Trio bars rock

Okay, so since Nutrigrain bars have been out, we've been needing a replacement for a quick snack we can carry with us that he would enjoy like that. Well, I heard something about the Trio bars avaliable at Costco, so we looked for them and bought a box. I figured if my son didn't like them, my husband would eat them. He'll eat anything.

Right on the box it says Gluten free, Casein free.. hey! How easy is that!!! I love that :-) So, we eagerly opened them the next day at snack time. My son loved them.. as did my 2 year old. Every bar contains nuts, seeds, and fruit, so I feel good about giving them to them. It came in a variety pack that had Cranberry, Strawberry, Blueberry, and Tropical flavor. This is the ingredients in the Cranberry: Cashew, Almonds, Pistachios, Cranberries, Sesame Seeds, Sunflower Seeds, Pumpkin Seeds, Dates, Raisins, Rice Malt, Natural Flavors, Evaporated Cane Juice and Sea Salt. (*Natural Flavors - Dextrose, Corn Starch, Water, Silicon Dioxide (Anti-Caking Agent))

They are a little pricey.. at Costco they are about $16 and some change.. but they are so worth it. I just have to quit eating them as I'm mildly allergic to Almonds, but these bars taste SO good.. LOL.

http://www.mrsmays.com/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=26

Angel Food Ministries has a Top 8 Allergen free box!

Angel Food Ministries is a GREAT ministry that helps families stay fed at affordable prices. The food they offer is good quality and good amounts. We have in the past had to rely on our Angel Food boxes to get through to the next month. It's not income based, it's for anyone that needs it no matter what the reason. Now, with us being GF/CF, our food bill has not gone up that much, but finding foods and figuring out what to cook has become more challenging. A great option for a family like us would be the Top 8 Allergen free box from Angel Food. It's $40 and you get a nice variety. Every month is different but August's allergen free box will have the following:

Processed to eliminate the eight top serious allergens: Peanuts, Soybeans, Milk, Eggs, Fish, Crustacea, Tree Nuts and Gluten (wheat, rye and barley). Great for children and adults!

Allergen Free Frozen Food Products
2 lb. Breaded Chicken Drumsticks
1 lb. Breaded Chicken Tenders
1 lb. Breaded Chicken Nuggets
1 lb. Breaded Cube Steak

Battered with water, white rice, brown rice, modified tapioca starch, flax seed, sugar, salt, spices, dehydrated garlic, spice extractives and oleoresin paprika.

Breaded with white rice, brown rice, modified tapioca starch, flax seed, sugar, dextrose, salt, spices, dehydrated garlic, spice extractives and oleoresin paprika.

Breading is pre-browned in Canola oil.

Allergen Free Dry Mix Products

1 lb. Pancake/Waffle Mix
1 lb. Blueberry Muffin Mix
1 lb. Pizza Crust/Flat Bread Mix
1 lb. Breading Mix
8 oz. White Gravy Mix

And, with our family loving fruit like it does, this $22 add on box for next month would be awesome:

3 lb. Premium Fresh Idaho Baking Potatoes
2 lb. Premium New Crop Large-Medium Yellow Onions
1 head Premium Fresh California Sleeve Romaine Lettuce
1 bag Fresh Gourmet Caesar Salad Croutons (5 oz.)
1 pint Premium Fresh Vine-Ripened Grape Tomatoes
1 head Premium Fresh Green Cabbage
1 lb. Premium Sweet Cello-Pack Carrots
6 Premium Tree-Ripened Peaches
1 lb. Premium Fresh California White Seedless Grapes
1 Premium Fresh California Vine-Ripened Honeydew Melon
1 Premium Fresh California Vine-Ripened Cantaloupe
4 Premium California Valencia Oranges
4 Premium California Large Juicy Lemons


What a deal!!!! go here to find your local church that participates: http://www.angelfoodministries.com

Winning a battle, but there is still a war going on

Every day we have a new experience, new problems, new joys, new accomplishments. Our son has come a good ways since beginning this new diet. We've seen him improve in ways we never would have imagined, like he is better able to follow directions and mind and also his stomach problems are seemingly gone. We used to have a lot of incidents of him throwing up in his bed in the middle of the night with no warning and no apparent reason. He wasn't ill, he just would throw up. I have always believed his stomach problems were related to dairy, but have always met with resistance when I've tried to talk to others about it. Now that we have completely eliminated casein/dairy/milk, his stomach pain and throwing up have completely stopped and he's better able to go potty as well. See, sometimes mother DOES know best what is wrong with her child.. lol.

Our son has been showing a declining short term memory and today I became more concerned than I had been before. Within a 10 minute car ride to YMCA camp this morning, he completely forgot an entire conversation that we had just had not seconds before he re-asked me a question. This of course concerns me as it would any mother. I started researching and found that a common reason for this could be low self-esteem or also poor vision or hearing. Either of the first two could be part of it with him. Could also be some of his medications, I'm not sure... but he does have low self esteem and it's something we've been trying to work at. We found that his Love Language is Words of Affirmation, so the more you tell him he is a good boy, that he did something right, or that you love him, the more loved he feels. I think the biggest problem with his self esteem is his social skills. He struggles so much with making friends and finds it all but impossible to make friends with boys his own age. He has 2 children that he can really claim as friends, and they are both girls.. which is fine, but it makes it harder to get the kids together since the parents may be hesitent to send their daughter to play with a boy. He is also below his age in emotional maturity and verbal ability, so that complicates things and the boys his age don't understand him at this point. Every day is a challenge, but we'll get through it. It's hard as his mom to sit and watch him struggle and to know how cruel kids can be to him and how much he has been hurt, but unfortunately he does have to learn some of it himself and I can't be with him 24 hours a day so he'll have to learn to do it without mommy :-(

Regardless, though, he's so bright and a good boy. He tries so hard to please. I can see him being one of those boys in high school that is very good in class and then goes on to be a wealthy business owner, computer whatever, doctor, or scientist. He will be the one taking care of me and his daddy when we get old.. lol.

It's not only about choosing your weapon, it's also about picking what battles to fight

By all accounts, I'm a pretty strict mom. Loving, but strict. I expect my kids to mind and behave. I don't like seeing out of control kids in public and always refused to let my child (any of the three!) be one of those kids. But, the older they get and the older I get (not that I'm getting old.. lol.. I'm holding steady at 27!) the more I realize that it's not always just about discipline... sometimes it's about learning to let go. I've come to understand more that my child cannot always control his behaviors and it's okay for people to give me the evil eye.. heck, I can give it right back. My son looks totally normal and I know people don't understand that he in fact does have some issues that cause his behavior to not be easy for him to control. Because of that, there are some battles that are not worth fighting. Sometimes being strict on things only makes the situations worse, not better, and has the opposite of the desired effect. I have to stop myself now before forcing an issue and ask myself "Is this really worth the battle? Is this important enough to follow through?" Sometimes it is, sometimes it isn't.

I do NOT, however, excuse bad behavior because of his issues. I understand the behaviors and am learning what he can and cannot control, but that doesn't excuse every bad behavior. I still have and will always have high expectations of him. I think very highly of my son and see that he can do great things and grow to be a great man. I refuse to expect less of him because it's shortchanging him. He's smart and handsome. If I expect less and lower the bar, he won't reach his full potential. It's all a balancing act.. what's worth it and what isn't.

Every single situation is different. Sometimes the best thing to do is not cause the battle, but find a way around it to reach the same goal without causing a huge tantrum... uhhhhh... what was that called? Ah yes, COMPROMISE! Yes, I compromise with my child. It's an important skill for a child to learn anyways because we all know that compromise is SO important for a good and strong marriage and will benefit him in his adulthood in all relationships. Yeh, he needs to learn to mind and that he does sometimes have to realize that other people have authority over him... including his parents!

A Gluten Free/Casein Free 4th of July!

My husband and I are both very patriotic. He was a Navy man, and several members of my family are/were military.... so of course we love to enjoy our 4th of July! Now that our son is on the GF/CF diet, we had to come up with a new menu for dinner... also we are eating healthier too anyways, so it had to fit in our diet as well. Solution? Turkey burgers on Millet buns with Tofutti "cheese", Hebrew National all BEEF franks on Tapioca buns, and individual fruit salad cups! Can't beat that!!! :-) Following dinner, we went to catch a local minor league baseball game and stayed up late to watch fireworks after the game! Talk about a fun filled evening! (always make sure to use GF/CF CONDIMENTS as well! Annie's organic ketchup is a good choice and Fench's mustard! We're also looking into vegan mayo for him)

Gluten free/ casein free rice krispy treats!

We made healthy Rice krispy treats last night with all 3 kids using gluten free/casein free ingredients and TA-DAAAA! I was mommy of the year!the recipe was surprisingly simple:

3 tsp GF/CF butter (I used Smart Balance with Olive Oil, but it does contain fish oil if you happen to be vegan.. so you can find a vegan butter that would work)

2 cups Ricemellow (which is a whole tub)

6 cups puffed rice cereal (I used Arrowhead Mills b/c it only had one ingredient!)

1 tsp vanilla

melt the butter in a sauce pan. Add in Ricemellow and let warm. Stir in vanilla. Do not overheat the ricemellow or it tastes funny!!!Then I put the puffed rice in a big bowl and poured in the Ricemellow/butter mixture. then with MOIST hands (if they aren't moist, you'll end up with sticky puffed rice all over you!!!) mix it all together, then press into pan to cool.SUPER easy!

I read that you can add carob chips (like chocolate chips) to this to add more sweet... but we did not. They do NOT taste exactly like a gooey rice krispy treat, but they are a lighter taste and were very good. It's different to those of us that grew up on those sickeningly sweet treats, but they are good. A lot of the GF/CF stuff is like that.. good in it's own right. It's funny, though.. since we started eating healthier and since we started this diet for our son, I can taste every chemical and all the junk in the foods I used to eat.. like certain types of peanut butter that I used to just love now taste like chemicals to me as I've gotten so used to the natural peanut butter. It's all what you get used to I suppose. One day at a time, though, we're making the change, and it's definately for the better!!!