Thursday, January 19, 2017

I've Been Under the Weather Lately!

   Hi All!  It has been quite a long time since I updated.  As you can probably guess from the title, I have not been feeling well.  I got that blasted stomach bug that was going around our area right after first of the year.  I would guess that it was around the 3rd of January.  I had that awful sickness for 6 days.  Jeremiah and Ryder had it prior to me but it was about a 3 day virus.  I wasn't so fortunate.  Madilynne was able to avoid getting it.  I am happy she didn't experience it.  

    However, this virus was so intense for me that everything- and I mean everything- I ate gave me a terrible upset stomach with lots of pain. Madi and I started keeping a food log about what I was eating and what caused pain.  Well, Madi (aka The Food Warden) has been keeping a tight rein on what I am eating.  I am not a person who has a lot of will power otherwise I would be skinny and super fit so she is helping me make wise food choices!  ;-)  We figured out that anything with eggs, dairy, nuts and wheat were causing me issues.  I made some major changes to my diet and cut all those foods out. It seemed like I only had 5 things I could eat but I was feeling so much better.  I started taking a good probiotic and kept my eating to a minimal. OH HOW I WANTED A PIECE OF CHEESE!!!!  I like cheese almost as much as my tea.  I think not having cheese was the worst possible part of it.

   Madi and I quickly figured out a new eating plan for me focusing on what I could eat and not what I couldn't eat.  That made the process much easier.  I really wanted cheese and something chocolate.  I am not a big chocolate eater so that was surprising to me.  We went for groceries and I got a gluten-free brownie mix at Aldi's. Oh my gosh, it was so good!  The rest of the family even thought it was good.  I got over the chocolate craving and all has been good.  Madi and I have slowly introduced trigger foods back into my diet.  Nuts were the first thing to bring back without any issues. Then I really wanted cheese so I decided that if I only ate one piece of cheese or some shredded cheese on my salads I would be ok.  We tried it and I can only handle a little bit of cheese.  I don't drink any milk or anything like that.  I save the dairy for my cheese!  LOL  Eggs... well eggs are still not something I can eat.  I can handle them baked into something like the brownie but I can't eat them plain, like scrambled or an omelet.  Next is wheat/gluten...that is still a no go. I don't have any major pain if I eat something that I didn't realize has gluten in but my stomach gets upset. 

   I am hoping with a controlled diet, taking probiotics and eating some fermented foods that I will get this under control and get back to eating normally again.  I can say that I do feel better eating a better diet and not so much in the grain/bread/pasta group so that is a good thing!

   As for the rest of life, we went to visit a new creamery that opened recently for lunch.  We met my mom and step-dad, my nephew and his momma there.  Our homeschool group is going to tour the cheese making part of it next week but the idea to meet for lunch came up and we jumped on it.  It was so much fun to eat somewhere new.  I had some yummy food choices so that made it much better.  I got a chicken salad with a delicious ranch dressing.  Oh boy was it good!  The focus of the foods is to eat local, Farm to Table style. They had the local farms listed and I recognized three of the five farms.  I think that it is great that they are supporting our local community farmers.  They also had a gift shop that had some items made locally.  The prices weren't extremely high either.  Usually those kind of places have a high price point but honestly I didn't think it was too bad. I didn't feel like it broke the bank to eat there and we will definitely go back. Examples: my chicken salad was $5.50 and it was a nice sized salad. The Philly Cheese Wrap and homemade chips was $7.50 and the Cheeseburger and homemade chips was also $5.50.  I think I have those prices right.... Not a bad price overall. I can't remember the cost of the drinks though.  Madi ordered some fried cheese curds and they were pricier around $7 for the order but she really liked them.   

   Our extended family was supposed to go snow tubing as a family experience instead of Christmas gifts last Saturday.  My brother-in-law developed a blood clot in his calf muscle and as a result can't do anything physical like tubing for several weeks.  We decided to change plans and just go out to dinner.  What good is it to have a family experience and not have the whole family?  Dinner was scheduled and then my B-I-L got sick. He and his wife decided to stay home.  Dinner is now rescheduled for this Saturday!  HaHa  I personally don't mind changing the schedule because my stomach issues are getting better so I have more food choices now.  Jeremiah's family is pretty close so it's not like we won't do something else at a later date.  The restaurant that was chosen is also new to us.  I think only two family members have eaten there before so it will be another fun experience. 

   Well, I will wrap up today's post since this is getting pretty long.  I could have done this post in several different ones but I just wanted to get it typed up.  I hope it wasn't too long for you. Have a blessed day!

7 comments:

  1. It is good to see you here and to catch up with what's been going on! So sorry for your troubles but glad you are figuring it out and eating better in the process. Hope the family get-together finally happens as planned this coming weekend! Keep us posted!!

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    1. Thanks for caring, Terri! I have been following your house updates. Hope all still is going well with that process. We had a family dinner on Saturday. It was a nice evening. I will post about the whole thing next. :-)

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  2. So sorry you have been ill. Aldi does have a great selection of gluten free items. It will take time to find what works best for you. Have a very blessed weekend!

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    1. Hi Ginger! I made some "regular" brownies over the weekend to take to church for a Bible Quiz get together and the kids both said the Aldi gluten free ones were better! How 'bout that! ;-)

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  3. So sorry you have been ill. Aldi does have a great selection of gluten free items. It will take time to find what works best for you. Have a very blessed weekend!

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  4. Hi,Sending you get well wishes your way today. I just discovered your blog and I am enjoying it very much. I'm getting caught up with your older posts. I have Celiac so I know all about stomach distress! Have you tried cheese alternatives, like almond rella? It is made from almonds and is quite tasty. They have soy cheese as well, but not a favorite of mine. I hope you are feeling much better now and can soon enjoy your family dinner together. Thanks for sharing your blog with us.

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    1. Thanks so much for stopping by and leaving a comment. I am sorry to hear you have Celiac. My mom was hospitalized three years ago with severe stomach pain and they thought she may have Celiac. She tested negative for it thankfully. I couldn't find cheese alternatives at our local stores however, I didn't search real hard.... I have been able to eat cheese again but I don't partake in a lot of it. I feel so much better than I have in months. I am actually kinda "happy" about the change in my diet. I am learning that I can live without those other foods. ;-)

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