Lab results are in.. sort of

The doctor called yesterday. She said she had good news and bad news. The bad news is the lab did not process the food allergy panel and they no longer had any blood to test. We have to go back next week to have Henry's blood drawn again. The good news is one of the three stool samples came back negative for worms and parasites/giardia, all the other tests results were within normal ranges. (the remaining stool sample results should be in at the end of the week)


I asked the doctor about the link between lactose intolerance and giardia. If you google (always dangerous!) the topic you will find articles from Georgetown University to the Mayo Clinic that state giardia may cause a period of lactose intolerance. Henry's doctor spoke with a pediatric GI at the University and did some research herself. Both doctors agree there is no research that proves the link between lactose intolerance and giardia. hmmmm... I did find a few websites that say the link between gairdia and lactose intolerance hasn't been medically proven but anecdotal evidence indicates there is a link. Many giardia fact sheets say of to 40% of people with giardia develop a temporary lactose intolerance.

My gut says go with the anecdotal evidence. We have taken Henry off dairy and we'll see what happens over the next 2 to 3 weeks. The allergy test the pediatrician is running is not for lactose intolerance but for the milk protein. Removing milk from his diet cannot hurt him. I will make sure he receives the daily recommended dose of calcium. If we see a positive difference we'll keep him on a dairy-free diet for up to 6 months. The dermatologist said Henry's pigmentation issue was a food sensitivity issue. The medication she gave us has not helped. We'll see if milk is causing his skin problems.

I made almond milk this morning. Henry loved drinking it and didn't seem to notice a difference in his oatmeal. I have two batches of almonds soaking so we will have plenty of almond milk on hand for the next day or two. Rob and Henry walked to the grocery store this morning and picked up some Silk. It's the brand my sister drinks. We'll see if we can get Henry to drink it.

I am wondering what I am going to cook for dinner each night. Igor is a vegetarian (his choice) and now Henry is off dairy. If you have some kid friendly non-dairy vegetarian foods let me know! I found a couple of non-dairy recipe websites so I will be checking them out this weekend.

Henry, tummy troubles, Igor's drawings

Henry continues to amaze me. He loves to ride his three wheeled scooter around the block.
His daddy taught him that every puddle is his own personal water park! Henry cannot walk by a puddle without getting sopping wet.
If you ask Henry a question and the answer is "NO!" he vigorously shakes his head and waves his hands in the air. When he does this I stifle a laugh because it's so funny.
He eats everything except two of Igor's favorite foods; beets and cucumbers.
When he hears the dryer buzzer he taps his ear, grabs my shirt and pulls me into the laundry room. He also taps his ear, as if to say "hear it", when a helicopter or airplane flies over the house.
Henry loves sitting in the car. He doesn't want to go anywhere, he just wants to sit in the car. The other day we had our snack in the car which was parked in the garage. He thought it was the coolest thing ever. He was happy so I was happy. I know some day I won't want to sit in the car eating a snack but for right now I'm okay with it.
Henry still loves to spit. It's something he did in Ethiopia. We've tried to get him to stop spitting all together but sometimes he has the urge to spit. I needed a compromise so I have taught him to spit in the toilet instead of on the kitchen floor. He can go for days without the urge to spit then something happens and he is spitting in the toilet 5 or 6 times a day.

Henry continues to have tummy troubles. Yesterday we had to clean the carpet, the floor, Henry, etc... poor little guy. I am a fan of probiotics but they seem to be making his tummy worse. It makes me wonder if the giardia is back. I guess we'll know soon enough. We were able to fill and deliver the remaining stool sample kits to the lab this weekend. I hope to hear something soon!

Igor continues to adjust to having a little brother. Honestly, he wishes that he was still an only child. Heavy sigh. I am so grateful that Henry is so sweet and laid back. I'm sure he understands when Igor rejects him but Henry keeps trying to play with Igor. The other day I heard giggles coming from the other room. Igor was chasing Henry around the dining room and Henry was laughing. I peeked in, Igor looked like he was having fun! what a sweet, sweet picture! My hope is one day soon Igor will let Henry into his world.

Igor is really enjoying his art class. The other day a LL Bean catalog came in the mail. He looked at the picture and said mom that's a beautiful picture. He took the catalog to art class on Saturday. He told his teacher that he wanted to paint part of the catalog cover. She was very supportive! I think it will take a couple of weeks to finish.

The previous few weeks at art Igor has focused on drawing houses with colored pencils. I have looked back on the numerous houses Igor has drawn. All of the houses have red curtains and light (yellow) shining out. Here are two of his latest drawings: