Welcome to nuts.com!

Never thought I’d see those words… we used to order regularly from peanutfreeplanet.com; last night marked our first order from nuts.com, as the volume and variety we need (to give some raw/whole nuts in baked goods, some covered in chocolate for easy eating, etc.) is getting bigger. That’s definitely going to confuse some email profiler/marketer out there…

Things have been going extremely well these past 2 weeks. The kids have been taking their nightly dose well with minimal reactions (occasional stomach pain or flushed cheeks, but that’s it), and the excitement over the peanut M&M’s has not worn off; it is the coveted finale to a multi-tiered dose: some nut powder in apple sauce, some pieces baked in a brownie bite [with color coded candy on top to differentiate Ari's from Aviv's], then finally the peanut M&M’s, in all their glory. 

A&A have continued their quest to learn more about nuts, checking out books from the library that describe the different types and joining us at the market to see the varieties. They have also added a few new items to the wishing wall: eating a Z Bar (they enviously watch other kids eating them all the time), and trying peanut and other nut butters. They might actually get to do those things sooner than expected… at some point (likely coming up quickly, either at Tuesday’s updose, or at the next one) they’ll be over the hurdle of cross-contamination risk. What I believe this means – and trust me, it’s hard for me to get my head around, so I have a loooong list of questions for their doctor on Tuesday – is that they’ll be able to start eating items made in facilities & on equipment that process nuts, as the related risk that used to exist (that is, that they ingest small amounts of their allergens, which could cause reactions due to their level of sensitivity), goes away. Not as quantifiable/recognizable for the kids, but very real on the stress-o-meter for us, is the fact that table tops, play equipment, etc. would also cease to be an anaphylactic danger at that time. Again, I might have this wrong, and I have no idea how we operationalize this shift, but the main questions running through my head are whether our existing procedures around hand wiping, school protocols, carrying food everywhere, only buying certain brands, etc. all change, and if so, phased or immediately? I believe the latter, but I need to hear it from Dr. Nadeau. That will be a huge change for us both practically and mentally. Until then, we’re holding status quo.

Passover and Easter each brought ‘perspective moments’ this weekend. We were at a friend’s house for an egg hunt today, and all the kids were playing together upstairs. While I was downstairs replacing the candy in the plastic eggs A&A found with safe candy I brought from home, Ari came tearing down the stairs and made a beeline for me. He was frazzled and immediately reported that one of the boys upstairs was eating a peanut butter cup. I went to assess the situation, and Ari disappeared; he didn’t want to be anywhere near the offending candy or child until the situation changed.  Aviv was upstairs watching the boy eat the candy, sitting at a bit of a distance away, not touching the boy but because he didn’t want to stop playing, he continued to handle the same toy that the PB-eating boy was handling. The three of us had a short conversation about safety and both boys went to wash their hands. Only after Ari heard the boys go back upstairs did he reemerge, ask for confirmation that everyone washed hands, and then felt he could resume playing with them. Those are the kinds of responses that our family has hard wired into us at this point, and that won’t change overnight.

Friday night was also the first night of Passover, and the kids assisted me in our yearly charoset making. Charoset is a staple Passover food that traditionally contains nuts; needless to say, the kids haven’t known one that way. As we chopped the apples and dried fruit this year for it, we talked about how this would be their last Passover with nut-free charoset. My replacement sunflower seeds (that aren’t fooling anyone) can finally go! : )  The kids are old enough this year to join us in observing Passover, meaning that they aren’t eating any leavened bread this week. While out yesterday, we searched for a restaurant that could accommodate our need for nut-free AND Passover-friendly food... not easy. It reminded us to be thankful that, as difficult as their nut allergies have been to manage, we’ve only had to manage nuts, not the myriad of other allergens (like wheat or gluten) that so many others struggle with. Over the years, I often thought – if both kids had to have allergies – of how lucky we were that they had the same one, and that point was highlighted this weekend. I have tremendous respect and empathy for families who manage (both logistically and emotionally) multiple allergens, and as we gear up for our next updose to 4000mg (!) on Tuesday, I am hopeful that Dr. Nadeau’s research can ease the burden on their lives as well.