Summer Season of Parades Begins

Well is you are not aware the Taylor girls most favorite summer activity is parades and fireworks. So this time of year is GREAT! We overslept for the Freedom Fest parade so we went to Fairfax for their parade! What a great place, Daddy ran into his friend Lance there as well. Next week we are going to the world famous Independence Iowa parade. We were thinking of heading into town for the free drive in theater at the CRBT for Hotel for Dogs, but we had been out running around all day and we are pooped. So pooped both Callie and Lynda crashed when they got home. Hope all is well with everyone. Lynda's skin is starting to break out from the heat so we are back in the mode of getting back on top of it. Callie and Lynda had a great week at vacation bible school learning their "moves" to the go fish songs as Callie puts it. Hope you all have a great week. Be safe with your food.

Happy 4th!

Summer is just a little sweeter this year....

Well yet another milestone. One of our worst memories of summer has been when the ice cream truck starts rolling down the street. Every year all the kids (and there are a lot) from our neighborhood would run and wait for the ice cream truck. Lynda always looked so sad. Sure we made her own Popsicle, but they weren't the same. Well the folks that come through our area got some that are Lynda safe and she was able to purchase her first Popsicle from the truck. She was grinning from ear to ear. It is such the little things in life.

Happy summer everyone!

Angel Food Ministries

Great news for all those allergy suffers out there. Angel Food Ministries has a program where you can get $60.00 worth of food for $30.00 bucks. No qualification needed, just submit your order and you are in. It is a great deal. Now for the new and exciting news.... They have an Allergen Free Box. Here is what their website says:

ALLERGEN-FREE BOX

Processed to eliminate the eight top serious allergens: Peanuts, Soybeans, Milk, Eggs, Fish, Crustacea, Tree Nuts and Gluten (wheat, rye and barley). Great for children and adults!

A link to this months menu can be found HERE!

Support this great cause and get great food to eat. Hope this helps out someone! Have a great afternoon. 2 days until Gage's benefit!

Graduation Weekend

Lynda's oldest brother Matt graduated from High School yesterday. We had a great party and had a bonfire past midnight. Lynda's skin has been a bit iffy the last couple of days, but she has been outside playing a lot and the pollen count for trees is through the roof. With the holiday weekend we have had lots of fun with the neighbor kids and all our visitors. Matt did great at graduation and we are a few weeks away from heading to the army. Ships off to South Carolina for basic. Looks like Laurie and Sean will be heading east for graduation again in a few weeks. All for now we have more to come very soon. Has been really busy getting through the end of the school year and Matt's graduation. Remember next weekend is Gage's fundraiser- head over to Ottumwa if you can. If you have anything for the auction Sean & Laurie will take it over there.

God Bless!

Gage's Benefit is finally Scheduled! Horay!

Hello All,

The benefit for Gage is set! Please see the flier posted here. We will be taking donations for the silent auction and donations on behalf of Gage here in Eastern Iowa and get them down for the benefit. If you or you business can help us get Gage there, please prayerfully consider whatever you can do. Gage's mom does not have the benefit of insurance like we did, so this bill will be HUGE! Help how you can.

Let me know if you have questions.

Allergic Reaction Day Three

Lynda is doing much better the redness is almost gone and the swelling is starting to come down. We did not have to seek medical attention this time. The only thing I can think of that would have brought on this reaction is that she slept with the wrong pillow. The pillow she got a hold of did not have the dust mite protective zipper cover. That pillow has since been removed from our home.

Allergic Reaction day two

Her face is still swollen and red. No other part of her body is being affected at this time. She is not having any breathing problems. Spoke with the doctor on call this morning and we are going to wait another day and see if she can turn the corner her at home. If she is still bad on Monday we will go to the doctor.
We are wet wrapping and giving Benadryl every 4 hours.

If any of the Mercy Hospital nurses are reading this we may be coming to see you soon.

Allergic Reaction to something....

We went through our normal bedtime routine of bath, lotion, brush teeth, singular. This morning when Lynda came into the living room I was shocked. Her face was swollen and red. I am talking very bright deep red. So we washed her face off, gave her some Benadryl and then put on her steroid cream and wet wrapped her face for two hours.

Two hours later her face is still swollen and red. She is playing right now with her sister. We will be doing another two hour wet wrap session in a little bit. I hope we we can fight this off here at home.

I will post a picture of her later.

Earlier this week we have been fighting an eczema flare on both of her arms. That has seemed to calm down now.

I found a Lynda safe play clay recipe that I am going to share with you. We made this today and both girls are having fun! We will be making a batch to take to school since she can not play with Play Dough. If she does play with it she has to wear latex free gloves. That isn't as much fun as getting your hands in there.

1/2 cup Rice Flour
1/2 cup Corn Starch
1/2 cup Salt
2 teaspoon Cream of Tarter
1 cup Water
1 teaspoon Cooking Oil
1 teaspoon Food Coloring

Combine all ingredients in a pot and cook over low heat until it forms a ball. When cool enough to touch, pat gently until smooth. When completely cool,store in an airtight container.

2nd Annual Allergy Free Game in CR

Hello everyone,

Well the night is finally here! We have our big game at Kernel's stadium tonight and we will have the table like last year with great info on food allergies. Lynda will be in attendance so come see us and learn more about this affliction. KNOWLEDGE IS POWER! We will have picutures and an update after the game. You still have time to go to the game and purchase a ticket.

"Take me out to the ball game....... give me no peanuts or cracker jacks.."

see you there!

The Taylor's

Gage's Video-

Hello all,

Our friend Gage who lives in Ottumwa also has severe food allergies and is desperately trying to get to National Jewish as well. He has heard about what it has done for Lynda and Jesse and would really like to go. Here is a link to Gage's Video:

Click Here!

Enjoy,

Have a safe weekend all. Laurie & I are celebrating our 12th Anniversary this weekend. Can you believe she has put up with me that long.

Sean

Easter is coming- scary time for food allergies

Well it is that time of the year again. Easter is coming and it is the worst time for someone with food allergies. Keeping a food allergic child safe this time of year is tough. In fact the last 2 years running Lynda has ended up in the hospital after Easter due to a reaction. Our goal this year is to keep her out of the hospital so we are being extra careful. Not attending some church celebrations, heading over to families houses for a few minutes vs the entire celebration.

Here are some ways to keep your food allergic child safe during this holiday:

1) Have your child wear gloves- most children do not wash their hands after eating candy (adults either)
2) Have your events not center around food and candy- give away trinkets, play games etc.
3) Minimize exposure- know the environments you are walking into
4) Expect that everywhere you go will be dangerous

I hope these tips help and keep you safe for the Holiday-
Remember to mark your calendars for April 21st for the 2nd Annual Food Allergy Awareness Night at the Ballpark! Kernels Stadium- Cedar Rapids, IA

Have a great holiday week.

The Taylor's

Spring Is Here and Lynda's eczema flares

We can always tell it is spring, because Lynda's eczema will flare. Historically we have been in the hospital every year around Easter. I know that Easter is only a few weeks away, let's hope this year is the year that we can break our record.

Yesterday and last night, we had to wet wrap both of her arms. She was scratching at them and I knew if we did not get those arms wrapped we would be heading for a full body flare. So out come the ace bandages and the steroid cream. She was still able to play outside as long as she had long sleeves on to cover up her wraps. She does not want the kids to see her arms wrapped. She is getting older and is sensitive to what other kids think of her.

At first she did not want me to wrap her arms. Once we got started she was fine. I told her that if we just do your arms and get them under control we might avoid having to wrap your whole body. We have come a long way with wet wraps. I can remember her screaming, crying, and fighting Sean and I every time we had to wrap her. Over time she has learned that the wraps calm down her skin and then she is at peace and can sleep.

I thank God everyday for the doctors and nurses who have taken care of Lynda and who have taught us how to care for her skin. Without them we would still be living the nightmare.

Another Hospital Visit.....

Hello All,

Just a note to let you all know Lynda visited the hospital late Sat night. She had a hard time breathing and we were not sure if she was suffering a delayed reaction, asthma issues or what. Her breathing got so labored we rushed her to the hospital. She ended having a bad case of the Croup! She spent the next couple nights in the hospital and had fun hanging out with her favorite nursing staff. They are so great up there in the peds unit, I hope you never have to visit there, but if you do they are the BEST! Lynda is doing great now. Here are a couple pics from the latest hospital visit.

Sean

Two weekends of Parties!

Hello All, I am really trying to post when I can. I have had a pretty full social calendar lately. A couple of weekends ago my friend from school had a birthday party at Pump It Up and Callie & I had a blast there. You can tell by our pictures. Then last weekend we went to Burlington to Fun City and played at our friend Thomas's birthday party! Wow that place was fun too. Dad won us both big stuffed animals at this claw game and he got a 3rd one for Matt. We got to go swimming at this water park there that is inside and has a huge bucket way up high and it dumps water out. Let me tell you when it comes down it will throw you back! Callie and I both did it (with dad's help). Once we got done swimming we went bowling they have a really cool bowling alley there with black lights and glowing lanes. We all bowled one game before dinner. I almost beat daddy! Next time I will get him. The we played video games for tickets and had dinner. What a blast. Both nights we were really tired from all the excitement.

Lynda Dee

2nd Annual Food Allergy Awareness Night at the Ballpark!

It's here again folks- Food Allergy Awareness night at the ball park! Please join the Taylor family at the Cedar Rapids Kernels vs. Clinton Lumber Kings on :

Tuesday April 21st
Gates Open at 5:30 PM
Admission is $6.50 until 4-20-09 Price at the gate $9.00


The Taylor family will be manning the FAAN table again this year. Stop by say hi! Get some info and learn more about food allergies. And for goodness sake ENJOY THE GAME!

- No products containing peanuts/tree nuts will be served at the concession stands
- The stadium will be cleaned of any remnants of nut residue before the game
- Alternative snacks will be served in the stands during the game

To purchase tickets call the Kernels Ticket Office at 896-7560 or in person the Ticket Office hours are: 10 am to 5 pm M-F, 10 am to 2 pm Sat. The ticket office opens March 16th.

A special thank you to the entire Kernels organization for continuing to support this great event. Last year we had so many parents come up to us and say this is the only professional baseball game they have ever been able to go to as a family. Please support this worth while event so the Kernels continue to allow us this family activity every year! We are hoping for a sell out this year, help us achieve that goal!

The Taylor's

Working with the School

We have had a great many people ask us about how we handle lunch at school and what precautions we put in place for Lynda to ensure her safety at school. So we thought we would post some pictures of some of the things the school (CPU is GREAT! ) has put into place to ensure Lynda's safety. They have signs posted in her classroom (Laurie made the poster with all her allergens on there as well as her safe foods) and they have outfitted her table in the lunch room with special graphics so other kids (and adults that work with Lynda) understand the rules at the lunch table. They also block off a chair on each side of her to give her a "safety zone". There is a staff member each day that is responsible for wiping down her area prior to her arrival and they check on her during the lunch time to monitor for reactions. I will tell you this works, just check out a couple posts ago. I hope this will help someone with their school. Remember Knowledge is POWER!

Sean & Laurie

Field Trip with Dad

Well today was our field trip to UNI (or Northern Iowa) for a play depicting 6 short stories. My daddy decided to take the day off of work and go with me on the bus and sit with me as we watch the plays. One of them was about Giving a Pig a Pancake! It was funny. When we got there we had to climb up all these stairs -daddy told me 5 flights- and we sat way up high. (in the one picture of me you can see the stage way in the background) I was glad my daddy was there because we were up so high. Daddy road the bus with me all the way up, we sat next to each other during the performance and he road back to school with me and took me to my room so I could wait for the other kids to get their milk for lunch. We had a great time. Daddy and I looked for animals and animal tracks in the snow on the bus ride and we looked for airplanes in the sky. We got to sit next to my friend Nicole on the way back. All in all it was a fun field trip- I want my daddy to do that again some time.

When the phone rings.....

Can be the most scary and unnerving feeling for a parent dealing with food allergies. That was the situation last week for Laurie and I. The morning the school called. Lynda accidentally got the wrong play doh in art class. Guess what play doh has Wheat in it! Me being 45 minutes away from the school and Laurie a good 25-30 that is the worst call to get. We are very fortunate the staff at our school is very hood and on the ball. One of the lunch room workers noticed Lynda was not looking right and breathing funny. She had rubbed the play doh into her eye and it started to react. The nurse at the school acted quickly and she was observed in the office for 2 hours. By the time I got home she did not look like she had a reaction. The point to this post is to encourage parents to work with your school. Drill and practice what happens when a reaction happens, because most reactions happy outside the home. Have someone desinated to be their champion and an expert on your child. We are so blessed to have this situation, but we started planning for it long before Lynda went to school. So tonight as she went off to "church school" I got one heck of a smile. Keep Safe

Sean

Happy New Year!

Hello All,
Welcome to 2009. Callie, Matt and I had a great Christmas and a fun New Years. Our cousins from California and Western Iowa came to visit and we had a couple fun filled days of hanging out and playing until we dropped. We went ice skating and shopping. 2009 has been cold so far and there has been a bunch of snow! Callie and I have been playing in the snow a lot and pretty much getting in the way when it comes to shoveling and clearing the snow. We had no school today because we got 6+ inches of snow last night. I hope we don't get any flooding this summer. Keep warm everyone and remember as my daddy tells me "don't eat yellow snow!"

Lynda Dee

Merry Christmas!!!!!!!

We had a great Christmas as a family. Lynda and Callie were ready to go bright and early. Matt was a little more ready to sleep in (17 and all). Grandma and Grandpa stayed over night and we had Lynda safe goulash and we had a turkey dinner for Christmas day. I have attached some pictures for your enjoyment.

Have a very Merry Christmas and a Safe and Happy New Years from the Taylor's. Call that family member you have not spoken with for a while and wish them Happy Holidays at least! All out allergy friends, please please be safe during this season of parties and goodies flying everywhere. Lynda, Callie & Laurie made Lynda safe sugar cookies while Laurie was off from work. Leave us a comment or e-mail us if you want the recipe. The cousins are coming from California next weekend and we can't wait! Our western Iowa cousins are coming too! Enjoy the season and God Bless.

The Taylor's