Back To Basics

I'm once again writing about my diet, which is an on going battle.  One of my goals, when I go back to work is to maybe work with people with eating issues/disorders.  I have never really thought about that realm of social work, but given the struggles I am having, I am thinking it may be an interesting area to learn more about.  With that being the goal and add on to that goal getting some nutritional education behind me, I decided that I really need to get myself back in line with healthy eating and healthy living.  Along with that, I really need to get back to eating healthy and cooking for my family just to plain old save money.

Enter http://www.healthygirlskitchen.blogspot.com.  The author of this blog started some posts about "The Beck Diet Solution".  Her posts got me intrigued and I am using this as an opportunity to get back to basics.  Day 1 of "The Beck Diet Solution" is basically to put down your goals.  The thing is, you have to actually read your goals twice a day.  I am going to try that, but we'll see how it works out.  Actually you are supposed to write down your reasons for losing weight so here are mine:

1. to be healthy
2. to reduce my cardiac and cancer risk
3. to feel better with how I look
4. to have more energy
5. to feel better about myself in general
6. to be a healthy example for my kids

Day 2 is to choose your diet.  I am choosing to follow Dr Neal Barnard diet, which is basically a vegan diet.  I am in the middle of reading his "Breaking The Food Seduction" which I am hoping will help with the multiple food  addictions that I have.  I  am also looking to follow the "Body Ecology Diet" for a multitude of reasons.  I guess, according to this book you don't necessarily rush right into the diet, there are 2 weeks of exercises to do.  I guess I should look at getting the book and looking at it so I at least know what I am attempting here.

Day 3 is to sit while you eat.  This is one that I have been attempting to do as a family but am failing miserably, with me being one of the main culprits.  I tend to multi task while I eat and as much as I know I shouldn't, I do.  I am going to really try to sit and enjoy my food with no distractions, as much as I am able to.

That's we we're at so far.  I'll continue to post what new changes/goals I am looking to make and hopfully this time, I'll be moving in the right direction!

Amy

Making Changes Happen

As those who have been following along know, I am and have been attempting to change my eating habits.  I am making some definite progress, but I still have a great way to go.  I have a new motivation though!  My children, or should I say my oldest son.  All of my children have a speech delay.  They are all very active kids.  Now you can say that they are not quite 3 1/2 and 2 1/2 (twins) years old and I absolutely agree!  I am no where saying that I have issues with hyperactive kids, I just have kids that are more active than those kids that enjoy sitting and doing quiet activities.  With my oldest, there has been some question (on my husband's part because I know nothing about this) of autism.  I have asked his early intervention speech therapist who said no.  I have asked the school teacher, more braodly, if they felt that his speech delay was a symptom of something else.  Again the answer was no.  My husabnd still has some concerns that there is more to him that has been diagnosed, and on some level I wonder too.  But, on the other side, I wonder if there are foods that are making things worse and that it is more of a food reaction than an actual diagnosed illness.

Since I am trying to eat a certain way, and since that way of eating can only help my children, especially my oldest, I am motivated now to really look at what my meal plan consists of.  Instead of just flying by the seat of my pants, which no matter how hard I try I never seem to get a plan in place, I meed to actually menu plan and plan along the lines of a diet that may benefit me and my children.  Even if there is no change to their behavior, their speech, or anything else, at least I know that it is a healthy way to eat.

At this point, I am looking to eliminate gluten and sugar, and we have already eliminated dairy (for the most part).  I say that we have eliminated dairy for the most part because, ingeneral we don't give the kids any dairy, but then once in a while they will have it if we are at a party, or now that it's summer we will have ice cream once in a while, but now where near the 7+ gallons of milk we were consuming prior to giving up dairy.

I am looking for good tried and true recipes.  I have some cookbooks and blogs that I really like, but I really want to make things that me and my family will enjoy.  If anyone has favorites, please send them my way!

Amy

Blogging

I remember when I first found out about blogging.  I was at a twin's group meeting and people were talking about blogs.  This was about 2 years ago, and once I started, I was hooked.  I first started with a blog about my kids as a way to keep track of the different things that went on in our crazy life, being a mom of 3 in 10 1/2 months.  Then I got on this kick about healthy/natural living, thus this blog came to be.

Now that I am embarking on a major diet change, I am looking to my fellow bloggers for support.  Now I don't really have a lot of followers, and I don't have a lot of people that actually comment, but I use my blog as a way to help me.  I don't publish anything that is too personal, yet I try to be as honest as I can.  I am using my blog as a way to document my struggles and hopefully my many more successes.  I am also hoping to use this as a place to share some of my recipes that I have found that help me as I move along this crazy road of getting healthy.

To get specific, my goals are to become more plant strong and give up any animal foods.  I am also going to start eliminating foods that have shown up on my list of potential allergies/intolerences.  I have also been reading Dr Neal Barnard's book "Breaking The Food Seduction".  I have only read some of it, but what I ahve read makes total sense to me, especially after taking a substance abuse class in grad school.  It certainly makes me feel better knowing that there is a reason why I have such a hard time giving up certain foods.  I know that this does not give me an excuse to continue to eat those foods, but it certainly helps me to realize how I need to deal the issues aound those foods.

The other part about blogging that I absolutely love is, I love to read other people's blogs.  I wish I had more time to spend meeting people out in the blogosphere, but with 3 little ones, a husband, a house, cooking ,cleaning, work, and just every day little things, there is jsut not enough time.  There are too many blogs to mention, but I get so inspored by reading other peoples blogs.  I love learning about thier children, their way of eating, their struggles, and so much more.

So for my first recipe share, I want to share with you my Lentil dal recipe.  I found a recipe years ago and have since lost it.  At this point, I have made it so often, that I know the basics of what goes into it and have made it my own.

Red Lentils:
1 c red lentils
1 onion chopped
1 T yellow mustard seeds
1/2 t garlic powder (you can use cloves, but I tend to be lazy)
1 T garam masala
1 t cumin
1 t corriander
1 t fenugreek
1 t tumeric
1 lg can of diced tomatoes
1 handful of brown rice

Cook onion, garlic and mustard seeds in a small amount of oil.  When the onion is translucent and the mustard seed are popping, add the rest of the spices and cook for a minute or so.  After a minute add the red lentils after they have been rinsed.  Add the can of diced tomatoes, the rice, and enough water to cover.  I usually add about 1 3/4 of the large tomoato can.  Cook until the rice is done, which I have found is any where from 30-45 minutes.

I have to admit that these are approximations of the amounts of ingredients.  I tend to just kind of throw things in and not really measure exactly if at all.  You can add other beans along with the lentils.  I have added chick peas and tonight I added some brown lentils just for the fun of it.  You can also leave out the rice and use less water and cook until the lentils are done about 25 minutes and cook the rice on the side.  I am hoping to get more adventurous in teh kitchen and start trying to make up my own recipes.  If anyone has suggestions for learnign how to make up your own recipe, like what spices go together and with what foods, I would love it.  I am always on the hunt for new books and my new passion is cooking plant strong.

Amy

Making the Switch

Yes, I have decided to wrote about my diet changes on this blog.  At one point, I had started another blog just to talk about my diet changes, but I just don't have enough time to write on too many blogs.  I've finally decided that I am going to fully commit to changing my diet, which means that I am going to have to eliminate a lot of foods, and a lot of foods that I really enjoy eating.  I am hoping that I see some positive results from changing my diet so that I will be motivated to continue.

The more research I do, and the more critical thinking I do about diet, the more I realize just how much your diet plays in your overall health.  There are so many different food/diet philosophies out there, and I'm not really sure that there is one right diet for everyone.  The one thing that I do believe is that whole food cooking is the only way to really be healthy.  Although I have to admit that I do not eat this way all the time, my newest goal is to always, or at least as often as possible, eat whole foods.  By this I mean, I am going to cook my food from whole ingredients, not buy pre-made or processed foods.  This has been my goal all along, especially when I started this blog.  Some where along the way, this goal got lost and I stopped writing about it and I stopped really even thinking about it. 

I've written before that I think I may have issues with Candida.  This stems from issues I've had dating back to at least 2000 (whish is when I first saw a doctor for my digestive issues), and probably a number of years prior to that.  The Candida issue makes the results of my blood test seem even more likely to be true.  One of my sensitivities is to yeast as well as gluten, wheat, and other gluten containing foods.  I have definitely had issues with long term anti-biotic use.  When I was in high school, and I am having my 20th reunion this year, I had chronic urinary tract infections, for which I was placed on anti-biotics prophylacticly.  I was even doing test for infections at home so that I didn't have to actually go to the doctor's office for a test.  Then I was also on medication for acne as a teen.  What I really should be doing is following an anti-candida diet and see if that clears up some of my issues.

This is going to be a long road.  I've written often about my struggles with giving up certain foods.  I've also written a little about how I feel that I have an addcition to these foods.  There is some thought that once you clear up Candida and you heal your gut, you will be able to tolerate at least some of these foods once in a while.  My concern is that if I go back to eating these foods once I heal, will I just be setting myself up to fail, just like a drug addict or an alcoholic who thinks that they can have just one?  I probably shouldn't be looking this far ahead, but I am thinking that I also need to plan for the future.  I believe that it will take some time to heal my gut and get rid of the  issues that I am dealing with, but I think that I am finally at a point where not only do I want to do this, but I am really interested in making it fun and not looking at it as if I am losing something, but as a way to gain new receipes and try new foods!

Amy

The Gut Brain Connection

The more I research, the more I realize that there is a gut brain connection.  The problem is that I can't seem to make the necessary diet changes to see if there is a food connection to certain issues that I am facing.  One specific issue that I think may be a result of my diet, is my inability to concentrate and feeling spacey.  There are certainly more issues, but I won't go into them now.  Part of the issue is that I really believe that certain foods have a hold on me and that they some what act in the same way as a drug acts in our bodies.  With that being said, I really need to just stop eating the foods that I think trigger certain symptoms in myself.  The hard part about food addiction is that you need food to live.  Some of the foods that are triggers may be around all the time, unlike drugs and alcohol which you can get away from most of the time!

As a social worker, I truly believe that there are time when medication and therapy are the only way to deal with certain brain issues, but as a social worker I also know that there is more to a person than just symptoms.  There is a whole person to look at and just because you stop the symptoms, doesn't mean that you fix the problem.  This is where I think social work and holistic health can really work together. 

Since I think that there is a problem, I need to look at the big picture and try to figure out what i can do to really fix the problem, not just mask it by covering up the symptoms.  I also think that in reality, changing my eating habits, such as eliminating sugar, gluten and gluten containing foods, and dairy, will in the long run benefit my whole life.  I  am truly hopeful that by changing my diet, I will become a healthier person all around.  I also think that changing my family's diet is going to be really important and also really tricky.  My kids are already picky eaters, but at least my husband will eat anything.

As always, I am going to try to move forward and eat the way I need and want to eat.  Iam hopeful that I will soon be writing more positive things about the way I am feeling and I am hoping that my mental clarity will greatly improve!  I am hoping to write about the different types of foods that I will add to my diet and the different foods that I am eliminating.  Any information regarding diet changes and these triggers is greatly appreciated!

Amy

Getting My Life Organized

I've written a lot about my desire to get organized, so I will not belabor the point.  I am slowly getting there, but it is certainly going to take some time.  I have gotten a couple of shelves from freecycle to help get some of the toys we have organized and it actually seems to help a little.  My biggest problem is maintaining what changes I make.

One of the newest areas that I need to work on organizing are the different things that I do to help me live a handmade and natural life.  One of those areas is my recipes for natural house and beauty products.  Right now, I have all the different recipes in different areas.  My goal is to put these all in one notebook, separated between household products and beauty/body product.  I have been making both my own toothpaste and my own deodorant and I really want to make sure that these recipes are at my finger tips so that I don't have to go searching.  I know the basics; baking soda, cornstarch, coconut oil, and essential oils for the deodorant and just plain baking soda and essential oils for toothpaste.  I also have been making my own body cream and I really need to write down exactly what I use since my husband has a specific cream that he finds works extremely well.  At this point, I need to go through what I have for recipes and start organizing them so that I can easily find them when I need them.

I am also going to try to start off organized when I start learning about herbs and diet.  I have my notebooks and my organizer, now I just need to make sure that I take notes in the right notebook and keep things organized and orderly.  Getting and maintaining my organization will help me be able to get everything I need so that I can make the different products I need when I need them and not have to go searching for how to make them.

Amy

Getting Back On Track

I'm finally getting back on track, albeit very, very slowly.  There are some things that I have changed about my health/eating/creative life, which have gone back to my bad ways, but I am starting to get my focus back to where it needs to be and this time (even though I've said it before) I am taking things slow and really thinking about my decisions.  I am really, really going to try not to beat myself up for not following through.  I am going to really work at being positive about these changes that I want to make and I think just changing my attitude is going to be a huge help.

Along with changing my eating, there are a lot of other changes that I have been working on.  Some have really worked out well, and some not so well.  I was going to try to sew an hour a day this week, making clothes for the kids.  That pretty much didn't happen.  What I have done with regards to sewing for the kids is start working on their room darkening shades.  I still have quite a bit to do for them, but at least I got started.  Right now, as much as sewing clothes would be a benefit, I really need to focus on the shades.  I could buy them, but where's the fun in that.

I have decided that I really love cooking, I just hate the cleaning up part.  I think the cleaning up  (not to mention the addiction I have to eating out and eating crap) is what makes me not want to cook.  I am absolutely loving blogs.  I think I have a slight addiction to reading blogs, I just don't have enough time to really read all the ones that I want to.  I love that there are so many resources out there to help me find recipes that I really want to try.  I love that, even though I love to buy cookbooks, I don't have to.  I love that when I need to find a new and healthy recipe, I can just type in a search and I can find what I am looking for.

Along with reading cooking and craft blogs, I love finding natural health blogs.  Aromatherapy and natural cleaning solutions are a couple of the areas that I have an interest in.  I have to say though, my diet blogs are usually blogs that fall into the category of natural health because they are usually blogs that are vegetarian/vegan or deal with health and allergies, not just food blogs in general, or at least I look for healthy food options within my ideal diet on a lot of the blogs that I read (though I do admit to coveting a ton of non-healthy recipes that I don't make but would love to!).

Tonight I made broccoli rabe with white beans, carrots, and onions in a garlic walnut oil sauce and I ate it with brown rice.  OMG, was it awesome.  I love broccoli rabe anyway, but this was just a way to eat it with some protein and some other veggies and have it be just a little different.  I used this recipe, http://hungrybruno.blogspot.com/2009/01/broccoli-rabe-with-beans.html, but I didn't add the bread crumbs or the parmesan cheese, which probably would have made it even better. 

I am making a promise to myself now.  I will not ever give up.  the goals may change, but shouldn't they be fluid anyway?
Amy

Complete and Utter Failure!

Thankfully I don't have a ton of followers and not too many people read my blog.  I have been a complete and utter failure with my eating.  The only good thing I've done is try a couple of new recipes that were how I wanted to eat!  Unfortunately, I ate horrible along with them so it basically negated any good that I did.  What is it about being healthy that I can seem to follow through with?  I have a feeling that this blog is going to be more of an online therapy session for me.  It will be a place for me to talk about the issues that I have and hope that some how I can figure out what the hell is wrong with me and why I can't seem to be the healthy person that I want to be.  I will keep trying to get to the point I want to be at.  I am due to complete week2 day 3 of the C2 5K.  I am hoping that after I put the kids in bed, I can head out and go by myself.  I want to see if I do better without pushing the stroller with 2 kids. 

On a more positive note, I finished my apron for the flirty apron swap I am in.  I am always happy when I can make the tuck-ins.  For me, I feel like I want to make them since we are creating an apron.  I want to create the tuck-ins I send also.  I need to mail it out tonight and then I get to wait for my package.  I am truly loving sewing and I am pleased to say that even though it is a simple apron, I made it without a pattern and I actually love it and would have been happy to keep it for myself!

Onwards and upwards to becoming the healthy person I want to be!
Amy

On My Way

I am starting to think that even though it is going to be a huge undertaking and I will have many set back (trying to use words that make less of a negative impact) and also times that I do good, I am ready to make some major changes to my diet.  I think it is time to start eliminating certain foods to see if they are things that I have a reaction to.  I know that I can't tell if I have a reaction unless I actually eliminate them, but I am ready.  My husband needs to follow a similar diet that I want to follow, only he doesn't need to be gluten/yeast free.  We will be pretty much be a vegan family.  He needs to cut out meat and I want to.  I need to cut out dairy and so does he.  The kids don't eat dairy. 
For dinner tonight, I made this recipe: http://www.food.com/recipe/chickpea-quinoa-pilaf-vegan-295639 and substituted amaranth for the quinoa.  It turned out pretty good.  It will certainly be in my dinner rotation and fits the diet that I want to be eating.  I really need to get my cookbooks/diet education books together so that I can prepare my meal plan based on the foods I should be eating.  I love my iPad.  I look up recipes, most often from blogs, and use the iPad as my own little cookbook.  I love it, but I also still love having actual books, not just the internet.  I may even start to put together binders so that I can keep hard copies of recipes from the internet, like the one above, so that if the recipe goes, I still have a copy.

Any vegan/gluten free/ yeast free websites, recipes, blogs are very much welcome.  I have a few favorite blogs that I visit and try recipes from, but would love any and all suggestions!  I will be certain to post what recipes I am trying and where they come from.  I am loving trying out new healthy recipes, I just need to maintain my health and my resolve!

Amy

Diet and Exercise and a Healthier Me

I have really been trying to follow what I believe in regarding my diet.  Have I been able to really follow it?  No, not really.  For some reason, I tend to give up rather easily on diets.  And by diets, I mean more like what am I eating vs a diet to lose weight.  By diets, I mean, life style.  At this point in my life, so close to forty (so scary to think it is only 2 years away), I am beginning to realize thta I don't need to diet, I need to change my eating habits for life!  I need to not make short term changes, but rather long term changes that are going to see me through the rest of my life and keep me as healthy as I can be.  I need to get back to eating mroe vegetarian/vegan.  I really need to give up dairy!  Every time I eat it, I tend too eat way to much way too often.  Then, I start getting digestive issues and I end up not feeling extremely comfortable.  What I really need to do is follow through with the elimination diet so that I can really figure out what my triggers are and stop eating them.  I have a feeling that I have food intolerances not food allergies.  Why this is hard for me is, I don't always get sick right away.  Sometimes it takes a few days for me to feel the effect.  By that tiemI have eaten more because pretty much everything that I have an issue with are things that I love to eat.  As difficult as it is, I will get to a point where I am only eating what I really should be eating, not eating things that I love to eat that make me feel sick.  I hope that I will also end up really enjoying the way I eat since I will be feeling healthier.

As for exercise, my goal is to run a 5K by the summer.  I started the couch to 5K last week and am on week 2 day 2 next.  I ended up skipping week 1 day 3 by accident, but felt good at the week 2 day 1 pioint so I am just going to move forward.  I was hoping to run today since it was marathon Monday, but alas, I don't think I will make it.  I am at work til 7:30 and then I have to put the kids to bed.  I may try to go out after, but I'm not sure that my husband would like me running that late by myself..  There's nothing worong with waiting til tomorrow or even the next day since tomorrow we have a few doctor appointments with the kids.  I am going to finish the C2 5K this time and I will run a 5K.  My goal has always been to run.  I remember in junior high school my gym teacher mentioned that I should run cross country.  I was too afraid to try out and ended up in the marching band.  I was still exercising, but I so wish it had been running.  Now here's my chance to run and do it on my terms.

Even though I keep writing about getting my diet right one day, I really will start eating the way that I want to.  Unfortunately, I may just need to keep writing about my failures or set backs as my husband calls them, until I actually meet my goals.  At least I know what my goals are, now I just need to follow through.

Amy

Back To The Whole Reason I Started This Blog

I started this blog about a year and a half ago to talk about my struggles and triumphs of balancing living a handmade and natural life.  I feel like this blog has gotten a little away from that, probably partly because I have gotten away from living my life like that.  I have been struggling to follow through with some of my beliefs that got me started writing this blog.  I feel like lately all I have been writing about is my diet, and even though that is part of what I had hoped to talk about on this blog, it is not all I wanted to talk about.  I guess, in order to remind myself why I started this blog, I want to write a few bullet points on what living a handmade and natural life means to me.

1. Diet:  I want to eat as seasonally and as locally as possible.  I know that there are going to be times that I can't or won't do this, but in the long run, eating this way is a much healthier way to eat.  I want and need to find recipes that are based on eating local/seasonal foods.  I know that there are a few books out there, I just need to find good ones.  Currently, I have "Clean Eating" and am looking to get "Clean Start" by the same author.  I am also working on moving toward a vegan diet.  I have been starting my day off with raw green smoothies.  I feel like I do so much better if I start of the right way.  I am going to try to plan a menu for the month of March up front instead of flying by the seat of my pants and trying to figure out what to make each night.  This has been a goal of mine for a while now, but I just never seem to follow through.  My other goal is to finally eliminate all of the potential allergens that cam back on my blood test.  Again, I've attempted to do this, but lack the follow through.
2. Handmade Things: I want to start to make more things myself.  This includes food, but so much more.  I don't want to always rely on going to large stores to get what I need.  There are going to be times that I need to do this for financial reasons, but my goal is to buy supplies to make the end product, not by the end product out right.  I also want to make sure that I find time to create.  Making things myself will force me to find the time to actually make the things I need.  I guess that would be the other piece of how I want to live; I only want what I need.  I don't want to have that feeling of needing to have something just because I want it!  I also want to use what I have, not go out and buy more supplies.  The only way I want to buy more, is if I run out of something or I absolutely need to buy something to make a project.  I would rather choose a different project than buy new supplies adding to all the stuff that I already have and then I can save money too!
3. Living Green: I am trying to live as green as possible.  Some of the things that I have already mentioned fit this, but there are many other things that I can do.  I need to make sure that I continue to recycle.  I need to use my reusable bags more often.  I try really hard, but sometimes I go shopping and I don't have them.  I need to start composting again.  I try to reuse ends of veggies to make veggie stock.  I feel like this way, I am using all of the food not just part of it. Since I pay for it all, I should use it all.  Also, why buy veggies to make stock and then throw them out when I can use veggies that I would have thrown out if not for the stock.  And then, Why spend money on stock with who knows what type of ingredients, when you can make your own and now what is in there.
4. Exercise: I want to start exercising and including my kids in the process.  Hopefully, with March starting tomorrow, the weather will start warming up and we can get out for walks.  Even if it doesn't so much warm up, I need the snow o be gone so that I can push the double stroller safely.  What I really need to do is find some good DVDs with mom and kid exercises that we can do together when the weather is bad.  I think it will be a good thing for the kids to do to get out some of that pent up energy that they have not being able to go outside.  I also want to add in some yoga for me and for the kids!  When the weather gets better, I want to start bringing the kids to Breakhart and places like that.  I will definitely need another adult or two with me, but I want to add being in and enjoying nature to the exercise mix.
5. Living a Wholesome Balanced Life: I want to incorporate everything that I have written here as well as continuing to use natural body products and home cleaning products.  I want to continue to use more natural remedies for the different things that ail me.  For example, this weekend, I felt the beginning tingle of a cold sore.  Since I was up at 4am, I started my lysine regime right away.  I am amazed that I neer got the traditional blister that i aways get.  I must have caught it at the right time because two days later I do not have a cold sore!  I have been using my own deodorant (baking soda, cornstarch, coconut oil and essential oils).  I want to get back to making my own toothpaste (baking soda, salt and maybe some essential oils).  I will continue to try to not use shampoo when washing my hair, but if I need shampoo, I will use those without sodium laurel/laureth sulfate.  I want to start making my own soap (I need to get my husband's cousin to do it with me so I can learn the right way).  I want to start making more of my own cleaning supplies.  I know that I have a bunch of recipes printed out, but now I need to start making them. 

I'm sure that there is a ton more that I can write.  I won't bore anyone that reads this with more things that I want to do to change my life.  This is really an outline for what I want to do with my life so that I can start living the way that I want to live.

Thanks for reading this lengthy post.  This felt really good to write and I think I need to do this every so often so that I write down my goals of how I want to live.  My next posts won't be nearly as long and won't be nearly as boring.

Amy

The Binge Monster

I just read "How to break up with your binge monster" over at http://thedailydietribe.com and  so much rang true with me.  Just last night, as my previous post states, I totally had a binge moment.  I had eaten/drank a raw green smoothie for breakfast, but that was it until 3:30 pm when my husband got cookies.  Then I went to work and has a personal pizza, then came home and had some chicken and salad (the only good semi healthy part of my binge), then I went on to eat 3 english muffins with butter and jelly.  So not good.  I just craved food and gave into to everything that I wanted.  Today was a little better, but on my way to work, I totally screwed up.  I, again, started my day with a raw green smoothie,  then we had errands to run.  I hate cookies on the way, but only 3 (as if that is ok).  I did eat a salad for lunch which was a decent decision, but then on my way to work I bought 2, yes 2, muffins, one cranberry walnut that I ate on the way and a chocolate dream with chocolate frosting (which I only ate half and threw the other half right away).  The muffins were not a good decision.  Bad on all fronts for me.  There is way too much sugar, wheat, dairy, and just generally unhealthy ingredients.  Sometimes, I just can't say no.

I think I need to have a talk with my monster.  I think literally a talk.  I want to say out loud, that I will no longer eat things that hurt me.  I want to tell my monster to leave me alone and that even though he thinks he is giving me what I need, all he is doing is causing me pain.  Like Iris over at http://thedailydietribe.com mentioned, this is going to be an ongoing battle (ok the battle part is from me), but as time goes on, I will see my monster slowly but surely backing off and not coming around as much, hopefully some day never to return.

When I go home tonight, I am sure I will snack, but I want to make sure that I snack on something healthy.  I will be snacking on carrot sticks and hummus, one of my new favorite snacks.  I will be looking to eliminate wheat, gluten, and dairy from my diet as well as the other foods that are at least 3 on my blood test.  I am thinking, not only will I be healthier, but I will hopefully lose weight and have more energy.  The other thing that I need to do for my health is increase my exercise.  Hopefully the nice weather will be here before I know it and I can go for walk with the kids.  At least if the snow melts, I can get out with the stroller and walk, since right now there is no room on the sidewalks for a double wide stroller and there is little to no way I can fit in time to exercise with the kids around.  Maybe I just need to get out of bed earlier.

I think the other thing that will help with my diet is to keep busy.  I have many projects to work on and could be reading mroe blogs!  If I keep my mind and my hands busy, maybe then I won't snack or at least be tempted to snack on things that are unhealthy for me to be eating.  Plus, I love to read blogs, I love to work on projects and I have a ton of books that I can read!

Amy, who promises not to keep ruminating on my diet and diet failures!

Blogging

This blog seems to have become a public place for me to talk about my struggles/failures/set backs with my diet. I will admit that it is also a place where I can writebabout the few successes that I have. For example, I started my day out just the way I wanted to and had a great green smoothie. Unfortunately that is all I had until about 3:30 this afternoon when I down a bunch of cookies. Granted they were Newman's so they were better quality, but they were still cookies. Then, to make matters worse, I got pizza at work. The one positive is that I did not get soda. I don't think I had soda all day, pretty impressive! Writing this you would think that things can't get much worse, but yes they can! I came home and had 3, yes 3 english muffins with butter and jam. I totally started my day out great, yet I totally failed the rest of the day. I also had salad with chicken. Not so bad you say, but I am trying to cut out meat. Yes, tomorrow is another day, and I will be making some positive changes, but I am really disappointed in how thugs went today. I will definitely be starting out my day with my green smoothie and hopefully, I can end my day and look back and say that I had a great day. No excuses, but today was a little busy, I just should have made better choices! I'm off to read more blogs and get more inspiration. Maybe some day, I'll have people that follow and comment, but for now this is a great place to document my trials and tribulations of eating healthy, living green, making and creating handmade items, and teaching all of this to my kids.

For those of you who read and don't comment, thank you for reading! If you'd like to take a moment and comment, I would love it. Thank you for ny support that you can give!

Amy

Some Progress

So I have made some progress with my diet changes.  I have been having a green smoothie every day, at least at some point during the day.  If I can eat it for breakfast, it really helps me to think about what else goes in my mouth for the rest of the day.  I have actually been able to lose a few pounds.  Nothing grand, but my docotor noticed it when I took the kids to their appointment today!  I need to make sure that I keep drinking my raw green smoothies and then coninue to make more changes as time goes on.  I need to continue to remove dairy from my diet and now I need to add gluten to that for both me and the kids.

Eliminating dairy for the kids has been an absolute success in my mind.  Michael is breathing better, sleeping better, more social, less skin issues etc.  Why would I ever give him dairy again?  The other two kids are also not ingesting any dairy either, but there have not been as marked chages in them as with Michael!  Eva Rose is not gainign weight like one would expect, but really seems to be doing well with every day life.  The boys are still on the small side, but seem to be growing on their curve.  Their doctor said that their head circumference is on target which is a good sign.  I'm really not worried.  I have come to realize that I don't have chucky monkey babies.  I have small skinny active babies that just would rather be on the move than eat.

As of right now, I am exhausted.  I really need to make a point of going to bed early tonight.  Befoe I do that, I really need to plan out my grocery list for tomorrow.  I need to have a plan in place to buy the food that I need for the week and not over spend on things that will just get wasted.  I need to plan some meat meals for the kids so that they will have a little bit better of an intake.  I need to plan more bean meals for me and my husband.  I need to plan some non dairy, non gluten desserts/snacks that will help keep me on track and do better for the kids.  Hopefully another post soon will be total progress, not just some.

I really need to work on my for my swap.  I need to get some tuck in together and get the package ready to mail.  I love doing swaps since it forces me to complete projects.  I have so many projects in the works it isn't even funny.  I'll just keep plugging away and hopefully get some more completed!

Amy

Does This Mean Anything?

Is this a coincidence or is it real?  For the last week, that is except for today and yesterday, I have been having raw green smoothies for breakfast.  I am used to eating some sort of carb for breakfast, but I had been trying to starrt my day off right so that maybe I would make better choices for the rest of the day.  Prior to making this change in my diet, I had been having pretty rough sinus type headaches.  Once I started having the raw green smoothies, I noticed I was no longer waking up with a headache.  I was getting over a cold, so I was not sure if my diet change had anything to do with not having anymoer headaches or if I was finally over my cold.  I haven't had a headache since, that is until today.  I have had a slight headache off and on all day.  It's not the piercing headache that I was having before, but none the less an anoying headache.  The funny thing is, yesterday and today I did not have my raw green smoothie for breakfast.  I did have 2 glasses last night before bed and then a 1/2 glass after my pancakes this morning.  Yesterday I had french toast.  I find it interesting that now that I started my day off with starchy carbs, my headache is back.  It's probably just a coincidence, but just in case,  I am back to my raw green smoothie for breakfast tomorrow and nothing else.  No more carbs in the morning.  Ok, no more gluten or wheat or any of the other grains that i shouldn't be eating, in the morning.  Actually no more of the grans that I shouldn't be eating ever.  I think the headache today made me realize that I really need to do something with my diet, never mind that I have lost about 6 pounds without dieting, just making lifestyle changes!

I am still researching and enjoying reading others blogs.  I love how many people out there are dealing with food issues and that they are sharing their struggles and what has helped them.  After seeing how much of a role dairy played in my older son's breathing difficulty, I am more aware of how food affects people.  I almost pushed for my son to have surgery, tonsillectomy and maybe even an adenoidectomy, and all I had to do was eliminate milk from his diet to notice a very noticable improvement to his breathing.  The best part is, others have noticed it too, so I know that it is not just me wanting to believe that there has been a change!  I am also wondering if citrus may be another trigger for my kids since they have recently been eating a ton of oranges and are again having diaper rashes.  I know we need to have them offically tested for allergies, but my anecdoctal information says that they are having issues with certain foods.  Now, I just need to maintain our dairy free diet and add a gluten free, citrus free, probably sugar free diet to what we eat.  I am really interested to see what role more diet changes play in our lives!  If anyone has good blogs regarding healthy eating, please pass them on. 

I have a little more information on my mom's cancer diagnosis.  At this time, she has stage 1 grade 2 breast cancer.  This means that the tumor was small, only about 0.9cm (about 3/4 in) and that it is semi-aggressive in nature.  It is an invasive form of cancer, so she will be having an MRI to see if the cancer has spread any where else in her body.  After that, she needs to have a lymph node biopsy, which will help to determine what type of treatment she has.  Then after that, she will have the BRCA test to see if she carries the gene for breast cancer.  This is actually pretty scary for me since I know that my great grandmother, my grandmother and her twin, and now my mom have all had breast cancer.  If she does not have the gene I will be very surprised (no one else in my grandmother's family had breast cancer except for her twin sister), but you never know.  This diagnosis has also made me re-evaluate my eating habits.  I still don't always make the best choices, but I know that whatever changes I make are going to be lifestyle changes, not just momentary changes.  I will be 38 this summer and I have 3 small children.  Thankfully, it seems as if breast cancer tends to hit after menopause in my family, but the time is now to make the changes, not wait until something happens.  Right now, I'm all about prevention.  Any suggestions on cancer preventing diets is always helpful and very much appreciated!

Here's to making lifestyle changes that will help me be a healthier happier person and making them stick!
Amy

Thought Provoking

As I've written, I am looking to make some huge changes in my lifestyle.  This includes many things, but one of the biggest areas I am looking to change is my diet.  For a few years, I have been wanting to eat a more vegan diet, but I never thought I could give up meat.  Then my husband's doctor recommended that he start eating a more plant based diet so we did.  I am amazed at how much I don't have the desire for steak.  Don't get me wrong, I still eat meat more than I want to, but I am eating way more beans and grains than I ever have.  I started adding in a green smoothie every morning and am feeling so much better now that I am not carb loading my body from the start.  Again, I still need to make major changes in my eating habits, but slow and steady wins the race, right? 

I just finished reading a post at http://sweetlyraw.com/ about how the author is no longer 100% raw vegan.  I was very impressed with her blog and very impressed with most of the comments.  Many people commented on her bravery for coming out and saying that she is no longer 100% raw vegan and that they are so happy that she is listening to her body.  I too want to commend her for listening to her body and eating what she feels her body needs.  One of my biggest goals with my diet is to get my body into a state where I can trust it to tell me waht it needs.  I think that I have too many allergies/intolerances right now as well as some food addictions (which probably play right into the allergy piece) to trust my bosy to tell me what it needs.  I have msotly eliminated dairy from my diet and I think it really has helped.  I know that it has helped my children, and I don't know that i want to try them back on dairy, especially my older son who seemed to have some fairly significant breathing issues from it.  I now want to eliminate the other foods that I seem to react to and see how I feel.  I think once I get into a healthy state, I will be able to listen to my body to tell me what it needs, and I will then feed it the food that it craves because I believe at that point I wll be able to trust it!  I think that I need to not be too hard on myself with my eating.  I know that I need to give myself credit for the chnages that i have made no matter how small.  I also know that I need to continue to work on finding the right diet for me, as I also believe tht no one diet fits everyone!

Amy

Changing One's Lifestyle

So, if you have been reading, you know that I am having some difficulty with my diet and other aspects of change in my life.  I am trying to make some pretty big lifestyle changes that I think will benefit both me and my family.  Again, if you have been reading you know my mom was recently diagnosed with breast cancer.  We found out today, that it is an invasive, semi-aggressive cancer.  For me, this makes me concerned for her, concerned for me and my sisters and concerned for my niece and my daughter.  As of now, 3 generations in a direct line have had breast cancer, this includes my great grandmother, my grandmother and her twin sister, and now my mom.  There are also a number of other health issues that make me want to start changing my lifestyle now, while I am in my late 30's vs waiting for something to happen and then start making the changes.  The biggest lifestyle changes are: diet, exercise, organization, and attempting to limit my stress.

Diet:

With regards to my diet, I am attempting to move more towards a plant based diet with some raw foods added in.  I think that eating a more vegan diet will help my overall health and also since I seem not to tolerate dairy well, I think it will specifically help my digestion.  I have been making a green smoothie for breakfast every day this week and have to say that since I have been doing that, I no longer have the daily headache that I was having for more than a week.  Now, that just might be a coincidence since I was recovering form a monstrous cold/flu and was definitely dealing with sinus issues, but I haven't had a headaches since at least Monday, if not before that.  Either way, I am no longer starting my day off with the carb loaded breakfast that I was used to.  I think just starting off my day with something good and healthy is the right way to start any changes.  I am still having some set backs, but given how I was eating before, I am finding that I am overall heating a more healthy diet, and I think I owe it all to starting my day off right!

Exercise:

I don't really have much to say on this yet.  The winter here in the Boston area has been terrible.  If we had had so much snow, I would have bundled the 3 kids up and taken them for walks, but there is just too much snow, and I am sure that the side walks would never fit a double wide stroller.  And, having 3 kids with the oldest not quite 3, certainly makes exercising in the home that much more difficult.  Since we are nearing the end of February, I am looking forward to the spring thaw.  I can't wait to be able to get out with the kids and just walk.  Maybe this will even be the year that I start running (wouldn't that be a nice goal to complete?).  Now that the kids are older (right now they are 2 and almost 3), I'd like to maybe start taking them into the local hiking trails and going for mini hikes with them.  I am going to try to set aside time to exercise in the house and see if I can include the kids in that process!

Organization:

Just a quick little note on organization.  Right now, things are a little chaotic with changing schedules.  We had cleaned up nicely for the twins' birthday party, then Tom and I got sick and the house was left a little more than it should have been.  Now it's time to get back on track and keep it that way.  This goal will ultimately help with the other goals that I want to work on.

Stress Relief:

This is, in large part, something that I really want to make a priority.  Again, eating right, exercising, and being organized are all going to play a major role in this goal.  I want to keep making sure that I find time for my hobbies.  I think that in general, people don't take enough time to actually do the things that they enjoy.  for me, this is doing something crafty.  That means, while I am sitting watching tv, (or even better turn the tv off and do a project) I pull out some knitting, sewing, scrapbooking etc and work on completing the project at hand.  I also want to actually start meditating and doing yoga.  I just need to make time for this practice.  I also want to make sure that I take time to spend alone time with my husband to ensure that our relationship stays strong.

Conclusion:
These are just some of the goals that I have in my head.  I would also like to learn more about diet and nutrition.  I am enjoying reading people blogs and finding out what are good resources to have to make the dietary changes that I want to make.  I am so looking forward to meeting these goals and starting to make new ones.  For now, though, I am working towards making changes that I can maintain in the long run!

Amy

Second Post of the Night: My Diet

So this is my second post of the night.  Too Much?  Maybe, but I want to make sure that I write down my successes and my failures/set backs.  One of the big successes that I have had is drinking my green smoothie in the morning instead of my usual pancakes, french toast, bagel, etc.  I have been throwing a bunch of fruit including, bananas, oranges, berries, granny smith apples and blending them with water and then I've been adding some swiss chard for the greens.  It's been pretty satisfying along with my tea.  I haven't had any coffee for a few weeks now.  For a little while, I was still drinking coffee once in a while, but then I realized I really no longer liked the taste, it was more of a habit than anything.  I still am having trouble with eating a healthy lunch, but today I had left over rice and beans and really enjoyed it.  I also had it for dinner.  I am thinking that the left overs are so much better since the spices sit and flavor the rice and beans more.  I can't wait for tomorrow when I get to eat tonight's left overs. 

I really need to get books on how to make my own recipes.  things like, what spices go together, ratios of different ingredients.  I want to be more adventurous and creative with my cooking.  I don't want to just follow a recipe.  I want to come up with my own recipe.  I am thinking that Asian style food is the way that I tend to like to eat so I need to learn more about that style of cooking.  I am also definitely trying to lean more vegan and even somewhat raw in the different recipes that I make.  Hopefully one of these days, I will have this way of eating become a lifestyle. I don't want to ever diet again.  I want to maintain healthy eating habits so that my lifestyle ensures that I maintain my weight and my health remains good.

As for se backs, I won't write about them now.  I am going to forget about them and move forward.  I have a meeting to go to tonight and I am going to be good with what I eat.  Hopefully , there will be healthy foods and not just junk food.  If there is only junk food, I will really need to evaluate if I really need to eat it, probably not.

Hopefully I get a few readers to help me on my journey with this blog.  If not, this is my place to come clean and share with who ever reads this, the struggles of living a handmade and natural life.  Good living is not all about diet.  It's about following your passions, living a healthy active life, maintaining private time with your significant other, maintaining family time, nurturing and maintaining friendships, having hobbies, and just living a happy life.

BTW-one of the benefits, at least I am assuming it's from changing my diet (at least a little) is today was the first day in over a week that I did not have a head ache at all.  No ibuprofen today.  I was actually getting worried.  I had never had that many headaches in a row.

Amy

Diet

As I predicted, the last 2 days were not all that great for my diet.Wakes and funerals will do that to you expecially those of an Italian family.  The one positive is that I did start my day off yesterday with a green smoothie, pretty awesome if you ask me.  As there should be nothing that should get in my way, I am off to get back on the wagon with my diet and do the right thing!

I found out today that my mother was just diagnosed with breast cancer.  This means, my great grandmotehr, my grandmother, and now my mother have all had breast cancer (my grandmother's twin sister also had breast cancer).  My grandmother died from metastesized breast cancer after having a double mastectomy (each mastectomy was a few years apart form the other).  The positive, if there ever is a positive with cancer, is that every one of them got breast cancer post menopausal, which is a better time to get breast cancer if you are going to get it.

I had already decided that I was going to change my eating habits, lose weight and exercise and be healthier all around.  This diagnosis confirms my need to do this.  My next goal is to research what is the best diet to prevent cancer in general, as well as breast cancer specifically.  I know that you should maintain a healthy weight with a BMI of 25 or below, exercise regularly, eat cruciferous veggies and good carbs, eat hormone free meat, and I'm sure there is more, I just need to find out what it is!

It pretty much has me totally freaked out that 3 generations of females in a row in my family have had breast cancer.  The fact that my grandmother died of breast cancer and now that my mother has it really scares me.  My mother is getting tested for the breast cancer gene.  I will be very surprised if she doesn't have it since there is obviously a pretty significant family history, or at least it's significant to me!  There is way too much cancer in my family for me not to take this seriously as well as other issues.  My uncle dies of heart disease and he was only 5 years older than I am now.  My farther died of suicide, again at the age I will be in 5 years.  I really need to watch my diet and my mood and make sure that I keep myself as healthy (all around)as I can be!

There will be more on my diet changes as the days progress and I get more research done.  I'm sure that I am over reacting to a certain extent as this news is just so new.  I just need to do everything in my power to keep myself healthy especially since I have little ones!  The one change that I have made is I have had 2 mornings where I had a green smoothie for breakfast.  I was really impressed that I was able to only have that for breakfast.  Now I just need to maintain this and add on more changes to my diet! 

I am also now even happier that I am making my own deodorant, my own creams, and using shampoo (when I actually shampoo my hair) that doesn't have chemicals in it, as well as using good soap without chemicals (and I will be learning how to make my own soap!), and just basically using good prodcuts that go on our largest organ, our skin!

Amy

Healthy Eating

Wow, I wasn't kidding when I said I have food addictions.  I am actually amazed at how significant they are.  I actually went to Mc Donald's for lunch today with the kids.  How bad is that?  I write how I am going to start eating healthier and I take my kids to Mc Donald's.  This really has to stop.  As of right now, not tomorrow, not in the next couple of hours but right now, I am going to change my eating.  I have been reading too many blogs of people who have made the changes and made them stick to not make the change myself.  There is no turning back.  Unfortunately, I am going to a wake and a funeral the next 2 days and they will have a ton of food there.  I am not looking forward to not eating all of the foods that I will want to eat, but I really need to start these changes and I can no longer say "I'll do it tomorrow" or "I'll do it when the time it right".  There is no right time.  The right time is now.  I want to start my day off with a green smoothie, and maybe even have another one for lunch.  I need to plan how to deal with the wake and the food after the wake, but if I have a plan in place, I know I can handle it.  If I am thinking that I want to, someday, maybe do nutritional counseling, I really need to focus on getting my own health and life in order.  I need to start exercising too and I will, but I just need to focus on the eating piece right now and then I will get the exercise piece down too.  It all goes hand in hand.  If I eat right I will have energy for exercising.  If I exercise, I'll want to continue to eat right.  no more Mc Donald's.  The last thing I need to do is get my kids hooked on that kind of crap!  I think the next thing I need to do is get a plan in place, what do I need to do to get to what my goals are.  Actually, I should probably get my goals prepared and then figure out how to get there.  My next step is to write down my goals and then write down exactly what I am going to do to meet my goals.  Wish me luck.  I am off to do some goal setting and then some research on how to meet those goals!

Amy