A lengthy gap between blogs, sorry! It feels like I never manage to get out of the kitchen these days, searching and making things for my quirky family to eat. After taking Ali along to the same kinesiologist as his brother, we have discovered he is wheat intolerant too. The difference between him and Liam is that Ali's symptoms are confined to his sinuses. I dread to think of the amount of time he has had off school over the past two years and not so much being ill as such, just simply unable to breathe properly. We were hoping that when he had his tonsils and adenoids out that the problem would be fixed but no - and that's why! After two and a half years of ongoing misery for Ali and doctors telling him they can do nothing, at last we have some hope. I never realised that sinus problems were a common factor of food allergies - it was only when I was reading a fantastic book called Vault, but at least it will be handy while I'm learning and the Easiyo makers are so cheap to buy. Plus I am also learning through the Vault of all the other stuff I can make with it too, as well as this great resource of free recipes I found on the Forum. Hopefully I shall be an expert in no time!
Other favourite finds I have discovered thanks to the Vault this week are Massel stock cubes, which I have seen mentioned many times in Vault and Forum recipes. I was very excited to find they are stocked in Bin Inn in NZ. I didn't realise how different they were compared to the usual dry cubes. They have so much more flavour too, so I can really try out that hint about cutting stock cubes in half now and know that we won't miss out on flavour. Best of all, they are safe for both Liam and Ali to eat so now they can enjoy gravy again, hooray! However, my best bargain of the week is also Australian and also comes from my favourite store of the moment, Bin Inn! For the last six months Liam has been troubled by nasty eczema and dermatitis on his fingers. It has made them go as tough as leather and drove him mad with the itching. We tried EVERYTHING on it, from QV and Pinetarsol to his dad's hydrocortisone cream, which was a last resort and didn't help anyway. By last week he was at his wit's end, his fingers were cracked and bleeding and extremely sore and neither of us knew what to do next. Then by chance, on a trip to Bin Inn I spotted some pump bottles of Emu Oil cream behind the counter. I had read about Emu Oil and its properties in the Vault so decided to give it a go on Liam's fingers. It cost me just over $5 for a huge bottle and we put it on straight away. You would not believe the results! Not 24 hours later, after that single application, Liam's fingers had healed beyond belief. No more bleeding and soreness and the skin was soft and no longer red. Neither of us could believe it! We're talking about a tiny blob here, smaller than a little fingernail. I was resigned to having to take him to the doctor but not any more! I have since found it also works a treat on the dermatitis I frequently get from washing dishes and again only the tiniest amount is needed. What a find!
A great saving indeed but still it feels as though I am endlessly spending out lately, so next week I am all set to take a leaf out of Cass' book in the Forum. A couple of months ago she set herself a 'No Spend Week' challenge and I think that's what I need at the moment. Unfortunately I will have to pay the bills that week but apart from that, no extras allowed, not one! Now, if I can just stop my children from eating so much - I must go and check that yoghurt!
