Goodbye Leo!

Goodbye Leo, you were so much fun while it lasted! Goodbye yummy partner's flat crackers that I love so much. Goodbye you wheat thins, crack that you are. Same to you little round donut holes covered in powdered sugar, goodbye. Goodbye fancy bread flour that I was just getting to know. Goodbye Trader Joe's pumpkin bread mix that I loved (until I realized it was giving me hives). Goodbye, goodbye, goodbye to all the wheat-laden items in the cupboards. Goodbye.

Goodbye achy body, goodbye puffy circles around my eyes. Goodbye nervous shaky feeling that something bad is about to happen. Goodbye dark cloud that has been hanging over my head.

Hello, clear head, how I've missed you! For you, I'll keep this up, and for my poor body that has been achy and sore for longer than I can remember, I'll keep this up. And especially, for hugs from my child that no longer hurt, I will keep this up.

Hello to the challenge of discovering a new pizza dough, of learning to make gluten-free Leo bread (is that possible?)... of finding a substitute for the kiddo's beloved Goldfish crackers. We will do it!

Hello to the amazing blogs of people who have been doing it and making it easier and more delicious for the rest of us, I thank you in advance. Things look much brighter in this gluten-free world than they did almost 10 years ago when I dipped my toes in and pulled them back out too quick. Ah well... some of us have to learn the hard way. Remember a year ago when I said "over my dead body". Yes, I can still eat my words.

And I can also eat these amazingly delicious lemon bars, my first gluten-free baking experiment of many. So good. You know you want a taste too!