Independence.

Cute, right? Bryce copies everything his older brothers do, including dragging a kitchen chair over to the pantry to get a snack. At first glance, this is simply a photo of a 2 year old getting himself a treat. But when you know what's in my pantry-food allergy filled treats- no-ticking bombs, this picture turns scary. Yep. We eat things that Bryce is allergic to. We even keep them in our pantry. Flour and pretzels and cereals. Bryce has his things, too, that I keep in labelled plastic containers or in their original packaging & labelled.


What to do? Food allergies were easier when Bryce didn't eat anything but pureed foods. He showed no interest in what everyone else was eating for almost 2 1/2 years. Now he sees what we're eating and he wants the same.

 I know a celiac family that allows the non-celiac kids to take gluten treats for school lunch, but the rest of the food at home is safe for him. I know a peanut allergy mom who-gasp-keeps a jar of peanut butter in her cupboard for herself when her allergic child is at school. I know a mom of 4 who has one child with food allergies and EVERYONE at home eats ONLY foods that are safe for the allergic child.

Living with a food-allergic child is a fluid situation. We are ever-changing, ever-reacting to Bryce's allergies.

This photo is proof that it's time to put the non-safe foods higher up in the pantry. I want him to be independent and do things like drag chairs around, but I also want to avoid the Epi-Pen.

Anyone in the food allergy community care to weigh in? How do you handle "allergic foods" in your home?