Did you know that June is National Dairy Month? It makes sense with this time of year, since we all seem to be partaking in ice cream in some way or another ;). I personally love all the dairy things- yogurt, ice cream, cheese, butter, etc.

But we’ve had to make a lot of adjustments the past couple months, as we recently concluded that my 7 year old daughter is allergic to dairy.

I’ve had the suspicion for a while, and considering the fact that both my husband and his mother have allergies to dairy, it doesn’t surprise me. My daughter has recently started complaining of stomach pain after she eats, and after a little trial and error we narrowed it down to dairy specifically. After eating something like pizza or yogurt she would literally be in tears because her stomach hurt so badly.

I’m really proud of my daughter because she chose of her own accord to stop eating dairy. I never told her she had to, but she came up to me one day and said “Mom, I want to try to stop eating dairy. I’m tired of my tummy hurting”.

That may seem like not a big deal, but how many ADULTS are able to stick to diets they know are better for them? It’s challenging at any age, and I’m so impressed with my 7 year old’s resolve!

I remember one night in particular that we were over at my in-laws, and they had ordered pizza (back when my daughter had just first decided to go dairy-free). My daughter was sobbing because she wanted to eat the pizza- and she was still choosing not to eat it! No one told her she couldn’t have any- she just knew that she would regret it and stuck to her guns. I’ve been so impressed with her commitment. She’s such a great example! It’s been a few months and she has only chosen to have dairy a couple times, and she’s even gotten to the point where she says it’s ok if we go to a pizza restaurant and she orders something like chicken and fries instead. She is my little superhero. She is a rockstar!!

It’s been a learning curve for all of us for sure. Many meals I’ve made in the past have dairy, and so I’ve either stopped making them or tried to find substitutions for them. There are also times I just leave her portion separately if it’s something that just requires some shredded cheese on the top or something like that. My husband loves dairy, but really shouldn’t be eating it either, so I’ve been able to get him more on board with a dairy-free diet because I’m usually making a dairy free option for my daughter anyway. We’re far from eating a perfectly dairy-free diet, but we’ve made big strides and we’re constantly improving!

One thing that’s helped is looking for more dairy free options for the things we love to eat all the time, and luckily we live in a day and age that has SO MANY options for dairy-free!

I’ve always used almond milk, because I think regular milk is gross ;). And while some dairy items don’t seem to get to my husband as badly as others, straight-up cow’s milk kills him. So that was an easy adjustment for us- my kids already like almond milk and it works great as a substitute in most recipes.

I’ve found a couple other substitutes that my daughter really enjoys. We tried a couple dairy-free ice cream options, and while some weren’t her favorite, she really likes the So Delicious cashew milk brand. The chocolate cookies n’ cream flavor is her absolute favorite! She’s not even sad to be missing out on other ice cream treats because she loves this one- and I think she thinks it’s pretty cool that she gets a little carton all to herself ;).

Yogurt parfaits is a staple breakfast around here, and while we’ve tried a couple dairy-free yogurts, the one my daughter really likes is, again, the So Delicious brand. This one is a coconut milk variety, and she really enjoys it! She says the vanilla flavor tastes like whipped cream! While I don’t quite agree with that assessment, I do think it’s pretty tasty ;). The only thing I don’t love is that it has nowhere near the protein amount that greek yogurt does (which is what we usually use around here), so I try to make sure I add plenty of slivered almonds to her portion to make sure she’s getting her protein in!

This is definitely a new learning curve for us. While some things don’t seem to really bug her tummy, like mac n’ cheese powder and cream cheese frosting, other things like butter really get to her, even if it’s just a teaspoon! So we’re slowly learning and adjusting.

I know some of our readers are familiar with dairy-free options, and I’d love to hear from you! What are some of your favorite substitutes? Especially for cheese and butter! We’re just starting this journey and I’d love to hear your feedback-share in the comments below!