Awesome Christmas Gift--Namaste Baking Mixes!

Happy New Year!! Maybe I'll write more this year...and maybe I won't ;). We'll see!

I did, though, want to share about an awesome Christmas gift I received from my mother- and father-in-law: a gift certificate for Namaste food!

I used up the gift certificate shortly after Christmas and received the big box of food last week. I ordered a cookbook (it uses their mixes with a variety of added ingredients...some really great suggestions!), bread mix, brownie mix (I've had this one before...it's great!!), blondie mix, pizza crust mix, sugar-free muffin mix, pancake/waffle mix, and cookie mix. I made the blondies last night for a small dinner party we had with a couple of friends. They tasted pretty yummy! Oh a whim, I added some crushed pecans to the batter, and sprinkled some more crushed pecans and brown sugar on top. Success! :) (I just ate a leftover one a few minutes ago ;)).

I would highly recommend checking out the Namaste website....they have a ton of great products. They also have many of their products available here in Bloomington at Naturally Yours. I've also tried their Biscuit/Pie Crust mix (used it to make a great pie crust for pumpkin pie at Thanksgiving, to rave reviews from my father-in-law ;)), and their Taco Pasta (comes with pasta and a seasoning packet; I added tomato soup and ground beef to it for a yummy dinner!). I have truly loved all of their products! :)

Namaste's website says, among other things, "...Our facility contains no wheat, gluten, corn, soy, potato, dairy or nuts. It is our attempt to try to eliminate any chance of cross-contamination so you can enjoy Namaste Foods products worry-free...." Awesome!! :) :)

Dreaming and other musings

First, I have been DREAMING about gluten again. Really. It's fairly unsettling and quite annoying. Last night, for example, I dreamt about being at some big conference or convention or something of the sort and of course at lunchtime when they wheeled out the big buffet line of sandwiches and such there was nothing I could eat. For some reason, in my dream state, I "knew" the only thing I could eat was a hamburger bun (wait...bread? What?) with some cheese and lettuce on it. So, I ate it...pissed. When I woke up I realized how stupid that dream was. First of all, when I am in those situations (which I have been a number of times over the past 2 and a half months), I pack my own food. Second of all, I am pretty sure...even if I was able to eat anything on that buffet, it wouldn't have been a HAMBURGER BUN! Whatever.

Second, I am still on a quest...to find a perfect gluten-free grilled cheese sandwich and gluten free pizza. These are my two biggest cravings. When we went to Trader Joe's in Chicago in November, I purchased some gluten free French rolls and attempted to make a pseudo grilled cheese sandwich in our toaster oven. Yeah, it didn't work. It was decent, but the bread was far to sweet and dense to really work out. One of the first Sunday evenings of my new "diet", I made a gluten-free pepperoni pizza using a Chebe brand pizza crust. It was decent...and I would probably try it again...but it wasn't the pizza perfection I was looking for. What do I REALLY want?! Just Pizza Hut, really! Jeremy and I DID discover, though, that Lou Malnati's in Chicago makes gluten-free crustless pizza. That is DEFINITELY on our list of things to go try...sooner rather than later!!! :)

Third, Christmas (in both the gluten-free realm and just the "in general" realm) was awesome! Jeremy got me 3 gifts (in addition to a few others) that will be a great help to me. Check out the Triumph Dining website. Even in all of my perusing of the internet and other resources, I never once came across this website! Jeremy somehow found it and ordered 3 products for me: a restaurant guide, a grocery shopping guide, and some handy-dandy dining cards that explain the gluten-free diet in a variety of languages. You are supposed to hand them to the waiter/waitress and explain them and then ask them to share the information with the chef and others who will be preparing your food. Awesome! He is SO thoughtful and I LOVE these gifts! What great resources to own!

Fourth, I've decided to pursue genetic testing for Celiac Disease, most likely through The University of Chicago. Here is information taken directly from their website.

"What is genetic testing and who can benefit from it?
There is a blood test or cheek swab test kit available to determine whether or not an at risk individual carries the genes responsible for the development of celiac disease. These genes are located on the HLA-class II complex and are called DQ2 and DQ8. Each case of celiac disease has been found to show these so-called "haplotypes"; therefore, a negative gene test indicates that celiac disease cannot develop in that individual.
There are two main reasons for using the genetic test when evaluating an individual for celiac disease. The first case is to "rule out" celiac disease, which is a medical term that indicates an individual does not possess a necessary risk factor for the development of celiac disease, genetic predisposition. Without this factor, it is impossible that the individual with a negative gene test will develop celiac disease in the future. People who test negative for the gene would not be required to have regular antibody screening for the remainder of their lives. For example, the children of an adult with celiac disease could have the gene test. The results would allow the parent to know which children need close monitoring.
In individuals with symptoms who have not had a biopsy to diagnose celiac disease, but have been on the gluten-free diet for a significant period of time, the gene test is often the only way to determine if symptoms could possibly be related to celiac disease. For a person who faces this situation, a negative gene test would indicate that symptoms are not the a result of celiac disease. A positive gene test, however, does not diagnose the disease but increases the likelihood that it is present."

I also learned through some additional reading that Celiac Disease, gluten intollerance, and wheat allergies manifest themselves in people by very similar symptoms. Since I never had the biopsy...even though my doctor REALLY believes I have Celiac Disease, we don't know...not beyond the shadow of a doubt. Naturally, I am not satisfied with this. Yes, I feel TONS better while on this gluten free diet...but I want to be sure that what is going on with me is truly Celiac Disease.

So, there you have it...my thoughts as of late. On another note...HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!! As far as resolutions go, I decided I should have a Celiac Disease/gluten-free living resolution for myself...my resolution relates to my fourth comment above: I resolve to undergo genetic testing for Celiac Disease at some point early on this calendar year in order to TAKE OWNERSHIP of my health and what is going on....and as a way to ensure I am doing everything I can (both for myself and my furture children) to be the healthiest person I can be.

Gluten-Free Goodies!

We had dinner at Los Potrillo's (again, one of our favorite Mexican restaurants, and probably just one of our favorite restaurants ever in general!) with Adam and Jami last night. It was great to see them and catch up a bit...it had been a while since we had hung out the four of us! We had a great time and of course the food was delicious. Jeremy and Adam thought our service was terrible last night (which is very out of the ordinary for Los!), but I didn't even notice. I was just happy to be having a good time with fun friends! I was relieved that I was done working for 12 days, that lunch wasn't as uncomfortable as I thought it would be (thanks to two awesome co-workers, Deb and Christina...our boss was buying us pizza for lunch, but obviously I wouldn't be able to eat it. Deb and Christina ordered me a burrito bowl from Chipotle and went and picked it up so I had something delicious to eat during the holiday lunch and wasn't just jealous of everyone and their pizza! Of course I was still a bit jealous ;), but that's just because I am obsessed with wanting pizza! ;) ), and I had gotten everything done at work that I needed to. It was just a wonderful feeling, and I was very relaxed and ready to have a great evening with Jeremy and our friends.

Also, Jami brought us each a Christmas tin with some goodies she made for us! She made us two separate tins, one for Jeremy with "normal" Christmas cookies and the like, and a gluten-free tin for me! Mine had buckeyes and scotcharoos, both things that I love! I ate some right away last night and I am not ashamed to admit I already ate some today and I haven't even had lunch yet! HA! Half of my leftover meal from Los is in the toaster oven right now heating up for me to eat as I curl up in front of the TV and am lazy for a bit.

I am still in awe of how awesome my friends have been through all of this crappy gluten-less-ness of my life! Jami has been great...especially now with these Christmas goodies! The cookies/sweets part of Christmas has honestly kind of sucked! I know, I know, that's not what Christmas is all about ;). It is still hard, though, to sit by when people are eating delicious looking gluten-ous Christmas cookies and treats! It was nice to have some yummy things of my own to eat. Thanks, Jami! Of course my other friends have been great, too! Sarah has given me TONS of tips (she is a healthy eater and food-purchaser and knew about gluten-free living type things way before I started in on this new lifestyle)...and has made a number of yummy things when we go over to their place. Brooke made a delicious Mexican casserole that she adapted to be gluten free when we visited them in Rockford in November. On December 16th when we had a Youth Leaders' meeting at Josh and Laura's home, Laura made an entirely gluten-free (and DELICIOUS!) meal for all of us there. Jeremy's mom makes me a gluten free meal when we go over there for dinner at least once a week. My mom is making lots of gluten free things for when we visit for Christmas this weekend! Jillian made sure I had things to eat on Saturday when we went to her place prior to her Christmas concert in Peoria (she kept some BBQ pork separate for me so it wouldn't get contaminated, and even bought me some of my favorite yogurt! She also had veggies and hummus I could eat!). I love my friends! I know it's probably such a pain for them...but I am so thankful for their kindness and love!

Yahoo for good food, good friends, and...most of all, Yahoo for CHRISTMAS!!!

D-day and Holiday Woes

Well, I had another follow-up doctor's appointment today...and my doctor tacked on the big, "official" diagnosis of Celiac Sprue. Of course I kind of knew it ;), but it was weird-o to see it in writing!
He also showed me results of more bloodwork, showing that I have a B12 deficiency...so I have to take supplements. No biggie there, I guess. He said that could be why I've had the problem with fatigue...but who knows. Everything else, though, was good bloodwork-wise. Thyroid, liver, glucose, and everything else he checked (there were tons, I forgot most!) were all within expected levels. Great!
While it's a pretty weird feeling to be tainted....with a diagnosis of something meaning there is something WRONG with me...it's nice to hae answers...and it is SUCH a BLESSING that it's nothing worse. In the grand ol' scheme of things, this isn't a big deal! It is hard, yes, but not impossible.

The holidays, though, are kind of disappointing as a newly-diagnosed Celiac! Plans are currently in the works for a holiday dessert exchange at work...of course I want to participate, but I am torn! Should I make something gluten free that I can enjoy (it will likely be the only thing there that I am able to eat!), or should I make something "normal" that won't scare people away? I think what I will do is this...Jeremy has a favorite cookie that I bake, these chocolate cookies with Andes mints in them. I will make those and give him half of the batch to bring to work (his coworkers also adore them!) and bring the other half with me to work. Then, I will also bake something gluten free....maybe try another batch of those cookies, substituting gluten-free ingredients? We will see :). Andes Mints are in my gluten free shopping guide! :) Yahoo! So, while it will probably suck that day...sitting around while everyone is eating platefuls of holiday goodies...it won't be too bad. I know I can hold my own in the baking realm ;) so hopefully I'll get some compliments on my cookies...I'll have a little plate of something gluten free prepared for me that I can enjoy...and I can revel in the fact that I am not ODing on calories and sugar like everyone else! ;)

Sigh.

It will be ok! This is only the first of many gluten-free Christmases! It will get easier and it will still be fun. I have to remember not to let this (or anything for that matter!) take away from the TRUE meaning of Christmas...

In other news, tonight we are having dinner at Amy and Tom's and meeting baby Collin! I can't WAIT! I have my crock pot fired up...I am making my second batch of Slow Cooker Chicken Taco Soup! YUM! I am so excited to see them and to meet their baby! Hope the soup turns out well again the second time around and that it wasn't just beginners' luck last time ;). It should be ok...it's basically just throwing a bunch of cans together, after all! ;)