Labeling

When I send my son to school with a safe treat, I always label it with a genetic "I have food allergies" sticker.  This way I know it will not get mixed up with other treats.  He's only in a Pre-K 3's program so there is no lunch, just a snack.  They normally all have a snack that everyone can have, including my son.  But on a few occasions I had to send something safe with him and this gave me a little piece of mind.

Next year Aiden will be going to public school Pre-k program.  There will be a lot more kids in his class and I'm pretty certain they will not accommodate my son like his current private school does. I suddenly did not like the simple "I have food allergies" sticker anymore and after doing some google searches, I came across Name Bubbles.  I ordered a set of personal food allergy stickers (like the photo below) and a set of name stickers to label his beach toys for the pool.

I received my labels last night and I'm completely in love with the look and the feel of them.  I was able to add his full name, his allergies and a contact number for me and my husband.  If there are ever any issues, our number is right there on his sippy cup, on his lunch box or on his backpack. They are the perfect size and really look amazing.  They are dishwasher, laundry and freezer safe so one sticker will last for a while.

I'm probably going to order more before school starts in September.

Little things like this makes our lives just a tad easier when dealing with kids with food allergies.

NAME BUBBLES LINK

Planning ahead

I finally learned how to plan ahead with dinners.  This has saved me so much stress and time and now I actually have time to play with the kids because I no longer pace around the kitchen trying to figure out what to make for dinner.

I created a spreadsheet with a list of all dinners I have made which have worked out for the family. On a separate tab I have a list like the one below..  (Green is a meat option for my husband and blue is a no-meat option for myself. Both options are safe for Aiden and Dylan)

Every Friday I go through the list of dinners and write down what we will eat the following week. Below the list I write down a shopping list of the things that I need and over the weekend I go shopping. Many times I have most of these things in the fridge already.

Of course things don't always go as planned. Thursday my husband ended up eating left overs so I will make Risotto tonight. 

My next step is trying to figure out the meals that are good as leftovers and making extra on Mondays and Wednesdays so that we can have left overs on Tuesdays and Thursdays.

This works great for my family and it saves us money too!

Dinner time

I cook at home almost every day and it's always safe for Aiden. We made our house safe for him so he never has to hear us say "you can't have this because you're allergic to it" since he will have to hear it enough outside of the house.  His school is great when it comes to his allergies and offers safe snacks for the entire class. It is very rare where he is given a "special" cookie and the rest of the class has something else.  Even the parents have been amazing and have made sure Aiden is a part of the birthday or holiday celebrations and made safe snacks which Aiden can also eat.  I thought I would never let Aiden eat from someone else kitchen because he is so sensitive to even cross contamination, but these parents have assured me and dealt with my 100 questions about how things are made.

Our pantry has all safe foods. Our freezer has coconut ice cream.  I bake safe breads, cookies and cakes weekly so he is never limited to what he can have.  Yet, with all these measures he is scared of food.

Last night I made a milk/soy/egg/nut free broccoli risotto that was out of this world delicious! My 14 month old devoured three bowls of it.  But as soon as I asked Aiden to try a little he broke down. I didn't even put the fork near his mouth because I know if I did, he would have one of his episodes.  We learned the hard way not to trick him into trying something new.  You know, pretend you're putting a chicken nugget in his mouth but really it's guacamole.  We did that a few times and it took us hours to calm him down. At times he would start hitting his mouth. Rub his tongue on his shirt as if he's having an allergic reaction. Walk around with his mouth open crying.  It's really heart breaking.  We know guacamole is safe for him. He use to eat it daily but then he just stopped.  Same thing goes for so many other foods. Even simple foods.  He's even scared of fruit.  I know kids are smarter than we give them credit for, but I'm really worried.  I thought this would get easier with time and yes, there are things that did get easier, but so much of it became harder.

I'm hoping with age, he will learn to trust us and start trying new foods.

I can't be any more in love ...

Safe and Healthy Fats

List of some healthy fats...

Coconut butter / oil - It has a strong coconut flavor so I can't really trick Aiden, but my 14 month old seems to love it.  I add it to bread, pasta, smoothies

Avocado - Plain, sushi or guacamole style. Use kid friendly chopsticks for a more fun way to eat them.

Hummus - Aiden use to be allergic to sesame so we started making our own and it's actually very easy.  Too bad Aiden isn't a fan of hummus.

Nuts and Seeds - Obviously nuts only depend on the allergy and if you're allergic to peanuts, it's really hard to find other nuts without the worry of cross contamination so it's always best to avoid all nuts.  But seeds also have amazing fats! flax seeds, chia seeds, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, sesame seeds.

Olive Oil - You can add it to pretty much anything

Struggles

I have not posted in a long time because my life is ridiculously exhausting right now. I barely sleep because my crazy one year old thinks it's party time at 2 am.  As soon as I get home from work I have two boys competing for my hugs and sometimes won't leave my arms for hours (which I love!).  The only way I can even make dinner is if my husband gets home early, otherwise it's left over's for everyone. 

Dealing with Aiden's allergies is a daily struggle. He now keeps saying "I don't like food" over and over.  He only wants pasta and "butter" for breakfast, lunch and dinner.   He hits his face if we put something different in front of his mouth.  We have never forced him to eat anything he didn't want.  I'm not sure where this fear is coming from but I guess he understands there is something scary about food.

Aiden outgrew soy last year and we were so excited. He was able to have different types of treats (Oreos, graham crackers...).  But a few months ago he started complaining of tummy aches and he was getting a massive rash on his bum and in his arm creases.  We suspected a new allergy.  We started avoiding apples and some other things but the reactions kept on coming. Finally we realized it was soy, again. 

We requested a new RAST test.  I took him to his pediatrician so she can draw blood.  She is the only person that can actually find his vein and get blood from him. I gave her the form which included about 18 to 20 different things to test him for.  He put up a strong fight when the doctor was taking his blood but we made it.  The results came back and they only tested him for 3 things!  Apples, coconuts and peanuts.  I was beyond frustrated because he has to go through this again!  My husband took him back to the office to get more blood and a different doctor started to draw his blood.  She seemed annoyed and frustrated and told my husband to hold him really tight, as if he's choking him. In front of my son!  Then had a hard time finding his vein, when she finally did, she loudly exclaims that the vein exploded and that they are done.  So no blood and my son is now completely traumatized.  

Aiden is now scheduled for a skin test in two weeks. More needles. I  don't know how much more of this I (and Aiden) can take.  I am really annoyed at the doctor that was nasty.   I don't want to put Aiden through the trauma again.  We are now avoiding Milk, Soy, Eggs, Nuts, Tree Nuts without knowing if he outgrew anything.  I really hate food allergies. 

My two awesome boys

Chocolate banana

Since being on maternity leave I get about 30 - 60 minutes to myself a day and I usually spend it watching the food network channel.  I love watching Giada at home even though almost everything she makes has meat and cheese in it, but I just love watching her cook in her beautiful home with that unbelievable view.

She actually had this banana recipe that is very allergy friendly and so ridiculously delicious!  Best part is, it's so quick to make. 

Directions:
- Melt butter in a pan (good amount)
- Slice the banana in half and then again in half so it looks like a sandwich
- Coat each piece in brown sugar and cinnamon
- Cook the banana until the sugar begins to harden (about a minute on each side)
- Melt some chocolate (enjoy life chocolate chips) and pour over the banana

Btw - I'm totally impressed with how this photo came out! watch out!

French Toast (milk/soy/egg/nut free)

Pinterest seriously rocks! I constantly find awesome allergy friendly recipes on it.  Most recent one was this amazing french toast recipe.  I can't believe how yummy it is, it can almost pass for desert.  It is milk, soy, egg, nut free (you can probably make it gluten free also with the right GF bread).

Ingredients and directions are taken from the "Cook It Allergy Free" blog with some alterations.

Ingredients:
3 ripe bananas
1 Cup of dairy free milk
2 tsp cinnamon
1 Tbsp vanilla
2 Tbsp flax meal
6-8 slices of bread
2 Tbsp Oil or butter for skillet (skillet must be greased in between batches)


Directions:
1.  Blend bananas, milk, cinnamon, vanilla, and flax, in blender
2.  Gently dip bread slices into the mix, coating both sides well.
3.  Fry in oil until golden brown, about 2-3 minutes per side.
4. Serve with maple syrup and fresh fruit

I'm drooling looking at this photo!  The bananas have a natural sweetness to them that you really don't need too much syrup, if any.  

My food allergy pinterest board