New Things

As we welcome spring I am welcoming a fresh face on this little blog.  The layout is mostly the same and for a free platform I can't complain.  :-)  

Late winter has brought new things we're experiencing as a family, like a shift in our family schedule as Andrew works on a school musical for the first time since spring of 2006 (Ben was born about 2 weeks after the show).  It was hard on us at first but we've settled into the change.  The schedule will change again in April as afternoon rehearsals transition into evening rehearsals and eventually, tech week.  

And the hardest new thing just started today -- an experiment with taking Ben off gluten for awhile.  I don't want to elaborate too much just to guard his privacy now that he's older, but earlier this year there were some things we were seeing in him that concerned us.  We checked in with his doctor, did some labwork, and all that came back fine.  Since then we've gone round and round observing him, talking with him a lottttt, troubleshooting from every angle, even visiting the school district to see if he needed services for sensory processing issues.  And after all this, the only thing we can come up with is that it's straight up anxiety.  It has gotten progressively worse since January, though since his recent trip to Washington DC with Andrew it's gotten significantly better.

I know a few things about anxiety.  I know that it usually stems from something else going on in the body, whether it's hormonal (as it was for me), a food sensitivity, or even a side effect from a drug. Seeing as how his momma, who he strongly favors, did incredibly "curing" anxiety in part by dropping gluten, this is where we're starting for him.  One of the concerns we've had for Ben is his physical growth, and I've read numerous times that gluten sensitivity can translate into lack of growth in children; once they clear their systems of gluten, growth spurts take place.  I found this blog post that links to articles and journal studies if you're interested in reading about it.  

Ben has been wanting to go GF to help his anxiety because he's willing to try anything to nip this in the bud.  Despite the desire, there have been little blips of food grief as he realizes certain things he'll be giving up for now.  Last night he was pretty sad about it.  Joey was so thoughtful, and unprompted, scribbled a little note, sliding it under the bathroom door as Ben got ready for bed last night.  It read: 

I know life can be hard sometimes but I'm right here to support you.  From Joey

This was a sweet note to read after what has been a bumpy couple of months.  The kids have been nit-picky-arguing and attempting to parent one another... a lot.  Hannah likes to screech when she thinks a brother is ganging up on her, which happens a few times a day.  It's been loud.  It's been chalk full of "deny yourself" and "love your neighbor as yourself" gospel conversations because selfishness wants to reign in us all and we want to change hearts, not outward behavior.  And especially with Ben, it's been a season of unknowns and prayer.

And here we remain in this Life Together.  Waiting.  Working.  Hoping.  Forging ahead into the new.