Our college kids will both be home for the summer by this time tomorrow bringing our headcount back up to 5. It gets pretty quiet around here when they are away, and sometimes pretty crazy when everyone is home. Bring on the crazy! Along with a lot more laughs, games, bonfires and movie nights, they will come home with more laundry and mealtimes will mean a lot more food. Over the past year, all three of our kids have gone gluten-free. I was diagnosed with Celiac disease about 8 years ago and since it has a genetic component, we have watched the kids for signs and also had them tested periodically. Nobody ever tested positive, but one at a time, each decided to give gf food a trial run for a month to see if it would help the various health issues they were having and none of them has even considered going back to their former diet. Having nearly the whole family on the same restricted diet is much easier than being on it alone. The college kids have pointed out what a luxury it is to open the frig at home and be able to safely eat anything in there. My husband still eats gluten sometimes, but almost never at home. He's a good sport to abstain from standard baked goods at home for the comfort of the rest of the family. Traveling can be interesting when we try to find places that can offer us a safely gluten free meal. Often we feel like this: And sometimes the available options feel like this: Consequently, we tend to choose the same chains over and over where we know exactly what to order. I've been fortunate to travel for a few races and the meals leading up to the race can be a little tricky. We went to Vermont for a marathon two years ago and I researched restaurants near our hotel and made a reservation a month ahead of time for the night before the race. It was a great experience! Vermont doesn't have many chain restaurants, but it was so easy to find places that knew what gluten was and always asked, "allergy or preference?" so they know how careful they needed to be if the kitchen was busy. We ate so many good meals there...good thing I ran off 26.2 miles worth while we were there😉. Visitng family can can be tricky for gf people, but we are super lucky! We have a growing number of other gf people on both sides and both my parents and my in-laws make sure we've got plenty of options for meals and even treats when we visit. A lot of basic foods are easy enough to make gf when you know what to look for. For instance, a classic meat, potatoes and veggie dinner is gf as long as the gravy is made with cornstarch and no gluten containing seasonings are used. Cross-contamination can be a problem with butter dishes, jelly jars, toasters, etc. Often when we visit, new containers are used and we are all set. Being gluten free free has helped all of our running as well. We all have super sensitive digestive systems and gluten runs straight on through. I had such sudden attacks of tummy trouble while running , I had considered quitting at different times. My kids had a lot of the same trouble and someone coming in the door from their workout with an urgent need to hit the bathroom is referred to at my house as "COMING IN HOT!!!" Translation: clear the way or it won't be good. I won't say that carefully watching our foods has completely eliminated the mad dashes to the restroom, but it has increased our quality of life in a big way. Another thing I am thankful for in the spring is the reappearance of these guys at parks and construction sites: Its not even that I use or even want to use an outdoor biffy along the way, but knowing it's there is hugely reassuring. I use the mantra...don't worry about it, just take care of it, to calm my nerves. If I know there is another chance to go in a block or a mile, it's all good.
I'm ready to make large amounts of gf food for the next 3 months. In fact, i hope to mix up a batch of monster cookies yet this afternoon to have extras on hand for lunches and snacks. That is a recipe that is easily made gf with gf oatmeal. I will also be packing a lot of lunches for kids headed to work. D already takes his lunch to school, so I've got the routine down, even packing an extra PB&J on GF bread for track meet days. While the kids are completely capable of packing their own, I like to know there is adequate fruit and veggies in the bags😍. Hopefully, you are also looking forward to summer and the shift in your family's routine. With any luck, that will also include more time to run during daylight hours and that you are refueling yourself with plenty of summer fruits and other nutritious foods. Happy running! Missee
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AuthorMissee and Stephanie are two Minnesota sisters and moms who love to run. We are not experts in running, parenting or anything else, but we do have years of experiences that may be helpful or entertaining to others. Archives
May 2020
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