The World Did Not Come To An End

Well, it has been one year and one month now since our family began eliminating gluten and dairy from our diet.

It seems like such a daunting task at first. I mean, just the very mention of being gluten or dairy free brings about a negative response, such as "I'd die first." Yes, someone actually said that to me. And I use to feel that way about our lifestyle.

However, last Spring, under the advice of some really smart medical providers, we went GFCF, and do you know what happened?

The earth kept spinning and the sun kept rising every morning. The world did not come to an end.

It was overwhelming at first. It still is sometimes. The hardest part of being GFCF is that it makes you have to plan ahead for meals and snacks. No more fast options for hungry kids. No more McDonald's (even though Chick-Fil-A has become my best friend!). No more opening a package for a snack. Now, when one of the Kilmer kids whines "I'm hungry" my response is "Go eat some fruit." I know that may sound like a healthy solution, but the problem is that the kids get hungry more often and we are all still having a hard time believing that we don't need a bunch of starch-filled artificially-flavored preservative-packed food in our systems. GFCF snacks tend to be lower in carbs, meaning the kids are hungry more often.

I have to actually plan for meals and snacks. Sometimes I get on a roll with it and I am so proud of myself. I will spend hours in the kitchen preparing fruit and GFCF protein snacks for the entire week. Then my proud moment fades quickly as the Kilmer kids ransack the entire stock of GFCF goodies within one day, leaving me to scrounge around for more snacks.

They are growing kids, after all.

But that is the thing. They are growing. They are taking less medicine than they were before. Clay and Kylie's skin looks much better. Kylie has no more eczema at all. Kenzie and Kylie do not complain as much about abdominal pain. Kenzie is actually much more active and participated in track this year.

And I have gotten pretty good at making some yummy GFCF snacks. I have pinned a lot of recipes on my pinterest board. I know that I should be writing them down here in blog-land, but, let's face it, that's just not happening. But I actually enjoy cooking GFCF meals now. I'll be honest, it is much harder to be dairy free than gluten free, but I lately I have found some amazing vegan cookbooks that have really helped me out a lot in that area.

So, what piece of advice could I share with anyone who is contemplating going GF or dairy free, or both?

I would want you to know that you can do it. You will not die :) Take it slowly, get some help from emeals.com, and read some great blogs. Enjoy the sunrise the next morning. The world will not stop spinning, I promise!