Time flies and life gets away from us

Dear All Of Us,
I don't know how it happens but another summer is gone and another school year has begun. Thanksgiving is around the corner. The older I get the faster time flies. Is it that way for you also?
I am busy busy with commitments, kids and so on.
I did find the time for a guest blog on The Mighty. I was able to write about one of my passions, food allergies. Well, raising awareness for food allergies, I'm not actually fond of them. I wish they would go away. In the meantime…….

http://themighty.com/2015/10/17-things-i-want-you-to-know-about-having-a-child-with-a-food-allergy/

This time of year

Dear all of us,
If you have school aged children then you know first hand how much this time of year stinks. Stinks? It sucks. There is an end of year party for every activity that your child/children are in. There are teacher gifts to buy(G_d bless those teachers), there are recitals, performances, graduations and so on.  In between all of the crazy, the kids still have homework and depending where you live there are the dreaded end of year tests.
I have been dealing with the dreaded end of year standardized tests for 5 years now and I have 4 more years to go.
They might be the death of me.
Seriously, the death of me.
Starting in 3rd grade(where I live) children are expected to take a standardized test. Most of the kids are told that if they don't do well that they will be held back.
Awesome motivator isn't it????
No! It's not!
We have no opt out option here although I'm sure there will be one as soon as my kids are done with the tests.
So, how do I explain these tests to my kids? I tell them that I expect them to do their best no matter what that is. I know, and I hope that they know that one test does not tell us anything about them. One test does not tell me about their academic successes or struggles. One test does not tell me if they are a good friend, person, daughter and so on. One test does not tell me what they will be successful at once they finish college.
I want my kids to do THEIR best. I want them to follow THEIR interests. I don't want them to watch a years worth of hard work to go out the window because of one test.
Do you have standardized testing where you are? How do you handle the stress?

I think a little wine is in order….

A new start and a mini rant

I have decided to do something for myself and that means I have started up with photography again and I have started a blog just for my pictures.

http://picturesbyrandi.blogspot.com

I will still be hear ranting and raving about stuff I am sure.

I could go on and on about our public school system. Trust me, I love teachers. I shouldn't say that I will rant and rave about the public school system. I should say I will rant about the amount of homework that kids get in the 4th grade. It's insane……..

Do you have kids that have too much homework?

Disillusioned

Dear all of us,

I'm just feeling down today. There were so many stories about violence in the news yesterday and I woke up to more awful news today. I'm getting to the point where I don't want my kids to leave my side.
There was a killing spree in PA yesterday.
That gunman ran and was spotted in another area of PA, that area was on high alert for hours.
Two local high schools had violent threats made against them.
Over 100 kids were killed at a school in Pakistan.
All of this right around the second anniversary of Sandy Hook.

I believe that Americans have the right to bear arms.
I also believe that there should be strict gun laws in place.
Above all I believe that as Americans we need to step up our work in the area of mental health. We are the greatest country in the world and we are failing our citizens and our children.

When will a change take place?

Dear all of us, scrambled thoughts

Dear all of us,
Do you ever have times when you have so much going on in your head that you can't even focus? Please tell me it's not just me!
There's too much going on. School has been in session for almost two months and I still can't get with it. The quantity of homework and common core is driving me insane. The math homework! Oh the math homework! I have to believe that whomever invented common core does not have children. It is pure torture.
I look at the calendar and laugh. There is so much on the calendar that I have to schedule in when we can go get some pumpkins.....
Halloween-never been my favorite holiday and even less with food allergies. But look at this!
http://blog.foodallergy.org/2014/10/06/the-teal-pumpkin-project-for-an-allergy-friendly-halloween/

Remember to paint your pumpkin teal! I will post pics as soon as ours is done.


There is so much out there that is making my head go crazy. I can't turn on the news anymore. Ebola, the respiratory virus that's going on (we don't have asthma but it still makes me nervous), beheadings, ISIS, and on and on.....

I wish the news would show more of what is good in the world. I have to believe that the good outweighs the bad. It's just that, of late, all I hear is bad. It hurts my heart when I hear of those doing the wrong thing. Especially those who are involved in the lives of children.

I wish people would take a minute everyday to be thankful for what they have. If you have a good life, if you are surrounded in love, if you and your family have your health, please don't take that for granted. Enjoy it. So many, many people have lost so much. Be grateful for what you have and spread love and joy. Have some perspective. Don't spread hate. Don't hurt others. Play nice! Isn't that what we teach our children? Adults need to listen to this advice.

Then the bottom fell out

The children have been in school for about a month. It has been a relatively quiet month. There's homework, after school activities and so on....pretty typical first month of school.
I have known my youngest child now for 9 years. I'm her mom so I think I know her pretty well. She is the happiest child that I have ever met. It's just her nature. From the time she gets up until she goes to bed, she is happy. She has a huge smile on her face and she is a bundle of energy.  I wouldn't have it any other way. So, when she cries I know something is wrong. She was sitting on the couch and suddenly burst into tears last night.  I couldn't even begin to imagine what was wrong. It turns out that she had been made to sit at the allergy table since the beginning of school. This is not something we asked for, it was in fact the exact opposite of what we asked for.
I felt like I had been punched in the stomach.
My child has never, in 6 years, shown any anxiety about her allergies. Now here she is balling her eyes out because she was shoved at another table.
Fast forward to this morning. My husband sent an email last night and went to the school this morning. The situation was explained. The teacher didn't realize the stress that the table situation had caused. She is going back to a regular table today. Hopefully problem solved.
I think like most situations  you don't really get it until it happens to you.
Do parents of allergic children need to become more vocal? I already feel like all I do is talk about allergies to others. Does anyone here me or do they hear waaa waaa waaa like Charlie Brown's teacher? What else can parents of allergic kids do to make the non-allergic community listen and understand what it's like for our kids?
I don't know but the advocate in my is awake and ticked off today.
Parents of allergic kids-we are our kids best advocate. You have to stand up. You have to shout from the roof tops. You have to raise awareness. Don't wait for someone else to do it for you.

It only took 5 days

On the 5th day of school the phone rang. It was noon and I was relaxed. I had spent the morning with a friend drinking coffee and chatting. Then the phone rang and the school number came up. It's only the 5th day. The 5th day!!!!!!!!!
My youngest was coughing. She was coughing and couldn't catch her breath. She was given water and the coughing stopped. She was then asked, "Does your throat hurt?" "No" "Does your chest feel tight?" "Yes"
Well.....that led to a dose of benadryl and a call to me.
Am I thrilled that the school was on top of things? Of course. Will a dose of benadryl hurt her? No it won't.
I do know that if I was there I would have seen that a cough is sometimes just a cough.
Thank goodness for teachers that care.
Do any of you work full time or even part time out of the house? How do you handle it? I can't imagine what would happen if I did work. How do you handle the stress? I'm home and still stressed out......

A good feeling

We filled out all of the paperwork. We researched. We came up with a plan. Then we met the teacher. She seems very nice but she's new to the building.......
Fingers crossed for a good year. Another safe year. Please let this teacher get it.
Have you met the teacher that your child will have?

I wonder what it's like to have a "normal" school experience. I can't remember what normal is.....

Endless paperwork

As I get ready to start another school year and attend yet another 504 meeting, I am astounded by the amount of paperwork that needs to be filled out.
I do not understand why year after year I have to fill out the same forms. This year there is even a new form. I am not sure why there is a new form but there is one. It pretty much asks the same questions as the other paperwork does. This means more wasted time filing out forms, getting doctors signatures, and so on. Of course I will do whatever it takes to keep my child safe but this is insane....
Are you filling out piles of paperwork too?

Two weeks.....

The children are off for the next two weeks. They haven't started fighting yet, that's encouraging. Two weeks of not having to worry about her at school. No worrying every time the phone rings. Two weeks where my brain doesn't have to be in over drive. I needed the break.
This time of year often brings reflection. I am so blessed with friends and family that do everything they can to make us feel safe and included. I hear horror stories from others about how their friends and families do nothing to help and at times, they make it worse. I can't even begin to imagine......
I hope that you all have a safe, happy, and healthy holiday season.

The ice cream party

My daughter had an ice cream party in her class yesterday. I was unable to be there but my husband was there the whole time. It went great! Just about everything was safe and what wasn't was supplemented from home. A goodie bag was sent home. The room mom sent me an email later. She had taken pictures of all of the ingredients from every bag of candy and sent them to me! Everything was safe. I was stunned by her kindness and willingness to help.
Two more days and we are on winter break. We are home for the two weeks with very little to do. Yes, of course, there will be baking!
How are you spending your break? Have there been endless parties in the classroom? How do you handle it.

Halloween, a party, and a walk

Here's the wrap up for this week, it's been a busy one.

Halloween-It went well. The kids had tons of fun going trick or treating with a few friends. I had two epi pens with us, safe candy, and charged cell phone. After they went to bed I went through the candy. There must have been a sale on Snickers because we had a ton of those. Anyway, I separate it into two piles. Safe and not safe. It's another year where the safe pile was bigger! We were actually able to keep a lot. I think that better labeling and more awareness is key to this success. Something amazing happened at one of the houses that we stopped at. The woman that answered the door asked if any of the kids had allergies! We do not know the people that live at this house. My little one said yes and the woman helped her to find something safe! Incredible!

The party-The day after Halloween my little one had a party at school. I knew about it and plans were put in place in advance. I was at home as it was the day before the walk. As the kids get older parents are not invited in as much. We can attend the parties but if we are going to be the only parents there then I don't want to attend. I want her to have as normal an experience as possible. Anyway, the phone rang and there was the school on the phone. I don't know why I thought that we would actually make it through a whole year without a phone call from the school. It was the teacher. She was asking me if the donut holes where safe and she started reading me the ingredients. I nearly fainted. I reminded her that she can't eat anything unless we approve it prior. I reminded her that she was going to defrost a cupcake. She admitted that she forgot. Luckily I also stock her cabinet with safe cookies and chips. Yes, I am thrilled that she called to go over ingredients. I'm not thrilled that she forgot to defrost a cupcake. Just when I thought it was getting easier.....

The walk-It was yesterday and I'm just starting to recover. I was truly exhausted last night. It was the most amazing day! The weather was incredible. Sunny and cool. The day before it rained like crazy so I was truly stressed about the mud factor but it wasn't too bad at all. We had amazing entertainment, great speakers, great attendance, it was perfect. We are very close to our fundraising goal, I think we might make it by the end of the year. It's always a great day, I love spending time with those that get it. I was humbled and reduced to tears by many kind words. I hope everyone enjoyed it as much as I did.

Good news is awesome, great news is even better!

Lots to report today and all of it is good!

First off the CDC has come out with voluntary guidelines for schools that are dealing with food allergies, which is really every school I am sure.
http://www.cdc.gov/healthyyouth/foodallergies/

More good news!

The stock epi bill has moved to the Senate! I hope that it passes quickly, makes it to the President's desk, and is signed into law! The following is an email that went out from FARE,food allergy research and education.



Federal "Stock" Epinephrine Bill Moves in Senate

Dear FARE Supporter, 

It is rare that we send you two food allergy announcements in one day, but today has been a truly remarkable one for the food allergy community. 

This morning, we announced the release of the CDC’s new national guidelines for food allergy management in schools.

We are also pleased to inform you that federal legislation to encourage schools to maintain a supply of “stock” epinephrine auto-injectors cleared yet another major hurdle! The School Access to Emergency Epinephrine Act was approved by the Senate Health, Education, Labor & Pensions (HELP) Committee and will now move to the full Senate for a vote. Sponsored by Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Mark Kirk (R-IL), the bill provides an incentive to encourage states to require “stock” epinephrine auto-injectors in their schools -- meaning epinephrine that is not prescribed to a specific student but can be used for any student or staff member in an anaphylactic emergency. Four states have already passed laws ensuring that epinephrine is available in all schools, and many others allow schools to stock epinephrine, but do not require it.

Food Allergy Research & Education (FARE) has been working tirelessly toward the passage of this critical legislation for the last two years. The food allergy community and FARE have overwhelmingly supported this and similar state legislation across the country. Since the introduction of the federal bill on May 22 in the House of Representatives by Reps. Phil Roe (R-TN) and Steny Hoyer (D-MD), FARE has been working closely with the bill sponsors, meeting with legislators on Capitol Hill to build support, soliciting endorsements from other organizations and issuing action alerts to advocates across the country. These efforts helped assure passage in the House on July 30 and generated 37 cosponsors in the Senate in less than two months. Last year’s federal stock epinephrine legislation did not move out of committee, so we are strongly encouraged by the swift movement of this year’s bill.

The School Access to Emergency Epinephrine Act is endorsed by FARE, the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology, the American Academy of Emergency Medicine, the National Association of Elementary School Principals and the Allergy & Asthma Network Mothers of Asthmatics. Since the Senate legislation is identical to that passed by the House, no reconciliation is required. FARE is encouraging the Senate to quickly pass the legislation and forward for President Obama’s signature.

I made the cake.......and ate some frosting

I made a chocolate cake with chocolate frosting today. I poured whatever leftover sprinkles we had on, cut it up, and froze the pieces. My little one is allowed to have dessert once a week at school. Usually she has the prepackaged ice cream. She finally caught on that there is cake there also but, it's not safe. So, I solved the problem by giving myself something else to do. It's ok though, it will make her safe and included. Now, I know what's going to happen. She's going to take her cake to school tomorrow. Her sister that is nonallergic is going to want to take cake to school too. Do I tell her no? It's really for her sister, but how do I tell her that she can't have cake? That doesn't seem too fair.
I think I will be making lots of cake..........

week two

We are into week two of school here. It's hard to get back into routine. I mean for me. The kids seem to be doing ok. A little tired but ok.
When do you head back? How is it going, is your school helpful?
I would love to hear how everyone is doing.
Has anyone tried to get food out of the classroom? I mean no food for rewards and no food parties. Were you successful? I am just wondering if it can be done.

fighting the fight

This morning I got up, got the kids off to school and started to make Challah. Yes, I have to bake my own challah so that my youngest can celebrate a safe Shabbat. Kneading the dough is actually therapeutic.
I am feeling down and defeated. I will continue on but, right now, I am down. I am so tired of fighting the fight. This time of year is awful. I hear story after story about schools that are not accommodating children with food allergies. Why does it have to be so difficult? We are not crazy helicopter parents. We just want our kids safe and included. Aren't children more important than food? We are not asking for the moon and the stars.
I just need a break. That doesn't happen in food allergy world. It is a 24/7 job. Of course I would do anything for my child but an hour off, just a little bit of time without worry would be great.

We need food to live. We do not need food to have a life. Why does everything have to include food?

A national discussion

I try to not always post about gloom and doom, I promise. I do know that I have a wonderful life, a great husband, and two great kids. I do know that because of life threatening food allergies, my life has changed forever.
This family has had their life change forever in the worst possible way. They lost their child. Please read about their story. Share their story. Food allergies are severe and life threatening. They need to be taken seriously by all. These kids and adults need our help.
http://www.kcra.com/news/local-news/news-sacramento/parents-of-girl-who-died-of-peanut-allergy-reaction-speak-out/-/12969376/21686610/-/5dla0yz/-/index.html

Educate yourself, your family, your friends, your school, educate everyone that you know.
We need your help now more than ever.

Day one

Day one was a success all around. Both girls loved school. Little one came home so happy and told us that her teacher is funny. Awesome! I had more homework than the kids, tons of forms to fill out times two kids. In the pile was the annual tree nut allergy letter. I have to laugh when it comes home every year since it is about my kid.
Than around dinner time the phone rang. It was little ones teacher. She was calling to say that they day went well etc. Huh? What? OK........
Well that was awesome!
Yesterday I felt like I had an elephant sitting on my chest and the day took forever.
Today is flying by.....let it be this good all year.

A bundle of nerves

So, the kids went back to school today. Little one was up before my alarm went off. She was so excited! She got the teacher that she wanted and she has lots of friends in her class. She has the same bus driver, phew!
I am sitting here counting down the hours until she gets back. I know she will be fine. 5 hours to go.
Trust me, the quiet is nice. I am going out to lunch with my husband and then off to the grocery store.
The beginning of the year is so hard. What do you do to get through?
I just realized that it's been 4 years this month since her last reaction. We have come so far.

and then I slept

Yesterday was our 504 meeting so last night I was finally able to sleep! Yay! I hate when stress keeps me up at night.
Anyway, it went well. I do truly feel like we are a team with the staff at the school.
The teacher is going to remove the air freshener that she has in the classroom(good thing we meet before school starts). The meeting went smoothly and I have my fingers crossed for another good year. I will spend tomorrow baking cupcakes to stock the school freezer. Her medicines and paperwork have been dropped off and open house is Friday night.
How are your back to school plans going? I hope everyone has a smooth transition. It's so hard to get back into routine.