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Hi everyone,

Please forgive my delayed summary - I ended up being ill during the last
part of December and got a bit behind on things.

In response to my message about dealing with in-laws & cookies, I received
over 200 messages!  I was simply unable to reply to each message.  I have
sent a few individual replies, and I still have a few left to send.

Overall, the response was incredibly heartwarming and the overall message
was that I am not alone, and that a lot of people have had to deal with
these issues.  Some people told me I needed to grow up & get over myself,
but that was not the overall tone of the messages as a whole.  At least 50
of you offered to bake & mail me some of your own holiday cookies.  A few
people offered phone numbers if I wished to call.  Several of you sent
recipes or offered to, which is great.  I am still getting through those
messages & printing out what I'd like to try.

Many people suggested that I take brownies or fudge instead of cookies for
the holiday - guess I should have mentioned that I can't eat chocolate due
to an allergy I've had since early childhood....which is why the sugar
cookies were such a big deal in the first place - it's one of the only
desserts I've ever really been able to truly love.

A good portion of individuals suggested that I never attend my in-law's home
again if they didn't offer an entirely gluten-free meal to everyone.  I
don't really find this practical, as my own home is not entirely GF, my
husband still eats gluten in the form of sandwhich bread, hamburger buns,
etc, fairly regularly, and it's not an issue, as I have my own substitutes,
and he is not mean about it.  I also know that it would hurt my husband
incredibly.

In regards to the camping story, many suggested that bologna & Trix were not
gluten-free.  I obviously checked those products prior to eating them, and
they were ok.  If I have gluten accidentally, I will be sick for up to 4-6
weeks, so trust me, I always check!

So....here's what happened....much to my delight and surprise!  I ended up
using Pamela's Vanilla Cake Mix & a Pamela's recipe to try out my own rolled
cookies.  They turned out wonderful - at least in taste....my ability to
roll & cut out well still leaves something to be desired!  But overall I was
very happy as I did get to have frosted cookies on Christmas day!  The real
shocker was the in-laws.  My mother-in-law not belittle my cookies the way
she did at Thanksgiving.  (Though my husband did have a conversation with
her regarding the fact that I am sensitive about foods I miss.)  She made
her fully traditional holiday meal, but ensured that I had plain & separate
meat, veggies, butter, etc without any prompting or reminding.  It was just
there, I did not have to complain, beg, or starve.  :)

So, thanks to all of you for your advice & comfort, and to Pamela's for
making mixes that work for a kitchen challenged person like me!

-Allyson

-- 
Allyson Bright Meyer
Author, The Complete Idiot's Guide to Scrapbook Projects & The Complete
Idiot's Guide to Altered Art
www.allysonbrightmeyer.com

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