Raisinet Recall

Nestle is recalling its Raisinet's in the U.S., citing undeclared peanuts. Given the peanut counterpart, I had always assumed Raisinets were off the table, so to speak and have never even looked at the packaging. Still, this serves as a reminder that even the biggest food companies can get it wrong.

Feild Trip Fumble - Or Overprotective mom?

There's an article in the Globe and Mail today about a mom outraged by teachers eating almonds in their cabin at night during a school trip she attended to chaperon her 13-year old peanut-allergic son.

Admittedly, I often side with the parent of the allergic child when I read articles like this. But in this case, I think the mom is off base. The teachers were in thier own cabin, after the kids were in bed. That means the risk of cross contamination with her son should have been extremely limited. Presumably, all of those teachers would wake up in the morning, brush thier teeth and shower, eliminating any unlikley traces of nut. Furthermore, it's not like teachers have close physical contact with thier students, so again, the risk of cross-contamination is low. To call them out on thier actions seems pretty harsh to me. Furthermore, it sets up the situation where everyone thinks that parents of allergic children are over-protective of thier kids and want everyone to bend to thier way of thinking. I'm sure the comments section of the Globe will be filled with the usual rants.

Not to mention, this kid was 13, and his mom was chaperoning him. I sincerely hope that by that age, DJ will understand his allergy and be responsible enough to know what he can and can't eat, and that he will be able to attend events like this, like any other normal kid - without his mom.

Personally, I would be more annoyed that the teachers were drinking on the job.

Bread Spread Battle

After trying Safe4School Wowbutter, my husband and I debated which is better: it, or Sunbutter. While I love the both the crunch and roasted flavour of the sunflower seeds in Sunbutter, I'm not crazy about how dry it is. On the other hand, I feel like the Wowbutter has a bit of an aftertaste.

Still, I came down on Wowbutter's side. So did my hub. Where do you stand? Take the poll and let me know!

Safe4School Wowbutter

I often check the bread spreads section in hopes they[ll start stocking safe butters like soy or sunflower seed. Much to my delight, the ValuMart on Lakeshore has started carrying Safe4school Wowbutter!

Given its similarity in to peanut butter though, I was wondering how kids would be able to take it to school without prompting allergy concerns. Check out the safe school procedure section of the website for details on how to send your kid to school with this tasty soy butter; it includes down loadable sheets to send to school with your child and even a label template you can affix to lunches to ensure school staff know you're eating safe.

Girl Guide Cookies

Girl Guide Cookies are nut free! A friend recently came around with her two daughters, selling them. We were happy to be able to pick up - and subsequently devour - two packs of the chocolate mint ones.

Allergies and Bullying

I just read this disheartening article on The Toronto Star's website about how kids with allergies are often the subject of bullying.

With just one year to go until DJ enters the school system, I'm definitely worried about issues like this. Part of me is concerned that DJ will be marginalized socially because of his allergy. Kids can be cruel and anything that makes you stand out can be reason enough to taunt. While kids will be kids, we're going to be sure to help DJ understand how to deal with this type of thing. Just not sure how yet...

Take-out Talk

With summer in full swing, I've been to busy to blog, but a conversation with DJ last night is still sitting heavy on my mind. Normally we all eat dinner together, but last night, I fed DJ separately, thinking my hub and I would order in some forbidden Chinese food after he was in bed.

Well, DJ woke up when the doorbell rang and started in. I went up to comfort him when he asked if we had ordered pizza in. I said no - Chinese. Can I try some? No, I'm sorry you can't. It has peanuts. He looked sort of bewildered and asked if that meant we would get sick if he tried it. Of course, I had to say yes. Then he started whimpering that he too was hungry and wanted something to eat.

I grabbed him a drinking yogurt, and came back upstairs, where I tried to explain that the Chinese food was a treat for Daddy and I. He seemed okay with it - especially after I promised we would order pizza tonight and that he could have his own dipping sauce (man that kid loves sauce!).

Still, the whole experience left me feeling sort of crappy.

Along those same lines, DJ attended his first birthday party last week. It was a success, with no reaction and he had a great time, but the lead up was awkward for both of us; me, trying to feel out the mom on the menu and DJ for anxiety that he wouldn't be able to eat the birthday cake.

While he may be a bit young for me to throw the idea out there that he may not be able to eat everything at the party, I wanted to prepare him ahead of time to avoid any toddler meltdowns.