Matthew's Puzzle and a mom putting it all together

Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution

March 22, 2010 By Maryann

March 21, 2010
I have only seen the first episode of Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution on ABC but I highly encourage you to watch. I think Jamie has some great ideas and he is exposing how our nation eats and how horrible it is for our children. Right now, our kids are the first generation to have a life expectancy of less than their parents! Unbelievable! And a large part of that is how we eat. Too many refined foods, sugar, fast foods and huge portions. Jamie wants to see parents demand better food for their children, especially in school. And he wants us to start truly feeding our children nourishing foods. He wants us to get back in the kitchens and make healthy meals, and to teach our children about “real” food.

So go check out the show.

Sorry I haven’t been on in a while

March 18, 2010 By Maryann

March 18, 2010
We are still so sleep deprived around here that I haven’t really had a chance to write much of anything lately. I have so many ideas and thoughts about what I want to tell you all, but whenever I get a chance I just rest. Not that I get a lot of chances to rest with the new baby!

I would suggest you head over to huffington post and take a look at the Holly Robinson Pete article there, she has some important things to say about autism and some of the aspects that are over looked.

I also would like to draw your attention to the fact that Casey James of American Idol had, according to his mom and mentioned on the show, a series of seizures following his pertussis vaccine when he was younger. She even mentions that she was really concerned because he wasn’t talking! Interesting.

I started reading Slow Death By Rubber Duck (Thank you hubby for the great gift) and HIGHLY recommend it to everyone. I hope it opens peoples eyes to the pollutants that are all around us, and to how big companies are lining their pockets without any concern for human health.

Remember to get your tickets to the DAN! conference in Baltimore next month – I have mine!

Butternut Squash GFCF Pasta

March 11, 2010 By Maryann

March 11, 2010
We belong to a CSA and last week they gave us a butternut squash. I was trying to come up with a different idea for how to use it, and I started thinking about Butternut Squash Ravioli. I looked for a few recipes but couldn’t find a GFCF ravioli recipe that I was willing to tackle with a 4 week old in the house. It was just too much work. So I decided to take the ravioli flavors and make a pasta sauce instead. I roasted the butternut squash and then whipped up the sauce in a sauce pan and served it over my favorite GFCF pasta.

Here is the recipe as I used it.

Butternut Squash Pasta
1 butternut squash
1 white onion, chopped
3 Tbs olive oil + drizzle for squash
1 large clove of garlic, minced
1 tsp ground sage
1 tsp basil leaves
salt and pepper to taste
1 cup of milk (cow – not GFCF, rice or soy)
dash of nutmeg

Cut open the butternut squash, remove the seeds and drizzle with the extra olive oil. Roast at 400 degrees for 1 hour. Remove squash from skin.

In a large sauce pan heat the 3 Tbs of olive oil on medium heat. Add onions and saute until onions are translucent. Add garlic, sage and basil and cook to release flavors. Add roasted squash. Season with salt and pepper and add milk of choice (I used rice milk). Heat through. Add a dash of nutmeg. Using a submersion blender, puree the sauce to a smooth texture. You can pulse in a blender if you prefer.

Cook up your favorite GFCF pasta – I like brown rice pasta, and serve the sauce over the pasta.

My husband and I loved the dish. Our 2.5 year old liked it too. But Matthew (5) wasn’t a fan, but I don’t think he likes butternut squash at all. He seems to dislike the flavor no matter what I do to it.

Parenthood

March 9, 2010 By Maryann

March 9, 2010
Last night Larry and I watched the premier of the new TV show, Parenthood. We had DVR’d it last week and finally got a chance to watch it last night. The verdict is still out on the show, but the first episode really hit home with me. One of the characters on the show has Aspergers. He is a young boy, probably in first grade or so. His parents were unaware of his Aspergers status, although they knew he was different. They didn’t seem to be clued into the fact that many of his traits, when taken together, were HUGE signs of an ASD.

I found two scenes particularly painful. The first comes when the child’s mother tells the father that the evaluation has turned up Aspergers. They are talking over each other, the mother trying to say what was wrong, the father giving excuses. Until finally the father really hears what the mother is saying. That the evaluators don’t “think” their son has Aspergers, but instead that their son “Does” have Aspergers. The mother is crying and the father is denying. It shook me up. I completely understand their concern, their worry, their fear. I know what it feels like to have a doctor knock the wind right out of you with a few words – Your child has Autism. Something grips you deep within your stomach and it NEVER lets go.

I still have moments, and now that the baby has been born I seem to have a lot more of them, when such fear of the future grips me that I don’t think I can breathe. How will Matthew function? What will happen when Larry and I are gone? We simply want to protect Matthew and we can’t. There WILL be a time when Larry and I are gone and Matthew will have to exist on his own. I am fearful of that time.

The second scene that really hit home with me was when the father had the child playing outside while his cousin was singing in a school recital. The whole extended family was there to support the cousin and the grandfather, a very strong willed man, wanted to know where the boy was. He went outside to find them and demanded they come back in the school to watch the show. The father told him no, that they were fine outside. Of course the grandfather protested and the father informed him that the child couldn’t go inside because there were candles set up in the hall and the boy could not go past them. The grandfather insisted that this was ridiculous and again demanded they come inside, anyone could pass by the candles. Finally the father tells the grandfather that no, the child couldn’t go past the candles because there was something wrong with his son, and that he needed the grandfather’s help. Tears welled up in the father’s eyes and in my own because I know what it is like to have to explain to loved ones that what they are witnessing is not a temper tantrum or a willful child, but an actual disorder. I know that it is hard to understand and often hard to accept, but it is true none the less.

I hope Parenthood does Aspergers and ASD justice. I pray they don’t do the cliche, but instead really delve deeply into the struggles that come with finding out your child has an ASD. They have a great opportunity to open people’s eyes.