Took a break, but we're back

Our family has been kind of quiet for the past few months, at least when it comes to blogging. If you venture inside our household, however, you will find it not so quiet. We are pleased (?) to say that asthma has not affected D.J.'s ability to shout and yell really loud. And of course, Veronica has to yell even louder when she says "QUIET, JEE-JAY!"

One of the biggest changes we have made in the past couple of months is we have banished all dairy products from D.J.'s diet. At the end for February, D.J.'s asthma episodes were becoming frequent and uncontrollable. We were running out of things to try when a couple of people mentioned the connection between asthma and dairy allergies. Our pediatrician gave her nod of approval, even though there is not conclusive scientific evidence to establish causation. But I'm a cultural anthropologist - I have spent my whole academic life critiquing so-called "scientific" evidence. So we moved forward and replaced milk, cheese, and yogurt (staples in D.J.'s diet) with Enfamil Next Step Pro-Sobee formula, Almond milk, and a variety of non-dairy snacks. Withing two weeks, my little boy was breathing so much better - not a wheeze to be heard. Since the end of February, he has only had two asthma episodes due to ear/sinus infections. The difference these times was that he responded to treatment much quicker than before.

I must mention that finding foods without any type of dairy products in them is no small task. Many foods have small amounts of nonfat milk or whey protein. Even these tiny amounts can make a difference. Hopefully as D.J. grows older and stronger we can gradually add some dairy into his diet. But for now, he will have to learn to live without string cheese, cake, and (gasp) Goldfish crackers!

Fast forward to Lent and Easter. Grandma, Grandpa and Aunt Lara (Daddy's family minus Aunt Kara) spent the Easter holiday with us. We had a fun-filled week of dying eggs, Egg hunts, and plain-old family time.

After the egg hunt at Our Lady of Angels

We're beat!

Then came Mommy's birthday. The whole family participated in Walk America, the annual fund raiser for the March of Dimes. As preemie graduates, we thought it was important for both the kids to participate in this fund raiser. We were a part of team from Medical Center of Plano, the hospital where Veronica was born. As a team we raised over $25,000 for the March of Dimes. Veronica and D.J. did very well during the five mile walk.

D.J. was out by the middle of the walk

Those have been the major events since the last post. As summer nears, we are getting ready for a very hot season in Texas. We will be making a couple of family trips (Ohio and NYC) and probably be spending a lot of time at Jack Carter Pool in Plano. But the most exciting event will occur in June, when Dong Joon will legally become a part of our family. That's right...we have have just completed our last post-placement report and on June 8, a Tarrant County judge will sign our adoption papers. What a ride this has been!

More to come...stay tuned!