Off to College!

We've been busy these last few weeks.  Our oldest is off to college.  As a parent, it is a whirlwind of shopping, washing and packing.   A moment of happy - sad as we get ready for this new adventure.

Added on top of everything was the extra question on how was my eldest going to find enough to eat that was wheat free?  We came as prepared as we knew how.  We brought a fridge and there was a microwave in the dorm. We packed up ramen, rice noodle soups and dried fruit.  We left after that first weekend with our child ensconced in her dorm room and our van finally empty.

School started and lectures got going.  My college child was get used to the dorm and their new independence.  Things seemed to be going smoothly.  My eldest was living on salads, more salads and even more salads.

Five days in I got a distressed call from campus.  The kids were out grocery shopping at the big box stores.  It was overwhelming just how few gluten free breads, pastas and desserts were there.  Gluten and wheat sensitivities are the eighth highest food sensitivities. It is amazing on how hard it is to find wheat free products in our major chains.  The whole experience was overwhelming and disheartening to my college coed. As a Mom hours away, I was worried my child would have a negative "College 15" and come back thinner than when they left.

Food Service to the rescue!  We were thrilled to hear from the University Food Service Manager.  They had gluten free bread, pasta and desserts for the asking.  They kept the products in back so it wouldn't get contaminated by wheat.  The cafetaria and college cafes had more gluten-free alternatives than the big box stores. We are thrilled that our firstborn can eat, study and be happy.  Thanks to all the Food Service Managers at colleges and universities for taking care of our kids when they are far from home.

Local Grocery Store Makes Good

We love to visit our local grocery store.  I know we are all supposed to drive miles to the big box groceries, but we like the variety, fresh produce and the short drive.  Now that we are wrestling to find gluten-free products, we are looking at more of the grocery stores to see who has the most selection.  So many people have gluten or wheat issues, I thought it would be a slam dunk for our local store to stock these products.  We have found some gluten-free products, but still yearn for more.

Tonight when I came home, I was excited to see that our local grocery chain has put together a list of gluten free products throughout the store. We have it hanging on our fridge. It lists the gluten-free products in the store by category.

Even better, when I went to the website, they have a gluten free food finder app.  Love it!    Now if only they would get more gluten-free frozen pizza.....

If you have a Jewel nearby, here is the Gluten-free food finder.  There are other food finders at the same site.    Let me know what your favorite gluten free grocery store is.  We are always looking for more places to go.

My family is now 50% wheat free of necessity.  Since Christmas 2012, we have two in our family that get ill from wheat and two that have no issues.  No one is officially diagnosed with Celiacs, but our two get awfully ill after eating wheat.  We are now reading labels of every product... and wheat is everywhere.  

Soup anyone? Sorry, thickened with wheat, particularly when you go to a restaurant.  Breakfast out on the weekend? Not likely unless you only eat steak and eggs.  Cereal?  Not many choices since so many are made with wheat.   Snacks? They can't eat cakes, crackers, bread, snack mix.  French fries?  Not really - most french fries are crispy due to their flour coating.   Strawberry licorice sticks anyone? No way - wheat's in there too.  In fact, in the state of Illinois, candy that has wheat is considered "food" and has a lower tax rate.  Now we are looking even closer at all the labels.

Wheat is everywhere.   And for my family, wheat hurts in a very personal way.   My blog will share our adventures as our family strives towards a wheat free life.  We'll share the "wins" and finds along the way.  Here's to many great wheat free discoveries!