My friend and fellow blogger, Miche, at the-labyrinth.com recently posted about preparing a fragrance free birthday party for her daughter’s 18th birthday. Miche talks about all the preparations necessary to ensure a wonderful party for her daughter and one that won’t make her very sick in the process of hosting it. She talks about previous pitfalls during other birthday parties. Check out her blog. I think you will find some amazing information there.
My daughters were grown when I became ill and began developing the sensitivities to chemicals and fragrances especially so I didn’t have the awful task of planning a birthday party for 15 or more little girls while also worrying about the fragrances in their laundry soaps, shampoos, or the possibility of perfumes from the mothers who would choose to stay and watch.
I have had my share of dealing with outdoor get togethers and having to run for cover (so to speak) to avoid the gut wrenching coughing and brain fog that comes with being too close to a very fragrant and unaware person. I have been outdoors at my daughters and managed to skirt around those who I knew I needed to avoid. Then wham the meat bees would come out just as it was time to eat. As everyone took their plates and scrambled into her house, I grabbed mine and headed for the safety of my car. Eating by myself in the car while everyone else was eating and enjoying conversation indoors was not fun but a necessary survival technique for me.
I think Miche has thought out every possible detail to allow her daughter a wonderful 18th birthday while maintaining the ability to participate in the party herself. I can’t wait to hear from her that the party was a wonderful success.
allergictolifemybattle 
Hi, thank you for re-blogging. I hope my post inspires many fragrance free events that are rewarding and successful! Oh, and causes cloning of your friend as suggested by other lovely bloggers!
I think the reason your link won’t work is because there is a colon ‘:’ missing. When I click on the link ‘fragrance free’ in your post, I get: http//the-labyrinth.com/2013/01/20/how-to-hold-a-fragrance-free-birthday-party/ in the address bar, and that’s why it won’t work (the internet is like a terribly temperamental little two year old sometimes!)
All you need is a colon after the ‘http’ and between the ‘//’ so that it looks like this: http://
and then it reads like http://the-labyrinth.com/2013/01/20/how-to-hold-a-fragrance-free-birthday-party/ (see, it’s the same, just with that pesky colon added!)
(Apart from that, the link looks very professional. Well done!)
PS: learning this stuff is so good for our brains! I’m sure if it.
Miche – Thank you for figuring out the problem. I am going to back in and edit this post. It will now be something I will watch more closely when trying to link. I kept reading your logs and wondering how you did it. I finally got out my wordpress how-to-book and figured it out. At least most of it.
I try to do things to keep my brain busy. I read, I try and do a crossword puzzle a day, try and read directions (like for the link in a post) and anything else I can do to keep my brain as strong as I can.
Sure, anytime. If you ever feel stuck or want to know how to do something you see on my blog, feel free to ask me; it’s no trouble at all. I did web design for businesses at Tafe a few years back, and developed a knack for it. But now that I’m using a template, and I don’t have to develop it all from scratch, it’s easier. I find it is like a big jigsaw puzzle; sometimes I can’t work out how to do something, and I try and try, only to fail (and sometimes I can’t remember), so I leave it and come back later; it always falls into place.
I am amazed at how far your blog has come. Not only is it professional looking but it’s a wealth of information. You share so much personal and medical information, it truly is helpful to us. Thank you.
Thank you. I also have to amazing wordpress books. My daughter’s boyfriend (a book editor) got them for me. 1) Visual Quickstart Guide (WordPress Second Edition) and 1) Building a WordPress Blog People Want to Read (Second Edition). These books have proved invaluable to me. I have so many post it notes sticking out from items I have had to look up. I can’t say one is better than the other. Each has been valuable in its own way. When something looks too difficult in one book, I research it in the other book to decide which set of directions is easier to process.
Ooh, I have to get one of those. I have to search on the internet when I’m stuck or want to something new; it would be so much easier to have a table of contents to look it up in! Thank you
🙂
They are very helpful. I am sure they must be available on Amazon.
Oh my goodness – what is a meat bee? They sound scary!
Here is the definition I got when looking it up. A meat bee is not a bee at all, but a wasp. Meat bees are also known as “yellowjackets,” especially in the United States. Outside North America, they are more commonly referred to as “wasps.” Humans and yellowjackets often have contentious relationships, because these wasps can be quite aggressive about defending their territory.
The term “meat bee” is a reference to the fact that these wasps feed primarily on other insects. In fact, they can be quite beneficial as neighbors, since they eat an assortment of insect pests. They will also scavenge if they find meat lying around, as many picnickers have learned. In the fall, when the wasps need to store up energy, they may also scavenge on sweet drinks and fruit for the sugar.
We were camping one year and left some frozen ground beef on the picnic table while we went for a short hike. When we came back the “meat bees/wasps” had actually got into the package of meat and were eating it. So while they primarily feed on other insects, if meat is out they will go for it.
Oh yes, wasps! No those are bad, very very bad things. I’ve never been stung, but I’ve run away from them many times. My poor husband got one inside his shirt when he was a boy – he’s traumatized now.