This morning I took a trip to Whole Foods. Have I mentioned before that it’s my favorite place ever? Well, if you didn’t know that, you do know.
I love Whole Foods. I would move in there and set up a tent in the produce section. I went there this morning without makeup and also pre-shower and not only that but my hair was barely brushed. V, of course, looked immaculate and flirted with all of the ladies.
And of course in the state I was in, I randomly ran into an old co-worker I hadn’t seen in a year and a half. That is just the way that Life throws it these days. Good times.
So as you may know from previous posts, V has some allergy issues. Wheat and peanuts. They are sort of mid-range in strength. According to my pediatrician the peanut allergy is ‘partially my fault’ as I ate too many peanut m&m’s post-preggo. I 50-50 believe this. I did eat a lot of peanut m&m’s. A LOT. But whether it’s totally my fault or whether he would have had allergies anyways? Who knows.
Anyways, it was easy-peasey to deal with when he was young, but as he gets older it gets trickier. Toast, sandwiches, cookies, cake, pizza, chips, sauces, fast-food etc etc. Wheat is my enemy. Sometimes it’s hard not to get frustrated with it all. A few weeks ago, one of the girls at daycare wanted to share her cookie with V and did it behind Ginette’s back. A few hours later, his face broke out in an awful rash. *Sigh*
Anyways, Whole Food’s has a Gluten Free section that I am all over. Today I found cookies, cookies kinda like Oreos, but gluten-free. Awesome. And cereal, sadly though it was made in a factory that also processed peanuts so that’s a no-go as far as I am concerned. Dedicated factories are the way to go baby!
When I find things like this, it makes me feel like I can bring some kind of normalcy to V’s diet. Make it less of a ‘big deal’ to feed him a meal or organize lunches for him. I totally high-five myself (mentally) and am pretty sure that no-one is as excited as I am to find gluten-free mac and cheese and tapioca bread. But I expect you to be. Just so you know.
With his 1st birthday on my mind, birthday parties weigh heavily on me. I keep thinking about the years to come, his little friends and the dietary issues that will arise at sleep-overs, sports events, parties etc etc.
Challenging is not even the right word to describe it. Even more so with his Italian background. How will he enjoy Great-Grandma’s lasagna or eggplant parm? Or even Gramma’s? I have a feeling that rice-lasagna noodles either don’t exist or aren’t as good. Man.
So anyways, from time to time there will be more allergy related posts. I am fascinated by wheat and peanut allergies, dedicated factories and gluten free products. It’s quite interesting.
Anyone with interesting tips on sites with products that are wheat and peanut free, or allergy info in general…. I am looking for more sites, info, blogs, anything…. please email me with any info.
One Lovely Atlantic Mama and family 
Have you consulted with a naturopath about his allergies? I don’t know if they could help, but Henry had hearing issues and my cousin (on my dad’s side) is a naturopath and had some suggestions which were relatively easy and it turned out he had a dairy sensitivity. We followed her advice and were able to reintroduce stuff when he was a bit older. Not the same thing, I know, but who knows, it might help! I can’t imagine having a child with food allergies – it has to be so difficult making sure he’s safe! Good luck 🙂
Have you tried any of Betty Hagman’s cookbooks? The Gluten-free Gourment and Gluten-free Bakes Bread (or something like that) are great for wheat-free alternatives. I’m also wheat free, and it’s not the most convenient thing, but there are getting to be a lot more alternatives than there used to be.
Rice Krispie squares are my best friend.
Hi! Saw your blog on a Google alert and just wanted to say how mad I am at your pediatrician. I don’t know why he felt the need to assign blame – these situations are challenging enough without laying on a guilt trip – especially since no one knows why they occur.
Let me give you my case studies:
I’m allergic to 27 foods, many of them mild but some anaphylactic. My full brother is allergic to nothing, and neither are my two half siblings.
I have two children, one with four food allergies (peanut, egg, garlic, some tree nuts.) The other is allergic to nothing.
From my experience, the allergy routine will be pretty much intuitive as he gets older. We’ve navigated all of them except sleepovers (which still scare the pants off me, but he’s only 5 so we haven’t hit it yet) and we survive by taking our own food to virtually ever social event. It helps at school, too, that his teacher is super-concerned and helpful in letting me know about food-related events, tailoring food projects around his allergies. Of course, he’s not allergic to wheat, so it’s do-able.
As far as kids’ treats, one of my favorite firms is Panhandle Premium – http://www.panhandlepremium.com/. They import from the Nestle peanut-free plant in Canada. Yeah! Chocolate. Yeah! Smarties that are close enough to M&Ms that they pass muster.
I blog a few times a week on allergy issues and post recipes, but we’re not wheat-free so they won’t help you much.
Hang in there! I know it seems overwhelming right now – believe me, I was crying in the kitchen at 2 a.m. the morning of my son’s first birthday because the cake wasn’t turning out. But you will adjust!
Your pediatrician is behind the times – now they say kids get peanut allergies because they are not exposed to peanuts at a young enough age. I think they’re just making it up as they go along (but of course it will ALWAYS be the mother’s fault).
A food allergy board that I belong to has been a great source of support – it’s mostly families dealing with peanut allergies, but it also has a “sub-board” just for wheat allergies so it could be a good source of information for you:
http://www.foodallergysupport.com
good luck!
There is gluten free frosting at publix that I can use (fudge) and there is gluten free cake. His 1st birthday cake will be amazing.. don’t you worry! I have used both of them for a mini wedding cake for a brides Mom who was celiac.
Smarties? You know you’re bringing home a huge costco sized case. lol.