Bananas for Baxter

Whew......the past 4 weeks have been tough. Love Bug has always had some cradle cap and a crusty ear. Well it all got worse and he broke out with eczema head to toe. Then he started waking up every 2 hours at night because he was so itchy. Poor little guy. So off the the pediatricians office we went and then began our experimenting with different bath and body products. Well, after going to the pediatrician almost every week since he turned 3 months old and eliminating dairy from mommy's diet we thought, oh no, he's allergic to Baxter.

So last Monday we took Baxter to the kennel. We cleaned the house from top to bottom. Had Stanley Steamer clean the carpet and couches. And then guess what....the next day Love Bug broke out again. What could it be? So mommy eliminated eggs, chocolate and nuts (the dairy free granola bars had all sorts of nuts in them). We also made an appointment with a pediatric allergist.

Today we took Love Bug to the allergist. He was so good. Everyone in the office was also incredibly nice. His appointment went really well. They were actually able to do a skin test to see what he's allergic to.

The results: milk, clams, almonds (remember the granola bars), and bananas!

Bananas? Really, that's so odd. But we now know not to give him bananas, which also happen to be a very common first food. And did you know bananas can be related to a latex allergy? We're going to ask about that at his next appt.

Roo loves bananas, has one every single morning when we leave the house. We'll have to worry about how we'll manage that later on. For now he can keep eating his bananas.

And Baxter, we're going to pick him up from the kennel tomorrow. Hopefully he enjoyed his all expenses paid vacation.

Oh, and if you happen upon this blog and wonder what skin products have worked best for the eczema, because it really is a battle of trial and error...we've found that applying either Vaseline or Aquaphor Ointment and then putting on the cortisone/Eucerin mix has worked very well for the itching and healing. We're using Cetaphil for his soap/shampoo.

Welcome home B, we missed you!

3 Months and 2 1/2 and a Pet Named Pet

Love Bug just turned 3 months old this week. It's hard to believe how fast he's growing. And Roo turns 2 1/2 next week. It's hard to believe that earlier this year we were worried about how much he was talking...now he's talking up a storm and his words are so much more understandable.

Love Bug decided to go through a growth spurt this last week. It's been a bit rough for mommy because he likes to eat his extra at night instead of during the day. In fact the sitter said that he doesn't eat much at all during the day. He seems to eat less than Roo did when he was a baby, but still at 3 months he's starting to wear his 6-9 month clothes!

Love Bug has also hit a few milestones. Not only does he smile all the time, he talks up a storm and he laughs now too. He can hold his hands together and even do little baby push ups. You wouldn't believe that even just last week he would only be happy on his tummy for a few moments, now he doesn't mind being on his tummy for a few minutes. Soon enough he'll be rolling over.

Love Bug is still spending his nights in the swing. Mommy tried him in the crib last night and he did ok for his first stretch of sleep but couldn't fall back to sleep after he got up. Tonight mommy decided that she's too tired to even attempt the crib. Maybe when he's 4 months old!

Roo also appears to have gone through a growth spurt. He looks taller and a bit leaner..this would probably explain all the eating the past couple of weeks. Roo has also started to show a lot more affection towards his little brother. He makes sure to give him a big hug and kiss every night before bed. He hugs are great too, they come with him saying awwwwww......

Roo also got a new pet, a male beta that he named Pet. Mommy and daddy got it for him while we were out and about skipping work one day. We called Uncle Matt to get help with a name. We all decided Nemo would be a good name....easy to say because it sounds like Elmo. But, Roo had other ideas and likes to call him Pet.

We also finally made the trip up to see Grandma and Grandpa. We had a good visit and the boys got to see their Bubbie (Great Grandma). When Roo woke up the next morning the first thing he said was "where's Uncle Matt?" We're pretty sure Uncle Matt is his favorite person! It also occurred to us the other day that Love Bug is going to look up to Roo.............