Health Concerns - Update (by Thom)

I mentioned a while back that we were trying a major change in our diets in response to some health problems I was having. I know I talked a bit about the humorous struggle to buy a cheeseburger without bread but I haven't really given any updates on how it's all going, despite all the emails I've gotten from people asking how it's going.
Since August 23rd, we cut gluten completely out of my diet. While I tested negative for Celiac's disease, we thought we'd give the diet a trial run and see how it goes. Almost immediately we started seeing results. I noticed less 'creakiness' in my knees and more energy in general. I haven't had any of the GI/stomach problems that I had - which is pretty remarkable considering that I had GI problems at least once a week for the last 4-5 years. We also received a pretty strong confirmation that we're doing the right thing when, on my birthday last week, we had lunch out at a restaurant. I forgot there would be wheat in the mushroom sauce when I ordered and about 4 hours later I was experiencing some painful cramping. I know that doesn't sound like fun, but I was very excited to get a sense that we're on the right track! I also recently noticed that my elbows had stopped locking up if I rested them in the same place too long.
There have been other 'improvements' to my health - things that just seem to be working better than they had in a long time.
We really appreciate all the prayers through this time of change. It has been a bit of a challenge for Amanda to find foods to cook that don't contain gluten. We have been able to get a few things shipped out from the US (thanks, Mom!) and we've found more alternatives here than we imagined were available, but we still really appreciate you continuing to pray for us through this time.