I've always thought that going gluten free and dairy free would be impossible for me. When my sister was diagnosed with a Celiac Disorder several years back I concluded it would be easier for me (if the same sad fate were to befall me) to just eat so much gluten I exploded than to actually stop eating it. I watched my sister as she embarked on this new life style. She found that all of the 'replacement' foods were unbelievable gross and opted instead to just go without. So she lives on mostly chicken, beans, veggies and corn tortillas. Not a bad diet really.
When I chose to make the switch though I was bringing the kids along. In fact I was doing it more for them than for me. I knew that they would balk at chicken, beans veggies and corn tortillas. In fact I anticipated the battle would be waged for about three days before I was waving a white flag and serving up macaroni and cheese.
Immediately preceding going GFCF my daughter was suffering from a terrible bout of gas and diarrhea. School had started and she had decided that the best breakfast was Nouriche yogurt drinks every morning. She actually got to the point where she was throwing up. It may have been a stomach flu. I can't say for sure but I decided then and there. No more dairy. I think this was harder for me than it might be fore other parents. I've always been pretty laid back with my kids. We don't have a lot of restrictions or rules in my house particularly where food is concerned. My daughter had been though the intestinal issues herself though which helped to cement that decision.
She wasn't' much of a milk drinker to begin with and took to the 'fake milks' for cereal just fine. She was also an adventurous eater so she was pretty willing to go along with whatever I would attempt to make dairy free. I figured if I could just get rid of the obvious dairy in her diet she could tolerate the hidden dairy in many things.
Around the same time I had made contact with an old friend who was already gluten and casein free. There are many other things their family doesn't eat and my friend was a very creative cook. Her lifestyle was daunting to me. I went back and forth convincing myself that I too could do something like that or convincing myself there was no way in hell that I could invest that much energy worrying about food.
The turning point was the GFCF Pineapple Nut Cake my friend made and let me sample. It was so unbeliavably good. And I was noticeable uncontested after eating it. I believe it was that cake that convinced me that I could do this.
So where are we now. We have been mostly gluten free and casein free at home for over a months now. I've notice a big change but we still have a ways to go. As I said we are GFCG AT HOME. The kids go to school five days a week where they eat school lunch (because it's free). What this means is that most days involve pizza. Which is decidedly NOT gluten or casein free. I know the logic of this is going to be lost on many but my son's behaviour is inextricably tied to what he eats, so as much as gluten and casein affect his behaviour not eating at all, because mom sent a lunch he hated, would affect him even more seriously. I've been turning a blind eye to school lunches while trying to sort out enough GFCF kid friendly meals to embark on sending cold lunches.
The plan was to start lunches from home after Thanksgiving break. I may have to start sooner though because the kids are begging for cold lunches. I've sorted out the basics: pizza, spaghetti, PB&J, all in all I think I have enough creativity to muster lunches for a week and then repeat. That's pretty much how the school lunches work anyway. There's still the matter of lunchboxes and making sure they get emptied out each day and then packed again. It's all very daunting to me. I'm just not a very organized person. But it's all for the good of my kids right?
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