My Caleb turns 11, today.

Caleb is growing up on us so fast.  I can remember him toddling around as a two year old, those were some rough years.  He was a sick child in and out of the hospital every month or so because his oxygen levels were so low.  There was one point that he spent several weeks at children's hospital in Omaha.  I remember how closely that time bonded us together as mother and child.  I saw my child lay there struggling to breath just lifeless in a hospital bed.  The thing is this would reoccur and no one could tell us what was wrong with him other than when he was a bit older they would diagnose him with asthma.  This was so hard on this mamma who at that time was full of worry and anxiety about it all.  I remember taking him to daycare as I was teaching at that time and daycare would say he would cry all day long.  Something was wrong with my little guy.  Then I was introduced to a book by Dr. Rapp, called Is this Your Child?  This book shows a parent how to find out if your child has allergies to different foods, or chemicals in the environment.  Needless to say we started Caleb on this diet to find out if he had any food allergies and found out he was having reactions to tons of foods as well as different chemicals like bleach.  So my 2 year old couldn't eat anything with preservatives, added colors, milk, sugar or wheat. As well as many ingredients in household cleaners. Man I remember him sneaking cupcakes in the laundry room because he wanted something sweet to eat. And I remember trying to avoid clorox but I love the goodness of clorox in a clean house. However, when we started him on this diet he went a whole year without being in the hospital. It was a success.  After a year we backed off a bit to see if he had outgrown some of the allegies and noticed he was straight back in the hospital.  So after a few years we slowly stopped with the different foods and he did much better.  But even today I can't use any form of plug in without it bothering him and I can't use a ton of clorox in the house or he needs an inhaler, but for the most part he is completely healed of the food allergies.

Caleb is now a very loving compassionate eleven year old boy.  He loves on my daycare kids, play with them and always has an attitude to help out with them whenever I need help.  I know that he is going to have an extra special bond with his sister when we get her home.  I see him as her protector,  if anyone messes with her they are going to have to go through him.   I just love this kiddo so much, and the person he is growing up to be.