Hadari with Celiac

 So the results came back, and officially, Hadar Shira has celiac. This news was met with initial sadness from me, less about what that means for us (because we will do EVERYTHING to make her happy and confident and safe), but more about what that means for her. I'm not too familiar with celiac but I understand it is a very strict diet with a lot of changes. Mostly I am feeling heartbroken for the times where she really wants to eat something with her friends at a party and then can't. She is an amazing happy kid, and it breaks my heart a little bit that she needs to grow up faster than she would in this one area, that the happy innocence may be more limited. 

I ran over to the supermarket when we got the news and spend 250 shekel on gluten-free things for my baby. Donuts, cookies, bamba, chips, bread, cereals, etc. 

We are technically supposed to start but tomorrow she has her Yom Haatzmaut party in Gan, and since we want to do this the right way, we can't do it before the party. So she has one more day of gluten before of a lifetime without, and we will do everything in our power to make it comfortable and happy for her. 

Telling Her

This morning I teared up for the first time in a while. I haven't really cried very much since October 7th, something feels blocked. But as I watched my daughter happily eat Trix cereal this morning, for probably the last time ever, without her even knowing, all the emotions came out. She had a Gan party today, and so we decided it was her last gluten day, so she could have one more party without thinking about it (she enjoyed the falafel). 

When she came home from Gan, Saba Dov distracted Eitan, and we took Hadar down to go for a bike ride. While she was biking, I told her. 

"Hadari, you have a very special tummy. It knows exactly what is good for it and not good for it. And there are some things that are not good for your tummy, and so you are not going to be able to have them. Something called gluten, Some people like Avi can't eat peanuts, and other people can't eat milk. What you can't have is gluten, which is in things like bread, cookeis, pizza. But your mummy and daddy are going to make sure you always have yummy food. Ok? then she nodded yes, that she understands. 

And then I told her, that this is the best way for her to become big and strong. She was very excited about becoming big and strong. 

Then I invited her to the supermarket, but she wanted to bike around with Eitan. 

I bought a bunch of gluten free stuff, which now we need to look for. Literally, bought her every type of thing, like Bamba, pretzels, cookies, fruity pebbles, etc. Partly for her to see that she is going to be ok, and partly for myself to see that she is going to be ok. 

At dinner we told the other kids (really just Eitan), that Hadar has a special tummy and she can only eat things that are good for her and will make her strong. 

And we are beginning our new reality, to make Hadar feel happy, safe, and healthy. 

A Huge Game

 Finally got to play football for the first time in a month (rushing the passer a few times with what we thought was a broken wrist doesn't count). I was excited but also nervous at how my wrist would hold up. First play of the game I caught a pass, and was great since then.

I caught a deep touchdown on a corner route and then continuing into the end zone. The next drive I caught another touchdown on 4th down, sliding down. And when they had the ball with 18 seconds left in the half, up 20-12 and getting the ball back at halftime, I caught my first interception of the year. 

In the second half, we scored one time (Dani) on a nice touchdown and a huge 2 point conversion by Micah. but then we had two opportunities to score to take the lead and couldn't punch it in from the goal line. Akiva caught an interception, and we couldn't take that home. It felt like this game was going to end up a 20-20 tie (this team knocked us out of the playoffs last year). But then, in the play of his life, with three seconds left, tie game, receivers running downfield for a Hail Mary Dani gets a sack...in the end zone! Walk Off Safety. 

Finally a big game for me personally (had like 10 catches), 2 touchdowns, and a huge interception. And most importantly, a huge team win.