It Is Just Not Fair

Today at daycare the teacher told me that the kids (all but Nathan) made houses out of graham crackers and cream cheese. She said that Nathan sat there and colored. I feel so bad for him, that he was excluded, but there was no way that he could do that activity because he is allergic to the cheese and the crackers.

I guess this is another hard time - dealing with food allergies.

Business Trick or Treat

We went to a nearby town tonight (like we do every year) and Nathan went trick or treating. He was really good at it tonight. He wasn't as shy as last night.

Just about every piece of candy he got - was chocolate and had nuts or it was tootsie rolls (which contain milk)!! I was so annoyed by all the candy he won't be able to eat, I guess that is more for the great pumpkin to take from him.

I was to the point that when someone did hand him a piece, I was like thanks - he's allergic to it and walked away. I will admit I have lots of anger built up inside because of all his allergies and I just needed to let it out tonight.

He did get a toothbrush from a dentist, that was very nice and useful.

Halloween Party and a Trick or Treat

Tonight we had a Halloween Party to attend that was through our park and recreation dept. Nathan was all dressed up in his Dragon Costume and went on a Trick or Treat path collecting candy and little trinkets from people dressed up as characters. It was cute. Then there was a story time by the bonfire.

It went well, most of the candy was allergy-free and Nathan could keep it. There were a few chocolate kisses and some licorice I needed to remove from his bag. Not too bad.

Dancing King

I just love this video of Nathan dancing to his favorite song, So What by P!nk. He just starts dancing everytime this song comes on the radio.

Nathan Helped Make Cookies He Can Eat

Today I made sugar cookies, I got the Wheat Free, Egg Free, Dairy Free dough from our bakery and I rolled it out cut it into pumpkins and baked them. Then I used store bought frosting (some have milk so I have to read the ingredients) colored the frosting and frosted the cookies. Then Nathan and I decorated them. He had fun, especially eating them. A special treat.

M&M'S Ingredient Label Made Me Mad

While at work I went to the vending machine and got a bag of Peanut MM's. I look at the ingredients even though I know Nathan can't have them, I am just used to looking at them. We in BOLD letters it reads:

ALLERGY INFORMATION: MAY CONTAIN ALMONDS.

This made me angry. What about the Peanuts and milk which are both listed in the ingredient list. I can't believe Mars didn't list in bold in the allergy information. I think this is very misleading and if I didn't know better and just looked at the allergy information and gave it to my child, it could have been a deadly mistake. I am going to call or email Mars about this. Now I wonder how many other labels I just looked at the allergy information and not the ingredients. Sometimes the ingredients are strange and I don't know what they are so I rely on the allergy information to tell me what on the main 8 allergens the food contains.

Click on picture to enlarge and read the ingredients

Allergy Drops???

I got an email (probably spam) about ImmunoTherapy Allergy DROPs and by placing these drops under a child's tongue they can help/cure food allergies.

Qutoed from the email:
Much the same as traditional Allergy SHOTs, Your Child’s Allergy DROPs contain FDA Approved pure Extracts of “Let Likes Cure Likes” Allergens i.e. Weed, Pet, Dust to which the Patient is actually Allergic To ! Slowly over a 80 Week Protocol, Allergy DROP Allergen Extract Concentrations are increased, allowing the Bodies Immune System to rely on its inherent recuperative abilities and ReCalibrate itself, thereby neutralizing Your Child’s Allergies at the Disease Source, No longer triggering Allergy Symptoms, eradicating Allergy
Complications and Producing Lasting, if Not LifeTime Benefits.

I wonder if this is something that could really work and isn't a scam. I have heard of this before but wonder why a Dr or allergist hasn't mentioned it to us.

Professional Pictures

I just love these recent pictures done at Nathan's school. They did a wonderful job and Nathan looks really cute, ok maybe I am biased.

The Flu Shot

Last flu season was the first time we could give Nathan the shot - he was old enough. Well, because of his food allergy to egg, we were told it was best to go to the allergy clinic to have the shot administered, they could then watch for reactions. That went ok and he was fine.

Today, I take Nathan for the Flu shot and since he is two, the nurse said he could have the nasal vaccine, but then she asked if he has Asthma. Yes, he does, so he can't have the nasal vaccine. So he then had the shot done in the arm. Poor guy.

Allergy Free Caramel Apple Dip

I finally found a recipe for a caramel apple dip that is milk-free and safe for Nathan. I haven't tried it yet and seems like it could be sweet, but I will try it and see how it turns out.

1/2 cup sugar
3 Tbsp. light corn syrup
2 Tbsp. margarine
1 cup vanilla-flavored soy or rice milk

Directions:
Stir frequently approximately 10-15 minutes until it turns a caramel color.
Let mixture cool down slightly, then use as a sauce for whole apples or a dip for apple slices. Makes enough for about two apples.

Source: Kids with Food Allergies

I could also make baked apples with Cinnamon and other spices that would make a good fall treat that is safe.

Our Visit to the Fire Department

Today, I took Nathan to the local Fire Department to see the trucks and meet the fireman. It is Fire Safety week.

He really had a fun time, of course I had to keep him away from petting a dog they had, but they had a man dressed as a Dalmatian and Nathan just loved him.

We also looked at a paramedic (which Nathan has already been in one when he was 9 months old) because he needed to be rushed to the hospital after an allergy attack. I don't want him to think paramedics or fire trucks are scary, I want him to understand they are nice people who help you.

Photo: Nathan and a fireman.

My Letter to Whole Foods

I wrote a letter to Whole Foods Market requesting a new store near my house. I am not sure it will get me a store nearby but it can't hurt. Here is my letter.

To: newstore.requests@wholefoods.com
Date: October 5th, 2008
Subject: New Store Location

To Whom it may concern:

I am writing to request a Whole Foods Market in my area. My son has severe food allergies and we need to by most of his food at special health food stores. We love Whole Foods but the closet store is over 40 miles away. We are in the middle of the Milwaukee, WI store and the Madison, WI store. A store in Waukesha, WI would be great, this would be in the middle of your two current stores. Waukesha is a big county with approximately 380,985 residents and is the fastest growing county in WI. For more information on my county please visit:
http://www.waukeshacounty.gov/default.aspx

My family and I deserve to have a store near us with healthy, natural and organic food.
Thank you for your time.

Sincerely,
Jeanette

Auto Reply I received:

Hello,

Thank you very much for your interest in Whole Foods Market and obvious support of our company. We appreciate your desire to have one of our stores located in your area. Your email will be forwarded to the Store Development Team for consideration.

For store opening information and store locations visit our website at http://www.wholefoodsmarket.com/. Click on Stores.

Sincerely,

The Real Estate Team

The Great Pumpkin

Halloween is upon us and it will be the first Halloween that Nathan will actually understand enough to go Trick-or-Treating. He will recieve all kinds of candy and that will include lots of candy he won't be able to have. Anything chocolate, and/or peanut butter and wheat he won't be able to have.

But, I have a plan.....the night after Trick-or-Treat, Nathan will put all his bad candy (the stuff he can't eat) into the pumpkin bucket. Then while he is sleeping the Great Pumpkin will come and take the bad stuff and replace it with good stuff. This can be safe candy, coloring books, halloween toys, etc.

It will be a special tradition we will start for him this year.

My Food Allergy Support Group

Tonight, was the first night of my food allergy support group since Spring. I have changed location from the health food store to the library. We had a pretty good turnout We never ran out of topics to talk about. It is just so good to get together with other moms who are going through the same thing and can really understand. I found out some new foods to try with Nathan.

I am really looking forward to our next meeting, next month.

Our Bakery - Molly's Gluten Free Bakery

Every Wednesday (my day off) we go to Molly's Gluten Free Bakery in Hartland. Everything they bake is Gluten Free which is also wheat free for Nathan's wheat allergy. But they also will make some items dairy and egg free upon request.

We order bread every week and occasionally get cookies, muffins, cupcakes and french bread. We are going to try a apple pie. They are the bakery who bakes Nathan's birthday cakes every year.