14 new people know a little more about CD. Last night during my Strategies class, our teacher had us do a little group activity. She wanted us to get to know each other just a little bit better. We were to pick someone in the class and find out from them 5 things that they felt changed their lives. For either the better or the worse. Here are my five in chronological order:
1. Being diagnosed when I was 8 with Diabetes
2. My mom and dad divorcing and my brother leaving for the Navy when i was 9
3. My best friend passing away in a car accident...I miss you Alan!
4. The birth of both of my children
5. Being diagnosed with CD.
My friend Deb then asked what CD was exactly, so took a few minutes to explain a little about it. It was nice to be the educator and it seemed that many of them were paying attention from the reaction of the stuff I couldn't have. We continued on with class and after my second break we had the option to leave or stay and work on our assignments. I elected to stay, however I didn't have a chance to work on my assignment. My teacher sat next to me and asked me what it was that I usually ate. I spent nearly an hour talking with her about my symptoms, how my life was before finding out about my CD, what foods I can and can't have, contamination, and the statistics that many of us tell people. It felt good being asked about my life with CD. I have never been so open about my problems as I am now, mostly because now I know what the cause was. It's hard to explain to people without embarrassment that I had chronic diarrhea, always felt sick, was always in pain, yet not know why it was happening to me. But now there are 14 more people who know about or more about CD and who knows who those people may tell about it. It was one of the best feelings in the world.
Thursday, January 6, 2011
Tuesday, January 4, 2011
Grandma's Chili, naturally Gluten Free =)
Winter. Cold. Soup? Warm. And what better soup to have during the winter than Grandma's Chili. I have always loved grandma's chili. Rembmer to always check lables or your shopping guide to make sure the products you get are infact Gluten Free.
Grandma's Chili
1 1/2 lbs Hamburger browned undrained
1 large can tomato juice
1 can tomato sauce
1 medium white onion
1 or 2 cans diced or stewed tomatoes (undrained)
1 can dark red kidney beans undrained
1/4 c vinegar
1/4 c sugar
1tsp ground cumin
Chili Powder to taste *I use 5-6 T*
Add all ingredients together bring to a boil then simmer about an hour and a half. Taste it to see if you like the spicyness of it, if its not spicy enough add 1-2 T more chili powder. Continue simmering another hour. At this point I skim some of the grease off the top, its good to cook the chili with, but better if you take it out before eating. Simmer about another half hour. Add some Glutino Crackers or some Fritos Corn Chips, some cheddar cheese, and some sour cream and there ya go...some good ol fashioned home cooked chili =) Enjoy!
Grandma's Chili
1 1/2 lbs Hamburger browned undrained
1 large can tomato juice
1 can tomato sauce
1 medium white onion
1 or 2 cans diced or stewed tomatoes (undrained)
1 can dark red kidney beans undrained
1/4 c vinegar
1/4 c sugar
1tsp ground cumin
Chili Powder to taste *I use 5-6 T*
Add all ingredients together bring to a boil then simmer about an hour and a half. Taste it to see if you like the spicyness of it, if its not spicy enough add 1-2 T more chili powder. Continue simmering another hour. At this point I skim some of the grease off the top, its good to cook the chili with, but better if you take it out before eating. Simmer about another half hour. Add some Glutino Crackers or some Fritos Corn Chips, some cheddar cheese, and some sour cream and there ya go...some good ol fashioned home cooked chili =) Enjoy!
New Years Resolutions
Okay, this is not just a GF thing...this is an every year thing with GF additions. New Year's Resolutions. Do I have them? Yes, every year. Do I tend to keep them? No, every year. LOL. But who isn't like that. Seriously how many new years resolutions do people actually keep. The statistics are that 40-45% of Adult Americans make one or more resolution every year. Here is the breakdown of how those resolutions are kept. These are from http://www.proactivechange.com/resolutions/statistics.htm :
The following shows how many of these resolutions are maintained as time goes on:
- past the first week: 75%
- past 2 weeks: 71%
- after one month: 64%
- after 6 months: 46%
Now, I follow in the less than a week category 99.9% of the time. So here is my solution to this problem. Every time I set a resolution it is for something I want to do...and it never seems to work, so this year these are my New Year's Resolutions....
1. Quit School
2. Stay unhealthy by quitting my GF Diet
3. Be the most horrible mom imaginable
4. Be a horrible person.
See a pattern here? Reverse Psychology, my passion =) So let's see if this works.
Okay, so back to some GF topics.On facebook I had a lady respond to a request for some food ideas for one of my design projects, to come up with a healthy eatery. GF is my choice, even though we will have partners, my reverse psychology will come into play when that time comes. Anyway, we got to chatting a bit and she had told me that after 7 years she has still NOT gone out to eat in fear of contamination. Well yes contamination is a legitamit fear, it cant hold you back from being a normal person with some added Celiac. To those of you with the same feeling I HIGHLY recommend getting an Allergy card from http://www.ceceliasmarketplace.com/ to give your servers while ordering. Being a *retired* server it helps when placing my orders in a good way. When requesting specifics on your orders, be respectful and be patient!
1. Inform them of the severity of your condition and educate at the same time without preaching.
2. Be specific on your needs when it comes to preparing your food. Let them know that the grill either needs cleaned prior to cooking your food, or request that foil be used on the grill.
3. Ask them to repeat your order so you know they have it correct when informing the chef.
4. Don't hesitate to ask for a manager to also explain your needs.
5. Inform them that you tip well for correct service and that you do inform corporate of their service as well. I always contact the corporate office after my visits, good or bad, it lets them know how their employees are doing with minority customers as ourselves.
6. Don't be afraid to contact the restaurant prior to your arrival with any questions.
7. Most importantly check your food before eating to ensure nothing is in there that you know you can not have.
You can not let CD define who you are, and by doing so it will not hold you back. Yes there are obsticles you must overcome, but just think how you would be feeling if you just gave up or if it was a disease where you dont have control and have to take medication for. The blessing of CD is that it is all about you, and embrace that it is all about you. That is one thing that is human nature, you, and that things revolve around you. Enjoy that.
Another note, the new GF Shopping guide is also available at Cecelias Marketplace, mine is on its way to my house as we speak =) So is Enjoying eating out going to be one of your New Year's Resolutions? I hope so.
The following shows how many of these resolutions are maintained as time goes on:
- past the first week: 75%
- past 2 weeks: 71%
- after one month: 64%
- after 6 months: 46%
Now, I follow in the less than a week category 99.9% of the time. So here is my solution to this problem. Every time I set a resolution it is for something I want to do...and it never seems to work, so this year these are my New Year's Resolutions....
1. Quit School
2. Stay unhealthy by quitting my GF Diet
3. Be the most horrible mom imaginable
4. Be a horrible person.
See a pattern here? Reverse Psychology, my passion =) So let's see if this works.
Okay, so back to some GF topics.On facebook I had a lady respond to a request for some food ideas for one of my design projects, to come up with a healthy eatery. GF is my choice, even though we will have partners, my reverse psychology will come into play when that time comes. Anyway, we got to chatting a bit and she had told me that after 7 years she has still NOT gone out to eat in fear of contamination. Well yes contamination is a legitamit fear, it cant hold you back from being a normal person with some added Celiac. To those of you with the same feeling I HIGHLY recommend getting an Allergy card from http://www.ceceliasmarketplace.com/ to give your servers while ordering. Being a *retired* server it helps when placing my orders in a good way. When requesting specifics on your orders, be respectful and be patient!
1. Inform them of the severity of your condition and educate at the same time without preaching.
2. Be specific on your needs when it comes to preparing your food. Let them know that the grill either needs cleaned prior to cooking your food, or request that foil be used on the grill.
3. Ask them to repeat your order so you know they have it correct when informing the chef.
4. Don't hesitate to ask for a manager to also explain your needs.
5. Inform them that you tip well for correct service and that you do inform corporate of their service as well. I always contact the corporate office after my visits, good or bad, it lets them know how their employees are doing with minority customers as ourselves.
6. Don't be afraid to contact the restaurant prior to your arrival with any questions.
7. Most importantly check your food before eating to ensure nothing is in there that you know you can not have.
You can not let CD define who you are, and by doing so it will not hold you back. Yes there are obsticles you must overcome, but just think how you would be feeling if you just gave up or if it was a disease where you dont have control and have to take medication for. The blessing of CD is that it is all about you, and embrace that it is all about you. That is one thing that is human nature, you, and that things revolve around you. Enjoy that.
Another note, the new GF Shopping guide is also available at Cecelias Marketplace, mine is on its way to my house as we speak =) So is Enjoying eating out going to be one of your New Year's Resolutions? I hope so.
Saturday, January 1, 2011
Happy New Year
Well it is now 2011 and lets hope this year is a good year for those with CD. Lets have the new year bring more awareness, good food, and close friends.
My new year started off a bit wrong. New Years Eve I went to Chili's in LaVista Ne. As always I ordered off the Gluten Free menu. A bowl of sweet corn soup and a BBQ Chicken Salad. The soup, as always was amazing...some of the best corn soup I have ever had. Then I got the Salad, took about three bites then bit into something crunchy. Come to find out, they put tortilla strips into my salad! They don't even normally come with tortilla strips!! I was soooooooo mad. Thankfully the manager's sister had CD so she understood why I was upset. They did not charge me for any of my meal except my drink, and even gave me a bowl of soup to take home with me at no cost. Needless to say I was up most of the night in the bathroom =( Will not be going to that Chili's again.
My new year started off a bit wrong. New Years Eve I went to Chili's in LaVista Ne. As always I ordered off the Gluten Free menu. A bowl of sweet corn soup and a BBQ Chicken Salad. The soup, as always was amazing...some of the best corn soup I have ever had. Then I got the Salad, took about three bites then bit into something crunchy. Come to find out, they put tortilla strips into my salad! They don't even normally come with tortilla strips!! I was soooooooo mad. Thankfully the manager's sister had CD so she understood why I was upset. They did not charge me for any of my meal except my drink, and even gave me a bowl of soup to take home with me at no cost. Needless to say I was up most of the night in the bathroom =( Will not be going to that Chili's again.
Tuesday, December 7, 2010
Spaghetti works!
Just found out from our local CSA that Spaghetti works, one of the AMAZING spaghetti places in town has a gluten free menu!!!! This is great, however you HAVE to call ahead of time so there is no spontaneous "let's go to spaghetti works" thing going on, which is okay i guess, as long as it ensures that there will be everything possible done to avoid ANY cross contamination. So I think tomorrow may make the call and see what they have available for me to eat. SO EXCITED!!
Wednesday, December 1, 2010
Gluten Free, and being sick...
Really stinks!!! Mostly with the fact of me having dentures to boot! Most GF food is hard, and hard to chew if you don't have teeth. Plus anytime before when I was sick...a nice bowl of Tomato soup and grilled cheese with goldfish crackers usually did the spot. If not then it was vegetable beef with barely. Not anymore...GF stinks when you are sick!! Sorry just needed to rant because I was doing so good, and feeling so good, then getting sick just made me loose 5 hard earned pounds gained!! UGH!
Friday, November 26, 2010
I will, and have survived!
Thanksgiving. It was tough, looking at the stuffing and contaminated jellied cranberries sitting on my mother in law's gluten overloaded counters. I got up this morning, okay a bit later than i wanted, and prepared my jr boneless ham. Poured in some pineapple juice on the bottom and a few sliced pineapple too. Set the ham on those and then baked it for 20 mins. Then i took it out, put some pineapple slices on the ham with toothpicks and basted the ham with some pineapple and brown sugar. then baked it another 10 mins. I made some GF rolls, which really weren't that good, cuz i'm not a parmesean cheese fan. But i ate them anyway, and then grabbed some ready to serve brown and wild rice. It was good, I didn't have time this morning to make any stuffing so skipped out on it. So I survived without any mishap. My next challenge comes this weekend when I take my first trip with Celiac. I already called the hotel to find out if there is a microwave available at all times (since i am a midnight muncher) and made sure there was a fridge in the room. I bought a hot pot, small strainer, and lots of GF foods. Where I am going is really small and don't know what their little mom and pop grocery store carries, though I think i will venture in and just see what my options are when we are there. I think I will be okay, since every day that goes by it gets a bit easier. Though there are times where it is still hard and have to catch myself. Like when making food for my family, and if i get some food on my fingers i usually just lick it off, and have to stop myself now. But it's okay, i am not ashamed of my disease, i am grateful for it. Happy Thanksgiving everyone!
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