Blue Mountain Exchange-Pasco, WA

February 26, 2010 was our first game. It was an 8:00 a.m. game and there was so much fog that you couldn't see the other end of the field. We played an awesome team and lost. Kennedy hung out under the blanket watching Scooby Doo.

Later that day we played our second soccer game. The sun was shining and it was 65 degrees. The girls played a good game, but we lost.

Sunday was our final soccer game it was another 8:00 a.m. game. Looked totally different today without the fog. The girls looked tired after spending two nights together in the hotel. First time staying as a team without the parents. This is a good group of girls, but I was still a nervous wreck.

Before we left for Pasco, I made lasagna and chicken noodle casserole in these tin pans. We brought the convection oven to the hotel and made our dinners right in the hotel room. We found a great restaurant in Kennewick that offers gluten free meals and next time we will give the place a try. It is called Nothing but Noodles and the food looked great.

Gluten Free Tuna Noodle Casserole

8 oz. gluten free pasta(I use Quinoa)
2 TBSP butter
1 medium onion , diced
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pepper
2 (6 ounce) cans tuna
1 TBSP cornstarch
4 ounces cream cheese
2 cups milk
1 cup peas
2 cups crushed potato chips 2 cups shredded cheese

1. Melt butter in a large skillet and saute onion until soft. Add salt and pepper.

2. Drain the water from the tuna into a small bowl. Whisk cornstarch into tuna water until smooth. Set aside.

3. Stir cream cheese into skillet and cook until melted. Add milk and reserved tuna water.

4. Stirring, bring just to a boil and remove from heat.

5. Mix in peas and tuna, separate the tuna into bite sized flakes.

6. Boil pasta for 5 minutes or until al dente. DO NOT OVER COOK!

7. Drain pasta, and rinse.

8. Toss pasta and sauce into a casserole dish and bake at 350 for 10 minutes.

9. Top with potato chips and cheese and bake for 10 minutes more.

Finally a quick breakfast idea

It is so hard cooking breakfast every morning. Cold cereal every morning is not an option. Not only do the kids get sick of it, but it doesn't seem to keep them full for very long. Today we tried Bob's Red Mill Mighty Tasty Gluten Free Hot Cereal. It was good. The girls added raisin, butter and a little brown sugar to make an excellent meal.

7 vs. 7 Soccer Tournament at BSU

Karleigh had a soccer tournament today. She played in 5 games that started at 8:00 a.m. and last game was at 2:40 p.m. It was a good day for the team with 2 wins, 2 losses and 1 tie. I think that I am just as tired as Karleigh is tonight. All of us will be going to bed early.

Gluten Free Karleigh

Today Karleigh has decided to join Kennedy and Dad in the gluten freee lifestyle. I am so proud of her. We have noticed the last few months she has not had a lot of energy and looks pale. She also hasn't grown a lot either. Her docter has diagnosed her with lichen sclerosus et atrophicus which is an autoimmune disease. This can be triggered by gluten and we are hoping that by elimanating gluten it will decrease her symptoms.

SAUSAGE ROLLS

This recipe is from Erin H. and is the 2007 Pamela's Greatest Gluten Free Recipe Contest. I made these tonight and the girls LOVED them.

1 bag Pamela's Gluten-Free Bread Mix (including the yeast packet)
1/4 C. oil
2 large eggs
Warm water(to equal 2 cups with the eggs and oil)
16 oz. ground breakfast sausage
12 oz. cream cheese at room temp. (gluten free)
cooking spray

Preheat oven to 325. Prepare the mix(including yeast pack) according to the package instruction for STAND MIXER PREPARATION. Grease 24 muffin cups with gluten-free cooking spray. Drop prepared bread dough, dividing equally, into prepared muffin cups. With oil on your fingers or the bottom of a shot glass dipped in water, press dough down and up the sides of each muffin cup. Set rolls aside to rest while preparing the filling. Approximately 20 minutes.

Brown the sausage in a roomy skillet, crumbling well while cooking. Remove from heat, DO NOT DRAIN THE SAUSAGE GREASE. Add softened cream cheese to the sausage and stir well to combine. Divide the sausage mixture equally among the muffin cups.

Bake in preheated 325 oven for 25-30 minutes until lightly brown. Cool slightly in pan, then remove.

Note: These sausage rolls may be frozen, well wrapped, for up to 3 months. Also a fun breakfast, try serving with a poached egg on top!

Prednisone for Kennedy

Kennedy has not had any changes in her stool since December. We have been on Lialda for 1 month now and she is still having a lot of diarrhea. I spoke with Kennedy's doctor and she wants to start her on 20 mg of Prednisone to help her body get over this colitis. There are a lot of risks involved with taking Prednisone, but if we do nothing we will not be helping her either. So tomorrow morning she will start Prednisone.

Corticosteroids (often referred to simply as steroids but are not to be confused with body-building "steroids") were first introduced as therapy for Irritable Bowl Disease in the 1950s. Since that time, these powerful and fast-acting anti-inflammatory drugs have been the mainstay of treatment for acute flare-ups of disease. Most patients notice an improvement in symptoms within days of starting corticosteroids. In addition to their anti-inflammatory action, corticosteroids also are immunosuppressive. That means they decrease the activity of the immune system, which experts believe may be out of control in people with IBD. As a result, they may make certain individuals more susceptible to catching infections.

Corticosteroids closely resemble cortisol, a hormone naturally produced by the body's adrenal glands. This group of medications is available in oral, rectal, and intravenous (IV) forms. When people take corticosteroids, their adrenal glands stop producing or slow down the production of normal cortisol.

In general, corticosteroids are recommended only for short-term use in order to achieve remission. As valuable as they are in acute situations, corticosteroids are not effective in preventing flare-ups and therefore are rarely used for maintenance therapy in IBD. In addition, long-term use is not advised because of undesirable side effects. For that reason, corticosteroids are usually given in the lowest possible dosage for the shortest amount of time. Frequent short-duration use, however, is not recommended.

Kennedy's Kindergarten New Mexico State Report

Today Kennedy shared New Mexico with her classmates at Calvary Christian School. Nana sent her some post cards to put in her booklet. She also shared with her class the fact the Smokey Bear was rescued from the forests of New Mexico in 1950.

Valentines's Weekend in New Meadows

Skiing at Brundage with Nana.

Celebrating Valentine's Day in New Meadows.

The Skiing Crew

Nana flew into Idaho for a long weekend of skiing in New Meadows. It was a warm day and we got a lot of runs in. By mid morning Kennedy was following Karleigh out into the trees and hitting the jumps. We took a lunch and ate out of the back of the truck. We had so much fun.

Gluten Free Drop Biscuits

Found our new favorite biscuit recipe this weekend. These are so good. A little on the sweet side. They are great with biscuits and gravy.

My Birthday Weekend

We spent the weekend in New Meadows and had such a great time. Papa Neil made the girls a sledding hill and they wore themselves out on it.

Saturday night we went to the Kahili Club and sang karaoke for my birthday. Sara Nichols was here from Alaska. Her Mom and Dad came down to hang out too. Nicole Long and Scott were also here for the weekend from Seattle.

Papa Neil pulled the girls in the sled with the Rhino. Kennedy was scared at first, but when she saw how much fun Karleigh was having she decided to try it. She loved it.

We went skiing at Brundage of Friday and had such a great time. I forget how much I love skiing. Kevin had the wipe out of the day.

Karleigh's first surgery

Today we went to St. Lukes Boise for Karleigh's first surgery. She has been having pain when she eats, decreased appetite and low energy level. Dr. Thomas is going to do a upper endoscopy and see what is going on. They are also going to do some biopsies and check for Celiac disease. Right after surgery the doctor came back to tell us that it is possible that she has bile in her stomach that shouldn't be there. He thinks that it is from the H1N1 flu causing some changes to her stomach which causes the bile to stay in her stomach. When she eats she has feels full and gets the acid reflux. We will know more on Monday when the biopsy results come back.

Colitis

Today we took Kennedy for a check up to see why Kennedy has been complaining of stomach aches and diarrhea for a month. We went to Idaho Pediatric Associates and saw Barbie. Kennedy loves her, she is a great Nurse Practitioner. It looks like Kennedy has colitis from the antibiotic she was on in December for the impetigo. It has been causing her diarrhea since taking the antibiotic. At our doctor appointment today we decided to try Lialda for 4-8 weeks to see if this will help Kennedy get over this bout of colitis. Due to her having IGA deficiency it may take closer to 8 weeks for her to see a difference. These pills are huge and Kennedy has no problem swallowing them. We are so lucky she is so compliant with all of this medical treatment.

Indoor Soccer

It's soccer season again. We had a couple of weeks off for Christmas break and now we are at it again. Karleigh had her first indoor soccer game in Meridian. I loved being able to enjoy the game without the wind and cold.

It's time to shed the winter weight

Time has come again for our biggest loser challenge. This year it will be a 15 week challenging starting today. Each person has paid $20.00 and on April 16, 2010 the person with the largest percentage of weight loss will take the money. There are 17 of us in the competition it will be fierce. My plan is to get back to the gluten free diet 100%. Wish me luck.

Easy Gluten Free Quesadillas

So my Mom bought me this quesadilla maker for Christmas. Turns out that this is a wonderful way to make gluten free cheese quesadillas, bean and cheese quesadillas and taco quesadillas. We keep the brown rice tortillas on hand in the freezer. It is quick to fry the hamburger add beans and cheese and press between two tortillas. The girls love them!

Skiing at Brundage

Kevin and I had to work while the girls were on Christmas break. Nana and Papa took the girls to New Meadows and they got to go skiing at Brundage. I think that after a week of skiing Nana will be ready to head back to Albuquerque, NM.

Charlie gets a Snuggie for Christmas

Charlie loves to be under his blanket so we though that he would love a Snuggie for Christmas. The store was all out of blue so poor Charlie has to wear pink. He doesn't seem to mind. Pink is not only for girls.

Gluten Free Jello Pretzel Salad

New waffle maker

My Mom gave us a waffle maker for Christmas and it is so nice. We use Pamelas Pancake and Waffle mix to make the best waffles.

Christmas 2009

Christmas was finally here! I had a serious case of the BAH HUMBUGS! It has been a long year and I do have a lot to be thankful for, but I am looking forward to 2010. My Mom and Dad spent Christmas at our house. We cooked a turkey, stuffing, Jello pretzel salad, orange sweet potatoes, mashed potatoes, baked apples, green beans and rolls. All of it was gluten free. I also made a sweet potato and pumpkin pie. After dinner we played a game of Apples to Apples. We had a wonderful day with our family.
The girls were up at 6:00 a.m. this morning wanting to come downstairs to see what Santa had brought. Joanne had made them each a blanket that they opened up the night before.


Kennedy wanted a new pillow for Christmas. She loved that it was a BSU Bronco.

Christmas Eve BINGO Party

It is our annual tradition to celebrate Christmas Eve at our house. Everyone brings a $5.00 wrapped gift and we play BINGO. My Mom makes clam chowder and I make the chili. Of course there is always a little karaoke to be had by most.

White Water Pizza

Kevin and I went to lunch today at White Water Pizza in Meridian and noticed the Gluten Free Pizza sign. The manager sold us forzen pizza crusts for $3.00 each. What a good deal. I am anxious to have Kennedy try it.

The Girls head to New Meadows

Christmas break and Nana and Papa took the girls to New Meadows. They will be back on December 23rd to spend Christmas here at home.

Tip Tap Toes Christmas Dance Recital

Tonight was Kennedy's dance recital. She danced to Your a Mean One, Mr. Grinch. She did a great job.

Breakfast Casserole

I created this recipe a couple of weekends ago and this weekend I added the fresh herbs to the recipe and it was a hit. Throughout the year I cut the crust off of Kennedy's bread and put it into freezer bags in the freezer. This is a great breakfast especially when we have company. They won't even know it is gluten free.

We have snow

This weekend was our first real snow storm. We ended up with only about 3 inches. It was enough to make the girls want to go outside and play.

Chocolate Chex Caramel Crunch

This recipe is delicious. Another good idea for taking to a party.

White Chocolate Popcorn

Every year I make this treat. This year I can't use rice krispies because they contain gluten so I have decided to add Koala Crip cereal.

Calvary Christian School Christmas Program 2009

Tonight was Karleigh and Kennedy's Christmas program at Calvary Christian School. Kennedy was dressed as an angel. They both did a great job singing their hearts out for Jesus.

Baking for the holidays

Wow I can't believe that it has almost been a year since Kennedy was diagnosed with celiac disease. Who would have ever thought that I would be buying organic and cooking with rice flour a year ago? This has been a rough year and looking back I am so glad that I am where we are. Kennedy looks so healthy and the trips to the doctors have decreased. I am hopeful that 2010 will be a healthy year for our family.

I have really been into baking since Thanksgiving. I enjoy trying to find gluten free alternatives that taste just as good as the gluten filled food. It is not easy, but I think that I have found a few top notch recipes. Most of are meals are made from scratch which makes it really time consuming, but I know that quick and easy is not always good for you. Kevin stands at the kitchen sink as I dirty up all of the dishes. He washes the dishes and then I dirty them back up. It is a constant circle of rotating dishes.

I do miss eating out at restaurants. We occasionally get to go out and eat, but it is very rare. The ease of going through a drive thru is no longer an option. I have to make sure that I always have food with us wherever we go.

Our house is gluten free and we all eat gluten free with her. I try not to make it seem that she is eating something weird or abnormal. I admit that when Kevin and I are away from home we do eat an occasional hamburger with a bun.

Chocolate Chip Cookies

Ingredients

1 cup unsalted butter 2 cups brown rice flour

1/4 cup cornstarch 2 tablespoons tapioca flour

1 teaspoon xanthan gum 1 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 cup sugar 1 teaspoon kosher salt

1 1/4 cup brown sugar 1 whole egg

1 egg yolk 2 tablespoons whole milk

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract 12 ounces semi sweet chocolate chips

Directions

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Melt the butter in a saucepan over low heat. Once melted, pour into the bowl of a stand mixer.

In a medium bowl, sift together the rice flour, cornstarch, tapioca flour, xanthan gum, salt and baking soda. Set aside.

Add both of the sugars to the bowl with the butter and using the paddle attachment, cream together on medium speed for 1 minute. Add the whole egg, egg yolk, milk and vanilla extract and mix until well combined. Slowly incorporate the flour mixture until thoroughly combined. Add the chocolate chips and stir to combine.

Shape the dough into 2-ounce balls and place on parchment-lined baking sheets. Bake for 14 minutes.

2009 Christmas Tree Ornaments

Every year I try to find those perfect ornaments that symbolize the things that we have done, places we have been and things we need to remember. Usually it is a soccer girl, a trip to Florida or pictures of the girls. This year it is about finding peace. It has not been an easy road this year, but I am finally finding my way.

It is about the need for Starbucks. No matter how bad the day starts off, Starbucks can make things better.

And "C" is for Celiac. A devastating diagnosis, but we have managed to maintain our sanity. I have really tried to keep things as normal as possible during this first year of eating gluten free. Looking back we have come a long way. When Kennedy was first diagnosed in January 2009 I was in a tail spin trying to figure out what she could eat, shampoo to use and even a safe toothpaste. Even the grocery stores have started to carry more gluten free foods! YEAH!!

Boise State will be playing in the Fiesta Bowl January 4, 2010 in Glendale, AZ. We will be there to cheer for the Broncos. It was announced today that BSU will play TCU. Go Broncos.

Meat and Cheese Yum Yum's

I was talking with some friend's this week and we were remembering all the good school lunch's we had in New Meadows. Everything was fresh and homemade. One of our favorite lunch's was meat and cheese yum yum's. It was bread dough with bologna and cheese in the middle. I made the gluten free version tonight and they turned out great. I used the dinner roll recipe for the bread and I must say they were a hit.

Lazy Sunday

It is cold this weekend. This week it is suppose to get below 0!!! We usually catch some football games over the weekend. The girls like to lay on the floor with Dad. Today we have the fireplace going and a little extra heat from London and the blankets.

Gluten Free Pizza Crust

Tonight we made homemade pizza crust. It was great.