outfit detailsGood morning on this last Sunday of February! It’s hard to believe another month is almost in the books. This one has been full of ups and downs. I had a wonderful trip to Miami with some blogger friends, but while I was gone, we got official confirmation of my younger daughter’s Celiac diagnosis. It was the culmination of several months of testing since she was diagnosed with mono and iron deficiency anemia back in the fall.
It’s not the news we wanted, but we ruled out some other pretty scary things, so I guess we’ll take it. I appreciate all of you who have reached out with ideas and advice, or even just sympathy.
If you’ve been a friend of my blog for a long time, you probably remember that I used to eat strictly gluten-free. My Celiac biopsy was negative, but I still removed gluten from my diet and found that I felt better. I even was hired to write a gluten free cookbook, back when I used to post lots of recipes on the blog! All that to say, I’m no stranger to gluten-free living, which will help ease this transition somewhat.
While she was disappointed to get the official diagnosis, my daughter is taking it in stride, for the most part. That said, it’s entirely different to decide as an adult to eliminate gluten by choice than to be a teenager forced into it for health reasons. It definitely makes social situations a lot more difficult, but her friends have been wonderfully supportive, and she will learn to speak up and advocate for herself.
In other news, I’m looking forward to having my older daughter home for Spring Break next week. She’s planning to drive again, which makes me nervous, but I keep telling myself she’s building confidence and independence, and that’s the end goal, I suppose! And our son is wrapping up his final semester of college, which is equal parts exciting and terrifying. I can’t wait to see what’s next for him.
I realize this is a short one, but I need to get a move on here. I got bogged down in some backend computer stuff this morning, and now I’ve run out of time to go for a walk. It’s all good, though. It’s supposed to warm up and be pretty here this afternoon, so I’ll go out then.
Enjoy what’s left of your weekend!
18 Responses
We are not gluten free, but we have friends who have Celiac. I found this recipe for Gluten Free brownies when I wanted to make a dessert for a get-together. Now it is the only recipe for brownies I use. Everyone loves them. And you make it all in a saucepan! I have also doubled the recipe and baked in a 9 x 13 pan. Enjoy!
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 Tablespoons butter
2 Tablespoons whipping cream or half and half
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 cup milk chocolate chips
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
2/3 Cup gluten free flour mix (I use Bob’s Red Mill 1 to 1 baking flour)
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
chopped walnuts (a friend told me that brownies are not brownies without chopped nuts)
Preheat oven to 325.
Grease 8 x8 pan.
In a saucepan combine sugar, butter, cream. Cook over medium heat until it comes to a boil.
Remove from heat and stir in chocolate chips and stir until melted.
Add in eggs and vanilla.
Add in flour, baking soda, and salt.
Stir until mixture is smooth. Add nuts.
Pour into greased pan.
Bake for 25 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Do not overbake.
Thank you! My son is allergic to nuts but everything else looks good. So many GF baked goods use almond flour and I can’t have that in the house.
I’m so happy this post was back to Coffee Talk! No teenager likes to have eating restrictions due to a health issue, but I suspect that Becca will make the necessary diet adjustments so that she can feel good & have fun with her friends. I bet it is hard to digest Caroline driving from Boston to Philly on her own, but, as you said, it is helping strengthen her confidence. And you know that God will have his protective wings wrapped around her. I will say special prayers for her. I can’t believe David is almost done with college. Holy cow! Enjoy this Lord’s Day!
As I mentioned before my daughter was also diagnosed in her teens. Her are my tips for helping a soon to be you g adult manage
1) Learning how to be GF in a household that’s not is an important skill before college so I’d encourage you not to turn your whole house GF unless everyone badly wants to.
2) The Find Me Gluten Free website is great when looking at restaurants.
3) Giving her a bit of a budget bump so that she can order separately from her friends like when they are sharing a pizza or getting fries is a nice thing to do.
4) The words “ I have a gluten allergy” should be the first thing out if her mouth when ordering.
5) The number of GF foods available has skyrocketed in recent years making it much easier. Trader Joe’s has great options. Whole Foods bread is the best GF bread for sandwiches right now.
6) GF options should be at least a factor in college choice. Most colleges are now extremely accommodating. It’s nice to see if the college town is too. At my daughters there were GF options everywhere from the local pizza place to the football stadium.
You wrote a cookbook!! Wow. Will say a prayer for your daughter and her new journey.
Sorry to hear about Becca’s diagnosis, big hugs to her as she figures things out. At least it is more common now, so hopefully eating isn’t as hard as it used to be.
That’s wonderful that Caroline is driving home again. It’s best for her to get comfortable with that now instead of being a 40 something like me who won’t drive more than an hour alone 🙃
I’m sorry to hear about your daughter’s diagnosis. A family member of mine recently began eating gluten free and I found The Gluten Free Austrian through Pinterest. She has great baked good recipes and tips. She is a Chicago-based pastry chef, GF recipe developer and Celiac. If you like to bake, I would check her out.
It so good that your daughter has supportive friends,it makes this trial a little bit easier. My daughter has help issues and her friends have been great. It makes my momma heart happy to know that they all look out for each other. Your Older daughter driving home God has got her !
Have a wonderful sunday
I’m sorry to hear about your daughters diagnosis. I read the Mix and Match Mama’s blog , her teenager was also diagnosed a year or two ago. She has so much info if you need it. She lists many Trader Joe products that are gluten free. She also mentions how she has a gluten free home due to cross-contamination. Wishing your family well!
My daughter diagnosed as a teen thinks it was vital for her to learn how to be GF in a non GF home before she went off to college with roommates who aren’t going to be keeping the shared space GF. There are definitely good ways to do this. She felt she was much more prepared to stay healthy than friends where their parents had made a the home a bubble.
Hi Jo-Lynne, I am so glad to hear that you got an answer about what is happening with your daughter. Celiac is such a mix of emotions when it comes to a diagnosis. Our 18 year old was diagnosed when she was 4 years old-good because no medication, no surgery-bad because it means a lifetime of things to navigate. 2 years later my father-in-law was diagnosed in his 60’s, which at least unlocked the mystery of which side of the family things came from. Your household is far better prepared than most, which is THE BEST thing. One thing I will say is that our air fryer has been a real help if Avarie gets a taste for something like chicken nuggets. The Whole Foods brand is the best to her, and as you know anything g-free can be soggy so the air fryer helps in those instances.
She does talk to a Therapist who happens to also have Celiac, and I hope it helps. As much as I like to think it’s a “easy” auto immune disease, I do not have the first clue what this does to her mentally. Like finding out that the restaurant you always trust for a specific food swaps out an ingredient because it is cheaper……something like that can cause real heart break, you know?
I am praying for you all- be as open as you want about this or as private as you want about it, and just know that you are not alone!!!
So sorry to hear about the diagnosis, have celiac myself. Glad for her future health it’s diagnosed. A nutritionist can be a lot of help, was for me.
Thank you. We met with one this week.
My son was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes at 15 and it was a lot of education, and as someone mentioned, will be a lifetime of navigating. He was a high school athlete and leads an extremely active lifestyle. Colleges do offer accommodations, not only in the cafeteria but also for classroom, test taking, etc, as – or if – needed.
Thanks, Jenna. We will definitely be asking about that on our college visits.
Sorry to hear of your daughter’s celiac diagnosis. I highly recommend reading, “The Autoimmune Solution” by Dr. Amy Myers. You will learn the mono and iron deficiency are linked to celiac and why it’s important to understand this link. I have Graves disease, also an autoimmune condition, and this book was eye-opening. I wish you and your family good health.
Thank you, I just ordered it.
Wow, a lot is going on in your family. My niece had the same diagnosis, but it took years for the doctors to figure out what was going on. I’m glad you know what you’re up against. Hang in there!
I have that same sweatshirt! I bought it a few weeks ago at the recommendation of Kay Harms. It’s so cute on you.