I was milk-free for eight months while nursing then slowly added milk products back to my own diet. By about 15 months my little one started on occasional milk products. By two she was a champion cow milk drinker. The dairy-free diet was pretty easy once we got used to it, and was totally worth it for us. My little one went from a gassy, colicky, unhappy creature (with a very cranky mom) to a sweet little baby (with a much happier mom) in a matter of weeks.

Based on my own unscientific research — lots of reading and talking to folks — it is my (completely unprofessional) understanding that dairy sensitivities are often misdiagnosed as reflux and unnecessarily medicated. At my own pediatrician’s office every doctor I saw gave me different advice. Much of it was conflicting, and one doctor even suggested that I stop breastfeeding and use the really expensive formula made for kids with dairy issues. I never got a clear professional diagnosis, but I know the changes I saw in my baby.

Here are our tricks for dairy-free living:

• Read labels. Even things like bread, instant oatmeal, frozen meatballs and cereal bars often have milk protein hidden in there, and we found that if we let any dairy sneak in we did not see the results.
• You need to get fat from other places. In my case, and probably in a toddler’s case a lot of every day fat comes from milk products. I needed to add in lots of nuts (cashews, cashew butter, almond butter, sunflower butter are alternative to peanut butter) and olive oil to make up for lost fat & protein and avoid cravings.
• It is harder to stick to it when there’s “regular” food around. I put my whole family on a no or low dairy diet along with us.
• Bring your own food on any outing.
• Go to a “crunchy” website and look up vegan recipes. You can always add the meat back in.

This is a list of staples and products we relied on (and where we found them):

• Soy milk — The Kirkland brand at Costco is pretty good & most little kids love it. Mine like it too much so I water it down. It also comes in little single boxes at Trader Joes. If you have concerns about too much soy consider oat milk, hazelnut milk, almond milk, or rice milk.
• Fake cheese — Most cheese substitutes suck when you first cut cheese out of your diet but you get used to them. We liked the Trader Joe’s selection best because they had both shredded and singles which were easy to manage.
• Soy yogurt — Target has the “silk brand” and the vanilla flavor is so sweet is tastes like pudding. Trader Joe’s carries their own brand, and it has a re-useable lid (silk just has a foil lid). If you like the big containers, you need to go all the way to Whole Foods.
• Tofutti Better Than Cream Cheese — This is carried by the health food store in market station, Giant, Wegmans (I think) and Trader Joe’s. Watch out though - it is like 100% evil partially hydrogenated oils.
• Tofu (as ricotta substitute) — We used the food processor to blend tofu, sun-dried tomatoes, olives, and olive oil for a yummy vegan lasagna filling. We never stopped making lasagna this way. It is really good.
• Costco Potstickers — A lot of prepared food has milk products in it, but at Costco you can get Potstickers in the freezer section that are dairy free. Trader Joe’s has lots of dairy free stuff, and great labels.
• Veggie Booty — They’re like green cheetos. For Goodness Sake, the health food store in Market Station, has it.
• Coconut milk — It’s a good substitute for making things like cream of tomato soup.
• Vegan cookies — Both the health food stores in Leesburg have them
• Trader Joe’s Cats Cookies
• Tofutti Cuties — They’re like ice cream sandwiches
• Homemade smoothie popsicles — Just pour smoothie into popsicle molds and eat them instead of ice cream
• Dried fruit

Eating out is hard, but a lot of Asian food is dairy-free. Thai, Chinese, and Japanese restaurants are good places to eat out. We also tried and enjoyed Z-pizza in Leesburg after hearing that they can make your pizza with soy cheese on request.

Further Resources

• Kellymom
• La Leche League
• Loudoun Allergy Network — I blogged about it here

(703) 858-9901

I have not checked this place out yet but have heard good things. In the meantime, check out their site. If you’ve been there, please share your impressions by leaving a comment below.

I don’t have much experience with this group, but I am on their mailing list and know they do good work so thought I’d put them out there for folks who are looking for a place to donate or volunteer.

Hours: Tuesday - Saturday, 10 - 5

There’s nothing like a used children’s shop right next to a used book store to draw folks like us! I love visiting Lake Anne and recently shopped at Small Change. I walked in and found exactly what I needed with help from the staff. While there I noticed that they carry a lot of name brand toddler shoes in great shape, but as with any consignment store, it’s best to walk in without an agenda and let serendipity take over.

Please note: Small Change is currently closed and will re-open this July 15.

The kids and I stopped by the event, but I was too wiped out by the heat to write it up when I got home that night. Kudos to the many volunteers, local farmers, and animals who spent the day in the heat to expose the rest of us to some of our local food options. I’d like to say that we learned a lot, but the reality of visiting an event like that solo with two preschoolers is that we spent most of our time at the moonbounce and in the bathroom at American Flatbread. Regardless, fun was had, sheepskins were touched, and we found a new place to eat out. American Flatbread’s service was friendly and quick. You can see the flames in the pizza oven from many of the seats. My children kind of zone out while watching fires, so it makes them more managable in restaurants.

Loudoun Valleys Office of Rural Economic Development says:

Eagletree is a private setting with a personal touch.

These folks are right. Located off Rt. 15 north of Leesburg — you turn off 15 like you are going to Temple Hall Farm and then follow the yellow U-PICK signs — the setting is so private that I at first felt like I was trespassing in someone’s back yard, but that is exactly what makes the picking experience so wonderful.

Eagle Tree’s pick your own blueberries are $4 per pound this year and worth every cent. They are tasty and the experience of picking is perfect. I have been twice and both times it was a serene experience. No chaos, no crowds, no shortage of blueberries… just a nice little family experience and some yummy blueberries to boot.

If you are looking to round out your blueberry picking experience with some literature for little people, check out Robert McCloskey’s Blueberries for Sal. It’s been a favorite since my childhood… so much so that I feel I am shortchanging my children if I don’t manage to hunt down their little metal buckets so that they can hear their blueberries go “Kerplunk!”

Ashburn (aka Dinosaur) Park made it onto About.com’s best playgrounds in Virginia list. Who knew we were so lucky?

This playground holds a special spot in our hearts as it is one of the first places we visited when Peter was trying to sell me on the prospect of a move here so he could take a job in Ashburn. So, yes, we were the fools who drove straight from the cross country red eye to the playground on a cold, snowy day in February and suggested to our 15 month old that it might be fun to play while we waited for the rest of Loudoun County to wake up… and yes, he did play, and the park did impress me, and we did move to Virginia. My husband is a wise, wise man who knows me well.

My only complaint about this playground is that it might be a tad too big. It’s so big that independent preschoolers can accidentally wander out of sight… This is not an issue if you are only chasing one kid or have kids who listen all the same or if you don’t plan on letting down your guard. And, perhaps more to the point, it is not something that bothers the kids. 

Its a fun, well shaded place to play year round, plus the last time I checked the porta potties were pretty well maintained.

Summer Family Movie Screenings:

Regal (throughout the US including Ashburn, Alexandria, Fairfax, Fredericksburg, Manassas, Sterling and many other VA locations) See free movies on Tuesdays and Wednesdays at 10am. Show up early to get a seat! Click here for Maryland locations, including Frederick.

Tally Ho (Leesburg, VA) $1 Family Classics on Tuesdays and Wednesdays at 11am

Please drop us a line if you are aware of other theaters that have similar programs.

ETA: You can also check your local library for summer movie showings. I know LCPL has some scheduled. 

We’ve seen Mr. Knick Knack play at the Cascades Library, at Jammin’ Java, and most impressively at Reston Town Center on a very, very cold Christmas shopping kind of day. (Yes, you apparently can play guitar while wearing gloves.)

On our recent visit to Mr. Knick Knack’s weekly Jammin’ Java gig, he indulged my children and won my heart by playing a few extra songs for them after the masses had left. After spending the first part of the show glued to me they slowly warmed up and started dancing. Eventually they got so comfortable that my big guy got a little sassy with the drummer who quickly forgave him and sassed right back. I think we may have been the last happy customers to leave.

Mr. Knick Knack is an engaging sentimental wordsmith who has mastered the art of playing his guitar while singing and dancing amidst a sea of toddlers without stepping on them. Don’t get me wrong, I loved his music — a few songs were so sweet they made me tear up — but the feat of not squashing anyone with his feet impressed me even more. We look forward to catching more Mr. Knick Knack shows soon and will be listing some on our community calendar.