Check-In January 2009

aklap · Joined: 02 Oct 2004 Posts: 9881 Location: WI, USA

Wow - 2009! It seems like only a few days ago it was 2008. Wink

We've been pretty busy. Christmas and end of the year are always hectic around the Al n Peg house...hence my sparseness in cyberspace.

We might have a catering gig in Feb. Shocked

Every year our Pastor hosts a luncheon for church staff and council members. She usually has this catered at her house. When I was on council we [Pastor, Peg & myself] talked about it might be fun to try it. The first year she had it catered, the food was not received very well. Ya see - she's a vegetarian and the rest of the people are pretty simple "meat and potatoes" kind of folk. Wink

Since I'm off of council now, she's giving us 1st crack at it. We're having her over for supper Sunday night to discuss what she's looking for. We have to figure out if we're getting in over our heads.

How 'bout everybody else?

For those that may be new or lurking...Check-In is a place to introduce yourself, tell us how things have been going, whatever comes to mind. If you post your progress in the GF diet, you can use it as a gauge to see how you've progressed. You can check back over the months a get a snap shot of how things were...

The Check-In Time Tunnel

Here's what we were doing last year.
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Al

“We cannot all do great things, but we can do small things with great love.” Mother Teresa

NorthernElf · Posted: Sat Jan 03, 2009 9:31 am Post subject:

It's been awhile since I've checked in, so here it goes...

It's -36 C where I live right now and has been within 10 degrees of that temp for almost a month - kind of depressing ! And there's a wind chill to that. Definitely time to hibernate.

We went to my parent's place for the holidays and only got back yesterday. It was a great trip but I've been glutened through cross contamination a few times and have had enough. My folks don't really get it but I do travel with a tub of food, some frozen, to help myself out. When we got there my mom had lasagna and garlic toast for us to eat...well, for everyone else to eat. I was sorta shocked. Our last supper there was Costco chicken wings and fries...another meal I opted out of. Yep, so there I sat with my toasted Kinnikinnick bread and salad. I don't know of many people that LOSE weight over the holidays, but that would be me (with no need to lose any).

So...I got cross contaminated a few times - Kirkland nuts, Tostitos (I think), some how the lamb roast my mom made, and probably from the otherwise GF food she made in her cookware and stored in her plastic containers. I ate little, drank lots of water & coffee, and took a lot of Tylenol and some Advil. I'm one who gets bad sinus headaches from gluten (Tylenol merely takes the edge off but Advil is hard on my stomach too) as well as stomach cramps and nausea. I still am recovering - no bad headache this morning but sore and stiff and tired. I'll have to avoid dairy for a bit too.

Ok, so not to sound all doom & gloom we did have a nice getaway - did some shopping, some swimming, some hiking in the snow (wearing many layers !!!!). So here comes 2009 - kids are back for hockey, tournaments are coming up...really it's all good and this last holiday was a learning experience. I can only rely on myself. My hubby gave me a huge pep talk yesterday - keep the eating simple, the less processed the less chance of glutening. I have become more aware that my getting glutened/sick affects not just me but my whole family. My 12 year old daughter told me that the other day and that made me stop & think. My tendency when I'm glutened is to keep to myself and want to be left alone - and I'm really a grump ! Sad

So, here we go - my only real "resolution" is to buck up and carry on - keep things healthy and GF, if in doubt, don't eat...not likely to starve to death missing a meal !! LOL Of course, we might just FREEZE to death !!!! Rolling Eyes

ostrich · Joined: 30 Mar 2006 Posts: 4700 Location: Nebraska

The holidays were....interesting. Good, but interesting. It was the first time in my life I've ever passed out, and I know I got CC from somewhere (two unrelated incidents). But it was nice to spend time with our families and friends.
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Ostrich :>--O==={

Did you think that your feet had been bound
By what gravity brings to the ground?

Deb · Posted: Sat Jan 03, 2009 9:06 pm Post subject:

The start of a new year, wow! Seems like we were just looking forward to summer, and it's time to look forward to summer again!

The doctor I work for just changed our medical insurance, so I will have to pick and choose who I need to see the most now. I can't afford the $50 copays for specialist, just because they want to see you every 4 months. Our prescription copays went way up too.

I gained a new daughter in law in Dec, and 2 more grandchildren. Yesterday, I finally got in touch with my 2 step granddaughters that we haven't seen or talked to for 8 yrs. I was so happy to find Mindi in Facebook, and see all the pics of her and her sister. They have grown into beautiful women. When their mom died, my sons first wife, the girls father refused to let us see them, call them, or write them. They are adults now, 19 and nearly 21, so maybe we can stay in touch now.

Happy New Year!!!
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You can't discover new oceans unless you have the courage to lose sight of the shore!

luvscowznh · Joined: 23 Dec 2004 Posts: 388 Location: Groton, MA

Our holidays were pretty good this year. It was Joey's first Christmas and everyone spoiled him rotten as you can see from this picture... [img]http://beleriand.blogsite.org/photos/galleries/2008_12_25_ajl/20081225 017.jpg[/img]

I managed not to get glutenated. WOOHOO! My mom is finally starting to get the whole cc thing. It really clicked once she found out I was pregnant last February.

DH and I weren't able to stay up till midnight to ring in the new year. Joey went to sleep around 9:30 or so and we were asleep by 10:30.

I hope everyone has a happy and healthy 2009!

--Manda
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Torrey · Joined: 11 Apr 2005 Posts: 1056 Location: Hawthorne, NJ

cardine45 · Joined: 15 Apr 2008 Posts: 469 Location: Kalamazoo, MI

Well, I'm approximately 9 months gluten-free. I think I'm doing pretty good with the whole thing, mainly due to the fact that I'm probably overly careful. I'm getting more ok with the fact that other people have a hard time with me being too picky, but I hate getting sick.

Apparently, I'm starting the New Year completely fresh too. Me and my boyfriend broke up last night, and I recently had to kick out the guy who was renting one of my upstairs rooms. Don't worry, I'm doing fine with the break-up (it was a long time coming), and we'll just say I'm safer not trusting my previous tenant to be anywhere near me (long story). I don't mean this to be a downer post, I'm actually feeling good about my decisions, and I think my decisions will make for a much better year.

My new years resolution is to get myself to start going to the local Celiac support group, and possibly get myself involved with it as more than a member. I don't normally do new years resolutions, but I think this is something that will be fun and helpful also. I've always hated setting resolutions because most people don't stick to them and I prefer to do things slowly and work on them throughout the year rather than saying I have to just start something because it's a certain day.

Anyhow, here's to a Happy New Year to everyone. I hope everyone is truly blessed.

rpf1007 · Joined: 13 Feb 2008 Posts: 565 Location: Chicago

Well, the holidays were fine- actually I don't go back to work until Wednesday- so I'm savoring my last few days. I have spent the last week in FL visiting my parents and the weather has been amazing. Won't be as nice when I get back to Chicago tomorrow Sad

Unfortuntately, I have been breaking out in blisters big time since I've been here. My parents are ridiculously careful- but I guess I'm used to living in a completely GF house.

Otherwise, my one year GF anniversary is the 8th of this month! I can't believe it has already been a year. I feel like maybe it has taken this long to get my metabolism straight- but I feel like I'm pretty much back to normal.

I'm heading to DC for a month in Feb for work. The only really scary thing is the food situation- but I plan to bring my own cutting board, pot, pan, etc so hopefully that will be ok too.

Happy New Year to all!
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Rachel

nancw · Joined: 04 Oct 2006 Posts: 1062 Location: Denver, CO

Wow - lots of CC over the holidays (including me). Are we letting down our guard? Wink

Speaking of letting down the guard, I've decided that soy cheese won't kill me if it means I can eat a pizza once in a while, and so, Chebe 'za is back on the menu! Still dairy, grain and yeast-free. I was doing a little corn for a while, but the stuff just doesn't digest well.

The cold I got before Thanksgiving morphed into a sinus infection that I walked around with for a month until I couldn't stand it, went to the Walk In clinic day after Xmas, and got some antibiotics. Of course, today being the last day of my scrip I can feel another cold coming on. WTF?!?!

Holidays were rocky - father-in-law was dx'd with stage IV lung and liver cancer just before Xmas - almost exactly 4 years to the day that my brother-in-law died from complications of Type 1 diabetes. It was a bittersweet holiday with my mom visiting, and the knowlege that it was probably FIL's last Xmas with us. Sad

Congratulations to those of you at or approaching your one year GF anniversary. Quite a different perspective now, eh?

Take care everyone. Happy New Year
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Nance

gluten, dairy, soy, rice, yeast and 99% grain-free

WestWalker · Joined: 08 Aug 2006 Posts: 308 Location: West Coast

January has been overcast cold and wet but nothing like the rest of the country. Should be like spring by the end of this week.

In Dec I stayed at a friends house with her 17 year old son while she underwent bone marrow transplant and had to stay in or across the street from the hospital for a month. Her cancer seems to be in remission and things look good so far. In the mean time while she was away and I was staying with her son, the house was surrounded by sheriff deputys one morning early because there had been a storm in the night and I guess the lines had called 911. 911 kept calling the house but we were ignoring the land line - since the kid only uses his cell phone of course, and I wasn't answering their phone just letting it go to the message machine. Needless to say, we avoided them breaking the door down when we went out side to feed the dogs and walked into the sheriffs with their hands on their guns. Then the kid was playing hockey and hurt his hand so I had to take him to the emergency room - where they thought I was his dad which helped get through the ordeal. Then the kid left his hot dogs on the stove which he forgot for four hours and when we got home the flames were just starting to come out of the pan under the lid and the house was filled with smoke like it was on fire. Wew a close one. That would have been terrible with his mom down in the hospital and all needing to focus on beating cancer. The house smelled like smoke for a week 1/2.

I always love logging on to the forum it makes me smile between Al, Ostrich and others and cruelshoes new icon picture (is that called an avatar?) and all the humorous stuff. There is always the family thing - Thanksgiving was long ago but I was supposed to bring drinks because they know all about the gluten thing and they have fixed me dinner before, but the only thing I could eat was a salad but at least I could drink my drinks. Christmas the family fixed a separate gluten free meal so it just depends who in the family is in charge it seems. But I still had a great time both holidays and enjoyed the company - with a hungry stomach at Thanksgiving of course. Smile

Happy New Year to everyone - may it be the best ever for you!

Sligo · Joined: 13 Dec 2008 Posts: 9 Location: PA

Hi, all. I'm Sligo and I was diagnosed days before Thanksgiving. I was terrified and in major denial. I was scared to eat through the holidays. The local support group here meets twice a year and I missed it. I had no idea what to eat. I found this site and bought a book, "Gluten-Free for Dummies". Got information overload. I only ate lean meats and veggies that I cooked myself. I actually LOST weight over the holidays! Things have calmed down as I've passed denial, mostly passed anger and am slowly inching toward acceptance. I do know I feel so much better. I still have a long way to go, and I'm sure it will be an emotional roller coaster, but I've decided to take it one day at a time and make GF a positive, healthy change in my life. If they would just take those darned pizza commercials off TV! Exclamation

luvscowznh · Joined: 23 Dec 2004 Posts: 388 Location: Groton, MA

kb9oyo · Posted: Fri Jan 09, 2009 2:41 pm Post subject:

I was about to write that things were starting to go OK for a while. The holidays were nice and we were starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel. My husband was off work for most of the last couple of years, but he got a job with a big company in May and we were able to get our home out of foreclosure as of October.

He got a phone call from his boss this morning, he has been "RIFed" (reduced in force). He will be paid through today and when he gets his paperwork filled out and returned as well as his computer, he will get another 3-4 weeks salary. That means that the health insurance goes away as well. Luckily, he was able to schedule an angioplasty just before Christmas. We have pretty much gone through all of our resources at this point. I'm not sure just what we will do, but so far, God has always come through and provided. This just wasn't something on my list that I was going to ask for Wink

Sue B
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Sue Beyer

HadassahSukkot · Joined: 04 Aug 2006 Posts: 224 Location: Hessen, Germany

We are doing really good. We didn't get contaminated or anything during the holidays (my guard was waaaaaaaaaaay up. I just can't afford to be sick), and things were super low key.

Jonathan has been keeping me so busy that I don't get much done, including eating, cleaning or cooking Embarassed

He's pulling up and toddling some... and he's crawling everywhere! We've 4 teeth, and he's starting solids. So far mashed potatoes, mashed sweet potatoes, green peas and zuchinni (all seperate). No reactions so far thank G-d in heaven!

I made a recipe I found in a cooking/ladies' magazine here in Germany and posted the gluten free correction over to you guys in the dessert forum. Smile

If I'm hit and miss, it's due to the baby more than anything. I pop in here and can read, I just can't reply if I am to keep an eye on him at all times Embarassed

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sa2asl · Joined: 10 Feb 2008 Posts: 43 Location: Wisconsin

Happy New Year!

I just posted a long one under Travel-Sweet Marie's Kauai, which explains how well my trip went and we rang in 2009 there so it was great! Sorry to hear some of you were sick from cc over the holidays! I got sick earlier in December, at our cottage up north, but we are SO careful, we still can't figure out what it was from.

Christmas came and went with no issues, my bf's family has gotten very careful about cc. I'm very lucky!

Other than that, life is good. (and if the snow would stop in WI, we'd be even better. sigh) I got the CIA's gf Baking book for xmas, a lot of good information and recipes and I'm getting better about making changes to all of my favorite recipes to make them gf.

My one year of being gf is coming up at the beginning of Feb... we are taking a trip up north with friends and plan to celebrate! What a difference a year makes! And THANK YOU to all of you for answering my questions and being the rock that I need sometimes, you guys just get it.

Cheers!
Sarah