BIMU Reviews: A Pinterest Win!: No Churn Ice-Cream

I've been on the eat-healthy wagon lately.
I've even been on the be more active wagon lately too thanks to a nearby neighbour and her adorable puppy.
I am pretty sure I lost weight because clothes are fitting better but I can't even confirm the figures for you because I never remember to buy batteries for my scale.

Then I frigging discovered No Churn Ice-Cream on Pinterest.
I wasn't really into Pinterest until recently and now it's part of MY bed time ritual!

Now when it comes to Pinterest projects - especially food ones - I try to keep an open mind and hope to heck they work.
I had an ice-cream machine and never used it.  Bought it for 10€ and ended up selling it off on Facebook to a friend.
I like love the idea of home-made ice-cream and this was simple enough:

• Heavy whipping cream
• Sweetened condensed milk
• Chocolate syrup or vanilla extract or whatever you want it to taste like

Mix cream alone until stiff peaks appear, add condensed milk and flavouring - freeze it.

So I made it yesterday.

38% fat whipping cream is the heaviest I could find in Finland.  

I just made vanilla flavour to try and because we had guests coming over - so I had some freshly baked cookies to go with this.

Pros?

• I don't need an ice-cream making machine = saves space.
• I don't need to freeze a bowl in advance like most machines require you to do.
• I just need my stand mixer and a dish to put the ice-cream in. = saves money because I have these things already.
• I don't have to add sugar or eggs or cook it = saves time and I get to choose what goes into my ice-cream = I don't feel too bad about letting my kids have some as a treat!
• It's fricking delicious!

Cons?

• It takes longer than 4 hours to freeze in my freezer - but maybe that's just mine.  Or because I packed so much into my loaf baking dish.
• I splattered cream all over my wall because the mixer was on high at first - that's not really a con - that's my fault.  So tip for you - start slow and once it thickens - then you can put the speed up a bit more.

I blog in my undies and I approve of that Pinterest recipe! :D
BIMU

BIMU Reviews: Exfoliating Socks

This blog post contains disgusting photos of my cracked and peeling feet.
It's a non-affiliated blog review of exfoliating socks on horribly cracked and dry feet.

I had seen something on People Magazine's website about these exfoliating socks for about 25$ from Amazon. I am usually not one to watch beauty product reviews but this screamed at me because if they do work - my feet could use them!
I didn't get mine from Amazon but ended up forgetting about them and then happened to come across them (similar) in the grocery store's beauty section!

They were 22€ or so and seeing as pedicures are so much more here - I figured it was well worth it.
That and the last time I had a pedicure was while pregnant with V-Man and it was a going away gift from my work colleagues! I also haven't bothered looking around here because my feet are so horribly and deeply cracked like an ancient mummy!  It's embarrassing and the poor lady would probably have to get a professional sanding machine to attack my dry feet!

I waited awhile before I actually got to try them because I needed to figure out when I was going to put them on!
They're to be worn for 90 minutes solid and your feet should peel within 2-3 days and up to 15 days.
I stuffed my feet into the plastic booties, taped them down (they did smell strongly of alcohol) and watched a movie.
I rinsed my feet after and my skin was super soft. I was tempted to scrub the thick layers with a foot file but decided against it.

They didn't peel until 6 days afterward and as they continued to peel - I was ecstatic!
It was working!
Some things you should know about using these (that may or may not be listed in the instructions - I wouldn't know because it wasn't written in English):

• Yes your feet will peel like cray-cray (extremely crazy is what I'm guessing this means and not like a cray fish) - so keep wearing socks and you probably don't want to wear sandals.
• You can and SHOULD moisturize - they'll STILL peel! (Wish I knew this a bit earlier on but anyway.)
• Your feet are going to be sensitive because of the thicker excess dried layers are gone/in the process of shedding. 
• You might not be able to handle as hot or cold temperatures in the tub/shower as what you're used to.
• Stepping on crumbs was very painful for me - never mind Lego pieces or toy cars!
• It's worth it! :D

I may have deleted those photos of my feet in the booties - as I can't find them anymore - but it's pretty simple to use and here are some pics I happened to find on my phone of the 6-days later results!

Peeling like a snake!

Tops of my feet too!

I noticed that one part of my feet that didn't peel all the way were my heels.  The layers of dry and cracked skin must be too thick even for the exfoliating socks!

Overall?  I'd do it again and probably have to anyway.  I've been wearing sandals and the skin is toughening up again.
Now that I know that I can moisturize afterward - I will and I think it'll make a difference too!

Happy feet to you,

BIMU

A Side of Autism: Needles

I don't mind needles but I can't say the same for V-Man.
He has never enjoyed a single blood test or vaccine and I don't blame him.
His first big blood test around the time he was being diagnosed and tested for autism (when he was 2) was something straight out of a horror movie.
First of all, he was fighting and screaming without any needles near him. It was just the strap on his arm to help make his vein pop out a bit more.
Then it took three nurses plus me to hold him down and a fourth to get the blood.
He was 2.
It was a really crappy situation because the nurse wasn't quite experienced with super strong autistic children and the blood went everywhere (this is the horror story bit) - I mean spraying down his arm, into his lap, out and forward.
In the meantime, V-Man was thrashing about and tried biting me, clawing at my face and giving a nurse a few good kicks too.  We both left sobbing and I threatened SH that he better be doing these blood tests from now on.
He was 2.

Today I finally decided to suck it up and bring him in for some blood tests to see if he has lactose-intolerance or Celiac.
His regular doctor (she's a real twit-honestly!) doesn't seem to understand our frustration of having to change 8-12 crappy diapers a day. So every time V-Man had a doctor appointment with her, for the past 2 years- she continued to not take us seriously and kept recommending laxatives.  Which we tried but it didn't seem to make a difference.
Finally and recently, V-Man had his yearly assessment at the disability clinic and the doctor there suggested he gets these blood tests done.
Seeing as V-Man magically stopped drinking milk (dairy, soy, rice and oats-pretty much anything white) and doesn't like dairy products-she's leaning towards lactose intolerance.  And also a blood sample for Celiac too just in case.

So today I brought him downtown with his half a bagel and a fully charged cell phone and we went to the blood clinic downtown to only find out that it had moved.
After going up and down the wrong street - we finally found it and we didn't have to wait long.
We walked in and I immediately handed over his Kela card and advised the nurse that V-Man is autistic in Finnish and that we need another person to help me hold him down (in English).
She immediately went off and got someone - which was awesome she believed me (we've had situations before where it got messy - like the first test) - and we went to it.
I had V-Man in my lap and while I appreciate him flattening my thighs a little - after awhile we decided that it wasn't working.  I had Teletubbies on Youtube playing on my phone and to the side and out of his reach and still it wasn't distracting enough.
He was twisting and moving his shoulders and we had him sit in the chair himself and I held him back and into the seat from behind.  Then the other nurse held down his hands and arms.  The second nurse got into his vein and the blood flow wasn't as fast and he needed 3(!) vials of blood for these tests.
He started to wiggle (along with screaming and crying) and the needle was close to breaking - because it was bending at such a disgusting angle.
So they removed that, wiped up the blood and taped up his arm.
Onto arm 2!  We finally managed to get it all sorted and even though the first vial wasn't very full - I'm assuming it was just enough.

After what felt like the longest 15 minutes ever - he was done and we left.
After every appointment with him, we go for lunch and try to put the horror of a bad appointment behind us.
I just honestly don't know what we'll do when he's older!  He'll just get bigger and stronger - I'm predicting he'll be bigger and stronger than me and SH...
I guess I just need to be happy that his lactose test only involved 1 vial of blood - where mine involved several samples over a span of a few hours!

Oh well - at least it's done and over with!
Perhaps next time I should bring some wine and cheese for the nurses...I know I could've used a drink after!
BIMU

Travelling WITHOUT An Autistic Child

Yup - we did it.
Sorry for the delay - our modem died shortly before we went on vacation and once we got back - had to request a new one.  And I don't know about you lovely folks - but if I use my phone for blogging - I wouldn't make any sense at all.  (I have done it in the past and I spent a lot of time having to edit them so they make more sense in the end!)

So yeah....a 4-days long vacation without the V-Man!
I have only the slightest regret in not bringing him because we were staying with very dear friends of ours that he's known since A-Man was born (they were the baby-sitters for V-Man when it was time for us to rush off to the hospital) - and he would've had a blast at their place.

Do I really, truly regret not bringing V-Man?

No I don't.

Call me a horrible mother, call me a bitch, tell me it's not fair - I really don't mind.
And I'll tell you why.

A) This is our first time travelling outside of our city without the V-Man.  He has been to Estonia, Sweden, Paris, Canada and the UK (which was our last family trip - a pure nightmare and I was pregnant with M-Girl - so nearly 2 years ago!).  We haven't even gone to Tampere (1.5 hours away) as a family or Helsinki (3.5 hours away) either.

B) He's hated every single f-ing moment of the travelling bit.  The leaving of his home, our dogs (they never travel with us - we hook them up with wonderful doggy-sitters instead), his familiar environment and the potential ear popping - and let's not forget - time zone differences!
Even an hour rocks his world.
Maybe things will change when he gets older - I certainly hope so!

C) We don't have friends or family here that are able to handle the V-Man while we're able to go for vacation.  Or even for 1 night out of 365- like our anniversary as an example.
What we do have now - is the overnight care system (or "respite care" if you will) and while we've had it for awhile, we've been nervous about actually leaving the city or country to make use of him not being with us for 3 days.
Lately, he's had a longer stays - about a week long - and still - we didn't go anywhere!
Just. In. Case.
I've been studying, SH had pneumonia, M-Girl is currently cutting 2 teeth and I recently got back in touch with my biological mother!
Anyhow, where was I?  Right, so we finally decided that we would take a small vacation and fly from Helsinki to Copenhagen and stay in Malmö, Sweden with friends.

Now, let's tackle those possible things you might be thinking of us.

• Horrible parents: Going on a vacation for the first time without V-Man (and still bringing a teething child and a sensitive 3-year old) in nearly 6 years - I don't think it's a terrible thing.  Not like we have date nights weekly (never mind monthly) or we have grandparents for the kids to chill at for awhile here and there.  And the V-Man is 5 - he's not a newborn staying behind.
• But he's losing the oppourtunity to travel:  He hates travelling!  Why put him through torture (i.e. ears popping, time difference, loss of comfort and familiarity, strangers and different languages)?
• It's not fair - he's spending less time with you: I assure you - he gets more attention there at overnight care than he possibly can with us and the other two children in tow.  We do try our hardest to split up attention and special one-on-one time regularly.
• The way we've come to see it is that it's a break for everyone.  He gets a break from fighting with A-Man and listening to M-Girl scream (A-Man too) and he gets a break from odd and random schedules.  He's in a deep and strict routine there and we're not there to interrupt it.
• We get a break from him grabbing our chests, sniffing our pits and our bums (maybe he's imitating a dog?!), having to watch him every second of the day and we can go to have a date or take the kids out for dinner - where fast-food isn't entirely involved.

I had 1 friend ask me if it was fair to leave a child behind.  I'm assuming other friends think this too but haven't asked.

No - it's not 100% fair to do this.  But is it fair to drag (seriously) a child with non-verbal autism to various countries for the sake of giving "him an experience he'll remember"?  Maybe he will - fantastic!  And maybe those memories will be horrific for him.  And if we ever have to move abroad or travel together abroad - it'll just be a pure nightmare for him (everyone) all over again. 

In reflection of our first big trip without V-Man and with all the events that happened - here's why it wouldn't have gone well for him:

• About 3.5 hours train ride to Helsinki - no way to get out without probably being left behind.  He hasn't done this in about 2 years - who knows what the end results would've been.
• Our bus was stuck in traffic and we were quite stressed out about checking in on time.  V-Man can sense our stress and reacts whichever way he deems fit at that moment.  That can be a yay or a nay.
• He's been running away a lot lately - it's a game to be chased.  
• Now picture security check time...
• He's been bashing his head a lot.  Not only is this sad and frustrating - it's also severely embarrassing that we cannot do anything to comfort him in that moment.
• When we arrived to Copenhagen, our stroller did not.  We had to have it shipped to our friends' home or take the risk that it was on the following flight and wait nearly 1½ hours to get it.  
• We waited and thankfully got it.
• The Wi-Fi in Copenhagen's airport took ages to kick in - nearly an hour.  There's no way he'd be entertained without Youtube or rubbing chests or digging through random strangers' bags.
• It actually got dark in Malmö at night and that probably would've freaked him out.
• Time difference of 1 hour.
• On our way home - we opted to go to Copenhagen the day we were flying out and we rushed a lot here and there and it was so hot and sunny - loads of people were out and about.  We took a Hop On/Hop Off bus tour - who knows if he'd like it or not.  He likes buses in general - so perhaps!
• We also had to wait 20 minutes for the following bus to arrive to take us back to the center.
• On our way to the airport - not the first, nor the second but ALL 3 trains we sat on to take us from the city center to the airport advised in Danish and English that "the staff were not present on the train - so please have patience as we can't leave yet".  Train 3 clarified with "the staff are stuck in Sweden for some reason - we'll leave as soon as we can!"
• I was in tears after dragging our friends, our luggage and two tired children - one whom I was carrying - (imagine a third!) and a stroller on a horrible game of Musical Trains.
• We had less than an hour to get to final check-in.  Hence my tears.
• We ended up arriving and getting our baggage just as the last bus of the night was going back to our home.  No trains after 8pm - so we had to wait until 2am to get a bus.  
• That means definitely having to wake him up (and the others) and possibly trying to carry 2 children while pushing a stroller and carrying our (mostly carry-on) luggage.
• When we arrived in our city - because it was a weekend - the bus schedule was changed and we had to wait an hour for the first morning bus to take us home.  (We wanted to get back onto the saving money train and not take a cab.)

So I can happily say that I don't have very many regrets at all about this trip!  We got him presents of course and we took a lot of photos.

Knowing he was somewhere safe, comfortable and happy was our main concern and made travelling that much easier.  Especially considering the freak out with the final train ride to the airport!
It was liberating in a sense and we didn't have to stress about every tiny detail that could possibly upset him and therefor shortening our stay or skipping out on popular tourist attractions...
It was relaxing and isn't that what a vacation is SUPPOSED to be?

I'm not saying we plan to have a mini vacation every time he goes there - but perhaps once or twice a year never hurt anyone.

I do apologize if some of this post comes off as repeatitive - but I'm watching an episode (the final one!) of Agent Carter and chatting with friends online.
Can you tell we haven't had internet at home in awhile? :)

Have a lovely day,

BIMU