It's important to be vigilant.

Here in the US, Thanksgiving is rapidly approaching. (Early November is the harbinger of busy-ness in my life. There's Thanksgiving, followed by my birthday, followed by my anniversary - all within a week and a day, followed by Christmas less than a month later.) Unfortunately, if you've got a food allergy or food sensitivity, the "food holidays" can be a mine field. Even when people mean well, it's a lot to think about. And, generally, unless it's you or your spouse who has the food issue, there are little tiny things you might overlook. Please don't think I'm getting "down" on anybody here. It's a lot to learn. I still pick up foods that I think I can eat and learn that I can't. So, I don't really expect others to know what I can and cannot have.

My mother makes a big deal out of her two favorite "food" holidays, one of them being Thanksgiving (the other being Christmas). We always have Thanksgiving at her house (sometimes, when I was a kid, there would be THREE Thanksgivings in one day, always including the one at her house). She makes a turkey, stuffing, etc. We can bring stuff (and I usually do) but even if we only ate what she made, there'd still be way more than enough. And my mother has always been fairly tolerant of my food issues, including when I was being vegetarian. But things slip by. Now, my mother is a cook, and has been for many years. When I was little, she made everything from scratch. And yet, in the same breath, she assured me that she normally thickens her gravy with cornstarch and then "double-checked" to make sure I can have cream of mushroom soup (I can't - it's made with wheat flour, something that most cooks would know, but probably not think about).

This year, I asked if she'd have it at my house. She said no, she didn't want to, and, in addition, she didn't know if she could talk my stepfather into it (he wants to watch football on their much-larger-than-ours tv). So, I'm planning on bringing a couple of dishes. I'm not sure what, but I do know I'll probably be bringing a pie or some type of dessert, in addition to whatever else I bring. And I plan on putting those dishes far FAR away from the "regular" foods. And they will probably be color-coded.

My mother seems to think I'm being a bit obsessive. I like to call it vigilant. I HAVE to be. Flour in the gravy, a crouton in my salad, or cracker crumbs on my plate could set me back a whole three days. When you're looking at something like that, it's important to be vigilant.

Who wants to be in pain, bloated, crampy, and feeling crappy for three days? Not me, thanks.