Get Me Out of This House!

I finally decided to get my hair cut, which was something I've been putting off for months especially after the "hang straight" discovery. All I got was a trim, nothing crazy. I want to grow my hair out and I feel like it takes FOR-EV-ER to grow. I've been wearing my hair curly month after month. Wearing curly hid the bad ends rather well, but I lost an inch of hair today to clean up my split ends. I went to my usual Aveda salon, Avant Garde. I came prepared with what research I had done on the Internet prior to my appointment about wheat containing products. I used this forum discussion, looking at the most recent post. I also checked the products there myself, knowing the ingredients can change at any time. My stylist was really understanding and took time to discuss different options. We decided to shampoo and condition with the "damage remedy" which uses soy and quinoa as the protein. I was going to buy some, but decided to wait to see if I noticed any reactions.

After my appointment I stopped at Whole Foods, since it was across the street. I picked up a few essentials: San-J peanut sauce and Udi's bread. I also looked at the shampoo and conditioners at Whole Foods. After examining the 365 brand, I thought it seemed safe. I asked a worker if she knew if the shampoo/conditioner was GF. She said it's not labeled GF, but she's seen people identify GF on the internet. Two workers and I read the labels and all agreed we didn't see any gluten containing ingredients. I have not tried it yet, but I'll let y'all know what I think about it.

It was so amazing to get out of the house today. I can only image how Iivana feels. You go almost stir crazy and become completely unmotivated. I've been able to successfully avoid my homework. Yay, only one class and the final left of the semester.

This is my crazy dog hiding behind the curtain to entertain herself.

For dinner I used the peanut sauce to make lettuce wraps, but wanted to add a twist from the last time. I diced some water chestnuts to cook with the chicken, used romaine lettuce, and cut up some green onions to garnish with.

I chopped the chicken this time instead of shredding it with a fork, because I was lazy. So the chicken wasn't as small this time, which I think I prefer it shredded. For some reason the chicken mixture was rather watery today. I eventually added a little corn starch to thicken it up before serving it.

The final product consisted of romaine lettuce topped with brown rice, the chicken mixture, and green onions.

To top off the meal, we drank some Texas Hill Country wine that we bought when Julie was visiting.

One last bit of information to share with you all tonight. While looking at the website for Whole Foods I came across this page on Understanding Celiac Disease. It gives a great overview of Celiac Disease, so you should all check it out to become more informed!