Got milk?

For most of you...this phrase may conjure up images of famous people with milk mustaches.

For our family over the past 4 years it has been a source of oftentimes fear. 

When Tid Bit was about 4 months old and had been suffering from severe eczema and then blood in his diaper, our awesome pediatricians recommended that he be tested for food allergies.  To make a long story short, among a laundry list of things, he tested positive for a milk allergy.

"Milk?!  WHAT?!  Milk is in everything," I thought!

So since I was nursing him, I had to either stop nursing or cut it all from my diet.  So I cut it all out.  Which interestingly enough wasn't as awful as I thought once I got used to reading labels and found some things that I could use as good substitutes.  It turned out to be a blessing in disguise because I learned how to cook for the allergy for me, so by the time he was eating solid foods I had a really good handle on things.  (Aside here...If you have a dairy allergic child then email me anytime...I have LOADS of great substitutes I can share with you.  And for starters try this recipe for sugar cookies that I recently posted! You won't even know you don't have real butter in them!)

Anyways...milk/dairy has been a MAJOR no-no in our family.  And it only took one accidental sip of my husband's milk when Tid Bit was not even 2 to show us why.  After about 15 seconds, Tid Bit turned blue, was choking and couldn't breathe, and then after probably a minute of that (which seemed like an eternity) he threw up what had been liquid milk, but then had become a solid mass.  We stayed up most of the night both sleeping on his floor to make sure he was ok.  I've really never been so scared....ever.

So for over 4 years, we've been afraid of dairy.  We have lived in fear of something that seemed so normal to me for pretty much my whole life.

And even though my Little Bit is one now and it's ok to give a one year-old milk...I've been afraid to do it because of the situation with my other fella.

What if, right?

What if he's allergic too.  What if he reacts like Tid Bit did.  What if his body gets it and is poisoned by it too.  What if....what if...what if?!

But check this out....

This may just look like any baby drinking from a sippy cup to you.  But to me....to me, this is a picture of the faithfulness of God to my family.  This is a picture of my baby drinking real dairy milk for the first time, and while you can't tell in this picture at all...he LOVED it.  And, better than that, it seemed to love him back!

I don't know what made me do it beyond a really amazing group of friends around me this morning...but that was enough.  I thought to myself..."What if"...and the answer was "then God."

And so my friends prayed over my baby before I gave it to him.  And we sang happy birthday to our friend's son, and then Little bit drank some milk.  And I knew that the "what if's" were going to be ok because my friends would pray if there was an "if."  And "if" there was a problem, they'd get my other kiddo from school.  And "if" it wasn't good, they'd keep me calm.  And "if" I was scared and Little Bit was too...they'd pray all of heaven down on us.  And "if"... if anything... I could trust God.

So I did.

And my baby can drink milk.

And THAT reality of a blessing may seem small to many of you, but it brought tears to my eyes.  Because you know what.... there is blessing when we KEEP overcoming...

Got milk?

We do!

- Logan


PS. Tid Bit is still dairy allergic, but we believe that God is going to heal him of that some day soon....and that my friends will be a day to really remember too!