Another hour long mini-flare...

I had about an hour this morning of itching and breaking open a few scabbed areas.  No new areas - just the same areas on my forearm near the wrist, back of neck around to the left side, and a little on the right ankle.  My hands were not affected and continue to heal nicely.  It did nothing to stop me from living life.  It actually reminds me of my eczema I had in grade school prior to TS use. 

A few more people have tested positive for the MTHFR gene mutation.  They are under the care of naturopathic doctors.  It has helped people to become aware of something they may never have found out about otherwise which is good considering how many health problems can be caused by this mutation.  I found a great article written by a pharmacist on MTHFR....it really helps explain a lot.  It even mentions how alcohol puts a stop to methylation - wondering if that has anything to do with why people react so negatively to alcohol during TSW :

 http://www.dearpharmacist.com/2013/08/08/2394/

So today was a busy day...school with the kids in the morning, then grocery shopping, then some puppy training, then baking some home made granola, then making dinner, and of course cleaning up.  I will squeeze in some exercise after writing this and then snuggling on the couch with hubby when he gets home from work.  Was outside in the sun today for about an hour - checking on the garden and dealing with a very rambunctious puppy!  She is easy to train but is still a handful.  I was sweating after only 20 minutes.  Not once did it dawn on me that I was sweating and not itching like mad!  Only thought about it now.  Amazing!  Also...I have very oily skin on the top of my back and I think I have pimples there!  Mind you I never had a pimple in my life....so I will have to ask hubby when he gets home to look at it.  So weird though to feel oily skin.  It feels weird for lack of a better word.  But trust me when I say I'd rather have this than dry skin! 

As for pictures - still taking some here and there, but unable to find the USB cord to download the pictures on this computer.  I used to be able to plug in the memory card to the laptop but the laptop is being fixed.  And our home computer doesn't have a memory card slot (not one I can find).  I had a box of wires - it was in the dining room and I'm 99% sure my camera cord was in it.  But no one seems to know where it went.  I've looked for it at least 3-4 times and we don't have a big house.  Hoping no one threw it away - but then again with kids, nothing surprises me! 

Oh, BTW...I decided to look at cost savings for making my own granola as my kids love it so much.  For the same kind of organic granola....store bought:  $22.45 for all 3 kids....Home made: $4.41 for the same amount for all 3 kids.  And that's with buying a 2 lb bulk bag of organic oats.  If I bought a bigger package, the savings would be much more.  That's over $900 a year in savings on granola alone!  I plan on doing a lot of cost savings analysis on food this year as we are going on a very strict budget - even when I go back to work full time.  I am planning on saving over $5000 per year in food.  1/5 of the way there.  The next thing:  peaches.  My kids LOVE peaches but they are only in season for a short time.  We go through BAGS of frozen organic peaches.  I plan to find an organic peach orchard where we can pick our own and then freeze them ourselves.  I will have to factor in freezer bags and partial freezer energy, but I have a feeling I'll be saving at least $500 if not more.   Anyway, I plan to be moving on from this blog (only posting once every few weeks for updates) to my other blog on living a more simple life.  I will continue to keep this blog active for it to be a resource for anyone interested.  But I am way past the suffering and there's not much to blog on anymore.  The information is all here.  I plan on collecting the data on the MTHFR mutation and submitting it to the NEA - I will keep you all posted on any responses I receive back from them.  Thank you to everyone who got tested and making me aware of the results.  I pray those that tested positive find relief in treatment.  For those who tested negative - I pray you don't have one of the other not so common mutations that are not typically tested for.  These mutations can cause a host of medical problems - I pray I have begun to offset some of them for myself.