The diagnosis

I can not tell you my son was a top scientist working on a secret project who was exposed by accident ... what I can tell you is that he was a seemingly healthy 3 year old boy who we took to his yearly well check exam and walked out with our world rocked.
Well that last part is not exactly true in that very moment, so let me back up.
I took him in, assuming we would walk away with some updated stats - how much he has grown, weight, ect. When our pedi looked at his growth chart, she realized he was not registering for height on the curve. She started asking some questions about his bowl movements (he had been having diarrhea for a while which I had brushed off as him not eating well, upset belly, teeth ... you name it. He never seemed or acted sick - so I really did not find myself thinking twice about it) among other things.
She mentioned that she had seen some similar symptoms in a recent patient who they discovered had Celiac disease and that she wanted to run labs. I went along with it, because we love and completely trust our pediatrician ... however when I left that day and called my mom I told her that everything would be negative and that she was just double checking. I mean, no one expects something to be positive when it was not even on the radar going in.
A day or two later our world was rocked when she called. I was already in tears because I had seen the lab report just before and could draw to the conclusion that his numbers were far from normal. She knew just what to say (we had some other recent diagnoses/answers to something our middle child had been dealing with just a few months prior) and got us moving toward an appointment for an endoscopy.
That was done about a week and a half later and he officially had his Celiac diagnosis on November 7th 2018.

I started learning everything that I could. I cleaned our kitchen out. I threw away/gave away anything that contained gluten. We bought a new toaster over, cooking utensils, food, baking supplies, spices ... you name it. We spent a small fortune that first month - without regret - but we were not planning to have to do that so it was tough. We also had to introduce a dairy free/lactose free diet for him for awhile while he began to heal. Our entire home became gluten free. I do not cook with any gluten containing ingredients. I do buy some prepackaged snacks for our daughters to take to school/dance - however if they want to eat it at home they have to be very careful, sit at the kitchen table, wash their hands right after and clean their area with soap and water and a gluten 'busting' spray after. Needless to say - we just save those snacks for when he isn't around. He does however, now question everything and I think he understands when I say something is not gluten free and not safe - he will not touch or try to eat it. His sisters have become educated advocates for him. They are always checking for gluten, asking about it and reminding others about it. They have never complained about the changes and realize how important it is to keep him safe from gluten containing items.

Thanksgiving rolled around and I had my first taste of having to completely prepare for him to have a meal outside our home. I cooked an entirely gluten free thanksgiving dinner - for him to take 5 bites and be done. It was exhausting and rewarding .. I was sad and proud ... both nervous and confident.

Since diagnosis and going gluten free, he has gained 1 pound and grown 1.75 inches. Incredible. I could have cried I was so excited.

I am not sure where this blog will take me ... I hope perhaps, those who read learn something new that maybe they had not known before. Perhaps someone will recognize some symptoms and check into them ... or find a new recipe or product they too will love.