Sunday, January 4, 2009

Food groups

SO as I am logging in, Bella as usual must be up in my lap. She starts touching things and the next thing I know- my blogger log in is in malaysian. I unfortunately do not read or speak malaysian, and of course could not decipher which was inglese but did manage to find an Italian setting that made it easier to find the english version. Always entertaining.

Phil and Lily have just checked into hotel Tripler. Except that he was told to go directly to the ward and not to worry about checking in at admissions and when he gets up to the ward, they send him back down to admissions. Fun Stuff. In 3 weeks, we will be half way through treatment. Yeah.

It was "nice" having a little "break". We've actually had about 4 days with NO throwing up. Lily's been eating really well, although Phil is very disturbed that she no longer likes ketchup. Ketchup is a food group in the Mallory household. Plus it's so nutritious- it says so right on the bottle- full of antioxidants and flavonoids or something. Phillip pours it over his fries, Bella eats it with a spoon. We buy the industrial size at Sam's Club. We've had non-ketchup loving friends buy a special bottle for when we came to dinner(now that's friendship!) and not the nasty hunts kind- Heinz all the way. So Phil "made" lunch yesterday while I was at the commissary- I was delayed walking by the beach...my first actual exercise in months- and the mongrels were threatening mutiny. He did what any good dad would do- went to McDonald's. He gives her a healthy dollup for her fries(which she no longer likes!?! :( ), much to Lily's dismay " I DON'T LIKE KETCHUP!" I think his heart may have stopped. I no more than exit the vehicle upon my arrival home and am greeted by " Did you know that Lily no longer LIKES ketchup?" Yeah. She had been refusing it in the hospital, but hasn't really eaten much so I didn't notice until last week. She was eating dinner and some ketchup got on her fork and she made me lick it off. This is worse than when Phillip declared he didn't like chocolate chip cookies.

So on and off, Lily has been deficient in Potassium. One of those necessary salts, which due to the vomiting are out of whack. We have tried drops. They taste HORRIBLE. As bad as iron. There is not good way to mask it- she identified it in every beverage I put it in. We asked for pills. The pills are bigger than the monstrous pre-natal vitamins you have to take when you're preggers. Buuuut- we can chop them up and she now can swallow them. So my mom did research while she was here and found us a list of foods high in potassium, since Lily was eating better. The problem is, when she eats her levels normalize- it's the in between times. But you do know what is high in potassium, Ketchup. No not really- I made that up. Tomatoes are though but she won't eat those either- potatoes- oranges, etc. So I spent a lot of time perusing the shelves to find the foods highest in potassium. Do you know what has the highest? Potato chips. Now there's a treatment Lily can deal with.

3 comments:

  1. I loved your updates from Christmas and New Year's and congrats on being at the half way point for Lily's treatment. There is light at the end of the tunnel and you all amaze us at all you are doing. You are so strong! The swimming pictures are great and that was a good call since Lily looks like she had the best time and sometimes that can be the best medicine. Happy New Year! We miss you!

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  2. Ah yes, the ketchup food group. I still can't see a giant glob of the stuff without thinking of Phil. He is the king of ketchup legend to our children, "Would Mr. Phil even eat it with THIS?". We always say yes. :)

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  3. Lily - I take those pills too, every day, and I have to cut them down to swallow them. By the way, potato chips dipped in Heinz ketchup are delicious! - Love, Grandma

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Lily Kay Monkey

Lily Kay Monkey
November 2008 Photographed by Shelley Detton (7 Layer Studio)