The Harnation

So, after over a month of weaning myself from dairy and soy, I can tell a marked difference in Anne Marie's overall demeanor.

Now she cries when she's supposed to cry (like when she's tired or hungry, or just wants me) instead of all. the. time.

In fact, I had her all to myself for three full days recently and she hardly cried at all.  We went hours and hours with no fussing.  We played.  We talked.  We laughed.  We enjoyed each other.  It's been so incredibly wonderful.




What's not been so wonderful is how restrictive this diet is.

I mean, seriously.  Do you have any idea just HOW MUCH stuff has dairy or soy in it?  Let's just suffice to say that it's in almost everything processed or baked, even 99% of salad dressings use soybean oil.  And forget Chinese takeout (sniff).

I've never been a label reader, but I'm finding that I have to be very diligent about what I do and do not eat.  My last trip to the grocery store involved 85% of my time reading labels, 10% entertaining Anne Marie, and really only about 5% shopping or checking out. I'm having to ask for the allergen menu at restaurants only to find out that I have maybe one option to order.

AM has proved to be sensitive enough that just a couple of bites of mashed potatoes with butter will affect her.  I started out by only cutting the obvious dairy/soy sources (no milk, cheese, soy sauce, tofu, etc.), but still had baked goods with butter or other things like that.



Now I'm trying to be much more consistent.  It's hard.  I'm hungry sometimes.  I've lost five pounds.  I feel a little trapped, though, since AM will go an entire day without taking a bottle if she so feels, so for now this is really our only option.

I reeeeally miss things with butter and cheese.

I don't miss those five pounds.

I'm hoping she'll get better about taking a bottle and am also looking forward to her starting solids.  I'm also crossing my fingers that she grows out of this quickly (although the thought of "challenging" her to see if she's outgrown it completely terrifies me).

In the meantime, I've been able to find some good substitutes for the essentials.  Some of this stuff is so good that I imagine I'll be craving it even when I can have the "real" stuff again.



That coconut ice cream is good.  Too bad it costs and arm and a leg!  The rice milk "cheese" is only okay because it's pepper jack.  I've really just had to start making most of my own snacks (like the homemade granola) because it's so hard to find good snack food. 

I have been able to add nuts back into my diet (which has allowed me to drink almond milk, providing a lot more options for cooking!).  I hope to add eggs back soon.  I decided not to test soy anytime soon as I'm pretty sure AM is sensitive to that. 

Overall, I have to keep telling myself that this is really no big deal.  I have a tendency to get a little sad for myself sometimes and feel emotional about all of the food that I miss eating (who knew that food could make me cry?!).  Anne Marie is happy (well, she was until she cut that second tooth this week) and more importantly - she's not HURTING. 

So worth it.

We believe that baptism is a sign of God's covenant with us an we claim that covenant on behalf of our children.  We don't believe that it saves our children, is a requirement or means of salvation, or that it is a guarantee that they will grow into the faith that we profess.

31 And they said, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household.” 32 And they spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all who were in his house. 33 And he took them the same hour of the night and washed their wounds; and he was baptized at once, he and all his family.

Acts 16:31-33

When I gave you up, I hardly knew how I'd survive.  For the last year, I've tried to find substitutes to fill the void, but it just hasn't been the same. 

Now that you miraculously appeared, I am reminded how much I loved you.

I admit it, I'm addicted.

To my satellite radio.

It's sad.

When we sold my hardtop convertible last fall in favor of a more "responsible" 4-door sedan ("mom" car?), we turned off the SiriusXM radio in the old car and didn't renew it in the sedan.

It really sucked, but I have somehow managed to survive without satellite radio.  In fact, I used to think that paying for radio was ridiculous.  I mean, who PAYS for radio?!  When we bought the Eos, it came with a free trial of Sirius satellite radio, and I became hooked.

They started charging me quarterly.

And I never cancelled.

Until we sold the Eos.

For the last year, I've just been listening to regular radio, often to my own disgust.  Much to my chagrin, the local rock station that used to broadcast Auburn football games and "Rick and Bubba" (I'm providing these as two examples of their good taste and family values) was now inundating me with live interviews of "adult entertainment stars" and constant strip club ads.

Yuck.

Who wants to listen to that?  I guess some people, but not me.

Can't a girl just get ACDC without the smut?

Maybe that's an oxymoron.

Anyway, Anne Marie and I have managed survive with just NPR on the way to "Big Daddy's" in the morning, but it just wasn't quite the same.  It's hard to jam out when you're tuned into "All Things Considered".

And then SiriusXM had to go and turn my satellite radio back on for a free trial.

Crap.

Congratulations, SiriusXM guys.  Your marketing ploy works on this sucker.  I am unable to give you up.  

I LOVE having it back on.  I've missed my music.  I've missed the decided lack of "smut" from the local radio guys, and I've definitely missed the bass of the (standard-equipped, but very capable) speaker system in my car.

I've miss how GOOD the music actually sounds in my car. 

I think Anne Marie likes it too.  She's cried a whole lot less in the car the last two weeks than she ever has.  I'm sure it has nothing to do with the fact that her system is now pretty clear of dairy/soy, and that it's really all due to the introduction of Muse, XX, and Arcade Fire into her audial repertoire. 

So, what to do?  I went back and forth about it, but just couldn't justify paying full price for radio, no matter how much I love it.  For a girl too cheap to get cable TV, ~$200 a year for radio is just another luxury that I can forgo.

Then they offered five months for $25.  I took the offer, and just knowing how it worked out last time, I'll probably "forget" to cancel at the end of the term.

Honey, if you're reading this, they said that they'd give us a whole year for $7/mo if you call before the end of my 5 month special offer.  :o)