The Greek Chorus

That's me, chanting, "You can never be too careful...." Such a charming trait, no?

Here's an email from m on her son's Hershey trip:

"Hi Sarah,

Just wanted to give you the report on my son's day at Hershey, as promised. Overall, he had a great time, though not without a couple of glitches. He had one minor 'contact' reaction -- his eye started swelling up, which usually means that he touched something milky and rubbed his eye. He went right to the bathroom and washed his hands and eye and took some Benadryl, and the symptoms subsided. No other reaction the rest of the day.

As for the Kosher Mart -- He called me at 3:30 on his cell to report that it was closed. He was a little panicked, as he was quite hungry. It turned out that they close early on Friday for the Jewish sabbath. Luckily someone at the nearby food service was able to help him out.

I wrote them an email thanking them, and suggesting that they post the closing hours on the website. They said they would.

I guess the moral is: No matter how conscientious you are, things can go awry. Have a backup plan -- even if it's just an extra sandwich in the cooler back in the car."


Thanks for the report, m. It's a good reminder to have a backup plan. And a cell phone!

Amusing? Sometimes

Karen at Avoiding Milk Protein asked me for some summer travel tips, and m is concerned about her 13-year-old dairy-allergic son's upcoming trip to Hershey Park--without his parents. So let's talk amusement parks, shall we?

Go to the website of the amusement park you will be visiting and look for allergen information, usually somewhere under food/restaurants. More and more locations are posting this information on their sites. Print it out and keep a copy for reference at the park. HOWEVER, you never know how often the information is updated. Or maybe they ran out of the hot dog buns listed on the site and had to substitute with another brand. You just don't know, so you still need to be on the alert at the park.

With that in mind, look for contact information. Using the Hershey Park website as an example, yes, they do list the ingredients of some allergen-free foods online. They also provide contact information for those with questions about allergens. Use this contact information. Personally, I like to use email because then I have everything in print. Explain your situation, then ask whatever questions you have, such as:
May we bring allergen-free food with us into the park?
Who do we ask at the restaurants to let us see ingredient labels?
Who do we contact if we run into a problem at the park?
Etc.

Even if some of these answers are provided on the website, I like to have them with me in print in an email from a high-ranking employee of the park. Then if I run into any resistance, I can pull out the "permission slip."

This is an especially important technique for parks that don't have as many allergen-free options. We have been allowed to bring food for Katherine to various locations that don't usually allow outside food and have never been questioned. But I had my email copies with me just in case someone asked. In these instances, I had to dig around on the websites a little more to find someone to write to. Sometimes I've used the generic "contact us" address and my email was forwarded to the appropriate person. A reply may take awhile, so as soon as you know where you will be going, start writing.

Traveling with food-allergic children is stressful. Sending them off on their own is even more stressful. So until all amusement parks become as forward-thinking as Holiday World, write those emails. Write them before to ask your questions, and write them after to say, "Thank you."

Ashland, NH Area Travel Guide

Planning a trip to New Hampshire? Here are a few places we like to visit.

My mom grew up spending her summers on Lake Winnipesaukee, between Center Harbor and Meredith. When my sister and I were growing up, we always spent our vacation at the family "camp" on the lake. Sadly, the camp had to be sold about ten years ago. But, my aunt now has a great house on Little Squam Lake, so we are able to bring the kids to the same area where we spent our summers.

Squam Bridge in Ashland, NH
Little Squam Lake is also known as Golden Pond because it's where On Golden Pond was filmed.

Ashland is a great town with a very active Historical Society. We were able to attend their annual lobster dinner fundraiser. They were kind enough to have hot dogs and hamburgers available for children and/or those who can't eat shellfish.

I would also like to give a special mention to the Village Pizza & Grill in Ashland. We went there for lunch one day, and the service was amazingly helpful and friendly. Katherine and Eli split a cheese-free bacon pizza and an order of pasta with sauce. All the staff was very careful and understanding, and there was no cross-contamination of ingredients. Plus, the food was excellent. Katherine ate four pieces of pizza, a personal record.

Just a few miles down the road is the Squam Lakes Natural Science Center in Holderness, NH.
We had never been there before, and it is amazing. They have all kinds of native NH animals that have been injured and are living in natural habitats while they recover. The black bears, bald eagles, and bobcats were our favorites.

The Old Country Store
The Old Country Store in Moultonborough, NH, has always been the rainy-day place to take the kids. Penny candy! Weird old machinery in the museum! More candy! While the price has risen to two cents per piece of candy, it's still fun, and there are plenty of dairy-free candies available to choose from.

Weirs Beach
Usually we spend one evening at Weirs Beach playing games at the arcades on the boardwalk. Our favorites are Whack-a-Mole, Skeeball, and the ancient Dodge City Shooting Gallery. We also stopped at the Hart's Slush stand for some dairy-free frozen goodness.

Rein's Deli
Another family tradition is to stop at Rein's Deli (Warning: the site plays music) in Vernon, CT, on the drives to and from NH. They, too, are excellent about dairy-free orders. Katherine likes their turkey breast on a plain bagel with a side of plain Cape Cod potato chips. I just wish I could get her to try their fantastic dill pickles!

We had a wonderful time. It's a great place to vacation!