It's Kawasaki Disease Awareness Day!!!

(This is an old pic of Paige & I, but please completely ignore me as I loathe getting my picture taken.)

Today is bittersweet being Kawasaki Disease Awareness Day. Although it is so wonderful to be taking such large strides in the KD community, it is still an awful way for so many people to connect. But we connect on a different level emotionally. We can all relate, no matter how different the case. We know the dreaded fear of echo-cardiogram results. We know the feeling of helplessness.

But now we have a day to feel like we are making progress. Getting more people informed about this somewhat rare autoimmune disease. We are connected all over the country & all over the world. Today is the day that we celebrate the trials & tribulations, victories & happy endings of our children. We also pay honor to those still courageously fighting & those who have lost their battle. Today we stand as one. A loud & informative voice echoing from within.

Please educate yourself as best as you can. You never know when your insightfulness could benefit your family or those of someone you know.

(Paige getting an echo-cardiogram in '09.)

Helpful links:

To purchase merchandise & have funds donated to the "Aid for a Test" diagnostic fund sponsored by The Faces of Kawasaki Disease  http://www.zazzle.com/thefacesofkd

For support & information  http://www.thefacesofkd.com/
Also on Facebook  https://www.facebook.com/thefacesofkd

More information  http://www.kdfoundation.org/
& for my Canada friends  http://www.kdcanada.ca/news.php

Happy Birthday Paige!!!

6 years ago today I gave birth to my 1st born, Paige Nicole. I wish I could say it was the best experience of my life, but it wasn't. I'm only saying that because at almost 41 weeks, I was induced (that would actually be 6 years & 1 day ago), had a semi rough labor & after pushing for 2.5 hours, was given an emergency c-section. Which I don't remember. At all. I had to be put under to be able to get her out the fastest I assume. Hubs didn't even have time to grab the camera. It was that rushed. She had been face up & stuck for almost 3 hours. She had a bowel movement earlier, her heart rate was dropping. 24 hours & 22 minutes after arriving at the hospital, a 6 lb., 15 oz., 21 in. long baby girl with perfectly arched eyebrows came into this world. To this day, her stubbornness is still present. Hubs calls her my "mini me". Have you ever wondered what it would be like to argue with yourself? Only shorter.

 Anywho, Happy 6th Birthday Paige!!! Love, Mom, Dad, Damien & Hayden

Yummy In My Tummy!!!

Upon one of my many pinning adventures, I came across a link for bacon waffles. You may think it sounds odd, but don't you always eat bacon with your waffles? Wouldn't it just be much easier to have your bacon IN your waffles? My mouth instantly started to water & I wanted one right away. But with no bacon in the house, it would have to wait.

After my visit to the store several days later to get some bacon (& lots of other things) I was ready! But when I clicked on the link, I was upset that the site it led me to didn't have a recipe for it. Oh well, it's a bacon waffle, how hard could it be? The answer, not hard at all.

I started by cooking 1 package of bacon in the oven (no constant babysitting & an easier clean-up). Then I prepared my waffle mix while my waffle iron was heating. I made mine from scratch, courtesy of my Betty Crocker cookbook, but Bisquick would work too. When my bacon was nice & crispy, I soaked up the grease on a paper towel lined plate & then crumbled it. Next was assembly. Simply prepare your waffle as you normally would, except sprinkle your desired amount of bacon on top before closing the lid. After what seemed like an eternity for the waffle to cook (really the 4-5 minutes mine usually take), they were ready. Top with butter & syrup & it's ready to be devoured.

& that it was!!! So now I have a new favorite breakfast food, a new blog post with a recipe for others & a picture of my own to pin! :) Maybe next time I'll serve it on a bed of scrambled eggs...

January & it's Profound Importance

January brings about a new year & for many, new resolutions. But in our family it also brings celebration & reminders. All while offering the opportunity of awareness & education.

On January 24th, my 1st born, Paige, celebrates her birthday (this year she turns 6). On January 26th, it is Kawasaki Disease Awareness Day.

This mostly unknown & slightly new disease claimed Paige when she was 9 months old. Although she was atypical making diagnosis slightly difficult & eventually came out unscathed (that we know of), it changed our lives forever. It also gave me my innate sense to completely freak out at the sign of a slight rash on any of my children. To read Paige's KD story, go here http://www.thefacesofkd.com/0-12_Months_KD_Stories.html#Paige's_KD_story. Just be sure to have a kleenex ready just in case. There are many other stories of KD kids to read as well. Unfortunately, there are a couple of lives taken far too soon due to this disease which effects the heart. Although some effects post KD are still undergoing dispute as being directly linked as a definitive outcome, coronary artery aneurysms is the #1 outcome. Some kids have many, others few, to others none (like Paige). Some require a short round of treatment, while others require medications for the rest of their lives.

Please go to http://www.thefacesofkd.com/ & http://www.kdfoundation.org/ to learn more. You never know when you could be thrust into the situation & your perseverance could be the only thing to properly diagnose your child.

What are the symptoms of Kawasaki Disease? 

In a case of typical Kawasaki disease children may have all or most of the following symptoms: 

• A fever that is high, usually over 101.3 F and that is uncontrollable by normal doses of medicine
• Reddening of the white part of the eyes
• A rash on the trunk of the body that its lace like, and on the genital area
• Red, dry, cracked lips that are extremely red
• Bright red tongue (strawberry tongue) that is swollen
• Reddening of the palms of the hands, and the soles of the feet
• Swollen neck lymph nodes
• Extreme irritability
• Peeling of the skin of the hands and the feet, most often the fingertips of the fingers and toes
• Joint Pain
• Diarrhea and/or vomiting
• Abdominal pain

In a case of atypical Kawasaki disease or incomplete Kawasaki disease children may have less than four of the symptoms above. Atypical cases are harder to detect since not all of the KD symptoms show, and children may suffer long term heart damage if not treated within 10 days. The symptoms of Kawasaki disease vary from kid to kid.

Just Keep Pinning!

So, I just had to blog about my newest obsession....Pinterest.

I absolutely love it & cannot get enough! So far I want to...Make enough art & take enough pictures to decorate 10 homes (or more). Cook enough recipes to last my family a few years (or more). Make endless crafts with my kids (& quite possibly their kids). Do enough shopping that I won't repeat an outfit for a year (I think I'll need another home to use as a closet.) And I'm sure countless other ideas as my pinning days progress.

Pinterest, (just in case you don't know) is a virtual pin board. Basically you take content from anywhere online, pin it, & place it onto your perspective board. You categorize your boards however you like & can add as many as you desire. So basically, it's just an organized way to bookmark. But you can also look to see what other people have pinned, therefore fueling the urge to pin more.

If you think all of this sounds absurd & don't see what the big deal could possibly be, try it out. You might just keep pinning. ;-)

2012 Brings Healthy Eats!...For the Dogs!

Happy New Year! It's officially 2012. Which means time for resolutions. There are so many to make, but 1 I'd really like to stick with is eating healthier. Not only will it make us all feel better, mama will ditch this baby weight a bit faster, LOL!

But here's a twist, I'm getting the dogs in on it too. Yes, the dogs. You see, as I've mentioned before, I'm a BzzAgent. I get to try out products, spread the bzz (word) & share my opinions. Well it just so happened that I received a 4lb. sample bag of Hill's Science Diet Ideal Balance dog food for my dogs, Sascha & Miley. Made with chicken & brown rice, it's MUCH healthier than most of the other brands of dog food available. Not to mention that it contains no corn, which means no gas. So, easier on the digestive tract, a shinier coat, as well as who knows how many other healthy benefits. What's not to love about that?! I know my dogs did. Even if i can't stick to my resolutions, I know they will!