People offering meals when new baby comes, but older child has lots of allergies ?

Question

Baby #2 is on the way, in our circle meal trains/ bringing food to the family with a new baby is pretty normal. I’ve already had one friend mention it. The thing is my older child has a lot of food allergies, some of which are hard to navigate (even family who have been reading food labels with us for years miss things). I don’t want to seem ungrateful by telling people no or put the burden of a complicated meal on someone just trying to be sweet (and I’d have a hard time trusting it was safe even if I did). Little guy is understanding that he can’t always eat what other people eat, but it’s still a bummer & no fun when he has to have a separate meal. (Option 3 being Accept meal & feed LO a different meal)
I guess I’m just wondering what other families have or would do in a similar situation? 
* he has never had a life threatening reaction, typically hives & eczema flare up, but we still try to be extremely safe*

Answer

I have a child with lots of food allergies as well. I’d accept the food, eat it myself and feed the child home cooked food. I wouldn’t trust anyone else’s cooking.

Answer

Just accept them and feed your child something different.

Answer

I’d communicate with whoever is organizing the meal train. Your child has allergies, it’s totally reasonable to factor that in to the situation. They could request restaurant gift certificates instead of prepared dishes, then you could order things your son can eat.
I’d think that if someone is contributing to this, it’s because they love you. And if they love you, they’ll want what’s best for your family and they’ll want their contribution to be useful and helpful.

Answer

You could always explain his allergies and say you are more comfortable with restaurant gift cards, prepped fruit and veggies, or some other favorite snacks and drinks you know are safe for the whole family.

Answer

Just let them know thank you but my son has allergies to certain foods. You wouldn't want them to forget and mix it on accident.

Answer

I'm navigating the same situation currently, my second child is newly dairy free, and my church always does a meal rotation. I've gone back and forth, do I tell them or feed her different... my final decision is to ask her what kinds of foods she would like to eat for the week and meal prep them ahead of time and freeze. Some things we get she'll probably be able to eat and the rest of the time she can choose a meal she wanted. She'll probably eat better than us so I don't feel bad😂.

Answer

I would tell them about the allergies and ask that they avoid these things if possible but also write all ingredients used (inc brand names) on what they make as sometimes things are hidden in sauces, etc.
If they make something you know definitely is ok then you can feed him it as well. If it’s a recipe that uses something you’re unsure about or you think they might have missed writing an ingredient down, you could give him something easy or something you’ve meal prepped while you and your SO eat it or eat it at a time when he’s not at home if he goes to daycare during the day or you want to eat a midnight meal/snack!

Answer

Maybe just take food (I hate situations like this!) and feed him, something else easy!

Answer

Maybe you can accept the food for you and your husband and possibly meal prep and freeze things for your son. That way you know what is in the food he's getting but it's still easy when the baby comes.

Answer

If it’s an allergy that’s hard to be sure you’re avoiding whatever is causing the reactions I’d talk to whoever is organizing it and say that you’d like gift cards to restaurants instead of cooked meals. That way no one is wasting any time or food. 
The point of the meal train is to ease a burden for new parents, not create one by working about what’s in the food or still having to cook an extra meal for your toddler. 
If they don’t want to do gift cards, I’d then tell them that the only way you’ll accept a meal is if you have an exact list of ingredients/items used.

People offering meals when new baby comes, but older child has lots of allergies ?

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