Time in a season

I decided to start selling some of the skin care products we use on Gavin "for sure". Woo Whoo! I'm super excited! The website is complete I just need to post photos of the products. Here are the "for sure" products I'll be selling until I figure out what all I want to sell since we literally use everything homemade (even our cleaning products).

• Everyday Balm (can be used throughout the day 10+ times a day)
• Diaper Butt (great for diaper rash or eczema breakout in the diaper area)
• Sniffle Stopper (perfect for allergies, colds, and stuffy noses)
• Baby Oil (it's baby oil)
• Belly Rub Oil (for those expecting this helps fight stretch marks)
• Soap Me (bar of soap)

Things you WILL NOT find in our products: Coconut, Soy,  Milk, Shea Butter, Acai, or Wheat

The ingredients we DO use: Olive Oil, Vegetable Oil, Jojoba Oil, Rice Bran Oil, Aloe Vera, Lavender, Peppermint Leaf, Glycerin (natural thickener), Sunflower Oil, and Cocoa (fruit of the cacao tree)

Because Gavin did once have an allergy to rice we will offer products without rice bran oil. Not to worry! I have especially designed this brand around those with food allergies and eczema. I know it's such a struggle finding products around your needs so I hope to make things much easier for you.

Okay, on another note...

Gavin's still doing great! We've been indoors a lot still because it's so darn hot outside. Did I mention we live in Texas? This heat is no joke. The only time I get out is when the sun's going down. I can not wait for Fall! 

I took his bottle away for 5 days (yippee) but then Dad gave in and gave him one while I was gone -_- so he's back on the dang bottle. I've tried putting his milk (Neocate Jr.) in his sippy but that doesn't help any. Looks like I'll have to take his bottle away cold turkey again. I just need to prepare myself mentally and physically before trying again lol! It's not easy guys! He's almost 2 and terrible two's have came a little early for us (tantrums). 

His "Mah-Mah" (my grandma/Gavin's great grandma) bought him a toddler potty seat and a two step stool as a "surprise gift" lol pushing us to potty train him She say's all her kids could go potty by the age of one. Geez!! So we have started potty training as of last week but with my husband's work schedule it's a little harder to have him help train Gavin. I put him on the potty a few times throughout the day... hopefully he'll be potty trained in no time!

Oh wait! Important to know! We had a visit with his allergist last week! On man. I almost forgot to include this in my post (shame on me). The doctor said he looks amazing then he asked, "What does his meal plan look like?" (where's the big cheesy smiley at!) I couldn't be any more excited to tell him, "he eats anything and everything!" He couldn't believe it. Heck, I sometimes can't either lol. We choose NOT to give him eggs just yet because of his anaphylaxis last year and we dont do cow's milk. He even said it's been a bad summer for his eczema patients so he was impressed with Gavin.

As we were leaving... literally right before the doors leading outside I felt a tug from my gut telling me to go to the bathroom. I went ahead and changed Gavin's diaper while I was there and as I left the bathroom I saw a girl (a patient of Dr. Birds) waiting in the room where the restrooms were. She stopped and asked what Gavin was seeing Dr. Bird for... and as we were talking I couldn't help but to notice her entire body was covered in extremely dry skin at least 90% of her body just like Gavin's skin before he was healed. I knew it was chronic eczema. She must have been at least 14-16 years old. It broke my heart. I asked if I could pray for her and so I did. She said she felt a tingle in her body as I was praying for her and I truly believe that was the power of God. I've come to a part in life where if I see someone who needs healing I WILL stop, pull over if I have to, and pray for them.

I gave my life to God in 2009 but I've never been so close to him then I am now. I have truly devoted my entire life to God these past 20 months. I dont know how I made it day after day without Him. I'm just so greatful for Gavin's healing! When I get asked by friends or family what or how did Gavin clear up the first word that comes out of my mouth is, God. Even though all these products have helped along the way Jesus is who brought the products. Jesus is who healed him... I get no credit. All the glory to God. Where I would be embarrassed to pray over my meals in public I now feel the need to pray for others in public. My entire life has changed because of my son. I will never see life the same. I'm grateful just to wake up to another day with him. Gavin was brought in my life as my son and because of him I'm a new person. God works in mysterious ways. We may not ever understand his ways but I've learned to understand his decisions will always be better then our own.

Even right after Gavin's healing I would ask God, "why did it take so long? why did you let us go through all this for so long?" I heard him say, "Had I healed him at your time right away like you asked, you would've never read your bible, you would've never fasted and prayed, you would've never forgave everyone who you thought did you wrong, you would've never repented of all your sins, you would've never made alone time just to cry out to me, you would've never humbled your heart, you would've never felt confident enough to pray for others, you would've never known I gave you healing hands, had I healed him just a few months before his healing you would've never had a Revelation chapter 4 expereince, had I healed him just a few days before his healing you would've never been grateful for the little things." I cry every time I think of all that we've been through. I'm crying now... but I now know God has a reason for everything. Your love is loyal. 

Update:
The photo on the left is a photo I posted months ago... that's what Gavin looked like most of his childhood up until just 2 months ago.

B&W photo was a few mornings ago :)

Skin Care Products

Here's the latest...

As I posted on my last blog, I totally went away with the steroid ointments and antibiotics. I was so fed up with changing his medications what seemed like every doctor's visit (every 3 months).

I have added probiotics to his diet and still continuing with his vitamin D. I've slowed down on the Zinc since his skin has cleared. I give him Zinc once a week now.

His skin is clear! I'm sure you all are wondering how!?
On my last post he was already starting to clear up but he still had dry skin. It definitely wasn't as dry as it has been in the past but he still had dry spots (you can kinda see on the photo I posted). Since I went away with his prescribed ointments I created my own. He now uses handmade products and I couldn't be any more happier! I know everything that's going into his lotions and soaps. I love it!

I've used natural store bought products on him before but none of them had real background experience with eczema. I almost felt like they just Googled "ingredients for eczema?" because every natural product I found almost had the exact same ingredients. One being coconut oil and with Gavin's allergies I was way to afraid to buy anything with coconut in it. I know the FDA says coconut isn't a tree nut but I think otherwise. I could argue that all day but it doesn't really matter. What does matter is that I have created products WITHOUT coconut oil! :)

I recently had a friend ask if she could buy a cream from me so I sold her a 4oz jar of the morning cream we use. Since then she's now bought the night time cream and the green tea soap. That being said, I'll be selling all the products we use online! It's helped Gavin so much and although there isn't a cure for eczema you can definitely control it with all the right products. Take it from someone who has literally gone through 30 different lotions off the shelf not including the medicated ointments.

All of Gavin's skin care products now have all the right oils and plants known to treat eczema. Here are some of the oils and plants you'll find in the products: Neem Oil, Rice Bran Oil, Green Tea, Spinach, Olive, Aloe Vera, Lavender, and his soaps are DETERGENT FREE! SCORE (where's the hands up emoji). The very first soap I created for him had no Lavender Essential Oil (natural scent) so that'll be on the website too (for those working on EO's). All lotions and soaps are carefully measured giving you the perfect moisturizer. I took my time creating each one around Gavin's sensitive skin so it is a product line for everyone! Anyone form normal skin to psoriasis.

Once I started using our natural and handmade products on him, his skin started drying up and peeling off. Almost like all the dead skin was coming off. It was remarkable! It did take a week before I started noticing a difference but heck 7 days isn't nothing! It was totally worth the wait. I'm no expert but I am highly aware of my son's prior food allergies and what triggers his eczema. Not every product line is for you. You pretty much just have to take a chance and try it out. I know, because we had to do the same with Gav so I'm not saying my line is the one that'll clear your skin. However, it's what has helped our son's skin and I can't imagine using anything different.

I almost want to slap myself in the face for not creating his skin care products from scratch long ago but I was so exhausted when I first started blogging, I barely had enough time to feed myself lol.

Today's post is to tell all you eczema parent's out there DONT GIVE UP! I'll never forget all the sleepless nights and long exhausting days we had for almost 2 years. I would definitely give Gavin's skin care products a try! (website coming soon)

As always, feel free to send me an email: Uniquemaree@gmail.com

Recent Photo: 

This was the first time not wearing a onesie since he was 6 months old because he would scratch his sides. This is the only time I can get a photo of him being still btw lol. He's a wild one.

                                                    

FOLLOW US ON TWITTER: @RaisingGavinN

How to Control Eczema

Hey ya'll.
Welp, we're doing "okay" these days. Gavin is doing a lot better then when I first started blogging. I've met a lot of helpful people along the way too.

He's now at a balanced daily meal intake. Which is awesome news!

His favorite snacks are veggie sticks, organic cinnamon toast rice cakes, and sweet potato chips. We're still working on meats. I think we may have to just eliminate meats form his diet completely. We've tried beef, chicken, turkey, and grass fed beef. They all seem to be irritating his eczema.

Schedule:
Breakfast: Rice waffles and up until a few days ago turkey sausage :/
Lunch: Rice english muffin or rice bread with vegan butter or melted vegan cheese
Dinner: Black rice burger patty

One more thing I just learned yesterday... just by switching from iodine salt to sea salt will help with eczema flare up's!

He does get flare-ups but they're "controllable" now. We've also figured out that he doesn't have any food allergies anymore. It's all eczema related. When he breaks out after eating a food... it's his eczema that gets irritated. It's not a food allergy. I never understood the differences between a eczema breakout and a food allergy breakout but now I can explain the differences. Now when we're out in public we get asked, "Does he have eczema?". When before we got the stare down and wondering looks. That just means he looks better! :)

Gavin recently had a Food Allergy checkup appointment. The doctor changed his skin ointments from steroid to an antibiotic. Along with an oral antibiotic. I'm pretty much over all the medications so I'm back to trying something more natural.

Several months ago we took Gav to a Chinese Doctor. This was when we first started this journey so we were extremely desperate for answers. The doctor knew it was food allergies and eczema. He went on explaining how eczema is caused from the inside of the stomach. He said, "You have to clean the inside of his stomach before the outside starts to heal." Makes since, right?! Anyways, so he gave us some natural herbs to mix in water... that didn't work. It was awful! It tasted horrible and after giving it to him through a dropper he threw it all up. Complete waste in time and money.

That being said, I've been doing much research on how to help eczema flare ups. I recently went to Natural Grocer's to do some shopping. The cashier gave me some info on a blog she follows www.holisticsquid.com she told me about the girl's daughter having eczema and she has an e-book out to help you cure eczema completely.

After reading the Holistic Squid's blog it got me doing MUCH research over "gut cleansing". It all came together... remembering what the Chinese Doctor told us and the Holistic Squid blogger. I highly recommend you all to do some research on "how to cleanse your gut". I've learned a lot. One, my son is lacking zinc. A low amount of zinc can cause skin irritations, skin infections, and eczema flare ups. My son is not getting any zinc foods in at all because of his diet. Therefore, we decided to put him on a natural zinc supplement (photo below). The food allergist asked us to put him on D3 since he's not getting much sun rays too (photo below).

Although I was a bit skeptical about putting him on D3 since he didn't mention anything about zinc we went ahead and put him on D3 because I did my research on that too. Since he's indoors 90% of the week he is lacking vitamin D big time.

He still drink's his Neocate Jr. formula but he'll only have 1 bottle a day (nap time) and it isn't enough to fill vitamin D and Zinc. Here's the vitamins we purchased. You can find them at your nearby natural food store. We give him half of the Zinc supplement and 1 drop of the D3 (literally one small drop). Be sure to look up how much vitamin D and Zinc your child can have or ask your pediatrician.

We plan on having his blood drawn to see what all he's lacking

He was eating breakfast :)

Another tip of advice for those struggling with food allergies... Pinterest is the best for finding recipes. Vegan recipes can be pretty tasty and doesn't have to be expensive. I use to make excuses but once you find a few recipes you like you can just alternate them. I sometimes take my portion of lunch or dinner from his... adding what I want to mine like dairy cheese or cow's milk. It's a routine now.

Making up for lost time

Y'all! I'm feeling pretty fantastic this week.

Gavin had his FIRST skin allergy testing this past Monday. I always tell my husband not to "Google" images of any kind just because everyone has a different image in every situation. Like when I Google "red balloon" in my head I picture a balloon outdoors floating up... Google a red balloon and see how many balloons that pop up. None that look exactly the same. My point is, your going to get 50 different answers and probably none you want to see or read.

Anyways, my husband Googled anyways -_- and all these awful photos popped up of kids with hives all down their backs and even closed eyes. It was brutal. I really wish he hadn't looked up images. I was mortified and honestly was afraid of going to Gavin's skin test appointment. I was more afraid of my husband once again blaming it all on me because I gave the doctor the "okay" to do the test.

Anyways, I prayed about (as usual) and thank heavens that entire morning went so smoothly. We're not morning people including my little guy. Our regular morning starts about 9:30-10am. His appointment was at 10:30am and unlike my little he woke up at 8am full of energy yelling throughout the whole house with excitement. I'm a very spiritual person and even though I may not "look" the part you have no idea how much I pray and fast. Seeing Gavin so happy so early in the morning my heart began to feel warm inside. I knew it was God's presence filling the house and running through Gavin's little temple. I KNEW that moment in time, this is it!! I wasn't sure what to expect at the appointment. All I knew was that God was with us the entire step of the way and it made me feel secure.

We get to his skin testing appointment and it all went fairly fast from there. I took out all the foods I wanted tested and the doctor provided his part. Gavin tested for the following: beef, chicken, green beans, broccoli, cantaloupe, sweet potato, white potato, yellow squash, watermelon, rice, soy milk, pinto beans, and dog dander. All that we thought he was allergic to because he had a bad outbreak to it all.

Before I go into his results. I wasn't to share something with you all that I truly believe in my heart has helped me and my family.

I may not know every scripture in the bible by heart but God doesn't care. He see's your heart not how much knowledge you know of the bible. Even though I am wanting to learn scripture by heart.

I did a 3 day fast right before my son's testing. I cleansed my body as asked in the bible for 3 full days. I ate nothing but drank water to keep me lightly full. I advise you all to please ready your bibles about prayer and fasting. You may not be going through what we are... maybe you have another need. Everyone should all know about prayer and fasting! In my time of fasting, I pray any chance I get. Washing dishes, during Gavin's nap time, in the shower, where ever I can get a prayer in I will! So I did my 3 day fast and asked the Lord for healing for my son.

While waiting the 15 minutes (longest fifteen minutes of my life) 2 clowns came in to play Gavin a song (literally). They really cheered him up! :) I'm so happy they did. I secretly wanted to cry because once again I felt God's presence through the song they played. Maybe because there was no words in the song. Just a simple guitar and what seemed to be a harmonica. It was beautiful and heart warming to be assured that the Lord was still with us even through the waiting period.

It took 15 minutes for the skin prick testing. They poked really small needles in a row down his back and do you know, he passed EVERY food including dog dander!! We are extremely happy and pleased to give ALL the glory to God. I know in my heart from the beginning of that morning God was in control. He heard my prayers and saw my fasting.

We got home about noon that day and I was so quick to whip up a huge plate for my little. Gavin had 2 big plates of white potato, broccoli, and squash. Not to mention he slept a solid 5 hours that night without waking up for his bottle.

Side thought: My husband now has an online tshirt shop for everyone. Even kiddos with food allergies. The shirt below is one of many shirts you can find at his shop.

SHOP:  www.etsy.com/shop/allertees

“And when you fast, do not look gloomy like the hypocrites, for they disfigure their faces that their fasting may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face, that your fasting may not be seen by others but by your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you." Matthew 6:16-18

December-February update

**Moms feel free to reach out to me: uniquemaree@gmail.com

Well, I've been M.I.A for some time so, sorry for the long update.

A lot of changes have been made for the Arce family. For starters, we have moved into our new home and Gavin is doing so much better! We're pretty sure just the new atmosphere has helped him out. He cleared up almost immediately after moving in. It took about 2 weeks after settling in that we noticed he started clearing up.

We stopped giving him solid foods for a while but have since reintroduced foods. He's eating sweet potatoes, broccoli, and carrots! That is HUGE for us. We are so happy. Its a great start and can't wait to see what all he loves again. That being said, Gavin has also gained all his weight back. You can see the good fat in his cheeks and legs.

And guess what?!!? NO MORE WET WRAPS!  Buh-bye wet suit. I put it away with all the clothes he has outgrown over the year. I dont even know where to start with how far he has come in so little time. The last "really bad"outbreak was in November of last year.

We actually get to go grocery shopping as a family and even get to sit down at restaurants again. Its amazing! We really cherish every minute of being outdoors with our son and he does too. When we say, "lets go bye bye" he tries to put his shoes on and gives us his jacket lol. He wastes no time!

We calculated over 15 oral medications and 7 body ointment medications that were prescribed to us over the year. We NO LONGER need any of them! We still apply vasaline to help lock in the moisture for his dry skin but that's it! #happymomma

Although we are down to using no medications and he is eating solid foods we still struggle with his sleep schedule along with his bottle feedings. He wakes up every 3 hours during the night still for a bottle and that's because he's not full enough before bed. We're working on it. It does make up for longer nights especially when he doesn't want to sleep but play and watch TV instead. Hey, we're not complaining. We much rather have him up watching TV then up scratching all night not being able to sleep. By the way, he was up from 12:30am-4:30am last night playing. We're working on it, we're working on it. I'm just happy he has the choice now! He gets to choose "should I stay up" or "should I go to sleep". When before he had Benadryl before bed forcing him to sleep but would still wake up scratching till he bled without being able to go back to sleep... and that went on hour hours throughout the night.

I've read my first few posts a few weeks ago and it brought me to tears. I can't believe what all we've been through as a young married couple. Our marriage was there holding on by a thread. It's nothing to be ashamed of. After all, we have never been through something so tough involving the both of us. We rarely talked to each other and when we did it was out of frustration. My husband and I have come a long way as parents. All I can say is, I'm so thankful God brought me good hearted Christian man. Any time I thought about leaving our marriage I remembered all the happy and loving moments we did have together. 90% of our relationship was laughs and giggles and sarcasm. You never knew when we were actually arguing and when we were serious because everything was perfect in our view. We're doing so much better now. Actually, its almost like we just met all over again. We talk about our life's blessings and things we're privileged to do. We're just so extremely grateful! you have no idea. I love him so much and he's been such an amazing father to our son. He really puts in half of the work as a parent AFTER coming home from his actual job.

Here's a few photos of his progress... the photo on the left was our last hospital visit. We were admitted for 4 days at Children's Dallas.

February 2015 ^

Update

Sorry, I haven't blogged in a few days. Its been a very hectic past few days.

We were doing so well with the wraps. I was consistent and did them twice a day for 2 hours as instructed. I'm not sure where we went wrong.

I made a new face mask with a new (never used) wash cloth AND we ran out of the prescribed ointment the children's hospital in Houston prescribed us. It's like vasaline but made a little differently. When Gavin was 4 months old we tried applying vasaline to his body and it broke him out but we thought we would give it another shot so I did. I'm not really sure if the Vasaline broke him out but he broke out bad. Maybe not as bad as the photo I posted when he had goats milk but just about. The vasaline DID make him extra dry. His skin felt scaly and rough. I've stopped using the vasaline since and stopped putting his face mask on.

I'm still applying the wet wraps to his body and they seem to help but his eczema is still there since he's allergic to his formula milk.

Here's how it all works... because he has eczema and food allergies when he eats something he's allergic to he flares up and gets red. Thats called eczema. The doctor explained it as, "they don't work well together so try to keep them apart from each other." So when he gets an allergic reaction we are to start treating his eczema before it starts to get bad.

FOOD ALLERGIST:

Today we saw a food allergy specialist. He was helpful but I've seen so many doctors I'm kind of like, "lets see what we'll have to re-do again today". He gave me a lot of helpful info on the wet wraps and more info on when to use the Epi Pen. We're currently having to buy gauze for the wet wraps which can get to be expensive when you need 4-5 a week at $8 each box. The doctor recommended a wet wrap suit which is $100. I think we might try it out.

New formula milk...

The food allergist switched his formula to Neocate Junior. Okay call me crazy but I got really emotional when he told me it would be the junior milk. I can't believe I'll have a 1 year old next Tuesday lol. Man, where did this year go?! He's lived such a stressful year but I know there will be better days soon. I have high hopes in the good Lord. Its all in a matter of time. Just waiting...

So I tried out the Neocate formula. The doctor gave us samples of Strawberry, Chocolate, Vanilla, and Tropical. I tried both the strawberry and chocolate and he HATES IT! I'm not giving up just yet! I'm going to keep trying everyday. 

A few days later...

He's now 100% on Neocate milk. He's use to it now, I guess. It's been exactly 1 week since we've seen the food allergist so that means 6 days off of "soy milk". I've read a lot of blogs and testimonies about soy milk formula taking a full 30 days till its fully out of his system. I have noticed his skin has been clearing a little more each day. He's just really dry but I'm sure the wet wraps can help with that.

DAY 3 & 4

DAY 3:

Yesterday was my husbands day off so I try and stay off all social medias and my phone since we only have him to ourselves that one day out of the week.

Gavin still woke up throughout the night (every 2-3 hours) but only for a bottle. We're seeing progress!! I woke up before him that following morning. Which is unusual because I'm always so tired. Normally, he wakes me up lol.

He woke up with only a little redness on his cheeks. His hands, legs, and feet felt so smooth with no dry skin. Also, he didn't scratch not one time the ENTIRE day! It was amazing. We went to stores that afternoon and even took him for a quick Christmas photo at mommy's promo session.

We don't get out ever unless its to walk around the block. Its just to hard for me by myself to go anywhere by ourselves. As soon as I strap him into his car seat he starts rubbing his wrists and arms against the seatbelt till it burns so when my husbands off I try to do any and all shopping that I need done.

We got our food allergy test results back for a few other foods we tested Gavin for. He's now allergic to beef, chicken, rice & oat (peanuts, soy, cow's milk, wheat, eggs, and NO GLUTEN).

That being said, yesterday was the first day we went grocery shopping just for Gavin. We were so sure Whole Foods would be the place to go.... wrong! We went down every single aisle and checked every ingredient on foods. If it was vegan, it had soy or wheat... if it was gluten free, it had eggs... if it was wheat free, it had gluten. We ended up leaving with oranges and apples. We did find frozen vegan bread but usually it'll say wheat and soy free and it didn't so we didn't want to risk it.

I thought about making vegetable soups for him but if he were to break out I wouldn't know what he broke out to so I'm back to trying one fruit and vegetable every three days.

Everything is going good we come home and sliced his orange in little pieces he loved it! Then a few hours passed...

Day 3's photo

Christmas photo:

DAY 4:

Gavin itched and scratched all night long. We think it might have been the orange. We still continued with the wraps even with his irritation. We had to give him Benadryl to help him sleep but I don't think that helped much. He tossed and turned all night long and even woke up from 4:30-5:30am. His eyes were closed the whole time he was just so irritated. The bottom picture is a better photo of his forehead. Don't mind his clothes lol we literally change him 5-6 times a day because of the wet wraps.

This is how he woke up:

This morning I was just so frustrated. I started to feel like we're going back to where we started. I called his allergist and he referred me to a "food allergist specialist". They called me within 10 minutes after hanging up with his allergist. Oh by the way, if any of you need an allergist Dr. William Neville is the best doctor I've ever delt with. He doesn't have his nurse call you ever. He calls you directly. He even called just to check up on Gavin since his goats milk out break. He's seriously the best! He called the food allergist specialist today and they called me immediately. Gavin now has an appointment next week. I just need some answers!!!!! I don't understand how EVERYTHING I feed him breaks him out. It just sounds impossible. 

Today I gave him organic apple slices. Lets see what happens. Also, the weather seems to be great here in Texas so if he's not to itchy we might just take a stroll around the block. See you tomorrow!