We Know Stuff

My Health History Chart Might be Full, But I'm As Healthy As A Clam

Recently, my husband and I took our children to see our ENT. Both kids have very large tonsils, snore like truck drivers nightly, and sometimes, I can't tell if they're breathing or not - until I poke them. Needless to say, this has made me a bit anxious, so our ENT recommended a sleep study for the kids.

 

Last week, a stack of paperwork arrived in the mail from the sleep study specialist and they asked me to fill it out before coming to the office. Well, imagine my surprise when I realized that the packets were 20 pages long! Holy moly! Thank God I opened them days in advance because I never would have been able to fill them out the morning of the appointment!

Photo: Kurhan

Anyways, as I got to the section about family history, I started to feel overwhelmed. We have a decent amount of "red flag" health issues in our family lines and although I had expected to be asked about our family's sleep-related issues - apnea, snoring, night terrors, sleep walking, etc - I wasn't expecting to be asked about the "red flag" issues. As I saw how many boxes I had ticked - high blood pressure, congenital heart disease, cancer, stroke, etc - I got very antsy.

 

As a parent, your greatest fear in life is that something will happen to your child and you spend the majority of your life trying to keep that something from happening to them. Sadly, when it comes to health-related issues, there's not much you can do. I mean how do you know if our Pop Pop's macular degeneration was passed on to any of us or even on to our own kids? Or what about our Grandmother's migraines? Are our kids susceptible to them too?

Photo: Donald Cook

So when 23andMe.com, a private genomics company, asked me if I would be interested in raising awareness about personal genetic testing kits for health risks and conditions, I thought, "Well, this could be interesting." If just a few millimeters of spit was able to give my family and I a heads-up on some potential health risks in our DNA, wouldn't I want to know about it?

 

I mean if I use myself as an example, I'm a specialist's favorite patient - and on paper, I look like a train wreck. Seriously, if you looked in my personal health history chart you would see: tonsillectomy, Epstein-Barr virus, ovarian torsion, partial unilateral oophorectomy, appendectomy, infertility, Intrauterine insemination (IUI), HELLP syndrome, pre-term birth, Hydronephrosis, Ureteropelvic Junction (UPJ) Obstruction, kidney stones, Paradoxical vocal fold movement (PVFM), migraines, and more. However, if you looked at me and asked if I was healthy, I would say, and you would agree, that I look as healthy as a clam. (Wait, do clams look healthy? Umm, I have no idea. Wait a minute. Isn't the saying "Happy as a clam?" Ugh, whatever, just forget that reference. You know what I mean!)

Photo: Kriss Szkurlatowski

As a parent, I am highly aware of my own health-related concerns, and because of this, I keep a close eye on my children to make sure that they are as healthy as clams too (hee, hee), but what if some of the stuff in my chart could be passed on to them? I was curious so I went to 23andme.com and checked out their Health Reports page to see what diseases and conditions they included genetic analysis on. Without outing my family members, and airing all of our ailments on our blog, let's just say that I found at least 13 diseases and conditions that would be incredibly helpful to know if anyone else in our family had markers for.

 

Now, there is a downside to all of this wonderful technology. Just because your DNA may have a genetic mutation for one of the 240 diseases and conditions that they test for, this doesn’t necessarily mean that you’re going to get that disease. On the flip side, it also doesn't mean that if your DNA is squeaky clean, you won't get the disease either. Translation: The test isn't fail safe. You still have to go see your doctor and get regular check-ups, and you shouldn't bug out if you test positive for something - because it's just meant to be a window into the possibilities of your health risks - not an exact blueprint.

Photo: Steffen Zelzer

However, personal genetic testing kits can help you take a more active role in the management of your family's health. By knowing what the health risks may be, you can work together with you and your childrens' primary care physicians to stay on top of any diseases and conditions that may be noted in your family's test results. But if you do decide to use a kit, please keep in mind that even though knowledge is power, it still must be used with caution - and some good 'ole common sense to boot. Your kids, your family, and your doctors will thank you.

 

Happy DNA testing,

Denine

 

P.S. There are several companies on the market now that offer personal genetic testing kits. I found an incredibly helpful article, Direct-to-consumer genetic testing kits, from Harvard Womens' Health Watch that is a must read before buying a kit. 

I was selected for this opportunity as a member of Clever Girls Collective and the content and opinions expressed here are all my own.

Hellmann's® Gluten Free Chocolate Cupcakes

When you have children that follow a gluten free diet, birthday parties can be hard on your little ones. Most childrens' parties consist of pizza and cupcakes, which aren't typically gluten free, so I've been trying to find a way to keep my kids happy and let them feel included in the celebratory process.

 

Recently, I was at a party with another gluten free mom and asked her how she handles feeding her own children at parties. She told me that she always brings their favorite lunch and a special cupcake. Since the nearest gluten free bakery is about 15 miles from my home, I was especially curious about the cupcake situation.

She went on to say that she bakes cupcakes in advance and freezes them a batch at a time. This way she always has cupcakes at her disposal that can be thawed overnight and iced in the morning. You can even have your child personalize their cupcake with their favorite icing and sprinkles to make it extra special!

 

I thought that was a pretty brilliant idea and I was so happy that I asked! So when my niece's birthday came around, I offered to bake some gluten free cupcakes for her party. My sister has been incredibly supportive of my family's gluten free journey and I wanted to help her with the food preparation.

As I was searching high-and-low to find a suitable gluten free cupcake recipe, we were asked to participate in the Hellmann’s^® “Making Over the Best” Blogger Campaign. I wasn't sure if we were going to be able to particpate because we're gluten free, but after seeing how easily Mario Batali was able to put his own twist on some classic Hellmann’s^® Recipes, I knew I could too.

 

When I saw the Chocolate Birthday Cake recipe, I knew it would be would be perfect for cupcakes once the flour was swapped out for gluten free flour.

I was quite impressed with the results and so were the party guests; no one could believe that the cupcakes were gluten free. Our gluten free version was rich, dense and chocolatey - and covered in icing and sprinkles for the birthday girl!

 

I was also happy that I not only gave my niece her birthday wish (chocolate cake with pink icing, please!), but I was also able to accommodate her own dietary restrictions. Due to some health issues, my sister's kids are on the move towards a red dye-free diet, so my sister shared her trick of adding maraschino cherry juice to the vanilla icing. It worked like a charm and the birthday girl loved her pink cupcakes!

 

So if you're looking for something fun to do, make sure you join in on the fun and Create A Recipe With Mario! Don't forget to post it here too, so we can drool over it!


HELLMANN'S^® GLUTEN FREE CHOCOLATE CUPCAKES

Ingredients:
4 cups gluten free cake flour
4 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup bitter (natural) cocoa powder
2 cups granulated sugar
2 cups Hellmann’s^® Real Mayonnaise
3 eggs
1 3/4 cups water
1 tablespoon vanilla extract

Directions:
Step 1: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line cupcake pan with cupcake liners.

Step 2: Mix all dry ingredients; flour, baking soda, salt, cocoa powder and sugar. Then add Hellmann’s^®, eggs, water and vanilla and stir till just mixed through. Divide batter into the 2 prepared pans and place in oven and cook for 25 minutes or until a toothpick in the center come out clean.

Step 3: Remove the cupcakes and allow to cool 30 minutes. Frost with your favorite icing.

Thanks for Reading!
Daniele

Aarrr!! There's Pirates In Sayville, NY.

When you're a mom of boys and girls, it can often be difficult to get everyone to agree on what constitutes a fun family activity. This is especially true in our home, where we have a daughter who dreams about unicorns, rainbows and princesses - and a son who dreams about superheros, dragons and pirates*. So, unless we're able to meld their differences, we end up spending more time than I'd like debating who gets to do what.

 

As I mentioned earlier in the week, Father's Day weekend is one of my favorite times of the year, which is kind of ironic since my own Dad is in Heaven. But, instead of being sad on Father's Day, I consciously remember that my husband is a father too - and that he deserves just as much love and attention as I gave to my own father year after year.

So, to keep everyone in good spirits, we make sure this weekend is packed full of fun things to do. We spend Saturday at the Strawberry Festival in Mattituck, and then head over to Sayville Sunday morning to hang out with a bunch of pirates and pirate princesses! If you haven't had the pleasure of going to the Pirate Festival at The Long Island Maritime Museum, grab yer little swashbucklers and seafarin’ scoundrels and prepare to have the time of yer life.

 

Whether you're a land lubber or a seadog, the Pirate Festival is full of whimsy, laughs and good times for the young, the old and everything in between. We've gone in the rain, and we've gone in the sun - and no matter what the weather, the pirates are always waiting for us. And, they're always in jolly good  spirits. 

In our experience, it's better to go earlier in the day because parking can be a pain. They have scheduled events all day long, but if you're a pirate fanatic, you may want to check out the Schedule of Events to see who's playing when before heading down. We like the Treasure Hunts the best and they typically have two each morning and two each afternoon (think 11:30 AM and 2:30 PM).

 

Just make sure to bring cash for the Thieves Market because there is no way you are walking by a tent full of pirate gear and not buying something for your little ones. (Important Hint: They stock the Thieves Market with swords, shields and bandanas from Oriental Trading! So save yourself a few gold doubloons and place an order online before you go - otherwise, you'll fork over $15-20 for the sword and shield set.)

Here’s what else you need t' know:

Pros: lots of happy pirates running around (even the adults come in costume); everyone is in a good mood; costume contests; treasure hunts; live music; live "theatric" performances by various pirate groups throughout the grounds; the little beach area lets kids escape when the noise just gets to be too loud, or they just need a break.

Cons: It is VERY loud (if you have children that are afraid of loud noises, bring ear plugs, or prep them in advance); cannons and hanging skeletons can be a wee bit scary; can get very crowded in the afternoon; parking stinks.

Who goes thar: Loads of pirates attend from up and down the coast: Ye Pyrate Brotherhood, Kings of the Coast, Valhalla’s Pirates, Pirates for Sail, Bloody Historical, The Brigands, John Corr, Bawdy Buccaneers, and Strike the Bell. Check out the entertainment here.

What t' brin: your camera; hats and sunglasses (it's bright - the water on the bay reflects everything); anti-bacterial hand cleanser and some extra t.p.; snacks if yer kids are picky (we like to bring along some Pirates Booty!)

Admission: Saturday, June 15th & Sunday, June 16th. Times: 11am - 6pm. General Admission: $8.00; Kids 5 & under are free. Go dressed in your favorite pirate garb and receive a special gif!.

Location: The Long Island Maritime Museum, West Sayville, NY. Need directions?

Fair winds and safe harbours,
Denine

 

*My son is standing over my shoulder reading this as I type, and he would like me to clarify that he means cool pirates like Jack Sparrow and Pirates of the Carribbean not baby pirates like Jake and the Neverland Pirates. Those are the ones his little sister watches. ;)

 

P.S. Do you want to learn how to talk like a pirate before you go? Check out some basic pirate lingo here from Ol' Chumbucket and Cap'n Slappy, the creators of International Talk Like A Pirate Day, which is celebrated every September 19th.