This past week the self-titled gluten free boy had his sixth birthday. Last Saturday we had a small army of crazy kids invade our swimming pool on what happened to be one of the hottest days of the Fresno summer so far. As I sat back sipping my gluten free sno-cone wondering which would melt first, the shaved ice or me, and watching the boys happily try to drown one another in the pool, I could not but reflect on how much easier this gluten free journey has gotten. This was Rowan’s third birthday party as the gluten free boy, and every celebration gets easier. I remember his fourth birthday, just a few months after his diagnosis, when I was a stressed out mess. I had convinced myself that my four year old was going to be traumatized for life with a pizza and cake free birthday. I could have made a cake, but then I was sure that none of the other kids would like it. We ended up having a build your own sundae bar, which by the way was a big hit, and Rowan didn’t even notice the change. Although I was hosing whipped cream and marshmallow topping off my patio for weeks, I learned that the cake and the food is not what makes a party great for a kid, it’s the friends and the fun. I’ve learned to not focus on what makes him different from his friends, but to just let him be a kid.
This year, besides the sno-cones, we celebrated with gf hot dogs, chips and fruit salad. Rowan really wanted a cake this year, so cake it was, gluten filled cupcakes for his friends, and his very own gf cake for the birthday boy. What kid doesn’t want their own personal birthday cake they can smash their face in? The best part was hearing his friends and cousins complain that he was “sooo lucky” he got his own cake, and “way not fair” that they never get their own cake for their birthday (6 year old grammar, not mine). It was a great day and a great party for any kid, not just a gluten free kid.
Gluten Free Mommy Erin
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