How to make dirt pies taste good

According to Tom, that's going to be the name of the cookbook I will be able to write at some near point in the future. Not being pregnant means I have to go back on a diet that suits my endometriosis. Unfortunately, no one else in the world follows this diet so its almost impossible to find more than one recipe in any book that is helpful. Let me go ahead and get the rules out there for all you to understand what I'm talking about: No wheat, no rye, no dairy, no alcohol, no sugar, no caffeine, no chocolate, no additives and preservatives, basically nothing American.

The good thing about the diet is it works. What used to be hours to days of endless pain that most pain killers couldn't touch; becomes nothing. I often wonder if it keeps the endometriosis from actually growing and getting worse. I've asked the doctor about it - they always tell me they've never heard of it and look at me like I'm crazy. For some reason, every doctor I have mentioned it to, thinks that it's absurd that food would actually affect your health. I haven't been able to figure that out.

But the main goal here is to keep myself healthy until we are ready to try again for a family.

Have you ever noticed that the books you are looking for are never at the bookstore -- so you can't sample them. In December I asked the clerk for some books on infertility. After explaining that I only saw "fertility" books, he proceeded to take me to the "fertility" section twice and say that was all they had. For those of you who aren't dealing with this issue, I assure you there is a HUGE difference between "fertile" and "infertile."

Well, anyway, over the past 6 months I found 3 cookbooks I wanted to check out. One was at the bookstore but full price (not about to pay full price for a book). And the other two I saw online and they both had really good reviews. So, three books were delivered this week through the great world of Amazon: Rainbow Green Live-Food Cuisine, Changing Seasons Macrobiotic Cookbook, and Nearly Normal Cooking for Gluten-Free Eating. And now the fun begins of rummaging through them, choosing recipes, making substitutes as needed, and trying them out. I'm not sure I would have ordered the Macrobiotic cookbook if I had checked it out in the store. I already have one that is much bigger, and I'm not sure if this one will supply anything new.

So now, the next few days will be a gradual shift for all of us to very healthy meals. I know I'm going to struggle; it really is difficult to follow, to plan, and to make lunches ahead of time. Thomas has been very supportive, and I keep reminding Tom and Josh that they will be able to eat pretty much whatever they want at lunch 5 days a week when they are not with me.