Earlier this week, my son Ronán attended a birthday party for at an indoor play area with lots of bounce houses. It was the first party he has attended in a long time since we moved to Reno last year, so he was very excited. I had forgotten that there are usually lots of non-vegan treats at birthday parties until the night before when I realized that there would probably cake and pizza made with milk and eggs. I pictured my son watching everyone else eat pizza and cake and realized that I needed to figure something out. I found information on the internet about hosting vegan kids birthday parties, but not much information on attending a party as a guest. So, I asked a vegan mom friend from Veg Mamas for her advice and posted a question on the local vegan forum. They all had great suggestions which I will share with all of you.
1. Talk with your child before the party if they are old enough (about 4 and above)
I asked my son if he wanted to make an exception for birthday parties where he just eats vegetarian and eats pizza and cake with everyone else or if he wanted to bring a special vegan treat just for him. I felt that asking him is important as it always has to be his choice or he might grow up feeling resentful that he cannot eat the same things as other kids. We have always been honest with him in a kid-friendly way about why we our family chooses to be vegan. However, I am very glad that he said he wanted to bring his own vegan treat. If you go this route, you have to be prepared that they might want to eat the same things as the other kids.
2. Send a special lunch, slice of pizza, or item for your child to share with everyone
If the party is at a house or a park, you could offer to send a dish along to share. If the party is at a location like a jumping place, you could pack a lunch for your child with their favorite treats. If they are having pizza for the party, you could make pizza the night before with vegan cheese and pack slices for your child to eat pizza with everyone else. If you do not have time to make pizza and there is a pizzeria or Whole Foods close by, you could order pizza the night before and bring leftover slices to the party. The book Vegan Lunch Box has lots of festive ideas for special kid-friendly lunches that are sure to keep kids from feeling deprived.
3. Bring along your child’s favorite treat for them to have during cake time
You could send along your child’s favorite treat with them to the party. I made Ronán cupcakes the night before and we decorated his cupcake with the colored frosting he chose (red) and chocolate chips made into a scary face. A few suggestions that vegan parents gave me is to keep a few frozen treats (e.g. cupcakes without frosting or a brownie) in the freezer in case you ever need to defrost one the night before an event. That way you do not have to bake a dozen cupcakes the night before a birthday or school party. You could also buy a cupcake from a vegan bakery, a bakery with vegan options, or Whole Foods. Another great suggestion from a vegan mom is to bring a pack of Justin’s peanut butter chocolate cups if you do not have time to bake.
4. Let the host or hostess know that your child is vegan and that you are bringing a few items to the party
You may want to check in with a host or hostess of the party and let them know you are bringing a few things for your child to eat. We arrived at our party only to find out that the birthday girl’s mother was very thoughtful and that the birthday girl was allergic to dairy. She ordered one pizza with only non-dairy cheese. She remembered that Ronan was vegan and even brought him a special vegan cupcake from the cupcake shop. If I had checked in with her ahead of time, it would have saved me baking a dozen cupcakes.
This party was a success and we are ready for the next one!
Tater Tot Vegan Kids 