Vegan family

[treeholm]

Hi all,
I've had an inquiry from a vegan family. I'm wondering how the rest of you would handle this. I really can't see switching my entire menu to vegan-friendly, so would you expect to have these parents bring the child's food? Have you experienced any issues with one child eating food that is different from what the other children are eating? I certainly respect the vegan philosophy, but I just can't figure out what I would serve a child who can't have cheese or yogourt or eggs.
Thanks!
Diane

[Starshine]

In my experience, if one child is eating something different than the rest of the children, it causes problems. The kids always want what the other person has! It's so much easier just to have them all eating the same thing. Another thing, is that if you have the parents bringing food for the child, you're going to end up with tupperware containers you have to keep track of to send home with them/and wash each day, it's just more of a hassle. I respect the vegan philosophy too, but it's not worth my time/effort to accommodate it.

[Judy Trickett]

Here's my two cents. Don't do it.

Now, take into account this is from a provider who has done it. At first it seemed like no big deal. And, for the most part it wasn't. BUT, then I had another kid in care who had a REAL (as in medically necessary and not a life choice like being vegan) dietary issue. Now I had TWO kids in care with "special" diets. Try making lunch for five kids and two of them have to be completely different from the rest. It turns into a LOT of work.

And, it is a lot of work from the perspective of impromptu things....so, you make a quick decision, on a beautiful day to head off to the park. Now you have to quickly think of special snack options. Or, when you have a party. Well, if the kid is vegan then cake is out. So is icing (icing sugar involved bone fragments in the production process). Unless you are an exceptional baker and know how to bake vegan style no special treats for that kid.

It seems easy at first but when you are actually in the throws of it you realize just how many things are off limits. For example, at Christmas we made gingerbread houses. I even bought vegan graham crackers. We did up all the houses, were so proud and then vegan mom is a bit upset and reminds me that the smarties on the house have chocolate in them. Ack, stupid me.

[Inspired by Reggio]

Ya accommodating special diets can be a challenge ~ I generally prefer to 'accommodate myself' cause I have 'control' issues and do not want to deal with Johnny being sent something 'kid friendly' as they call it while everyone else is being expected to eat a veggie stir fry over rice or something ..... but as Judy mentioned I would not enroll more than 1 child at a time with a 'special dietary need' because they often contradict each other and I myself already have a gluten restriction to consider so cannot enroll anyone who has needs that contradict my own like a nut allergy for example.

Also if I had someone on enrollment with a 'choice' restriction and another client enrolled and than later developed a 'medically required' restriction that contradicting providing the 'choice' then I would have to weigh which child's diet I could more easily manage and terminate service to the other client sadly.

It is HARD sometimes to balance individual needs within the needs of the 'group' specially when we are ONE PERSON

[treeholm]

Thank you all for your helpful advice. I would definitely not consider taking on a child with a nut allergy, that's for sure. I emailed the Mom back and said I can do vegan snacks (since we focus a lot on fruits and veggies anyway), but she would have to pack a lunch. I also serve hummus quite often, which should be okay. We'll see what she says. I looked at my lunch menu and realized that there isn't a single day that doesn't include meat, cheese, or eggs, so that's why I told her she would need to pack a lunch.

[Judy Trickett]

I looked at my lunch menu and realized that there isn't a single day that doesn't include meat, cheese, or eggs, so that's why I told her she would need to pack a lunch.

Also, no dairy at all. No butter. No chocolate. No sourcream. No yogurt. No peanut butter (commercial brands often contain icing sugar). No milk. Nothing that contains gelatin (gelatin is made from bone marrow - this includes marshmallows). Nothing that contains any whey (comes from milk). No honey. No to some salad dressings (most contain egg yolks as emulsifiers). No tortillas or commercial baked goods because they contain lard.

That's all I can think of for now.

[Inspired by Reggio]

Based on recent news you want to beware red food coloring as well cause depending on how it is created they use some crushed RED Beatles to get that nice red

[treeholm]

Well, at least I don't use red food colouring, but yikes! I had no idea the list of things they can't have included honey or whey. I'm glad I told the Mom she would have to pack a lunch, but now I'm thinking the child can't even have crackers with hummus... I guess just fruits and veggies... I do have concerns with the fact that he won't be eating the same food as the other children, and I'll discuss that with the Mom when she comes for her interview. I don't want to be in a situation where he cries at snack and lunch times because he wants the food I'm serving to the others.

[Momof4]

I did have a little girl with a nut allergy in my care for over 2 years and I carried an epipen and read every label and was super cautious all the time. But it wasn't a problem for me, just a new challenge.

I have a lactose intolerant boy in my care and the parents are responsible to bring his cheese and milk all the time. I would accept a child with a gluten allergy or a vegan diet into care but I would ask the parents to send all the food. I wouldn't change my entire menu for them.

It is a problem when one child has something different from all the others but if you teach them the reason they will understand. I always tell my children that my lactose intolerant boy has to eat different foods because our food might make him sick and they accept that without any further questions. Actually, they have told other people about it when we are out, ha! And when I had the nut allergy girl in care the other children were helping to look around at the park for nutshells the squirrels had dropped. They enjoyed helping to take care of her.

It all depends on your point of view and routines and of course, your relationship with the parents and how well you can work things out. My nut allergy girl had the most amazing parents who gave me all the tips their doctor gave them. It can be done, but as the other ladies mentioned, you have to weight the liability fear against your honest abilities to deal with the situation.

[kidlove]

I wouldnt do it, because of exactly what all the others are sying. even if you tried to have this child bring his/her own food, you also run in to the issue of the others not only wanting what that child has but also, its possible other children could develope the "if he doesnt have to eat it, why do I?" response. that can quickly turn into a chain of trouble. no offense but in this day and age if you want to be different in a social society, get ready for turmoil. Good for them on sticking to vegan living whether its religion or something else, but good luck finding someone willing to go the extra mile. Had a mom come to me the other day for care and said, by the way, my kids dont eat ANY sugar or nitrates. I SAID, no thankyou.