The Gluten Bigot: September 2013

Monday, September 30, 2013

Gluten Free Bumpdate! Week 18

How far along? 18 weeks (19 weeks now - I write these to document how the week was for those who have asked :) )
Total weight gain: Down 2-4 pounds from my last weigh in :(
Maternity clothes? Pants, yes. Tops are still baggy around the belly, though my pre-pregnancy ones are a bit too tight now.
Stretch marks? Nope!
Sleep: Sad to say terrible this week. My husband was away and I never sleep well when he's gone, and this week was no exception. Couldn't sleep or stay asleep, very frustrating!
Best moment this week: I overall had an awesome week at work, hanging out with my husband and for brunch and walking the High Line and on a beautiful day, and finding out one of my besties is expecting as well!
Miss anything? My appetite (but we'll get to that)
Movement: Again, I think so but not sure yet. Mostly in the evening when I'm going to bed.
Food cravings: No, in fact the exact opposite.
Anything making you queasy or sick: Oh yes. So I mentioned previously the thought of of eating anything not prepared at home now repulses me. Pre-prepared food has been added to that list, and basically anything that is not: 1. Fruit, 2. Vegetables, 3. a GF protein bar, 4. cereal, 5. plain GF bread. Even what I can eat I can only eat in small quantities. Hence my weight loss. It has been incredibly frustrating and stressful.
Gender: Will let you know in a few weeks :)
Labor signs: Nope.
Symptoms: Food aversions (above), acne is still a thing (though I got some products which seemed to have helped already - I will write about them in a couple of weeks to let you know how they have worked out), exhaustion, a bit of sciatica.
Belly button in or out? In.
Wedding rings on or off? On.
Happy or moody most of the time: I don't know if I'm just hormonal, or if it's because I'm stressed out because of the not eating/weight loss or not sleeping, but was very moody most days this week. Luckily my mood returned to mostly happy towards the end of the week. 
Looking forward to: Going home in a few weeks and seeing my family and my new niece in a few weeks! And having a full week where neither me or my husband is travelling!


Sunday, September 29, 2013

Gluten Free Crepes in Chelsea Market

My husband and I had talked about going to on of my favorite places in Chelsea Market, Friedman's Lunch, but I decided I wanted to both eat a crepe and try somewhere new, so we went to Bar Suzette.


All of their crepes can be made gluten free (sweet and savory) - just note they do not have separate hot plates. They did clean the plates before making my gluten free one and did use a new spatula. 

I had the nutella with banana and strawberry - pure health I know but made me completely happy at the time. And certainly a great grab and enjoy in the market!

Wednesday, September 25, 2013

Gluten Free Oslo


Very soon after finding out we are pregnant, my husband and I decided a babymoon (or two) were in order. Clearly we live very blessed lives. After discounting a few places on our 'must visit' list we decided to do another Euro-trip. We talked about touring from Barcelona to Nice, but the idea of being in the South of France without enjoying wine was too much for me. We decided to go somewhere neither of us has gone - Scandinavia. 

Our first stop was Oslo. When researching where to eat we quickly found out fast food joints (McDonald's and Burger King) both have GF buns at no charge. I hate fast food and hadn't had it for years even before my diagnosis. 

One of the first things we noticed was that everyone knew what gluten free was. No hesitation, no strange looks, just a recital of our options upon inquiry. FTW. We ate at the following places:
Burger King
  • Burger King: lunch the first day. I had to at least try it. The bun was very tapioca-y.
  • Peppe's Pizza: Probably the most terrible GF pizza I have eaten. Don't recommend.
  • Egon (Karl Johan): Offered GF bread, I had a baked potato (it was cold and that sounded awesome). It was good, and very pretty location to sit outside.
  • Olivia: I had the best risotto I had ever had here. Great ambiance, we enjoyed the highly heated patio!
  • Pass on this one
  • Bakefri: The gluten gastronomical highlight of Oslo! I enjoyed french onion soup with an amazing roll, a Norwegian waffle which has brown cheese, their national treasured food I was advised, and butter. Both were amazing. We also had a danish to go, my first ever gluten free Danish and I only wished I had bought more, and a cinnamon roll. (Foodporn from Bakefri below)
Also worth noting, I attempted to have dessert at Big Horn as they have a GF apple cake, but was rudely turned away as we were told that to eat there you must order an entree per person. Fine, don't take my money, I will happily go elsewhere.

If you are going to Oslo, ensure you prepare yourself for sticker shock. Entrees were averaging $30 USD each, so certainly not the cheapest place to visit. But Oslo was amazing and the ease of being celiac there made it worth it!


French onion soup and a delicious roll.
Norweigan waffle

Cinnamon roll
Danish - I clearly count not wait to try it lol!


Monday, September 23, 2013

Gluten Free Bumpdate - Week 17


How far along? 17 weeks!
Total weight gain: I haven't weighed myself this week.
Maternity clothes? I really feel like my belly 'popped' at the end of week 16 and I am officially in maternity pants. After a packing meltdown last weekend, I ordered a few maternity items which arrived this week. Yesterday I packed up anything that didn't fit into boxes so my closet won't have that looming sense of depression about nothing fitting.
Stretch marks? Nope.
Sleep: What sleep I got was amazing. I attended my company's user conference, which was amazing, but involved very long days. Friday and Saturday both included compensating naps.
Best moment this week: Having our early anatomy scan, seeing Bricklet, and being assured all is healthy so far. And seeing Condoleezza Rice speak at our conference - she is inspirational no matter your political beliefs.
Miss anything? My typical work clothes and wine in a really bad way one day. 
Movement: Pretty sure I am feeling some squirms now.
Food cravings: Nothing really this week, but did get seriously jealous whenever I saw glorious dessert tables filled with goodies I could not eat.
Anything making you queasy or sick: Cigarette smoke still, and luckily while eating out is still making me feel ill I managed to do so while travelling.
Gender: We found out during our scan but are keeping it a secret until I can announce to my family in person in a few weeks.
Labor signs: Nope!
Symptoms: Low energy and a bit of hormonal acne on my forehead. I've never had problematic skin, so the latter is really freaking me out. I've just placed an order on sephora.com for some natural products to hopefully clear it up!
Belly button in or out?  In.
Wedding rings on or off? On.
Happy or moody most of the time: Happy, but definitely have shorter than usual patience. 

I also had the first random / person I haven't told I was pregnant congratulate me. I was a bit shocked as I know my stomach has looked similarly post-gluten so I didn't think it was that obvious. It was comforting though as it does indicate that I look pregnant and not chubby (I have not been coping well with my expanding girth and am very paranoid people will just think I have let myself go). 

Also, I put together a progression of 5-15 weeks (below) for your viewing pleasure - I sure have grown since the beginning haha!



Monday, September 16, 2013

Gluten Free Pregnancy Bumpdate - Week 16


*Updated with bumpshots*

How far along? 16 weeks!
Total weight gain: 2 pounds total from pre-pregnancy to now.
Maternity clothes? I ordered a whole bunch and have already bought (and outgrown) a couple of pairs of jeans a size up. The Belly Band has come in handy lately!
Stretch marks? Nope. I'm using Palmer's Cocobutter to help prevent.
Sleep: Jet lagged still a bit from my trip to Scandinavia last week - I know my life is very rough!
Best moment this week: Being home for a week and hearing the baby's heart beat at the doctor's office (the highlight of my monthly checkups).
Miss anything? Wine and pants that fit.
Movement: I thought maybe I felt something the other day, but wasn't too sure.
Food cravings: I have been obsessed with soup and gluten free rolls/buns. It started about a week and a half ago and I honestly could eat it every day.
Anything making you queasy or sick: This one is strange, but the thought of eating in a restaurant makes me feel ill - and I am travelling for work this upcoming week so that should be fun! The smell of cigarette smoke makes me really sick, and random other smells.
Gender: We have an early anatomy scan so will know for sure next week, we may hold off sharing the information though :)
Labor signs: Nope.
Symptoms: Still have the odd bought our nausea, typically when I go too long (ie 2 hours) without eating.
Belly button in or out? In.
Wedding rings on or off? On.
Happy or moody most of the time: Happy! 

Anyone else had the weird restaurant aversion? It's good because it's forcing me to cook, but even places I usually love just freak me out lately!


Sunday, September 15, 2013

Big News...

Some very exciting news to share... my husband I expecting! We are 4 months into it, and so far all is well!

My first trimester was fairly rough... constant nausea, insomnia, exhaustion. You know, all fun things. I basically poured all of my energy into work and would crash afterwards - hence the absence of blog posts!

One thing I was really nervous about was cravings - what if I had really strong cravings for gluten when pregnant? So far that has certainly not been an issue, although I have found myself wishing for the ability to eat certain things. My other concern is that I mostly avoid dairy, and calcium is oh so important. Obviously getting key nutrients in now is critical so I have found my gluten free pregnancy to have a few additional considerations.

I will be doing weekly bumpdates, as well writing the odd post about gluten free pregnancy (annoyances, things to think about, challenges, etc... ) I'm hoping to get 3 posts per week - I am travelling pretty much weekly for the next couple of months, but will do my best!

I hope you'll read along on my journey!

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