(Before you read I would like to say that this "challenge" is minor in the scheme of life. I use this blog as an outlet for my thoughts on life and parenting & by no means am trying to complain or vent. Just writing because I like to and am very mindful & thankful for my healthy little babes.)
So food allergies have just become part of our new normal. Honestly, when we found out about all of Nora's allergies I was kind of already on edge about her general state of well being to begin with so the laundry list of scary foods kind of freaked me out. However, once we removed all the "bad stuff" from her diet and saw her amazing transformation, it really was ok. SO totally worth it!
But as the girls get older the reality of the effort behind always keeping up this lifestyle is kind of sinking in. We can't eat bread, cake, cookies, waffles, pancakes, muffins, hamburgers, hotdogs, no fried food, nothing breaded, nothing with oats, nothing with nuts, no rice at most places because of the veggies mixed in, no flour tortillas, no meat with the marinade at most restraunts, no strawberries, blueberries, no margerine, no peas, NO NUTS, NO EGGS, pretty much no fast food, no Cheerios, no goldfish, no wheat thins, no cheese itz, Just a lot of "no's".
(Discovered we could eat original lays potato chips...they were digging this little treat and we didn't feel bad about giving it to them one bit!!)
Being allergic to wheat and soy is a huge limiter of food. Throw on top of it an allergy to eggs and you are pretty much shut out of the carb world all together.
I really didn't think it was that big of a deal. I substitute applesauce for eggs in pancakes and desserts. I make little quesadillas out of corn tortillas and just make it work. But for the most part we just don't do bread or baked goods. Nora so far could care less. The child would eat a rat if I put it on her tray. She truly will eat anything. However, lately Zoe is refusing our regular food and I can't give them separate food. The fighting and crying over wanting what the other has is just impossible. So there's that. But the main thing that I am realizing I have to adjust to is the PUBLIC. I can control this little world we live in here, but what if we want to be social? Here are my struggles right now:
(The girls had already finished their gluten free pizza....now time for hovercraft mommy!)
PLAY DATES: We love seeing our friends and the girls are at an age where socialization is fun! However, when we get asked to come play I have to start a mental checklist. Will it fall over a lunch time? Is this family familiar with our situation? Will we be at a house or in public? If we are in public, will there be a separate place for us to sit? Is it the kind if place where food gets left in the play area? Are we going to a restraunt? We can't go to any Asian places! Will the mom think I am annoying when I have to ask that they wipe their tables down and make sure to sweep the floor before we come? Will I be able to keep tabs on two 15 month olds amidst a sea of snack crackers being left behind as toddlers run around the park? Is it worth it? Yes, they need friends, but how can we safely go to a public park at lunch time!? Kayla, you are their mom and can't be lazy and make them miss out! This is what goes through my mind, when most moms only have to plan play dates around naptime!
(But for the record, I've never wanted to punch any friends in the eye yet!)
CHILDCARE: I have been so blessed to pretty much be a SAHM with my girls. However, I have the ideal job for working 2 or so days a week and it being very worth it. However, I don't feel like I can leave Nora at even a home daycare for a couple days a week because WHEAT is like the staple of all kid snacks and I am just not ready to send her off, not having her mommies watchful eye keeping tabs on everyone's snacks. Peanut and tree nut allergies get a lot of publicity, which is great, she is allergic to both, but not a lot of people know kids allergic to wheat and soy! This is a tough allergy and one that is not easy for parents to avoid, even if it's just for when they are around you. Avoiding these things in a kids lunch or snack "on the go" is near impossible if you aren't a mom prepared to prepare these kind of meals. And why would you be? So this leaves us with the option of getting a nanny, which I now know is hard to find if you only need them 8 hours a week. So all these allergies are starting to seep into the plans I had for working as well.
SCHOOL: I know, they aren't close to school age, but they are close to preschool age. I am hoping to put them in preschool 2 days a week next fall when we have baby girl #3, and it's kind of the same situation as above. I had actually decided I wanted to do that this fall and work the two days that I took them to Mother's Day out and the only place that still had availability isn't a nut free campus and told me they would just put Zoe and Nora at their own table for lunch. I wanted to say "lady, I'm not putting them in school so they can be isolated to their own little table, furthering their already antisocial tendencies of only wanting to play with each other. Plus, how will you handle birthday parties? My child can't have ANY store bought baked goods because she is allergies to eggs, wheat, soy, and most of all the almond extract in pretty much every store bought cake!" Of course I didn't say this....but I don't think any school is going to smile when they see us coming down the hall!!
So yes, we have a handle on the allergies, but I am starting to see that as they get older, controlling these situations will be tough. She will get to an age where she knows she can only eat her food, this phase of kiddos leaving a trail of food that they then eat off the floor is short lived, I know! But for now, now that we want to be out and social and part of the world, I am seeing how truly all encompassing the food allergies can be.
To date we know that Nora is allergic to:
Wheat, soy, eggs, peanuts, almonds, lentils, peas, corn (mild), coconut (mild)
And based on reactions we think she is allergic to:
Strawberries, blueberries, and milk (but just milk alone...she eats milk products).
We are praying that she will get to a point where she can eat eggs baked into things, we thought we were in the clear and by about the 5th time we tried the gluten free bread with eggs she started getting hives. Zoe is allergic to eggs and can eat them baked in just fine, so we are hoping for the same reaction soon with Nora!
I still feel baffled about how on earth all these allergies came about. I have been told a number of things ranging from it being because she was a c-section to me being to "clean" during pregnancy. Well, I spent most of my pregnancy with my hands in peoples mouths working on their swallow post CVA so I didn't have much of a choice but to wash my hands at work ha! And the c-section was out of my control as well....so I suppose there isn't much I can or could have done about this! They also say it's genetic. That does seem likely since Max (Betho's son) has allergies too and Bethany and I are identical twins. But we don't have ANY allergies, so it's just strange!
But we will figure it out & friends don't freak out about us hanging around! We are so glad to be a part of the fun but may have to ask you to do a few strange things before we arrive!! :)
Continue to pray that my little Nora grows out of ALL these allergies. We know that nuts and wheat usually stick for life, but we also know we have a God way bigger than a measly little food allergy so we will still pray, expecting healing for our little Nor Nor!
Happy Sunday!! Here we go on another week! I should probably go to bed! And not that anyone wants a tour of my pantry but here are a few of our allergy friendly staples!
Our life saver! Both girls had horrid eczema on whole milk & although Nora is technically mildly allergic to coconut she does way better on this than milk.
Finally discovered a brand of soup mixes that are soy and wheat free. Sure they are 4x the price, but now if we have to I can whip up a casserole for a party or event that Nora can eat!
Old man Bob has become an Agan staple
So has Annie! Who knew there was such a thing as "rice pasta"!?
We love us some sun butter. However, we aren't sure what kind of bread we can eat anymore. :(
These are the BEST and a life saver! Freeze dried apples! Our bag is always full!!
And then our beloved, not really, epipen. Praying it always stays in it's little plastic home where it belongs!!
