Traveling with a food allergy is not easy. Meet my youngest. Although she suffered from birth with some pretty annoying tummy issues, it wasn’t until this sweet age of 7 months that we discovered, through a terrifying trip to the emergency room that she has a life-threatening allergy to all dairy products.
While the momma bear in me wants to hunker down, build a Seinfeld-esce Bubble Boy suit and call it a day, I know that her life needs to be as “normal” as possible; she still needs to play at parks, go to birthday parties, and travel the world.
Prepping for travel, security checkpoints, and language barriers while managing hungry kids in need of healthy food and drinks can be difficult, stressful and overwhelming even for the non-allergic family. Startling facts are surfacing that severe food allergies are on the rise. According to the CDC, 4 out of every 100 children suffer with food allergies and between 1997-2007 food allergy incidences increased 18%! If you or a family you know is dealing with this serious condition, here’s a few handy tips I have put together for family travel with life-threatening food allergies.
Medication
Prepare for the worst
- Make a list of all of your child’s regular and emergency medications; check it twice.
- Ask your doctor to place extra refills on your file in case you need more medication while away from home.
- Properly store auto-injectors for the weather you will be encountering. (Some very cute insulated epi-pen cases are available in the guide below; no matter how you carry them, always use caution to ensure they are stored between 59° and 86°F)
- If traveling by air, get a doctor’s note for all required medication and keep original labeling and boxes.
- Keep medication with you in a carry on. Do not check medication in luggage– you don’t want to risk it being lost or not connected on a flight.
- If you require more than 3.4 ounces of liquid medication, keep it separate and declare your medication to TSA security upon entering the security line. (Taking all of your allergy medications out of your bag and in a separate bin will help TSA to quickly identify and approve your medications.)
Food
Do your homework
Photo by: Flickr/Jennifer Kumar
- Pack more than enough safe snacks and meals for the traveling portion of your trip.
- Research your destination for natural food grocers so you don’t have to pack an entire week worth of food. I typically look for a nearby Whole Foods, Sprouts or Trader Joe’s to ensure I can get the essential Dairy-free products I need once I arrive at my destination.
- Dining Out:
- My favorite new resource is AllergyEats. The site functions similar to Trekaroo, but in this case, users rate restaurants based on how helpful the staff and restaurant are towards your specific food allergy! Best of all, it’s free!
- If we can’t find our restaurant on AllergyEats, we use our smart phone to look up current allergy information. I almost always ask fast food employees to double check the box and show me the ingredients. Restaurants are NOT required to state if they have had a change in ingredients on the menu; your ingredient chart might not be up to date.
- Still have a question, just ask. A quick talk with the manager can usually get you detailed food ingredients on almost anything in many restaurants.
- International restaurants: For about $10, Select Wisely offers explanatory cards to show foreign language speakers the severity of your child’s condition in their own language!!
Airline Travel
Communicate, Be Safe, Communicate
- Note dietary restrictions while booking your ticket, by calling the airline directly AND at check in.
- If your child suffers from a peanut allergy, take extreme caution in choosing airlines. Some will guarantee a peanut-free flight or buffer zone, but the recirculated air can pose a threat. Call guest relations to get details from the airlines on how to keep your child safe.
- Request to pre-board the plane to thoroughly clean surfaces.
- Don’t take a chance; only eat food you are 100% certain is allergy-free. You are literally thousands of miles up from medical care!!
Accommodations
Upgrades worth the extra cost
- Many hotels are now offering upgrades to hypoallergenic rooms; although these rooms don’t pertain specifically to food allergies, this upgrade will get you a more thoroughly cleaned area before you arrive.
- Request a room with a refrigerator to store essential snacks, beverages and meals. Better yet, upgrade to a suite with a full kitchen to prepare a safe “at-home” meal.
- Numerous luxury chains offer grocery shopping services; you can arrive at your destination with a fully stocked kitchen of all of your favorite allergy-free brands.
- If you plan on using a resort kids club, use caution. Many well intending employees don’t understand the severity and risk of severe food-allergies. This is especially dangerous for little ones not fully able to communicate or understand their condition. For safety, my daughter wears a medic-alert bracelet and sports some adorable tee shirts reminding caregivers of her condition. A quick discussion with the manager on duty can usually leave you feeling relaxed enough to walk away and enjoy your evening.
Resources
AllergyEats is your go-to source for community based reviews on restaurants, all filtered through the lens of food allergy accommodation.
Select Wisely offers food allergy cards translated into the language of your destination. Custom cards available upon request.
Allergy Apparel has some adorable clothing and medic alert bracelets (see accommodations photo above) for the hippest allergy kids on the block.
Use promo code TREKAROO for free shipping!
Kozi Epi offers a great selection of auto-injector cases, ID tags & accessories.
Use promo code TFA15%OFF for 15% off your order through 4/24/12.
Sources: Transportation Security Administration (TSA) | Food Allergy & Anaphylaxis Network | Center for Disease Control
Katie Bodell is Trekaroo’s Assistant Editor, a wife, & a mom to three sweet California girls.
Travel with kids to: CA |CO | DC| FL | HI | IL |MA | NC | NY | OR| PA| TN | TX | UT | VA | WA
A few years ago, my suitcase broke open sliding down the LAX baggage claim’s luggage shoot and some of its contents were thrown out. As I gathered my clothing off the conveyor belt, a man who seemed very embarrassed handed me my bra which he had picked up off the floor! From this humbling circumstance, I gained a new appreciation for this advice: it’s worth spending money on quality luggage.
Finding a quality suitcase for my son has been extremely challenging. I speak from experience when I say most children’s wheelie bags generally fall into one or all of these categories:
• Adorable but overpriced
• Poorly made
• Poorly designed
If you purchase a child’s suitcase online based purely its cutsie looks, it could end up sitting in your garage collecting dust because it’s not capable of withstanding the vigors of travel. To save money and to keep your garage clutter free, I highly recommend purchasing a Beatrix New York Wheelie Bag. Not only are these bags uber attractive, they’re also built Ford tough.
Beatrix is a company devoted to creating cool, contemporary stuff for kids. Their products combine a childlike love of whimsy with a grown-up sense of modern design and style. Beatrix’s products are phthalate free, PVC free, and lead free.
My son’s Wheelie Bag is not only adorable and colorful; it’s also the only child’s suitcase I’ve ever owned that’s actually built to be used as a suitcase! Hallelujah!
This jet-setting suitcase is made of heavy-duty nylon over a sturdy frame and has an adjustable handle with multiple lock settings to accommodate his growing body. The exterior has a large zipped pocket (perfect for stashing DVD’s) and an additional zip pocket can be found in its roomy interior.
Since I’ve taken all the leg work out of finding the perfect suitcase for your child, it would be a shame not to have a giveaway! Luckily, Beatrix New York has graciously offered one up as a prize; in addition, Trekaroo readers can use code TREKAROO20 to receive 20% off any Wheelie Bag purchase made until March 25, 2012!
The Deal: Trekaroo readers save 20%!
Details: Use code TREKAROO20 to receive 20% off any wheelie bag purchase made until March 25, 2012!
The Steal: Win a Beatrix New York Wheelie Bag!
Details: One lucky winner will receive one (1) Beatrix New York Wheelie Bag of their choosing shipped anywhere within the continental United Sates.
HOW TO ENTER TO WIN:
In an effort to make it easier to enter, we are now using Rafflecopter. Simply click on the more link below and follow the directions. The more you do, the more entries you will receive!
Read the rest of this entry »
This contest is now closed. Congratulations to our winner, Melissa Miller! We know you will love the video camera!
Recently I was invited by Kimberly of The Go To Mom to attend a special Sony Event for Social Media Moms, in order to try out the new Sony HDR-PJ10 Projector Handycam and see if I thought families who travel would enjoy the video camera. After about 5 minutes of use I had absolutely no doubt that Trekaroo families would love this video camera- it is small, lightweight, easy to use, and takes great videos. But the one feature that I really felt makes this camera ideal for families on the go is the projector which allows users to easily record video and then project it (in great quality) on a wall, floor, or variety of other flat services. Just imagine spending the day exploring a National Park and then coming back to your campsite at night to watch the day’s highlights on the wall of the tent. So cool!
Here are a few reasons why I think the HDR-PJ10 Sony Projector Handycam would make a great family gift:
- It is easy to use: Simply flip open the screen and the camera automatically turns on! Plus the lens cover is built in so losing the lens cap is a thing of the past. The touch screen is very intuitive, allowing this non-technical mom to look like she knows she is doing! An easy to find and clearly labeled “photo” button that allows the user to take still photos while video-taping. There is even a USB cord built in to the camera so getting video from the camera to your computer for editing!
- Great picture quality: Recently I was watching video from when my kids were babies and was so disappointed at how grainy the footage was. I wish this camera existed 5 years ago! The HD quality is incredible and the image stabilization actually makes it possible for a shaky-handed individual like me to take videos that don’t make viewers nauseous.
- The projector: Before I owned this video camera, watching a replay of a video meant I had to wait until my husband was willing to pull out the cables and configure the television to play the movie. Now, I simply find a wall and press “project” on the video camera and our videos play right before our eyes! While traveling we can take video of our adventures and then easily watch them on the wall of our hotel room, vacation rental, or tent.
- The highlight function: I love when people create fancy highlight videos of their vacations which are set to music. I just didn’t usually have the time or inclination to do it. Now with the Sony Projector Handycam I simply select “highlight “and the video camera magically creates the highlight video for me! To give you an idea of how amazing the highlight function is, click on the video below to see a highlight video the camera created of my kids and their friend’s baking cookies for Christmas (with a cameo of my puppies snagging dog cookies at the very end). As you will see, the camera can take some pretty simple footage and turn it into something special.
The Steal: Win a Sony Projector Handycam!
Details: One lucky winner will receive a HDR-PJ10 Sony Projector Handycam valued at $650.00!
HOW TO ENTER TO WIN:
Step 1: Share this giveaway using the Facebook by clicking the FB “Like” button at the top of the page
Step 2: Leave a blog comment below letting us know that you did.
Get extra entries by repeating steps 1 and 2 once a day. But be sure to leave a new comment each time.
Want more chances to win?
Feel free to do any or all of the following actions. Each action counts as an extra entry but be sure to LEAVE A SEPARATE COMMENT FOR EACH ONE or the entry will not be counted.
-
- Like Trekaroo on Facebook
- Tweet a link to this Monday Mad Steal via @Trekaroo using the Twitter share button at the top of the page.
- Subscribe to the Trekaroo Blog
- Follow Trekaroo on Twitter
- Post this giveaway on your blog
Rules and guidelines:
- 18 years of age or older
- US Residents only
Deadline to enter: Sunday, January 1, 2012 at 11:59PM PST
What is Monday Madness?
Every Monday, Trekaroo announces on our blog, either a fantastic giveaway or an incredible deal. It could be a green water bottle, a hotel stay on Maui or theme park tickets. Return every Monday to the Talking Trekaroo Blog for the details. Want a reminder? Become a Trekaroo member or follow us on facebook or twitter.
Thanks to Online Sweepstakes and CashNet Sweepstakes,.
Disclosure: I was invited to the Sony Social Media Moms Luncheon and received a free HDR-PJ10 Sony Projector Handycam to review for Trekaroo. All opinions are my own.
Sharlene Earnshaw is the blog editor for Trekaroo.
Travel with kids to: CA |CO | DC | FL | HI | IL |MA | NC | NY | OR | PA | TN | TX | VA | WA
This contest is now closed. Congratulations to our winner Carrie! Enjoy your brand new Chicco car seat!
More than 80% of car seats installed incorrectly. That is a pretty staggering statistic isn’t it? It evoked so much anxiety in my husband that while my kids were infants, he became a car seat installation expert. He managed to get their car seats into cars so snug that even police officers who install car seats professionally were impressed. Since I am not a 6’5″ 200lb man, I was never able to secure them quite as tight as dear hubby, hence banning me from ever moving their car seats. It was a major pain.
Chicco’s KeyFit 30 is the #1-rated infant car seat and claims to be among the easiest to install. The double bubble level guides easily demonstrate accurate placement in the vehicle and the car seat detaches from stroller and base with just one hand. On paper it sounded like a great stroller so I put the call out to our Superoos to see if anyone was interested in reviewing the product. One of our Superoos, keebz, already had the KeyFit 30 for her child and loved it so much that she was happy to write a review. She chose the KeyFit 30 because it
- Has a good safety rating
- Fit behind the driver’s seat comfortably
- Has easy to use buckles
- Is easy to install base with LATCH or without the base using a seatbelt
- Able to work with her current stroller frame
- Has a 30 pound weight limit
- Is Affordable
Read her full review of the Chicco KeyFit 30 Car Seat.
Chicco worked with Julie Prom, car seat safety expert with 25 years of experience, to help put together this list of tips on keep kids safe in the car:
- Buckle up everyone, every time, every trip! In a crash or emergency braking, an unbuckled passenger can be thrown into other passengers causing serious injury. Also, ensure there are no heavy, loose objects in the vehicle that can be thrown around in a crash.
- Keep children in a rear-facing safety seat until at least 2 years old. A recent study showed that children under age 2 are 75 percent less likely to die or be severely injured in a crash if they are riding rear-facing. Be sure to use a safety seat designed for the size and weight of your child.
- Never put a rear-facing safety seat in front of an active air bag.
- All children under at least 13 should ride in the back seat. The back seat is nearly 40 percent safer than the front seat.
- Never add any product (including toys and car seat covers or liners) or make any changes to a car safety seat or booster that is not approved by the manufacturer of the seat. Add-on products can interfere with the crash performance of the seat. Beware! Many manufacturers of add-on products will state they have tested them—ONLY use products approved by the car safety seat manufacturer! The safety seat manufacturer is the only one that can confirm the test results of its product.
- Never put an infant-only seat on top of a shopping cart. This makes the shopping cart top heavy. The Consumer Product Safety Commission and the American Academy of Pediatrics warn against this practice due to numerous reported injuries from carts tipping over and/or babies falling out.
- Finally, ALWAYS read and follow both the car safety seat instructions AND the vehicle owners’ manual when using and installing your child’s seat!
The Steal: Win a Chicco KeyFit Car Seat!
Details: One lucky winner will receive a Chicco KeyFit Car Seat valued at $189.99.
HOW TO ENTER TO WIN:
Step 1: Share this giveaway using the Facebook by clicking the FB “Like” button at the top of the page
Step 2: Leave a blog comment below letting us know that you did.
Get extra entries by repeating steps 1 and 2 once a day. But be sure to leave a new comment each time.
Want more chances to win?
Feel free to do any or all of the following actions. Each action counts as an extra entry but be sure to LEAVE A SEPARATE COMMENT FOR EACH ONE or the entry will not be counted.
-
- Like Trekaroo on Facebook
- Tweet a link to this Monday Mad Steal via @Trekaroo using the Twitter share button at the top of the page.
- Subscribe to the Trekaroo Blog
- Follow Trekaroo on Twitter
- Post this giveaway on your blog
Rules and guidelines:
- 18 years of age or older
- US Residents only
Deadline to enter: Sunday, December 25, 2011 at 11:59PM PST
What is Monday Madness?
Every Monday, Trekaroo announces on our blog, either a fantastic giveaway or an incredible deal. It could be a green water bottle, a hotel stay on Maui or theme park tickets. Return every Monday to the Talking Trekaroo Blog for the details. Want a reminder? Become a Trekaroo member or follow us on facebook or twitter.
Thanks to Online Sweepstakes and CashNet Sweepstakes,.
Sharlene Earnshaw is the blog editor for Trekaroo.
Travel with kids to: CA |CO | DC | FL | HI | IL |MA | NC | NY | OR | PA | TN | TX | VA | WA
Christmas is just around the corner and if you are like me, you may need a to find a couple more items to complete your holiday gift giving list but are a bit stumped on just what to give. Since we at Trekaroo love travel, we thought it would be fun to create a list of some fun gifts to give children who share the same passion. These items might help improve a child’s knowledge of the world, help pass the time on a road trip, or just make life on the road more cozy. Here are a few of our favorites for 2011.
Comfy Critters
Best for: Snuggly kids ages 2-12
Price: $19.99 at Comfycritters
We have all seen those annoying commercials for Pillow Pets and some of us may have even got sucked in to buying one for our kids (myself included), but I think Comfy Critters take the concept of a stuffed animal meets pillow and raises it to a whole new level. My daughter’s Comfy Critter is an adorable little monkey shaped pillow which unfolds to become a hooded blanket. It is super soft and incredibly cuddly and I may found myself using it on multiple occasions while typing late night blog posts. Maybe. Okay I have! And I can’t wait to “borrow” it for our next plane flight as well! Maybe I need to ask Santa for one of my very own…
Brainstring Advanced
Best for: Kids who love puzzles and brain challenges over the age of 8\
Price: $16.99 at Amazon
Brainstring Advanced is a great travel toy, especially for families who are looking to escape the world of electronics for a couple hours. The concept is simple: sort the colored strings out so there is a solid color on every side to remove the knot in the middle. The challenge, however, can be quite difficult depending on how complex the game is set up. Recently, Destination Guroo Michelle McCoy had her boys test out the product on a road trip. She says that it kept her kids entertained for a good section of time. Her nine year old son reports that “I finished it twice and it was really fun. It was hard because you have to use your brain to solve it, but it was fun.” This toy sounds like something that could be passed between both the front and the back seat and lead to some fun races to see who can solve the puzzle the fastest.
The Not For Parents Travel Book series
Best for: Fact and travel lovers ages 8 and up
Price: $13.59 on Amazon
While we are not keen on the title (we feel like the “not for parents” title didn’t fit the inclusive family travel vibe that we all love), we are loving the content of this fun book filled with 200 pages of interesting facts about every country on the planet. Families will love going through this book together as everyone learns new information about exciting events, unusual history, and cultures that live life decidedly different from how we do in the US. The pages are covered with captivating color photos from each nation as well important information such as population, language, and capitals. I loved the book so much I had a hard time giving it back to the kids to read!
We had an 11 year old check out the book for us and she read it cover to cover. She said, “”I really liked it! There are these really scary facts like (the ones about) the Festival of the Dead. It is really fun to read. There is something for every country including a weird fact. For example, in the US, the first person to make a donut didn’t like it because it didn’t have a hole in it so he made a hole in it by using his brass cup.”
Bonus: Families planning trips to London, Paris, Rome, or New York will also want to pick up the Not For Parents books on these cities to put under the tree. Imagine how much more excited your kids will be to visit New York City if they have already read about the city first!
National Park Passport Book
Best for: Nature and history lovers of all ages
Price: $8.95
Officially known as a “Passport to Your National Parks”, this little book is one of my most favorite things ever. It is inside these little books that I log every single National Park system visit that my kids and I complete with a simple rubber date stamp from each location’s visitor center. Sounds simple, but these little books serve as documentation, and proof for that matter, of the amazing adventures we have had and the adventures that are still waiting for us. Order a couple and throw them in your family’s stockings. Then spend Christmas morning looking at the map and deciding where you are going next!
Vasque Breeze Hiking Boots
Best for: Active kids ages 4 and up.
Price: $64.99 on Amazon
Up until recently, I was a pretty allegiant to another hiking shoe brand but after seeing the difference in performance between my daughter’s shoes and my son’s new Vasque Breeze hiking boots, I have officially converted. The boots provide ankle support which is ideal for kids who love to climb and explore on uneven terrain, great traction, are comfortable, and genuinely waterproof. They are great for hiking as well as every day use. Sold!
CityPASS
Best for: Kids with parents who love to explore cities
Price: $29.00- $229.00
I always considered CityPASS to be a great way to see metropolitan areas while on vacation but now, I am starting to see them as a great way for locals to explore their cities major attractions and museums as well. Currently there are CityPASSes in Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Hollywood, Houston, New York, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Seattle, and the big on in Southern California (which includes a 3 day Disneyland park hopper). If you need to buy a gift for a child who lives near one of these areas, think about how easy it would be to give them a gift to several local destinations for one great price (usually close to 50% off ticket prices).
Disclosure: Trekaroo received samples of the COmfy Critters, Brainstring Advanced, Not For Parents Travel Book and Vasque hiking shoes throughout the year to review. We liked these products so much that we decided to add them to the gift guide!
Sharlene Earnshaw is the blog editor for Trekaroo.
Travel with kids to: CA |CO | DC | FL | HI | IL |MA | NC | NY | OR | PA | TN | TX | VA | WA
