Gluten Free Tilapia Recipe

Ok, I am thinking this can go on any fish... or anything period it was so good!!! I am usually scared to use the broiler, it's so hot and I worry it'll sear the outside and leave the inside of a piece of meat raw, but fish is excellent in there!!! Who knew?! This is what we did:

*as always, if you are making this as a gluten free recipe check your ingredients to ensure gluten free status! I have brands I am very loyal to, but I still check every time I buy a new container to ensure nothing has changed on the ingredient list.

3 tilapia fillets (made enough to cover at least six, seriously)
1/2 C parmesan cheese (I used grated)
1/4 C butter or margarine, melted
3 Tbs Miracle Whip (use mayo, it'll be good, I'm just a mwhip junkie!)
dash of basil, pepper, salt, and onion powder

Preheat broiler - ours has three settings, I used the middle one called "norm". I lined our broiler pan with foil and sprayed it with Pam, just be aware that if you tilt this as you are pulling the fish out (ahem) the fillets will slide off!! I caught mine as they were sliding...

Broil plain fish three minutes on each side. While doing that, mix all the other ingredients together in a bowl. After the 3 minutes per side pull the tray out and cover the fish with your sauce. I really doused mine! Broil two to three more minutes and voila! Amazing fish!

This would be good on any white fish I have ever tasted, and would probably also be good on some corn on the cob wrapped in foil on the broiler too. Mmmmmmm.... maybe on potatoes too!!! The possibilities are endless!!!

Diesel, the Lizard Slayer

This is my savior today. Diesel is barely one year old, and the few bugs we have found in our house this summer he has brought to our feet, growling to let us know he had found something. I have never had a cat bring me things INSTEAD of eating them! He found the lizard while we were cooking dinner and brought it to us growling LOUDLY like a dog. It was not only amazing to me that he brought it to hubby's feet alive, but so nice that I don't have to worry about a weird lizard in my house anymore!!! I know they eat spiders and bugs, blah blah blah, but I'm just not a reptile person. Big Kid grabbed the lizard and set it free outside, Diesel hadn't hurt it at all! He has moved up on my list and put a smile on my face :)

Lizard in my house!!!!

I picked up a little blanket off the floor, trying to find a little beachball for the twins to play with in the little pool out back. A freaking lizard that is at least seven inches long ran UP MY ARM and onto the twins' slide in the corner of the room!! I screamed of course, and made my husband come try to get it. It hid in our recliner, we can't find it now, and I have since taken apart the chair and vacuumed it. How do you find a lizard in your house?!!! And what's even worse is my two cats are completely oblivious, they have no idea there's a lizard in their house! Useless animals. Grrrrr!!! I HATE lizards!

I am the one who killed the huge spider out back next to the pool, I don't mind wolf spiders one iota. One good smoosh and it's dead. A LIZARD??? IN MY HOUSE???

Eye surgery

Thing One and Thing Two had their eye appointments this morning. We thought their glasses prescriptions had changed over the last two months, because they are both still a little cross eyed.

Did I mention they have "esotropia"? That means their eyes cross. If left untreated it will cause another big word, amblyopia, which means the brain has chosen one eye to become dominant and sort of ignores the other eye so the child can better see.

So today the pediatric opthamologist said their eyes are no less crossed than they were at the last check up, meaning the glasses are correcting their vision but not their esotropia completely. This means that a) they probably have awful depth perception and b) they'll probably need surgery to correct their crossed eyes. The doctor talked to me just a little about the possibility of surgery, he is giving the twins 6 more weeks in their glasses before he makes the final decision.

I'm not nervous about the surgery really, the only freaky part is putting the twins under anesthesia. They are barely 3 years old, and have never been put under!! The eye surgery from what I have read is very noninvasive and they'll recover right away. Thank goodness! My father had the same surgery in 1949 and 1950, and had both eyes patched for days and it took three surgeries to fix his eyes. Of course that was 60+ years ago, things have changed a lot since then! However he can see perfectly well, I'm really not worried about the surgery. Now I just have to find the funds to pay for them... LOL!

Wow!!!

This storm produced tornados that did so much unexpected damage it was like being in a movie for me, staying up late to watch where the tornados were hitting next and if we were going to hide in our neighbor's basement or go to sleep unaffected. I can't imagine how to deal with the loss of life, of livelihood these people have experienced. It's just amazing that this happened "in our backyard"!!!

Jammin Out

Is it bad that I totally jam out when I hear the new Brittney Spears song? Course I still "jam out" when I hear Disturbed and Godsmack... I guess I have a wide range of interests with music! Oops, did I just show my age? HA!

Happy Mother's Day!!

I just did our every other Friday shopping trip, and wow did we find some good deals. One of the ones that I really liked was the flowers deal - I bought three Freschetta frozen pizzas at Kroger (mega sale and coupons!) and the register printed a $5 off Mother's Day floral arrangement coupon!! I already had planned on getting my neighbor a get well soon/mom's day bouquet at Publix, so it was perfect timing. I got her a nice little bouquet and was able to use the coupon!! I had a million other coupons of course, but I'm not one of those freaks who bring home $400 worth of groceries for a dollar, at best I save 40% of my bill.

I hope everyone reading my little blog has an enjoyable relaxing mother's day :)

Udi's Cinnamon Rolls

While at Kroger getting Big Kid sinus medicine (poor kid has quite a cold), I saw Udi's Cinnamon Rolls marked down half off because the expiry date is in two days. I couldn't resist, with my $1 coupon I paid $2 for a pack of cinnamon rolls that are gluten free! I took great gooey pleasure in eating my first cinnamon roll since 2006. It certainly isn't fresh baked fall apart, but after warming in the microwave for a half a minute and pouring the enclosed sauce all over it I have to admit it was very pleasing!!

Once again, thank you Udi's!! I grabbed a loaf of their "multigrain" bread to try now, we'll see how that tastes. I am so impressed with their other products I have tried so far, yay!!!

Saxon Math

We are finishing up with Saxon 76 today, and wow did we love that book! Big Kid learned so much from it, and thanks to the repetition he remembered it all! Ok, most of it ;) We just purchased a brand new set of Saxon 87, can't wait to break it open and see if it's as good as 76!

Choosing curriculum is so difficult, I truly feel that once you find a book or series of books that fit your child's style of learning, and your style of teaching, you should stick with it!!! Surprisingly most of the books we use were written for public school use, they just don't use them in the south. We use Saxon Math, Prentice Hall's Science Explorer series as well as their World Explorer series. We use the workbooks with the science books and with the geography books, they really do reinforce the material! We had such a hard time finding secular science books that were still thorough and "meaty". Prentice Hall fit the bill perfectly! I just started using the Prentice Hall Literature book for seventh grade, and so far we are liking it a lot. Big Kid had never read Rudyard Kipling's work, and the lit book had him read a short story of his. He loved it and asked if we could find a copy of The Jungle Book! If nothing else reading a classroom literature book will expose him to different authors and many different types of writing, which I feel all students need at some point.

Overall I am really really satisfied with the Prentice Hall series we are using, go figure! I thought I would never see a public school book, and here we are almost exclusively using them! They are the books used in New England mostly, says enough for me - where do schools produce the smartest children? Yep, you guessed it - not down south!!

Today's Car Tip

A good friend rear ended someone today, and it made me realize that not everyone knows what to do in the event of an actual accident happening. She handled it pretty well, but she admitted she was looking down at her phone to see why the audio had stopped playing through her sound system. I am a firm believer in gps, but really I feel that phones should be phones and computers should be computers. Call me old fashioned!

First, know that airbags throw dust when they deploy so don't immediately think your car is on fire. That is an awful feeling to throw in the mix of an accident!

If I were in an accident today,
-I would first check on my passengers visually to make sure everyone is ok.
- call the police. I know this sounds like a no brainer, but seriously someone needs to call 911 to get a cop there, even if no one is hurt. Right away call the police. All you have to say is I have been in a car accident, I am on this road near this store or intersection. They will ask if anyone is hurt, and tell you what to do if someone is.
- make sure no traffic is coming at you! Get out, immediately snap a few photos of both cars (just about every cell phone will take a picture!) and try to judge if you can move the car. Obviously if there is smoke pouring from the hood get everyone out immediately! If it's a fender bender that doesn't look dangerous, start the car back up and move it out of the way. I was once rear ended by a driver going 60, and she pushed my car right to the crest of a hill in the wrong lane - some poor soul could have smashed into my car head on without even seeing it! My car was dead and I mean ruined, but I still was able to leave it in neutral and roll backwards to the edge of the proper lane. If it's at all possible, move the car to the side of the road. Doing more damage like tearing a fender with a wheel is better than putting someone else's life in danger!
- call your insurance company. Most companies will give you a little card with instructions on what to do if you are in an accident, ask them if you don't have one. Worst case I think you can print a blank sheet that prompts you for needed info here : http://www.wiserdrivers.com/num.php
- don't get out gushing that it's your fault, even if it is. Let the insurance companies work that out, simply ask if everyone is ok. Don't scream at some idiot who rear ended you and ruined your car, just make sure everyone is ok and separate yourselves, wait for the authorities.
- know your insurance policy. I have not been in an accident since 1999 and I know that each of my family members is covered medically as well as passengers. I know my deductibles, and know what rental my insurance will cover.
- get the rental if you need it, but only if you need it. You did just get into an accident, it's ok to not want to drive for a few days and mentally recover from that! However if you drive the family go getter like I do, get the rental right away so you're not stranded later.
- have your carseats inspected, and ask your insurance agent that when you call to report the accident. Don't forget that!!!

So did I miss anything guys?

Rudi's Bread

Rudi's sent me a box of bread a few days ago to taste and review. I'm learning I shouldn't post reviews! I must have handled this bread incorrectly, each loaf has such a different consistency but a surprisingly good flavor. Keep in mind I haven't had "normal" bread in 8 years now, so bread is a big deal to me!

I put the multigrain and sandwich bread in the freezer right away, and kept out the raisin bread. After trying the raisin bread in the toaster (way too hard and I mean h a r d ) I have found it's a pretty yummy treat if you microwave it, butter it, and sprinkle cinnamon sugar on it! It is not a sweet bread like Pillsbury, it's more savory. I prefer sweet so I drowned it in cinnamon sugar and it was really tasty!

I put the multigrain bread in the fridge last night from the freezer, and when you microwave that it literally will disintegrate in your hands. Once I toasted two slices instead it was pretty good with some miracle whip and bologna! However, I still had to hold the edges of the sandwich or my finger went right through to the bologna. Maybe I did something wrong storing it in the freezer? It tastes wonderful, don't get me wrong, but this is not going to replace what I regularly use until I find out why it fell apart and how to make it not fall apart again ;) I wonder if I could spread peanut butter on the sandwich bread... it's still in the freezer awaiting a taste test!

Yes, it's a rant

I went on another blog based on being gluten free, actually found a number of them, looking at recipes that sounded awesome until I started reading the ingredients. I never should have started looking, because I got angrier and angrier as I went along. Every recipe not only called for five to seven types of flour, but if I were to seriously start cooking like that we would have to live like paupers otherwise to afford all of the ingredients!!! Seriously?! No wonder half of the people I meet who have celiac disease would rather eat gluten than deal with the diet, wow!!

Now I want to first say that I am "normal". I know we all think we are the norm until we find out we aren't, but seriously - if you made an omelet with anything that COULD go in an omelet that is currently in my fridge you would have two vegetables, eggs, and cheese. I have normal meats such as burger, pork chops, and boneless skinless chicken breasts thawing for dinners. I have boxed mac and cheese, white rice, and sweet potatoes!! The sites I happened across had photos of quiche for example that I would never put in my mouth there was so much in it. I'm all for being healthy but I refuse to eat something that has all my daily servings of everything in one dish. I love quiche, but not with my backyard in it! Who ever decided that because I have celiac disease I want to suddenly become a vegetarian, or never eat real sugar again? Good lord am I tired of tasting things that use "organic cane juice" for a sweetener!! WHITE SUGAR IS GOOD!!!!! I don't understand.

Is it because if someone is going to put the effort into making a product gluten free they need to make it free of every allergen on earth so it sells more???? Honey I would pay the extra two bucks for the ten cookies in the already $5 package if they TASTED LIKE REAL COOKIES!!! I have celiac disease - that does NOT mean I am allergic to milk, eggs, sugar, soy, nuts,... ... well I'm not. I do feel sorry for anyone who does have a laundry list of allergens, but for the love of pete do we all have to suffer with tasteless food together?

I know, I am ranting. When I eat a crumb of gluten I throw up for an hour or so and have diarrhea for 10 to 12 hours on and off. Fun, right? So yes, I have to adhere to a very strict gluten free diet. I also understand a lot about medical issues, and I know that having a disease that carries "malnutrition" on it's label can really hurt your body if you're not careful. I did not have "active" celiac disease until I was rear ended by a woman going 60+ mph which forced me into preterm labor with my first born. He was born at 32 weeks and by some freak of nature was perfectly fine. Within three months I weighed 90 pounds and was on weight gainers. I know darn well that is when I became symptomatic. Seven years later I was diagnosed. So for seven years my body was robbed of calcium for my bones, iron for my blood, I missed a lot. But it was only seven years. Most celiac sufferers are robbed of a lot more, and don't even realize what damage could already have been done.

I don't want to "settle" on crappy food anymore, so I guess I'll stick to my Udi's gluten free bread and make two sandwiches at once (teeny pieces), keep making up more good recipes and keep adding to my list of gluten free goodies. The ones that taste the best are gluten free by nature, like reese's cups and bananas. M&M's and ripe peaches! Mmmmm, starburst jelly beans.

And by the way, I am still eternally grateful to The Gluten Free Pantry for their AMAZINGLY good and easy to use all purpose flour!!! DON'T EVER STOP MAKING FLOUR!!!!!

Mmmmm Udi's Gluten Free Bread!

There is not much that can make me smile more after a long day of school and shopping, than honey peanut butter and raspberry jam spread on white Udi's sandwich bread. I LOVE SANDWICHES!! Thank you Udi's, for such wonderful bread. Now if you could just make the loaf of bread bigger... ;)

Easter Doodle Pro?

Happy Easter!! We had a great day, hope you did too!! Egg hunts, family, good laughs, and Steak and Shake for milkshakes and fries for a fun afternoon snack!! The boys love the experience of sitting in the restaurant dipping fries in ketchup, wearing the hats they colored, slurping banana milkshakes. I just love being able to eat gluten free fries and cheese sauce ;) Ok, the banana milkshakes are really good too!

We spent the morning trying to figure out how to erase the egg shaped "doodle pro" (will always be a magnadoodle to me) since they don't have the slidey thing down the side... and after finally finding the answer in a review of the product on amazon we figured out you use the back of the pen and rub the backside of the screen to erase it. Could they have maybe PUT THAT BIT ON THE PACKAGE??? Yep, my mother and I sat together this morning looking at each other like the world had finally turned on us. We were thankful for the internet this morning, we never would have figured it out otherwise!!!

Rudi's Bakery?

So I got an email awhile back asking if I would send someone my home address and such, so I could sample some Rudi's Gluten Free bread. I honestly thought it was phishing, since I already eat "Udi's" bread, and the names are one letter off. I forwarded the email to an address I found on Rudi's site, and it turns out it was legit!! They are sending me bread to taste test then tell all of you about, yay! I have hated every single bite of store bought gluten free bread until Udi's, so this is a major test for me. I sure hope it's good, but then again I have never seen it at any local stores... I may have to venture out to Whole Foods again someday soon! *I do all of my shopping including my gluten free stuff at local grocery stores, paying the exorbitant costs of "natural food" stores is just silly in my opinion!!

I'll let you know how the bread is!! :)

Being a Mom

I had quite the realization hit me last Saturday. I had a horrible shopping experience at Kohl's, one of those that make you want to cry you are so angry at someone. Well, you want to cry because you can't do what you REALLY want to someone. It was one of those days, after many of those days strung into weeks. My husband had gone on a business trip, leaving me to handle our three boys. I had my mother come stay with us, she was a huge help, but it wasn't the same. While I was backing my SUV up in a Publix parking lot, the lady in the teeny red car behind me was backing up too and hit me. I couldn't see her, don't have a clue how she didn't see me. One of the boys threw a hot wheels and it hit me on that little flap of sensitive skin that sticks out of your ear, which sent a dazzling spray of pain through my head. I bought next school year's math used, and was sold the second edition book and the first edition's solutions... which don't match. See what I mean, one of those strings of bad days?

Well, Saturday as I drove home from Kohl's, I found myself turning the music way up, I love loud music. I caught myself remembering how good it felt to floor my old Camaro. The rush of the smell of gasoline, the car hurtling to 60, the sound the engine made, I suddenly missed all of that. I started remembering what it felt like to be surrounded my car nuts like I used to be - to sit and smoke a cigarette and just "be" for five minutes. I realized I never just "be" anymore, there is always laundry, or dishes, or homework, or "I pee potty mommy" waiting in line. I realized I don't know a single woman with whom I have much in common with, other than being a mother. No one I know likes to work on cars, and honestly I haven't touched one myself in years now. No one I know just up and paints their walls, cabinets, etc. when they don't like the way they look, they ask their husbands to do it or hire someone. I don't even really know many women who like to garden like I do! I don't know if it's that I'm too busy to notice others, or if it's just that I have no hobbies anymore... but I miss having friends that are similar to me. The few friends that I do have are like me - so busy with their own lives and families that we really don't have time for each other. We remember each other once every few months and call, maybe get together for an afternoon, but that's it. Is that how everyone is?

I say all of that knowing I have no time to meet people, and don't really have much time to devote to a friendship. I am married to my best friend, and am thankful for that every day. However - I realized I miss having some "me time" and I don't know how to do that anymore. I live to serve my family, and it's by choice! We bought a somewhat large house, so I have lots of cleaning to do, but knew that going into the deal. I have three boys, and I love being their mom! I chose to homeschool because the school system wasn't giving my son the education he deserved. I knew going into that venture that I would never again have a "day off" from things. That I couldn't Christmas shop without a babysitter anymore! I am a very busy person, because of the type of person I am. I don't let anything lay around waiting to be done, I am a "doer" not a procrastinator. If there are dishes in the sink I have to do them. If there is a baby gate that needs to be moved I just move it. If something needs to be fixed I just fix it. When I found out I needed braces as an adult, I just went and got them. I don't leave things hanging unless I see a reason to delay doing them.

All of that being said I have come to the conclusion that I have lost "me". I have no hobbies anymore, there is nothing that I do for myself really. I did buy myself four pairs of dangly earrings last month, on a whim, and they make me feel nice when I wear them. Otherwise, I am grocery shopping, going over alleles and fractions and decimals, cleaning something, potty training, planning next year's curriculum schedule, weeding a garden, the list goes on and on but it's all for someone else. My husband is wonderful, he rubs my feet when I ask him to and even volunteers to sometimes - those moments are wonderful, when I can just lay and relax, try not to think of anything. The hobbies I had when I was younger were really for younger people who do not have children and house payments - I sold the cars and everything that went with them years ago, and going to dance clubs is for twenty somethings. I quit smoking when we decided to go off the pill, but that's not really a hobby, it's a habit... but it was a release! I don't ever drink alcohol anymore, what if a child woke up and needed me?

I wonder what grown ups do when they don't have children...

Cats

Have you ever had one of those days where you just look at a cat and dream of being one? To have no responsibility, play with anything that looks fun, never worry about your weight, be totally taken care of and sleep most of the day?

Homeschool Book SCORE!!

I went to a homeschool bookstore today that is closing it's doors, and almost everything in the store is 50% off. I SCORED!!! I found Saxon 87 and the solutions book for $12, and Saxon Algebra 1 with the solutions, tests manual, and homeschool packet for $30. I got the Prentice Hall Literature book for 7th grade and 9th grade, yay!! I also scored all of the books in the Prentice Hall World Explorer Series - used and in excellent condition, for $3 a book! WOOHOO!!!!! After we saved so much on the next few years' curriculum we decided to "splurge" and bought a new copy of Latina Christiana's student workbook, which rounds out our latin curriculum. We haven't started latin yet, we're going to wait until we are officially in 7th grade. It'll go with the history we plan to study, ancient greece and the roman empire.

Shades CAN make a difference!

I went to Lowe's to buy one shade for one of our front windows, and found an entire shelf system full of levelor shades on clearance - and I mean clearance! I ended up getting new shades for every window in the front of our house, and paid $33 for 12 shades and $12 for all the mounting brackets. We were able to take the insulating blanket out of the playroom window finally, and I splurged and bought the fan shade for the half circle window too!! Now every window out front has the same shade on it, it looks so uniform and NICE!!! I have really been wanting to do this not just for looks, but because our house bakes in the sun all afternoon it gets really really hot. Putting up the room darkening shades has effectively blocked most of the heat coming from the windows, the front rooms are now so much cooler, on both floors! BONUS!!!

Thank you, Lowe's! This is the first time I have gone to Lowe's for anything - we live down south so Home Depot and Lowe's are right across the street from each other, literally. I like the behr paint from Home Depot, so it just became our store by default. Guess I'm a cheater now ;)

Jello Temptations Are Gluten Free!

Well, some of them are at least!! I tried the raspberry cheesecake ones today, and they were rather "bleh". They tasted ok, but the texture was really weird and it didn't taste much like cheesecake. Maybe if they named it something else I would like the taste? I think my expectations got in the way of enjoying this much. Thank goodness kraft first taste gave me a coupon to get them for free, not worth paying for!!!

However - my mom and husband say the chocolate mint ones are awesome! Every one I looked at was gluten free (the only two flavors Publix had) so maybe I'll find a different non-cheesecake flavor that I like. In the meantime, I'll eat my homemade chocolate dream cookies (dark chocolate, omg yum) and be completely satisfied :)