It's my turn!

Hey everyone out there!  It's my turn to introduce myself!!  I am Emily, the mother of two fabulous daughters.  M is 2 1/2 years old and N is 8 months.  And I've been married to my oh-so-wonderful husband, T, for 5 years!

I first went dairy free a few months back when my youngest had a spot of eczema.  I have been plagued with eczema my whole life and wanted to avoid it for N as long as possible.  I had heard many people talking about cutting out dairy while nursing if your child had eczema so I thought I'd give it a try!  Turns out the dairy elimination had no effect on N (hers was gone in a few days and didn't come back when I tried reintroducing the dairy).  My eczema, however, all but cleared up!  It's not perfect but cutting out dairy has made a big difference in my skin.  I have found I can eat goat cheese but for the purpose of this blog, all recipes will be completely dairy free.

After N was born it seems I developed an allergy to eggs.  Over the course of several days, I had many different reactions when eating eggs, cooked in many different ways.  My reactions ranged from *TMI alert* vomiting and other stomach issues, as well as throat itching and tightening.  It is very uncommon to develop an egg allergy as an adult so I guess I should buy a lottery ticket!  Anyway, I've had some allergy testing done and will have to go back for more testing in December.

A few tidbits about me:  I absolutely love my family and being a mother.  I love to read.  Traveling is also a passion of mine but I haven't had much chance since having kids.  Prior to kids I did make it to every continent (that's right, including Antarctica!)  I enjoy working out and am trying to get into running.  I did a super sprint triathlon (meaning extra short, not extra fast!) when N was 6 months old and I am doing my first 5k this coming weekend!

I'm looking forward to enjoying and posting many dairy and egg free recipes!

WAFFLES

Okay, so one of my favorite meals is "brinner."  (A reference from Scrubs about when you have breakfast for dinner.)  As a child we'd always have waffles/pancakes, grits, eggs, and bacon. Unfortunately, the "brinner" meal that I make isn't quite so large.  Tonight's meal consisted of vegan waffles, sausage, and bacon (no, we don't love our meat that much - I was just trying to clean out my meat drawer).  And was quite delicious!!

(Vegan) Waffles
2 cups Bisquick
1 1/3 cup almond milk
1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
2 tablespoons oil

Stir all four ingredients together until the batter is smooth.  Pour into waffle iron and cook following your waffle iron's instructions.  (I did think mine needs just a few more seconds to cook than regular waffles - but waffle iron is also 30+ years old.)

**Unfortunately, I wasn't able to get a picture of this meal tonight - I had a hungry husband and 2.5 year old.  

Introduction

I'm a mother of two and need this blog for my son.  He is currently 4.5 months and seems to have a milk protein, egg, peanut butter, and shellfish allergy/intolerance.  The doctors are hopeful that he will outgrow these allergies; however, I'm not holding my breath.  A lot of friends keep asking me why I choose to breastfeed him and limit my diet so much, instead of just switching to formula.  While I agree that this would be easier, I would only be avoiding a lifestyle change my family would need to make when my son began eating table food full time around 1 year.  By making this change now I am able to test foods and recipes now when my body still serves as a filter to my son.  Also, it is easier to fix a back up meal for 3 than it will be for 4.  :-)

A few random tidbits about me - I've been married to my husband for 6 years and prior to becoming a mom I taught 3rd grade.  I now enjoy running, but had never run more than a mile before giving birth to my daughter.  This enjoyment led to my first marathon in March of 2011 and I am currently training for a second one.  College football controls Saturday's in my house in the fall, while boating controls my weekends in the summer.  Although my life is currently slowly being take over by learning how to live egg and dairy free while also supporting my husband in his first half IronMan.

Welcome!!

This website's goal is to share delicious, family friendly recipes for those living a vegan lifestyle due to allergies or personal preference but also enjoy eating meat.  We will share personal cooking successes and failures during this journey of learning to live dairy and egg free.