Gluten Free at Church

For a long while now, we've been accustomed to taking Becca's snacks along wherever we go, to make sure she receives only gluten free, dairy free foods. That includes taking her own snacks to Sunday School and Wednesday night classes at church. It's always been a relief to know how supportive and cooperative her teachers have been, and to know that from one week to the next they are able to remember her needs. The classes are not exactly small, so I'm sure it is no easy task keeping an eye on her around the other children and their animal crackers.

Even though I knew that our church was a community environment where I could feel safe taking my kids despite all of their food allergies and PB's celiac disease, I was still pleasantly surprised this past Sunday morning when we participated in the Communion service. As the volunteers prepared to pass around the communion wafers, the pastor kindly added, "And if anyone is in need of gluten-free wafers, please raise your hand and we'll make sure they get to you."

Wow! I'm so very proud of my church. Even though Becca was not present in the adult service, I still felt joy knowing that when she does move up, she'll be able to participate in this important observance with the rest of her family. Celiac disease does not have to mean exclusion from family and social life.

Here's good wishes for more gluten-free experiences we can all enjoy!

Expanding My Food Horizons

I've mentioned that at times, Princess Becca (PB) can challenge my preconceived notions of what constitutes an acceptable food choice. Tonight, she did it again--with a little help from her father this time...

We were busy going through the motions of our snacktime conversations:

"I'm HOOONNGRY," PB whines.
"What do you want, baby?" I ask her. I don't expect a usable answer yet.
"Something yummy."
"OK. Like what? Do you want turkey? Or some ham?"
I don't get a verbal response, just a glare.

This is where daddy chimes in. He's not always home for these exchanges, and so the game of "feed Becca" still has some alure to him. (When he's home with the kids, they get two food choices. Take one or don't eat.)

"I used to eat ketchup on my soy-nut butter sandwiches," he tells our daughter.

I gasp and utter an "Oh gross!" before I can stop myself. I immediately know two things:
1) There was never any soy-nut butter in my husband's childhood.
2) He is absolutely sincere that he put ketchup on his ~peanut~ butter sandwiches.

Despite the stomach-churning idea of those foods entering my mouth together, I feel guilty for my reaction. We encourage PB to think outside the norm as she chooses foods that work for her, within her dietary constraints.

Becca gauges my level of disgust, and sides with Daddy (thank goodness for reverse psychology). "Yeah! I want that." she says.

I put a muzzle on my sensibility and give my husband a look. He knows that I will never, ever, be the one to make her a soy-nut butter and ketchup sandwich. They head to the kitchen together for a little father/daughter bonding over their favorite red condiment. I find somewhere else to be until the sandwich is gone. And yes, she really did like it. Daddy loves being right.

Maybe We Should All Go Gluten-Free

As I look around the kitchen, my mommy-laser-vision is focusing in on a million potential sources of cross contamination for Becca's unwitting consumption. There's the toaster that leaks breadcrumbs, the spilled pasta water on the stove top, the vague film of someone's lunch that's covering the table, and I'm pretty sure that knives which have been used to spread jelly on wheat bread have been reinserted into the jelly jar to get just a "little bit more."

So far we haven't experienced any major disasters, but I just feel like we are inviting it by sharing our food prep space this way. I've had other celiac families tell me that it's really just easiest and safest to keep the whole family on a gluten-free diet while in the house. I've been resistant to the change, however.

For one thing, how in the world would a family possibly afford it? Becca's gluten-free diet alone is almost equal to the food costs for the rest of us combined! And in the second place, poor CJ already has a restricted diet of his own with his tree nut/peanut/strawberry/shellfish allergies. And much of Becca's GF/CF food is made with almonds or other nuts.

On the other hand, we have found lots of acceptable alternatives (like the new brownie and cake mixes) that we all get along with--except for that little problem of price. I know I should try to minimize our gluten-containing foods, at the very least.

So is it about to be bye-bye for Sarah Lee in our house? Maybe one of these days. I'm considering heading out for a lotto ticket...