Since my oldest son is four & has been diagnosed with Celiac disease & colitis, (& possible Crohn’s) I’ve struggled with what to do when it comes to sending Aiden to kindergarden. I had definitely came to the conclusion that I wouldn’t send him to preschool. I don’t really believe in most of the aspects of preschool anyhow, so the decision wasn’t too hard. So, it brings us to kindergarden & what to do. With him being five as he enters a new environment on his own with 99% of the classroom children having no issues with gluten, that had me really nervous. How do I entrust in HIM to take care of himself? How do I entrust in HIM to make sure he doesn’t get playdough in his mouth, or to make sure he washes his hands after playing with stickers or paint or glue? How do I deal with snack time & kids & crumbs? The answer became really simple as time went on… we can’t. He’s too young to care for himself in that way. He’s too immature to remember the little things he has to avoid & do in the middle of his excitement while playing in the school yard or learning a new word or meeting a new friend. I can’t expect one teacher of 20 students to make sure that MY son’s health is her main priority. While I’m sure all his/her students are a priority, HE is not her MAIN priority. He is MY priority. So, Ryan & I have come to the conclusion that Aiden is going to be homeschooled. I’m starting to see the trend in homeschooling for kids who have food allergies or Celiac disease. I don’t have plans to homeschool him past Elementary school & I have so much faith that he will be great & ready to care for himself by the time he reaches junior high. He is already so aware of “gluten” and asks me at least a few times a day if the food items he sees on TV are gluten free or not. He’ll even go so far as asking Ryan or myself to “google” it on the computer. He’s so techy.

So, we feel so great about our decision. I’ve looked into homeschooling groups & am in the process of gathering as much information as I can right now. I’m so fortunate to be able to stay home & provide this service to Aiden. It just makes me feel so much better knowing his health & life will be in my hands for the new few years to come.

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Last week while I was standing in the check out aisle at Whole Foods, I noticed a magazine that I hadn’t seen there before. Maybe it’s been there for awhile now but for some reason, I had never seen it. It’s called “Living Without” and it’s a magazine dedicated to people with food allergies or for someone with Celiac disease or even for someone who parents a child with autism who chooses the casein & gluten free lifestyle. I, of course had to purchase it since I didn’t have enough time to look through it in it’s entirety in line. It actually was a really cool little mag. It had a lot of gluten free recipes, a great article with a GI Dr. who specializes in Celiac & other articles in relation to food allergies. I was happy to have found it & look forward to buying a subscription to it in the future.

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Hi! I started a chat group for parents with Celiac kids on the new Lilaguide site. I hope you’ll come join me in getting the group going & bringing more information to the Lilaguide community!

Here’s the link: Parents of Celiac Kids

Popularity: 42% [?]

I came across a website www.deliciousandhealthy.com that focuses on a gluten-free & dairy-free lifestyle. The website was created by Dr. Meg Haworth. Dr. Haworth has been living gluten-free for 13 years. She offers a bi-weekly newsletter with great cooking tips & advice, great recommendations, featured recipes & a note from her. It’s just another great resource loaded with gluten-free & dairy-free knowledge. I feel like the more I have in my back pocket, the easier & better our lives become. This is also a great resource to share with friends & family. The more that your loved ones know, the easier it is for you! Check it out, sign up & enjoy the benefits of information being delivered to your inbox!

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Anyone with Celiac disease or food sensitivities/allergies understands the frustrations of traveling. It’s so frustrating to plan a venture out for an afternoon or evening… how about an entire week?! Well, I came across a new website that makes traveling easier. The Gluten Free Travel Site is a great space for finding hotels, restaurants, resorts & grocery stores that accommodate those with food allergies or intolerances. There are reviews, suggestions & a search engine. We can’t always eat at home (although it’s easier) and this is a great resource to keep handy, especially for a quick, unexpected trip. www.glutenfreetravelsite.com

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www.greendimes.com stops unwanted junk mail. You can eliminate up to 90% of junk mail. What does this have to do with Celiac or gluten-free living? Nothing… it’s just my “green” side coming out, again! My youngest brother calls me a “hippie” & I’m just trying to live up to the name!

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The new Desert Essence Organics line is 100% Vegan & Wheat & Gluten-free! I’ve actually been using their body products from this line for the last year and have been pretty happy! It’s one thing I was happy that I didn’t need to change in our gluten-free quest! They offer body washes (their red grape smells good enough to eat!), body lotions & hands & feet (their foot lotion is great!), shampoos & skin care. They don’t have a huge selection of skin care products but this line is pretty new & I’m guessing that as more time goes by, they’ll have more products to offer. Happy Shopping!

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On Sunday we went to the Farmers Market in Hollywood then decided we’d drive down to Culver City and visit The Sensitive Baker, which is a Gluten-Free bakery. They have all sorts of goodies:  cupcakes, cookies, breads, bagels, pizza dough, hamburger buns & during the weekday hours, they even offer lunch which ranges from their daily soups, to pizza & sandwiches. They have a large variety of vegan foods as well. When we walked in the lady who was working there (I’m going to guess she was the owner) offered our son, Aiden, a cookie but asked us first, which I thought was really cool. Aiden ate all of it except for the last few bites which he dropped because he was too busy wanting a cupcake that was on display! We bought a cupcake to take home for Aiden & some hamburger buns for us to try out later that night. Ryan had made some home made avocado salsa & we thought the burgers topped with his salsa sounded like a good idea. Wow. Those buns were so good. They were very similar to sourdough bread. The only negative was that they were kind of small & we really wanted more! We also bought their pizza dough that we have yet to try… maybe later on this week. Pretty cool place. They are also online, if you want to check them out: The Sensitive Baker

I’ll leave you with a picture of Aiden about to enjoy his cupcake!

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Afterglow Cosmetics is a mineral make-up company that offers organic, natural make-up & every product they make is gluten-free! Yay! My Mom (since she’s with the boys so much) and I just ordered some mascara, eye liner & some lipstick samples to try. I’m so excited & can’t wait to get my hands on these. I’ve heard rave reviews about them & I really like the comfort in knowing that I don’t have to look this product up on a list of their GF products because they’re ALL GF! I don’t wear very much make up but I DO enjoy a little blush, mascara & some lipstick if I’m going somewhere special. Here’s their information on WHY they’re all GF: Click here.

I’ll write a review as soon as the shipment comes in. Yay!

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My boys are having a brotherly love moment….

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