It's the BIG One!

Mom is forever calling us to warn us of impending thunderstorms. She calls it Mom's Weather Service. Lately, Mom's Weather Service has been a little slack. She totally slept through the earthquake (although she wrote a blog post for me after the fact), called me a couple times with false warnings, and either called too late or not at all for some other storms. Needless to say, we've been a little disappointed with the service we've received. Anyway, Mom's Weather Service came through for us this past weekend. We were all hanging out at the pool, when she announced that the BIG one was coming. We quickly packed away all the pool toys and cushions. We took down the EZ-Up, and everyone headed home. Within minutes, it was raining, and the wind was unbelievable. We ended up losing two shutters, and an enormous tree branch fell in the back yard! The worst part was losing electricity for more than 24 hours! We have a generator, but it is not big enough to run the air conditioning. Thankfully, Mom's Weather Service also offered us temporary shelter during our day without AC. After her warning of the big one, we are happy to renew our subscription to her alerts!

Coconut Shrimp

Deeeeeelicious!

Shrimp:
28 large shrimp (about 1 1/2 pounds)

1/3 cup cornstarch
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 to 3/4 teaspoon ground red pepper
3 large egg whites
1 1/2 cups flaked sweetened coconut
Cooking spray

Pineapple Salsa:
1 cup finely chopped fresh pineapple
1/3 cup finely chopped red onion
1/4 cup finely chopped fresh cilantro
1/4 cup pineapple preserves
1 tablespoon finely chopped seeded jalapeño pepper
1 1/2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
1/4 teaspoon black pepper

Preheat oven to 400°.

To prepare shrimp, peel and devein shrimp, leaving tails intact. Rinse shrimp in cold water; drain on paper towels until dry. (I just defrosted frozen shrimp that were already peeled and deveined.)

Combine cornstarch, salt, and red pepper in a shallow dish; stir with a whisk. Place the egg whites in a medium bowl, and beat with a mixer at medium-high speed until frothy (about 2 minutes). Place coconut in a shallow dish.

Working with one shrimp at a time, dredge in cornstarch mixture. Dip in egg white; dredge in coconut, pressing gently with fingers. Place shrimp on a baking sheet coated with cooking spray. Repeat the procedure with remaining shrimp, cornstarch mixture, egg white, and coconut. Lightly coat shrimp with cooking spray. Bake at 400° for 20 minutes or until shrimp are done, turning after 10 minutes.

To prepare salsa, combine pineapple and remaining ingredients in a medium bowl; stir to combine.

Lemon Herb Chicken

2 T Olive oil
2 T Lemon juice
2 T Parmesan cheese, shredded
1 t Thyme
1 t Salt
1/4 t Pepper
1 t Lemon peel, grated
Chicken breasts

Combine all ingredients in a plastic bag. Marinate chicken for 30 minutes to 1 hour. Bake in 400 degree oven for 30 minutes.

GERD

A couple days ago, Cole, my mom, and I headed to the local radiology office for a milk scan. What is a milk scan you ask? Well, it's a test that determines whether a child has reflux (food or liquid coming up from the stomach). It also determines how much reflux a child has and how well the stomach empties.

Cole had to drink some medicine mixed with milk to take the test. He had to lie on his back on the exam table for 1 hour while diagnostic information was gathered using a special camera. Needless to say, Cole did not appreciate the test! But, we needed to do it to find the source of his discomfort.

Today, we headed to the doctor's office to get the results. It turns out that Cole has GERD: Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease. Here's some information on reflux and GERD:

GER (Gastro Esophageal Reflux, a.k.a.“reflux”) is simply defined as the backward flow of stomach contents into the esophagus (the tube that connects the mouth to the stomach). GER is a normal, common process that occurs time to time in almost everyone, of all ages, particularly after meals. It usually involves regurgitation. Almost all babies will regurgitate or “spit up” after some feedings, whether they are breast or bottle-fed. The prevalence of GER peaks between 1 to 4 months of age, and usually resolves by 6 to 12 months. Regurgitation or “spitting up” has been reported in up to two thirds (65%) of healthy infants, but decreases to 1% by one year of age. Babies with GER regurgitate without secondary signs or symptoms of inadequate weight gain, esophagitis, or respiratory disease. Infants with GER are thriving and represent the majority who present to the physician with this condition.

In contrast, GERD (Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease) is a less common, more serious pathologic process that usually necessitates medical management and diagnostic evaluation. It is also referred to as “Pathogenic GER.” Approximately 1 in 300 infants will present signs and symptoms of GERD. Patients with GERD may manifest persistent regurgitation with other complications, sometimes including inadequate growth, failure to thrive, feeding and oral aversions, esophagitis, wheezing, pneumonia, or sinusitis.

Thankfully, Cole has not really presented any complications of GERD. So - for now - we're going to give him some meds that should help him be more comfortable.

In other news, we also have reason to believe that Cole is allergic to milk and maybe some other foods. We're going to take him to the allergist next week for a formal test. Hopefully, after starting his new GERD meds and determining whether he has allergies, we'll be well on our way to making him feel much better!

Breaking News from Mom’s Weather/Reservations Service

A 3.6 temblor rocked Northern Virginia this morning at 5:04 a.m. waking residents and setting off Abby Cadabby’s wand. New mother, Julia Bergeman, asked her husband “What the **** was that?” on being awakened from a very light sleep.

Earthquakes in the region are not uncommon; however, 3.6 is definitely a magnitude that can be felt. The depth of the earthquake was 3.1 miles, which is shallow compared with the Haiti earthquake, which was 8.1 miles deep. The epicenter was not immediately fixed by the USGS, but reports indicate it happened 10 miles northwest of Rockville, Maryland.

Mom of Mom’s W/R S was quoted as saying, "Thank God Lorraine is not still living under the rock." Angus' Happy Weather Service appeared to have slept right through the big one.

Thanks to the many weather watchers for Mom’s weather service who added to this article.

This article was submitted by Mom (aka Bella Gamma) herself.

Update on Cole

So - for weeks now, Cole's been having all sorts of digestive problems. He's definitely an award-winning puker. After almost every meal, he pukes. He also has episodes when he is completely inconsolable. Anyway, we first discussed the problem with his doctor at 4 weeks. At that point, the doctor asked us to give it some time to see if he might grow out of it. So - we waited and reevaluated at 8 weeks. At that visit, the doctor gave Cole baby Zantac, thinking his problem was probably just a case of simple reflux. Well, Cole's been on the Zantac for 3 weeks now, and things don't seem to be getting any better. In fact, they seem to be getting a little worse. So - we're headed to the doctor's office tomorrow to have a couple radiologic tests run. He's going to have an abdominal sonogram and a milk scan. We're really hoping these tests will shed some light on the problem and help us help Cole get more comfortable! Nothing's worse than a baby who's in pain. :(

July 4, 2010

So - this year, July 4 was almost non-existent. Lorraine got married on July 3, and - unfortunately - we weren't able to make it. The wedding took place in Maine, and the logistics of getting the family there with a newborn in tow were just impossible. So - we stuck around P Springs and didn't do anything super special. In fact, I was actually asleep on July 4 by 8:30 pm - by the time the fireworks started, I was so dead asleep, I didn't even hear them. Not to worry - I was up again several times the morning of July 5! Cole is definitely a cutie pie these days, but it'll be nice when he sleeps through the night and eats at longer intervals! We'll give July 4 a better shot next year.