Welcome to my blog. Please feel free to join me for discussions on life, family, home schooling, fitness, nutrition, marriage and most importantly faith in God.
About nine months ago I went into my naturopath and had some testing done. I have shared about that in Is Gluten Free The Way To Be?
It’s been a tough road back to health and I still have a long way to go. My thyroid is so sluggish that just looking at food seems to invite it take up permanent residence in my body in the form of extra pounds. Gaining weight, after working so hard to lose it, is frustrating. Over the past several months, even though I have been exercising and keeping gluten out of my body, I have gained over twenty pounds.
This has to stop, but I’ve been at a loss as to how. I’ve been praying about it because if I have a plan of action, I will succeed. I just need a plan.
Fermented foods and bone broth keep coming up on my radar, so I’ve been paying more attention to them. I also came across this article the other day that explains the benefits of intermittent fasting and this short video about balancing hormones to help with adrenal fatigue, thyroid etc.
After a lot of prayer and research, I have come to a conclusion that a combination of intermittent fasting, regular exercise, and the foods mentioned in the video, along with some fermented foods, are the perfect plan for my body to get back on track. I’m also looking into essential oils for some extra help.
I kicked off these changes over the weekend beginning with a twenty-four hour fast from solid food and started out Sunday morning with a hot mug of turkey bone broth. Bone broth is full of great health benefits and specifically helpful in the areas my body needs to heal in. It is so rich in nutrition that one mug of home made turkey bone broth consumed at 8:30 in the morning kept me going until 4:00 in the afternoon. I went to church, grocery shopping at three different stores, gassed up the car, picked up kids from a Bible study and transported them to their house, before bringing my own kids home, unloaded groceries and was just beginning to really feel hungry. I made carrot/apple/orange/ginger/garlic juice. Juicing also has incredible health benefits. At 4:30, I broke the liquid fast with a big organic salad, packed with delicious veggies and some black beans. I topped it with Thrive corn and peas for a delicious, nutritious, crunch and made an olive oil balsamic vinegar dressing. Later on we had Shakeology for dinner. That night I slept the best I have in years, so I think I’m on to something here! Yesterday I did the same thing for breakfast. I had turkey bone broth for breakfast and then juiced the same juice concoction. Later on I had a big, taco salad with a couple of corn tortillas with grass fed beef taco meat for lunch. I had plain Greek yogurt with organic berries, Thrive bananas, Thrive Dairy Bites, a few walnuts,and chia seeds and for dinner we had Shakeology again.
This morning I was down two pounds. This is the first time I’ve seen the scale budge in the down direction in a very long time. WAHOO!!!!
My plan is to post my journey here so be watching for upcoming posts, if you are interested and if you are inclined to do so, please keep me in your prayers. With the damage gluten did to my gut, my immune system is compromised and I have been sick for the past month. I get over one thing and before it’s even completely out of my system, another bug takes up residence. It hasn’t flattened me, but it certainly has slowed me down and I don’t feel my best.
Proverbs 3:5-7 is my life verse. I know that when I am confused, or lacking wisdom and direction, I need to go to God. He is always faithful to provide that direction when we ask. And He has been faithful to give me direction again. Now I just need prayer for strength and self control, to apply it and stick with it.
James 1:5 says “If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him.”
This happens to me often. I have learned some important lessons through significant experiences over the years.
I have learned that this moment, right now….will be gone and will be only a memory…very quickly and that even the “bad” moments are meant to be felt, experienced, prayed through…and good and bad, the moments are gifts to thank God for. This has taught me to look at my loved ones through the lens of unconditional love, even when they are not so loveable because God has and does look at me through that lens when I least deserve it. I have learned to take time to really study my loved ones when they aren’t aware and celebrate the beauty that makes up who they are, even when they don’t know I’m celebrating them. I have learned that part of celebrating them is thanking God for them and praying for each one of them individually. I have learned that they may not be here to celebrate after this moment because I have also learned that I have no power or control over anything in this life…and no control over death itself.
I have learned that the good moments are what give me the courage and grace to accept the difficulties in life and the strength to press on into the future. The hardships of life build character, serve to add depth to the soul, teach us compassion for others and strip us of selfishness and shallow, petty views on life. The hardships bring maturity as we learn that there actually is a purpose in life other than just to have fun and serve ourselves. The painful experiences have taught me that I am powerless over life itself and have served the purpose of pointing me to God. They have taught me that God put me here for a purpose. He has planned my life with a particular mission that is full of meaning and it’s not all about what I want, or fulfilling my desires, but using the gifts He has given me with a grateful attitude, for His glory and finding true meaning and fulfillment in knowing Him, serving Him and letting Him love and serve others through me.
I have to admit that when Kya passed away, it felt like a darkness closed in around me….a bright light went out and even though we only got to know her for a short time, that time was so very precious and all we learned from her and her family was magnified with her passing. It is bittersweet. We know that God had a purpose for her life that was planned before the foundation of the earth and we know that she didn’t go to be with him, even one minute before she was meant to, but the reality of how very little control we have over life and death hits my heart hard every time. And yet….it causes me to draw even closer to God and to be sure to embrace those I love and to enjoy each moment with them because those moments are precious gifts.
This week-end we celebrated our grandson, Jackson’s, third birthday. It was so precious. When his mom told him he was going to turn three because his birthday was coming, he announced that he was going to have his “buhday potty at Nama’s house.” So, on Sunday afternoon we lit up the BBQ, cooked up some hot dogs and hamburgers and built a fire in our newly constructed fire pit. We celebrated sweet, hilarious, funny, precious little Jackson’s birthday. Auntie Natalie made him chocolate chip pumpkin loaves for his “buhday cake” and place three candles prominently on top. We sang happy birthday to him and he huffed and puffed and blew out each candle, one by one with a huge grin on his face. The kids ran and played, jumped on the trampoline and the rest of us sipped tea and sat around the fire, enjoying the beautiful, warm weather and simply being together.
Our daughter, Christine, turned fourteen the end of May. Her Daddy was in Australia on a business trip and missed her birthday, so we had her friend, Rebekah over for dinner and a sleep over. Christine was an adorable, curly blonde haired little girl and has grown into a beautiful, loving, sweet teen who loves children and embraces her role as an aunt with gratefulness. She has a heart for missions and is my right arm when it comes to all things computer. She is creative, fun and a precious gift to all who have the blessing of knowing her. She adored Kya and yet, she has grown through the pain and I’m sure will continue to process all she learned through sweet Kya’s life.
We girls took off and went to our favorite hiking/jogging/horseback riding trail and I did a fun little photo shoot with them. The weather was beautiful and the three of them had a great time together. Photography is a gift….it allows me to celebrate those I love and document the precious moments spent with them. Taking the girls out on the trail, listening to them talk, laugh and have fun together was one of those moments in life that I will always cherish. When we arrived in the lower parking lot, we saw a rider-less horse running through the tall grass toward us. Small children were playing right in the path of the oncoming horse, so we were able to alert the parents and grandparents of those children, catch the heavily sweating, fully saddled up horse and help calm it down. I called emergency services because we assumed there was an injured rider somewhere out there on the trail and the medics soon arrived on the scene. These trails cover miles and miles….and we had no idea where the rider could be out there, but once the medics arrived and got information from us, we took off down the trail and soon ran into another rider who informed us that the owner of the horse had indeed somehow fallen off. He said the rider had no remembrance of what happened, appeared to probably have a concussion and was coming down the trail right behind the rider we spoke with. The medics managed to find him and take care of him and his horse is okay. SO….we started out our morning with some excitement and another reminder of just how quickly life can change…in the blink of an eye.
The rest of the morning we simply enjoyed the beautiful, sunny weather and I was in my element as I shot the girls and then shot them again. 🙂
Finding joy in each moment is key to a grateful heart and giving yourself the freedom to enjoy simple pleasures in the midst of difficult times aids in avoiding depression. One of the simple pleasures in life is good food and yet there is a balance between comforting yourself with food and enjoying it in a healthy way. Eating to live, rather than living to eat is my motto and enjoying what I eat in order to live is the fun part. I am passionate about researching nutrition and finding creative ways to eat healthy foods that we really enjoy. I love to try new recipes and take some old ones and convert them to gluten free, healthier recipes. It’s a challenge to me, to see if I can tweak them and make them taste even better than their less healthy counterparts.
I tried a couple of new recipes this week. Yesterday’s lunch was one I converted to gluten free and I changed some of the original ingredients to make it healthier and lighter.
Can you say yum? Gluten free….allergen free and oh so good!
The Italian Wonder pot
Ingredients
4 cups chicken broth
2 TBSP coconut oil
one (28) ounce can organic diced tomatoes
one whole large onion, diced
4 cloves fresh, minced garlic
12 ounces gluten free (brown rice) fettuccine
1/2 TBSP dried basil
1/2 TBSP dried oregano
1/4 tsp. red pepper flakes
freshly cracked pepper to taste
2 oz. feta cheese
8 oz. fresh or frozen spinach. I used fresh and added it in after everything else was boiling and the pasta was mostly cooked through.
Instructions:
1. Add four cups chicken broth to a large soup pot. Break the fettuccine in half to make stirring easier later, and then add it to the pot. Also add the canned tomatoes (un-drained), coconut oil, frozen spinach (if you choose frozen), onion, garlic, basil, oregano, red pepper, and some freshly cracked black pepper.
2. Make sure the ingredients are submerged under the liquid, place a lid on top of the pot, and then turn the heat on to high. Allow the pot to come up to a full, rolling boil over high heat and then remove the lid and turn the heat down to medium.
3. Allow the pot to continue to boil over medium heat, without a lid, for 10-15 minutes, or until the pasta is cooked and most of the liquid has been absorbed. If you are using fresh spinach, add it in now. Stir the pot every few minutes as it cooks to prevent the pasta from sticking to the bottom, but avoid over stirring which can cause the pasta to become sticky and mushy. The pot must be boiling the entire time.
4. After the pasta is cooked, crumble the feta cheese over top and serve.
A Whole New Twist On Hash
After my husband returned from Australia, the two of us went out to brunch at our favorite local restaurant. I had the most delicious butternut squash hash that day and I wanted to duplicate it at home, so I snapped a picture of it.
I did duplicate it, but not exactly. I decided to leave the butternut squash out since I didn’t have any. I know….the title of the dish is Butternut Squash Hash. I’m a nerd. BUT it turned out even better the way I did it at home and I was pleasantly surprised.
I kinda found it necessary to give it a new name. 🙂
Bacon and Veggie Hash
Ingredients
Fully cooked nitrate free, all natural (organic) bacon
2-3 tablespoons of coconut oil
pre-cooked gold potatoes, cubed.
The amount of veggies will depend on how many people you want to feed, so I will not add measurements in. Be creative and have fun!
Yellow or white onion (chopped), red, yellow, and orange bell peppers, diced small, 4 or 5 cloves minced garlic, mushrooms, mixed greens.
Cheddar cheese. I used organic cheddar cheese that isn’t colored orange. I chose a sharp cheese and replaced the feta with it.
Himalayan salt, no-salt seasoning (I use organic), and fresh cracked black pepper.
Directions
Heat oil in large frying pan
Add onion and cook until translucent.
Add potatoes and brown well.
Add all other veggies, except for the mixed greens and cook through, stirring periodically.
Once all the veggies are cooked and nicely browned, add the mixed greens in.
Season with freshly ground Himalayan salt (pink salt), organic no-salt seasoning and freshly cracked pepper.
Add bacon and organic grated cheddar cheese. Stir well.
Serve hot with a side of fruit and enjoy!
My family LOVED both of these meals and they were very easy to prepare. Both are gluten free, soy free, egg free and organic.
Celebrating Life
Celebrate life. Celebrate this moment and don’t take one person or joy in life for granted.
I said in the beginning that the good and the bad moments are gifts from God, but the honest truth is that the bad moments don’t feel like gifts when we are in the midst of them. They are painful. They leave us feeling bereft, and they can cause us to spiral down into depression if we don’t choose to cling fast to God. I would be lying to you if I said that I haven’t ever gotten angry with God during the difficult moments in life, because I have. I have yelled, screamed, beaten my fists against the ground and asked him “why?” The key to peace, though, was found in doing just that….letting it all out with Him and looking to Him for comfort. One thing I have learned through difficult trials and loss, is that hindsight is 20/20 vision. Sometimes we can’t see the beauty that comes through the ashes of loss until we have walked through the fire and suffered. In my own life, God has made all things beautiful that seemed so ugly and harsh when I was in the thick of them. He has taught me to be thankful for all the gifts He gives to me each day and has used those trials to overcome the entitlement mentality I didn’t even realize I had. He has slowly but surely been chipping away at my self absorption and He is teaching me to look for needs in the lives of others. He has used those trials to build and hone my character, change my thinking and create a more mature mindset. He has deepened my faith in Him and in His faithfulness and shown me just how much I need Him and that He loves me right where I’m at, all the time, no matter what. He has brought me through each trial….and made things more beautiful through the ugliness, pain and suffering.
This song has been an encouragement through the storms in life and I am here to tell you, that if you are struggling through a painful time, don’t be afraid to be honest about how tough it is, but also look for the little things in life that you still have in tact around you. Hug your loved ones that still live….look for precious moments and breath a prayer of gratefulness for those little gifts. Open your eyes to the sunrises and sunsets, because looking for beauty in life while embracing the pain and suffering of the trial you walk through helps a lot. It balances everything out.
We need them. They’re full of health benefits. We should have them often.
…..BUT…….
If you are anything like me, you need plenty of variety…..and if your kids are anything like mine, leafy greens are not the number one favorite on their “pleasant to the palate” lists.
So….what do you do?
How about a “green” smoothie? No, I’m not color blind, it really is a greensmoothie. We had them for breakfast yesterday and the kids loved them. They are delicious, packed with nutrition, full of good protein and they kept us fueled all morning, right up until lunch time.
Green Smoothies
To your blender add:
2-3 cups water
one banana
LOTS of fresh, organic, greens (I buy the mixed greens that include kale, spinach, and chard at Costco).
PLENTY of frozen, mixed organic berries including an extra helping of blueberries for added sweetness and yummy flavor
About a 1/4 cup of organic Greek yogurt
2-4 tablespoons natural peanut butter
About a tablespoon of flax seed
About a tablespoon of Chia seed
4-6 drops liquid, organic Stevia
Blend well, on high until smooth.
Enjoy!
This will fill your blender to the top and it fed six of us. 🙂
Yesterday our sweet neighbors brought us some delicious shrimp they caught themselves, so today I made Grilled Shrimp Caprese over (gluten free) Angel Hair Pasta. It was AMAZING!
We made roasted green beans with garlic, lemon and feta cheese to go with it.
Grilled Shrimp Caprese
20 leaves fresh basil or a few tablespoons of dried basil.
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 tsp. Italian seasoning
Himalayan salt to taste
One pound shrimp, peeled and deveined.
One sixteen ounce package gluten free angel hair pasta. I used quinoa pasta, but the brown rice pasta is very good as well.
2 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup rice cooking wine
1 1/2 cups canned coconut milk
1 cup fresh grated parmesan cheese
1 1/2 pounds roma (plum) tomatoes, chopped
one can chopped black olives
2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese would work, but I actually used organic cheddar for most of it and grated up some of the mozzarella Italian marinated cheese balls I had. They added so much amazing flavor….it was awesome!
Directions
1. Mix basil, olive oil, garlic, Italian seasoning and salt in a bowl. Add shrimp and toss to evenly coat. Cover the bowl and marinate in the refrigerator for one hour.
2. Preheat grill for medium heat and lightly oil the grate. Remove shrimp from the marinade and shake off excess. Discard the remaining marinade.
3. Cook shrimp on preheated grill until they are bright pink on the outside and the meat is no longer transparent in the center, about five minutes.
4. Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to boil. Cook angel hair pasta according to package directions until a firm but cooked through. Drain and rinse well.
5. Melt butter in a large, nonstick skillet over medium heat; stir in rice cooking wine and bring to boil. Add coconut milk and parmesan cheese. Simmer until reduced, about 10 minutes. Stir in angel hair pasta, tomatoes, and mozzarella cheese. Top with shrimp to serve.
Prepare to drool…A LOT!
Happy Mother’s Day!
I am looking forward to celebrating the beautiful gifts God has blessed me with tomorrow as my family and I grill up some delicious organic hamburger patties with sautéed mushrooms and onions and delicious veggies and water melon to go with. Church in the morning with the family and an afternoon enjoying them at home, sounds perfect to this mother.
The time has flown by and she has grown up so quickly.
While she was taking part in a thirty hour famine with the youth group, the boys and I got busy in the kitchen baking her cake and making a delicious birthday dinner to welcome her home and celebrate her life.
We made her favorite cake.
Gluten-free, egg free, soy free….chocolate cake with chocolate frosting.
Noah made the frosting, pretty much all by himself. He read the directions and followed them.
He thought running the hand mixer was pretty cool.
The organic, whole chicken fryers we made. We seasoned them with Himalayan salt, organic no salt seasoning, and oregano.
We made Natalie’s favorite: gluten-free, garlic mashed potatoes.
After cooking and mashing the soft golden potatoes, we added a cube of butter, four cloves of fresh, minced garlic, Himalayan salt, organic no-salt seasoning, and some almond milk to the Kitchen Aid mixer and whipped them up until they were soft and creamy.
Stir fry veggies go great with a delicious chicken dinner.
After fasting for thirty hours, the girls were pretty thrilled to walk in the door to a birthday dinner and dessert. It was a really fun and special night.
I took Natalie out for a mother/daughter date for her birthday gift and she got to pick out some new summer clothes. We had a great time, complete with a pit stop to Jamba Juice. 🙂
On her actual birthday, Natalie, Christine and Tim all played piano for a fund raising event for the music teacher’s association and afterwards, we dropped the rest of the kids off and took Natalie out to dinner. Rich and I love to treat each of our kids, individually on their birthdays. It’s such a precious time for all of us and it gives us opportunity to enjoy each of them one-on-one. We had a great time out at Red Robin and Natalie kept us laughing with her hilarious sense of humor throughout the meal.
She and Christine attended the last Bible study of the season for their youth group that night and were treated to ice cream by their leader. I think Natalie really enjoyed her special day and we enjoyed celebrating her. What a blessing she is to our family.
I took some pictures and video of the dessert fund raiser.
If you would like to see the video of Christine and Tim’s pieces, just click here.
Natalie played a duet with her piano teacher and played a solo piece. Click here to view them.
Two and a half years ago, Natalie had braces put on and the day after her birthday, she ended her relationship with those appliances and had them removed.
Below is a picture of her just before she had them applied.
Before we headed out for her removal appointment we took one last picture of her with her braces and we took a couple of more after they were removed.
Each day with each one of our kids is a treasure. Each year as we celebrate their birthdays, we realize how blessed we are to enjoy each one of them and their unique personalities. Natalie has matured and changed a great deal in this past year and we can’t believe we only have a few years left with her in our home. I want to embrace each day and enjoy this time while our family is still as it is today.
Don’t miss out on one minute of your children’s youth…..it will be gone before you know it.
If you are looking for an easy, quick, healthy and delicious breakfast, here is one idea that may work for you.
Organic, plain Greek Yogurt sweetened with a little bit of raw honey or pure maple syrup. I like to add a little bit of natural peanut butter to it, some chia seeds and ground flax seed, a few walnuts and serve it with half a gluten free, egg free, soy free English muffin and a variety of fruit.
It’s delicious, gluten free, full of great nutrition and protein.
Back when I first began learning how to do life without gluten, it was a struggle, but it was also a fun pursuit that I still enjoy. Since we have already done some of the foot work in our family, I would like to pass along some simple and delicious ideas for meals and snacks for those of you who are on the gluten free, egg free walk.
Last week I headed out to a local farm and purchased some grass fed steaks and roasts. For lunch the other day, I sautéed some mushrooms, onions and freshly minced garlic in coconut oil, and roasted some asparagus while I had a pan full of organic veggies, onions and garlic stir frying on the stove. I added some Himalayan salt and some freshly ground pepper, garlic and organic no salt seasoning to the steaks and we enjoyed a very healthy, delicious meal. It only took about twenty minutes to prepare from start to finish.
A nice, light meal or snack that is easy to whip up is a salad full of mixed, organic greens with a home made balsamic vinaigrette and a couple of rice cakes topped with organic, natural peanut butter and bananas. Yummy and easy.
As a general rule, I try to avoid starches with our protein, but the other day we were craving an old fashioned chicken dinner, so we enjoyed one. The potatoes are much lighter in calorie than the way I used to make them. I add grass fed butter to them, Himalayan salt, some almond/coconut milk and whip them up. We enjoyed a mixture of organic veggies with them and some sautéed mushrooms and onions. Perfect. Simple. Quick.
I welcome ideas of other meal and snack recipes….so please, if you have any gluten free, egg free, soy free ideas or favorites, please leave a comment with your suggestions. I love to try new things.
I hope that if you haven’t already done so, that you will click on the link and read about the results I share because it is my desire to bring awareness in regards to gluten and allergies and the fact that our bodies don’t necessarily always alert us to the problem with giant red flags. It’s more of a compound effect for many of us….a slow, steady, build up of inflammation inside our bodies over time. It’s better to learn early on, than before too much damage is done.
Anyway, I can no longer have eggs, soy or gluten. I have been mostly gluten free for nearly three years, but I did cheat now and then because I didn’t think I had much of a problem with it, but I also knew after years of research, that gluten is not my friend and that it isn’t a good idea to eat it often. Since I now have to cut out eggs, things are a little more complicated, but they are completely doable. In fact, I am enjoying the challenge to find new breakfast items and ways to bake without eggs.
Last Friday I had my daughter, Brandi and two other precious friends over for coffee and I wanted to make cinnamon rolls. I found this recipe for them from the Gluten-Free & Vegan BREAD cook book. The author of this cook book, Jennifer Katzinger is the founder of Seattle’s Flying Apron Bakery and everything in it meets all criteria for my dietary, as well as most of my family’s needs. Click on the pictures to enlarge them and you should be able to see the recipe just fine. These cinnamon rolls are hearty and filling. They are really pretty simple to make. Gluten free dough is much harder to work with than regular dough, so I was impressed with how these rolls were made. I didn’t even have to roll them out. They were delicious, yet not nearly as sweet as other cinnamon rolls. This is okay with me, since as a result of the damage gluten has done to my body, I am at risk for insulin resistance. I didn’t have any parchment paper, but I did have dry wax paper and it worked well. It is pretty easy to take the paper out of the rolls once they are cut, too.
I suppose if you like your breads sweeter, you could add more sweetener. I think I may try adding coconut palm sugar next time, or xilytol instead of using pure maple syrup. They glycemic index is lower on the coconut sugar and the xilytol and they can be used exactly like regular sugar. They are sweeter as well.
I didn’t have ingredients in the house to make an actual icing this time, but I did have some cold, canned coconut milk on hand, so we scooped the nice, thick top off of it, and placed it in the mixer with a tsp. of vanilla and some Xilytol to taste. We used the wire whisk and whipped it up. It worked perfectly!
If you want a healthy, hearty, delicious cinnamon roll, I recommend this one!
I had a wonderful time with my daughter and our friends and I think they liked the cinnamon rolls too. 🙂
We celebrated three birthdays recently. Our family birthdays all seem to come in bunches or they fall on holidays. We have four birthdays in the month of March. My husband’s is the 4th, my son-in-law’s is the 5th, my brother’s is the 6th and so is my granddaughter’s. My brother doesn’t live in our area, so we didn’t get to celebrate with him, but Natalie, Noah, Levi and I made gluten free, egg free pizzas for dinner and gluten free, egg free chocolate covered and caramel covered donuts for the birthday “cake.” It was a fun night and the food was delicious!
We made a chicken pesto pizza with chicken, artichoke hearts, sundried tomatoes, olives, onion and mushrooms and a nitrate free sausage and pepperoni pizza with olives, mushrooms, and onions. We topped them with grated Kerrygold cheddar cheese and they were yummy! We used Glutinos crust and replaced the eggs with a flax meal water mix and the egg whites were replaced with the thick part of cold coconut milk mixed with some baking powder. These replacements worked perfectly!
These non-stick donut pans make creating delicious donuts easy. They are wonderful and you can find them on-line. I was unsuccessful with my search for them in local stores, but I had no problem locating them at a reasonable price on-line.
The birthday girl and the birthday Papa!
Present time!
Kyla loved the head band, flower clip and sidewalk chalk we gave her. Our friend, Cassie, who is sixteen created the head band and the flower clip. She did an amazing job. Kyla wanted to wear them both at the same time, right away.
Cassie has a store in memory of her little sister, Hannah Grace, who lived 64 days with a condition called Trisomy 18. She does a great job! Here is the link to her store: http://kwantclancrafts.blogspot.com/
The birthday girl and her “cake” and her Daddy and his “cake.” Kyla’s older sister, Cora presented her Dad with his donut.
I didn’t manage to get a picture of the kids presenting Rich with his donut, because I was the only one running the camera and everything happened too fast, but it was sweet and they were good!
Goofy Natalie Moment
Kendrick loves the race car track. Kyla and Noah created some cool buildings with the math block set and there was a significant amount of balloon fun and goofing off.
birthday confetti!
Most of the gang. 🙂
Love all my grandblessings
Family, Food and Birthday Parties……three of the greatest gifts God has given us to enjoy on this earth.
So, in my last post, “Is Gluten Free the Way to Be?” I shared some facts about gluten, leaky gut and leaky brain. I also shared that my test results showed that I am highly allergic to gluten, eggs and soy. You can read that post here:https://nurturingtheheart.wordpress.com/2014/03/03/the-gluten-free-fad-and-me/
Last night was the first time we went out to dinner after I learned that I can not cheat with gluten and that eggs are a no-no for me. It was a little more challenging choosing what to eat for dinner, but Red Robin has a pretty good gluten free menu. I was a little disappointed that I couldn’t have their gluten free hamburger bun with my bruschetta chicken breast, because it had eggs in it, but the chicken breast itself was so good along with the pesto and salad that went with it, that I quickly got over my disappointment. Without the bun, there are fewer calories too, right? So there’s the other bright side. I’m so used to eating bunless hamburgers, it really isn’t a big deal and I’ve learned how to spice things up so well that I don’t even miss the bun most of the time.
This morning my kids made delicious egg free, gluten free pancakes and we had warm organic berries sweetened with a little stevia on them. Yum! They used the Pamela’s gluten free pancake mix for the pancakes and replaced the egg with a flax meal and water mixture. They were healthy, satisfying and delicious!
Yesterday I had a burrito for lunch. My friend, Tracy, found these at Safeway and they are really good. They meet all the criteria: gluten free, egg free, soy free, non GMO and the most important criteria of texture and taste. They are really good! I made a salad with creamy avocado dressing to eat with it. Perfect!
One thing I forgot to mention about my Dr. appointment is supplements. I am taking some great, natural supplements to help heal my insides and I was pretty happy when the doctor wrote this at the bottom of her recommendations:
I think I can handle that!
Stay tuned for more recipes and gluten free, egg free and soy free meal ideas. I’ll be back!
I was always crazy about breads. I love muffins, pancakes, pies, cookies, cakes, donuts and I adore pasta. I can’t have these in the forms I always loved anymore, but the good news is that I can still enjoy them in a different form that in most cases is even better.
In a recent blog post I shared that I had been to the doctor and undergone a bunch of extensive testing. I also said to stay tuned for the results. Well, the results came back and they are very interesting. I am writing this post to hopefully help raise awareness about several things and one of those is the alleged gluten free “fad” that seems to be on the rise in our society. Over the years I have done extensive research on this subject, or as extensive as I can from a non-professional standpoint. I am here to tell you that it is most definitely NOT a fad and I will explain why in this post.
When our family found it necessary to go gluten free, it astounded me how many people made the comment “well, gluten has never been an issue for me. I can handle gluten just fine. What a bummer for you guys.” This may be a shock to people who know me well, but gluten didn’t bother me either…..other than my inability to lose weight until after I stopped consuming it. Now some of our kids get intensely ill when gluten hits their system and that’s a no brainer, but what people don’t understand is that many people have no idea gluten is wreaking unseen damage inside their bodies. They have no apparent symptoms, so they go on enjoying their baked goods and hot buttery breads without thinking twice about it. Gluten effects people in different ways. It can cause leaky brain and leaky gut. For some people they will have severe stomach cramps, vomiting and diarrhea, or IBS. Some people have mild stomach aches. Others experience brain fog, but they don’t connect the dots. Some people suffer from chronic fatigue and achy joints. Some people suffer from infertility and even miscarriages due to their body’s inability to handle gluten in their system, but they have no idea that gluten is the culprit. Most people don’t realize that even Alzheimer’s and dementia can be caused by a build up of gluten in their bodies.
I was pretty surprised at the results of all my testing. As it turns out, my body is so intolerant to gluten that the next step is to test me for the autoimmune form of it which is called Celiac. Seriously? The only symptom I noticed was a struggle to lose weight…..could that really be gluten related? Well….when you consider that everything in the body systems is connected, the answer is yes. Gluten has completely inflamed my gut. Did you know that 80-85% of the immune system resides in the gut? No wonder my ability to fight off bugs has been lacking. With that much inflammation there, is it any wonder? And….my tests showed a hypo thyroid and that I am at risk for insulin resistance and anemia. Because of the damage gluten has caused my body hasn’t been able to absorb some important nutrients and iron is one of those. Guess what? I have absolutely no symptoms whatsoever of an egg or soy allergy either, yet the facts show that I am allergic to both. Who knew? I sure didn’t. I love eggs. I can’t stand soy, so that’s not an issue, but eggs? Really? I had no reason to think they were a problem. I actually thought that dairy was an issue….turns out it’s not. So…for those of you who think gluten isn’t a problem? Well, for most people it is, in some form and they have no idea. Just to be on the safe side, we have taken gluten out of our diets completely. My body’s reaction to it is so severe, that I can’t cheat…at all…ever. Period.
Click here for a great explanation of Leaky Gut and Leaky Brain.
All of my cardiac testing came back perfect and the good news about the damage to my gut and the risk for insulin resistance, as well as the thyroid issues I have, is that it is all reversible. With a change in lifestyle (less stress and more rest), change in diet (no cheating at all anymore, with gluten and no more eggs or soy), along with good adrenal support (I have severe adrenal fatigue AKA chronic fatigue, as a result of the inflammation in my body), the damage can be reversed. I’m on some excellent, natural supplements and my family is helping me with my reactions to stress.
Dr. Peter Osborne, is a leading expert on gluten intolerance and infertility and Celiac Disease. He works with patients who suffer from infertility and miscarriages and has connected the dots between these issues and gluten. This link is great and will lead to other links on this subject:
I hope this post will help alert people to the truth about inflammation in the body, by raising awareness that your body can be sick without apparent symptoms and that inflammation can usually be reversed, naturally. If we hadn’t caught these problems now, and I continued on inviting gluten (even on rare occasions), eggs and soy into my diet, eventually I would have been at a heightened risk for cancer and other diseases because of the mess in my gut….remember, 80-85% of the immune system resides in the gut. If your gut isn’t healthy, you are not healthy. Fortunately I had changed my diet drastically over the past few years and by doing so had slowed down the damage, but damage was still being done because of my lack of knowledge about what was going on inside me. I’m so glad I had those tests done. It wasn’t painful and it was well worth it.
Stay tuned for gluten free, egg free and soy free recipes! If you are ready to go gluten free, you’ve got a friend in me.
Nurturing the Heart 