Last day (Feb. 4-Day 21)

Wow, I honestly never thought it would be possible to go so very long with no sweeteners (well almost, that bitter hot cocoa was too much to handle).  I feel so good.  Clean, from the inside out.  Now the next step...keep it up for 2 more months so I can kick this Candida Albicans to the curb!!

Starting Stats:
Weight: 159.5 lbs

Waist: 38"

Hips: 41"

Bust: 41"

Thigh: 24"

Ending Stats:
Weight: 158.8 lbs

Waist: 37"

Hips: 40.25"

Bust: 41"

Thigh: 23.5"

 

So I am down almost a pound, an inch off my waist, 3/4 inches off my hips, and 1/2 an inch off my thighs.  Not bad, but I'm glad I wasn't doing this for weight loss.  It does make you wonder though why I didn't lose more weight.  You'd think that kicking both sugar and grains to the curb would net more drastic results.

That will be my next goal...figure out how to lose weight and get even healthier.

Me and the littlest muddler



Dealing with Diapers (Day 18-February 1)

Having a baby means that 90% of my life seems to revolve around the little muddler.  It is still amazing to me that such little creatures require so much time and so much stuff!!  And I'm not even talking about the extraneous stuff (like toys and wubbies and diaper wipe warmers and change tables).  I'm talking just the basics people.  Diapers, clothes, blankets, car seat, pacifier (though some might consider this extraneous), baby gates (though these are not required for every home).  Seriously, the younger the infant, the more stuff you have to carry with you when you leave the house.  Thankfully (and sadly) my littlest muddler is now 14 months old and our 'suitcase' is rapidly decreasing in size when we go out.

Before she was born the debate was on: cloth diapers vs. disposable diapers.  Some background here, we cloth diapered with our second youngest muddler.  My husband does NOT like cloth diapering...at all.  He thinks it is gross.  This makes me laugh because people have only been using disposables for the last few decades.  However, he actually was the one who decided to go with cloth diapering.  I like cloth diapering.  Putting on those bright happy colors and patterns makes an oft performed chore...dare I say it...fun. 

 

My box of cloth diapers

BUT I do not like cloth diapering at night.  SOOOO I discovered a fabulous company that makes me feel better about disposables.  The Honest Company ** Non toxic better for baby diapers that come in a variety of adorable patterns.  I just opened my box to find all these fun patterns.  So fun.

My box of Honest diapers

 It is the little things in life.


Menu

Breakfast:  Choco monkey smoothie

Lunch: Sweet potato, chia, and bratwurst hash

Dinner: Chicken, cauliflower, fresh artichokes

Snacks:  Lemon ginger tea




**I recieve no compensation from this company for saying nice things about them.  I just really like them.

School Day Blues (Day 17--January 31)

January.  Blech.  For anyone out there who home schools (and probably even teachers in public or private schools) this is a totally blah month.  Coming out of the Christmas holidays full of presents, family, fun, games.  Ending on the high of New Years Eve with our house full of people talking and playing board games and eating.  Going back to the daily grind of schooling seems...well boring.  I'm guilty of giving my kids and I an extra day off almost every week since school began again.   Not for them, for me.  I don't want to do school.  I'm hoping now that January is about to be finished we can head into the homeschooling time zone of, "Oh, it's almost May we need to get this done!"  Today though, I just want to play hooky (but I won't).  However, I do believe I will take the kids swimming this afternoon.

Menu

Breakfast:  Cranana smoothie

Lunch: Sweet potato and chia seed 'pancakes' (I use the word pancakes very loosely here, as they were very, very delicate.  The downside to not being able to use eggs).

Dinner:  Bratwurst, cabbage, and brown rice noodles

Snacks:

Tax Time (Day 13-Jan. 27th)

Hmmmm, how to describe the last day and a half.  One word: taxes.  Yep it is that time of year again and being married to the marvelous man that I am we are never, never even close to filing late.  In fact if the calendar flips over to February, we are late.  This is a good thing and something I admire and am more than willing to ride along.  However let me add two more words to that first one: glitchy technology.  OOOOOHHHH the wonders of our modern age.  Everything is peaches and cream until it happens.  TWORK!  A glitch!  We must have had to restart our computer 5 times yesterday, run 3 scans, correct, disinfect, and clean.  I am so over having to think about doing anything harder on the computer than typing this blog post and checking my facebook page.

Then today, taxes finally filed, we start on the girls' passports.  My muddlers and I are heading up to Canada this summer to visit with my family.  Since the baby has never had a passport this is a great time to get her one.  I decide to double check the other passports.  Son, check. Still good (we missed our last trip up to Canada because his passport was expired!). Daughter #1, shoot. Expired.  Daughter #2, shoot. Expired.  Mine, ooooo cutting it close.  Expires the month after we get back from our trip!  Well whoop dee doo now we get to go and spend $315 on passports PLUS $33 for their passport photos.  Super fun. 

So we trek into the city (20-25 min from home).  Arrive at the courthouse.  And realize that I have forgotten ALL of the paperwork at home.  Birth certificates, expired passports, the whole thing.  Which means that we get to do it all over again next Monday, as that is the only weekday my hardworking man has off.  Garumph.

So I am off to enjoy a banana, avocado, coconut smoothie and then I am going to bed.

Menu Day 13

Breakfast:  Chocolate banola with coconut milk

Lunch: Homemade spaghetti sauce over zoodles (zucchini noodles-surprisingly delicious)

Supper: Greek veggie and bacon 'pizza'

Snack: banana, avocado, coconut smoothie

Think Excellent (Day 9 --Thurs, Jan. 23)

This has been a hard day for me.  I am exhausted from cooking and cleaning and homeschooling and extracurricular activities.  I'm tired of not eating rice, and pasta, and bread (all gluten free, egg free, and dairy free of course).  I want to be able to easy snack.  Garumph!  All I want to do is grab a plate full of tortilla chips and dip them in salsa and guacamole.  I want easy food!!!  And to top it all off I am pretty sure I am getting a cold.  It has been a very, very, very, very long time since I was sick.  I don't want to be sick.

Alright I'm done.  Truth be told I feel good.  (other than the whole getting sick thing :-) ). I feel...clean.  Food is starting to taste sweeter (though I don't think that super bitter hot cocoa will ever taste sweeter).  I feel good.  I can tell that my body is already functioning better.  Most of my candida symptoms have cleared up which is marvelous.  I have also been exercising more often this week and I can tell my body is responding positively there as well.

Wow that is amazing.  I sat down at my computer desk full of grouch and growl.  But as I wrote that second paragraph my mood began shifting.  Focusing on the positive things, despite feeling down, really does shift your emotions as well.  Hmmmm now to remember that the next time my children spend the day pushing each others (and my) buttons.  To look at each of them and remind myself of all the positive things about them.  My mom used to say that for every negative character trait there is a corresponding positive one.  Point in case my five year old is stubborn and independent.  If she thinks you are wrong it is nearly impossible to convince her otherwise...even with proof right in front of her.  BUT that stubborness if fostered correctly will become tenacity, which is not a bad thing at all.  That independence, which at five drives me bananas, will serve her well as a young woman and adult.  And that need to be right, if taught how to find the facts and adjust her opinions accordingly, could lead to a person who digs deep for the truth and doesn't take everything at face value. 
Yup, an amazing lesson just writing those first two paragraphs demonstrated:  focus on the positive.  It is even biblical!

 

Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.

Philipians 4:8

Menu Day 9

Breakfast:  Choco Monkey Smoothie

Lunch:  Leftover shepherds pie

Dinner: Ratatouille

Snacks: Chocolate banola, butternut squash soup, zucchini/onion/ham saute

Learning Lessons (Day 7 Sugar Detox)

So in I came from doing the milking this morning only to hear my children before I even got to the house.  Yes, my wonderful, sinful, young muddlers were in the midst of a finger pointing sibling yell fest.  Joy (insert sarcasm).  I started to join them.
"I don't care, it doesn't matter, it doesn't matter, it doesn't matter!  Whatever it is canNOT be worth the fighting and the tears. It doesn't matter!  I don't care!"

And then it hit me.  I was adding to the problem.  I was making it worse.  I was informing my children that their concerns (no matter how trivial) didn't matter!
Normally at this juncture in the process I would internalize my shame and keep on with the lecturing.  Today I did something different because of two different things that had pierced my parenting bubble yesterday.  The first was this article written by Dr. Vanessa Lapointe of The Wishing Star.  And the second was a long facebook 'note' another girl posted saying basically the same thing only adding the gospel truth to it. 
 

Sooooooo, I paused.

I washed the milk bucket.

I began rinsing the milk filter.

Behind me my son began crying.  Big tears of absolute sadness.  Normally I may have chosen to ignore this.  Or more likely I may have given him a hug, but without saying anything or perhaps lecturing some more.  Today I hugged him and then asked what was going on.  Gulps, more tears, and it slowly came out, "I hate being yelled at and getting in trouble. But sometimes I get so angry I just can't keep it in.  I just go all AAAAAARGH."  Bingo.  There it is. The truth.
Today I helped this all play out different.  Today I HEARD him.  And the truth is sometimes I just can't keep it in and I go all AAAAAAARGH! And the truth is, that is just being human.  Soooo we chatted about that.  How everyone has trouble and does things that are unkind, or hurtful, or mean.  How at some point everyone has lost it.  BUT I informed him that I love him, no matter what, and that we have a great, big God who loves him no matter what.  And that same great, big God will live in us and help us act right with His strength.  Now I was much wittier and gave real life examples of my own struggles controlling my temper, both helping to ease the tension (giggling ensued) and pointing out that indeed "there is no one righteous, not even one" (Romans 3:10) Not even moms.  BUT "sin shall not be your master because you are not under law, but under grace." (Romans 6:14) and "I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me." (Galatians 2:20). 
 
Let me put it more simply.  This is what my son was told this morning, he was told he was HUMAN, and LOVED with a love that had no conditions upon it. We are sinners, through and through.  We are going to mess up, time and time again, but we can learn from our moments of frustration and anger, we can call upon God to help us and forgive us...and we an realize that we are going to have to do this again and again.  He can KNOW that I love him and he can talk to me no matter what!

The outcome was he returned to doing dishes with a smile on his face AND patience with his little sisters.  It is several hours later and still he is showing patience and love and kindness to his sisters.
ALSO...I am responding to each of my children with more love and compassion.  With a voice inflected with interest showing them that what they are saying IS important and DOES matter.

I know this is a lesson that will have to be repeated, both with my children and with myself, over and over again.  But it is a lesson worth repeating.  I desire my children to feel loved, to change their behavior, not because I have threatened them or yelled at them, but because they desire to show love and patience (with God's help).  I want to see hearts changed first so the behavior changes will stick.  So the behavior flows from the inside out instead of from the outside in.


Menu: Day 7

Breakfast: Cranana hemp protein smoothie (This is pretty yum!)

Lunch: Shepherds Pie with cauliflower/sweet potato mash

Dinner: Leftover Shepherds pie

Snacks: coconut meltaways, chocolate banola, herbal teas

Babies!

Baby, baby, baby.  Probably my most favorite thing about owning dairy goats are the babies.  Every spring little bouncing baby goats make their debut and they are soooo adorable it is ridiculous.  Except this year of course.  Oh, they are adorable, no mistake.  BUT they arrived at the beginning of December instead of the spring!  On the coldest day of the year to date!  With snow falling! (Now I grew up on the prairies of Canada, so this shouldn't be a huge deal, but here in Southern Oregon snow is a bit of a novelty).  Brrrr, goat chores in winter can be c-c-cold.

Two muddlers and 3 babies (Sled, Frosty, and Ginger Snap)

Day 5:

Breakfast: Choco monkey smoothie (I really like this smoothie!)

Lunch: Left over parsnip and bacon stuffed chicken, leftoever butternut squash soup, green salad with italian dressing (homemade)

Dinner: Baked pork chops, cauliflower, sauted zucchini and green onions.

Snacks: coconut lemon meltaway, bitter coconut hot cocoa (oy, so I cheated on this one by adding coffee hazelnut flavoring--it was sooo bitter I would have had to toss it and just couldn't bring myself to do it.  Still bitter, but it took the edge off). Fresh ginger and lime juice 'tea'.