Be Free For Me Blog

If you have a child in your life that has celiac disease there is a perfect book for gifting this Holiday season: “Mommy, What is Celiac Disease?” by Katie Chalmers.

Explaining celiac disease and the gluten-free diet to kids can be tough. That is why this book is a god-send. This one-of-a-kind book is gracefully & eloquently written by a Mom who has celiac disease. Both the author, Katie Chalmers and her daughter, Morgan, were diagnosed with celiac disease a little over 5 years ago. Since that time they have learned to embrace, and make the best, out of living gluten-free, and they share their experiences and sunny outlook in this kid-friendly book. (Looking for more inspiration? You need to check out Katie’s blog!)

Katie’s book encompasses what celiac disease is and what the gluten free diet requires in language that children can understand, all the while encouraging dialogue for additional questions. A must-have for any child with celiac disease, this book is also a must-read for any elementary school story hour that has child with celiac disease in the classroom… making it also a perfect gift for teachers that they can use year-after-year.

I love that  “Mommy, What Is Celiac Disease?” empathizes the positive, rather than the negative, attributes of a gluten-free diet. However, in no way does this book sugar-coat this disease. Instead “Mommy, What Is Celiac Disease?” puts a positive spin on a serious subject that many children may find difficult to understand and accept.

All these reasons are why I am so very excited that “Mommy, What Is Celiac Disease?” by Katie Chalmers is this WIN-It-Wednesday sponsor on BeFreeForMe.com.

A total of two (2) BeFreeForMe members will be selected to win a copy of “Mommy, What is Celiac Disease?” One winner will be randomly selected from the entries received before Tuesday, November 25, 2012 at 11:59 PM EST, and another winners will be randomly selected to win from the entries received between Wednesday, November 26 and Tuesday, December 2, 2014 at 11:59PM. SO – make sure you enter to win two times!

How can you win?

Easy?

Reply to this blog and let us know who you would give this book too if you won OR how you look at the sunny side of being gluten-free. (Me? I have met so, so, so many awesome people because of my celiac diagnosis, and I also find myself eating more fruits and vegetables which has resulted in discovering local farmers markets and expanding my own backyard garden).

Good luck, Keep the sunny side up… and as always,

Be Free!

P.S. Want to learn more? Follow Katie on Facebook & Twitter and check out her fabulous blog. Want to buy this book for a Holiday gift? Buy it now on Amazon.com.

ONE MORE WEEK TO WIN! Enter again between Wednesday, 12/8 and Wednesday 12/15 for a SECOND CHANCE TO WIN! Double your chances of being the winner on BeFreeForMe and enter again… today!

~ Be Free! Kathleen

This week’s WIN-It-Wednesday on BeFreeForMe is a Gigantic Glu-TEN Free Giveway! BeFreeForMe, as well as, nine other gluten/allergen free bloggers (see the list below), are each hosting a giveaway of the book, “Mommy, was it Celiac Disease?” signed by the author Katie Chalmers, PLUS a jam-packed holiday gift bag loaded with tons of gluten-free goodies and treats!

So lucky for everyone out there in gluten-free cyber-land you have exactly TEN chances of winning this “Gluten-Free Holiday Giveaway Galore x10!” This is what I call Glu-TEN Free Madness!

The book “Mommy, What is Celiac Disease?” is a perfect holiday gift. It is a one-of-a-kind book so gracefully & eloquently written by Katie Chalmers, a mom who has celiac disease, along with her daughter, Morgan. They were both diagnosed with the disease a little over 2 years ago, and since that time they have learned to embrace, and make the best, out of living gluten-free. Make sure you check out their page on facebook.

The book explains what celiac disease and the gluten free diet entails in language that children can understand, all the while encouraging dialogue for additional questions. A must-have for any child with celiac disease, this book is also a must-read for any elementary school story hour that has child with celiac disease in the classroom.

Along with the signed copy of this book, the second part of this prize pack is a gift bag loaded with gluten-free foods including products from Mary’s Gone Crackers, Snyder’s of Hanover, Chebe, Bob’s Sweet Stripes, Nature’s Path, Schar’s and Pamela Products; as well as some fun giveaways including Holiday pencils, erasers and note pad, a stuffed teddy bear, and a plastic snowman cereal bowl perfect for your favorite gluten-free cereal. Wheww… that’s a LOT of gluten-free goodness that great for gifting*!

How can you WIN?
Easy!

Reply to this blog between now and December 15, 2010 (10 PM EST), and tell us your favorite holiday gift growing up as a child (Me? A walking doll! I loved her!).

Note: Also make sure you enter to win one of the 9 other prizes on my fellow gluten-free blogger’s sites (Let them know that BeFreeForMe sent you over!). The blogs are: Accustomed Chaos, Adventures of a GF Mom, Celiac Family, Gluten Free Betsy, Gluten Free Easily (gfe), Gluten Free is Life/CeliacDisease.com, Gluten Free Philly, Gluten Free Taste of Home, and Simply Sugar & Gluten Free.

Good Luck, remember to often look at the world through the eyes of a child, and, as always…

Be Free!

———-

Contest Rules (From “Mommy, What is Celiac Disease?”):
•    All 10 of these contests are open to residents of the USA. Only the Accustomed Chaos and Gluten Free Easily contests are also open to Canadian residents.
•    All 10 contests begin on Wed. Dec. 1, 2010 and will end on Wed. Dec. 15, 2010 at 10pm EST.
•    Entry requirements will vary between bloggers. Please follow their directions to enter.
•    Entrants can only win once total within all 10 giveaways. If anyone is chosen more than once as a winner, another winner will be chosen so everyone only wins once.
•    One winner per household.
•    Winners with valid entries will be selected at random. The winners will be announced and notified via email and must reply within 24 hours to claim. Otherwise, another eligible entry will be chosen, in order that all prizes will arrive before Christmas. So please remember to check your email on Dec.16th.
•    If any of the 10 prizes do not arrive before Christmas because of any unforeseen holiday mail rush problems, the USPS, Katie Chalmers and hosting bloggers will not be held accountable.
* Note: Prize pack contents may vary.

Understanding celiac disease is tough enough for adults, never mind for children.

Coming to grips that you can’t ever again eat the bread, pizza and beer that you’ve known, and loved, all your life takes a lot for an adult to accept and embrace. But thankfully, most adults realize that the gluten-free lifestyle is not the end of the world. In fact I, and many others, have discovered living the celiac lifestyle is actually a way to look at the sunny side of life.

But how can you explain eating gluten-free and celiac disease to a child whose whole world is centered around pizza parties at school, a best-friends birthday party, or favorite foods that include chicken nuggets and onion rings? How can a child look at the sunny side of being gluten-free?

Enter the book: “Mommy, What Is Celiac Disease?” by Katie Chalmers.

This one-of-a-kind book is gracefully & eloquently written by a Mom who has celiac disease. Both the author, Katie Chalmers and her daughter, Morgan, were diagnosed with celiac disease a little over 2 years ago. Since that time they have learned to embrace, and make the best, out of living gluten-free.

The book encompasses what celiac disease and the gluten free diet entail in language that children can understand, all the while encouraging dialogue for additional questions. A must-have for any child with celiac disease, this book is also a must-read for any elementary school story hour that has child with celiac disease in the classroom.

I like that  “Mommy, What Is Celiac Disease?” empathizes the positive, rather than the negative, attributes of a gluten-free diet. However, in no way does this book sugar-coat this disease. Instead “Mommy, What Is Celiac Disease?” puts a positive spin on a serious subject that many children may find difficult to understand and accept.

All these reasons are why I am so very excited that “Mommy, What Is Celiac Disease?” by Katie Chalmers is this week’s WIN-It-Wednesday sponsor on BeFreeForMe.com.

Five (yes 5!) LUCKY BeFreeForMe members will receive a copy of the book.

How can you win?
Easy?

Reply to this blog and let us know how you look at the sunny side of being gluten-free. (Me? Reading labels because of my celiac diagnosis has made me more conscious & aware of the ingredients in the foods I eat, which has resulted in me and my family eating a lot healthier across the board!)

All entries must be received by Tuesday, September 28th, 2010 at 12 midnight EST.

Good luck, Keep the sunny side up… and as always,

Be Free!

P.S. Want to learn more? Follow Katie on Facebook and find out more, as well as purchase, her book on her website.