2 kids with food allergies? When will it get easier? Not anytime soon... of that I am pretty certain. This year will probably be a breeze compared to the next, when our eldest starts school... boy, will we be on a learning curve then. Sigh, so although I dread this coming year, I think I dread the next even more!

Thanks for reading all the way to the end... it probably wasn't as bad as I thought it might me... often things brought out into the light aren't. And so our story continues...Gracehttp://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-7817206857744576241.post-72691692521245761472013-01-13T20:23:00.001+11:002013-01-13T20:23:06.594+11:00A Christmas blessingWe have just come back from spending two weeks over Christmas with my family.

To be honest, I was absolutely dreading these holidays because of the severely restricted diet I am on. My family is of Chinese heritage, so celebrations of any sort are typically centered around food. Holidays are centered around food. Life is centered around food. Normally we go out to eat a few times a week at Chinese restaurants, eating foods that aren't on the english menu, foods that I wouldn't even know how to ask for. Typically, it's all delicious. In the past, bringing food for our son was accepted at restaurants... I'm thinking that as he grows up, this will come under scrutiny by restaurant owners... but for now, nobody minds. But for an adult (me) to bring food to a restaurant would probably not go down very well. For the restauranteur or myself to be honest.

So concerned was I about food cross contamination that I actually ordered a brand new fry pan to be delivered before I got there. If I was going to have to do so much cooking, I was going to reward myself with a new pan! As fate would have it, the parcel got lost somewhere and didn't actually arrive until the day before we left?!

As it turns out, we ate most meals at home. What was even better than that was that my mum actually cooked dinners on most nights for us all. I am sure that this is the biggest break from cooking that I have had in nearly 4 years since our allergy journey began. For the first week, I helped in the kitchen, ensuring mum was only using our ingredients, and not sneaking in something extra to make it taste better. She was very disciplined. I am sure she has never used so much Maple syrup or garlic in her life, but it all tasted yummy.

For the second week, I finally relaxed and let her do most of the cooking. My mum did most of the menu planning, and my parents did all the shopping. This gave us the oppotunity to go on more adventures during the day, knowing that dinner was going to be cooked when we got home. Our adventures included a trip to the city, a ride on a ferry, a day at the beach, a day at a water park and even night time adventures to see fireworks for New Year's Eve.

After two weeks, our oldest son who can't has anaphylaxis to so many things, didn't even have one rash. Our little one, who relies on me to restrict anything vaguely interesting, did have one rash break out. We still don't know what that was a result of - perhaps ordering a plain steak and chips once at a resturant for lunch, when we could not possibly find a MacDonalds anywhere. (Unbelievable I know!)

So the trip that I dreaded the most turns out to be so much better than I could have hoped for... thanks to Mum. Best Christmas present ever :-)

Gracehttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-7817206857744576241.post-66783094732056580362012-11-16T15:47:00.000+11:002013-02-08T21:36:50.760+11:00Allergy free Menu PlanningMenu planning used to be a bit of a foreign concept to me - I enjoyed going to the shops to see what was on special or what took my fancy. At home, I would spend time creating some new dish or adding all sorts of spices and sauces... well... that's how I like to remember my pre-allergy life. Perhaps I'm remembering them with rose-coloured glasses - I'll have to ask my husband. My pantry still has a full spice rack that we no longer use, jar upon jar of curry sauce that I bought on special once... note to self... must clear out pantry!

Since our second son was diagnosed with multiple food allergies, my diet is so restricted that nearly all joy from cooking has disappeared. The restrictions on our food list are beyond ridiculous, and now just ensuring all bellies are full is an achievement in itself (especially my belly since I'm breasfeeding a ravenous monster of a 5 month old).

I realised not long ago, that actually the stress of cooking dinner each week has been reduced by having a few easy meals that can be rotated or by having a mix and match system. I'm not sure if you remember, but there used to be children's picture books where you could pick a head, flip through another set of pages for the body, then flip through for the legs of your choice. Our dinners follow this simple idea, and makes each dinner plate unique.

The meals aren't necessarily fancy, but they are nutritious and yummy. And with kids, an empty plate is a good plate. I don't plan each meal exactly, but provided my pantry and fridge are well stocked, I can choose my options based on how I feel that day, or how much time I have to prepare dinner. Typically I spend about 20 mins actually cooking dinner each day - doesn't sound much, but by keeping meals simple, I get to keep my sanity :-)

Meat options
Pan fried beef steak - served with a side of mustard for my husband.
Pan fried lamb chops - marinated with maple syrup, salt and oil.
Sausages - we use a gluten free range from our local supermarket.
Pan fried salmon steaks
Beef rissoles/meatballs

Carbohydrate options
Penne pasta - 10 mins boiling time
Rice - 30 mins cooking time
Spaghetti - 10 mins boiling time
Bread rolls warmed in the oven- this one takes 5 mins from freezer, to oven, to plate.
Mashed potato - if my hubbie is home, he can mash it for me.
Udon noodles or other asian style noodle - 3 mins in the fry pan to heat through.
Frozen chips or hash browns - takes 30 mins in the oven, so needs more planning.

Vegetable options
Frozen/fresh peas or corn
Carrot - our son just has raw carrot sticks, while I microwave the adult portions
Aspsaragus/beans/snow peas/spinach/asian leafy vegetable - any vegetable that can be tossed into the fry pan and cooked in the meat juices
Grated raw carrot and grated raw apple - a yuumy combination actually!
Salad - our son loves raw tomatoe, so a few of those on his plate and he's super happy.

Complete meals
Lamb Roast with roasted potato, pumpkin, sweet potato and carrot.
Oven roasted chicken wings and vegetables, served with rice.
Spaghetti Bolognese.
Slow cooked chicken with apple cider.

What are your family favourites?Gracehttp://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-7817206857744576241.post-42408606710266860342012-10-25T13:49:00.000+11:002012-10-25T13:49:02.394+11:00Allergy free Family meal #1 - Oven baked chickenAfter a week of coming to grips with my new restricted diet, this was our first family meal - one that I am quite proud of. Nothing too fancy, but given all the limitations, this is still quite tasty!

Milk free
Egg free
Wheat free
Soy free
Peanut free
Tree Nut free
Seafood free
Sesame free
Tomato, mushroom, onion, citrus and coconut free too.

That's right, and it's even free from traces of any of these nasties! We actually eat this once a week at the moment, and there is always extra for a few hot lunches.

Oven baked chicken

Marinate chicken pieces (I use 2kg of chicken wings) in 1/4 Cup Maple Syrup (for gluten free, choose the pure Maple Syrup).
Add 1/4 teaspoon ginger powder and a sprinkle of salt to suit your tastes.
For an added twist, add 1/2 Cup of pureed apple sauce (I bought mine in a jar).
Place in an glass/ceramic oven dish and allow it to marinate for a couple of hours if possible (or just 15 mins if you're in a rush like me).

Place the chicken in the oven for about 20minutes, at 200 degrees Celsius.

Add some vegetables (I used zuchinni pieces as well as sugar snap peas) and toss with the chicken pieces in the tray. Try and get some of the juice in and around the veggies to make them deliciously sweet.

Cook for a further 20 minutes in the oven, and serve with rice. Yum!

If you want to use carrots sticks, add them with the chicken right at the start since they take longer to cook up.
If you are using chicken legs, it will probably take a bit longer to cook - maybe need to add another 20 minutes to the cooking time.

Gracehttp://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-7817206857744576241.post-86353605008449851922012-10-15T15:38:00.000+11:002012-10-15T15:38:04.151+11:003 month old allergy resultWell, it's been 4 weeks since we saw our allergy specialist with our 3 month old baby boy. The good news was that he didn't react to any of the skin prick tests. However, the bad news is that apparently babies who don't react at 3 months can still show very serious results later on. So a retest is recommended at 6 months. So far so good... afterall, our first son was only tested at 9 months.

Then... Yes, our son does have allergies based on the rashes all over his body. Steroid creams perscribed.
Then... Mum, you need to eliminate milk, egg, wheat, soy, oats, seafood, peanuts and all tree nuts. Also, no more tomatoes, mushrooms, onions or citrus. What the?!?!?!

That's right folks, not even soy sauce is allowed since the manufacturing process somehow intensifies the soy content that is passed through breast milk. At first I had a brainstorming session with a friend on facebook, trying to figure out what takeaway foods I could still eat... we came up with a few, albeit bland... but then, as we've progressed in this crazy elimiation diet, and I have indulged in the occasional chicken and chips, or store-bought sushi... I've realised that actually, I can no longer eat out, except for eating plain rice and MacDonald's fries. That's right folks... no more KFC, no more icecream, no more chocolate, no more easy takeaway dinners... ever!

Ignorant bliss - that was certainly the world I was living in but a month ago. So what do I eat?? Well, for the first 2 weeks, I was basically hungry. Our son is exclusively breastfed, weighs nearly 8kg (he is a whopper) and so drinks over 1 litre of milk a day. Anything I ate didn't seem enough, and my day time naps were gone, since I wouldn't be able to sleep because of the hunger. At night, I was waking not just to feed bubs, but waking at other times due to hunger. Soooooo frustrating, I cannot begin to tell you!

The purpose of this diet is to identify exactly what causes the allergic reaction in our son. Once his skin is completely clear, I can try adding one serve of a new food a day, for 3 days in a row, and watch for a reaction. If there is a reaction, then I have to go off that food again. So far, we know soy products cause a rash. I'm currently testing dairy, but expecting a bad result. The main reason I even bother to test it is so that we can legitimately get a perscription for hypoallergenic formula. Along the way, I accidentally ate cous cous (wheat) and that caused a reaction. While trying to find alternative foods to eat, I've also tried lentils and mung bean noodles - both of which I think have caused reactions.

At the moment, so many of the things we've tried have led to a bad reaction. One positive is that Roast Lamb with Roast Veg is still on the weekly menu. I've eaten so many tins of tinned corn, chickpeas and butter beans, I think I should buy shares in the company. On one day, I can open 4 tins! Oh, for flavour, I open another tin of corned beef... (looks more and more like cat food the more I look at it).

The upside??

Well, our son does have gloriously beautiful skin actually - once all the rashes went away. He gives the most gorgeous of smiles and laughs - this is the only thing that keeps me going on this wretched diet. So many times I think about stopping breastfeeding and giving up. But then I also know that testing foods through breastmilk is probably the safest way of testing. He's unlikely to die... that's got to be a good thing! As we approach the age of eating solids, it is a comfort to me that he probably won't react to rice cereal, given how much rice I have in my diet. I'm pretty confident about potato, pumpkin, carrot and sweet potato when the time comes, so that is already a good start.

We have another appointment with our allergy specialist in two weeks as a follow up. I have no idea what to expect from this next appointment... surely it can't be worse than this.Gracehttp://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-7817206857744576241.post-7691354234837696332012-10-05T21:50:00.000+10:002012-10-05T21:50:00.466+10:00Decadent Egg Free, Milk Free, Nut Free Chocolate CakeHere is a link to the most amazing allergy-free chocolate cake I've ever had. Normally I avoid recipes that say Vegan since it often means they use nuts. But this recipe is amazing... oh wait, I already said that... yes, amazing! Don't be tempted to bake only the base - the topping is what makes the cake.

This is one for the adults as well as kids. Enjoy!

Not Quite Nigella

Gracehttp://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-7817206857744576241.post-62096787636881823542012-09-17T11:32:00.000+10:002012-09-17T11:32:00.644+10:00Dairy free sliced deli meatWow, I am impressed by our supermarket. For all the negative press there is in Australia about our big supermarkets dominating the market, I am grateful for the large systems they seem to have in place.

Our son is anaphylactic to milk, egg, peanuts and tree nuts. That means that although he can eat beef, lamb and chicken, it always has to be cooked by us. I am terribly thankful that he can eat wheat, so we can have sliced bread (although I am very particular about exactly which brand we get in order to avoid cross contamination). So far, our son can have Nuttelex (a dairy-free margarine), some jams and also vegemite on his sandwiches. But I am always a bit sad that he can't have a ham sandwich like the other kids... or more sad, that I can't just get some deli meat from the shops to save cooking.

I bought some prepackaged Coles Sliced Roast Beef (2x50g) the other day for my husband and noticed with surprise that the allergen list did not include milk, eggs or nuts. Normally pre-sliced meat from the deli is always at risk of being contaminated by cheese especially since they use the same machines to slice the meat. However, because this product is pre-sliced and pre-packaged, en mass, at some other location, there was a chance it could be safe for our son to eat. There are labels and then there are labels. This product is made in Australia, so that does give me some assurance. However, there's nothing like contacting the company directly to find out. Any company that does not get back to me is off my list. If they can't take the effort to answer my question about allergens, then it's likely they can't take the effort to do a lot of other things too, like making sure there is no cross contamination.

I sent an email off, and got a message on my phone a few days later stating that the sliced meat was most likely contaminated with dairy products. This was what I would have expected, so I sent off another email suggesting they fix the labeling of their packaging to reflect this. A few days later, I get another phone message stating that they were unsure of the accuracy of their previous comments and would launch an investigation to address my question. (You'll notice that there's a lot of phone messages... that's my fault since I can never put baby down in time to actually answer the phone). Anyway, two weeks later, the phone rings again and this time I answer it. The lady confirms that after a full investigation, there should be no risk of milk, egg or nut contamination, and in fact their initial customer information was incorrect. Wow, that's customer service. All that effort for one customer (although probably also to ensure there's no risk of litigation). Still, I'm impressed, and I'll be even more impressed if my son actually decides he likes it :-)

Gracehttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-7817206857744576241.post-5060496576759006112012-09-08T22:21:00.002+10:002012-09-08T22:21:18.697+10:00Allergy free alternativesThis is a special post for a mum who's daughter has had a recent diagnosis of allergies and interolerances to multiple foods.

When our eldest son was first diagnosed with anaphylaxis to milk, egg, peanuts, all nuts, oats, shellfish, wheat and sesame, at the age of 9 months, we had to dramatically change his diet to exclude traces of all these ingredients. I also had to dramatically change my diet so that I could continue breastfeeding but I was able to have small amounts of most foods. This is a list of ideas for others who have to make such a switch. It's not all bad but does take some getting used to. Hopefully, by providing a list of alternatives, you don't have to reinvent the wheel with your cooking, but just use alternatives.

Milk - we use So Good Regular Soy since it has the highest nutritional content of all the soy milks available in Australia. It is also fortified with calcium, so provides minerals in that sense. Rice milk is another alternative, but apparently the calcium in that milk is not absorbed very well by the body. Using Rice milk is fine if you just want to have cereal, as long as you can obtain your calcium from other sources. We also use Nuttelex, a sunflower oil spread instead of margarine or butter.

Egg - The Allergy Menu website has a Sweet Treats recipe book you can download for free. Page 45 has a great list of alternatives you can use when replacing eggs in recipes. You can't really replace fried eggs I'm afraid, but you can use alternatives for cakes, pancakes, cookies etc.

Peanut - well just avoid that one!

Other nuts - depending on the allergies, sometimes, you can use soy nuts, sunflower seeds or other seeds... but try this carefully since other allergies might exist that hasn't been tested for.

Wheat - I'm afraid I never really found a good alternative bread. If you know one, please do let me know. Corn products are great - corn flakes, corn chips for nachos, corn crackers and rice and corn pasta. Rice products are great - natural rice of course, fried rice, rice crackers, rice noodles. Potatoe products are great - chips, gnocchi, mashed potatoe, roast potatoe etc.

So there you have it - a super quick list of alternatives to use in your cooking - if you have more specific questions or ideas, please let me know. I love hearing from everyone out there who is reading this blog.Gracehttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-7817206857744576241.post-49534214111177910232012-08-30T09:26:00.001+10:002012-08-30T09:26:19.273+10:00Ignorant blissTwo weeks to go until our newest addition to our family goes and has his skin prick tests. He'll be just over 3 months old - poor little thing. I was filling out some childcare enrolment forms to make sure he has a spot for next year and it was quite different to tick the NO box for allergies or medication. Of course the real answer is that we don't know yet... things may change in a couple of weeks.

There's hope - our second boy is chunky as chunky comes and a much darker complexion, not like our first born. So maybe this boy is completely different in physique? But we've also noticed with trepidation the increase in small rash areas across his body. Is this hormonal? Is this normal? Is this signs of an allergy???

For me, this next two weeks is my chance to eat in ignorance before knowledge possibly brings restrictions on my diet. How funny, it sounds like the Garden of Eden from the Bible! Before there was knowledge of good and evil, man was free to roam and free to enjoy everything there was to be enjoyed - innocence. But the desire to know more, the desire to be in charge meant that man's decisions brought knowledge and understanding of all that was wrong as well as all that was right. Innocence was gone and new restrictions, new consequences came into play.

Well, perhaps that's where the similarities end. The reality for us is that whatever allergies that may be present are already there. There's no going back to the innocent beauty of the Garden of Eden. Knowledge could well bring new restrictions and a greater understanding of the consequences should we move beyond what we know to be safe, but it will also provide us with a roadmap towards a healthy, happy little boy.

Hmm, in the Christian faith, Jesus, many years later, provides the way back to God, back to the way things should be. I wonder whether years from now, there will also be a way to restore our children's bodies back to the way they should be - free from the suffering of allergies.

Wouldn't that be heaven??

 Click here for more allergy related cartoons from Tiffany.

Gracehttp://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-7817206857744576241.post-44078515303543355922012-08-21T21:47:00.001+10:002012-08-21T21:47:22.772+10:00Questions from an allergy childI was so pleased the other day when an overseas friend visited our house. We were all seated around the dining table with a large platter of cheese, crackers and fruit in the centre. Our son had a serve of fruit for himself, as he often does. I told him not to touch the plate since it had cow's milk cheese as well as nuts on it. He proceeded to tell our guest that he was allergic to cow's milk, and nuts, and also eggs. He explained that he can't touch those things because it will make him sick. He also told her not to touch him if her hands are dirty because that will make him sick too.

I am so proud of our little guy and the way he understands and communicates to others about his allergies. I believe informing him about his allergies in an age-appropriate way has meant that he can understand the effects, and also why he isn't allowed to have many things. Thankfully this has meant we hardly have any tantrums when it comes to food restrictions. Of course, I always have a stash of alternative treats so that he's not totally left out, especially at parties. Tantrums when it comes to TV or tidying up, well that's another story altogether!

Here is a list so far of the questions our amazing 3 year old son has asked us about his allergies... along with some answers, just in case you encounter the same questions along the way. Some of these questions seem very basic, but I think it is important to address each one truthfully and frame it in a way small children will understand so that they can learn how to manage their food allergies.

Q: "Why do you and me have allergies?"
A: "I don't know. Everyone is a little bit different - it's called being UNIQUE"

Q: "Who else has allergies?"
A: "Mum is allergic to wine and beer. Grandma is allergic to flowers (hayfever). Grandpa is allergic to the sun (some lack of melatonin pigmentation). Did you know Vampires are allergic to the sun too?"

Q: "When I grow big, as big as the sky, I'll be able to eat cow's milk and eggs."
A: "When you were just a baby, you couldn't even drink Soy milk, but now you drink heaps... so maybe! We just have to wait to ask the doctor first, to make sure you don't get sick."

Q: "Is my baby brother allergic to cow's milk?"
A: "Your baby brother is too small to drink cow's milk, he can only have mummy's special milk, otherwise he will get sick." Our son's reply, "That means he is allergic, because he will get sick!" Since then, our son has gone on to tell his baby brother (2 months old), that he can't eat a whole range of things because he's allergic.

Q: "I can't eat Yoghurt can I?"
A: "If it's cow's milk yoghurt you can't, since it will make you sick. But if it's Soy yoghurt you can!"

If you've been tossed a curve ball question, please let me know and even better, let me know your answer so I can have it on hand when it's our turn!
Gracehttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-7817206857744576241.post-48697386504571469122012-07-30T09:24:00.000+10:002012-07-30T09:24:00.514+10:00Annoying products 2We've been dealing with life-threatening food allergies for nearly 3 years now and every now and then I am tempted to relax a little bit. Afterall, all the other kids around us and all the other parents around us seem to be able to relax more... or so it seems right?!

Well, whenever I am struck with these thoughts, something comes along to jolt me back into vigilance... I was going to type vigilante mode since that's what it FEELS like at times! But no, vigilance is what is needed, not some battle-seeking vigilante mode.

We were at a medical facility - the one place where you would think should be reasonably safe for a child... but then I noticed a bottle of bacteria killing lotion on the bench for everyone to use. These days all the hospitals seem to have them, and actively encourage you to use it to prevent the spreading of bacteria. We had just been in one of the offices where I had used some to clean my hands after an urgent nappy change of our new little bub. That office was dark and I was in a rush so I hadn't read any labels. But in the reception area, I realised with horror that this container had MACADAMIA OIL added! How absolutely ridiculous! Can nothing be made without the presence of nuts?!?! Can you imagine if this was used in hospitals?? Every nurse and doctor would be putting it on their hands, then touching every handrail, every door handle, every piece of equipement... Aaargh!

The other source of food contaminant was in a loaf of bread... I know - so simple. Our son does eat white bread since he's outgrown his wheat allergy. We tend to buy just one brand of bread, made in a large facility, to minimise contamination. Afterall, we're still not sure about his sensitivity to sesame, we know linseed gives diarreah, and all other nuts are on the anaphylactic list. I've stayed away from wholegrain breads since the possibility of an allergic reaction increases with the number of ingredients. Seems neurotic, I know, but then I get given a loaf of bread... looks white... looks fine, until you read the fine print: oat fibre. Yup, in an attempt to increase the fibre content I guess, the producer has added finely ground oats - so the kids can't see it I suppose. Our son is still allergic to oats! So stay strong I tell myself... stay neurotic! I need to!

So that's our latest list of annoying products - the lesson for us? Stay on alert at all times, never stop reading product labels each and every time you buy something, and never let your guard down. Sound tiring? Yes, a little but it's worth it.

Thanks Tiffany for the cartoon, and bringing a lighter side to living with food anaphylaxis.Gracehttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-7817206857744576241.post-78127796777828097852012-07-20T16:28:00.002+10:002012-07-20T16:28:31.214+10:00Welcome Baby Cameron!
Welcome to our family little baby Cameron!

Our not so little cherub is 6 weeks old now and very much a part of our family! We waited and waited for him to come by himself, but after 39 weeks, it was time to come out. I'd been experiencing so many Braxton Hicks leading up to his birth, I was convinced he would come early. But as it turned out, once I adhered to doctor's orders of strict bed rest after my pre-eclampsia diagnosis, those contractions decreased a lot. He was born by cesarean section, and weighed in at a hefty 3.8kg! That was more than 0.5kg heavier than our first born.

And so it begins, the endless comparisons between first and second child... get used to it buddy!

Actually, even at the age of 3, our first born hardly has hints of chinese heritage, but this little guy could maybe be chinese! How surprising, that the same parents produce such different little kiddies.

Then of course there is the question of allergies - well we just don't know do we??!?

As a precaution this time around, we were adamant that Cameron would not be given any dairy formula as a top up in hospital. We tried to convince the attending Paediatrician to write us a script for Elecare, a hydrolysed formula for babies with severe allergies to dairy and soy, but were unsuccessful. In Australia, it appears that a formal diagnosis is needed before we can get government subsidies for this type of formula. Unfortunately the Elecare we had for our first son had all expired and had to be thrown in the bin... what a waste :-( Wow, my sympathy goes out to parents in the US where I believe you have to pay privately for this formula. When we bought a tin of it privately, it cost us 6 times the price it would have been under the government subsidy... Believe me my North American readers, our Australian Medicare system where everybody pays a little bit extra in tax to pay for our health system is well worth the money!

My main focus while at hospital was to get that milk in! Never before has breastfeeding been more important to us - There was a lot of bed rest, a lot of eating, and a little bit of expressing when I could be bothered. Fortunately, everything worked out well, and my milk came in a day earlier than before and there was no need to specially treat our son's jaundice. It was interesting to see the nurse's reactions whenever they read our details with strict instructions of "NO FORMULA" written across all the paperwork.

Now that we're home, baby Cameron is growing well - we're always on the look out for tell tale signs of an allergy and have been extra vigilant with washing hands etc. I really don't know what lies ahead for him in the years to come, but there is a rather long list of doctor's appointments to be made. I am certain though that there will be a lot of love, laughter and excitement in the years to come.

Welcome home...

(Ps. please forgive my rather disjointed thought sequences for the next few months... sleep deprivation is taking its toll!)Gracehttp://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-7817206857744576241.post-11884079127532238322012-06-06T15:30:00.001+10:002012-06-06T15:30:18.415+10:00In control of what??Things don't often go to plan do they?

My husband and I turned up to my 36 week obstetrician appointment with a short list of things on our mind.

1. Could we do an extra ultrasound to confirm the sex? We had a medical scan at 20 weeks that told us to expect a boy. But my mother had suggested according to chinese tradition, the shape of my belly actually suggested a girl. Then, our three year old was pretending to be pregnant, as he often does, but this time, it was a baby girl, not a boy! So there you have it, enough reason to put doubt in our minds... how hilarious! So anyway, did another scan, and yes, it's a boy..., fancy that, modern medicine being more accurate than old wives' tales and pretend play of a toddler.

2. We were (I was) leaning towards a selective c-section in the hope of having a better recovery than my last emergency c-section. However, after talking to our allergy specialist, there was a suggestion that trying for a natural birth might improve our chances of not having a highly allergic child. It was probably worth a try.

Well, this is where things unraveled. Baby is head down? Check. Blood pressure? Uh oh... We were informed it was time to check into the hospital for monitoring of mother and child. There went my plans for shopping with a friend... hubby would take the rest of the day off from work, but fortunately our son was already in childcare for the day. It wasn't an emergency, and the doctor did tell us it was mainly precautionary. So we went home, packed some things then had a lovely couple's lunch before checking in.

Three night's later and we finally get all the lab results back - pre-eclampsia! Bugger! Bugger! Bugger!

In my last post, it was all about regaining control... (mainly of my own thoughts and fears). Well, control is a facade - certainly, we can be organised, and I think our planning helped us with that, but control? Well, all the planning and organisation in the world can control squat! In the end, what will happen will happen - who can control pre-eclampsia?? Checking through all the risk factors... nope, not one of those, so who knows why I got it.

Being organised helped a little, although my dear husband simply taking time off to look after our son was the simplest and best solution we came up with. We got some wonderful assistance from church with quite a few meals ready cooked (although my husband still cooked special food for our son). Supportive friends, ongoing prayer... all of it helped. Acceptance... probably the best thing that you can do in the end... believing that somehow, somewhere, this was all going to make sense...

This was my first overnight separation from our son - I knew that if I followed doctor's orders, I would probably be OK, especially being monitored in a hospital regularly. But, what of my dear husband and son?? Could they survive without wife and mother?? Well, in the end, they coped wonderfully well (that's a humbling fact isn't it?!) It was a longer than expected trial for them - it has been tiring on my husband, trying to juggle the home responsibilities with work, but the outcome has been positive. The only thing of concern perhaps is that my son really wanted Megatron to go and destroy the hospital so mum would come home (he is fairly obsessed with Transformers at the moment, so it all makes sense in his world).

Another interesting note, was that my neighbour at home turned out to be my neighbour at the hospital too! You can't really arrange that sort of thing... I'm not sure what the point of that was, but, perhaps in the future, time will tell the significance of both of us being hospitalised together. I can't believe that was coincidence.

So although control would be nice, I don't think we can ever achieve it - if we try really hard to, we'll probably just wear ourselves out! Organised - yes, it has helped so far. Acceptance - the main factor in finding peace. Well, I suppose perhaps it depends on what you're accepting... for me, it was accepting that I am not in control, but that the God who first started all this, will be faithful to complete it.

Amazingly, after four nights, they sent me home for further bed rest. My husband and friends have all been wonderfully supportive while I have been told to rest and do nothing. The pre-eclampsia seems to be stable and not worsening, so two weeks on, we are still here, waiting for the time when bubs will finally appear.

In the end, natural birth vs c-section vs allergies vs whatever else - who cares?! It all amounts to not much at all, except for maybe more stress. I've accepted my life is in good hands and am finally in a spot where just seeing our second little baby boy will bring more joy to my life than all the control in the world. I've seen too much good come from our first little boy's life already to think anything else.

... we're all waiting for you my darling!Gracehttp://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-7817206857744576241.post-17013611945020400012012-05-23T22:13:00.000+10:002012-06-21T12:01:21.622+10:00Meat Pie

This recipe was inspired by the previous Jam Tart recipe, but instigated by my husband who wanted our son to enjoy good 'ol Aussie Meat Pies. I used muffin trays to bake the individual pies.

Canola Puff Pastry (dairy free, from Coles, if you live in Australia) - cut one sheet into four square quarters. Each square can be placed into a muffin mold. Place the cooled meat mixture into the center of the pastry and fold the corners into the center, to cover the meat. Place a cut-out shape on top of everything to seal off the pie. The pastry doesn't need to be completely sealed or perfectly shaped - I personally like the dribbled effect. If you want it to be more browned on top, you could brush some soy milk over the top, but I don't think it's necessary. Bake at 220deg C, for 20 - 25 mins or till nicely browned. Serve with chips, mash or other vegetables.

Meat filling recipe
Our son is still on a very restricted diet so the ingredients we use are very limited compared to most recipes. If you are able to use more spices and herbs, then I'm sure it will taste even better, but in the meantime, this recipe uses very basic ingredients to make something still quite tasty. For example, we still haven't found a stock cube we can safely use, nor is there any chilli, mustard, or fancy sauces in it. If you miss these flavours, then perhaps topping the pies with a bit of spice will make up for it.

1 onion, chopped finely
500g beef mince
1T tomato paste
1C red grapes, chopped in half or perhaps 1 plum, chopped into pieces (this is what I use instead of stock cubes believe it or not!)
1C chopped veggies like peas, corn or carrot
salt to taste

Gently fry the onion in some sunflower or other acceptable oil. Add mince and brown it fully. Add the remaining ingredients and enough water to simmer for about 20 mins. Add salt to taste, then cool before placing into the pastry.

Hope you enjoy these little treasures too!Gracehttp://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-7817206857744576241.post-53465774794291887232012-05-23T16:34:00.000+10:002012-05-24T09:10:20.896+10:00From PANIC to Peace with our pregnancy planningWhat a difference a couple of weeks makes. After my middle-of-the-night panic attack, thinking about what to do with our severely allergic toddler I've just come back from my baby-shower with such a peace in my heart - who can believe it?!

Let me guide you through the steps - just in case you need to do this one day...
Step 1: I put together a folder with all our son's allergic information. This includes his Anaphylaxis plan, a list of approved foods, a rough schedule for eating and sleeping, some recipes printed from this blog, and a list of other medications and instructions for cases of rash/asthma/fever and also medical details like doctor's details, insurance and medicare details in case a trip to the hospital is required.

Step 2: I've packed a cooler bag with all sorts of food including snacks, tinned food, pasta etc. I've also packed a bag with sauces to be used - this includes honey, jam, soy sauce, oil

Step 3: I've made a list of last minute things to add to the bags - this includes things from the fridge like Nuttelex, frozen bread, frozen bolognese sauce.

Step 4: I've made another list of other things to bring, like clothes, medication, toiletries, spare pan and chopping board.

This is all the stuff we need to bring with us to drop our son off at a friend's house when the time for labour comes and we need to head to the hospital. Our hope is that our son can be cared for by our friends during labour, so that my husband can be there for the birth of our second child. We have also agreed that if worse comes to worse, our husband may miss the birth, but that it will most certainly not be the end of the world.

Step 5: I decided to use the baby shower as a chance to go through all of our son's information with our close friends in one go. Before I left home, I was wondering whether they would still be my friends after this information download. Would they ever see me the same? Would they think I am totally neurotic? Would they withdraw their offer of emergency care once they realised how complicated it can be?

Well, what a blessing it is to have such wonderful friends. They listened carefully, asked very good questions, and also made some really good suggestions, like including a spare house key should they need to grab something from the house. Overwhelmingly they agreed that coming over to our house was the safest option if it was practical to leave their kids at home. This was something my husband and I had also thought, but I was too afraid to ask. Afterall, all these ladies have kids of their own, households to run, as well as jobs to go to.

So there you have it, in a few simple steps - a total transformation from total panic in the middle of the night, to complete peace about who would look after our most gorgeous but highly allergic son. After that, the ladies sat back, relaxed, ate some most delicious afternoon tea and just shared the joys of motherhood together.

Ok, bring on labour... (I hear you laugh?)Gracehttp://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-7817206857744576241.post-15871666547384388652012-05-05T22:26:00.001+10:002012-05-05T22:26:59.575+10:00Pregnancy, planning, PANIC!It's 5am in the morning and I wake up thinking what a good sleep I've had considering that I'm heavily pregnant. A quick toilet break and I can still catch another couple of hours sleep.

But, when I hop back into bed, my mind starts to wander... We've been told lately by a health professional that I trust (not just some random know-it-all), that a natural birth could greatly reduce the chance of our next child having allergies. I had been leaning towards an elective c-section since our first boy had to have an emergency c-section. However, if there is a chance we could somehow assist our next child not to have allergies, then surely it's worth a try??

I know, these are not the thoughts you should entertain in the middle of the night... big big mistake!

We don't have family living anywhere nearby, so we've had some lovely friends offer to help us look after our 3 year old when labour comes. I've already prepared a large bag of foods that our son can eat so that we can grab it and go when the time goes. Although a few of my friends are familiar with the epipen, I start to remember that actually, there are a lot of steps before an epipen is required, or rather there are a lot of steps to avoid having to use an epipen. Actually, I need to schedule an hour of adult only time when I can explain all the complexities: cross-contamination (since all our friends have other kids); maybe I should include a frypan and cooking utensils in another bag; when to give the antihistimine medication; the dosage and usage of the asthma medication; another bag for his bedding and sleeping things...

 Then I start to think how ridiculous and unfair it is that I have to plan all this stuff just to try and reduce the likelihood of having a child with severe food allergies. Plus, the only reason I have to prepare all this stuff is because our first born has so many darned food allergies! Actually, I just hate food allergies all round! Yup, I hate hate hate them. Is there any good that comes from it???!

Hmmm, I've tried to convince myself that having food anaphylaxis in our family has helped us to be more understanding to others and perhaps provide assistance to others who have to go through the same thing. Sometimes this works... other times... not so much. So maybe having to do all this planning is a good chance for us to share with others around the complexities of living with multiple food anaphylaxis. Perhaps it's a good chance to truly educate others in our community? Or perhaps it's just a FRICKIN' BIG PAIN IN THE BUTT!!!!!

So two hours later, I give up trying to sleep. The rare occasion that our son decides to sleep properly till 7am, and I've worked myself into a frenzy of crazy thoughts, a heart rate of about 120 while lying down and shortness of breath. Nice work! Grrrrr!

It's not until I get out of bed and am in the kitchen on my own that I can finally let the tension out and the tears finally come. Ah, you have to love pregnancy hormones.

And so begins another day... with just a few more things on my To-Do list. At least once my husband and son wake up I can get some lovely cuddles and remember why it is we do these things, and that in the end, it is worth it.Gracehttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-7817206857744576241.post-85392590186245634422012-04-27T22:25:00.002+10:002012-04-27T22:25:47.511+10:00Easy Peasy Jam Tarts

This has got to be about the easiest egg free, milk free, nut free snack you could make with a toddler. Our son was watching an episode of Fireman Sam when he saw the characters enjoying Jam Tarts. Imagine how excited he was when I said, "yes, we can make them right now!"

We used Coles Canola Puff Pastry (dairy free, but contains gluten) which is pre-rolled and kept in the freezer. You could make any shapes you like, but we used a circle shape for the base, topped it with some fruit jam and a star shape on top. Bake according to the pastry instructions - about 15 mins at 220deg C. I also made some with a square of Sweet William Dairy free chocolate placed underneath the star, but I think the jam ones were better.

These were fun and easy to make and also look and taste great! I hope you enjoy them.Gracehttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-7817206857744576241.post-60865592877294056302012-04-05T13:03:00.002+10:002012-04-08T11:41:03.993+10:00Easter HazardsWords cannot describe how immensely proud I am of our son at the moment. No, we still have not mastered the art of consistent toilet training, but for the mum of a 3 year old child with multiple life threatening food allergies, the ability of our son to recognise the dangers of Easter chocolates has filled me with such pride!

We were walking through the local supermarket when our son suddenly got so excited at the sight of so many shiny little gold bunnies! Of course they were shelves fully stocked with Lindt Milk Chocolate bunnies - designed to look gorgeous and attract the attention and desire of all shoppers in the lead up to Easter. In the past, our son has been drawn to many chocolates wrapped in colourful foil wrapping - only to be whipped away quickly by his parents. We all know how fragile that wretched foil is, and one touch of the chocolate inside could prove deadly for our son. I would even venture to say that touching the outside of the foil would probably cause a reaction since it's bound to be contaminated with dairy chocolate. I was immediately relieved that he was safely secured in the shopping trolley and I calmly explained that they had cow's milk chocolate inside them and that if he touched it, it would make him sick. I continued to move quickly along to the next aisle, hoping to create a distraction, but sure enough, at the end of every aisle were more and more chocolates. I resorted to saying that any thing covered in the colourful shiny stuff actually had cow's milk in it.

Next stop was Target, but sure enough, there were more aisles of chocolates - this time they were packaged with wonderful wonderful toys of all description. Again, I had to pull our son away, explaining that they all had cow's milk in it and would make him sick. All he wanted to do was walk along the aisle and look at how many different types there were but this was certainly not an activity I was going to indulge.

So now that you are feeling quite sorry for our boy, and perhaps not dreaming quite so much about Easter chocolates, let me tell you about the moment of true understanding. At home, he has seen advertising catalogs with Easter chocolates - and this has proved to be a much safer way of educating our son about dairy chocolate. "Cow's milk! Cow's milk!" he exclaims, as he looks at each picture. But when we went into a cafe to say hi to an old friend, our son got excited again, pointed to a gigantic Easter Bunny made out of dairy chocolate of course, but one that wasn't wrapped up, and exclaimed, "Cow's milk! Cow's milk!" Wow, our beloved son has integrated his learning about foil-covered Easter chocolates and realised that the chocolate rabbit fell into the same category for him. Wow! If you're in the education field, I'm sure you would be impressed by this boy. If you're an allergy mum, you would be amazed! I'm in both... so WOW!

What does this mean?? Well, it means that our son is probably less likely to reach for these chocolates the next time we are in the shop. He's less likely to reach for it if he see another child or pretty much every child around him hooking into the stuff. It means that when there is an Easter Egg hunt at Childcare, for which I've supplied special plastic eggs with special toys and treats inside, that he is less likely to pick up a life-threatening chocolate egg placed for someone else to find. So I am excited, but please realise, that this is a 3 year old boy we are talking about, and restraint and understanding will only go so far. So for this Easter, deligence is still required on the part of all his carers, but I really am proud of how much he is learning every day.

Now to only be able to teach him about the true meaning of Easter and get some real integration of learning and understanding on that one! For your information, so far he knows that the "mean guys killed Jesus and God brought him back to life again." Interestingly, he doesn't think this is so unusual since so many of the fairy tales have people who die and come back! Anyway, I'll save that discussion for another post.

So to you readers out there, may you have a blessed Easter - a time of remembrance of all Jesus Christ has done for us yesterday, today and tomorrow, and less a time for eating or sharing dairy chocolate!

<object width="320" height="266" class="BLOG_video_class" id="BLOG_video-90189b40989f4358" classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0"><param name="movie" value="//www.youtube.com/get_player"><param name="bgcolor" value="#FFFFFF"><param name="allowfullscreen" value="true"><param name="flashvars" value="flvurl=http://redirector.googlevideo.com/videoplayback?id%3D90189b40989f4358%26itag%3D5%26source%3Dblogger%26app%3Dblogger%26cmo%3Dsensitive_content%3Dyes%26ip%3D0.0.0.0%26ipbits%3D0%26expire%3D1438245308%26sparams%3Dip,ipbits,expire,id,itag,source%26signature%3D48BD8AD1EE891676C2462799891CE5A139845422.2A85D2F12C060DD29546271460BAB35DA7AF8B85%26key%3Dck2&iurl=http://video.google.com/ThumbnailServer2?app%3Dblogger%26contentid%3D90189b40989f4358%26offsetms%3D5000%26itag%3Dw160%26sigh%3D8WpLN3ZP7VLRyBr4RuLICyutxzc&autoplay=0&ps=blogger"><embed src="//www.youtube.com/get_player" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="320" height="266" bgcolor="#FFFFFF" flashvars="flvurl=http://redirector.googlevideo.com/videoplayback?id%3D90189b40989f4358%26itag%3D5%26source%3Dblogger%26app%3Dblogger%26cmo%3Dsensitive_content%3Dyes%26ip%3D0.0.0.0%26ipbits%3D0%26expire%3D1438245308%26sparams%3Dip,ipbits,expire,id,itag,source%26signature%3D48BD8AD1EE891676C2462799891CE5A139845422.2A85D2F12C060DD29546271460BAB35DA7AF8B85%26key%3Dck2&iurl=http://video.google.com/ThumbnailServer2?app%3Dblogger%26contentid%3D90189b40989f4358%26offsetms%3D5000%26itag%3Dw160%26sigh%3D8WpLN3ZP7VLRyBr4RuLICyutxzc&autoplay=0&ps=blogger" allowFullScreen="true" /></object>

 (Creative genius from Auntie Joy)
Gracehttp://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-7817206857744576241.post-22942145470223177042012-03-31T11:23:00.003+11:002012-03-31T11:23:00.182+11:00Disappointment and discouragementOh dear, that's not a very inspiring title for a post...

I'm afraid despite a positive attitude, we've had quite a few set backs of late in our food trials and I'm feeling somewhat disillusioned. I'm counting four setbacks so far, with our last success seemingly very long ago.

After trying to adjust my way of thinking to being more adventurous, I realise that our son is anaphylactic to 4 of the 9 common food allergies... not 3 as I said in a recent post. So that's milk, egg, peanuts and tree nuts. The latter two are different categories. Even as I type this I'm realising that I'm hitting the keyboard with unnecessary force... I think there is a bit of anger and resentment hidden in these last set backs. I have to acknowledge that our last setbacks haven't been that serious - no epipens required, no trips to the hospital, not even a dose of antihisitimine. We have had to use some of our steroid creams, but mainly it's been a case of lots and lots of laundry due to diaorreah. It doesn't help that our son is in a single sized bunk bed that seems a lot more tricky to make and unmake compared to a toddler bed, especially when sporting an ever growing belly. But alas, he does love his new bed, so I can't begrudge that too much. Instead, these dramas really stem from his blasted allergies!!!

We've tried blackberries (got up to about 4 whole ones) as well as barramundi (ate up to half a palm sized piece). Because I was too adventurous, I actually don't know which one caused his problems, so for now, both are off limits. I should have spent a whole week on the blackberries, but I was impatient and let the food tests cross over. Then we tried a rice porridge which according to the ingredients doesn't contain anything new, but never the less resulted in a rash on his face within a few hours. This rice porridge was specifically labelled as allergy free, but my only conclusion is that perhaps some of the ingredients used actually contained traces of nuts or something similar. It did contain coconut, dried peaches and other stone fruit, so I'm guessing that the sourcing or control of all the ingredients isn't what it should be. Then, we tried a meusli bar of sorts, made by a special allergy-free company we use, and that resulted in terrible diaorreah on day 2 of our tests. The only new ingredient was linseed - which I did have reservations about, given it could be similar to a nut.

So there you have it, in the last month, we've had a lot of set backs, and it's basically sapped me of any desire to try other new things.Of course I can't actually keep this attitude, so I'll just indulge myself for a week or so of nothing new.

What this has motivated me to do is make another appointment with our allergy dietician - maybe she can give me a bit more direction as to which foods to try next. So don't give up reading the blog, there is hope somewhere out there... just have to keep looking, and keep reading!Gracehttp://firstname.lastname@example.com


text:
Composer Andrew Violette came to Bard to give a composer's forum last week. I'd followed his music via CDs for years and we'd corresponded, but I'd never met him. He's known for some really long, intense pieces, such as his three-hour-long Seventh Piano Sonata, which I wrote about years ago. He looks less tough in person than he does in his photos, and he spent several years as a Benedictine monk. He wanted to play something live, and since he hadn't written anything for piano since that 2001 sonata, he chose to play half of a book of chorale … [Read more...]
Quixotic Application of Dots to Paper
I wrote a symphony. It came to pass in this wise. I visited my friend Robert Carl at Yaddo. He was telling me his plans for his next two symphonies, one of which would be an orchestration of a two-piano piece he had written. I replied that I had a two-piano piece myself, in five movements (Implausible Sketches) that I think of as an unorchestrated symphony. He said I should arrange it for orchestra. I replied, Nah, I wouldn't do that. The next morning I woke up obsessed with the certainty that I needed to make an orchestral version of … [Read more...]
Offspring on the Small Screen
This is late notice, but my son is supposedly on television tonight. His black metal band Liturgy is being used in the plot of the cop show The Blacklist, the episode featuring Peter Fonda as guest star. Fonda supposedly appears as a drummer in the band. No idea yet whether they'll be on for 10 seconds or three minutes, but they filmed. I don't have TV reception, so somebody please know what happened if you watch it. Thanks. [UPDATE:] Well, somebody noticed, anyway. … [Read more...]
Hiring Criteria
One of my students decided not to apply to a certain grad school because it had too many white men with dreadlocks in one department. I agreed that that was probably indicative of a certain aesthetic narrowness. … [Read more...]
Free to not Understand
I am in receipt of James Klosty's handsome new coffee-table volume John Cage Was, a book of photographs of John Cage, many of them rare and unseen before, all of them telling. For the margins Klosty asked a lot of people connected with Cage to write descriptions of him of a hundred words or less, using the words "John Cage was...." For those who are unlikely to shell out for the book, here's what I wrote: John Cage was the figure who, for thousands of musicians, opened the door to the world beyond rationality. By introducing us to the I Ching, … [Read more...]
Fear of Learning
The faculty is once again rethinking the distribution requirements, the obstacle course of varied classes every student has to take to make sure they all have a more well-rounded education than I do. So we're having meetings about how to pitch courses to non-majors. I enjoy these. My colleagues in literature, the sciences, and the social sciences are so brilliant, so eloquent and thoughtful, that I've come to realize that I'm not all that smart - I'm just really smart for a musician. Today they asked what one thing I would want a … [Read more...]
Superficial Perceptions Are Permanent
"[Composer Rinaldo Di Capua] thinks composers have nothing to do now but to write themselves and others over again, and the only chance they have for obtaining the reputation of novelty or invention must arise either from the ignorance or want of memory in the public - as everything both in melody and modulation that is worth doing has already been done over and over again." - Charles Burney, Music, Men, and Manners in France and Italy, 1770 It's every bit as true now as it was then. … [Read more...]
Zut Alors!
I am told that my copy of the French translation of No Such Thing as Silence - titled No Silence: 4'33" de John Cage (Allia Editions) - is in the mail. UPDATE: The French edition, which has arrived, is very classy, and is decorated with hundreds of photos of Cage, Tudor, Rauschenberg, Coomaraswamy, and others that weren't in the more austere American edition. Perhaps I should just publish my Ives book in French, they seem to have the money. … [Read more...]
The Disappearing Publisher
It's almost official: my next book will be The Arithmetic of Listening: Tuning Theory and History for the Impractical Musician. I had given up trying to interest publishers in microtonality, but it seems to finally be an idea who's time has come. This will be basically a textbook, though in my characteristic style which the New York Times has designated as "chatty." There are worse words, I guess. And yet I'm not in any hurry to sign the contract. I haven't yet turned in my Concord Sonata book, which has been finished for weeks, because the … [Read more...]
New, Improved Tuning Examples
My good friend Anne Garland, wife of songwriter David, gave me some html code with which to make my Just Intonation Explained page far more convenient and practical by embedding the mp3s so that they don't jump to a new page to play, and you can keep reading the text while listening. She warned that it doesn't work on all browsers, and so if any of you find you can't access the recorded examples, please let me know and I'll put the original version back up as an alternative. This is going to open up a lot of possibilities: I've been considering … [Read more...]
Birthplace of Another Sonata
In the earliest years of the 20th century, Charles Ives was working for Charles H. Raymond & Co. insurance company in Wall Street. On weekends he would escape the city to Pine Mountain, a beautiful nature reserve south of Danbury where the Ives family owned land, in order to compose there. Some of his early works are marked with the notation "Pine Mountain," including the First Piano Sonata, whose earliest sketch is dated Aug. 4, 1901. And today there is a long trail through the Pine Mountain nature reserve called the Ives Trail, running … [Read more...]
Nothing Changes
The gold of Beethoven's day, of which he was himself the purest nugget, comes down to us bright and untarnished, so that we forget all the dross that has been thrown on the scrap-heap of time. Our own gold is almost hidden from us by the glitter of the tinsel. The world of music, says Sir Charles Stanford ["Pages from an Unwritten Diary"], is not substantially different from what it has been. It has always exalted those of its contemporary composers who dealt in frills and furbelows above those who considered the body more important than its … [Read more...]
Other Freakin' Options Available
I like this interview with Branford Marsalis in the Seattle Weekly, and completely agree with him: You put on old records and they always sound better. Why are they better? I started listening to a lot of classical music, and that really solidified the idea that the most important and the strongest element of music is the melodic content. In jazz we spend a lot of time talking about harmony. Harmonic music tends to be very insular. It tends to be [like] you're in the private club with a secret handshake. I have a lot of normal friends. … [Read more...]

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Lawrence Krauss warns of the Templeton Foundation's apparent desire to use science to reveal the existence of God (2 August, p 52). I suggest that it represents a danger to science on a deeper level: not because it mixes science and religion, but because it confuses religion with God.
The necessity of belief in a supernatural, omnipotent creator god is a feature of the Abrahamic religions - Judaism, Christianity and Islam. Other world religions tend not to sport such a powerful creature or, where they do, not to make statements about its nature. Nor do they compel or require belief and public displays of faith.
It is the element of compulsion that sets the Abrahamic religions apart as movements more interested in temporal influence than in spiritual well-being.
Despite the protestations of the faithful, they are political ideologies. Take a look at the Templeton Freedom Award (www.templeton.org/prizes/templeton_freedom_awards), ...
To continue reading this article, subscribe to receive access to all of newscientist.com, including 20 years of archive content.


text:
This job is no longer available
Further information
Working for a leading ship owning service provider to the oil and gas industry, you will take responsibility for the nautical management of modern offshore vessels. This will involve liaising with seafarers, managing the legislative compliance of the vessels, and ensuring the ships are operated in a safe and efficient manner.
Having preferably sailed as a Chief Officer or Master Mariner , you will have progressed your career ashore in the position of Marine or HSE Superintendent. With a passion for safety, you will ensure that all vessels operate to the highest standard.
Some key responsibilites involve acting as the Deputy Designated Person Ashore, the Deputy Company Security Officer, the Company Training Officer and to assist the Crewing Department.
This position is rewarded with a strong base salary and benefits package. It is essential that you hold a European passport to be suitable for this role.


text:
For Colorado Retailers interested in carrying our wines, please contact your representative from Summit Distributing/Beverage Distributors, or call 303-371-3421.
For Wyoming Retailers, we can either ship to you direct, or you may contact WLD for Listed or Special Order Products. For further info, contact Tracy Durkin, The Wyoming Wine Trader, at 307-864-5687.
For Texas Retailers, please contact Global Quality Imports at 713-675-7773.
For Other States, please contact us directly for more information. We would be particularly interested in distribution in Arizona, as we have a healthy following in those states.
Downloadable POS Shelf talker files for each Mead are available here.


text:
What we do
Mergermarket is a business development tool designed specifically for the M&A sector.
It provides proprietary intelligence and analysis on corporate strategy across the world.
Upcoming Events
Private Equity and Venture Capital Investment Outlook 2015
InterContinental, Boston
15 July 2015
In the media
CNBC Closing Bell interview with Elaine Green, senior deputy editor, Mergermarket
How we can help you
400 M&A journalists
65 locations around the globe
Comprehensive league tables
Exclusive insight
on corporate strategy
Historical deals database
Private equity portfolio
Real-time alerts
Mergermarket's global insight
With the largest network of dedicated M&A, Mergermarket offers the most comprehensive M&A intelligence service available today. Our reporters are based in 65 locations across the Americas, Europe, Asia-Pacific, the Middle East and Africa.


text:
The Women's, Gender, and Sexuality Studies undergraduate and graduate faculty advisor is
Kim Little
31 S. Court St., Room 107
(740) 593-4687
Office Hours: Tuesdays 1-3, or by appointment. Stop by if you would like to know more about any of our programs.
FYI--If you're ready to enroll in any of our certificate programs, you'll need to see the faculty advisor for a signature. Prospective majors can enroll directly through their college office (the WGSS major code is BA 4402).


text:
Harvest operations in Saskatchewan are the furthest advanced in the Southwest with four per cent of fields combined according to Saskatchewan Agriculture's Weekly Crop Report for the period of Aug. 12 to 18.
Provincially, just over one per cent of the 2014 crop has been combined, while four per cent is swathed or ready to straight-cut.
The five-year average (2009-2013) for this time of year is two per cent combined and five per cent swathed or ready to straight-cut. At this time, average crop yields are being reported in most areas.
Provincially, 19 per cent of fall rye, nine per cent of field peas, eight per cent of winter wheat and three per cent of lentils are combined. Seven per cent of canola and four per cent of mustard are swathed. Recent warm weather has encouraged crop development; however, frequent rain showers and heavy morning dew are delaying crop maturation and harvest operations for many producers.
Rainfall this past week ranged from trace amounts to several inches in some southeastern and west-central areas. Across the province, topsoil moisture on cropland is rated as seven per cent surplus, 82 per cent adequate, 10 per cent short and one per cent very short. Hay land and pasture topsoil moisture is rated as four per cent surplus, 79 per cent adequate, 16 per cent short and one per cent very short.
Heavy rain, strong winds and hail caused the majority of crop damage this week. Grasshoppers, wheat midge, fusarium head blight and sclerotinia are also causing some damage.
Farmers are busy desiccating, swathing, combining and finishing up haying operations.


text:
Richard Wolff Economic Update
On Economic Update with Professor Richard Wolff, Wolff and guests discuss the economic crisis, both local and global. The show focuses on wages, jobs, taxes, debts, interest rates, prices and profits. Wolff aims to explain why certain economic changes are happening and other changes get postponed or blocked, and explore alternative ways to organize enterprises, markets and government policies. Economic Update is a show for people who want to understand and change not only their own financial situation but also the larger economy we all depend on.
For podcasts see http://rdwolff.com/podcasts/feed/1.


text:
SWbemObject.Put_ method
The Put_ method of SWbemObject creates or updates an instance or a class object to Windows Management Instrumentation (WMI). You can use this method after you modify any properties or methods in an SWbemObject, and your changes are written to WMI.
For an explanation of this syntax, see Document Conventions for the Scripting API.
- iFlags [in, optional]
This parameter determines if the call creates or updates the class or instance and if the call returns immediately. This parameter can accept the following values.
Value Meaning
- wbemChangeFlagUpdateCompatible
- 0 (0x0)
Allows a class to be updated if there are no derived classes and there are no instances for that class. It also allows updates in all cases if the change is just to unimportant qualifiers (for example, the Description qualifier). This is the default behavior for this call and is used for compatibility with previous versions of WMI. If the class has instances the update fails.
- wbemChangeFlagUpdateSafeMode
- 32 (0x20)
Allows updates of classes even if there are child classes if the change does not cause any conflicts with child classes. You can use this flag when adding a new property to a base class that was not previously mentioned in any of the child classes. If the class has instances the update fails. If the class has instances the update fails.
- WbemChangeFlagUpdateForceMode
- 64 (0x40)
This flag forces updates of classes when conflicting child classes exist. For example, this flag will force an update if a class qualifier was defined in a child class, and the base class tries to add the same qualifier and in conflict with the existing one. In force mode this conflict would be resolved by deleting the conflicting qualifier in the child class. If the class has instances the update will fail.
Using force mode to update a static class results in the deletion of all instances of that class. A forced update on a provider class does not delete instances of the class.
- wbemChangeFlagCreateOrUpdate
- 0 (0x0)
Causes the class or instance to be created if it does not exist or overwritten if it exists already.
- wbemChangeFlagCreateOnly
- 2 (0x2)
Used for creation only. The call fails if the class or instance already exists.
- wbemChangeFlagUpdateOnly
- 1 (0x1)
Causes this call to update. The class or instance must exist for the call to be successful.
- wbemFlagReturnImmediately
- 16 (0x10)
Causes the call to return immediately.
- wbemFlagReturnWhenComplete
- 0 (0x0)
Causes this call to block until the query has completed.
- wbemFlagUseAmendedQualifiers
- 131072 (0x20000)
Causes WMI to write class amendment data as well as the base class definition. For more information about amended qualifiers, see Localizing WMI Class Information.
- objwbemNamedValueSet [in, optional]
Typically, this is undefined. Otherwise, this is an SWbemObjectPath object whose elements represent the context information that can be used by the provider that is servicing the request. A provider that supports or requires such information must document the recognized value names, data type of the value, allowed values, and semantics.
Return value
If the call is successful, an SWbemObjectPath object is returned. This object contains the object path of the instance or class that has been successfully committed to WMI.
Error codes
After the completion of the Put_ method, the Err object may contain one of the error codes in the following table.
|Error (Name/Dec/Hex)
Current user does not have permission to update an instance of the specified class.
The wbemChangeFlagCreateOnly flag was specified, but the instance already exists.
Unspecified error.
A value of Nothing was specified for a property that may not be Nothing. An example of such a property is one marked by a Key, Indexed, or Not_Null qualifier.
The specified instance is not valid.
A specified parameter is not valid.
The wbemChangeFlagUpdateOnly flag was specified, but the instance or class does not exist.
Required properties for classes have not all been set.
Not enough memory to complete the operation.
Minimum supported client
|Windows Vista
Minimum supported server
|Windows Server 2003
Type library
See also


text:
TA's Corner (where the important stuff is!)
Class newsgroup read often!
General description
Bonnie Dorr (firstname.lastname@example.com) and Christof Monz (email@example.com).
Office hours:
Bonnie Dorr: Fridays (but please send an email to make sure that Dr. Dorr is in the office)
Christof Monz: Wednesdays after class
Teaching Assistant:
Adam Lee (email@example.com)
Office hours: Mondays and Tuesdays 4-5pm (room: 1151 AV Williams Building)
Dan Jurafsky and James Martin, "Speech and Language Processing: An Introduction to Natural Language Processing, Speech Recognition, and Computational Linguistics", Prentice-Hall (2000). Make sure to check the errata for the textbook as you do your readings.)
Course DescriptionGeneral statement.
This course is an introduction to computational linguistics. It
assumes some basic familiarity with linguistics and programming. We
will be covering traditional foundations of computational linguistics
areas such as finite-state methods, n-gram modeling, Hidden Markov
Models, context-free and extended context-free models of syntax,
parsing, and semantic interpretation; basics of more recent
corpus-based and stochastic methods; and some selection of application
areas from among such topics as machine translation, lexical
acquisition, speech recognition, and information retrieval. Concepts
taught in class will be reinforced in practice by hands-on programming
Course Requirements
There is a 10% late penalty for late assignments and projects. Assignments or projects turned in more than 3 days late will receive no credit. Assignments are due at 11:59 pm of the due date. For instance assignments due on Sep 22, should be submitted the latest at 11:59 pm on Sep 22.
Click here for the official policy for excused absence from exams.
1 2 total
exam 25% 25% 50%
project 15% 15% 30%
assignment 10% 10% 20%
Please note the late-penalty specification above.
Bonnie Dorr Phone: (301) 405-6768
Computer Science Department
3153 AV Williams Building
University of Maryland
College Park, MD 20742 USA
Christof Monz Phone: (301) 405-1139
Computer Science Department
3161 AV Williams Building
University of Maryland
College Park, MD 20742 USA
By far the best way to reach us is by e-mail to
email@example.com and email@example.com.
(or you may risk spam filtering).
This page is last updated on August 28, 2004.


text:
Nokia N81
Info Photos Reviews 4 News Forum
Replying to: No U.S. 3G!!! So Sad by cellguy23
Re: No U.S. 3G!!! So Sad
CDMA 2100 is the same frequency as T-Mobile's 3G but not AT&T's. I think it's a very good possibility that T-Mobile will pick it up. I'm a rep and I haven't heard anything official (nor would I say anything if I had due to company policy), but I really wish we'd get these.
No replies to this message


text:
Honorable Mention: Soccer-NASL: Vancouver Whitecaps @ Crystal Palace Baltimore (Saturday 5pm Paul Angelo Russo Stadium-Calvert Hall), MLS: DC United @ Toronto FC (Saturday 4pm from Toronto live on Comcast SportsNet and MLS Direct Kick); Mixed Martial Arts: Shine Fights (Friday 9pm from Oklahoma live on Pay-Per-View)
10. Lady Gaga (Tuesday 8pm Verizon Center); Buckcherry/Flyleaf/Charm City Devils/Sick Puppies (Thursday 6pm Power Plant Live), Blues Traveler (Friday 8pm Power Plant Live); Kottonmouth Kings (Saturday 7pm Rams Head Live), Toadies (Sunday 7pm Rams Head Live), Seether (Monday 7pm Rams Head Live); Pat McGee (Saturday 8:30pm Rams Head On Stage), Ozomatli (Monday 8pm Rams Head On Stage); Big Boi (Wednesday 7pm 9:30 Club); Blondie (Wednesday 8:30pm State Theatre); Deadliest Catch Live (Wednesday 8pm Lyric Opera House); York Fair (Friday-Monday York Fairgrounds); Maryland Seafood Festival (Friday-Sunday Sandy Point State Park); In The Street Festival (Saturday 11am Market Street & Carroll Creek Linear Park Frederick)
I'm leaving Lady Gaga alone. I'm probably the only one in the world who will do that. Trust me, I find her just as fascinating as the rest of you-but there's NO chance I'd pay money to go see her live.
You see what you made me do? I spent 42 words on Lady Gaga. Ugh.
Moving on, I'm a much bigger fan of Flyleaf than you'd ever realize…
I WILL be attending Blues Traveler after the Purple Party Friday night. John Popper and I are kindred souls…
"Possum Kingdom" might be the only song I'm really interested in seeing the Toadies do, but it's really a hell of a song…
I LOVE Outkast in a way that doesn't fit the love I feel for a lot of other things in the world. Big Boi's new record is freaking TREMENDOUS, if not necessarily Safe For Work…
9. EA Sports NHL 11 available in stores for XBox 360/PS3 (Tuesday)
If I had time to play NHL 11, there is no doubt that I would somehow find a way to make Viktor Tikhonov the greatest player in the league.
By the way, if I DID play NHL 11-there would be a 100% chance you'd see a Jason Lee/Jeremy London type moment from "Mallrats" with me…
"Hartford, the Whale? They beat Vancouver once, maybe twice in a lifetime."
If you get the reference, you're a winner. And I offer this to you as a prize. Oh but once again, it isn't necessarily the type of prize that has language completely safe for work…
8. Golf: PGA Tour FedEx Cup Playoffs-BMW Championship (Thursday & Friday 3pm live on Golf Channel, Saturday 12pm Sunday 2pm live on NBC. All golf from Lemont, Illinois); LPGA Tour P&G NW Arkansas Championship Presented by Walmart (Friday 12:30pm, Saturday & Sunday 4pm from Rogers, Arkansas live on Golf Channel); Champions Tour Posco E&C Songdo Championship (Friday-Sunday 6:30pm from Songdo, Korea live on Golf Channel); Team USA Ryder Cup Selection Show (Tuesday 10:30am Golf Channel)
A week after some dude named Matt Kuchar won a golf tournament, some dude named Charley Hoffman won the next one. I'm not even kidding about this-when I heard Charley Hoffman had won a playoff event, I thought "Brandt" from The Big Lebowski had somehow been victorious.
Oh and also, Tiger Woods is still mediocre. Which is (I guess) enough to warrant coverage on SportsCenter. Frankly, I'd prefer more table tennis highlights myself…
7. Auto Racing-NASCAR Air Guard 400 (Saturday 7:30pm from Richmond live on ABC)
I'd like to pretend I care about this. I know Rex Snider is taking some sort of bus trip down to Richmond Saturday, but it just isn't my type of thing. Not because I'm shallow-minded, but more because I just like to actually be ENTERTAINED when I spend my entertainment dollar.
Speaking of entertaining, this Oregon Trail-related photo qualifies (Thanks Gorilla Mask!)…
6. High School Football: Southern @ Glen Burnie (Friday 6:30pm), Overlea @ Perry Hall (Friday 7pm)
Uh oh.
You mean to tell me that Overlea-home of the Falcons-is facing Perry Hall-home of the mighty Gators-Friday night?
You're going down, dad.
5. Basketball: FIBA World Championships-Team USA vs. Russia quarterfinal (Thursday 11am from Istanbul, Turkey live on ESPN), Semifinals and Final (Friday-Sunday from Istanbul live on ESPN)
HOLY CRAP I LOVE THIS. USA-Russia?!?!?!? DOWN WITH THE SOVIETS!!!
Let's do to them what we did to Ivan Drago…
4. Pro Wrestling: WWE Smackdown (Tuesday 6:45pm from 1st Mariner Arena-airs Friday 8pm on MyNetwork24)
Despite the fact that there's way too much Jack Swagger, Big Show, Rey Mysterio and Cody Rhodes on Smackdown, I still kinda dig it. Undertaker is a rock star, Kane is underrated, and the combination of CM Punk, Matt Hardy and Christian is completely underused.
And oh yeah-they also have Rosa Mendes…
3. College Football: Morgan State @ Maryland (Saturday 6pm from Byrd Stadium live on ESPN3.com); Georgia Southern @ Navy (Saturday 3:30pm from Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium live on CBS College Sports)
The Terrapins may have been fortunate to survive the "Crab Bowl Classic" against the Midshipmen; but the fact remains that they ARE 1-0.
The other fact remains that Kenny Tate has earned himself a few free dinners in the future…
2. Tennis: U.S. Open (Tuesday-Thursday 11am live on Tennis Channel 7pm live on ESPN2, Friday 12:30pm live on CBS, Saturday 12pm-mens semifinals 8pm-Women's Final live on CBS, Sunday 1pm Women's Doubles Final live on ESPN2 4pm Men's Final live on CBS. All tennis from New York)
At this point, I think it's fair to say I'm COMPLETELY FREAKING OUT about heading up to Flushing Meadows Sunday. There's roughly 0.1% chance an American will be there (no pressure Sam Querrey), but if it's Roger Federer-Rafael Nadal everything will be cool in my book.
And you don't even need to bother asking. I WILL be purchasing a few of these while I'm in The Big Apple…
1. NFL: Monday Night Football-Baltimore Ravens @ New York Jets (Monday 7pm from East Rutherford, New Jersey live on ESPN); WNST "Purple Friday" Pep Rally (Friday 5pm Sports Legends at Camden Yards)
Oh. Thank. God.
Me personally, I think it will be cool not only to see the Ravens back in action Monday night, but also to see some of my favorite reality TV stars like Antonio Cromartie and Rex Ryan…
Flexing my mic muscles since 1983…


text:
NVIDIA Forceware 295.73
|Written by Omegadrive
|Tuesday, February 21, 2012
NVIDIA has released a set of WHQL drivers supporting GeForce 6, 7, 8, 9, 100, 200, 300, 400 and 500-series desktop GPUs and ION desktop GPUs for Windows XP, Windows Vista and Windows 7 in 32 and 64 Bit flavors.
This is the first WHQL-certified driver from the R295 family of drivers. It is the recommended upgrade for all GeForce users, especially those playing the latest hot PC games like Battlefield 3, Diablo III, Mass Effect 3, or The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim. These drivers come packed with GeForce-exclusive performance and quality enhancements and are now Microsoft WHQL-certified. Read the full GeForce 295.73 driver article on GeForce.com.
This driver package supports GeForce 6, 7, 8, 9, 100, 200, 300, 400, and 500-series desktop GPUs as well as ION desktop GPUs.
R295 Highlight Summary
R295 Highlight Details
Ambient Occlusion
NVIDIA 3D Vision
NVIDIA PhysX
NVIDIA Surround
HD Audio
Battlefield 3
Other Details


text:
WDL Premium: Type Explosions Vector Pack
Here's a high-quality vector pack for our WDL Premium Members. Type Explosions from Go Media is a collection of splattery typography pieces with a little extra character (pun intended!). Perfect for anything that needs grunged up but with a cool touch of typography. These would work great to add a sense of randomness or chaos to your design.
Be sure to check out Go Media's Arsenal for more awesome vectors, brushes, and more.
There are 15 vectors in all. Here is a preview of some of them.
Download Type Explosions Vector Pack
About the Artist
Go Media is a well known design studio with a lot of passion for what they do. This passion definitely comes through in their Arsenal, which is a collection of high quality, hand crafted design elements that they've made available through an online store.
3 Comments
Jordan WalkerMay 27, 2010
nice set of explosion vectors. Would be a great addition to a modernistic design.
LairaMay 27, 2010
Great set of vector pack…really useful..thanks…
Elizabeth AlbertJune 1, 2010
Getting an error trying to download these.