Time flies and life gets away from us

Dear All Of Us,
I don't know how it happens but another summer is gone and another school year has begun. Thanksgiving is around the corner. The older I get the faster time flies. Is it that way for you also?
I am busy busy with commitments, kids and so on.
I did find the time for a guest blog on The Mighty. I was able to write about one of my passions, food allergies. Well, raising awareness for food allergies, I'm not actually fond of them. I wish they would go away. In the meantime…….

http://themighty.com/2015/10/17-things-i-want-you-to-know-about-having-a-child-with-a-food-allergy/

March

Dear all of us,

I'm not sure how March got here so fast and now it's half over. The 31st will be here before we know it.
On March 31,2009 my life almost took a tragic turn. My youngest ate walnuts that day and she could have died. I won't go into all of the details because on some days it's too much to talk about.
Almost 6 years later I do my best to keep March 31 as a positive day. It's the day she didn't leave us.
That's something to celebrate!

Finding focus

Dear all of us,
Do you have a problem focusing? I have so many ideas in my head of creative endeavors that I don't even know where to start.

I want to blog.

I want to blog about photography.

I want to blog about Montessori Education.

I want to blog about everyday life events.

I want to blog about food allergies.

I want to write a book(no focus there, I just want to do it).

I want to spend my time taking pictures.

I don't even know where to start so I do nothing….

Making memories

Dear All Of Us,
How was your Thanksgiving? Mine was perfect. Lots of yummy food of course, but also lots of time with family. I think that the best gift that we can give ourselves and our family is time. Good quality time together. This is why Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday. No gifts to buy! A good meal with family. That's what we had. This year we even had a family football game. Besides a few minor injuries it was great. The day was filled with laughs. I hated to see it end.
Until next year……..

A good feeling

We filled out all of the paperwork. We researched. We came up with a plan. Then we met the teacher. She seems very nice but she's new to the building.......
Fingers crossed for a good year. Another safe year. Please let this teacher get it.
Have you met the teacher that your child will have?

I wonder what it's like to have a "normal" school experience. I can't remember what normal is.....

Endless paperwork

As I get ready to start another school year and attend yet another 504 meeting, I am astounded by the amount of paperwork that needs to be filled out.
I do not understand why year after year I have to fill out the same forms. This year there is even a new form. I am not sure why there is a new form but there is one. It pretty much asks the same questions as the other paperwork does. This means more wasted time filing out forms, getting doctors signatures, and so on. Of course I will do whatever it takes to keep my child safe but this is insane....
Are you filling out piles of paperwork too?

A big event with allergies

We have never had to worry about a big event with allergies, it just hasn't come up. Until a few weeks ago. We had our oldest daughters Bat Mitzvah. That meant lots of planning for my youngest so that she could be completely safe and so that I could somewhat relax. From deciding how to get safe juice and challah to the Temple to the entire menu at the reception, we sure had our hands full. It truly took a village! Thanks to all that helped us. Everything was pretty much nut free. Any event over the weekend that was not nut free, we brought food with us like we usually do.
The whole weekend was smooth, safe, and amazing!

Have you ever had your allergic child at a big event? How did it go? Any tips on how to handle it?

Hello May

Well, that was another fast school year. Time really needs to slow down. Only about 5 weeks left. Very hard to believe.
I'm sure there will be the end of the year festivities coming soon. We will be ready, cupcakes in hand.
How was your year?

May also brings food allergy awareness week starting on May 11. I have also read that FARE has declared it food allergy awareness month, great idea!
What are you doing to raise awareness this year? I am sending in certificates, pencils, and stickers for my daughter and her classmates.

Food Allergy Bullying

Have you ever had any problems with bullying and food allergies? So many people face bullying in regards to their food allergies. This is going to be a great event that you should not miss. Please share the information with others who may need it. Please also share with your schools, it is so very important. Not one child should be bullied because of their food allergies.

inclusion means include them

Doesn't inclusion mean including all? Exclusion means leaving someone out?

I have said it before and I will say it again, I need to learn to meditate.

How is it ok to have an activity coming up and not know if it's safe? How is it ok to say "parents, you can be there to monitor it?" My being there doesn't make it safe. If it's not safe she can sit out or go to another room. Really? Oh, I don't think so.......
Game on.....

I do this to myself

It happens every time. Every.Single.Time. Every time I think to myself "We are doing ok, we've got this", something happens.
It doesn't have to be a life threatening emergency (thank goodness) but every time I think it will be ok, something happens.
When will I learn? I need to turn my brain off and not even think for a second that all is good. When I think we are good the allergies hit the fan so to speak.
When will I learn that unless someone lives like we do, they just do not get it. When will those that don't live like this understand that they can not leave our kids out? Will they ever learn?
I'm beginning to think that they won't.
Can someone out there explain to me why every single activity has to include food? I do not have any answers today...........

Consult your Dr.

I was checking out Facebook earlier when I saw something that a nut free cookie company posted. It said that people with one nut allergy should then avoid all nuts. Meaning if you are allergic to tree nuts don't eat peanuts and if you are allergic to peanuts you shouldn't eat tree nuts. I am not a doctor. If you are allergic to one type of nut I think that you should consult your doctor and you should decide together on a plan for your child or yourself. My daughter is anaphylactic to tree nuts. She eats peanut products without a problem. She always has, peanuts and peanut butter. She has been eating peanut products since before we found out about the tree nut allergy. I'm not bragging, it's just a fact.  I can not imagine pulling her off of a food that she has always eaten without a problem. Trust me, if I thought for a second that this was dangerous for her I would not do it.
Please consult your doctor before you pull your child off of a food and please do not ever do a food challenge at home.

It's March again

March.
Not my favorite month at all. March 31 is the anniversary of my daughter's anaphylactic reaction. I would rather skip over March.
This year there is an event, ironically being held on March 31. It is an event to help honor the lives of those that have been lost to anaphylaxis. Well, that's a wake up call. Once again I am reminded of how very lucky I am.
Please take a moment to read over the information and join us in remembering.
https://www.facebook.com/events/288379827975661/

Food allergies and Valentine's day

With the snow storm last week I forget to blog about Valentine's day. This year was easy! They were off. Nothing to worry about. Safe treats here at home. We had chocolate chip pancakes and of course chocolate. There are so many online companies that sell safe chocolate now. They are passing out their cards this Wednesday at school and I haven't heard about a party so maybe it will be easy. That would be so nice.
How was your Valentine's day? Were the kids off?
I hope everyone had a safe and fun day.

The snow and the ice

Well, we are being hit by a huge storm . Are you? It's crazy, tons of snow and ice to come. We will certainly be trapped in the house for a while. We are stocked up on safe food, water, batteries, etc. My hope is that the power stays on because I know that it will get cold fast and we are stuck here. The roads are awful.
Of course the kids think it's great. I keep reminding them that the days will need to be made up.
How is the weather by you? What precautions do you take in extreme weather?
Stay safe everyone!

I let her go and it was hard

My 8 year old doesn't get out much. Most people have some sort of furry pet and she can't be in a house with them. I feel awful for her. She's getting older and she wants to be like everyone else. She wants to hang with her friends.
This past Sunday something amazing happened. She just arrived home from Religious School and the doorbell rang. Two of her friends were at the door asking if she could come over to play outside because the weather was amazing. The mom was there too (she's awesome). She said the dog would stay inside and the kids would be outside. I sent her with her medicine bag that was filled with benadryl and many Auvi-Qs. The wonderful mom already knew all about the Auvi-Q because there are allergies in her family. I reminded everyone that she is not allowed to eat anything and that she could come home if she got hungry. I watched her on her scooter as she went up the street without me and without looking back. She was so happy! She was gone for 3 1/2 hours. I 100% trusted the mom that she was with but it was still hard. When she came home she was smiling from ear to ear! She still has not stopped talking about what fun she had!
Thank you, thank you, thank you to the awesome family that had her over. It means so very much to be able to give her a normal life.

And then the phone rang....

OK, yesterday was not a great day. I slept horribly the night before and I am not a good sleep deprived person. Anything that could go wrong did and then the phone rang. School was on the caller id.  I instantly sprouted some more gray hairs. My little one had a stomach ache,no fever. Phew! Is that all, I can handle that. Sad isn't it? I sometimes think the school must think that I don't care but as long as they say she's breathing I do the happy dance.......

Next topic-
She's very picky. She can't eat tree nuts or raw apples. I don't send peanut butter in for obvious reasons. Any thoughts on what to pack for lunch? Healthy, easy, more fruits and veggies. I'm open to any and all ideas.
Thanks!

Changes

I absolutely believe that we have no idea what life will bring us. It can change on a dime. If you had asked me twenty years ago, where I would be and what I would be doing when I was 42, I would have said, teaching in New Jersey. Easy. Well, not so much. I am a stay at home mom in NC. Never saw that coming! I also never would have said that I would have a child with a life threatening condition. That certainly wasn't in my plans. I also never would have said that I would chair a charity event for three years. Didn't see that coming either. If you know me, you know that I am an introvert so doing a charity event brought me way out of my comfort zone. Well, after three years I have made the decision to step down. Not for any reason in particular, I just know that it's time for me to step down. It has been a lot of hard work but it's been great fun too. I have learned a lot and I have met many amazing people that I can now call friends.
We shall see what comes next.......

Big news! FAACT is here!

So, I was sitting around being lazy yesterday. It was great! I spent way too much time on social media, especially Facebook. Suddenly, something caught my eye! A new food allergy advocacy group had been announced. FAACT, The Food Allergy and Anaphylaxis Connection Team. What? Wait? What's going on? I was stunned to see this. I read more about it and I found that many names sounded really familiar. I mean this team is made up of many food allergy celebrities. Authors, advocates, chefs, doctors, the list is amazing. Their website is full of great information for newbies and veterans. I see great things for the future of food allergy advocacy! There is even going to be a conference in the south later this year, so excited for that! I am going to do everything that I can to be there!
I have such hope for 2014!

Check it out-
http://www.foodallergyawareness.org/

Share it

I fully believe that the only way that lives will be saved, before a cure is found, is education. The only way to educate is to share information.

Share this, another child gone, and her name was Emma....
http://www.independent.ie/irish-news/mothers-agony-as-teenage-girl-dies-from-peanut-allergy-on-city-street-29854519.html

and Abbie
http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/bostonglobe/obituary.aspx?n=abbie-benford&pid=168639786&fhid=25327

This should never happen...my thoughts are with the families.