Celiacs plan ahead for a day at the Boston Marathon

The Boston Marathon has always been a special event. Celiac Son and I decided to spend the day this year cheering on the runners. We were emotionally inspired all day long. It was such a special day. We chose to watch the marathon from Natick Center, at about mile marker 10. We chose this location specifically because we knew we could get some gluten free eats at Lola's Italian Restaurant. Thank you, Lola's! Celiac Son totally enjoyed his gluten free turkey sub and he especially enjoyed not having to pack a lunch box!

Here's a short clip of just some of what we experienced on Marathon Monday..

How to make a gluten free ice cream sundae

Recently, I wrote a post about how to take your Celiac child out for ice cream. It was a big hit!

Sometimes, though, we just want to stay in and made our ice cream sundae just the way we like it...whether that means with a cherry on top or 9 cherries on top! Check out our video about how to make a gluten free ice cream sundae:

Celiac Son's List of Questions for Nutritionist at Boston Children's Hospital

My Celiac son had a 6-month check in appointment with a nutritionist today at Boston Children’s Hospital. They have an amazing program which includes an active Celiac support group.

Knowing that today’s appointment was upon us, Celiac Son and I have been keeping notes about random questions we wanted to ask the nutritionist. His list was at the top of the order for the appointment and what I will be sharing in this post.

So the following was Celiac son's list of questions for the nutritionist. Would your Celiac child's list be similar?

Can I eat the following?

-Hot dogs (at hockey rinks)

-Popcorn (at hockey rinks and movie theatres)

-Gum

-McDonald's Milk Shakes (after hockey practice)


-Ice Cream (at ice cream parlors)


Nutritionists’ responses:

Hot dogs

Most of the time, yes. Be sure to ask to read the ingredient list on the package.
Remember, no bun (though you can bring your own. Try Udi’s!)

Popcorn
Yes, just make sure that the person scooping the popcorn is wearing gloves so you don’t have to worry about cross contamination.

Gum
Yes

McDonald’s milk shakes (after hockey practice)
Yes!

Ice cream (at ice cream parlors)
Yes, but follow strict rules. See my previous blog post about Going Out For Ice Cream with a Celiac Child.


Celiac son was thrilled! There are so many things we've had to say "no" to. It was nice for him to have a day where he heard lots of "yes's." Celiac son is thrilled that he can still enjoy some of his favorite “fast foods.”

We are so fortunate to have such an amazing facility in Children's Hospital Boston with professionals who are dedicated to the research and care of children with Celiac Disease.

Image Credits:

McDonald's Milk Shake: www.mcdonalds.com
Popcorn: timelessbeauty.wordpress.com

Gluten Free Communion Host

If you partake in Communion at Church and have recently been diagnosed with Celiac Disease, you may be wondering what to do about accepting and sharing in Christ's blessed meal.

We asked about this at our Celiac School session at Children's Hospital in Boston, and another parent recommended that I look online at a company called Ener-G. Ener-G makes a gluten free host that can be ordered and shipped directly to your home.

I spoke with Celiac Son's Religious Education Director, and turns out, he is not the only Celiac Child in our Church. Our Religious Education Director ordered Christian lockets that are to be kept in the sacristy. The Celiac children can keep their lockets there, along with a sealed bag with their gluten free host with their names on them.

Each Sunday, before Mass, the children walk back to the sacristy, put their host in their locket, walk out and over to the alter and leave their locket on the altar for Father to bless when he blesses the bread and wine. When it is time for the Congregation to walk up for Communion, Celiac Son jumps out of line and retrieves his locket, which has his blessed communion.

Now, I will admit, Celiac Son was a little bit nervous about this whole process the first few times. It takes a lot of courage to walk out to the altar in front of the whole congregation before Mass starts. However, after a few weeks, he has become a pro.

I don't know if the logistics of the way we do it will work for you and your Church, but I wanted to share the information about the Gluten Free Communion. I hope that you are able to find a solution that you are comfortable with so that you can continue to share in Christ's meal.

God Bless all during this Easter season!

Image Credit: http://www.ener-g.com/communion-wafers.html

Podcast: I interviewed my Celiac child and here's what he had to say

If your child has been recently diagnosed with Celiac Disease, my elementary aged son and I know what you are going through. In the following podcast, I asked my Celiac son about his experience with Celiac Disease (so far). Some of his responses may surprise you.

Easy To Understand Gluten Free Infographic

Here's a great infographic to share with kids and other people who maybe don't quite understand where gluten hides, and really what it is.

Explore more infographics like this one on the web's largest information design community - Visually.

How to bring your Celiac child to a weekend hockey tournament

Kids’ lives are so different today than they were when we were growing up. I certainly don’t remember being as active and as involved as my kids are. Every kid I know plays sports or is active in boy scouts/girl scouts or other activities that keep them busy—and often require overnight stays.

My family’s sport is ice hockey.

Kids getting ready to take the ice

You could insert your child’s sport/activity into this blog. Tournament weekends all follow a similar pattern whether it’s gymnastics, karate, soccer, basketball, lacrosse, boy scout/girl scout camping trips, etc.

These events have always been a source of excitement for our family. It’s a blast getting together with teammates and their families for a whole weekend. Typically there are 3 or 4 games in a weekend, lots of time together at the hotel pool, many meals shared together at restaurants, and pizza parties.

Wait. 

Stop.

Yes I said restaurants and pizza parties.

So, how does a Celiac Mom pull off this challenge? Well, our family recently participated in an ice hockey tournament weekend, our first since the Celiac diagnosis. I had to put some thought and planning into it ahead of time, but I assure you, it went out without a hitch.

So if you have an upcoming tournament weekend with your Celiac child, here are 5 tips to help it run smoothly:

1. Plan ahead. If you are new to Celiac, I’m sure you are quickly realizing that there is really no such thing as winging it anymore. Any event including birthday/holiday parties, sporting events, day outings, and vacations require careful planning. It doesn’t need to be complicated, but you really do need to prepare a meal itinerary and make sure that your Celiac child will have what he/she needs for the weekend.
2. Play Team Manager. Our ice hockey teams tend to have at least one pizza party (typically

   

   Image credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/bouldair/6419720977/

   around the hotel pool or in the hotel lounge) during tournament weekends. This allows the team to get together in a more relaxed environment with no formal restrictions (like worrying about good manners at a restaurant—always hard to pull off with 13 boys running around!) Offer to make the arrangements for the pizza party. Research pizza joints in the area, and see if you can find one that makes a true gluten free pizza (ensure that they use best practices to cook the pizza, and don’t just offer a gluten free dough). Collect the money from the families and order the pizza yourself. I did this for our recent hockey tournament, and learned that 6 people in our party were gluten free!
3. Upgrade to a room with a mini kitchen.

   

   Image credit: Holiday Inn Express

   I know this can be pricey, but you may be surprised to hear that it doesn’t have to break the bank. We stayed at a Holiday Inn Express,
   and the suite with a mini kitchen only cost us $14 more than the double room. This room had a mini refrigerator, a sink, and a microwave. If the price is astronomically higher, call and explain your situation to the reservations manager. They may be willing to supply you with a mini fridge and a microwave at no extra charge.
4. Cook meals ahead of time. My Celiac son has an appetite. He doesn’t just eat 3 meals a day and little snacks. After a hockey game, he is looking for a meal. It doesn’t matter if it’s 9 in the morning or 9 at night, a snack isn’t going to cut it. I made a full sized pan of baked ziti (gluten free of course!) ahead of time, brought 6 portioned microwaveable containers, and heated them up whenever hunger struck. I also brought him sliced ham, which he likes to eat cold with a little bit of mustard for dipping. These were great protein fillers that tasted great and got him through to his next meal. Of course, I also brought lots of fruits and veggies and other snack options, but those mini meals really got him through.
5. Research area restaurants and find gluten free options. Tournament weekends typically take place in cities with lots of chain restaurants. Call ahead and make sure that you are comfortable with the restaurant’s best practices regarding the management of gluten free foods. The 99 Restaurant, OutbackSteakhouse, and Pizzeria Uno are three chains that we have had luck with.

Not allowing this disease to change Celiac son’s quality of life is at the top of my priority list. He had a great weekend and didn’t feel singled out at all. Sure, it was more work for me, but a wise man once told me “anything worth doing is worth over-doing.” He sure is worth over-doing!

How about you? Do you have any great tips you can share regarding preparing ahead of time for a weekend away with Celiac? I'd love to hear from you!

Review: bionaturae Gluten Free Pasta

Years ago, when I moved into my first place, my Auntie took the time to put together a family recipe cookbook for me—handwritten! It was the most amazing gift. In her perfect penmanship, she carefully hand wrote recipe cards of the dishes I grew up eating. Auntie included recipes from my mother, her sisters, my grandmother, and my great-grandmother. Each recipe card included attribution to the chef. 

All these years later, my recipe book is looking a little worse for the wear. It is tattered. The spine is bent out of shape. There are splashes and smudges covering the most used recipe pages. These include chicken parmigiana, baked ziti, meatballs, pancakes, brownies, and apple pie. 

You see where I'm going with this?

I will admit that when Celiac son was first diagnosed, I felt guilty at how emotional I was, and I was trying to be so strong for him. And then another Celiac mother said to me "It's okay to be sad about this." So I was. I allowed myself a couple of really good cries. I cried that my son was never again going to get to eat Oreos, or Bertucci's bread, or "real" pizza, or my grandmother's whoopie pies or so many of the foods that I grew up with. 

But when I was done crying, it was time to get to work. I am, after all, his mother. And one of my primary jobs is to feed and to nourish him. Time to start learning a new way to cook, and finding substitutions to make some of those favorite family recipes work.

Celiac son was always a huge pasta fan. Funny—because when I look back to the couple of undiagnosed years BEFORE, he never gave up his pasta. He would shy away from McDonald's and Dairy Queen, and from sandwiches and cereal. I never noticed the pattern, though. I just thought he didn't like junk food. But he never backed down from a good bowl of pasta. 

And this is the reason for my post.

Trying to find the right pasta to satisfy him and to help him to embrace his new diet took a few tries, but we hit the jackpot early on.

The BEST gluten free pasta we have found is bionaturae Organic Gluten Free pasta.

I make it with everything! My grandmother's chicken parmigiana over linguini, my Auntie's gulash, my mother's spaghetti and meatballs (all with gluten free breadcrumbs of course), and another Auntie's baked ziti.

Our entire family devours this pasta like we did in the non-gluten free days. Even peanut-allergy brother, who is the pickiest eater in the house, doesn't even notice that he is eating gluten free pasta when I serve bionaturae. 

I have found bionaturae at Shaw's and Whole Foods. And unfortunately, it is pricey—about $3.99 for 12 ounces. But I promise you, it is worth every penny. We have tried about a half-dozen gluten free pastas and none of them even came close to bionaturae. 

How about you? Have you had any luck with gluten free pastas? I'd love to hear from you!