Hasn't Been Easy!

The last six months haven't been easy ones.  I know a lot of people would say, "but your daughter is no longer allergic to peanuts!  How can you still not be celebrating?"  And, it's true.  Our family has definitely enjoyed the benefits of no longer being worried about what Abigail eats.  There's another side to the picture though.  She doesn't like peanuts!

While she doesn't make a gigantic scene every time I put something peanut in front of her, she does protest.  So far, we've been most successful with peanut butter cups from Trader Joe's and honey roasted peanuts.  She doesn't really enjoy the honey roasted peanuts, so they are treated more like a bitter pill that has to be taken.
  
I had every intention of posting about her going back to school without the allergy.  Quite a change for us. Halloween was interesting too.  I also had all intentions of posting pictures of her eating peanut-based candy bars for the first time.  She tried a miniature Snickers and then promptly removed them from her bag.  She tried a Butterfinger, and did the same thing.  Peanut M&M's were a little easier for her to eat, but she'd rather have the plain ones.  What she did enjoy was the ability to eat the other items that were manufactured in the same facility or on the same equipment.  They didn't contain actual peanuts, and were no longer a risk!

We did have more success last night with Girl Scout Cookies.  Yes, it's that time of year again.  As Cookie Mom, we've had more cookies in our garage than room for my car!  Last night, she tried a Tagalong for the first time ever!  She ate it and said she liked it.  The test will be if she asks for another one today.  It was the first one I've had in 9 years too.  I couldn't really enjoy it though because of the ingredient list.  My husband declined one altogether, but my 5 year old son ate one...his first too!  I think he's benefited just as much as Abigail.  He loves peanut products and until last year, had only known sunflower butter products.

Our allergy concerns may have subsided, but they were replaced with others.  This last year, we've spent considerable time and effort dealing with the other "A" disorders....ADHD and Anxiety.  They've been a major factor in why I haven't been posting.  My focus has changed.  That, and Abigail is now 10, and I feel like I should respect her privacy regarding these issues.  Which leaves me at an impasse.  Where do I go from here?

I don't know that answer right now.  I keep getting new visitors, followers and comments.  I get e-mails from you guys that I've been awful in responding to in a timely manner.  I've gotten request to try and review peanut-free products.  I've been so busy addressing day-to-day life that I've gotten side-tracked in addressing this blog.  And, in truth, we've succeeded in beating this allergy.  While we'll never put it behind us (it's shaped who we all are), we have put it aside for the time being.  There are other pressing issues.

I love you guys and I love this blog for the outlet it gave me to help deal with her life-threatening allergy.  It was empowering and therapeutic.  Will I post again?  I'm planning on keeping you guys updated on our trips to UNC.  We may be officially done with the study, but unofficially, they will still keep tabs on Abigail.  Thank goodness!  Right now, though, my focus is on healthy eating and working with my child to overcome her inability to stay on task and to deal with her anxieties.

I've been praying on the next steps.  I just have to wait and see where God leads me.  Blessings to all!

The Marveling Continues

We're still reveling in Abigail's success.  She's taking daily doses of peanuts in the form of sweet treats.  At some point, I'll need to stock up on more practical and healthy options, but for now, I'm enjoying her discovery of recently forbidden treats.

Trader Joe's has some really good peanut butter cups made with real milk chocolate and real peanut butter.  She's loving those.  From a technical side, I had to cut one in half and scoop out the peanut filling to measure it.  For protection, she needs 1 and 1/2 peanuts (or approximately 1/4 teaspoon of peanut butter) on a daily basis.  The filling measures 1/2 teaspoon which is about 3 peanuts.  She's been eating 2 of the peanut butter cups a day.  I'd say she's more than protected.

The four of us, my husband, son, Abigail and myself, went out to dinner Wednesday night to celebrate.  Abigail got to choose the restaurant.  The kid's meal came with plain M & M's.  With absolute wonder on her face, she realized that she got to eat them.  At age 9, the girl has never had an M & M.  We had chosen for safety and simplicity sake to not approve any foods manufactured in facilities that also make peanut products.  That ruled out M & M's.  She, of course, loved them.  Reality struck me, and I realized that I would no longer have an easily accepted excuse for all those unnecessary and unhealthy cookies and other treats that come as part of so many kid's meals.  When asked what type of cookie the kids would like as part of their meal at places like Moe's, Subway and Jersey Mike's, I've been quick to say, "Sorry, they can't have them. We have a peanut allergy."

It hasn't taken her long to realize what this means.  She's skipped ahead to Halloween, and is almost giddy with excitement.  I typically trade a non-candy treat for some of their loot.  Looks like I'm going to have to up the ante to make a deal this year.

The marveling continues at our house.  It's still hard to even conceive sometimes what the success of this peanut allergy clinical trial means to our family.  And, while we are incredibly lucky, or better yet, blessed, we are also so very humbled and grateful.  Abigail is just one of a very few in the sublingual immunotherapy trial who had the opportunity to challenge and did so successfully.  Some made it to the 3 year mark, challenged, and were not able to make it through all doses.  Those children will continue in the study either eating peanuts or doing drops.  Most of the kids won't challenge at 3 years because of study protocol changes.  Those kids will continue another 2 years before they challenge to better ensure their success.  And, as a reader commented, they had to leave the study altogether because of health concerns.  Her comment serves as a reminder that there are risks involved.  So, yes, we are marveling.

Good Tip for Candy Treats

My youngest son is in preschool with a little girl that has a peanut allergy.  This last Friday, their class had an Easter Egg hunt.  Parents were asked to bring in a dozen plastic eggs filled with treats.  The note home to the parents reminded us that there was a child in the class with a peanut allergy and asked that we be mindful of the type of treats that we put in the eggs.

On the way home, I let my son open the plastic eggs that he had found during the hunt to see what treats they held.  Guess what was in one of the eggs?  A miniature Reese's Peanut Butter Cup.  Seriously?? There were several hard candies in some of the eggs, some questionable, but there is no question about the safety of a Reese's Peanut Butter Cup.  Was that a busy mom that just didn't think or an irritated mom that was making a statement.  Given that I know all the parents, I'm going to choose to believe it was a busy mom.  Regardless, I made a call to the mom of the little girl giving her a head's up of what he found in one of his plastic eggs.  I told her I felt her pain.  Abigail is all the time bringing home unsafe treats from school and birthday parties.  As a second grader, she knows that she's not allowed to eat anything until we look at the treats together.

I was reading through a copy of Family Fun yesterday and came across a really good tip that had been submitted by a reader whose son had several severe food allergies.  She found a really large jar and put lines around it at several places.  Each line had a dollar value associated with it.  When her son received treats that he couldn't eat, he'd drop it in the jar.  When the candy reached one of the lines, he could choose to keep saving or turn it into cash to then spend on something he wanted.

I have 2 one gallon bags full of candy that my kids have received from various parties and holiday events.  It's not all unsafe, I just limit the amount of candy my kids can eat.  Not only the amount though, but the type.  I'd rather they have something that I've provided that is either organic or that does not contain artificial sweeteners and dyes.  I might try this tip and make a treat trade-in jar for our house as well.  In the meantime, does anybody know what to do with all that candy?

Easter Treats

I'm having a hard time finding Easter treats that both meet my health standards and that are safe for Abigail's peanut allergy.  I'm sure I could find items to order off the internet, but I feel like those items come at a premium plus the additional shipping charges.  Having had luck at World Market with the Sun Cups in the past, I thought it was worth stopping in to see if they had any Easter candy.  They did.

I found these Marshmallow Easter Eggs made by Rose Manufacturing in Ireland.  The allergen information lists dairy and soy only, and they're labeled gluten free. There was no label for peanut/tree nut cross-contamination which appears to be a World Market requirement, and because they are made in the UK, there was a good chance that they didn't contain GMO ingredients. At $1.99 for a pack of 6 individually wrapped eggs, I thought it was worth the chance.  I couldn't find anything about the product on their website, so I e-mailed the company.  Here's their response:

Thanks for purchasing our products. I hope you enjoy them. Our manufacturing facility is a nut free environment with the exception of Coconut used on site. All raw materials used on site are GMO free. Hope this puts your mind at rest and have a nice Easter.

I haven't had a chance to try them yet so I can't guarantee the taste.  However, considering they each just contain 7 grams of sugar, are made without GMO ingredients, have no artificial colors or flavors, are gluten free and are made in a nut free environment, they're going in the Easter baskets.  I went back today and bought a few more packs.  My sister has Celiac Disease so they're going in her basket as well.

I'll have to do a taste test later this weekend.  I'll add a post note with the results so check back.

Happy Birthday & Get Well Soon

Today is Abigail's birthday.  She's had a fever off and on for the last two days.  It's put a real damper on the birthday festivities.  She also had a Father/Daughter dance that she and her dad were supposed to attend tonight.  Tomorrow both sets of grandparents were coming for cake and ice cream...and presents, but we don't want to expose them to whatever bug Abigail's picked up.  She's pretty disappointed, but been a really good sport about it.

I've tried to make her day as special as possible.  This morning we made waffles and pancake puffs...with candles.  We've rented movies and video games.  We've decorated a cake that is too big now that family is not coming tomorrow to help eat it.  We've opened presents and painted fingernails with a new nail polish set that she got for her birthday.  And, we let her have her choice of take-out which was McDonald's.  That's how much I was trying to make her day great.  I let her eat a McDonald's Happy Meal.

We put those allergy safe jelly beans to good use on her birthday cake.  Abigail asked for a chocolate cake decorated with a rainbow, peace signs, hearts and stars.  She had a good time making the rainbow and peace sign "clouds" and instructing me where to put the hearts and stars. It turned out pretty cute, and she was thrilled with the end results.

Happy Birthday dear Abigail!  Love you!  Hope you feel better soon.

Allergy Friendly Jelly Beans

I was out shopping this morning and came across a brand of candy, Gimbals, that is free of all 8 of the top allergens, peanuts, tree nuts, milk, eggs, gluten, soy, fish and shell fish.  Considering that doesn't happen very often, I just had to share my find.

Abigail's birthday is next weekend, and she wants a chocolate cake with pink frosting.  She also wants it decorated with all of her favorite symbols...rainbows, peace signs, hearts and stars.  I'm actually getting off quite easy with this one.  To avoid mixing so many colors of frosting, my original plan was to use the Rainbow Twizzlers Twists to make the rainbow on the cake.  However, on the shelf right beside the Twizzlers was a bag of gourmet jelly beans, in 41 flavors and a ton of colors.  I was pleasantly surprised to see this allergen label on the back:

I think Abigail is going to really enjoy sorting through the colors and to help form a large multi-flavored rainbow on the cake.

I found the bag of jelly beans at Wal-Mart for a little over $3.00.  It doesn't meet my healthy food standard of non-GMO, no artificial flavors or artificial colors, but it is for a birthday cake after all.

P.S.  I was able to find organic, peanut/tree nut safe jelly beans online from both Surf Sweets and The Jelly Bean Planet if you're neither in a hurry or on a budget.