Small victories

... I figured out how to use chopsticks to put my hair up (thanks, Youtube!)

... we've identified good gluten-free brands, making shopping quicker.

... White Box Pies makes tasty tasty gluten-free desserts. And they're a locally owned small business. Double victory!

... I managed to NOT watch either the Democratic or Republican National conventions. :D

Hey, I'll take what I can get. :D

Happiness is...

... a gluten-free chocolate eclair from White Box Pies. Hand delivered by family members, no less. :D

Holiday weekend omnibus post

Mr E and I went to see Wanted on Friday (Kid A was off at Silverwood with friends). Big, loud, hyperkinetic, and bloody, AKA my kind of movie.

Then we checked out the gluten free selections at Huckleberry's. Bottom line: they have a slightly better variety than Yokes, and for some products the prices are lower.

Maximum force family togetherness on Sunday; went shopping with mom and sisters, while Mr E and Kid A hung out with Cousin D (who needs to eat something! he grew six inches and looks like stretch armstrong). Amazingly enough, I'm a size 8. Whodathunkit? Then dinner at Mom's -- big T-bone steaks and all the fixin's (except for the French bread).

Smile... grumble... smile

On today's lunchtime walk, Mr P and I headed down to a local chocolate boutique so I could look for gluten free chocolate. It exists, but you definitely pay the "we're making sure something isn't in it" surcharge... I suppose I could countenance a $3.00 chocolate bar once a month, though...

That's just weird

I Google'd "gluten free fandom" to see if anybody's thought of that, and this here blog was hit number 11... could be my tags, I guess. :D

Gluten free shopping spree!

The whole family went to the local Yokes last night, to stock up on gluten free foodstuffs. They've recently created an organic section, in which most of the gluten free foods can be found. Highlights:

• Yay! Gluten free beer! Boo! It's by Anheuser-Busch (spit)!
• As I feared, explicitly gluten free foods cost more than their regular counterparts.
• But there are a lot of regular foods that are naturally gluten free (Rice Chex, corn tortillas) as long as you take a careful look at the ingredients lists.
• We found gluten free flour and the xanthan gum required to make it work. Mr E is making pizza crust tonight (from gf mix) and may tackle gf banana bread this weekend. We cued up a bread machine for purchase next pay day. :D
• I never realized there was that much wheat in food.
• Still need to work on getting more fresh fruits and vegetables into our diet.

All in all, it was more expensive than a regular stocking run, but we've got enough to keep me fed for a couple weeks, so it's a win overall.

Gluten free, day one

diary format...

Breakfast is business as usual, as Rice Chex are already gluten free. :D Fortunately for my co-workers, black coffee is also on the good list.

The One-A-Day I was taking had some suspect ingredients, but I had a bottle of less-adulterated multi-vitamins already available. However, the glucosamine-chondroitin is also suspect (and I just bought it, sigh). I'll have to find a new brand for that.

9:30 am: Blue Diamond Natural Almond Nut-Thins (Smokehouse flavor) are full of win. Crunchy and salty and tasty.

11:00 am: Lunch! Two corn tortillas + cheddar = tasty. But gone too fast; should have packed up some salad to go with it. Ah, well, I still have plenty of Almond Nut-Thins... oh, and I was thinking of taking aspartame out of my diet too, but couldn't resist the lure of the Diet Pepsi Max.

11:31 am: ITCHY! Prolly psychosomatic, but still... ITCHY! ALL! OVER!

1:00 pm: went for a nice walk with P, down to the river and back, with only a little bushwhacking along the way (is it really a shortcut when it's darn near vertical?)

2:30 pm: had some of the leftover cheddar for snackies. The Almond Nut-Thins are too good... the box is supposed to have 4 servings, and I think I've already had three of them. Oops. :D

6:30 pm: Mr E defeated the pizza crust in single combat; a bit heavy, but tasty. The Red Bridge beer is, meh, beer. I think I may switch to wine....