Rehab

For 4 years, I've been living with this icky skin condition called eczema. I would go through my highs of being itch free for a few months. Then I would go through my lows of being so itchy that I would scratch myself until I was bleeding. I hate seeing the sight of blood. Just not pleasant at all. It was quite a vicious cycle. As frustrating as it was for me, I know it must have been frustrating for the parental unit as well.

I believe I am on the road to recovery. We saw an allergy and asthma specialist. Within 10 minutes of meeting me, the doctor (who was quite silly and entertaining) was able to diagnose me. He definitely reiterated how much I am Pops' mini-me. Just like Pops, I have nasal/snoring problems. I've suffered a broken nose when I went through the birth canal (Thanks a lot Mom!). Because of it, I "drain" to the back which explains the swollen lymphnodes. Here's the kicker - I found out I'm allergic to milk, oranges, tomatoes, peanuts, and dust mites. Not only do I have allergies but I am a mild asthmatic. Well, this certainly puts everything into perspective.

So I'm on food rehab. Hopefully, this will clear my symptoms of eczema and I can carry on with my childhood like a normal 4 year old. Mom and Pops did some serious shopping in trying to find food-safe items for me. I can't give up mac n' cheese and my cheese quesadillas. What will I eat?! Thanks goodness for modern times because we were successful in finding casein and lactose free cheese, butter, and mac n' cheese. The staples to my diet. My milk will be soy based, which is pretty tasty. I love the chocolate soy milk! Pops will have the challenge of developing recipes using casein and lactose free butter when he makes his oyster and clam sauce. The tomatoes thing was a total shock to us. I'm Italian. It's what we live on. Well, at least I'm half Asian and I can sustain on rice products now.

So for the next 2-3 weeks I will be on this food challenge. I have to avoid the foods I'm allergic to. After the 2-3 weeks, we will slowly introduce them back into my diet and see how it goes. I'm hoping for the best. I'm mainly hoping that I won't be so itchy and I can just live my life.

A gift real special, so take the top off

I discovered the most amazing thing yesterday - a cardboard box! It's more than just this novel idea. It's as revolutionary as when man discovered fire. What would we do without the cardboard box? How would we pack things? How would things ship safely from point A to point B? What would we put gifts in?! Oh the cardboard box! You are real special.

Originally, I had the bright idea of using the box as a garage for my fleet of trucks. I started making plans and wanted to paint the inside of it. Mom and Pops suggested I rethink the idea of painting the interior mainly because it would be a big ol' mess. Then it dawned on me. Why put my toys in the box when I could go in the box?! Granted, it was tight quarters, but I do adore cozy places.

The box is only 24"W x 36"H x 4"D. Cozy indeed. It's sole purpose was to house a box fan but I decided to turn it into my little getaway. I had to rescue it from the recycling. That would have been a waste of a good box.

Fireside chat

It's what big boys do on those summer evenings after a long day of fishing and other manly-esque things.

Zero Kitty She's So Pretty

After 20 years, Zero passed away. I've known her all my life and I find her to be the most wonderful kitty one could ever know. Granted she hid from me most of the time, but it was her shy nature that made her so adorable. If anything, you just wanted to protect her from the world.

She may have been the smallest out of the Raspeegie (sp?!) clan but she was also the toughest. When you hear of a cat having 9 lives, Zero was one of those cats. Each time when she could have let go, Zero always fought her way back. Unfortunately, this last time she just didn't have the fight in her. I think may be Zero knew or felt the time was right. Pops made sure to let her know it was ok. So in the end, she let go.

That day, I said good-bye to Zero Kitty. Mom and Pops told me she wasn't going to come back. In my heart, I couldn't let go because she's my pet, too. In my head, I knew something was wrong. Rest assured, Zero is in kitty heaven. I miss you Zero Kitty. You were so pretty.

School's Out

In the words of Alice Cooper, "School's out!" I enjoy the fun summer days like any kid, but I'm definitely going to miss the camaraderie of my classmates. So I'm back to playing in the sandbox of solitude with my trucks and shovels. Don't pity me, for I am not lonely. I like my alone time. Lots of times, Mom or Pops plays with me. But there's just something wonderful about being surrounded by my peers and playing games and laughing. In the meantime, I'll be chilling with the fam and doing some extracurriculars at the park district.

At least with the summer, I can finally catch up on my blog. It's been a busy past few months. Here's a recap:

April

So my landscaping business just acquired a new piece of machinery. Low and behold, Uncle Mike gifted me a Bobcat.

It's the greatest gift a boy could ask for. Now I'm able to carry bigger loads to and from the work site without resorting to my bare hands. We're trying to be green at Lago Casa. So I've been dumping biodegradable matter into our compost pile. This makes for great fertilizer.

When I'm not onsite, I utilizing my creative side through photography. The parents have been brave and allowed me to use their digital camera to take pictures. Many would think my photos are very abstract, but the mind of an artist is lost to the masses.

May

I had my first test to show my allegiance as a Cubs fan. Pops took Mom and me to the Friendly Confines. It was my very first Cubs and I was in utter awe the entire time. Some truly great players have graced the field enclosed in ivy. Words could not describe what I felt but I knew that I needed that ginormous bag of overpriced popcorn to tie me over until the first pitch got thrown.

Our seats were in the upper deck along the first baseline. One of the best places to sit since you can see every play in action. Plus, it's where a lot of foul balls tend to land. So I had my glove ready to catch one.

Wrigley has this great tradition of singing at the bottom of the 7th inning. I wanted to sing the "Go, Cubs, go!" song but Pops said the Cubs have to win first. Instead we sang the peanuts and Cracker Jack song. It was very loud since we weren't too far away from the booth. I think we were close enough to hear Ronny moan.

The ballpark itself is amazing. Unfortunately, I couldn't say much for the lineup. Guys like Johnson and Ramirez were off that day. I ended up watching Scales and Bradley. We had no offense thus adding one to the "L" column. So in true cubbie fashion, they lost at my first game.

Overall, May was a pretty busy month for me. May be it just seemed busy because I tried to cram so much in one weekend that being my birthday/baptism weekend.

That Saturday, I originally planned on running my first race at the Brookfield Zoo run. It didn't quite happen but I still managed to have Pops take me to see the animals. Well, it seems the zoo has added dinosaurs to its assortment of carnivores and herbivores. I tried to put on a brave face but it was too much for me to handle. The whole time I clinged onto Pops so tight I could have ripped his shirt off.

The dinosaurs at the zoo were so much bigger than the toy dinosaurs I have at home. I never would have anticipated for them to be as big as a house or a large commercial warehouse for that matter. This trip to the zoo reminded me of "Where the Wild Things Are." The dinosaurs roared their terrible roars and flashed their terrible teeth. It was quite an adventure. I'm just glad to say, "Been there, done that."

The next day was my baptism slash birthday party. I finally got my head dunked and officially became a member of the Geneva Lutheran congregation. Grandmama is showing me the path to God. They keep on talking about Jesus but I still haven't met the man. To me, church is just like preschool with all the kids but there's more sitting involved. As long as I get to go up with the kids, I'm all happy.

June

Gosh! What happened in June?! It was a lot of rain that month and a poopy month for the Cubs. I did go into the city with Mom via Metra. I love taking the train into the city. It felt like I was riding Spencer from Thomas the Train. I also had my first experience with Garrett's popcorn. Oh the cheesiness of it all. Unfortunately, Mom didn't have any napkins or wipes so I had yellow, crusty hands for most of the ride home. No worries. I improvised like MacGyver and used my shirt!

Summer is not over yet. I had an awesome 4th of July at Uncle Ken's house. I got to see some great fireworks. They were so close I swear to you that I could have caught one. Besides fireworks shows, I know I have many adventures planned before the school year starts. As soon as I find out what they are, I'll let you know.

Fish ON!!!

After getting over a cold, Pops took me to the backyard to have my hand at fishing. I needed to get out and rid myself of cabin fever. I was glad when Pops offered to help catch fish. When he mentioned fish, I automatically thought of monster fish like muskies and Northern pikes. Who would have guessed he was referring to crappies. They're fun to catch but they're very small. Hopefully, I'll catch my first monster fish this year.

If you haven't tried fishing yet, I definitely recommend it. If you don't know what you're doing, call my Pops.

Spud's Big Mess

Yesterday was the best day E-V-E-R. I've been waiting eons to go see Bob the Builder. I would ask Mom and Pops everyday if it was time to see Bob. I was under the impression that Bob personally asked me to be part of crew to clean up Spud's big mess. After much discussion, I finally came to the realization that Bob was just there to show me how to fix things. I always feel that I learn better by doing but I didn't want to press the issue. Just in case, I packed some tools in my rescue pack. You never know if one of your crew members is going to go down while on the job. What if Wendy called in sick? Or Mr. Pickles broke his leg. I would be there - ready, willing, and able to help out.

There were a lot of kids there with these light up spinning things with Bob on them. I didn't really care for one since I had my tools with me. I think I was the only one who was hard core on fixing things. I mean there was some over priced cheapy looking tool belt they were selling, but I had the good ones. Didn't need to waste money there. Overall, the show was awesome and I would totally see it again, again, and again. You can watch my review of the show on my blog. Out of 4 hammers, I give it 5.

Only the good stuff

When Pops makes his coffee, he only uses the good stuff. When I mean the good stuff I mean none of that freeze dried poop. It's got to be good not bitter. It's got to be smooth not burned. I've asked many times to have a cup of joe, but Pops always said, "No, not until you're big like me."

So Pops got me some Ovaltine. High grade Ovaltine since it's loaded with vitamins. I would say the best part of having Ovaltine is the chocolate. This morning, Mom made me some hot chocolate with Ovaltine and served it in my own little coffee mug. That's pretty sweet if you ask me.

Yes we did!

Tuesday was a very historical day for the nation and me. Mom said something very special was taking place and we're going to watch every minute of it. It was a new beginning and the end to the dark ages. Finally, Barack Obama was sworn in as our 44th president.

I have to say, it was a great movie. Obama's motorcade was awesome. I couldn't believe how many people filled National Mall. I debated with Mom whether or not it was computer generated. It certainly looked real but you never know these days. I listened to every speech and clapped at all the good parts.

I wouldn't mind watching the president movie again. It was pretty good and quite a tearjerker for Mom. She told me I'm a very lucky boy to have this experience so early in life. I definitely got a different vibe from this movie compared to my Bob the Builder movies.