Hello and welcome to Gluten Free Life.

I’m Michelle: lover of food, educator, gardener, business owner, wife and mama to one very active little boy. Our whole family is living gluten free.

This space will share my journey living and educating others about gluten free living. You’ll see recipes, gluten free products reviews, tips and a glimpse of my experiences mothering a child on a gluten free diet.

When I found out that I couldn’t eat gluten EVER again, I experienced two conflicting thoughts: First, how in the world was I going to follow this diet? I love bread and pasta and muffins and pie. I have a family to feed and they, too, love their glutenous foods.

At the same time, I was excited, elated even, to consider what it was going to be like to feel better, to feel good, maybe even great! And to think that my son would never suffer the way I did was a most peaceful thought as a mama. I saw the diet shift as a fun challenge, but knew I would mourn the loss of easy standbys and old faves. So many of our meals included gluten in some form or another. My husband loves my cooking, but for him a PB&J is the height of epicure. No more PB&J’s sounded like a death sentence to him.

After saying farewell to my crackers, bread, soy sauce and a long list of other foods, I took stock of our pantry and fridge and wondered what we would eat. We both work from home and have a toddler, so there’s a steady stream of traffic in our kitchen throughout the day. It would be tough, but not impossible. I had a deep well of cooking experience to draw upon and due to previous health issues (which I now know where caused by eating gluten), I had plenty of experience with special diets. I could do this.

After purging gluten from my kitchen I gradually realized that I had more to consider than just what we eat. Gluten is ubiquitous. I had to examine our health and beauty products, craft and art supplies (play dough!), even household items. And then what about accepting dinner invitations and toddler birthday parties? We were just getting out after having a baby - would we ever be able to enjoy restaurant dining?

Turns out, we’ve managed to live just fine, both at home and beyond. It’s been an adventure that extends well beyond our kitchen, and I’m here to share it with you. Welcome.