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Hi Trisha!

Have a couple of suggestions to offer you in regard to helping to keep
Marina's food safe for her.

Take several boxes, each with it's own lid, and decorate them up fancy.
With holiday wrap readily available now, this shouldn't be hard to do.
You didn't say how old Marina was but bet she would enjoy helping. Maybe
allow her to draw pictures on her special boxes, do cut and paste with
construction paper or pictures from a magazine.  These boxes would be
used to place her food in.  Keep one in the refrigerator and the other
on the pantry shelf.  Keeping her food in these would surely make others
aware (and not visible) that it was food that is safe for Marina.  Her
name could be written on the front of each box so it is visible for all
to view.  Maybe it could be explained that you are trying to teach
Marina to be aware that only certain foods are okay for her to eat.

I do personally feel that the sooner that children with celiac disease
can learn about their diet and help to learn cooking skills the easier
it will be for them later in life.  They won't feel the need to stray
from their diet if they know cooking skills and can make things for them
to eat.

It might require more patience on a parents part, teaching a young one
to 'help' with the cooking but well worth it in the long run.  Maybe
the purchase of a special apron just for Marina to use when helping in
the kitchen.  Even if she is very young...when you make cookies for her,
she could possibly pat down little balls of cookie dough on the baking
sheet before they are baked.  Put a topping on the cookie if necessary.
They don't have to be major tasks, would have to be something she could
do for her age, but try to involve her as much as possible.

Feel you and your husband might need to be a bit assertive when it comes
to feeding Marina meals that she can eat.  How about making a 'hobo'
dinner for her.  (You might find a book at the library about hobo's
that would show  the hobo's bag tied to the end of a stick).  The
hobo dinner would consist of a hamburger patty (or piece of chicken)
placed in a piece of cooking parchment paper (readily available in
supermarkets) then add a few bits of onion, celery slices, several
carrot slices and a few potato pieces.  Add a bit of salt & pepper,
a bit of butter or broth and close the parchment paper.  Microwave
turning the plate a quarter turn now and then. (Marina could help
to put her favorite vegetables into the bag and help to turn the
plate a quarter of a turn while all is cooking.)  When finished you
will have a nice balanced meal for Marina that didn't take too long,
and also had her getting involved in learning a bit about her diet
through cooking.

Maybe a trip to the library is in order to see about checking out a
few children's cookbooks...usually found in the kids section and not
where regular cookbooks are located.  Bet you could find a few
recipes that would be easy to do and that could involve Marina too.
It could be a positive thing.

I hope that you will try to take any negative feelings you might get
and turn them into positive ones.  This sure does work for me.  It
is hard sometimes....'hard to see the forrest for the trees'

You don't have to have a totally gluten-free kitchen to be able to
make things for Marina to eat.  My kitchen isn't totally gluten-free
as I am not the only one eating in my household but am the only celiac.
Just be aware of contaimination problems and try to avoid these pitfalls.
The makers of Saran Wrap have recently come out with a baking liner
paper for pans.  It is called "Baker's Mate" and seems to be available
in most grocery stores in the Dayton area.  Line the cookie sheets
with it.  I just wipe the liner after each batch of cookies and can
be used several times this way.

Subscribe to Cel Kids List as it is not only for celiac kids but also
the parents of celiac kids.  Other parents might be able to give you
suggestions also.  Contact one of the listowners to find out proper
way to subscribe to Cel Kids...can't put my hand on that paper...sorry.

Know that all will work out well with a bit of effort on each persons
part.  Please feel free to contact me at anytime.  Don't forget to
try to turn each negative thought into a positive one!  Works for me!

Best wishes for a happy, healthy new year to you and your family.

Sandra J Leonard  ([log in to unmask])
Gluten-Free Baker    Fairborn, OH  USA