Happy Birthday Celiac Baby!

Today is the one year anniversary of Celiac Baby!  I'm thrilled to have made it an entire year, and that my readership has kept growing over the last 12 months.

The first photo I posted.  Note the runny nose and puffy eyes- he had been off gluten for less than a week at that point.

I started this blog as a way to make some sense of the new dietary restrictions my son was facing, to share my experiences and learn from the experiences of others.
I've learned so much from other bloggers, and I hope I've had some good tips and recipes to share as well. 

If you want to read how it all started, click HERE for my inaugural post.

Much has changed over the past year- I started out unaware of just how prevalent gluten is in food products, to trying out gluten free baking from a mix, to finally creating some of my own recipes from scratch.  I've been blogging daily, sharing the things I learn as well as the obstacles that have confronted my efforts to keep my son healthy, without making his food restrictions the centre of our existence.  I became aware of just how many others are coping with the same issues; there are two other parents in my workplace whose children are gluten free as well. 

Seeing my son's health improve has been the biggest blessing of the past year.  Connecting with an entire network of people worldwide sharing the same struggles has been pretty special too. 


Thank you to all who have followed the blog or signed up for email delivery of posts, to those of you who check in from time to time or to check out the weekly menu plan or recipes, and to those of you who aren't coping with gluten issues, but can relate to the day-to-day challenges of raising a child. 

I have big plans for year 2 of Celiac Baby!  Weekly Menu Plans will continue, but I'm planning on adding more recipes on a regular basis.  Product reviews, restaurant reviews, and much, much more! 

Keep the comments and email coming, I love hearing your feedback and ideas for new posts.  I have a list of restaurants and stores that have been recommended by readers, and once the holiday season madness is over, I promise I'll check out as many of them as I can.


Thank you for your support!  And Welcome to year two of Celiac Baby!

Five Things on a Friday

1- This is the last post of the first year of this blog!  I'm so happy to have kept at this for a whole year, and that you have shared it with me!  Looking forward to continuing the journey...

2- I'm also looking forward to spending this weekend with my family. I barely saw my son last weekend at all with all the writing, so this weekend the two of us are going to spend some quality time.

3- No better way to spend time with a preschooler than to bake some cookies.  Homemade, gluten free sugar cookies coming up!

4- Planning on finally finishing the Christmas decorating this weekend.  I'm tired of the pile of garland at the bottom of the stairs.

5- Christmas shopping this weekend.  Before the crazy mall crowds begin.

HAPPY FRIDAY!

My Fingers Are Numb...

My fingers are numb, my eyes are dry and I feel like my shoulders have enough tension in them to last a lifetime, but tomorrow is the day that I submit my thesis to my supervisor. 

Tonight it's format, format, format. 

Forgive me for the less than stellar post?

Tomorrow my life returns to normal, and Saturday is the one year anniversary of this blog! 

Christmas cookie recipes, party tips and more to come! 

Wordless Wednesday

"Outdoor Santa" at the mall.  My son insisted that Daddy sit with him for the photo.  At least he's not crying, like last year!

2011 Goals Update

This month has been action packed with work, work, and more work!  Budget meetings, teaching an after school class, handling extra curricular activities and just the daily routine have kept me busy most nights after school as well as weekends.  I'm hoping that things will begin to wind down at work in December, when the holiday social calendar begins to heat up!

I did find time to catch up on some of my goals for the year this month, including spending some quality time with family.  December should have plenty more where that came from, which I'm looking forward to. 

While I haven't found time for the fitness program I was hoping to start, I have been trying to eat healthier, and I've maintained my weight despite the long hours in front of the computer working, so I'm happy about that. 

One of the big goals this year was to make some of the rooms in our house more functional, after a long stretch of neglecting those areas.  We've improved our family room, set up an office area for me in the basement and sketched out the changes we want to make to the common area downstairs. 

As for the thesis that I've been working on forever, I'm scheduled to hand in my revised draft to my supervisor this Friday afternoon.  If the committee are satisfied with it, then they will send it to an outside reader and hopefully schedule a thesis defense for sometime in the new year.  I can't tell you how ready I am to be finished with this!  I really enjoyed the process, but now that the end is in sight, I'm anxious to cross the finish line!!!

So bear with me for the rest of the week.  I'll be posting everyday, but it won't be until the weekend that the holiday tips and recipes will start coming.  I'm throwing a few holiday parties at my house this year, so I'll be passing on my tips to throwing a gluten-free friendly gathering, even when it's a potluck and not all the dishes will be gluten free.  Can't wait!

Quite the Ensemble

This is what happens when he picks his own outfit!

Gluten Free Weekly Menu Plan

Monday: Baked Garlicky Fish and Mashed Potatoes

Tuesday: Tuna Patties with Vegetables

 
Wednesday: Butter Chicken with Steamed Peas and Carrots







 Thursday: Homemade Hamburgers   

Friday: A risotto with Mediterranean flavours

A Few Thoughts on a Saturday

I feel as though I'm beginning to catch up to civilization a little bit today, as my husband picked up the new iPhone for each of us.  It's been years (I'm serious) since I've updated my cell phone, and now all of a sudden I can do more things on my phone than I would have ever imagined! 

I've spent the last half hour just checking out all the features that come with the phone, and I've already browsed through hundreds of free books that I want to download. 

So excuse me if tonight's post is really, really, short.  I have to figure out how to post from my new phone.

Menu plan goes up tomorrow, and since this is my weekend to finally finish my thesis draft, my husband's doing the cooking.  Let's see what he comes up with! 

Friday Five List

1- Today is my brother-in-law Carlos' birthday.  He's 23 years old, which I'm sure seems very old to him.  Feliz Cumpleaños Carlos!






2- Toronto broke weather records today.  15.7C!  Hot, sunny and a beautiful day to be outside. 
3- The weather made up for the 45 minutes spent on a broken down bus waiting to go to the ROM this morning.
4- I'm really hoping to spend a date day checking out the special Mayan exhibit before it's over.
5- The countdown is on, 4 more weeks 'till Christmas!

Thanksgiving South of the Border

Happy Thanksgiving to all of my American friends!  I was thinking of all the turkey and football I was missing while at work today.

I hope you had a chance to slow down, relax and enjoy time with family and friends.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING! 

Now get some rest before Black Friday...