S.W. asks from Allen, TX on March 13, 2010
Easter Egg Hunts and Food Allergy Issues
Hello, fellow mommies! We have new food allergy issues and I was wondering how other families handled Easter egg hunts. One son cannot have gluten or dairy and the other son cannot have soy (in absolutely everything!), tree nuts, or legumes (beans).
My sons love doing Easter egg hunts, but I am not sure they will understand that they can't eat the candy inside. Also, in past years, they have also started eating the candy before I even noticed.
What do y'all do?
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D.M. answers from Dallas on March 15, 2010
Offer to provide a special treat if they don't eat the candy but instead give what they collect to others who can eat it. They get the joy of the hunt, you get to control the allergens and protect them at the same time you offer them an opportunity to be philanthropic. Everyone wins. We do a similar thing at Halloween and it works beautifully for us.
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K.C. answers from Wichita on March 13, 2010
I don't have any kids with food allergies, but it they are old enough you could pay them for the candy (ex. each piece of candy is 5 cents).
You could also make them some special treats in exchange for the candy.
Instead of taking them to an Easter egg hunt make your own & fill the eggs with something they can both eat.
God bless!
1 mom found this helpful
L.S. answers from Dallas on March 15, 2010
You could put trickets, money, or snacks they can eat in the eggs.
What I do if we go to any egg hunts (I also do this at Halloween) is I make a goodie bag myself. After the egg hunt (or Halloween) I trade her the goodies she just collected for the goodie bag I pre-made and tell her I have to go through everything. Hey goodies are goodies and it's the activity they like the most.
L.A. answers from Austin on March 13, 2010
Temporary tattoos, stickers, small cars and trucks, gluten free pretzels.. Just find little treats at Whole foods (ask for assistance) that they both can eat..
M.C. answers from Dallas on March 14, 2010
I would find something else fun to do, like go to a movie or the zoo, etc. on Easter Egg hunt day. Why risk it? The Easter Bunny can always visit your home and leave only acceptable treats, specially chosen for your boys.
Blessings,
M.
P.S. I am building a team of SAHM's who want to earn a 6 figure salary with full insurance benefits over the next 2-5 years. Do you know anyone ready for change?
V.S. answers from Dallas on March 14, 2010
You hide money. Coins. And you hide coupons (handwritten) for things they love including stuff like, "You get to help cook the breakfast of your choice with mom on a special Saturday", "You get to choose the game for game night", "you get to choose what book we read aloud at bedtime tonight" etc.
V.
H.M. answers from Dallas on March 14, 2010
Find fun little things to put in their eggs. Or don't even put stuff in them. My youngest we took off sugar for a while and that year we left them empty. If you are hunting them with others just make sur they don't open them and maybe have something you can give them in exchange for their eggs. My kids just like to hunt the eggs. My kids also have allergy's just not as sevier as your kids allergys but I do understand the concern you have of them getting something they should not have.
Good luck and God bless.
K.K. answers from Dallas on March 13, 2010
My kids had issues too for awhile and we sold our treats to daddy for money so we could go buy what they could have or a toy....worked great....they were 2 and 3 at the time we started that and it was fine.
A.D. answers from Dallas on March 14, 2010
I know when our church does their Easter egg hunt, it has to be candy that doesn't contain nuts because we have some kids with nut allergies. Now I'm not sure if skittles, jelly beans, etc contain soy and or gluten- my mom's allergic to soy so I know it's in just about everything you can ever imagine and things you wouldn't imagine, I just never thought to check those. Maybe you can find a group that does the same thing or set one up that's for family and do it on Easter morning.
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