Enjoy Life

Tomorrow the babe and I are going for another "food challenge" at the allergist's office.  This will involve sitting in a small room with my daughter for about 6 hours as she is slowly fed muffins made with real cows milk.  Apparently when you bake milk it breaks down the protein which can cause allergic reactions.  And apparently the doctors think she is ready to take on the "baked milk challenge."

I haven't spent too much time thinking about it, until today.  My Mother-in-Law and I were having lunch and she started asking questions about the appointment and how long we'd be gone.  As I explained to her how the appointments go (I've done 3 challenges with my kids already), I realized I had not thought about the fact that all the challenges we've done so far have been successful.  My kids had out grown their "challenge" allergies and did not have any reactions whatsoever.

What I haven't spent time thinking about is the fact that not all food challenges are successful and that sometimes kids have severe reactions.  That said, I am not going to stress about it now.  The only way we can really know if the babe is ready for baked milk is to give her small amounts in a safe environment and monitor her along the way.

All this reminds me that I want to say a big thank you....not to my husband, not to my Mom, but to a food company.  I am not being paid to give this endorsement, I just feel so grateful that Enjoy Life Foods exists and are creating foods that help my daughter feel "normal."  Enjoy Life Foods makes amazing chocolate chips which I have been using in the babe's treats for some time.  Last week I discovered that they now make chocolate bars she can have (imagine eating your first ever chocolate bar!).  And yesterday, I was beyond thrilled to discover 3 varieties of granola bars that will be safe for the babe and her lunch box.  It has been hard living without the easy to grab granola bar, and while I like the ones I make, I don't exactly always have them on hand.  While the babe is now only allergic to dairy, peanuts and tree nuts, it is rare to find a company that is making tasty treats that are dairy, gluten, peanut, tree nut, soy, egg and casein free!  I just want to thank Enjoy Life Foods for helping my daughter enjoy her own.