I made two major discoveries yesterday. I have been feeding my little guy too much fiber, and gluten is very much EVERYWHERE.

Certainly, I knew to look for the 'gluten free' labels and I knew to call those 1-800 numbers. I even marched into Happy Wok and inspected their supplies (our favorite fast food chinese resteraunt who caters to individual orders.) By the way, thumbs up to Happy Wok for allowing me to read all of the ingredients in their Chicken Fried Rice. It is possible to order this item without oil, sugar, salt, msg, etc and it still tastes pretty decent. The oil used on their cooking area is soybean oil (hmmm) which is probably an avoid, but since he doesn't react to it, this is a nice compromise.

But I did not know that gluten can be found in the following:

Gatorade

Some herbal teas

Canola oil

Textured Vegetable Protein

Alcohol based soy sauces or alcohol based vanilla

Some curry powders

Red # 40 (I was allowing a lollipop now and then. No more.)

Dry Roasted Nuts (ergo many peanut butters are a problem)

Some shampoos, lotions and soaps



I was suprised at the Canola Oil - for I said "even the organic cold pressed kind?" Yep. Although I think I may just call the company on that one. In fact, during the next grocery shopping trip, I am going to bring a cell phone into the store and call companies right then and there. Meanwhile, my little guy is a very happy and healthy camper at the moment.

July 1st is my goal. I hope that we will truly possess a gluten free kitchen by then. Take care, everyone.

I am not computer savvy. Try as I might, I keep getting e-mails returned. I want everyone to know that I do respond to questions SOONER or LATER. I appreciate the input and I hope that I can help others along the way. So - here's the point: Forget the bounced e-mail - I'll just answer a couple of things here.

#1) Dr. D'damo is an A himself. Ergo, he has an amazing amount of personal insight into this lifestyle. If he has hope for the future, so should you! By the way, we need to take care of both our bodies and our spirits. Please pay attention to both and ask for help wherever you can.

#2) I am far from perfect. One of my biggest imperfections is that I try too hard. For example: I followed the 'gourmet' menu straight out of Cook for Your Blood Type book. For someone who can harldy boil an egg, that was an utterly ridiculous decision! I make things harder than they need to be. For whatever reason, I am simply in too much of a hurry and I need to take baby steps.

I hope that my "mothering" escapades produce chuckles and feelings of "I've been there, too!" I know that it helps me to hear about other parenting challenges. Mothers Unite!



Now for a change of topic........

I want to share what I have recently learned. Food allergies are EXTREMELY tricky. An individual can eat something on Monday and be perfectly fine. But when they eat the exact same thing again the following Monday, the body can then choose to revolt. That's why I want to recommend once again the "Allergy Cooking... and the Elimination Diet" book which I personally purchased from Barnes and Nobles. I also discovered that there is a simple blood test which can check for a comprised immune system.

That's news to me! I have suspected that my little guy falls easily to all invaders (he saw a doctor 16 times during the 2004 year for short term illnesses.) But now we can look for proof! Even if I am wrong, it will help relieve my worries. I am also meeting with a nutritionist tomorrow. She is going to help me plan a menu which covers all of the important bases. Now, I did do this once before with my BTD practioner, but I was unaware at the time of any possible gluten allergies. In fact, I am still not sure. But my insurance will cover this visit, thanks to the referral from our pediatric GI doc.

It is a shame in some ways, because I would rather be paying my btd practioner. On the other hand, I am not walking into that appointment blind. I am going to be bringing the "Live Right for Your Type" book and we are going to menu plan within a very compliant BTD fashion. The pedriatric GI doc mentioned that because my little guy has so many food allergies, it would be easy to accidently lead him into a vitamin or mineral deficiency. Great.

The hopeful side of me says that maybe,,,, just maybe I have been planning appropriately all along. The doubting side says that it would be nice to have some reassurance. Either way, I feel like I have covered all the bases, and if he does experience any unpleasant side effects, I will take a little comfort in knowing that I have done everything I possibly could have.

Now it is just time for trial and error and patience. Ha!!! I want my answers now

I was imagining a beautiful summer day where the wind would roll down the grassy plains and the sun would warm the skin on my face. I was imagining a beautiful meadow dotted with wild flowers where multiple scents combined lightly and effortlessly. I was imagining a time of peace and tranquility where my thoughts were allowed to bloom…..

And then came the shriek. Oh my God, my little one must have finally escaped his crib and broken his neck. I could hear his cries as I raced up the stairs, my stress levels skyrocketing and my guilt factor rising rapidly.

“What’s wrong?”

“I pooped,” he said.

“You scared me!” I said as I hugged him and scanned the area for blood.

Whew, I sighed. Thank goodness he just needed a diaper change. I mean HE REALLY needed a diaper change. The gluten free sesame bar that he had devoured the night before did not get digested. Oh well, at least it wasn’t the big D. At least he wasn’t in pain. As soon as he was cleaned up, he rolled over and snuggled into his blanket. Hmmm. All is right with the world.



We see the specialist again tomorrow. Forgive me, I can’t remember what I have or have not shared previously, but to make a long story very short – the doctors are missing something. Let’s cross our fingers and hope that SOMEBODY can explain to me why his body is having such trouble functioning (stomach cramps, constipation, gas, the big D and hives – not to mention his weak immune system and his affinity for short term illness.) Ok, that’s another topic another day.

Take care everyone.

It was one of those days. My gluten free muffins looked like deflated tires. Sadly, they tasted that way too. We were low on groceries and I was low on ideas. Yet, everyone was still hungry and there was no 'extra' money in the till. I decided that it was imperative to zip on over to the grocery store just to pick up one or two items. I hate doing that, because it is such a waste of time. I simply wasn't organized enough to pick up what I really needed. But hey, the outing might just cheer me up.

So off we go to the local store. As I reached in the car to hoist my 35 pound toddler out of his car seat, I noticed a large wet spot at the bottom of his chair. Then I noticed the smell. Oh!! How could his diaper have leaked and why did it have to leak right then? At this point, one has to start laughing. Fate didn't want me in that store at that precise moment. So, back in he goes (thank goodness he didn't throw a tantrum and struggle) and back home we went.

I had reached the point where it was time to stop struggling against the tide. All of my plans and good intentions needed to wait. After plopping the little one in the tub, it was time to throw something together for lunch.



Here's where it finally gets better. I sauteed some onions and garlic together. Then I sprinkled some "Italian seasonings" by Mcormick onto the onion. It immediately started to smell heavenly. At this point I was starting to melt into aromatherapy. Next, I poured in one cup of Swanson Natural Goodness Chicken broth (by the way, I called them. Yes, it is gluten free.) and I brought one cup of brown rice to a boil. I also poured in a large helping of leftover root soup (rutabagas, carrots, onion, garlic, etc.) Did I mention I threw in some freshly sliced mushrooms? Anyway, 40 minutes later, I sprinkled a little more Italian seasoning in, just a little salt, and a can of sardines.

My toddler and I loved it. It was sweet and spicy. And I had never tasted anything like it in my life. To summarize:

chicken broth

brown rice

onions

garlic

sea salt

carrots

rutabagas

mushrooms

sardines

and the most important ingredient of all: Italian seasonings by Mcmormick. (Wow. What a difference a few seasonings make!)

The rest of the day didn't seem so bad. As for my O? He asked for a grilled cheese sandwhich on Ezekiel bread. I served him spicy beef along with a dark green salad for dinner to make up for his neutral lunch. The A's had this leftover fish stew for dinner along with some pears. Thank God it is Saturday. It is time to slow down.

My computer has not been cooperating. I am not certain if my e-mails are being sent to their intended destinations. Thank you -- for the gluten free pancake advice. I worked on them today and was happy with the outcome.

Creamy hot rice cereal or rice flour

1 egg

1 cup of vanilla rice milk

a little brown sugar

cornmeal (pure)

a dash of sea salt

I just poured this into my blender - dry ingredients first. Then I mixed the dry and added the wet. I decided that the thicker batter turned out better, so I just kept adding cornmeal until it seemed right. I preheated my pancake grill and brushed it liberally with olive oil. It seems to work better than ghee. I dropped the mixture by tablespoons and cooked it for one or two minutes. Once you flip them, they cook up quickly.

Side note I am assuming that my son is an A nonsecretor. According to typebase 4, corn is an avoid. Yet, when I tested him using the elimination diet method, I did not see any negative reaction to corn. I also discovered that he can NOT handle bannanas. Until I have evidence otherwise, my gluten free recipes will probably contain corn. *

Another side note** My two year old saw a doctor 16 times during the 2004 year. He saw a doctor 9 times during 2005. (6 months). Daycare germs aside, I suspect that this number is relatively high. Does anyone have the stats on the average number of doctor visits for a kid who attends day care? We are getting ready to go back to his "specialist" and have a big heart to heart. (The specialist gave up on a diagnosis previously.) Let's see what he thinks once all of my new data is presented.

Now I believe that sweet potatoes are a neutral for a non-secretor. I can't wait to try sweet potato pancakes!! Until then.........