Sweethearts Candy Blog's

What an amazing day for food allergy advocacy! The FAAN Chicago Walk was beautiful, bright, sunny and well-attended. Hooray! My husband wasn't feeling well but he attended anyway and started to feel better as the day went on. He's definitely a stand-up guy and he wanted to be there for our daughter. And, clearly, all the goodwill generated by this fabulous event had a healing effect!

We also brought my youngest daughter, Zoe--the best sister in the world to Alexandra--and Alexandra's close friend, Charlotte. Watching the girls enjoy themselves and get to enjoy the free samples of nut-free foods was truly awesome since partaking of food at events is usually off-limits.

The Chicago Walk was special for me personally because I got to meet up with some of my favorite food allergy advocates and supporters including local Chicagoans Kelly Rudnicki, allergy-friendly cookbook author of The Food Allergy Mama's Baking Book and Food Allergy Mama blogger and Joyce Davis, founder of Chicago Cubs Fans for Peanut-Free Baseball. I have had the pleasure of meeting both of these wonderful food allergy moms before and it's always great to see them! In fact, that's Joyce and her family in the photo with me--taken by her sister, Cindy! I know Kelly got a photo of us together--it's on her site. Kelly, send me that one! :)

And then there were all the out-of-town people I had met via social networking but not yet in person. I chatted with the lovely and talented Cybele Pascal and she autographed her book for me: The Allergen-Free Baker's Handbook. Cybele also served as the Celebrity Honorary Chair of the Chicago Walk and did a great job! I was also thrilled to meet Aly from AllerDine--such a nice woman!--and so dedicated to the cause that she lost her voice spreading her message. Visit her AllerDine site for reviews of allergy-friendly restaurants across the nation and add your own as well.

I also met Joel Warady, of the Joel Warady Group--a firm that handles awesome allergy-aware companies like Enjoy Life Foods and Kim & Scott's Gourmet Pretzels. What a nice guy! And speaking of Kim & Scott's, not only did they hand out free pretzels at the event, but when I took my crew to Cafe Twist after the walk, I got to meet the fabulous Kim Holstein, co-founder of Kim & Scott's. I also saw Aly from AllerDine at Cafe Twist as well along with many other FAAN walkers in what turned out to be kind of a rowdy and pretzel-filled "after party."

So many generous donations helped me reach my $500 fundraising goal--I was so flattered to even receive a donation from the wonderful Gwen Smith, editor of Allergic Living magazine. Thanks to ALL who donated--you really made a difference and I am so appreciative of your support.

I really can't say enough about how wonderful it was to meet all of these inspiring allergy advocates in one place, in person. Just being around so many families dealing with the same things that we do each day was also really heartening for me and my family.

Supporting FAAN is important to me because of their role in food allergy advocacy and education. I hope you'll visit their site for more info if you are not familiar with them. They truly make a difference.

Thanks to everyone who either attended, donated or help make the Walk happen. Hope to see you next year!

I hope everyone had a safe and happy Fourth of July celebration! It seems that this holiday kicks off the start of the summer travel season, and a lot of you have been contacting me about summer travel. As we know, getting to our destination can be tricky on an airplane. But what about when you get there? Or if you plan to drive? Restaurants are a part of travel and eating away from home needs a little more planning with food allergies.

Here are some tips to help you have a safe, fun summer trip with food allergies:

Do your homework. Research your location for restaurants that you know are safe and plan to visit them. You also want to know what types of eateries are available at your destination, so go to the city's web site and check out their offerings. If you aren't sure about a restaurant, call before you leave on your trip and ask them about their menu and practices. You will get a feel for the place and how they handle food allergies before you even set foot in the restaurant. This is a great way to head off problems before they can arise.

Consider your hotel accommodations. If it's possible to get a room with a refrigerator or a suite with a small kitchen area, this is ideal. The ability to give your child a few meals in the room will prevent you from having to deal exclusively with restaurants. It will also take a little of the pressure off and you'll have a more relaxing time.

One word: Picnic! Summer is the time for picnics, so why not make this a part of your trip? A visit to the local grocery store can also add some local color to your vacation and this way you'll be able to determine everything that your allergic family member will eat.

Make the most of allergy resources. For example, Allerdine is a website that has a list of restaurants and their allergy info. Don't forget to add your own restaurant information to this website, whether good or bad.

Don't forget the safe treats from home. I usually bring along some home-baked cookies or several packaged treats that I know my daughter can eat, especially when driving to our destination. This saves a ton of time, money and worry. Who wants to scour a truck stop for a safe packaged treat when your kid is starving?

Make sure that you emphasize summer fun over food. One of the hardest things with our daughter's nut allergy is that we have to pass up the ice cream shops and sweets shops when we reach our destinations--they're not safe. Because of this, we really try to emphasize a special activity and the safe "summery" foods she can enjoy like certain candies, hot dogs and grilled foods.

Get the medical stuff in order. No one likes to think about it, but know where the hospital is and make sure it's not too far away. Also, bring an emergency action plan, several EpiPens and Benadryl, plus have your allergist's phone number at hand.

Most importantly, have fun! No, a food allergy doesn't take a vacation but it's important to get out and do things with your family. Make your plans, be cautious and then go out and enjoy.

Readers, any other tips? Let us know.