Down Mulberry Lane

Corn Chowder...

Today I brought corn chowder and pumpkin muffins to potluck.  We also made multigrain bread, but that flopped on account of me reading the recipe wrong.  The soup went over very well.  The muffins went over very well. 

Both were vegan... no dairy!  And I am so glad that my friend Angela shared with me her recipe! I've never eaten corn chowder before and was pleasantly surprised.  With all the soups out there that others have shared with me, I was just surprised I've never tried this one.  Thank You Angela for sharing it with me.  Even my kids liked it.  I think I got more than a dash of cayenne in the recipe however, as my face was breaking out in a sweat when I ate it.  I recall shaking it on top of the soup and thinking... my that looks pretty and I think I was thinking it was paprika and just kept shaking to give it a pretty dusting on top... LOL.  I'll know not to do that again! 

The muffin recipe I got from allrecipes and I converted the white flour ingredient to ww flour and oats.  I also decreased the amount of sugar and used applesauce instead of oil.  I decreased the spice a bit... I just can't handle so much spice!  It still turned out well, with all my adjustments we got lots of pleasant comments at Potluck for Kate who made the recipe. 

Warmly, ~Melissa

Allergy update...

We've determined chocolate to be a huge problem with our daughter, whether with dairy or without, it just triggers something in her to cause her to lose bladder control and she gets so wound up. 

We were eliminating dairy based on the fact that bedwetting is a common sign of dairy allergies.   Also her soy allergy seemed to have lessoned, so we allowed her to have some soy, but not alot.  We were on week 3 of no dairy, no chocolate (with the oops on the chocolate a week ago), and I began to notice that my daughter's eyes were becoming dark... very dark circles under her eyes (allergy eyes).  I was concerned that the soy was enough to set this off.  She also was having increased skin problems... dry cracking skin. 

Yesterday we were at the Mall of America and my daughters got a smoothie and were sharing it with her and I tasted it and instantly realized there was dairy in the smoothie... UGH.  So, since the dirty was done, I allowed her a cheese roll-up from taco bell.  She ate it slowly, didn't finish it all, but did eat it.  So, we are switching gears with the allergy diet test.  We are now eliminating soy totally from her and no chocolate.  And seeing what will happen.  Today... no wets...   The chocolate affects her within an hour or two.  But the dairy she had last evening... nothing... as of yet. 

Problem is, in doing the diet, I found that dairy is MY problem.  Once off the dairy... my stomach aches went away.  I felt more vigor during my day, not so weighed down.  I wasn't crabby all the time.  I ate cheese twice last week and stomach aches... like I had eated way too much... and then my attitude just soured... so hard to not be upset.  Off the dairy, I felt so cheerful.. .and I hadn't felt cheerful like that in a long long time... Funny what a food can do to a person.  I also found out that some people with dairy allergies often have problems eating beef... and since I was 20 years old, when I ate beef, I got just sick.  It was easy to go vegetarian, but I used cheese... my face flared up and we wondered why... I hadn't had acne hardly at all as a teenager, now suddenly I was stricken with it.   Nothing I tried helped it to go away... but not eating dairy... has decreased my acne by 50-75% in just a couple weeks.  UGH!  I wonder why I hadn't figured that out years ago! 

So, now what is the plan?  We are trying no soy, no chocolate for Paige.  With this test, she also put the chocolate thing together and has actually REFUSED candy because she thought it was chocolate (it was those reece's pieces...peanut butter candies).   I was so proud that a 3yo was able to accept it and knew she felt better not eating chocolate to actually refuse to eat it!  Woo Hoo!  gaining ground!  For me, no dairy.  And as main cook of the house... that means dairy will be greatly reduced.  I used to buy 3-5 gallons of milk each week.  The last couple weeks... I buy a half gallon to a gallon each week.  This last time I bought a gallon and it has lasted nearly 10 days!  The girls have even tried the rice, soy and almond milks.  At the moment, I use rice milk for baking, soy for my cereal, and almond milk for dessert milks.  And cashews for creamy gravies/ alternate cheeses. 

Dh said he would handle the allergy much better if it was just the chocolate and not the dairy.  Which is true... one food to eliminate is way easier than two ... or three.  He was trying to scoff my dairy free, and finally asked... it seems that by eliminating it you have a bigger reaction to dairy when you eat it now... why not just eat it all the time... is there any benefit to going dairy free... and when I told him about being less crabby and less tired and less weighed down and my skin was clearing up and ... he sighed and said... well we still have to eat two different meals, then...

For most our married life, I have cooked two separate versions of the same meal... one with meat, one without.  To me doing one with dairy one without... is not any more work than I've done all along... but... I am finding that the girls are liking the without dishes and even Dh doesn't mind them, so I may end up better off, anyways.  I wanted to lower our animal food intake, our dairy intake, and with this trial, we found out that we can eat things without so much dairy.  My food bill has gone down a bit... cheese is soooo expensive!  Milk is SOOOO expensive.  And yes, rice milk and all those others are not cheap, but I don't use them as freely as I did milk... we reduced our intake and did without more than making substitutes. 

Staying away from soy for me is OK.  I may miss the sour cream tofu or other toppings that make the change-over easier, but when I have soy... I want to eat it... I lose control of how much I've eaten... It's a really weird phenomenom, but I noticed it when I made tofu cottage cheese loaf... I just ate it non-stop... for every meal and more than I normally eat.  Craving it.  Craving a food can be a sign of an allergy as well.  When I make a tofu stir-fry... same thing... eat until it is gone... every meal!  Very odd! 

I think really what I am looking at is going soy free and chocolate free for the entire family!  Limiting dairy for most, but eliminating it from my diet... so cheese won't be IN a dish, but rather a topping if chosen to eat it by the others.  (And I won't shred the cheese... so that will limit it to when the others feel like shredding it for all the rest).  I will offer a dairy free alternative that all can eat... and encourage that as I found it cheaper and more economical to make a cashew cheese than to buy real cheese.  Overall, it will help the goals of reducing fat intake, reducing dairy intake (from a health standpoint), and eating more foods naturally, not so many toppings (to help my weight issues!).  Even if the rest of the family doesn't want to admit their dairy issues (I see problems that are common with dairy allergies within each member of the family), we will still be eating less of it, and hopefully overall we will all feel better, not just me and Paige! 

Warmly, ~Melissa

Revised Food: Cinnamon Rolls/ dairy free...

I made our normal cinnamon roll recipe without any dairy.  I used rice milk in the wet ingredients for the dough.  And I used a soy cream cheese for the frosting.  The kids never noticed a difference.  I asked how it was and they know I don't ask that so they give me an "eye".  They said it tastes good.  I said it's dairy free.  My one daughter says... you used cream cheese though.  And I said, No... it was tofu cream cheese.  They smiled and said... That's ok, Mom... They are still GREAT.  LOL. 

The girls are getting used to the rice milk in the baking.  I don't really think there is a noticable difference in the flavor compared to skim milk in baking.  They are using less cheese themselves.  Last night we had baked potatoes and they just used sour cream (Paige and I had tofu sour cream)... and no one used cheese on their potatoes... that just never happens around here!  No complaints or faces made either.  It is getting a little easier... Just taking each day as it comes. 

Warmly, ~Melissa

Chickpea pot pie

Last night for supper I made chick-pea pot pie and chicken pot pie.  I mixed up pie crust, steamed some onions, potatoes, and carrots and added them inside.  I actually made two dishes, one for real chicken and one with chick-peas.  So, I had two square pans and put pie crust inside.  Layered the potatoes/carrots/onions 2-3 cups, 1 cup of frozen corn, and either one chicken breast already cooked up or one can of chick-peas (garbonzos).  I then poured the cashew gravy over the top and then added some pepper to the chicken one (Dh likes pepper) and a little salt to both.  I then put another crust over the top and baked for about 35-40 minutes. 

It turned out really good.  The girls requested:  chop the onions up with the gravy next time, LOL.  They said adding green beans as well might be nice, too.  But flavor wise... it was good.  And they all asked... there's no dairy in this???  I said nope.  Then my one daughter says she likes this gravy much better.  I laughed and said it is the same gravy, but then I remembered I did not put the garlic into it. 

They all agreed they could handle having this dish more often... as a regular on the table.  So, I officially have my first meal approved by the entire family.  The garbonzo dish was good as well.  I really enjoyed it.  Though, no one else  was willing to try it with there being a real chicken pot pie right next to it.  I told them I would make it for potluck sometime and they agreed to try it there. 

My little one who needs the dairy free... didn't touch either dish.  She chowed down on pineapple banana salad and a noodle pasta salad.  Which was fine... I prefer light meals for supper and hope to have this little one learning it early on, rather than having to think you need a huge meal before plopping down for the night.  Anyways, she is also just three and she will learn to eat the food if we continue to eat it with her.  My hardest part is satisfying the older half of the family, a 3yo has time.  And, if we eat within her guidelines, then we all win.

Warmly, ~Melissa

New Food: Mazidra

Tonight I tried making Mazidra.  A lentil dish that is saute'ed before adding the water.  The effect is to create a more nutty texture, rather than the traditional mushy lentil texture.  However, I used red lentils, which already appear to be shelled and I still ended up with a mushy texture.  The flavor was good, but it was a bit to soupy for me.  It was supposed to be poured over rice or potatoes.  I made baked potatoes and the finished dish was similar to a rice soup, with a real watery broth.  In looking at the picture in the recipe book, that is not really how it is to turn out.  The flavor was good enough for me to try it again with some brown lentils.  The rest of the family hasn't tried it yet, as it wasn't done until a bit later than when the potatoes were done.  I did wait to eat it with my potato and found it ok, once I strained the water/broth a bit. 

As I look at the dish, however, it is not one that will appeal to the rest of the family, so I think I will continue my search with some more recipes.  I myself enjoyed the dish and may make it again for me, if I get to wanting a lentil dish.  It tasted similar to a recipe I have called Armenian Lentil Loaf. 

My Dad came to visit and he took us out to eat.  We went to a buffet and had a tired little one with us (we were eating later than normal) and saying no brought loud screams.  If it was just us, I would have left the restaurant, but beings my Dad was visiting and had a long day, I succombed to allowing cottage cheese.  I did limit it to one scoop, but I fear it was enough to bring on another tantrum at another date when she is told no.  She wanted cheese on her baked potato tonight and we ran out because dd number 2 ate what we had left.  This caused a small ruckus at home, but when she realized she wasn't the only one not having cheese, she calmed down.  I also ate some cheese when eating out and I am unsure if the stress of dealing with saying no to Paige is doing me in, or the dairy allergy is becoming more noticable since I was not eating it.  I have a good case of the hives.  Dh thinks it is silly that I'm trying to eat better and here I am appearing sicker.  He knows that something is up with Paige however and that we are on the right track.  Even though we are at square one again with the wetting, we know that going back to not eating dairy that it likely will go away again. 

Now to stay firm.  That is so hard.   Like last night, the restaurant just didn't have much for options.  The salad bar was slim to say the least... then there was the choice of pizza or chicken for the main meal.  We went with chicken to stay away from the cheese, but still ended up with little variety and I suppose I could have sat and ate a salad with unripe tomatoes and mushy peas... that was about my only choice as a vegetarian, non-dairy.  I realize now that I ate the mashed potatoes which likely had milk in them as well.  UGH!  So much thinking to do!  This restaurant just didn't have enough variety, even though Dh and my one daughter thought there was plenty of variety... once there they were like... bugging me about eating cheese and I wanted to say... my Dad just paid $8 for me to eat and you want me to pick at the food and eat a obviously poor salad choice and that's it?  I shouldn't feel sorry for myself, but it seems that I am the only one thinking about the big picture when it comes to eating out and in.  Somehow it is up to me to do it alone.  Which if it helps both my daughter and I to feel better, it will be so worth it.  I need to keep that in mind as I start feeling down about my "lot" in life right now. 

Tomorrow is a new day with NEW aspirations... Hopefully we will start anew and have new determination and vigor in this fight against allergies.  Oh how great to know that when we mess up... we can start fresh and new in our walk with God.  If I can smile with that thought, I will make myself smile with our battle of the food intolerances and allergies.  May they open my heart to God's mercies as we experience the ups and downs of this battle of appetite in our war against the foods that hurt us.   

Warmly, ~Melissa

Time for a new plan.

I have a new plan for trying to work in foods into our diet.  I seen tonight it will already need some tweaking, but I need to go with this to start.  What I decided to do was to try a new recipe each day, well at least 4-5 a week, I am hoping.  And no better time to start, than TODAY!

Today's recipe was a Vegan Macaroni and Cheese.  It was easy to cook.  It was a crockpot recipe.  The cheesy sauce however was a bit "sour" for our tastes.  After it was all done, I had to cut it with a bit of honey to even make it palatible for our family.  And then... it was still a no go.   I found that when I took a bite of steamed broccoli which I had for a side dish, with a bite of the pasta, it really wasn't too bad.  But alone, it was just too sour.  I know that lemon can be a great taste, but I did not grow up with it, and the sharpness of the flavor was nothing our family was used to. 

I also tried a cashew gravy.  It had onions in the gravy and the way it was directed to cook, they did not get blended up.  I put it onto a vegetarian loaf (which was new also, but I just tweaked a burger recipe that I had and made it into a loaf).  The flavor... was good.  The family says... It is a keeper.  Though, next time the girls would prefer me to blend up those onions instead of leaving them in pieces within the gravy.  Dh said he would have liked it better if I had made potatoes with our meal, LOL.  He lives on potatoes and prefers it with every meal unless it is mexican or pasta ...and even then we add potatoes occasionally.  The new loaf was a keeper as well.  I have one daughter that requested I exchange the carrots for more potatoes, but I just smiled and everyone else said... it's fine...leave it as it is.   When my girls don't eat too many carrots (this daughter especially), it seems that if it is tolerable, I ought to leave it in.  *grin*

After all the cooking tonight, I realized that I struggle with doing dairy-free and soy free at the same time.  An automatic substitute for dairy is soy.  I made the vegetarian loaf with a vegetarian burger, didn't even dawn on me that there was TVP (Soy) in it. 

I did not take a picture of the loaf, but basically here is what was in it...

One can of vegan vegetarian burger, one potato shredded, one cup of carrots shredded, 3 eggs, 4 slices of ww bread cubed, a good set of shakes of sage, onion powder, and garlic powder.  I baked at 350 for about 30 minutes.  During that time, I made the gravy and then topped the loaf with the gravy and baked another 20-30 minutes.  (enough for the carrots to soften and the gravy to bubble). 

The gravy recipe I found in the book "Choices:  Quick and Healthy Cooking" by Cheryl Thomas Peters.  It was good and I am relieved that I had ONE new recipe for today approved by all (even if I need to tweak it and blend the onions into the gravy next time!). 

My plan will need some tweaking as on the first day I was given some comments on the plan.  The new recipe is planned to be a side dish to the main meal.  That part works, that way if it doesn't go over, the kids still eat.    The next part is that I need to keep the menu plan a bit more "normal".  This will prove to be difficult as we are ingrained in a particular style of food and when you can't eat that food, finding a new normal isn't always as easy as substituting one food for another.  Like tonight, I should have made a potato dish for the new loaf.  It would have been much easier for the family to accept the new food without feeling like they were being deprived.  But, in my thinking... we had plenty on the table... the menu consisted of:  Trial: mac and cheese, pineapple and banana salad (have bananas that need eating), burger loaf, gravy, steamed broccoli and cauliflower and squash (trial... we had a crossbreed in the garden and we tried it tonight...not so good! LOL).  After looking at the menu, I need to try and keep it smaller/simpler as well.  It's not like we're going to potluck, so I don't need to have so much food on the table. 

Anyways, I will be sharing our journey as I try new recipes.  I will share my flops, my forgetfulness, etc.   All in all, going to a new diet will be hard on the entire family.   I guess it isn't that it will be... IT IS. 

Today's aftermath of whatever little Paige ate, allowed her entire dresser of panties to be emptied.  That is about 15 pairs of underwear.  She told me at about 6pm, that she ran out of panties.  She also had about 6-8 bowel movements today.  Totally cleaned her out, I guess.  Her skin still has  the redness that appeared yesterday afternoon.  She also has a red blood mark in her eye today.  She was aggitated most of today, but seemed to calm down after supper and fell asleep a bit early for her (around 7:45 pm).  She didn't eat the loaf tonight, she has always seemed to say no to soy substitutes, although she does like gluten and those usually have soy flavorings.  I guess I will likely need to make my own at some point.  Anyways... hopefully tomorrow is a better day. 

Warmly, ~Melissa

Crash and Burn...

We were having such a good day and shortly after potluck, my daughter started having her bladder spasms again.  I have NO idea what caused it.  We had haystacks, which we eat at home and have no problems.  The new culprits... gramma gave Paige a sucker (which had food colorings and she licked on for a couple minutes after church before I was able to convince her to leave it in the car).  Then she tried some carob dairi-free milk, some plain dairi-free milk and some chocolate dairi-free milk.  The chocolate was cocoa only, no milk products.  Well, between the sucker and the cocoa... we have a problem. 

Paige was so happy at potluck that she went potty with out wetting her panties that she proceeded to tell everyone she was dry and her panties weren't wet.  OK, not a normal thing kiddos do, but she was happy and I just sat there watching her enjoy... ENJOY being able to say she was dry.  And then two hours later, the spasms began and she tells me... I'm sorry Mommy.... my panties are wet, but I went on the potty (for the third time in 15 minutes).   It just crushes my heart... she can't do anything about it, but to see her so joyful at telling people she was dry, I KNOW that this wetting bothers her as much as it does us for having to change her outfit nearly 10 times a day.  (Yes that is alot of laundry that I do to keep up with her!) 

This evening we had friends over and my daughter was very strung out.  She kept throwing things at our guests and crying, and whining and crying and fussing and hitting.  She just isn't a hitter, so that alarmed me that the reaction was more than just wetting.  She also has a rash/hive spot on her hand that wasn't  there this afternoon.  UGGERS!

I guess we start over and eliminate chocolate, SOY, and dairy, and food colorings and be strict about it.    

That was my day...

~Melissa

Going Dairy-free...

 When my 3yo was born we had problems with colic and after removing soy, we finally got some peace.  We also noticed that candies and cereals with food colorings really bothered her as well.  She tends to get ummmm... hard to deal with, more negative, etc. with food colorings.  Chocolate gave her a rash, and I had trouble determining whether it was the dairy, the chocolate itself, or the soy that is in the chocolate candies.   The past 3.5 years have been a struggle from day to day to figure out what is causing the troubles.

When my 3yo was 2.5, she was potty trained.  But in the last half year or so, she began wetting during the  day and during naps and at night.  She had been dry at night for almost a year, so I was wondering what was up.  What NOW? was more my question... During the days, she would wet herself, then go potty, then wet herself 5 minutes later again, and again 15 minutes later.  We suspected a bladder infection, but it was not that.  This has continued since around February.  I would try to eliminate a food, but didn't ever have a team effort with the trial, so it often got interrupted and we never could see what happens when a possible offending food is removed. 

Dh wants an answer NOW, and he doesn't go for the elimination diets.  He doesn't like that allergy tests are not 100% correct.  He doesn't like that symptoms come and go and can change as the child matures.  He doesn't like that allergies are not set in stone, meaning if you wet... it's milk... or if you have itchy skin, it is chocolate... that sort of thing.  Allergies aren't like that and are hard to diagnose.  This has caused resistance in his desire to do the elimination diets. 

Well, I have Dh's support to go Dairy Free for a trial.  We are on week two, and I am struggling with menus.  But we are seeing a difference.  The bladder spasms my daughter has during the day are almost completely gone and the wetting at night is less frequent.  It is so nice to take off a DRY diaper!  It appears that dairy is our main culprit.   She has had small amounts of soy and on those days, I notice her face is more ruddy, or rash like.  So, I am guessing the soy does still bother her as well.  

To see a honest difference in all symptoms, removal is suggested for 6 to 8 months.  Dh didn't like that at all.  He thinks it is cruel to say no to letting her not have chocolate or milk or hot cocoa, or cheese...  I think this would be far less cruel to all of us if I could find a diet that has no soy, no dairy, low in food colors and is appetizing to all.   However, our trial is proving to the other side of the family (Dh and older girls) that there is nothing good to eat.  (Angela and Amy, I haven't tried your recipes, yet... didn't have all the ingredients).  I have two more weeks to "make a difference" in the menus to have continued support. 

To give my older girls credit, they do not mind me using Rice milk in recipes.  They don't notice a difference at all.  (Probably because I've used it in mashed potatoes for a couple years, now... when they weren't looking! LOL).  And they are trying to help me find some recipes.  I believe they do not like the wetting and the fussy days just like me.  My oldest says when she is pregnant some day, she will not eat any junk... just fruits and vegetables and whole grains.  I just smiled, knowing it isn't that easy.  I told her that it would be wise to start NOW so that when the day comes she can stay strong with that determination.  I laugh because I think I ate the most healthy with my last one.  With her I craved big macs and ate them all the time.  With my second... I ate snicker bars like they were a food group.  With my third... macaroni and cheese was my downfall.  My last one, I just tried to eat a balanced vegetarian diet until I got to my 8th month and I got sick and I had no appetite and I got swelling in my ankles and the midwife said I needed more protein, so I downed cottage cheese (the most appealing to me at the time) and reintroduced meat.  I felt no better and my blood pressure never did go up, so my midwife wasn't sure what was going on.  I just wonder if it was a dairy reaction and the baby was big enough for me to feel the uckies that the baby was dealing with.  ???  I don't know. 

I've also gone dairy free just to see if it would help me, as I have eczema and some other symptoms of milk allergy and I have been off for two weeks as well.  Today, I ate two of those chocolate chip cookies.  I was angry at the moment, my oldest having troubles in one of her classes and her teacher is NOT willing to help her at all.  She HAS to schedule a visit in the next two school days and his first day was full, his second day, she has a different class during his "scheduled visits".  She tells him her dilemna and he says, you have a problem, hope you figure it out and shuts his appointment book and turns to a different student.  He knows she is homeschooled and he has incessantely picked on her since class started 6 weeks ago and makes a point to pick on her in class and make her uncomfortable.  He calls her "doll".  (The guy is nearly 80+ years old and still teaching)  All of it added up today... and I was thinking back over the years to why we homeschooled in the first place... to get her out of an environment where she wasn't getting any help... the teacher said she was behind in math, yet refused to help her.  She was punished by removing recess and other important group activities in the classroom to make a point that she needed to improve her math, but the teacher didn't stay to help her... instead just walked away... like this teacher is doing.  I grabbed the cookies and just ate them without thinking.  And guess what I found... I got a stomach ache within about 15 minutes of eating the cookies.  I thought, that's odd.  I haven't had a stomach ache like that for about ... hmmmmm..... two weeks!  DUH!!!  Oh to live without those occasional tummy aches would be wonderful and to realize that the dairy that I ingested likely caused the belly ache... LIGHT BULB moment!    So even though I wasn't too happy that Dh fudged the plan by hiding chocolate cookies in the cupboard (to which he let Paige snitch last night ... Paige tattled on Daddy later, LOL).  But we had immediate consequences... I had a stomach ache and Paige had trouble going to sleep.  Now I know some would think that isn't awful... that happens occasionally, but when she has been asking to go to bed at a regular hour for about a week now and for 3.5 years we have never accomplished this because of irritabilities in Paige.  This is BIG for me!  Dh isn't quite there, yet in accepting it, but I'm hoping that I will find some recipes, and menus that are appealing to him that he can be willing to work with it enough that when the fudging happens, it either really opens his eyes to what is going on or it lessens the impact and we have maybe a bad evening instead of a bad life. 

Please pray for us.  I honestly was hoping it wasn't the dairy, because that was my alternative to soy... so if one can't have soy and can't have dairy... there's no sour cream, no cheese  (I know Angela... I like cheesy sauce, but it's not going over as a substitute in our house, yet *grin*).   I had wanted to go cheese free.  But didn't want to go so far as dairy free.  Life is just so much easier when I know what to cook on a moments notice, instead of grabbing recipes only to find out I needed to have started HOURS before.  Perhaps this is a change I need as well... to get my menu plans under order, to be more assertive in my life (it takes assertiveness to always alert people that we can't eat something), or maybe my family needs this to be so, to rid ourselves of some selfishness that we harbor within ourselves over our appetite (and more). 

As for my oldest and her teacher... she is upset, but can't do anything about it until Monday and then she will have to ask her Chemistry teacher if she can ditch class in the middle of it for a 6 minute conference for her Writing Class.  I wish I could help her, but she is strong and is prepared to drop the class if the teacher is trying to make an example out of homeschoolers.  Praise God for scholarships which makes that alternative less painful to the pocketbook.  It is too bad, however, because the time cannot be replaced, but she is hoping that there is a reason for this experience.  She hasn't determined it as of yet.  Whether God is working on her and her own feelings towards this man/teacher or whether she is there to influence someone else.  Some days she makes me so proud.  (She said that after eating two cookies herself!  LOL.)   What a bunch we are! 

Warmly, ~Melissa