I just realized that my blog gives the impression that gluten is found in meat, vegetables, nuts and fruit. Actually, those are the things that man DOESN'T produce and that are gluten-free. My husband kindly pointed this out when reading my blog.
Thanks.
Wednesday, April 30, 2008
Mayday! Mayday!
Well, tomorrow is the big day that we are supposed to go gluten-free. I am debating on whether I should start right at midnight, or wait until I get home in the morning. Probably the latter. However it goes, it will NOT be smooth sailing.
Bill is very sick at present, although he can't figure out what's causing it (although he highly suspects it is because he has had to cut back on all of the pills he takes - due to financial considerations). Therefore it is going to be harder than ever for him to eat differently. It's always difficult to do something different than your usual routine when you don't feel well.
As for me, I am a bit worried about next week, as I will be flying down to San Diego for a couple of days. It's not that you can't eat gluten-free when you're traveling, but I'm not sure I'll have the whole thing down yet. I may end up subsisting on fruit and nuts. Well, there are worse things to eat.
We are strongly tempted to go gluten-free the 'wrong' way instead of the 'right' way. (This is the point where you ask us what the difference is). Well, the right way to go gluten free is to stop eating anything that 'man' produces. In other words, meat, vegetables, fruits, nuts. The wrong way to go gluten free is to tank up on rice, corn, potatoes and all of the yummy high-priced high-caloric gluten-free foods that are available at the health-food store.
I have also noticed, when consulting my 'gluten-free' grocery store shopping guide, that many candy bars are gluten-free. Hmm - I have a feeling that they fall into the 'wrong' category as well. Actually, I'm supposed to be going dairy-free as well, but I'm not sure I can handle two major deletions at the same time. It's hard enough to give up all the baked goods, but to give up cheese as well?
Well - the one thing that I know I have to do (and soon) is get a list of ingredients for See's candy! After all, a lot of them have fruit and nuts in them . . .
Bill is very sick at present, although he can't figure out what's causing it (although he highly suspects it is because he has had to cut back on all of the pills he takes - due to financial considerations). Therefore it is going to be harder than ever for him to eat differently. It's always difficult to do something different than your usual routine when you don't feel well.
As for me, I am a bit worried about next week, as I will be flying down to San Diego for a couple of days. It's not that you can't eat gluten-free when you're traveling, but I'm not sure I'll have the whole thing down yet. I may end up subsisting on fruit and nuts. Well, there are worse things to eat.
We are strongly tempted to go gluten-free the 'wrong' way instead of the 'right' way. (This is the point where you ask us what the difference is). Well, the right way to go gluten free is to stop eating anything that 'man' produces. In other words, meat, vegetables, fruits, nuts. The wrong way to go gluten free is to tank up on rice, corn, potatoes and all of the yummy high-priced high-caloric gluten-free foods that are available at the health-food store.
I have also noticed, when consulting my 'gluten-free' grocery store shopping guide, that many candy bars are gluten-free. Hmm - I have a feeling that they fall into the 'wrong' category as well. Actually, I'm supposed to be going dairy-free as well, but I'm not sure I can handle two major deletions at the same time. It's hard enough to give up all the baked goods, but to give up cheese as well?
Well - the one thing that I know I have to do (and soon) is get a list of ingredients for See's candy! After all, a lot of them have fruit and nuts in them . . .
Sunday, April 27, 2008
Wheat - no eat?
While we were down in Utah a week or so ago, Bill and I had some diagnostic testing done. It showed that we are both sensitive to gluten - one of the primary ingredients in wheat, barley and rye. Although we are a bit skeptical of the machine that was used, we decided to read up on gluten sensitivity - and it really opened our eyes. Naturally we read 'Living Gluten-Free for Dummies' as it seemed to apply!
In fact, the more we read, the more it seemed like a gluten sensitivity might really be something we have been dealing with - and more importantly, something our oldest daughter might be suffering from as well.
However, cutting out everything with gluten in it is not a task for the faint-hearted. You would be amazed at how many food items have wheat or one of it's derivatives in it. Cream of mushroom soup, soy sauce, oatmeal - well, the list is endless.
We do have an advantage in that we are dedicated ingredients readers - always scanning to make sure that MSG or one of it's pseudonyms is not there - or aspartame (another biggie to avoid). So we're just going to be adding in another few things to look for. But it can get tricky. For example, malt is usually made from barley, and malt is found in almost all cereals. In fact, when I was looking through cereals the other day, I couldn't find one that DIDN'T have gluten in it.
There are eight major food allergies that can cause problems - milk, eggs, peanuts, tree nuts, shellfish, fish, soy and GLUTEN. Most packaged foods have allergen alerts on them, so you know whether the item contains one of these eight allergens, or has been produced on machinery that also produces items with these allergens. Health-food stores have whole shelves of gluten-free foods, and even regular grocery stores are starting to stock gluten-free items. Heck - I even heard an ad on the radio for QFC that touted their gluten-free products.
Miranda has been gluten-free for almost a week now, and says she is feeling a lot better. She is sticking primarily to vegetables, fruits, nuts, eggs and meat rather than trying to make more elaborate gluten-free dishes. Bill and I (with a somewhat reluctant Timmy) have targed May 1st as our starting date, and are frantically trying to eat up as much of our gluten-loaded kitchen items as possible. We figured that was a good day to start because we feel a little overwhelmed and 'MAYDAY, MAYDAY' seemed appropriate!
In the meantime we are putting our gluteny food items in bags to give away, and our kitchen is going to be pretty empty. It is amazing how many items I had squirreled away that I had totally forgotten about. As always, when Bill helps out with any kitchen organizing, the frequently used items end up on the uppermost shelves where I can't reach them. Since he doesn't cook himself, he is a bit clueless about what gets used the most often.
I have ordered a couple of gluten-free cookbooks, but they haven't arrived yet. I may have to fall back on the recipes in the 'Living gluten-free for dummies' book (if I can wrestle it away from Miranda), and I also bought a book that gives lists of grocery store foods (including brands) and which ones are gluten-free. Hmm - Miranda has that one as well.
In talking to a doctor we know, he said that it usually takes 4-6 weeks before you really notice a difference. So in about that amount of time we will either know if this was the best thing that could have happened to us - OR that once again we have picked up on the latest fad. But I have a sneaking suspicion it will be the former - IF we really stick to it. The best intentions and all that. What I will do if faced with a big gooey chocolate chip cookie fresh out of the oven . . .
In fact, the more we read, the more it seemed like a gluten sensitivity might really be something we have been dealing with - and more importantly, something our oldest daughter might be suffering from as well.
However, cutting out everything with gluten in it is not a task for the faint-hearted. You would be amazed at how many food items have wheat or one of it's derivatives in it. Cream of mushroom soup, soy sauce, oatmeal - well, the list is endless.
We do have an advantage in that we are dedicated ingredients readers - always scanning to make sure that MSG or one of it's pseudonyms is not there - or aspartame (another biggie to avoid). So we're just going to be adding in another few things to look for. But it can get tricky. For example, malt is usually made from barley, and malt is found in almost all cereals. In fact, when I was looking through cereals the other day, I couldn't find one that DIDN'T have gluten in it.
There are eight major food allergies that can cause problems - milk, eggs, peanuts, tree nuts, shellfish, fish, soy and GLUTEN. Most packaged foods have allergen alerts on them, so you know whether the item contains one of these eight allergens, or has been produced on machinery that also produces items with these allergens. Health-food stores have whole shelves of gluten-free foods, and even regular grocery stores are starting to stock gluten-free items. Heck - I even heard an ad on the radio for QFC that touted their gluten-free products.
Miranda has been gluten-free for almost a week now, and says she is feeling a lot better. She is sticking primarily to vegetables, fruits, nuts, eggs and meat rather than trying to make more elaborate gluten-free dishes. Bill and I (with a somewhat reluctant Timmy) have targed May 1st as our starting date, and are frantically trying to eat up as much of our gluten-loaded kitchen items as possible. We figured that was a good day to start because we feel a little overwhelmed and 'MAYDAY, MAYDAY' seemed appropriate!
In the meantime we are putting our gluteny food items in bags to give away, and our kitchen is going to be pretty empty. It is amazing how many items I had squirreled away that I had totally forgotten about. As always, when Bill helps out with any kitchen organizing, the frequently used items end up on the uppermost shelves where I can't reach them. Since he doesn't cook himself, he is a bit clueless about what gets used the most often.
I have ordered a couple of gluten-free cookbooks, but they haven't arrived yet. I may have to fall back on the recipes in the 'Living gluten-free for dummies' book (if I can wrestle it away from Miranda), and I also bought a book that gives lists of grocery store foods (including brands) and which ones are gluten-free. Hmm - Miranda has that one as well.
In talking to a doctor we know, he said that it usually takes 4-6 weeks before you really notice a difference. So in about that amount of time we will either know if this was the best thing that could have happened to us - OR that once again we have picked up on the latest fad. But I have a sneaking suspicion it will be the former - IF we really stick to it. The best intentions and all that. What I will do if faced with a big gooey chocolate chip cookie fresh out of the oven . . .
Saturday, April 19, 2008
The best laid plans.....
We spent last week in Utah visiting our daughter Maleen, her husband Tyler, and there three and a half daughters. We had a wonderful time, but it was a tough drive down as I had fallen and hurt my leg just minutes before we left. We drove straight through (15 hours) and my leg had really stiffened up by the time we got there.
We had originally planned to drive straight through on the way home, but after thinking it over, we decided it would be best to split the trip up, with a good night's sleep in between. Therefore we left Saturday night and drove for about 5 hours to Jerome, Idaho. We had a reservation at the Best Western there.
We got there shortly before 11:00 and by midnight we were all in bed, snoozing gently away. And then, at 2:00 am, every fire alarm in the whole hotel went off. The noise was incredible. I am usually pretty groggy when woken up unexpectedly, and I was still trying to figure out how to turn of the alarm clock, when Bill informed me it was the 'fire' alarm instead.
We both hurridly got dressed (once I had extricated myself from my CPAP machine), and Bill went to work trying to wake up Timmy (who had incredibly slept through the noise), while I decided to go up to the front desk to find out what was happening. When I arrived the official looking firemen (lots of them!) quickly shepherded me outside. I could only hope that Bill and Tim would find their way out as well.
I ended up sitting on one of the steps of the firetruck, next to a lady who had been on the second floor (we were on the first). She said that she had heard her grandchildren coughing, and one of the hotel employees confirmed (later) that the problem had started on the second floor. The same hotel employee went off to the other entrance to see if he could find Bill and Timmy, so we eventually were reunited. I was highly amused to notice that although Tim had gotten his shirt and shoes one, he had forgone his pants and grabbed his bag of GameBoy stuff instead. He had a baby's blanket wrapped around his nether parts and looked cold and scared.
Shortly thereafter all the hotel guests were herded towards the back of the building to the large conference room. It was still pretty cold, but at least we had chairs to sit in, and tables to lean our weary heads on. Some people opted to crash on the floor, with kids in and around them. The head fireman was walking around and around testing the air. A few of the people who were still coughing were ushered out to be examined by someone with medical credentials, and I later heard that a couple with asthma actually went to the local hospital to be checked out (they were OK).
The fireman was very patient and talked with anybody who wanted to ask a question. One of the little girls asked him a few questions, and he put on his gas mask so she could see what it looked like. I don't know how we got on the topic, but it turns out he is quite the hunter and he was telling me which wild game meats are good. He says the best is mountain lion (wow - I wouldn't have guessed that!). Although he has never eaten bear himself, he warned me that it is even fattier than pork and has to be cooking on a grill where the fat can drip down onto the coals.
Shortly before four they announced that we could return to our rooms as the hotel had been aired out. The rumor at that time was that one of the guests on the 2nd floor had released some sort of chemical. Apparently there was a big rap concert in town that night, and lots of dubious characters had flocked into town. There were several arrests (earlier than our incident), and they thought this was connected.
We wearily settled back into our beds, and just after I got to sleep again, the phone rang. It was the management making sure that we had turned off our air conditioner so we wouldn't get any circulated air into our room. Thanks!!
Needless to say, we weren't all that rested the next morning. Further questioning elicited the fact that the problem had been a truck parked next to the hotel that had been leaking ammonia. Since ammonia is very light it had risen and been sucked into the vents at the top of the hotel, causing problems in the upper rooms first. They asked the truck to move (duh!)
The only good thing that came out of this is that the hotel did not charge us for the night - so we stayed there for free. Not only that, but this is probably a story that we will talk about for years!
We had originally planned to drive straight through on the way home, but after thinking it over, we decided it would be best to split the trip up, with a good night's sleep in between. Therefore we left Saturday night and drove for about 5 hours to Jerome, Idaho. We had a reservation at the Best Western there.
We got there shortly before 11:00 and by midnight we were all in bed, snoozing gently away. And then, at 2:00 am, every fire alarm in the whole hotel went off. The noise was incredible. I am usually pretty groggy when woken up unexpectedly, and I was still trying to figure out how to turn of the alarm clock, when Bill informed me it was the 'fire' alarm instead.
We both hurridly got dressed (once I had extricated myself from my CPAP machine), and Bill went to work trying to wake up Timmy (who had incredibly slept through the noise), while I decided to go up to the front desk to find out what was happening. When I arrived the official looking firemen (lots of them!) quickly shepherded me outside. I could only hope that Bill and Tim would find their way out as well.
I ended up sitting on one of the steps of the firetruck, next to a lady who had been on the second floor (we were on the first). She said that she had heard her grandchildren coughing, and one of the hotel employees confirmed (later) that the problem had started on the second floor. The same hotel employee went off to the other entrance to see if he could find Bill and Timmy, so we eventually were reunited. I was highly amused to notice that although Tim had gotten his shirt and shoes one, he had forgone his pants and grabbed his bag of GameBoy stuff instead. He had a baby's blanket wrapped around his nether parts and looked cold and scared.
Shortly thereafter all the hotel guests were herded towards the back of the building to the large conference room. It was still pretty cold, but at least we had chairs to sit in, and tables to lean our weary heads on. Some people opted to crash on the floor, with kids in and around them. The head fireman was walking around and around testing the air. A few of the people who were still coughing were ushered out to be examined by someone with medical credentials, and I later heard that a couple with asthma actually went to the local hospital to be checked out (they were OK).
The fireman was very patient and talked with anybody who wanted to ask a question. One of the little girls asked him a few questions, and he put on his gas mask so she could see what it looked like. I don't know how we got on the topic, but it turns out he is quite the hunter and he was telling me which wild game meats are good. He says the best is mountain lion (wow - I wouldn't have guessed that!). Although he has never eaten bear himself, he warned me that it is even fattier than pork and has to be cooking on a grill where the fat can drip down onto the coals.
Shortly before four they announced that we could return to our rooms as the hotel had been aired out. The rumor at that time was that one of the guests on the 2nd floor had released some sort of chemical. Apparently there was a big rap concert in town that night, and lots of dubious characters had flocked into town. There were several arrests (earlier than our incident), and they thought this was connected.
We wearily settled back into our beds, and just after I got to sleep again, the phone rang. It was the management making sure that we had turned off our air conditioner so we wouldn't get any circulated air into our room. Thanks!!
Needless to say, we weren't all that rested the next morning. Further questioning elicited the fact that the problem had been a truck parked next to the hotel that had been leaking ammonia. Since ammonia is very light it had risen and been sucked into the vents at the top of the hotel, causing problems in the upper rooms first. They asked the truck to move (duh!)
The only good thing that came out of this is that the hotel did not charge us for the night - so we stayed there for free. Not only that, but this is probably a story that we will talk about for years!
Tuesday, April 1, 2008
April Fools Day
Neither Bill or I are really into April Fools jokes any more, but Tim certainly wants part of the action. In the brief time I had with him this morning before he went to school, he tried several 'April Fools'jokes - but he was so obvious about them that even he realized I wasn't being fooled.
However, it got me to thinking about some of the jokes that have been pulled on me in the past (when I was a child), and some of them were real lulus - and took a lot of thought on the part of the person who crafted them.
My earliest memory was from elementary school when my mother calmly announced that all she was putting in my lunch box was a large, raw turnip. I take food pretty seriously and I was VERY upset until she April fooled me.
When I was twelve and we were living in England, my Dad woke me up with the news that my dreaded headmistress from school (a real terror) was on the phone to talk to me. I picked up the phone with a pounding heart and absolute dread, but there was nobody there. They tried it on my brother (he was scared of his headmistress too), but he refused to go to the phone. He said she could get at him at school, but not at home! I got even with my father later when I sweetly asked him if he'd like a cup of coffee and then put salt instead of sugar into it!
However, I have to admit that the best joke ever played on me was done by my uncle Jim, who happened to be visiting us that April. I was a teenager then, and belonged to the Columbia record club (yeah - we had records back then, CD's had not been invented yet). That April 1st I received a letter from them informing me that they had picked a select few of their members who would be eligible to receive EVERY SINGLE RELEASE for the next year ABSOLUTELY FREE. My obligation would merely be to listen to each record as it arrived and send them a critique on it.
Needless to say, I was out of my mind with delight about this. The letter further stated that they couldn't offer this opportunity to very many people, and if I didn't return the enclosed acceptance card, they would give the offer to somebody else. But there was no card with the letter!
I went absolutely bonkers. I was on the verge of calling the company to tell them they forgot to put the acceptance card in my letter, and to please, please, please not take me off their list. At this point my mother casually asked me who had signed the letter. "The president of the company" I answered impatiently. "And what's his name?" my mother pressed on. I glanced back at the signature. "A. Prellful" I answered. And then it suddenly hit me.
"A. Prellful" = April Fool
I was absolutely devasted and very upset at the time, but looking back on it, it was probably the best joke ever played on me. Although, the time my aunt gave me a book written by John Lennon with the signature 'John' inside comes a close second. Being a little older and a little more suspicious, I asked her if it was actually signed by John LENNON. She laughed and admitted that it wasn't, but that it HAD been signed by someone named John. In my family, we don't save everything for April Fools day. Any day is fair game!
However, it got me to thinking about some of the jokes that have been pulled on me in the past (when I was a child), and some of them were real lulus - and took a lot of thought on the part of the person who crafted them.
My earliest memory was from elementary school when my mother calmly announced that all she was putting in my lunch box was a large, raw turnip. I take food pretty seriously and I was VERY upset until she April fooled me.
When I was twelve and we were living in England, my Dad woke me up with the news that my dreaded headmistress from school (a real terror) was on the phone to talk to me. I picked up the phone with a pounding heart and absolute dread, but there was nobody there. They tried it on my brother (he was scared of his headmistress too), but he refused to go to the phone. He said she could get at him at school, but not at home! I got even with my father later when I sweetly asked him if he'd like a cup of coffee and then put salt instead of sugar into it!
However, I have to admit that the best joke ever played on me was done by my uncle Jim, who happened to be visiting us that April. I was a teenager then, and belonged to the Columbia record club (yeah - we had records back then, CD's had not been invented yet). That April 1st I received a letter from them informing me that they had picked a select few of their members who would be eligible to receive EVERY SINGLE RELEASE for the next year ABSOLUTELY FREE. My obligation would merely be to listen to each record as it arrived and send them a critique on it.
Needless to say, I was out of my mind with delight about this. The letter further stated that they couldn't offer this opportunity to very many people, and if I didn't return the enclosed acceptance card, they would give the offer to somebody else. But there was no card with the letter!
I went absolutely bonkers. I was on the verge of calling the company to tell them they forgot to put the acceptance card in my letter, and to please, please, please not take me off their list. At this point my mother casually asked me who had signed the letter. "The president of the company" I answered impatiently. "And what's his name?" my mother pressed on. I glanced back at the signature. "A. Prellful" I answered. And then it suddenly hit me.
"A. Prellful" = April Fool
I was absolutely devasted and very upset at the time, but looking back on it, it was probably the best joke ever played on me. Although, the time my aunt gave me a book written by John Lennon with the signature 'John' inside comes a close second. Being a little older and a little more suspicious, I asked her if it was actually signed by John LENNON. She laughed and admitted that it wasn't, but that it HAD been signed by someone named John. In my family, we don't save everything for April Fools day. Any day is fair game!
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