• About
  • Sun’s SOCIAL MEDIA PORTFOLIO 

sun in austin

Tag Archives: sun in austin

Field Trip to U.T.!!!

11 Monday Aug 2014

Posted by sunconnor in Austin Adventures, Coolin' and Homeschoolin' the kid!

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

activities, Austin, boys, college, field trip, homeschool, out and about in austin, sun in austin, suninaustin, Texas, University of Texas, unschool, UT

Today, the kid accompanied me to the University of Texas for a visit with an old friend who’s also a student there.  For months, he’d inquired about UT as we’d often pass it walking or driving along the drag.   So, I thought I’d plan a lunch date with “Ms. Nikki!”  My son was filled with great excitement as this was his first time visiting the university.  “WOW!  It’s HUGE!”  Is what he said.

20140801_125137

When we arrived, he noticed students with a boyfriend or girlfriend.  He’d look up at me, frown and say, “YUCK!”  Normal for a young boy, right? After lunch, “Ms. Nikki” took him on a brief tour of the campus – he was really thrilled to be there!

20140801_121821
He later discovered the George Washington and Martin Luther King statues on Campus which was perfect, as we’d recently read about the American Revolution and Civil Rights.

20140801_111541                  20140801_122428
It was a great adventure for him to eat and hang around all of  the “young adults” as he referred to them…  He created his own play area -SLIDE INCLUDED- and the students passing by smiled and admired his high energy level and tenacity!  I was totally amazed to see him comfortably interacting with UT students at such a young age! blah, blah, blah….not surprised one bit.

20140801_124659-MOTION

This kid IS a social butterfly!.  He was in a superb mood as he gallivanted around the UT campus exploring and chatting with students.  His face and this moment brought up a pleasant smile within me. The kid had a great day and the world is HIS playground!

 

May MADNESS! recap!

16 Monday Jun 2014

Posted by sunconnor in Austin Adventures, Coolin' and Homeschoolin' the kid!, Food Allergies, Travel

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

Austin, Austin Families with Food Allergies, awareness, Danny's Pantry, Dr. Lieberman, FARE, Food Allergy Awareness Week, Food allergy friendly, food allergy research & education, Food Allergy retreat, Food Allergy-Friendly Food Pantry, Food bank, KUT Austin, KVUE, no sneezes, NPR, Peaceable Kingdom, Sun Connor, sun in austin, zipline

This is my first opportunity to post since Food Allergy Awareness Week.  My boy has had a busy month!

We attended a Kyle Dine concert hosted by the Austin Families with Food Allergies and as the PR volunteer – I was busy snapping photos.  I didn’t realize that the NPR/ KUT Austin crew who were there to interview, snapped a shot of the boy!  I received a call from a friend travelling in Iowa.  She’d gone to NPR’s website and was tickled to see the kid’s face on their homepage.  I must admit…so was I!

http://kut.org/post/musician-has-unique-and-maybe-lifesaving-message-kids-food-allergies

Then, there’s the 3rd Annual Food Allergy Retreat.  Instead of the usual 6 and under obstacle courses, my bravehearted 5 year old was persistent on going with the 6 and up crowd.  He wanted to hang out with his 9 year old buddy, Noah.  – AND to our dismay, climbed a 40 foot rock wall and ziplined for the first time!

During Food Allergy Awareness Week, we announced, Danny’s Pantry:

Danny's Pantry

We’re collecting non-persishable food items FREE of the top 8 food allergens.  I was inspired 3 years ago, as I read an article in Living Without Magazine titled, “Special Diet Pantries.”  It made me think about the food insecure and families with food allergies right here in the Austin community.  We’re currently in the phase of collecting food, but also collecting donations via the Austin Community Foundation.

We also received news coverage during Food Allergy Awareness Week – with a little help from our allergist and friend, Dr. Allen Lieberman at the Asthma and Allergy Center of Austin.  Here “he” is again!

http://www.kvue.com/story/news/2014/05/28/2462212/


If I include our Houston trip and the Austin parks we frequented – It was March ALL OVER AGAIN!!!!!!  Fun and exhausting.

IMAG3481

Our first visit to The Thinkery!

19 Thursday Dec 2013

Posted by sunconnor in Austin Adventures

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

Austin, Austin Children's Museum, Austin Texas, Children's museum, climber, color shadows, kitchen lab, Museum, spark shop, Sun Connor, sun in austin, Thinkery

1462875_10202385530137933_602595515_n

There is a famous saying that all work and no play, makes Jack a dull boy. Not sure about your kids, but our kiddo needs LOTS of play time. Now when it comes to that, we sometimes have trouble deciding where to take him. I mean…he loves bouncy houses, but there are so many children’s venues here in Austin.  We try to introduce him to a wide variety of places – indoor and outdoor.  Over the summer, I read about the children’s museum, The Thinkery re-opening near Mueller Park.  Last week, after much anticipation, my son finally explored their backyard.  He’s been eyeing the climber for weeks now!
IMG_3171  IMG_3170

The Thinkery is a great place, possibly the best place where a kiddo can surely have a lot of fun and use their imaginations. The Thinkery provides lots of indoor activities like the light lab, spark shop, and kitchen lab to name a few.  Kids always love to learn new things and The Thinkery is the perfect place for it!
IMG_3168  IMG_3165   IMG_3162

Related articles
  • The Thinkery opens Dec. 7 in Mueller (kxan.com)
  • Thinkery Grand Opening (txwclp.org)
  • Slideshow: Get a sneak peak at this weekend’s Thinkery debut (urlinkedup.wordpress.com)
  • New children’s museum opens (kxan.com)
  • New Austin children’s museum, The Thinkery, debuts (usatoday.com)

Austin Toros first game of the season!

13 Friday Dec 2013

Posted by sunconnor in Austin Adventures

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

Austin Texas, Austin Toros, Basketball, New Orleans, San Antonio Spurs, sun in austin, YMCA

IMG_20131201_162847

Did I ever mention my LOVE for anything basketball?!??!  Well, I do.  It’s one of my fav sports besides volleyball.  Since moving to Austin, I’ve only had the opportunity to see an actual game when visiting family and friends in New Orleans.
I’m embarrassed to admit this, but – I was unaware of the Austin Toros basketball team.  Not sure how that got past me, but anytime basketball was brought up here, I’d immediately think ‘San Antonio Spurs’.  D’oh!
Nevertheless, we received several tickets to attend Austin Toros’ first game of the season.  I was excited!  Not to mention, this was the kid’s first REAL basketball game.  He’s “played” with other children at YMCA, but at that age their just learning the concept.
IMG_20131201_162452
He loved it!  I think his favorite moments were the slam dunks and the Capital City dancer performances!  Hilarious!

Related articles
  • Pelicans vs Spurs: 5 Things to Know (mysanantonio.com)
  • 5 Things You Probably Didn’t Know About the NBA D-League (madantsintern2013.wordpress.com)
  • Austin Toros first game of the season! (suninaustin.com)

Here’s a brief summary on my intro into the food allergy world…

28 Friday Jun 2013

Posted by sunconnor in Food Allergies

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

Allergen, Allergies, Allergy, Austin, baked egg challenge, breast milk, chronic diseases, Conditions and Diseases, Danny, egg allergy, Food, food allergies, Food Allergy, Health, leaky gut, lieberman, Natural Grocers, No Gmo, no sneezes, sensitive child, Sun Connor, sun in austin, Texas

Back in 2009, at the tender age of 11 months, my tenacious, adorably cute son was diagnosed with food allergies by his doctor. Mind you, they discovered this after I had already removed the top 8 allergens from my diet. He was reacting to my breast milk of all things. Severe eczema, recurrent ear infections and acid reflux issues had us at the doctor’s office quite often during the first year of my son’s life. I became adamant about finding the root cause of all of my son’s health issues.

We were referred to allergist, Dr. Lieberman who diagnosed our son with dairy, peanut, egg, and wheat allergies. We got a diagnosis of asthma two years later. Dr. Lieberman told us to remove all peanut butter products from our home. It terrified me to think that something my husband and I enjoyed could make my son really sick. I learned to spot hidden food allergens and read nutrition labels more closely. At night, I would read about anaphylaxis and food allergies. While I was going through all of this, I did not have anyone around me that understood what we were dealing with.

I started going to Vitamin Cottage’s Natural Grocers religiously to find stuff Danny could eat. I met with our helpful nutritionist, Trevida Trevino to discuss allergy friendly meal options. She suggested many helpful things including finding a local food allergy group on meetup.com. I met some wonderful ladies that helped me manage my son’s food allergies like Stephanie Miller, Beth Martinez, and many other moms who were dealing with similar situations. I am so thankful for all of the advice and support I have received from the ladies in this group. It truly does take a village, especially when you are dealing with a child with food allergies.
BTW, my son has a “baked egg challenge” this morning…say a prayer, cross your fingers and toes!

 

About Me?

Nah…it’s bigger than that.

This blog will of course be filled with random thoughts, trips around Austin and of course…FOOD ALLERGY related content.

Related articles
  • Food Allergy Facts (nutallergycomm.wordpress.com)
  • The New Thinking on Allergens (plumorganics.com)
  • Bullied With Food: Another Risk For Kids With Food Allergies (npr.org)
  • Top 10 Food Allergy Misconceptions (expertspages.com)
  • Viaskin ‘Peanut Patch’ Could Be The Answer To Peanut Allergies In Children (medicaldaily.com)

Food Allergy-Friendly Food Pantry

18 Saturday May 2013

Posted by sunconnor in Food Allergies

≈ 4 Comments

Tags

#FAAW, Austin Community Foundation, Dee Valdez, Food Allergy, Food Allergy Awareness Week, Food Allergy-Friendly Food Pantry, food pantry, Gluten-free diet, Living Without, Louise Walker Memorial Fund, Sun Connor, sun in austin

I came across an article called “Special Diet Food Banks” from Living Without Magazine a couple of years ago.  I read about a young girl with Celiac disease having to eat the gluten-containing macaroni and cheese from the food bank, even though it would cause her a great deal of agony.  I’ve never been able to get that article out of my head.  It made me think about just how many families have issues securing food  and have life threatening food allergies.  I decided to reach out to Dee Valdez for inspiration.  Here are some shocking statistics I learned:

  • In the United States, Texas is the second state with the most food insecurities. Suffering from food insecurity simply means that you have such limited resources when it comes to obtaining food that your children and family are forced to eat a reduced quality of food. It is estimated that 17.1 percent of the population of Texas suffers from food insecurities.
  • In the state of Texas, approximately 24.3 percent of the children population is living in poverty. This means that one in every four children in the state of Texas is suffering from food insecurities.
  • Almost have of the families who suffer from food insecurities are forced to choose all the time between food and other basic needed items. Approximately 48 percent of these families have to choose between paying for their light bill, their heat bill, or food. Approximately 47 percent are being forced to choose between paying their rent or buying food. Approximately 39 percent are being forced to choose between buying gas for their vehicles or buying food.

In 2007, I decided to create the Louise Walker Memorial Fund in honor of my grandmother. In 2010, I changed  the mission of my fund to focus its energies on food allergy awareness programs and organizations.  Thanks to the assistance of Capital Area Food Bank, Natural Grocers and Cameron Road Church of Christ (among other local churches) I’ve also been able to create a food pantry that’s food allergy friendly.   It’s still growing and being developed, but it’s definitely making progress!  Stay tuned…by following this blog and following me on twitter!

Related articles
  • Food Allergy Awareness Week is May 12-18th! (suninaustin.com)
  • 2013-05-10 Fabulous Friday Food Allergy Awareness Week (survivingthefoodallergyapocalypse.wordpress.com)
  • Food Allergy Awareness Week 2013 (ctworkingmoms.com)
  • FARE Weighs In On Food Allergy Awareness Week (thefoodallergymom.wordpress.com)

Chef Alain Braux’s new cookbook, Living Gluten and Dairy-Free with French Food

18 Saturday May 2013

Posted by sunconnor in Recipes and Reviews

≈ 3 Comments

Tags

ADHD, Allergy, anemia, Autism, Chef Alain Braux, Coeliac disease, Eating, fatigue, Food, food allergies, Food Allergy, Gluten, Gluten-free diet, Grocery store, hypothyroidism, iron deficiency, special diet, Sun Connor, sun in austin, thyroid

Let me start by saying that I am not the easiest eater.  My food allergic son’s also selective about what he eats.   I have a gluten sensitivity and I generally don’t have any interest in bread, cheese and milk.  I also try to avoid red meat.  We buy mostly organic and enjoy drinking fresh orange or green juice.  I cook with coconut and olive oils.  So because I do the majority of the grocery shopping and cooking in my house, my family ends up eating similarly.   Will my husband eat regular frozen pizza and milk?  Does my son eat cookies and occasional treats?  Obviously.  Will I have a meltdown if they do?  Of course not!

Earlier this year, I received Chef Alain Braux’s new cookbook, Living Gluten and Dairy-Free with French Food.  It has become my “go to” in such a short period of time.  It’s a fantastic book for anyone who has  food allergies, gluten intolerance or celiac disease, or for someone looking to understand and educate themselves around whether they may have one of these conditions.  The book is written by a phenomenal French chef, who shares with his readers how to enjoy cooking and eating regardless of their dietary restrictions.  His mission in this book is clear: to ensure that his readers understand that a special diet does not mean they should ever feel restricted from enjoying delicious meals.

Chef Alain Braux’s writing style comes across as genuine and full of personality, making the non-recipe portions of the book a pleasure to read.  Sensitive to gluten himself, he can easily relate to his readers, understand their dietary restrictions and associated struggles, and ultimately help better their daily eating experience.

The book begins by discussing Gluten and Dairy dietary restrictions and how these intolerances or sensitivities become apparent, and tapping in to personal accounts of various people regarding their own personal experiences with food intolerances, allergies and sensitivities.  He carefully touches upon what people with such dietary situations might experience including behavioral problems, feeling ill and bloated, and addresses the issue around the problems with self-diagnosis versus having a specialist examine one’s situation.  Braux also ensures that his readers have a thorough understanding of each condition, what it means, and what potential causes are.  He takes a responsible approach in giving all of the necessary background information that a reader needs to make a smart decision in whether or not they should seek medical attention to validate or disprove their dietary condition concerns.

Braux gives recommendations throughout the book that teach readers how to live with their dietary restrictions including how to organize their kitchens, what key ingredients to stock up on, and how to tweak their favourite recipes to meet their dietary needs.  Furthermore, he explores lifestyle tricks to help readers when eating outside of the home and grocery shopping.

Lastly, of course, the book outlines all sorts of delicious foods and recipes that readers can prepare that fall within the guidelines of their dietary restrictions.  There is an extremely wide assortment of tasty options from sweets to meats that would satisfy any craving one might have.  As you can imagine, being a French chef, Braux has significant expertise in preparing fine foods and shares decadent yet practical recipes for creating culinary delights.  I was born and raised in New Orleans, so I was excited to see French cuisine recipes specifically for people with food allergies.

This book literally teaches its readers everything that they need to know to live and eat happily with a gluten and dairy-free diet.  From how to understand their condition, to lifestyle changes, to cooking amazing meals, this is an extremely comprehensive guide for anyone looking to live better with their dietary restriction or even just educate themselves better around whether or not they may have one in the first place.

Food Allergies…and SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program)

18 Saturday May 2013

Posted by sunconnor in Food Allergies

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

auvi-q, EBT, Electronic Benefits Transfer, epinephrine, epipens, food allergies, low income, SNAP, Sun Connor, sun in austin, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program

Imagine a small child walking into the room. Imagine his eyes swollen shut, his nose running, and he’s wheezing. When someone asks what is wrong with the child. The mother explains to them that he suffers from a food allergy and she has to give him Benadryl around the clock.

This is something I refer to as Russian roulette. Please keep in mind, I am not judging the mother (or any parent in this situation). I am just filled with concern. Statistics show that there are upwards of 15 million Americans that suffer from food allergies and approximately 5 million of them are children. It is believed that children who come from wealthy families are more likely to develop an allergy to peanuts or tree nuts. We hear about the organizations and charities that are raising money to research these allergies all the time. But, do you know what we do not hear about? All the families who cannot afford to get an epipen for because their insurance refuses to cover it. Or how about all those families who really do not get enough with food stamps. And how about those families who cannot even get food stamps?

The unfortunate truth is food allergy friendly food is not cheap. There are limitations of what brands and products can be purchased. If you have to add multiple allergies to the mix, things can get even more expensive. An individual with a handful of food allergies can quickly find themselves spending more on grocery than they spend on their rent and utilities combined. Some people have trouble even finding food that they can consume with their allergies.

Now, close your eyes for a minute and think about your grocery needs with your food stamps card. Do you really think the amount you get would be enough to support dietary needs and restrictions if you had them?

If you are an Austin family with food allergies making ends meet with food stamps and interested in sharing budgeting tips/resources.. I’d love to hear from you at sunconnor@gmail.com.

Related articles
  • Ana’s Thoughts: Food Allergy Bullying (thediaryofanaphylaxis.com)
  • Top tips for dining out with food allergies (eatocracy.cnn.com)
  • Bullying over Food Allergies (wtpdiaries.wordpress.com)

Enter your email address to follow this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Sun in Austin

Sun in Austin

Recent Posts

  • My Second born…FIRST!
  • Food Allergy fatalities…
  • “A woman of strength, and courage.  She was beautiful, and now peaceful and free as a dove….”
  • Gate A-4
  • Way back Wednesday…

Recent Comments

sunconnor on Food Allergy fatalities…
Share Joys! Project on Food Allergy fatalities…
Desktop Allergy Test… on Food Allergy Awareness Week is…
sunconnor on Food Allergy Awareness Week is…
foodallergyfare on Food Allergy Awareness Week is…

Archives

  • October 2015
  • December 2014
  • November 2014
  • October 2014
  • August 2014
  • June 2014
  • May 2014
  • February 2014
  • January 2014
  • December 2013
  • November 2013
  • June 2013
  • May 2013

Categories

  • Austin Adventures
  • Coolin' and Homeschoolin' the kid!
  • Family
  • Food Allergies
  • Healthy Eating
  • Holidays
  • Lagniappe
  • Ramblings
  • Recipes and Reviews
  • Travel
  • Uncategorized
  • Volunteerism

Meta

  • Register
  • Log in
  • Entries feed
  • Comments feed
  • WordPress.com

Create a free website or blog at WordPress.com.

Privacy & Cookies: This site uses cookies. By continuing to use this website, you agree to their use.
To find out more, including how to control cookies, see here: Cookie Policy
  • Follow Following
    • sun in austin
    • Already have a WordPress.com account? Log in now.
    • sun in austin
    • Customize
    • Follow Following
    • Sign up
    • Log in
    • Report this content
    • View site in Reader
    • Manage subscriptions
    • Collapse this bar
 

Loading Comments...