A little about my Journey

I have to say thank you to Tracy Tignino for kicking me in the butt to actually start this blog in the first place.  For years now I have had friends, Seema Kauffman, encouraging me to write down my ideas, recipes and information on food, allergies and healthy habits.  I guess I have just been scared to actually take the plunge. So here I am writing my first blog!I have so much to say and many things that I would like to talk about.  I am going to start by interviewing a few people that have taken the first steps into healthier eating and what their experiences have been like.  Then I would like to take one topic or question a week and discuss it.
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I went to NIU and have my Bachelor's in Nutritional Sciences.  We as a family started slowly by removing the red dye out of our diet.  Not to say we don't let our kids have the occasional red dye filled sucker for those parties, but at our house we try to keep it out.  Unfortunately that means a lot of candy, cereal and snacks are eliminated. 
We are also GLUTEN FREE!  I am a Celiac, I suffered for over 30 years with symptoms such as headaches, stomach aches, irritability, fatigue, bloating and HORRIBLE eczema, which is actually called dermatitis herpetiformis!  I know it sounds disgusting; actually it is SOOOO itchy that I would run my hands under scalding water just to make the itching stop for a few minutes!  I had been to many doctors, specialists, neurologists and dermatologists in my lifetime, being told I have migraines, too much stress, need more exercise, and the range of explanations went on and on.  I felt like no one was listening to me.  I can’t tell you how many steroid creams I had for my hands which nothing worked.  It wasn’t until I went to a chiropractor and he suggested I take a blood test that would tell me if I had gluten intolerance that I actually found help.  My chiropractor checked for my levels on IgA and IgG Antigliadin Antibodies (AGA) and of course I came out high.  Needless to say as soon as I went gluten free 90% of my symptoms went away!  My daughter is also gluten intolerant. Although I have never had her officially diagnosed she becomes VERY itchy!!  It also transforms her into my crazy child!  So we removed the gluten from her diet and she was back to her mostly loving little girl.  My son has allergies to tree nuts, peanuts, shellfish and pumpkin (yes, pumpkin, no carving over at the Barnett house).  And my middle daughter has a dairy intolerance.  So needless to say I have put my education to good use.  One of my best friends Molly DiCanio also has a son who is extremely allergic to many different foods and I have always admired her in the way she has handled it and wondered why this is happening to so many of our kids.
I am very passionate about many subjects related to nutrition and I just want to help anyone with whatever struggles they maybe having with food, allergies and menus! 

JUST ASK and I will help you CUT THE CRAP!!