TV

I watch entirely too much TV.

Using the phrase 'entirely too much' makes it sound like I care or that I want to watch less. In reality, that's not true. Here are my current Top 5 shows along with the number one reason why I love each one...

1. Big Bang Theory -

I have a secret crush on Sheldon Cooper.

2. The Soup -

It's actually a tie between my gratitude for how much they rag on Oprah and my gratitude for introducing the phrase, "Oh, here go hell come" into my vocabulary.

3. House -

Gregory House gets away with saying the things that the rest of us are thinking.

4. Bones -

David Boreanaz.

5. Criminal Minds -

It has shown me how to commit the perfect crime and fed my delusion that I can see into people's minds.

What does a photo of my son have to do with all this? Nothing. I just love this picture because he looks like he's pulling some wicked yo-yo move.

CraigO's

We just returned from eating at CraigO's pizza for the first time. (We visited the Mopac and 290 location.) Doug's evaluation of the regular pepperoni pizza wasn't stellar. He said there was too much sauce and the pepperoni wasn't very flavorful. I would guess that his evaluation of the atmosphere wasn't too stellar either. Our table had a serious wobble, the pizza perch was precarious, and we had two nutty children bouncing around it all.

However, it is my new favorite place because they serve gluten-free pizza. And it was actually quite good! I thought pizza was a thing of the past for me. I had put it on a shelf, with flour tortillas and Texadelphia. I experienced a glimmer of hope when I saw GF pizza on their menu, but after my first experience with gluten-free bread, I was dubious (to put it mildly).

It far exceeded my expectations. The crust had sort of the texture of a potato cake or something. I know that sounds strange, but it was tasty! Hooray!

P.S. - I still haven't checked to see whether or not Chuy's Deluxe Tomatillo Sauce is GF. I fear that the disappointment of a "no" might send me into a spiral of despair.

My New Favorite Words

I've been living gluten-free for one week now and I've learned several things. The number one thing being this: Many people have no idea what I'm talking about when I say "gluten-free". So here's a little education (my reference is The Living Gluten-Free Answer Book by Suzanne Bowland).

[Side note: I told Lila that she should ask Daddy for a nickel every time she hears Mommy say the words "gluten-free". She'll be rich before she's 10-years-old.]

Gluten is a protein found in wheat, barley, and rye. If you are gluten-intolerant or have celiac disease, you cannot digest gluten. It causes a whole host of problems, many of which I have. To eliminate these problems and allow your body a chance to heal, you stop eating all sources of gluten.

That is much easier said than done since gluten is everywhere and I love most forms of it! Bread as you know it is off limits. I cannot eat Peproni Rolls or Cheesesteaks or flour tortillas anymore! Gah! Buuut, it is worth the sacrifice. And, most importantly, Dr. Pepper is gluten-free. If it weren't... well, I prefer not to think about that.

Anyway, I decided to go gluten-free for two weeks to see if I notice any changes in my body. I'm only halfway through, but I have already seen a dramatic improvement. I have dealt with debilitating fatigue (like, nearly every day) for all of my adult life. . . until four days ago. Honestly, it feels so good that part of me does not believe it can last.

I have also not had that bloated, over-full feeling all week (even though i've been eating almost non-stop). And suddenly, I can feel caffiene in my body. I have always been able to drink soda and/or coffee right up until I crawl into bed with no problem. Now I can't drink coffee in the evening anymore and even a soda with dinner might cause problems. (i'm assuming this means that my body was so messed up before that it was not absorbing all that caffiene, but i really don't know.)

My one big question at this point: Is Deluxe Tomatillo Sauce gluten-free?