A super quick Rainbow Brite giveaway! UPDATED WITH A WINNER!

UPDATED WITH A WINNER!
Janet said...
Love the Moonglow doll.
February 28, 2010 6:57 PM

Janet, you are the winner! I need your name/address ASAP! My email is waffle 1313@ gmail.com or you could post it to me on "the board". :)



This is last minute Sunday afternoon / Monday morning giveaway! I was selected to receive a Rainbow Brite doll from MomSelect and Hallmark, and it is SO cute! These are SUCH a flashback to my childhood. I was so excited to get it! There are three dolls available - Rainbow Brite, Tickled Pink, and Moonglow. I got Rainbow Brite and she is adorable. She has a fun blue dress, bright yellow hair, and striped boots. I want to dress like her! :) You can see them all here - Rainbow Brite through Hallmark.

If you go to that your website you can see animations, games and activities, downloads, and products. It is all very cute!

One lucky commenter will also get to receive a Rainbow Brite doll! It will be either Rainbow Brite, Moonglow, or Tickled Pink. Which doll you get will be a surprise! I will be selecting a winner Monday late morning. Just leave a comment here and tell me which doll you like the best! :)

And the winner of the Wanchai Ferry & Target giveaway is ......

Gavin's mom! The VW's, you are the winner!! :) I had Monkey draw a name out of all the entries. Email me your name/address and I will have them send your prize package right out!

Thanks again to MyBlogSpark for this opportunity. :)

Freaking out!!

Peanut's sees a dietician through her metabolic doctor's office. She works out our recipe for blenderized food, as well as orders the formula and calorie supplement we use overnight. She emailed me this week because we have an appointment tomorrow (Thursday). She said that we need to change the formula Peanut gets at night, which she has gotten since she was 2 years old. She's on Neocate Infant, and has never tolerated the Junior or Plus One or whatever the big kid versions are called. She can't do milk or soy, so this is the only one we've found for her. The dietician says that Neocate Infant now has MCT oil in it, which is totally contradicted with her metabolic disorder. It is the exact type of fat that her body cannot break down! So I researched it a bit ... it turns out the MCT oil is in the DHA and ARA version. The version which we were switched over to during the early SUMMER! Keep in mind that Peanut had never had seizures until August of last year. Three months after her formula started containing MCT oil, which she can't digest and builds up in her body as toxins.

Coincidence?!?!? It doesn't seem like it. So we meet tomorrow to discuss this, and figure out what formula to change her to. I really want to know if this could have started her seizures! If so, it seems like something the dietician should have caught a loooong time ago. If this is the cause of her seizures, I wonder if it's possible to stop them by switching formula, or if the damage is already done.

Seriously, I am so upset about the potential that these two things are connected .... I hope and pray that the dietician has come up with a new formula for us to use! I am not going to keep her on this one any longer, that's for sure!

UPDATED TO ADD - I just got off the phone with our DME company. We were switched from regular Neocate Infant to Neocate Infant with DHA and ARA in the very beginning of August last year. Her seizures started the end of August! Could it be???

A day at the Science Museum

We went a while back to the Science Museum. If you are a Bank of America customer, do you know about the Museum benefits? Check them out for sure! So we went to the museum, and Peanut walked in her gait trainer for the majority of the time. She had a blast! It was awesome to see her walk right up to the exhibits and touch everything. She used to be so sensory defensive that she wouldn't touch a thing. Now she reaches out for it all. It was SO much fun! It was obvious that most people in the museum had never seen a gait trainer, and we certainly got some funny looks. Peanut was happy though, and that's what's important! Monkey and Daddy even laid on a bed of nails! When we stopped playing to eat lunch, we put her in her Cruiser (stroller chair). She fell asleep while we ate.








We went outside and did the Dino thing, and it was a blast. We are already looking at which museum to go to this month through Bank of America! :)

Wanchai Ferry and Target Review and Giveaway!

I was lucky to be given a chance to try Wanchai Ferry frozen entrees through MyBlogSpark, along with a gift pack! It included two bamboo place mats, two cute rice bowls, two sets of silver chopsticks, flavored fortune cookies, a coupon for Wanchai Ferry frozen entree, and a $25 Target gift card!

I headed to my closest Target and was disappointed to not find the Wanchai Ferry entrees there. I ended up going to three Target's (yes, it is insane that I have three Targets within ten minutes of me LOL), and none of them had these entrees. Only one of the Target's even had a spot for them, and they were sold out. I used my $25 gift card for normal Target shopping (shampoo, baby wipes, etc) and ended up getting the Wanchai Ferry entree at my grocery store.

My son, Monkey, LOVES orange chicken. He would eat it every night. So that is the entree I chose of course! The other options were Shrimp Lo Mein, Spicy Garlic Chicken, Sweet & Sour Chicken, and Sweet & Spicy Shrimp. The Orange Chicken was a HUGE hit with Monkey and the Dad of the house. I didn't like it one bit, but I don't like sweet on my meat much. They loved it, and ate the entire package! It says it's two servings and it really was. Perhaps they should consider making a family size package? That would probably be a huge hit!



It came with breaded white meat chicken, vegetables, the sauce, and white rice that cooks in the microwave. It was a full meal! I added edamame beans and the boys were in heaven. The flavored fortune cookies at the end of the meal were good too, I wonder if you can buy those somewhere.

If you want to try the Wanchai Ferry meals right now, head to http://www.wanchaiferry.com/ and you can print out a coupon to save $1.50. Also there are great meal tips to enhance your Wanchai Ferry frozen entrée available at http://www.wanchaiferry.com/MealTips.aspx.

So, here's the deal! I am able to give away a package of all the same goodies I got! It will have the coupon for the free entree ... the bowls, place mats, chopsticks, cookies, and Target card!! How awesome is that? All you have to do is leave a comment here and tell me which of the entree flavors sounds the best to you. I will draw a winner on Wednesday, February 24th!

The coupon, prize pack, information and additional prize pack to give away were all given to mefrom Wanchai Ferry through MyBlogSpark.

Taking Monkey to the pediatrician at 11:40.

Wish us luck. I hope she can push her way through the ENT's thinking enough to get us some relief NOW!

Home from the ER

We're home. The ER thinks that his Ambien needs to be stopped immediately, which I agree with. Unfortunately, he has serious sleep apnea. The ENT can't get us in for 3-4 weeks to remove his tonsils and adnoids, and then says he thinks that will only have a 50/50 chance of helping his apnea. His tonsils are hardly enlarged at all. He wants to try it first though before resorting to CPAP. My thinking is that he needs CPAP now - while we want those weeks! The ER guy agreed, and said sending a kid home with a sleep study as bad as his was is not right. I have to call the pediatrician at 8am and get in tomorrow for a follow-up and to figure out what we are doing next.

So here's what we think happened. The Ambien caused dizziness and while running in PE, he fell. He got up and ran again and fell .. over and over. Why the hell the PE teachers didn't notice this, I don't know. I will for sure be talking to the principal tomorrow! When he fell, he hit his head and got a concussion and a some sprained fingers.

The poor dude was so disoriented, throwing up (trying to, past his fundoplication), babbling nonsense, hardly able to walk. It was really scary. Luckily the CT scan showed no damage. They were really concerned for a while which freaked me out.

He is home and sleeping now. They gave him Ativan, and told me that he was okay to sleep. Hopefully he'll wake up feeling better. Bummer thing is that he was supposed to start tennis lessons today.

In the ER with Monkey

The scool nurse said he was dizzy and disoriented. I picked him up, he seemed drunk. He was stumbling around and making no sense when he talked. Took him to the ER. He told me in the car he fell during PE. CT scan was normal. Friends at school say he fell running a lap. Stood up, kept falling. Was talking but not making sense.

We're in the ER waiting for amswers.

Microcephaly Convention

The third annual Foundation for Children With Microcephaly convention is in June. I would love to attend again with my Peanut. Last year it was in our backyard, so we were lucky. This year it's a 7 hour hour car ride away. Do-able .... but financially? I don't know. I am going to start some fundraising on this site I think. We are in the process of starting our own business as it is, so how awesome for the first proceeds to go towards this convention?

I will be posting more soon. :)

And the winner is ......

Alicia!! :) Congratulations Alicia! I put all your names on slips of paper and had Monkey draw one from a tupperware.

I need your full name and mailing address! You can send it to me at waffle1313 @ gmail.com (With no spaces of course).

Congratulations!

Win a $50 Grocery Store Gift Card!

I was thrilled to participate in a review through MyBlogSpark recently! I was lucky enough to receive a coupon for a free multi-pack of Yoplait Fiber One yogurts, as well as a $50 gift card to Safeway stores! We don't have Safeways here, so I made my way to their sister store, Vons Pavilion. There are four flavors available - strawberry, peach, key lime pie, and vanilla. I picked up a four pack of strawberry Yoplait Fiber One and came home to try it out.



Not only is this yogurt smooth, creamy, and delicious, but check out these health benefits! 50 calories, 5 grams of fiber (that's 20% of your recommended daily intake), and 0 grams of fat! It's Hungry Girl approved, and has zero points (for you Weight Watchers).

I enjoyed the yogurt as breakfast, along with a banana. Later that afternoon I enjoyed a second yogurt as a snack. The cups are 4 ounces each, so they are a perfect snack.

Now comes the GREAT part! Not only did *I* get to enjoy this delicious yogurt and a Safeway gift card, but so can YOU!! :) I am allowed to give away to one reader a $50 gift card as well! Here's what you need to do. Comment and tell me which flavor you would select! That's it. Could it be any easier? :) For a second entry, FOLLOW this blog! If you are already a follower, just let me know!

The last piece of good news is almost expired, but worth sharing. Until tomorrow, Februaury 9th, the four packs of Yoplait Fiber One are on sale at Safeway/Vons for 2 for $4.00. What a steal! And to make that steal even nicer, follow this link for a coupon to save $0.75 on your purchase.

The VIP coupon, gift card, information, and giveaway have been provided by Safeway and Fiber One through MyBlogSpark. Thank you to MyBlogSpark and Safeway for giving me this opportunity!

Obstructive Sleep Apnea

Monkey that is, not Peanut.

His sleep study results are in. He was only in REM sleep for 9% of his sleep time, normal is 25-40% according to the pediatrician. He had multiple episodes of "arousal" - their word for sitting up and talking in his sleep without waking up. He had numerous apneic episodes in which his O2 levels dropped.

So now we go to the ENT, and get his tonsils and adnoids taken out. Hopefully that will solve the problems. Now to get this kid through surgery. He has the highest anxiety levels of any 9 year old I've ever met. He was literally hyperventilating today when I was talking to him about it, over the thought of getting an IV.

Cross your fingers that we can get this taken care of quickly!

The Life That's Chosen Me

Have you all heard this song? Oh man ... I read the lyrics somewhere and had to google them to hear the song. Watching this video with tears streaming down my cheeks.

The Life That's Chosen Me (written by Karen Taylor-Good and Lisa Aschmann)

We had such expectations, we would soon be giving birth
To the next Chopin, the next Einstein, the greatest child on earth
And we'd be the perfect family, soon we'd have the perfect kid
We'd never have a challenge or a problem, God forbid
Oh but Life had different plans, so I need for you to understand

Don't desert me, don't ignore
I need friends now more than I ever did before
Show compassion but please don't pity me
I'm a parent just like you, it's true
But I have special needs
I need you to notice that my life's different from yours
I need you not to judge me, don't condemn and don't keep score
I'd love an extra pair of hands, or just a hug or two
I need you to acknowledge that I carry more than you
Got the world here on my back, so I just thought I would ask

Don't desert me, don't ignore
I need friends now more than I ever did before
What you take for granted comes so hard for me
I'm a parent just like you, it's true
But I have special needs

I need answers, I need help, it's so much work
And a miracle or two sure wouldn't hurt

Don't desert me, don't ignore
I need friends now more than I ever did before
It's not the life that I'd have chosen, but it's the life that's chosen me
I'm a parent just like you, it's true
But I have special needs

I need you to listen, I need you to care
I need your understanding, I need you just to be there
I need your friendship, maybe a hug or two
Oh God I need a miracle.........

I made a button thingy!

So many of you have such great picture button thingys on your blogs. You know, the ones that your friends can display on their blogs, as a link to get to your blog? Well I am not very good at computer graphic stuff .... so I made one as a trial. What do you think? I know, not very exciting. Is anyone better at this, willing to take this picture and make it even more cute??

A Race Well Run Indeed

EMMA ELIZABETH DUNNAM
March 1, 2006 - February 1, 2010

Rest in peace little one. You have touched the hearts of so many people who have never "met" you in real life.