On Tue, 30 Dec 1997 13:46:28 -0500 Nancy Weir <[log in to unmask]>
writes:
>People on this list (including me) have often shared how
>inconsiderate people can be around allergies.

Glad you had a better experience than we did :-)  We spent  a week with
each of our families over the holidays.  It wasn't so bad with my family
because my mom just deferred ALL the cooking to me.  This included the
bulk of Christmas dinner for which I had little problem making it dairy
free for my daughter and myself.  Mostly it meant using parve margarine
and no milk in the potatoes, getting a minimally processed turkey, and
drying my own bread cubes for the stuffing.  A lot of work, but overall,
not too bad.  Others made the veggies and baked goods that we couldn't
eat.  I made all the other meals for the week also.  We had my daughter
christened and had to be careful that there was food there for me to eat
and we couldn't eat any of the cake.

Now, off to the inlaws...  Well, my MIL had made ahead all this food and
had it in the refrigerator for everyone to "feast" on leftovers ALL WEEK
LONG.  Of course when I asked her what was in anything, she couldn't tell
me.  Was the turkey prebasted?  Don't know.  It wasn't a Butterball, so
it must be OK right?  How about the sausage?  Any dairy ingredients?
Don't know.  But why would there be dairy in that?  Margarine and milk in
the mashed potatoes.  Canned gravy with the can long since thrown away.
Stove Top stuffing.  Margarine on the veggies that was not parve.  All
this canned food in the pantry that had suspect ingredients.  Coffe cakes
and cookies.  She seemed to have some notion that because everything was
low fat versions it was OK.  She got in a real snit when I had to go to
the grocery store and buy myself some food.  The best part was she knew
how bad my daughter's reactions are whenever we get dairy in either of
our diets - she's seen it first hand.

We were obligated to go to this open house party at some distant
relatives.  All the food is off-limits and I'm feasting on Triscuits for
lunch because that's all I could find.  We had a family portrait session
the next day and I did not want to risk having Alyssa's face broken out
with eczema - we had been so careful this far.  My MIL is holding the
baby on her lap while she is eating.  I look over and there is a large
hunk of bread in front of my daughter's mouth and she's chewing.  I jump
and shout "what are you feeding her?"  She looks at me and says
"nothing."  We all saw the baby chewing.  Later that night her face broke
out just in time for the pictures.  All the while the MIL is denying that
she fed the baby.  However, we have a precedence for this from the last
time she visited us.  I had accidently bought bread with whey in it.  As
soon as I cut the loaf, I knew the texture was wrong.  I had stew or
something for dinner.  The MIL was finished first and held the baby while
she ate some bread.  I saw her dip the bread in the bowl and give it to
the baby.  When I told her not to give the baby bread because it whey in
it (we were also still avoiding wheat and meats at the time), she replied
"I'm not, I was just letting her lick the gravy."

Some people just don't get it!  I'm glad to be home.
Kathy