Week 3

Hello all!
So today is monday, June 29, 2009 and I am on week 3 of my Celiac/Gluten Free lifestlye. I read the Idiot's guide to Gluten Free Eating from front to back in 1 week. I have also read a million forums about Celiacs. The internet has saved my new life. Also a co-worker of mine has two 20 year old daughters who have Celiac Disease and they were diagnosed when they were babies, so his family has been cooking Gluten Free for 20 years! He is a such a wonderful resource. He has given me 15 of his family recipes, a shopping list for a nearby GFree store and his daughters are putting together a dining out guide. I am so blessed to know someone who has all of this information and is willing to share with me. =)

I have been doing a lot of shopping at Henry's until Sprouts in Brea opens up. I now shop at 2 or 3 differnet markets every week. It has been pretty intense, but it still gives me an answer to my craziness. I have been making a lot of meals at home, some really good, others ok. I even made some GFree Brownies. All of my friends and family are being really supportive of the process. My hubby is even eating some of my GFree foods on his own without me making it for him! My parents want to get the blood test to see if they may have Celiacs Disease. It is quite interesting that when one family member gets diagnosed with a disease, others are quick to think about their own symptoms. If this discovery helps me and my family and makes us a healthier longer living family, then, thank you GFree.

Eating out has been a small chore. Part of me doesn't want to go out at all because I am scared to feel sick afterwards, and I hate being a nusiance to the servers and cooks. But then again, their job is to serve the customer right? =) Well, I went out to lunch with some co-workers on Saturday. We went to Red Robin. They had a GFree list of things I could eat. Sweet. I ordered a salad with grilled chicken and honey mustard dressing on the side. The salad came out with Bread on it! AHHH. But my server knew I couldn't and send the salad back to be remade. It tasted great... but in about an hour, I felt sick. Upset stomach, cramps, yuckiness... Don't know what it was, dressing? Bread leftover? Chicken? Cross Contamination. I am not sure, but I am weary about going to the Bird again. ON a lighter note, B and I went to Outback on Friday night with some friends and they have a GFree MENU! Hooray. I got steak and baked potato with a glass of wine. I reminded the server about a clean grill and workspce, and she said no problem... they have a Gluten Free Button on their register!!! Love OUTBACK! I ate everything on my plate and didn't get sick! So refreshing.

Well as the days go by, somedays I don't feel well, gluten or not, and I am tired or have an upset stomach. So I really need to pay attention to what other foods I am intaking since my intestine isn't healed, I could react to a lot of other things. Dairy, Sugar, Soy... I am in a constant state of thinking about what I ate and what is in my food. But as everyone says, It could be worse. And that is so true, I am surviving and liking a good amount of GFree food. We will see what happens...