Hives in the Kitchen: Our Hive

Welcome to our hive-the allergy free house!

I am the self-proclaimed Queen Bee, homeschool mommy, chef of interesting meals, and keeper of the Epi-Pen.

This is my Honey--Prince Charming, or Daddy to some. PC enjoys business lunches out at normal restaurants with real dairy and food with gluten and eggs. He is the fearless taste tester and the harsh food critic. If my food can pass his taste test, then we know it's a success. PC is also the creative chef behind some of our meals, but you'll never find him doing the baking.
PC listens to my cooking frustrations, my long ramblings about homeschool curricula, and always has a large welcoming committee at the back door each evening.

This is our oldest, Curly. She is the precocious, talkative, creative, drama queen who demands attention and worms her way into every conversation. Curly doesn't know she's only 7; she's an adult in her little mind and her perceptive insights often fool me. She is the fearless leader of our little crew, the little momma, the art and book lover, and the deep thinker. Curly has allergies to milk and egg white and is severely allergic to fire ants.

Tiger is the only boy in our crew. At 5, Tiger is rarely without one of his guitars and when he doesn't have his guitar he plays whatever he can find-be it the spatula, my arm, one of his sisters, a blankie, or the guitar on his shirt. Tiger is a music lover who is a natural on the air guitar. He is silly, devious, and caring. He is my big-hearted sports lover who insists our van is really a race car and that I am his wrestling opponent. Tiger doesn't seem to have any allergies, and if he does, I'm not sure I even want to know....

The addition of Baby Bee to our family was a life-changer in more ways than one. Bee is the stubborn, opinionated, snuggly, curious climber who has no trouble making herself heard in our noisy household. Bee works hard to keep up with her siblings and loves learning from them. Bee has no fear, feels no pain, is full of smiles and giggles; she loves dress-up, legos, baby dolls, and coloring. She's a typical 4-year-old who is never still. Bee is our allergy baby who has changed how we view food as we work to keep her safe.

Ladybug is the little sister who never lacks for attention from her siblings. She is the wild one who is always in the middle of the commotion and is always yelling the loudest in a typical 2-year-old fashion. Ladybug is our curious explorer who can walk, run, climb, and eat just about anything in her path. She is the adorable, chubby, giggly, content lover of all things food, especially the treats she finds on the kitchen floor. So far Ladybug doesn't seem to exhibit any allergies symptoms, so we'll have to wait and see.

Punkin joined us just before Thanksgiving and is the baby of our family. She has severe eczema but has tested negative for food allergies so far. She is our drooling, smiling sunshine. Punkin is laid back, content, and active. Her big brother and sisters just refer to her as "Baby" and they fight over who can elicit the most giggles from her.