How far is too far?

When you have a child who needs help, you will do anything for your child. This applies to all children. If your kid shows potential as an artist, parents will provide supplies, enroll the child in classes, or contact a friend who owns a gallery for advice. Parents of children with developmental delays are no different. Well, maybe a little different. We will really go the distance…and sometimes that distance may be too far.

Is it too far when we drive our children to appointments with therapists that take 3 hours round-trip — even when there a great therapists in our towns? We do this because our children have a better rapport with the 3-hour-drive therapist. Is it too far when have our entire family eliminate gluten from the diet because we have been told that our child has a drug-like response to gluten? We do this because we believe our dietitian and because the whole family goes on stand-by together.

In this vein of perhaps going too far, I took Isabella for her virgin neurofeedback session. The drive was not taxing (except for the traffic on the way home) and I do not plan on asking any other family members to use neurofeedback. Here’s why I’m not certain if I’ve gone too far. Among the forms that I was asked to complete about Isabella was a symptom check list. I hesitantly checked hyperphagia. It’s something that I know a bit about as a dietitian — it’s an inability to know when to stop eating. I also checked impulsivity, not hesitantly. Combined, hyperphagia and impulsivity are a bad combination. The result:  grabbing 7 cookies from a tray after eating a large meal and proceeding to eat all of them within minutes.

So, the MD who administered the neurofeedback informed me that its impact would last a few hours following this first session. Next time, the positive effects would last longer. We got home, I went upstairs for about 2 minutes or less. I came down to find Isabella surreptitiously stuffing a box into recycling. As I came closer, I realized that she had eaten all 3 (as in 3 children) of the chocolate treats…in that 2 minutes or less. Her coat and backpack were still on. I guess we’ll wait until a few sessions to see if the positive fall-out of neurofeedback lasts for more than the car ride home. After all, we did sit in traffic.

Making gluten-free cupcakes

It’s the annual Feast at Isabella’s school and she thought it would be a good idea to have a gluten-free treat for her class. Well, probably really for her, but she’s a generous soul. So we embarked upon the baking. Per usual, my kitchen does not have all the necessary ingredients. No butter. Isabella offered to go around the corner to buy the butter. She has never gone to the store. It involved crossing a street.

She asked how much butter cost. Do not know, but it must be less than five bucks. Off she went. I looked at the clock. And she was back. With the butter. She ran into Rose. She told me that she spoke to Rose, but not for too long because she didn’t want me to think that she didn’t remember the way home. Good job. I can now put away the vodka.

We are making gluten-free lemon cupcakes that uses chestnut flour. They will be topped with coconut icing. Remember the lemon coconut cake from Entenmann’s? I do. (That was from my childhood, way before my gluten-free living.) The cupcakes are from a mix. Not my usual way of baking. But these are really, really good. I’m sure all the kids will love them.

Isabella did a great job creaming the butter and sugar. It can take a while with a hand mixer. I didn’t feel like lugging out my Kitchen Aide. The box lists water to make the batter, but doesn’t include water in the instructions. I added it, of course, because the batter was like cement without it. We used silicone cupcake holders. I love these. No more paper. Saving the planet one cupcake at a time. Oh, that would be a nice tagline.

Throughout the baking process, we have tuned into Glee on hulu. Thanks to my 15-year-old musical-lover (how did that happen with a mother who is a die hard Pink Floyd fan?), I am now addicted to this show. High school was never this interesting and fun. I find myself laughing out load…alone. That is always a good thing. Does anyone else else notice the uncanny resemblance between Mr. Shuester and Justin Timberlake? The hair, the moves, the voice, the bod. They’re the same. Reminds of Michael Jackson and Diana Ross. Did you ever see them in the same room together?

Okay, the coconut icing smells like dirty socks. It’s too old and unappetizing. Are the cupcakes okay without icing? Kids usually want the super sugary part. What to do? We found a box of Cherrybrook Kitchen icing. Fabulous! Success!

Accommodations

Providing accommodations for children with special needs is standard practice in public schools. In fact, if a child has an IEP, it’s the law. Accommodations can be as simple and benign as seating near the front the classroom. These accommodations are meant to help the student perform better in school. Children without “special needs” are also accommodated. Instead of making special provisions for these children, the entire school changes. The most well-accepted of these accommodations is the no nut policies enacted in schools across the nation. One child has an an allergic response to peanuts, so peanuts and nuts (peanuts are actually a legume) are banned from the school. Sorta like guns. Consider this: many children are chemically sensitive, as are many adults. When exposed to noxious chemicals, such as perfume, these individuals may display unruly behaviors. Can we ask the teachers to please stop wearing perfume?