Andrew's new allergy bracelets

Remember a few weeks ago, I got some silicone bracelets from Australia, but they'd had a mixup on the order? Well, the replacement ones arrived last week, and here's what they look like.



They're a great fit on his little 3-year-old wrist, and it's now very easy to read the writing on the bracelets. The inside of the bracelet still has contact cell #s on it, but they're just indented, not in dark text.

I'm happy with these, especially at the price and customizability. They're from Buzzmeband, in Australia. Shipping seemed to take 2-3 weeks, but it's 2 weeks from the US, so only an extra few days from the other side of the world.

Now, if only I could get Andrew to keep them on his wrists -- he'll put them on, but then takes them off again after 20 minutes or so.

UPDATE: January 3, 2009
Buzzmeband seems to have gone out of business. See this post for another fun beaded allergy bracelet from Australia.

Remember Erica Ehm?

You're a Canadian child of the 80s if you remember Erica Ehm. She was one of Much Music's first VJs. I think she was 18 at the time, and her dad was one of the channel's owners or something.

Anyways, her latest incarnation is as the host of the Yummy Mummy TV show, since she, like so many of our generation, now has a kid.

The reason I'm blogging her -- her daughter is allergic to peanuts and fish, as she describes in this article.

My apologies for a long absence. Socks have been knitted, and life has gone on.

But we've been a house o' plague for a couple of weeks. Andrew brought home a nasty throat virus from preschool, and was miserable for a week. Then I caught it just as he got over it. And now Geoff and Tony have it. It seems to run its course over a week, so hopefully we'll all be better by the end of this week. I sure hope so -- being sick SUCKS!

UFOs

My current UFO (unfinished object) is a pair of socks for Sarah. I love working with these bright colours. It's a Knitpicks yarn: Simple Stripes Sunset.

The pair before this was all shades of grey, so it's a nice change to be working on something with such cheerful colours. They're going pretty quickly, too. Heel turns are done on both socks, so I only have the feet to finish.

And it turns out that it was my fault that Andrew's preschool recommended the treats that they did. I forgot to get them a list of safe foods, and the other mom did get her list in. So they just picked two foods off her list and didn't check them for dairy content.

I got them a new list today, and they were grateful. I think they'll use it, too, especially for group treats or holiday celebrations -- of which there will be plenty over the next few months.

Andrew's loving his preschool, too. He even has "best friends" there, and he remembers their names. But of course, when I ask him who his best friend is, he always answers, "Megan."

Here's a photo of Andrew and Megan at the Canada Day parade in July. They are awfully cute together.

Socks for Christmas!

In case anyone missed me, it's because I'm now addicted to knitting socks. And since Andrew hasn't had any allergic reactions for a month, I'm getting a lot of knitting done!

I've discovered that it's easy -- and therapeutic -- to knit on the SkyTrain. So in the month since I've been back to work, I've done 3.5 pairs of socks. (The second sock of the fourth pair is in progress at the moment.) Here's a photo of what I've done so far.



On the allergy front, I'm working with the preschool folks to come up with foods that parents can bring for birthday treats. Another mom who has a peanut-allergic child has recommended only two: plain packaged Rice Krispies squares, and Wagon Wheels. But both contain milk ingredients, so Andrew would be left out of birthday party celebrations.

I got this list from the peanutallergy boards:
-Safeway Graham Crackers
-Honey Maid Graham Crackers
-Keebler Graham Crackers
-Teddy Grahams (just NOT the chocolate chip ones)
-Fresh Fruit
-Delmonte Fruit Cups
-Fresh Veggies, carrots & celery
-Jello with fruit cups
-Sun Maid Raisins
-Triscuits
-Pop Tarts
-Plain old Oreos
-Nabisco Fig Newtons
-Robert's American Gourmet -- veggie Booty

I haven't checked all of them for dairy (particularly the graham crackers), but I know that Andrew has had almost everything on this list without a problem.

I'd really like to get either the delmonte fruit cups and the jello with fruit cups onto the preschool's approved list, as those actually feel more like a party treat.