Well everybody, its April in Atlanta. It’s been terrific so
far, and I think that’s a sign of things to come and I'm so excited. The rest of the month will be
jam packed with graduations, frisbees, baseballs, festivals, and as much outdoor weekend
time as possible. Can’t hardly wait.
It seems like there’s never a dull moment around this time
of year, and this past weekend was no exception.
We started off the weekend with brunch at Parish in Inman
Park. It’s a great little southern-style spot with plenty of options for little
ol’ gluten-free me. Chris is especially fond of their grits, but everything
looked amazing. We’d been there for dinner with Dad, which was also awesome, so
overall, yay Parish.
Later on Saturday, we had the privilege of seeing our friend
and fellow Summer Staffer, Kristina Murray, perform a house concert at our
friends, Bryan and Danielle’s place. She’s such an amazing talent, and her
bluegrass/folk/country voice blew us all away. Check her out. (I also saw her
play at Eddie’s Attic on Monday night for Songwriters Open Mic Night…there are
some amazing talents in Atlanta.)
Then Sunday was Easter, of course. I had a great day
spending time with my family! Mom came down to my neck of the woods (a HUGE
feat for her), and we had lunch in Decatur at Farm Burger. I can’t say enough
good things. Farm Burger depends on local farmers for all of their ingredients,
and pride themselves on being sustainable and humane in every way. All of their beef is
grass-fed, AND they have fresh gluten-free buns. Best part: it was really
freaking good. Mom got her fresh jalapenos and a Diet Coke, so everyone was
happy.
My brother and I went to Dad’s later on Sunday for Easter
Dinner. He made quite the spread! We had ham, carrots, mixed veggies, brussel
sprouts, baked beans, cheese grits, and potato salad (although I didn’t partake
in that). Everything was super good, and I don’t think anyone missed the gluten
that is traditionally involved in an Easter Dinner.
Easter got me thinking about other holidays, like
Thanksgiving and Christmas, where a big meal is involved. Like most southern
families, mine usually cooks endless amounts of side items and desserts loaded
with gluten.
I’m hear to say, YES it was really hard for me this past
holiday season, as it was my first gluten-free holiday season. I missed out on
the pies, cakes, rolls, etc. It was really, really hard because those are the
best parts! BUT, like our Easter Dinner, we made-do, and my family was more
than accommodating. I’d say it ended up being better for all of us, because we
ate a lot more vegetables, not so many carbs, and hopefully a lot less fat. I
don’t think anyone noticed what we were missing.
So yes, the holidays were maybe some of the hardest times to
be and gluten-free. In the grand scheme of things, I miss every day staples like
beer and pizza much more. Being gluten-free is a lifestyle change, and that
means there’s no cheating.
There are plenty of great blogs out there that offer recipes
for alternative ways of making holiday staples like stuffing, pies, or rolls,
and that’s great. This blog is about being a cop-out non-gluten eater, so with
that being said, we took the easy way out and kept it simple. Even vegetables can be really really good.
Happy Holidays!
No comments:
Post a Comment