Halloween with food allergies is a big topic and Friday nights 9:30-10:30 pm EST twitter party was a huge success.
Over 60 people RSVPed via our public invitation on Socializr and over 40 individuals participated by tweeting (I stopped counting after that). Those numbers don’t take into account the hundreds of people that likely watched without chatting. (Feel free to join us in tweeting next time!)
We discussed safe candy, parties, schools, 504 plans and a number of other allergy topics.
Following are some tweets from the event:
FoodAllergyBuzz RT @bestallergysite: 1 Hour until 9:30 #foodallergy twitter party start! Great info and super great prizes! Join us for a spooktacular time!
OneSpotAllergy First day on Twitter for me, and here I am at a party already! #foodallergy
JustinHerman @FoodAllergyBuzz just got out of work but wouldn’t miss it! #foodallergy So what common treats should folks avoid that can cause reactions?
avoidingmilk Our school had a FOOD FREEE Halloween Party spooky mazes and such #foodallergy
CeliacFamily @chupieandjsmama My son’s teacher recommended little toys/trinkets for birthday parties instead of cupcakes. #foodallergy
loopy4ewe kids trick or treat as usual. Then go through candy and give it to the Great Pumpkin who visits that night and leaves a present #foodallergy
LoCoallergylife #foodallergy last yr we hosted Hllwn party at library with activity stations, non food treats, great music and parade – kids loved it
MarketingMamaMN My local food allergy group is having a costume cosmic-bowling event – no food, but lots of fun. #foodallergy
Cecilyk RT @rose_w: Last year for Halloween I went to my neighbors earlier in the day and “seeded” them with safe treats #foodallergy (great idea!)
myflydays Thats so cute! RT @CeliacFamily My mom asked my son what his favorite Halloween candy was. He said: Anything gluten-free! #foodallergy
And the party just kept on going!
todaysmama @savorthethyme rolling along – saw a good #foodallergy chat tonight and I’ve been going wild! 
MotherlyLlove Some still up..partying late.. Hehe. Thanks everyone! Goodnight. #foodallergy.
bestallergysite You west coast folks are killing me. Nearly midnight here and Ive been up till 1 or 2 am last few nights. Calling it a night. #foodallergy
Following are some after party comments-keep them coming!
“Thank you for organizing the event. Always fun and informative to share and receive ideas to improve our lives, allergen-free. Have a fabulous Halloween!”
“Last nights party was informative and fun. Conversations were held that made sense and we were introduced to new sites with new and helpful info related to food allergies. Thank you for organizing and thanks to the sponsors for donating the prizes.”
“Thanks for hosting. I was so glad to be able to join in!”
“I’m glad I came! Looking forward to the next one.”
And on to our Prize Trivia and Prize Winners!
We had 11 prizes and gave away 10. There is still one left! Read on for more info and congrats to our winners-get us your info asap if you haven’t already or you risk losing your prize!
FoodAllergyBuzz #foodallergy 2 winners from those who RSVPd: Ann and Bridget Gainer. Would you ladies please DM/email me so I can get your contact info?
FoodAllergyBuzz #foodallergy used random to select winners’ for special RSVP prizes . Ann won a gift pack from Sweet Alexis, (YUM!) www.sweetalexis.com
FoodAllergyBuzz #foodallergy Bridget won the new book: Doctor Mom’s Prescription for Managing Your Food Allergies. Should be an interesting read!
bestallergysite What is the @allergiesandme motto on the website home page? 1st reply @bestallergysite w/ #foodallergy wins $50 off purchase. Thanks Jamie!
bestallergysite The #foodallergy @allergiesandme answer is “Dedicated to making “Eating Healthy” easier” @cravingsavings wins!
bestallergysite What is the 3 word trade marked name of Enjoy Life’s New choc bar line? 1st reply @bestallergysite w/ #foodallergy wins some! Thanks @elfceo
bestallergysite The #foodallergy Enjoy Life answer is “boom CHOCO boom” @kathleensuchora wins!
bestallergysite What does AAFANE stand for? 1st reply @bestallergysite w/ #foodallergy wins the book “On the Nature of Food Allergy by Paul Hannaway, MD
bestallergysite The #foodallergy AAFANE answer is “Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America New England Chapter” @VickysIckies wins!
bestallergysite Name the 3 word main article in the @allergicliving fall issue? 1st 2 replies @bestallergysite w/ #foodallergy win a subscription!
bestallergysite The #foodallergy @allergicliving answer is “Who’s Watching Lunch?” @AutismDiet and @autismfamily wins! Thanks @allergicliving
FoodAllergyBuzz #foodallergy For a $25 gift certificate to Navan Foods: Q. What is the origin of the name Navan Foods? Look at www.navanfoods.com for ans.
FoodAllergyBuzz @ccboobooy wins the Navan Foods $25 gift certificate #foodallergy –can you DM me with your contact info again? 
FoodAllergyBuzz #foodallergy Prize: basket with gluten-free snacks, coupons & SuperFit Kid gear Q: What signifies allergen free items for the Ian’s brand
FoodAllergyBuzz #foodallergy That was a tricky one but @hellokittiemama got it. Ian’s Red Banner Products are their allergen free items.
FoodAllergyBuzz #foodallergy Q: Name 3 different allergen free items from Ian’s Natural Foods (prize is nut-free gift basket)
FoodAllergyBuzz @bettycd wins the Nut-free basket from Ian’s. Can you DM me with your shipping info? Thanks! #foodallergy
Three Prizes Left!
We have two unclaimed prizes from our last twitter party. A book from Dr. Mom and some boom CHOCO boom bars from Enjoy Life Foods. Last prize to be won is a membership from Kids with Food Allergies!
If you participated, watched, viewed the party after the fact, or plan on attending our next one; post a comment here with your thoughts and we’ll do a random draw for the winner. Hurry-we’ll be choosing a winner soon!
PS-We are busily planning our next #foodallergy event. Check back soon for more information!
We’ve chosen the winners randomly and they are……
Jane Anne-Boom choco Boom bars from Enjoy Life (YUM!)
Jeanette-Kids with Food Allergies membership
Lori-”Doctor Mom’s Prescription for Managing Food Allergies” book by Dr. Rita Malhotra Kuczabski
Please email ruth (at) bestallergysites (dot) com with your mailing information. Congratulations!
I did RSVP for the Twitter Halloween party and was looking forward to but Friday night I wasn’t home and wasn’t on-line so I completely forgot until I went on-line and it was ending. I am so disappointed that I missed it. I also missed the Back to School party because I was working. I feel like the parties are a great way to connect with others who understand what we deal with and I learn so much. I read the after party posts and even found some new followers.
P.S. I hit the send button too quick…Thanks for hosting these Twitter Parties!!
Dear Ruth,
Thank you for organizing and hosting the Twitter Halloween party. I was not at home during the weekend, but managed to catch up with all the comments and posted from the participants. Great tips and ressources for Halloween!
All the best and hope to be able to participate to the next Twitter party.
Kind Regards,
Marie
I wish I hadn’t missed the twitter party. We had family visiting, so I was unable get away and twitter. It looks like I missed a great party with good tips and resources for Halloween. I hope to participate next time!
i fully planned on being there and even retweeted the invite but lo and behold, had a child up coughing and sick…so my attention was diverted elsewhere for the night. i was super bummed but went back to the #foodallergy posts and saw some fantastic ideas! great job!!!
Hi, I mostly watched along but I was part of the party from my phone. It was great and I learned quite a bit as well met great new “twitterers”.
Looking forward to the next party. Thanks again!
Hi. Just dropped by to say that I spend an afternoon on Monday reading through all of the twitter party tweets. I enjoyed the party even after the fact!
Friday night events don’t work for me…but I would LOVE that membership!! (and I’m in for a party any other night!)
So mad that I missed this party! Sounds like it was a great turnout and a lot of great info was exchanged! Please let me know when the next one is planned! @weerevolution
Karry
Hope to participate in the next event–looking forward to great information. Thanks for hosting these twitter parties.
I RSVPed and completely forgot and went out to a rare dinner out with hubby. URGH!!! (hitting myself on the forehead)
I was a little late being on the West Coast, but joined in in time to get some great information and meet new twitter friends. Thank you for a fabulous event. Looking forward to the next one!