Just finished a quick gluten-free review on Foxy and Gluten Free!  Be sure to swing over there to see how Menchie's treats the average gluten free customer!

• Anticoagulants (blood thinners: Warfarin)
• anti-platelet drugs (Plavix)
• NSAIDs (ibuprofin, aspirin and naproxen)
• Gingko biloba
• Some rare cases with saw palmetto and garlic supplements.

For some reason, I'm back in a book reading spree.  Like a finish a book a week spree.

It's just kinda nice to curl up with a good book while on my lunch break, or to read a little bit before bedtime.  Totally relaxing, and it seems to place me in another world for a bit... away from all of my worries and stresses. 

The first one that I recently finished is Carpe Demon by Julie Kenner.  It's about a woman who's a soccer mom by day, and a demon hunter by night.  At times it's totally hilarious because Kate's soccer mom antics are totally relateable, while at others thrilling when she gets to fight the demons. 

The writing style was a bit odd to me at first, because it was very much as in a "close friend telling me a story" type way, rather than the proper narration that I'm used to.  But after a few chapters, I became used to the vernacular and started enjoying the book. 

Totally fun, and a definite read if you're into books like the Sookie Stackhouse series, or Buffy. 

The second book I finished this week is Inspiring Words for Women by Darlene Sala.  It is a Christian book, which lists off various problems in our lives (stress, worry, money, etc) and then uses scripture to help the reader understand how to work through it.

The book was nice, but I would have preferred to have it worded a bit differently for the passages from the Bible.  It's not a huge deal, but while reading it late at night, it would have been easier to have the verses quoted within the book, rather than having to get out of bed, walk to the other end of the house, grab my bible and look it up. Yes, I'm lazy while reading at midnight, LoL.

Adorkable.

He surprised me with a trip to the Georgia Aquarium.  Oh my gosh, this place is HUGE.  I've never been before, and it's been on my to-do list for the past couple of years.  I loved it!  Got to see a ton of adorable otters and fishies.

My handsome guy.

Jellyfish!

Moon jelly fish

Okay, this little guy was running around like crazy. So hence, blurry pic.

Penguins!

We're still a cute couple.

Huge manta ray

My hubby and I in front of the HUGE tank.

Whale Shark!

More penguins!

Whale shark!

After that, he took me by the jewelry store and let me pick out whatever I wanted. It's a totally odd feeling because I'm not used to buying stuff for myself, but it was pretty fun.  Ended up getting a gorgeous emerald necklace.  So sweet.

The next day, we went to the Gluten and Allergen Expo in Duluth, GA.  Not exactly romantic, but it's something that I've been fangirl-ing over for a while now/  Lesson learned, do not eat prior to going!  We had soooooo many samples during it, that I felt like rolling out of the place. LoL

Overall, it was pretty cool.  Tried out some new gluten free items (GF hot dog buns!  Who knew?) and had a fun day with my hubster.  

I'm baaaaaaaack...

The good news is, I managed to get a lot done for my Etsy store and my new side blog, Foxy & Gluten Free!  

The Etsy store got a huge update including a name change, re-branding and three new invite designs.  First off, the store was changed from Foxy Weddings to Foxy and Stylish.  This way, I can expand the business to include more than just wedding invites.  The new logo is pretty cute too.  It features a whitewashed fence with a set of swirly red flowers.

On top of that, I unveiled three more bridal shower invite designs.  The first is the Exotic Zebra invite, which features a fun zebra print with a bright green flower.  This was inspired by my stylish younger sister, Victoria.\

Next up, is the Exotic Leopard invite.  It features a warm color scheme of browns and pink, along with a fuzzy leopard print background. Fun, yet still pretty. 

Finally, there is the Vintage Floral design.  This one features a chalk board background with a beautiful set of vintage styled flowers.  Classy, yet elegant.  This was inspired to me by my other younger sister, Rebecca. 

The best part about these designs? They're super easy to use.  Once the design is purchased, you will receive a pdf file.  Just print as many copies as you would like and voila, custom yet gorgeous invites.

Sneak peak at the new review site, Foxy & Gluten Free!

As for the new side blog, it's a pretty awesome concept.  Basically, I will show you the first hand experiences of being a gluten intolerant customer at a restaurant.  Everything from the staff's knowledge of allergies to the actual menu selection and taste.  This way, you can generally have an idea as to how you will be treated at a place.  Also, I'll offer tips and tricks for dining out gluten free style.

The uber cute button.

Hoping to go live with this site in about a week.  Wish me luck!

Going on a short, 2 week hiatus while I get my new gluten free business up and running!  

Wow, this afternoon has been a whirlwind.  Basically, I was driving in my car to a local bookstore.  On the way, I heard the following comment in a radio blurb:

That stopped me in my tracks.  A gluten intolerant person cannot cheat on their diet and eat pasta.  If the gluten intolerant/celiac did, they would end up getting sick for a week.  Basically, it's an autoimmune disease where when gluten is consumed, the patient's body turns and attacks itself. Not a fun process, which anyone else that's been gluten-ed can easily attest to.

So, I did something that I've never done before: called the radio station and filed a complaint.  I hate doing that, and to be honest, I didn't want to get anyone in trouble.  I just didn't want that message to air again.  It sends the wrong message towards everyone.  What if a chef heard that radio blurb and wasn't so cautious about preparing a gluten free meal for a guest?

Within minutes, the radio promotions manager called me.  I explained what I heard, why it's offensive and how it could be sending the wrong message to people. I didn't mean to sound mean or rude at all, I just wanted to educate him a bit on the subject.

Come to find out, he really didn't understand gluten intolerance and had no idea it was connected to Celiac Disease. However, he was very kind and promised to get back to me as soon as possible.

In the mean time, I went on twitter and made a couple posts explaining this to the Celiac community.  Just small tweets basically saying that if the radio station wanted help with learning about Celiac or gluten intolerance, to contact myself or these key people that understand it.

A little while later, he called back.  Come to find out, the DJ that said that, thought that gluten free diets were just like any other fad diet.  Like something that can easily be cheated on by sometimes eating the bad food  The manager went on in saying that he explained to the DJ that it's not something that can be cheated on, and is linked to a disease which is a serious issue for a lot of people in the area.  At hearing that, he said that the DJ was incredibly embarrassed and said that she had no clue about Celiac disease.

The DJ and the station manager deeply apologized.  They are incredibly sorry for the incident.  Also, they are making sure that the ENTIRE radio station will be trained in gluten intolerance and Celiac disease.  Finally, they said that the radio blurb definitely won't be on the air again. 

YAY!!!!

Image from and belongs to Star 94.1 Atlanta.

I would like to say a special thanks to Star 94.1 Atlanta.  Thank you for taking the time to listen to me.  Most media officials just blow off and ignore the small voices, your station was different.  It's great to hear how you guys not only apologized for the mistake, but offered to fix it by training your staff on Celiac disease.

Picture by Christina Branom.

It's a bit amazing too... how one little, sickly Italian girl can change an entire radio station viewpoint in an afternoon.  Words are beyond powerful, especially when they are backed by passion and dedication.