gluten free - where do I even start? Tips, recipes, encouragement needed!!

[marensmama]

Hayden's reflux continues to be an issue for her and frustratingly all her testing has come back normal.  There were extremely minimal celiac changes in her gut, so minimal that those changes could be present with a viral illness within the last three months.  The GI said that a GF diet may not help but it certainly couldn't hurt.  However, he had no other suggestions and it's the only thing we haven't tried.  In my heart of hearts, I don't believe it will make any difference but I'm willing to do anything to make her better.  

So how do I do this?  We are making the change as a family...  What do you feed your kids?  What do you eat?  Do you have a recipe for GF bread?  I just don't know where to start!  TIA

[MasynSpencerElliotte]

Nicole, I have never ever found a GF bread substitute that comes close to the real thing, so we gave up on trying to find any (Spencer doesn't ask for it anymore anyways!) But, we also can't do eggs so made a big difference.

Lets see...she eats alot of rice, rice pasta, GF cheerios and oatmeal for breakfasts.  She's a fairly limited eater!  I have had alot of success with subbing gf flours in recipes (pancakes, cupcakes, sugar cookies, homemade chicken "nuggets")  Oh, and Rice Krispies make gf brown rice krispies.  Even Masyn eats alot of GF foods because it is easier than policing them to keep Spencer from eating what she shouldn't.

Another site that would be a good resource is http://www.kidswithfoodallergies.org/   They have lots of info on what things certain allergens are "hiding" under.  Though in Canada labelling is pretty good as gluten is in our list of allergens that have to be labelled. 

I'm off for a night away with DH    but I will think on this more, I really hope it helps Hayden!

[Jenybean2]

Hi -

I have a 4 year old with food allergies - dairy, wheat, egg, pineapple and now my 3 month old is on special formula for allergies too...so I completely understand the panic of -0h no what do I feed them!

I totally agree with the previous post that kidswithfoodallergies.org is a GREAT resource.. we pay to be members and it's really been great. 

A company named Vanns makes GF (and other allergy free too) waffles, french toast, etc for breakfast.. and Chex cereal makes GF rice and corn cereals that are good.

My son LOVES hummus for lunch.. no bread needed.. he uses GF crackers or veggies.  Dinners aren't that hard ... but you have to make a lot yourself.  We do get him chicken nuggets.... from two places.. Ian's is one company... they make other products too.. and also Coleman natural.. (coleman ones are better).  He LOVES them.  You can make your own chicken nuggets using gluten free bread crumbs... but I've tried even gluten free pretzels some times.  Synders and Glutino make great GF pretzels... Glutino also makes cereal bars that my son likes. 
Herr's potato chips and Tostitos are also GF.  As I think of more things or ideas I will pass it on..Good luck!

[my3girlsjde]

Nicole I was so happy when I saw you starting this

Thrifty's has a gluten free section and carries gf bread. I haven't tried it but it seems just a little denser than the real stuff.

We eat a lot of homemade soup and rice. I load up her soup with rice and she loves it. Usually when we grocery shop I get a pack of three whole chickens from Costco and keep the bones every time I cook one and turn it into soup. It doesn't take long once you get into the swing of it. Rice pasta and I plan on trying a pasta salad with it. I think Emma will be taking a lot of pasta salads to school for lunch.

I made gf oat flour and use it to make muffins. I use an extra egg and a container of Motts applesauce and they're pretty good. A little cruelly but she really likes them. I even eat them before working out now. Gf Rice Crispies into rice crispy squares are a constant staple here.Just double check your marshmellows

It CAN be done. within a week or two you'll get the hang of it and it's not nearly as intimidating. I got a type of gf potato puffs but they were pretty bland so there are some things out there that take some getting used to. Wal-Mart has a gf section and they have cupcakes and cookies and the gingerbread ones are pretty yummy. They do have butter in them but if Hayden can eat dairy then you've got a lot of options in that store. Emma loves her rice crackers and they're super cheap at wal-mart. $2.00 a pack unless they go on sale.

Will be back if I think of more. Check that website out. It's pretty good.

More hugs, I know it's no small thing to make this step.

[my3girlsjde]

Oh yeah - All of the hotdog companies now make natural type hot dogs and the Schneiders ones are pretty good. Taste like bacon actually. And things that taste like bacon aren't usually a bad thing

[MasynSpencerElliotte]

Lol on the bacon. Yum!  We use a lot of the Vann's and Glutino products (and Ian's chicken niggets) for the times when we need something quick-ie DH is doing the cooking!

Any processed meat you have to watch - burgers, sandwich meat etc. DH works at a company that processes meat products and some of the burgers they make are nearly 50% wheat crumbs as filler!!

[marensmama]

OK I'm learning a little bit.  There's not a lot of processed foods that we eat.  I'm cheap and buying processed stuff is expensive (and normally not as tasty).  Hayden eats a lot of yogurt, eggs, fruit, cheese etc. anyways, in fact we all do.  Her crackers can easily be changed to rice crackers (are they all GF?) and I bake granola bars or muffins each week so can switch to GF ingredients easily enough.  The toughest thing will be lunches (she loves her sandwiches with deli meat!! Double yikes! DH will have a hard time with that too!!) and we do eat a fair amount of pasta.  Vicki, if you have a favourite brand of pasta, could you share?  Also if you have kid friendly pasta salad recipes, that would be a good lunch idea.

I'm gonna try making some hummus today and use that as a dip for rice crackers and raw veg.  If she really likes it, then I can send it to daycare for lunch.  Will pick up some chex and GF rice krispies.  I need a good bread recipe though, my PB toast in the morning can't be substituted for anything else or my blood sugar is off all day.  Also we do homemade pizza night every Saturday, need to rethink that...  We don't buy a lot of meat for the pizza, it's usually veg with diced chicken or something but the crust is an issue.  I think I need a trip to the grocery store sans children so I've got time to read labels.  I usually do read labels for my own WW needs, and because I try to buy nothing with HFCS, but now I've got something else to pay attention to. 

I have been good at meal planning dinners, so I guess this just means planning all of our meals ahead of time.  Now I have to educate daycare and family and teachers... And if I thought I was 'that mom' before, it just got taken to a whole different level. 

If this doesn't work, then I try GF and dairy free, I guess.  And if that doesn't work, then what?

[Buntybear]

Hi, just dropping off some hugs and support. You sound like you have your head screwed on when it comes to food anyway so I don't this will be too hard for you. Was going to suggest quinoa and find the thread with the quinoa salad recipe only to find it was yours anyway! lol

Rice is a good alternative too - you can make that into salad with all sorts too.

As for pasta/rice salads I just chuck in anything I have in the fridge - ham, chicken, veges. A vinagarette/citrus dressing. Mayo/sour cream/yoghurt dressing.                                   

[Chicane]

haven't got time to read through all the thread but this blog is an awesome resource for gluten free recipes, I read it all the time

http://www.mydarlinglemonthyme.com/

[MasynSpencerElliotte]

I don't think you can assume all rice crackers are gf...we look up our brand tomorrow. We use tinkayada (sp?) Pasta and even I can eat it if it is in sauce. Sounds like the shift should be easy once you figure the bread thing out. I make a gf pizza dough, it is just a mix of gf flours, water and oil.

[rach321]

Can't advise on brands etc cos I'm in the UK. But I did find that making pretty much everything was easier - if you substitute regular flour for GF flour ( which over here is usually a mix of rice, corn, tapioca and potato starch) the mix will usually be a little drier than normal so you will need to add more liquid.  We did GF for 9 months with DS2, to be honest it was easier for all of us to do it, the only thing I didn't do was bread - I never found a GF bread that was tasty but if you make your own you might have more success.  Agree with the other posters in that the thought of it is actually worse than doing it.  If you like a lot of pasta then GF pasta is really OK, I was lucky my DS2 loved rice and even now will prefer rice over pasta (GF or regular!).  Its just eating out that is a huge problem.

[Buntybear]

Forgot to say you can make pizza bases from polenta apparently!

http://blog.fatfreevegan.com/2008/01/personal-polenta-pizza.html

She mentions potato pizza crust too!

[my3girlsjde]

I remember a cauliflower crust somewhere but I've not tried it. Coconut flour I think Deb might use but not certain.

Our rice crackers are gf because I buy the plain ones as the favoured ones are full of dairy.

I tossed the package for the rice noodles but they carry them both Wal-Mart and at Thrifty's. At Wal-mart they're in the gf section with the cookies and at Thrifty's, they're in with the pasta. There seems to be no rhyme or reason where grocers put this stuff so I'm still struggling to find it tbh. But it's there if you look. They even have gf muffins and cakes at Thrifty's . They look pretty yummy but they're loaded with dairy so I've had no reason to buy them.

Sandwiches CAN be done. You can buy gf bread if you need to as it's pre-sliced and I'm thinking mind over matter with a small child. You can go to the deli and have them shave the meat right there. I've in the past been the crazy mom who asks them to clean the blade first as a lot of stuff they cut contains dairy.

[Sam-n-Max's Mommy]

Just seeing this now.  (((Hugs))), Nicole -- DS just went gluten, dairy, and egg free.  We use a lot what the pps have suggested, mostly because I took their advice when I posted since I was freaking out about this ;-).  I haven't tried making my own bread yet and I will totally agree that nothing comes close to the regular kind.  When I go downstairs, I'll check the brand we use now for DS - he actually seems to really like his sandwiches on it.  It is also dairy and egg free because it has to be for him.  The Ian's chicken nuggets are great and I've been making my own recently with Glutino's gf breadcrumbs.  There are also some recipes where you can use crushed corn chex to make them.  For breakfast we do pancakes or french toast (which is challenging when you can't use egg!), but he is happy.  I have been using a mix called Cherrybrook Kitchen and it is actually very good.  I made cornmeal pancakes this morning...I think I need to work on the recipe a bit more because they didn't come out exactly the way I wanted (a little mushy on the inside although DS didn't seem to mind). 
We buy nut chips and they are really good.  I'll check on that brand as well. 
I *think* that most products that are gluten-free will say it on the packaging - although if it doesn't say it on there doesn't mean that it isn't.  I replaced some of my baking items with ones that had gluten free labels - ie vanilla extract and baking powder.  I read that they usually are, but some websites say you can only be certain if they say gluten free on it, so I wanted to be safe.  I will also look through my bookmarks - I think I save a webpage that lists ingredients that are contain gluten.
When I have more time, I'll also post some of my recipes.  I'll be back on later or tomorrow. xx

[Katet]

My experience with GF bread is really it is dense & best as toast, certainly not all that yummy as a sandwich, but then I've not really been a sandwich girl anyway so no great loss for me.

Nicole, if the GF doesn't do anything in 6 weeks, I'd then go looking at dairy & then fructose, as if she eats lots of dairy & friut they too could be the problem... I know fructose is the problem for my friend with her reflux.

[Little toes]

Just wanted to add hugs and some gf foods.....forgive me if they've already been mentioned, i just skimmed the pp's. Ok, so Arrowhead Mills - good corn spaghetti and other noodles like elbow macaroni, Duinkerken - mixes for muffins, pancakes, cookies, etc. I buy both at Walmart. There are two other brands that work for us, Italpasta and Misuro (sp?) I find them in local grocery stores that sell italian brand foods. I prefer the corn pasta as opposed to rice, find it cooks much better. Shopping at these stores saves me a bit of money, I found the health food stores to be overpriced.

[nwmm]

I would like to listen in.  I have just been cutting back and want to learn.

[marensmama]

Nicole, if the GF doesn't do anything in 6 weeks, I'd then go looking at dairy & then fructose, as if she eats lots of dairy & friut they too could be the problem... I know fructose is the problem for my friend with her reflux.

I'm certainly hoping that gluten is the problem here.  Feeding her is tricky enough, but eliminating her go-to foods would be a nightmare.  I've noticed that she tends to stop eating crackers and bread after just a few bites, she'll scrape the cheese or topping off with her fingers ( ) but leave the bread-y part.  Maybe she's limiting herself, maybe she doesn't feel well after eating it.  She's started asking for scrambled eggs for breakfast every morning, instead of a more typically gluten-laden cereal or toast.  I bet if I send GF crackers with GF sandwich meat and cheese for her lunch, she'd be more likely to eat it all.  Maybe it's in the presentation, too.  If I get a bento box style lunch box and the presentation is different, she won't miss the typical appearance of the sandwich.  Just thinking out loud here.

Littletoes, thanks for the info.  I'll look for those brands at my grocery store tomorrow.  Is the vegetable pasta GF, does anyone know?

Looking forward to checking out my grocery stores for this stuff.  I'm starting to feel bad feeding her foods that contain gluten as I get things sorted out... I've given myself a week to get sorted and a plan in place.  

[my3girlsjde]

I'm starting to feel bad feeding her foods that contain gluten as I get things sorted out... I've given myself a week to get sorted and a plan in place.

Hugs Nicole - I know this feeling. Just remember that during this time, cutting back will be helping iykwim.

I've noticed that she tends to stop eating crackers and bread after just a few bites, she'll scrape the cheese or topping off with her fingers (  ) but leave the bread-y part.  Maybe she's limiting herself, maybe she doesn't feel well after eating it.

This was E as well at a point. Many of the foods that didn't agree with her, she would refuse. It took six months to get her to eat an egg, and even though she's fine with them now when she's not having gluten she would get incredibly gassy and quit eating.

I so hope this works for you.

Just wanted to add that I'm a 'lister'. I have lists of things that E can eat and that she can't as well as a few maybe's. Because there's times that she's hungry and our usual go-to things aren't available I can see something that I haven't thought about giving her in a while. It saves on the frustration.

[Sam-n-Max's Mommy]

The brand of bread we use is Food for Life, Rice Almond flavor.  Like I said, it doesn't taste like real bread, but DS seems to like it especially if I microwave it first and cut off the crust when he eats a sandwich.  The same brand English Muffins aren't bad either -- I actually eat them myself.  The brand of pasta we've been trying is Tinkyada.  DS doesn't eat pasta (but he didn't before he was gf either), but DH and I have been eating it and it's pretty good.  The nut chips are called Baked Nut Chips and are by Blue Diamond.  They are a big hit.  DS eats Corn Chex and hasn't tried this other brand yet, but it is pretty yummy - EnviroKids Organic Panda Puffs (they are peanut butter flavored).

We also use Arrowhead Mills all-purpose flour, Cherrybrook Kitchen Pancake Mix, Cherrybrook Kitchen Muffin and Scone Mix, and Glutino Breadcrumbs (although I think it's just seasoned gf cornmeal). 

Here is a link to a thread I started a few weeks ago.  I posted a french toast recipe and chicken nugget recipe.  You can use regular milk and egg since you are not df and ef too.  I have some others, if you want them let me know.  I am also planning on trying to make homemade tater tots -- we'll see lol.

Give yourself a break and sometime to process it.  It is a big change and you'll have it sorted out in no time. 

[my3girlsjde]

How is it going Nicole?

We had a slip up as dh was 'mom' this week and E had some regular hot dogs. Today she was wheezing and needed her puffers for the first time in about six weeks.

I think we've learned an important lesson. We can do obvious things like bread for the big girls but things like hot dogs where mistakes can happen we're better off to have all of us go gf for that item.

Hope things are going well

[Katet]

I'm not sure if it is a co-incidence, but there always seems to be that "could be but might not be"
I ate a bread roll on the weekend & have had lots (for me) of wheat based foods this week (I go with trace wheat & Gluten rather than totally wheat & GF) & I have a cold. Now DS2 has also just got it, but it seems everytime I do the "lets just try & see what happens, I get a cold or the like... I actually haven't had the heavy feeling in the stomach that I used to, but I'm kind of thinking my immunity is down when I do eat wheat/gluten"

[marensmama]

Well so far Hayden hates everything that's GF.    However, we've been able to stick with it for her (DH and I are finishing up the wheat bread that I stocked up on, as well as the crackers and cereal that she didn't eat before anyways).  Maren on the other hand is quite interested in learning all about gluten and what foods contain it.  That's my rule follower!!!    I have a few recipes to try for making GF bread (sampled the recipe already from a co-worker who is celiac) and I've managed to make some small changes to other recipes that we normally eat to get rid of gluten.  Tonight we had quesadillas in brown rice tortillas that were quite yummy.

So how is Hayden doing, you're wondering.... well, last night was the first night in recent history that she STTN and slept for 11.5 hrs, past all the things that would have woken her up before (like the shower in our ensuite waking her, or me going into their bathroom to get ready in the morning).  That was amazing, usually she's up at least once in the night and by 5:37am at the latest.  She is still complaining of tummy aches.  She is still very very touchy.  She said today that she threw up in her mouth at daycare.  But maybe, just maybe we've seen a bit of progress in the four short days that she has been GF?

Her daycare has been very accommodating, providing her with a GF cookie to replace the animal cracker they normally give each of the kids after they eat their lunch.  I realized today though, that playdoh is made from wheat flour... and since she still eats the stuff we're going to have to have some alternative organized. 

[MasynSpencerElliotte]

There is a product called Moon Dough that is GF, we don't have it so I have no idea what it is like.  Spencer had playdoh aversions until recently and no way would she ever put it in her mouth!!

Wow, STTN is awesome...hopefully this is the key!  Love that Maren is all into the GF stuff, Masyn is the allergy/intolerance police at our house, even at daycare and the IL's she questions everything that Spencer is fed.  I think once Hayden gets that "gluten" taste out of her mind it might be easier. 

[amandamae]

If you're still looking for recipes try http://glutenfreegoddess.blogspot.com. My GF sister introduced me to it. She's entertaining and the recipes are pretty flexible. You can even just peruse them for inspiration. I cook from there for my family just because she has some great recipes!

[Buntybear]

That is a really great start, onwards and upwards I hope! Olly showed most of his allergies at night time with long NWs, once we removed the culprits he started to STTN too x

[Katet]

Funnily I hadn't actually connected that this week my sleep has been really poor & I've been waking at 5ish - this is the week I went off the rails. Funny how you don't notice things until you listen to others.
I'd love my family to be GF (esp Ds1) as I think it would help DS1's noisy breathing (ENT says there is no physical cause & it is probably related to allergy), but I can't see DH getting on side.

[Little toes]

STTN is great! Hopefully you'll continue to see improvements!

That is a really great start, onwards and upwards I hope! Olly showed most of his allergies at night time with long NWs, once we removed the culprits he started to STTN too x

I've noticed a connection with foods and sttn, wish I had known sooner.

The other day I made gf macaroni salad - corn elbow noodles, they also sell gf mayo but i'm not sure about that, if it makes a difference.

[okinawamama]

Do you have access to the brand Udi's? They make fantastic breads, bagels, pizza dough, muffins....it's not cheap, but it's by far the best tasting product I've found for GF breads. We only give it to DS2 (and me since I'm still BF), but everyone else in the family prefers the GF bread, it's that yummy!

Have you tried any corn tortillas? We use those in place of bread/dough's pretty frequently. I put cheese, or cinnamon and sugar, peanut butter/honey, tomato sauce with cheese.....and my little guy really likes it!

For us, the first thing that improved on the GF diet was my sons sleep. Exactly 1 week after going GF, my son slept through the night for the first time in his life! I hope that the GF diet is the missing piece of the puzzle for you and your LO!  

[my3girlsjde]

ITA about the sleep. E is still up at night after the gluten she had a few days ago. Her sttn's started a few weeks after she went off gluten 

Hopefully the tummy aches subside with this out of her diet a while longer.

And yay! For accommodating daycare

[marensmama]

Well last night she STTN but was up still a bit early...5:50. today we were at Marens school for a spring tea and there was lots of fruit but of course lots of non-GF treats and Hayden cried and cried until I gave her half a cookie. I feel bad for doing it, but she was sooooo done and if we had any hope to stay and enjoy the time with Maren serving us, it had to be done. Next time I'll be more prepared with GF treats for her. It's just so tough when ALL the other kids are eating cookies and you're not allowed. She kept crying, "But mommy it doesn't make my tummy sick!! It doesn't!!". Ugh. I caved and I shouldn't have.

Btw I did find a recipe for GF playdoh!!

[Katet]

Nicole can I suggest that when you find a GF treat that she really likes, keep it for special occasion so that you can give it to her when there are no other options.

With both my friends who are coeliac, they rarely go anywhere without some form of GF food & I've started to be much the same. Just makes it so much easier not be tempted by the chocolate cake if I have a small container of apricot delights or coconut macaroons.

[Sam-n-Max's Mommy]

Nicole -- the brand Annie's makes some good gluten-free cookies.  My DS really likes the Snickerdoodle flavor.  He never really cared for cookies before, but loves these.  I've had them and they are really good.

[marensmama]

So we are through week 2 of being GF... mostly, that is.  I've been truly GF for 3 days now, while DH and Maren still are finishing off the wheat bread and regular oatmeal that was left in the house.  Hayden has been GF for over 2 weeks now.  Our house has been pretty chaotic this week, with Maren having a bad accident at school which knocked out two of her teeth and mashed her lips up pretty bad.  She's only been allowed soft foods and the oatmeal was what she wanted most.  She has no obvious signs of gluten sensitivity so I've not worried about that much.  However, I do worry about cross-contamination a bit, and will be happy once all the gluten laden foods are out of our house.  We're getting there.  What's more, even if this doesn't sort out Hayden's troubles, I'm way happier with the foods I've been making, and think we'll stick with GF.  There is really nothing processed in our house anymore, and really, it all tastes better anyways.  Once I outfitted us with some pantry basics likes GF oats, GF flours, and GF pastas, the grocery bill has been the same as before, if not slightly less anyways.

Today I made a quinoa chocolate cake for mother's day tomorrow, and if the batter is any indication, it's better than any chocolate cake mix from a box by far.  One of the teachers at Hayden's preschool is on a GF diet as well, so she's often sharing her treats with Hayden at lunch.  It makes Hayden feel like it's a special thing to be GF, since E doesn't share with any of the other kids, so she's not minding it as much. 

There are a million good recipes on pinterest, lots of resources online and in certain cookbooks, and some great products in the stores.  This really is a much easier transition than I anticipated.  I do spend more time cooking during the week, since I have to make my own cream of soups and worcestershire sauce etc. for recipes, but I'm actually enjoying it anyways. 

[my3girlsjde]

What a great update Nicole

I know now that the thought of gf is a lot worse than actually doing it. That's so great that the teacher is willing to share and make her feel special.

Don't forget about gf Rice Crispy squares. They're a 'junk food' treat

[marensmama]

I have to say (forgive me!), I am so proud of myself!!  I have taken the leap to be GF and I'm making lovely meals for my family.  Having to make things like dressings, cream soups, worcestershire sauce, taco seasoning, etc. from scratch is extra work for sure, but so worthwhile when I know exactly what is going in to everything we eat.  I feel like I am really nourishing my children, not just feeding them, iykwim.  Today I made a really nice baked banana blueberry oatmeal for breakfast, then a healthy mac-n-cheese with raw veggies for lunch, and steak with quinoa greek salad and caesar salad, and a quinoa chocolate cake for dessert, with snacks being our usual cut up fruit.  Everything was from scratch, I really could have only done better if I'd grown the fruits and veggies myself.  I even made homemade lemonade as a treat (not hard, but still not a mix of any sort... I even squeezed the lemons by hand!! Note to self, invest in one of those little white juicer thingys!) 

The reason this is all so remarkable is because until 14 months ago, my DH did all the cooking in our house.  Sure, I baked and made lunches, but the real meals were all made by DH.  When his job situation changed, I suddenly had to take on the role of cook, and it wasn't an easy transition!  Thanks to BW I learned all about meal planning, and with the infinite resource that is the internet, I have grown to the point where I'd prefer to be in my kitchen all day.  And going GF is just another direction for me to grow in.  I'm having more confidence with substitutions and modifications to recipes, in fact I just made muffins for the girls lunches that I modified in 4 different ways.  mmm, and they are AMAZING! 

Yay!  I might just be a grown-up after all! 

[MasynSpencerElliotte]

Yay!  I might just be a grown-up after all!

   That is really great Nicole...I hope someday I get to love being in the kitchen too! I haven't attempted an entirely GF meal for the whole family on purpose, but many nights it ends up that way.  I wish my DH was into cooking, because I only do it because no one else will.  How is Hayden doing?

[Buntybear]

Wow what a fantastic attitude! I love being in the kitchen too and have experimented for Olly but he is so picky that it is not enjoyable when it is rejected! On the plus side just this week he has eaten 3 new things that he wouldn't have before so that is good! I am going to post 2 of them on the recipe swap board if you are interested.

How are you getting on the the GF subs? Any advice gratefully recieved on the flour front 

[nwmm]

Sign me up to listen in and learn some more please.

I have been cutting back.

[marensmama]

So I've been wondering if all my hard work is actually doing anything...Aside from mostly better sleeps (but still EWing at 5:30) her reflux still seems the same, and her mood is touchy.  Yesterday we had a beach day as the weather here has been so lovely.  I packed a picnic for the girls but DH wanted some fried chicken :X (reliving some childhood picnic thing, I think, since we never eat that stuff!) so he stopped and got a bucket of it for us to eat at the beach.  The coating on the chicken was not GF, and I knew that if we peeled it off and gave Hayden the chicken underneath that there was gluten contamination.  But we did it anyways.  It's so hard saying no all the time, even though we all eat GF at home now.  Everywhere there is food that is not GF, we can't eat out really any more (not that we do that much anyways, but we can't even go out for a spontaneous coffee without there being temptations.)  I guess the key is to always have GF baking at home, and always have a snack bag with me in case we need it.  During the week is way easier than the weekends.

Anyways, after the beach day the girls were super tired and went to bed easily at their usual time.  Hayden was awake from 9:30 to 10:30, though, crying and unable to be resettled, complaining of a headache.  It wasn't until I gave her a tylenol that she was able to fall back to sleep.  DH figures this is from being out in the sun all day (she was wearing a hat, it wasn't hot by any stretch, and the headache didn't show up until more than 5 hours of being home) but I'm wondering if it was the gluten contaminated chicken?

[my3girlsjde]

This is entirely possible. How long has it been now?

Sleep is always our indicator of how their bellies are dealing with food. Have you thought about or attempted dairy yet?

[marensmama]

This is our fourth week.  I plan to wait until at least the 6 wk mark before I try going dairy free, just to see if being GF is making any real difference.  Hayden's favourite foods are yogurt and cheese, and it's soooo restrictive to be DF, I honestly don't know how I'll do it.

While doing endless reading online about celiac and gluten sensitivity, I came across dermatitis herpetiformis which is a rash associated with gluten sensitivity.  I have a post about this on the health board, but it would seem that Hayden has this (or something like it) on her buttocks.  Making me think we're on the right track here and just need to persevere. 

[Peek-a-boo]

Interesting updates!  I love how you're embracing this.

For going DF, there is coconut milk yogurt that is very good.  It's available commercially, but a blog I follow posted a recipe for making it at home as well.   I can get you the link you are interested. 

[my3girlsjde]

I think you're on the right track Nicole . I saw your other thread and I'm thinking glutenbis a strong possibility.

We were shopping the other day and my regular gf hot dogs weren't there and I picked up a pack of Maple Leaf  ones. I can't tell the difference at all

Trying different gf cookies and there are some good ones but none I can remember the name of. I really haven't found a bad one yet. I'm trying to keep a stash of them for times we're out

[deb]

Josie has had a persistent rash for some time that I think may be gluten-related; the DH sounds and looks a LOT like what she has in patches on her body. Looks like that once-a-week PBJ for the girls may be a thing of the past now unless I can find GF bread that doesn't suck. Nat has no rash, but I can see behavioral changes when she's had bread products.

Going dairy-free is another steep learning curve, but we drink so much water and diluted cranberry juice and the odd coconut water that they don't miss milk. We do indulge in unpasteurized (raw) milk when we can get it, which is pretty rarely (when we visit grandparents in PA, where raw milk is legal), but we just drink the stuff rather than use it in anything. And because we don't really bake, there's not really a worry about ingredients being contaminated w/gluten; we're pretty much eating veg and meat and eggs and that's it, except for the yogurt I make - and we may try a dairy-free trial over the summer (yogurt is SOOOO easy to pack in school lunches so I'll stick it out for 2 more weeks LOL).

[marensmama]

OK here's our update for the 5-6 week mark:

It's 7:45 am here, Maren has been playing with the dog for over an hour now (quite loudly, I might add ) and Hayden is STILL SLEEPING.  This happened for a period of two weeks back in January of 2011 when she had finally dropped her nap and her reflux was well controlled.  I remember that time well, wondered if we'd ever have that again.  This could be a one-off, but considering she wasn't up late last night and isn't ill, I think it's amazing! A 13 hour night! Her sleep has been better overall in the last two weeks, not this great, but certainly better than its been.

We went out for dinner last night.  Our first time since she's been GF.  It was intimidating, but we went to a diner type place that does all day breakfast so she could have eggs and bacon.  It worked out pretty well.

The rest of us have gone back to eating gluten in small amounts.  I'm careful not to cross-contaminate Hayden's food, and any baking I do is GF so she can have it.  It's mostly just bread that's our trouble.  The only decent GF bread is $8 a loaf and since DH and Maren haven't been sticking to the GF diet outside of home, there's no point spending so much money on bread. 

Otherwise, it's impossible to tell if her reflux is any better.  She has not flared up at least, and she hasn't complained of a tummy ache in a while.  The rash on her bottom got better but now is slightly worse again.  So who knows? 

[my3girlsjde]

It's 7:45 am here, Maren has been playing with the dog for over an hour now (quite loudly, I might add  ) and Hayden is STILL SLEEPING.

If I didn't know the struggle you've been going through I would be EXTREMELY JEALOUS lol. That's so great!!!

I really think you're on the right track here. I'm curious about the dairy too, but if the reflux is controlled or at least not flaring up and no tummy ache and no other outward symptoms, then I would think to leave it for now. Dairy AND gluten is a huge undertaking and where she's at the age of understanding what an ice cream is but not exactly why she can't have it or being in the moment and not caring that it would upset her body later than totally not worth it.

The rash on her bottom got better but now is slightly worse again.

I've learned through E that even when the food issue is removed, if there's any type of yeast going on with the rash it will still persist until it's killed off completely. I've had a LOT of success with OTC Nystatin antifungal and an OTC hydrocortisone cream (I think 0.5%) one after the other and it both kills off the yeast and helps the skin heal.

Since it's now 930am, I know she's likely up but I hope she does as well for you again tonight