Diving In to GF

Here we go, my friends... we are diving into the gluten-free world head-first with no life preserver and we barely know how to swim! Our 10 year-old (we call her 'piggy' because she used to wear pig-tails in her hair when she was little) has suffered from eczema for years and has had bouts of stomach problems recently that have left her feeling less than energetic. We have taken her to the dermatologists and allergists to try and figure out why her skin decided it didn't want to play nice with the rest of her body, but got no definitive answer. What we did get were plenty of prescriptions to alleviate the symptoms of her eczema, including one that came with a dire warning: Could cause cancer! Yeah, right...

With her symptoms getting worse as she spent more time in the pool, after sweating, or trying on clothes at the mall, we decided that we had to do something different. And this is where divine intervention led us to the gluten-free lifestyle...

My two oldest children enrolled in a 'Healthy Cooking: Gluten-Free' class through our homeschool group. It was kind of a fluke that they even took the class. They were looking for something to do while Piggy was taking Art class, so they reluctantly signed up for their culinary 'blow-off' class. However, they were both surprised to see how much they enjoyed making the healthy alternative recipes and were equally surprised at how good they tasted. Now, each week after class, they prepare the recipe they learned that day for the entire family for dinner. I have to say, Thursdays have become my favorite day of the week!

Still unaware of what the gluten-free lifestyle was all about (but enjoying the Thursday dinners), I read a post by a high school friend on Facebook claiming that since she had started GF a few months earlier, her lifelong eczema was gone! Yes, gone!! Now, this girl knows what she is talking about, because she is a nutritionist. If I would trust anyone to help with a special diet, it would be her!

So light bulbs went off...could this help Piggy? Well, it can't hurt, can it? Now, I'm not a great cook, but I can hold my own in the kitchen. I've got a lot of learning to do about gluten and a lot of changes to make in the way I cook as well as what I cook. It is going to be interesting! So here our journey begins. Hold your breath cause we are diving in!