Getting There-Simply, Frugally, and with Grace

"Creator's Best", not "paleo"

2012-01-05T23:25:00.000-05:00

The term "paleo" for the way of eating I've adopted has always just bugged me. Ancestral health gets my goat, too. I'm a literal creationist, meaning that I believe the Genesis account that God created the heavens and the earth and all that entails in 6, 24-hour, days. This makes the world only a few thousand years old, not billions of years. It also does away with cavemen and the paleolithic period (which wouldn't have had man anyway, if I"m remembering my public school origins-of-the-earth training accurately). Anyway, the interesting thing about the paleo diet or paleo lifestyle is that it fits perfectly with what life would have been like for Adam and Eve and their offspring and many of their successive generations. Think about it...created to tend the garden...fruits, veggies, sin comes along and God slays an animal to give them covering, which then allows for the addition of meat to the diet. The basic paleo diet fits perfectly with what God would have created us originally to eat. But the whole "paleo" label, to me, ignores God and creation. So I'm coining the term "Creator's Best" for my wol (way of life). It just FITS, doesn't it? I feel so much better now! :)

A No-Expectations Christmas

2011-12-24T10:42:00.002-05:00

I absolutely REFUSE to set any expectations for tomorrow, because I absolutely REFUSE to not enjoy the day. I do not care what anyone else does or says tomorrow. I guess I do have one expectation: to enjoy the day. And I will, because I choose to!

We had planned to have an all-homemade Christmas. We had a glitch in our finances. I had been setting money aside so we would have cash to spend, and I had saved up quite a bit. But then I realized that I was being overpaid. And when I did some further research, I had been overpaid for a while. We owed back to my company just about all I had saved for Christmas! So, we decided we would simply make Christmas gifts this year. I love to do that anyway!

That did not happen. There were a whole myriad of things got in the way of that. I was mad at a few individuals and mad at my life in general for a while, but then I realized that I had gotten myself all puffed up about the fact that I was having an all-homemade Christmas. Here I was helping my clients get set up with organizations that were blessing them with hundreds of dollars' worth of gifts, including gaming systems and high-end name brand clothes, and I was making gifts for my family. But that was okay, because I was doing something BETTER...I was proud. Shame on me!

ANYWAY....my husband got a Christmas bonus. He NEVER gets a Christmas bonus, or any other bonus! His company just does not do this! We talked about what bill we were going to put it toward and then just decided, you know what? We don't have time to do what we wanted to do homemade because of several different things that have happened, and we were given this money, so we took it last night and bought Christmas for our family. It wasn't much when you figure how many folks we were buying for, but Chris and I chose gifts that were perfect for each individual, and that was really, really fun.

I am so proud of us (but a better sort of "proud"--not an "in your face" proud--not a "Oh YEAH?" proud, more of a sigh of relief proud). We haven't spent this little on Christmas since our kids were tiny and we were so poor. Now we have the income but we have too much outgo that I feel like we are poorer now than we were back when we were below poverty level. But we went out last night with a small budget and a big family and we NAILED IT.

So, I am actually really looking forward to tomorrow. I am looking forward to watching my family open gifts that are simple but perfectly suited for each one. I am looking forward to a shortened church service in the morning where we will have a Christmas Carol hymn sing and a brief message and then come back home. I am looking forward to having almost my whole family around my table (Mozy remains in South Korea), eating a simple meal of ham and mashed potatoes and salad and sourdough rolls and green bean casserole and a Birthday Cake for Jesus. I am looking forward to not having to take any crisis calls from my clients. I am looking forward to just BE-ing. It's been so long since I have just deliberately breathed and lived and paid attention to my loved ones.

My expectation for tomorrow is to not let anything rattle me. I choose to have a peaceful, joy-filled day.

Merry Christmas, friends!

Pumpkin Panckakes (grain-free, dairy-free)

2011-12-02T09:14:00.000-05:00

Whipped up an experiment that turned out wonderful this morning! Here's what I did:

Pumpkin Pancakes
1/4 cup pumpkin puree
1 tbsp coconut flour
1/4 tsp pumpkin pie spice
1 egg
1/2 tsp baking powder
Whisk all ingredients together. Allow to stand for several minutes. Fry up as pancakes. I made mine into four small pancakes. They are easier to flip that first time if they are small. Drizzle with a little real maple syrup. YUM!

Note: these are a different consistency than traditional pancakes. They are not as 'bread-y". But they are good! I don't have any idea how these fit into a paleo diet, with the baking powder and the maple syrup. They are not Whole30, due to the "paleo-fying" of pancakes and the maple syrup. They are really yummy, though, and they fit my own personal goals for food, so I ATE THEM! :)

BA's Pumpkin Pie (Grain-free, Gluten-free, Dairy-free, and YUMMY!)

2011-11-23T09:31:00.000-05:00

This isn't exactly paleo, and it's not Whole30, but it is grain free, gluten free, dairy free, and utilizes better sugars than white sugar (less, too!). Here's what I did:

BA’s Pumpkin Pie (Dairy Free, Grain Free)

Crust for One 9” Pie

Ingredients:

· 3 cups pecan pieces (not whole)

· 16 pitted dates (check to make sure pits are gone in each one)

· 2 tablespoon coconut oil

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 400°.

2. Place pecans, dates, and coconut oil in food processor. Process until mixture sticks to sides of container. Mixture will be oily.

3. Press mixture onto bottom and up sides of 9” pie plate. Leave edge uniformly as thick as rest of pie shell. Do not press onto lip of pie plate or it will burn.

4. Bake for 10 minutes. Remove from oven while preparing pie filling.

Pumpkin Filling

Ingredients:

3 cups cooked pumpkin
1 cup coconut milk
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
3 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
1 teaspoon unrefined sea salt
¼ cup organic blue agave nectar
1/3 cup demerara (raw) sugar
4 eggs, preferably pastured

Method:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Beat together the coconut milk, eggs, honey and spices. Add filling to pie crusts and bake at 350 for 45 minuts to one hour. Cover loosely with foil after top sets up.

Note: First time making this, I only made one pie with half the crust recipe and this whole filling recipe. It did not appear to be enough filling for two pies. Experimentation may be necessary for two pies! (I baked the extra pie filling in a baking dish with no crust.)

Sweet Sin

2011-10-04T08:07:00.000-04:00

I can get just so far in the day and then BAM! I can't say no to myself. I could blame it on addiction. I could blame it on the brain chemistry of addicted people. I could blame it on the USDA or the FDA or WalMart for selling the stuff that has the crack in it. I wonder if I could sue McDonald's? Hmmmm.... Bottom line: it's sin. God has shown me that I am to just. not. eat. the. stuff. But I get to a certain part of the day or a certain level of stress or a certain level of temptation because of what others are eating, and I cave. And it's a conscious cave. And I do it anyway. That is sin.

You can read about the different views, or "models" of addiction and treatment--the medical model, the moral model, the temperance model, etc., here: http://www.addiction-rehabilitation.com/models.html

My understanding as I have researched and studied for school and now for my job is that there are some people who really do have a particular physiological makeup that makes them prone to addiction. That might be a genetic thing or it might be a result of abuse/neglect/trauma that has caused these folks' brains to function in a way that makes them more susceptible to addiction.

SO WHAT.

Yep. I really just said that. I also know paraplegics that play basketball way better than I ever could hope to. I know people who have been sexually, physically, mentally, and emotionally abused who are upstanding citizens and fantastic parents. It's called OVERCOMING. I may have a physical predisposition toward addiction, but IT IS STILL A CHOICE.

And when I choose to do what God has shown me not to do, that is known as SIN.

God is gracious. He has put up with my rebellion for months--even years. Back when the kids were little I first started learning about the dangers of sugar. I remember the severe blood sugar lows I experienced when I was pregnant with Abby, to the point that I would have to lay down because I knew I was about to pass out, and I would be asleep for 20 or 30 minutes while Emily and Spencer were right there in the room with me. The doctors could prove it with blood tests but they couldn't explain it. Looking back, I remember the day that I sat in a healing service and actually felt the power of God move through me and I knew, I KNEW I had been healed of my hypoglycemia. I also remember the voice of God saying to me "Go and sin no more". I remember starting to eat a donut and realizing I didn't even want the whole thing.

I couldn't even tell you the number of times that I've kicked sugar out of my household. Or the number of times that I've conquered it personally and been completely sugar-free. Someone asked me recently if I think I will give up all sugar, or only refined sugar. I don't know! That's what makes this thing so darn hard. It's a food item. For now, I really think God is saying anything added. So, unsweetened applesauce is in. Barbecue sauce is out. A banana is in. A mocha from the cafe is out. And for me, for my body, it's more than just sugar. I now know that I have a gluten sensitivity/allergy. Dairy is not my friend. Legumes--not my friends. I followed the Whole30 for, well, 30 days, and was transformed. Never felt better in my life.

And you know, I've asked God about all that, too. I have so much to share about all this....really can't get it all in one blog post, and am pretty sure no one really would want to read it anyway. But here's the gist: Dr. told my mom that she was predisposed to cancer, that she did not have the genetic makeup to fight the cancer cells. She died at 56 of cancer. They called it breast cancer, but there was some talk about whether or not it actually started in the breast or came from somewhere else first. Anyway, if she was genetically predisposed to not be able to fight off cancer cells, then there's a good chance that my physical makeup could be similar. I haven't been tested and don't plan to be, but you know, it's a possibility, right? At some point when I was doing really well with eating right and feeling fantastic and there was a bunch of news about the radiation fallout that was hitting the United States and the radiation levels they were finding in milk from cows in like Wisconsin (for real), it all sort of dawned on me that I had some work to do for the Kingdom and what if God had my body react to certain foods so that I wouldn't eat them so I wouldn't die earlier than I would otherwise? (Follow all that?)

Of course, God is bigger than any of this and He COULD just choose to heal me like He's done with other things in my life and POOF! I'd be all better and could go and serve Him, yada, yada, yada. But God just does not always choose to work that way. Instead, I have found that when I am doing something that He has specifically called me to do, He is gracious enough to push all the symptoms away and I can function as though I have no physical limitations. But once the event is over (like the recent benefit I helped with and ate pasta, drank pop, and ate desserts and then thought I was healed because I felt FANTASTIC...until about three days later when it all hit me HARD), I'm right back to my wayward physical body wreaking havoc with my daily living.

Okay, lots of rambling here and lots of self-reflection and lots of saying the same things I've said in other posts right here on this dumb blog. It's the same ol', same ol'. Bethann has issues and Bethann needs to deal.

You know how some dogs are really sensitive to certain physical ailments in people? There was that story about the Schnauzer that lived at a nursing home, and he would go in and stay with a certain elderly person, would not leave their side, and in a day or two they'd be dead? (I'd be like, "NO! Get this dog out of my room! Now!") The dog just knew they were close to death. And there are dogs that are trained to recognize a seizure is coming, and other ailments. Well, we've got two dogs that are really intuitive. One is Lulah-Belle, recently given to us by the daughter of a cancer victim. This dog has decided that I belong to her. She is by my side constantly. She knew that I was moving toward a fibro flare-up. I'm sure of it. She has been so attentive and so nervous, and sure enough, I got hit hard last week.

Well, this morning, Katie's dog was sitting right next to me. I had these two cookies by my coffee cup. He's no dummy---he may have wanted a bite of cookie. But it was more than that. He's been acting strange right along side my Lulah-dog the last few days, too. And this morning every time I'd take a bite of one of those cookies, he would jump up on me, scratch my arm (ouch!), whine, act all crazy. He never does this just because someone is eating in front of him. I mean, it looks like normal spoiled dog behavior, but it's not NATE'S normal behavior, you know? I finally realized that he is trying to tell me to not eat that cookie.

That's how good our God is. How intricately he cares for me. That He would cause my daughter's dog to audibly tell me to stop eating the cookie (in dog language, of course). I gave him the rest of the cookie.

I have to get ready for work. How will I serve the people that God sends me to if I can't move, can't think? How will I serve my family if all I can do is moan about how much I hurt, if I can't cook, can't clean, because I am exhausted, in pain, or experiencing an anxiety attack? These things go away when I eat "clean".

Lakeview's reading for today is Ephesians 6. Putting on the whole armor would certainly benefit my attempts at overcoming my temptation toward eating all the wrong things. But I like verse 10, too.

"¹⁰Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might." (http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Ephesians 6&version=ESV)

I need to just let Him be my strength. I died to sin and it is Christ Who lives in me. I need to let Him. He's made it perfectly clear, right down to a dog clawing at me and whining at me, almost as clearly as Balaam's donkey, telling me to Put. The. Cookie. DOWN. You know, he ate that cookie and then left the room. Didn't beg for more. Just left. I really believe that God used Nate to be one more thing to show me that God really is telling me how to eat, and that I better do it!

Wow. I am that loved. Gotta run now...there's work to be done...and cookies to leave for someone else to eat.

Sugar Addict

2011-10-02T07:23:00.000-04:00

I managed to get through Thursday and Friday and most of yesterday. Most. I caved at about 5:00 when we took our Katie out to dinner with two of her roomies. Instead of getting a salad and grilled chicken, I got the buffet at KFC. Breaded chicken, biscuits, mashed potatoes and gravy, Coke, desserts...and then cake and ice cream for Kate's roomie's birthday...and then candy, smoothies, more candy, etc. once I got back home.

I'm back on track this morning. I've done some early morning research (can't sleep from bloated gut and full fibromyalgia FLARE...CRAP) and have found more and more scientific research identifying sugar as an addictive substance. I feel so guilty and inferior, like I'm some sort of addict-wannabe. "Look at me, addicts! I'm an addict too! It's not gonna-kill-me heroin or cocaine or meth or alcohol, but can I please join you anyway?" I feel...unvalidated?

What the heck is up with that? I feel like I have no right to post about this being a hard life issue because I feel like this is just FOOD for Pete's sake. Well, actually sugar isn't food at all, but you know what I mean. All things in moderation, right? This is just Bethann out in left field finding something to be RELIGIOUS about, some man-made law to follow.

The bottom line is that my problem/issue/addiction/whatever-you-call-it with sugar is completely controlling me and ruining my life and my overall health. I WILL die earlier if I continue down this road. I WILL have more and more issues with depression and my various diagnosed mood disorders. It is affecting my relationships, my home life, and is consuming my thoughts and actions.

So, I'm starting over--again...this morning. Because that's what you do when you fall off the wagon. You climb back on and hold on for dear life, wondering how long you can hang on, wondering if anyone has any faith left in you, wondering what pot hole or speed bump of temptation is up ahead and how you will avoid being tossed off that wagon yet again.

I have overcome alcohol. It was a long time ago, but I did it and I've maintained it. I CAN DO THIS TOO. This is harder. Because sugar is all around me. I can't not keep it in my house like I can the alcohol. My family does not understand the magnitude of this. I don't know if anyone does unless they are experiencing it, too.

I testified in church last week. First time I've out-and-out said that my fibro symptoms have been gone even though I am not eating as clean as I was when I first experienced healing. And then this week it all hit me again. The fog, the depression, the sleeplessness, the pain, the fatigue. I started a major downward slide. Anxiety was so high on Wednesday that I thought I would just burst. My osteoarthritis kicked in big time in my hip and neck. I have not had these symptoms since my Whole30 nutrition challenge back in February. I sort of knew I needed to continue to eat this way...I've even had the Lord speak to me about it on occasion. But last weekend we did this big fundraiser event and I ate pasta and cake and worked myself way hard and still did not have pain on Sunday, so I testified!

And the Lord got ahold of me this week with every symptom I'd been healed of to show me that I really do have to eat this way (no sugar, no gluten, no dairy, no legumes, no artificial anything). He's even showed me why ("go and sin no more" didn't mean have only an occasional healthy affair), but that's a whole 'nother story. Suffice it to say, "Because Dad (Father God) said so." Sort of like Paul's thorn in the flesh.

Part of my testimony involves overcoming a sugar addiction. (Drats!) But it does. I gotta get there, because there are people who need to hear what I will have to share, eventually, when I overcome.

So, I am starting again today. My research has shown that eating healthy fats can help to overcome cravings, so I've eaten about half a can of black olives this morning! What I want more than anything is sugary cereal, muffins, donuts, even just toast and jam! But I have eaten olives instead.

Here's to my health and the help this new testimony is going to give someone else someday. Oh, Lord, may it be so!

Standing on my knees

2011-09-27T10:26:00.001-04:00

I went to my knees today. It's been so long since I have prayed on my knees. I remember a time when that was a common thing for me, several times a day. I remember at times laying prostrate on our family room floor, on that old orange carpet in that old drafty house, beseeching the Lord, pleading with him, realizing my great need and His great ability, depending on that ability.

What is it that causes us to become comfortable with God? Comfort is okay...He is our Comforter. A healthy relationship grows and matures and deepens, and our relationship with God should do the same. But...God is still God. We are told to come boldly before the throne of grace, but that does not mean boldly as in telling the God of the universe what we expect Him to do for us and then walking away smugly knowing it will occur just as we have said. God is not a genie in some lantern that we just have to rub the right way, or say the right thing, or quote the right scripture. God is GOD! God is God, and God will do what God will do regardless of our opinion on what that action should be.

Similarly, God does not need us to pray. God does not need anything. He is self-sufficient. Not in the way survivalists plan for meeting their own future needs. He does not have any needs. Yet, He uses prayer to bring about what He wills.

Why?

For us, of course. We pray, and He answers. It's not like He is sitting on His throne, tapping his foot and drumming his fingers on His mighty armrest, waiting for us to finally say the right thing so He can finally perform that thing He's been waiting to do. We do not magically unleash the power of God to do our bidding because we prayed. Yet, He does wait. He does hear prayer and answers.

It is about relationship. Communication. How can you know your friend's, your family member's, your spouse's needs or wishes unless you communicate with that person? God knows what you need and wish before it ever occurs to you. So it isn't that He needs you to tell Him. It is because there is something that happens in relationships when we talk, discuss, communicate with each other.

Are you married? How long have you been married? Do you have a long-time friend that you get together with? Do you know what it is to just sort of go through the motions in life, getting things done, but not really communicating, not really relating? Have you had a relationship go stagnant?

I think that's what must have happened to me in my walk with the God of the universe, this mighty, awesome, powerful Being Who chooses to allow me to breathe each breath, Who set the stars in the heavens and made the sun and moon to alternate so that I might see those stars and be awed by His design. This mighty, incredible, majestic God also chooses to be my Friend and Savior. In tearing the veil, He allowed me access to His mighty throne. He sent us the Comforter. He lives in me. But that does not negate the awesomeness, the might, the greatness of Who He is.

Somewhere in my relating with Him, I got lazy. I've done that in my human relationships, too. But, wow, this is GOD we are talking about here.

This morning as I was waiting for the shower to warm up, I dropped to my knees as I prayed for my client that I would be seeing shortly thereafter. I prayed, "Lord I don't know what to ask for, because I don't know what will help them the most, but You do." And then I prayed in tongues, because when I don't know how to pray, that is a way the Holy Spirit can pray for me. And then I stood up and showered.

And then I got ready for my day.

And then I picked up my client and took my client to the morning's appointment.

And then I listened as the blessing was announced, that the deadline would be extended, that my client had 7 more days to accomplish what we thought had to be done today.

There was no magic in this. There was no great miraculous turning of events. Turns out that this 7 day thing is procedure. However, had we known this...had we not spent the last several days scurrying, worrying, and praying...had we not run out of time and so attended this appointment today that we expected to not need to attend, we would not be able to SEE God like we do today, now, after all that.

I am reminded of that great hymn, redone of late by the David Crowder Band, "Oh how He loves us", and I see that He does love us. I knew that. I had become so comfortable in that. And it was good to be comfortable in that. Sometimes that comfort is the only thing that keeps us moving forward. But today, I see it afresh. Oh, how He loves us. What an incredible thing that He does.

Thank You, Father, for your great love, and for helping us to stand by driving us to our knees.

The blessing of obedience blesses others

2011-06-22T15:19:00.001-04:00

First of all, I made it another day or so into that Whole30 and caved, caved, caved, big time! But I am seeing it all differently right now.

I recently finished my degree in early childhood education. As I was taking classes, and we were providing therapeutic foster care to some really troubled kiddos, I began to feel a tug to do something with incarcerated and/or addicted moms. As I moved toward a path in which to provide parenting help to these women, I kept hitting brick walls. I could not get into the prison system, and I especially could not do so with a paycheck. I am all for volunteering, but I will have student loans I have to pay back starting in December--there had to be a way to move toward what I was feeling called to do but still make money at it, also.

A couple of months ago I had an experience that I recognize as hearing from God. It's not audible for me (I've known people who actually have that experience), but I "heard" His voice telling me to look at Lifeline's website. (www.lifelineyouth.org) I checked it out and found that they were hiring a family consultant, which is a home based parenting and life skills educator/counselor. Many things fell miraculously into place, including me knowing personally the person who was doing the interviewing! (Had worked with her when she was the family consultant for a foster family we had.) I interviewed, and it looked very promising. It was a matter of waiting.

Fast-forward to yesterday. You also all know, I think, that I have food sensitivities/food addictions that control me and affect my health dramatically. Just as I was (am?) an alcoholic who gave up drinking cold turkey 25+ years ago, I am acutely aware that there is a certain way for me to eat that completely restores my health and I need to just eat that way, period, no looking back. However, I have only been successful at this eating plan for a few days in a row, and then I taste something I shouldn't and I crack out, bingeing and eating all the things that steal my health and overall wellness.

Yesterday I had an a-ha moment. The Lord has been showing me all of this over time, and I have known what I need to do, but I have been disobedient. I have rebelled and eaten what I wanted, and paid the price with diminished health, stomach and bowel issues, aches and pains, cloudiness of mind, and more. Yesterday, as I was talking/praying about this issue, the Lord reminded me of Esau, who gave up his birthright for a bowl of stew.

Now, I have always thought Esau was really, really stupid to give up his birthright for food. But the Lord showed me that I was doing the same thing. And then He showed me more. Esau didn't just give up his inheritance. He gave up God's purpose for His life. In Biblical times, where you fell in the birth order dictated your place in life. I have always thought that the reason I have to eat a special diet is related to not getting cancer like my mom did. Of course I don't want cancer; neither do I want fibromyalgia, osteoarthritis, ADHD, or any other ailment that troubled me before I found this way of eating. But it still was only about me. Or so I thought.

But it's not. Nothing is about just me. Everything we do teaches. Everything we do affects someone else. We all have purpose in being here. It hit me that I will not fulfill my purpose if I do not eat the way the Lord has shown me that I must eat. It's not that everyone should eat this way. It's that *I* need to eat this way. He will be able to do so much more through my hands if I am health, clear headed, able to work, able to serve. I will be here longer, and He can get more done if I am obedient to eat according to what He has shown me.

And, so I surrendered. I repented and I obeyed. I turned around. 180. All the way.

And within 30 minutes, I had a phone call saying that my job offer had come through and was I willing to take it? They offered me more $$ than I had indicated I required on my application, too!

Today I am really, really craving sweets and caffeine, but I know that I cannot have those things. I really just can't. This is not a matter of losing weight or even "just" eating healthy. This is about addiction. It is about healing. It is about wholeness. And it is about obedience.

I will choose obedience. Not because I will be blessed. I will--there is always blessing in obedience. But that's not why. I choose obedience because I love my Heavenly Father so much, and I know He has a plan for me, and I can't fulfill that plan if I do not obey His direction for my life. He is preserving me to do His good pleasure. Now that's something to crack out on!

Reflecting on Pain

2011-06-13T08:13:00.000-04:00

I restarted my Whole30--again. I graduated college. The day after my final assignment was due, my family threw me a surprise party. It was lovely. They made me gluten free cake and I ate it. It was lovely. So, I started again.

Today I am on Day 6. It is going surprisingly well! I even packed my own food for a White's Foster Mom Retreat and ate clean the entire weekend! I am very proud of myself for that!

I posted on the Whole30 blog this morning about pain. Another poster had complained of a terrible stomach ache, and it got me thinking about the blessing of pain. Here is an excerpt of that post.

Try to think about what was different so you can avoid that food next time. Or were you terribly anxious for something, lack of sleep, not enough to drink, etc? I would encourage you to listen closely to your body’s signals and allow the pain to be a blessing. Pain is the body’s way of talking to us. In a great workout, for example, pain tells us we’ve challenged ourselves. A quick recovery from that pain tells us we are getting where we want to go with those workouts. Continued pain tells us we’re either not doing the exercise correctly or that we’ve pushed too far that time–or that we are not eating properly or hydrating adequately.

Similarly, outside of the gym (listen to me here, like I am a gym rat or something–I’m coming, though, gym rat friends! I’ll be with you soon!) pain tells us something is not right. We’re not supposed to have pain after eating or after yard work, etc. We all perceive pain as our enemy, but it is actually a blessing. People who have leprosy don’t feel pain at all. Diabetics sometimes do not have pain. This is why these folks have problems with unhealed wounds and amputations, etc. They would love to have the sensation of pain to tell them that their shoes don’t fit right or that they have gotten too close to the burner, etc.

I suffered from fibromyalgia for years. For folks with fibromyalgia, your body sends signals to your brain that you are in pain, when you have done nothing to cause the pain at all. And a day of working in the yard can lay you up for the next week. It’s a horrible way to live, to just be in pain all the time and have no good reason to chalk it up to.

The right foods can regulate our body’s pain response system. The right foods can set our brain chemistry in better alignment, straighten out our hormonal imbalances, and cause our bodies to function in the way they were originally created to.

When we experience pain or gut discomfort, I think we need to examine our past few hours or days and reflect on what we have eaten as well as on our stress levels and emotional issues. Our bodies are responding to something. If we can find the root of the pain or discomfort, we can often find ways to amend our lives to avoid that the next time.

Pain is a great tool if we will use it effectively. Just some deep thoughts this morning.

You know how you just KNOW that something has shifted in your thinking? I am sure that I have experienced a paradigm shift in my thinking/experiencing of food and eating. I am here, two hours after getting up, not having eaten yet. There are homemade biscuits and gravy in the fridge that my husband made while I was away at my retreat. I literally have no desire to eat it! I am going to make myself a couple of eggs and then get ready for a full day of work (I only work outside the home a few times a month; today is one of those). I feel empowered by my weekend of staying on the Whole30 while I was on my retreat.

Life is just so good. Why would I want to ruin that by not taking care of myself? I love being pain free. I love waking up and being able to swing my feet over the bed and stand right up. I love working in the yard or exercising and having that sort of comfortable pain that says, “yeah, I worked those muscles, and look what all got accomplished because of it”, but then feel great again the next day.

This is LIVING! I kind of like it this way! :) Be blessed, Whole30 Buds! A great day to all of you!

Starting some things and finishing others

2011-06-01T09:20:00.000-04:00

Getting back on a new Whole30. Can't believe it's been two months already! I've slipped back into some of my old habits, although I'm still so much better in control than I used to be. Time to slay some more sugar dragons and kick it up a notch in terms of exercising and spiritual growth. As I said in a post on the Whole30 website, "Yay for whole, real food!"

I'm also FIVE DAYS from finishing my degree in Early Childhood Education. At 47 years old, I am finally finishing college. 'Bout time! Interview tomorrow morning for a job helping families involved in addiction and abuse cycles. Wow.

I am very thankful to the Lord for all of the opportunities He has sent my way in the last couple of years, through foster care and Ashford University. I have learned so much and am heading down a path that I had never once considered when I started back to school.

And now with the Whole30 and paleo lifestyle, my physical body and my mental state/ability is absolutely transformed. I remember praying about fibromyalgia when I was first diagnosed with it, and the Lord showing me that I would not be miraculously healed. That it would be something I would struggle with, that I would have to lean on Him for victory. How awesome that He has chosen to use FOOD to bring healing. It still required leaning on Him, because I have to avoid specific foods to maintain my health. But wow...I didn't realize what healthy felt like! It wasn't until I started eating like this that I realized I've always had pain and discomfort! It wasn't until I found health that I knew I have never really been HEALTHY.

Back to Whole30 today. One week's worth of classwork and a final paper to go and I'm finished with school. Starting one thing, finishing another. It's such a great place to be. Life is so full. I am blessed. And grateful.

Memorial Day stock up

2011-05-17T15:07:00.000-04:00

Make sure you check out Monroe on a Budget today! My dear friend, Maxine Sullivan, wrote the guest post on watching the ads right now for great pantry stock up prices on picnic type foods. Perfect for stocking up for summer or for the whole year!

http://www.blogsmonroe.com/budget/2011/05/when-is-picnic-food-on-sale-late-may/

Paula from Monroe on a Budget has wonderful money-saving tips every day. Check her out!

Coconut Flour Pancakes (better than recipe below)

2011-04-28T08:16:00.000-04:00

Coconut Flour Pancakes
gluten-free, dairy-free
makes 4 good sized pancakes

2 tbsp coconut milk
2 eggs
1 tbsp agave nectar
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp aluminum-free baking powder
3 tbsp coconut flour
1/2 tsp vanilla

Whisk wet ingredients together. Whisk in dry ingredients, beating well. Allow to stand for a few minutes. Spoon onto hot, greased (use coconut oil or olive oil) griddle or fry pan. Flip over when covered in bubbles and sides are well-set.

I made myself two regular round pancakes, but shaped the other two into squares to use as "bread" later this week.

I really like these, but my taste buds are different after my Whole30. If you haven't given up regular grains yet, you may or may not enjoy these? I prefer them to pancakes made from gluten free flours!

Coconut Flour Waffles

2011-04-25T06:57:00.000-04:00

Coconut Flour Waffles
Gluten-free, dairy-free

4 tablespoons coconut milk
6 eggs
1/3 cup agave nectar
½ tsp salt
1 tsp aluminum-free baking powder
1/3 cup coconut flour
1 tsp vanilla

Whisk wet ingredients together. Whisk in dry ingredients, beating well. Allow to stand five minutes before pouring onto waffle iron.

Batter will be thin. Pour onto bottom of waffle iron, filling bottom. Bake until steam stops escaping from sides. Waffles will be very dark in color—this is natural, not burned. These waffles are also softer, less crispy than regular waffles.

Serving suggestion: serve with sliced strawberries that have been drizzled with agave nectar. No other toppings or syrups are necessary! Yum!

Philosophy 200: a discussion exchange

2011-04-06T14:30:00.000-04:00

This is an exchange between myself and my instructor. Her feedback was positive, but she is not a Christian. I am interested to hear feedback from my brothers and sisters in Christ. I am so grateful for the teachings of Pastor Jess Jessup at Lakeview Community Church ( http://www.lakeviewhamilton.com )! I would not have been able to answer these questions before sitting under his teaching. I long for the ability to sustain deep conversation about my Savior, to be able to give an answer to any who asks about the hope I have within.

And to think I was frustrated when I was scheduled for this class.

Mark as Unread Justifying Beliefs Bethann Mathews
3/31/2011 6:02:10 AM

PHI200 Week One Discussion 2

What is required for a person to justify his or her beliefs?

In order to justify his beliefs, a person needs to have a good understand of what he believes. He needs to know the history and source of the beliefs and how he came to believe it. Beyond this, however, he must also possess good reasoning skills. A good understanding of the tools of informal logic and the ability to form an argument is very useful for being able to explain why one believes what one does. This also helps one to hang on to beliefs that someone is challenging. It is important to be able to recognize fallacies so as to challenge wrong conclusions in a philosophical argument—and to be able to offer correct conclusions so as to defend one’s beliefs (Mosser, 2010).

Do many people believe what they do without giving those beliefs critical scrutiny?

I think there are many who live their daily lives full of beliefs that they have not challenged in their own minds. However, I find myself wondering how fully they truly believe those things. If one has not examined one’s beliefs, then how could they know they really believe it?

One example is that of a battered woman. Women who have been battered often have come to believe that they are worthless, that they somehow deserve to be treated the way they are by their partner. They have poor self esteem and a hopelessness that is based on an invalid argument.

What are the advantages of believing something without examining it?

Blind faith is still blind. It may give a sense of hope. Children from healthy families have a sense of absolute trust in their parents. When Daddy says to get in the car, the child just climbs in and gets put in the car seat and trusts that wherever he is going is a good place to go because Daddy is taking him there. This sense of absolute trust is very important. I do not have a knowledge of how an automotive assembly plant works, but I have enough faith in the transportation industry and government controls that if I get in my Ford Explorer and turn the key, it is going to get me where I want to go, provided I drive safely, that the other drivers follow driving rules, and that no unforeseen event steps in the way, such as a deer or bad weather conditions, etc. If I were to examine absolutely everything, I could become very neurotic, and even have issues with anxiety or panic attacks, afraid to leave my house, afraid to do anything without researching every aspect of it. While our government is not perfect, the likelihood of my being protected by its laws and regulations are generally pretty good.

Mosser (2010) uses the example of a military leader heading into battle. While a soldier should know why he has joined the military and should have a good understanding of his country’s reasoning for entering into battle, it is also important that he can implicitly trust his commanding officer. This involves respect, which is both positional and earned in this case. A good leader will cue his soldiers in on what the fight is about, and will thereby earn their trust, but the soldier must also be willing to do what he is told to do, sometimes having to wait to ask questions later.

What are the disadvantages?

The disadvantages to just trusting without questioning is that one may end up finding out that the particular belief was false. People who were buying Toyotas were recently very disheartened to find out that many of them had acceleration problems that had led to injuries and deaths. My Explorer has a recall on the speed control system that could lead to an accident. My husband works in the automotive industry manufacturing fuel rails. There have been times that his company has been contracted to make a large number of replacement parts because of an issue with the fuel system. It is kept very quiet until there are enough parts to do the replacements and then the recall is issued, unless the government demands it first. It is important to be able to trust in certain companies or in our doctors or our government, but to blindly trust can sometimes have devastating effects. We simply must be informed consumers and citizens to have fullness of life.

Identify a specific belief you have that you think is worth defending, and explain how you might go about defending it.

I believe that Creationism is a valid theory of the origin of the world. I have read enough articles, seen enough pictures (such as a rock layer that has dinosaur footprint fossils in the same layer as footprint fossils from man), and heard numerous speakers that I am convinced that evolution is not the only valid theory. To defend my belief in a literal seven day creation, I would show my critic the layers in the Grand Canyon and talk about the science behind those layers and the millions of years they were to have taken to lay down. Then I would show them the rock layers in the Mt. St. Helen’s area that were laid down in the same fashion in a matter of two hours. I would show them the evidence that creation scientists have spent years collecting, all of which give scientific credence to the validity of creationism as a theory of origin, such as evidence of a world-wide, rapid flood:

The almost complete absence of evidence of erosion or soil layers or the activity of living things (plant roots, burrow marks, etc.) at the upper surface of the various strata (showing that the stratum did not lay there for thousands or millions of years before the next layer was deposited).

Polystrate fossils (usually trees) that cut through more than one layer of rock (even different kinds of rock supposedly deposited over thousands if not millions of years). The trees would have rotted and left no fossil evidence if the deposition rate was that slow.

Soft-sediment deformation—that thousands of feet of sedimentary rocks (of various layers) are bent (like a stack of thin pancakes over the edge of a plate), as we see at the mile-deep Kaibab Upwarp in the Grand Canyon. Clearly the whole, mile-deep deposit of various kinds of sediment was still relatively soft and probably wet (not like it is today) when the earthquake occurred that uplifted one part of the series of strata.

Many fossils that show (require) very rapid burial and fossilization. For example, soft parts (jellyfish, animal feces, scales and fins of fish) or whole, large, fully-articulated skeletons (e.g., whales or large dinosaurs such as T-Rex) are preserved. Or we find many creatures’ bodies contorted. All this evidence shows that these creatures were buried rapidly (in many cases even buried alive) and fossilized before scavengers, micro-decay organisms and erosional processes could erase the evidence. These are found all over the world and all through the various strata. (Mortenson, 2011, paras. 26-29).

Hopefully I would be able to help my critic realize that there is validity to creationism as a theory.

Bethann

References

Mortenson, T. (2011). What is the most compelling scientific evidence of a young earth? Feedback for the week of February 27, 2006. Answers in Genesis website. Retrieved electronically March 31, 2011 from http://www.answersingenesis.org/home/area/feedback/2006/0303.asp

Mosser, K. (2010). Philosophy a Concise Introduction. San Diego, CA: Bridgepoint Education, Inc.
Note: for some reason, I cannot get the reference section font sized correctly. It is all Times New Roman, size 12, in my Word file, but will not copy and paste correctly. I have tried to change it within the discussion board tools, but it will not change. My apologies!

Respond
RE: Justifying Beliefs Instructor Sanderovsky
4/2/2011 11:06:34 AM

Bethann, Faith, by its definition, is blind trust; It does not need proof. Can you imagine where this might be helpful in life? Do we always need proof or justification for what we believe in? What about love? Can we proof or justify that always?

Respond
RE: Justifying Beliefs Bethann Mathews
4/3/2011 9:07:46 PM

The Bible defines faith as "the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things unseen" (Hebrews 11:11, New King James Version). It's true that faith is somewhat blind. For instance, I have never seen God, but I have seen the effects of God. Similarly, I have never seen the wind, but I have seen it gently move trees and I have seen it pick up a trampoline and toss it like a frisbee into the top of a tree. I know the wind exists largely because I have seen what the wind does.

I think faith does need proof. Even in very young children, their trust, or faith, in their parents lies in how trustworthy the parents are. We provided childcare for 22 years and now are foster parents. There is a vast difference in the trust level of a child who has been raised in a loving, nurturing home and that of a child who has been abused and neglected. Abused children have learned not to trust adults, not to have faith that adults will care for them. In my experience, a well-nurtured, attached child is much more likely to be comfortable with adults other than his/her parents, although this can vary some with individual personality of the child.

I think that there are certain instances that we just go on faith--for instance, trusting that it is safe for me to pull over for the police officer with his lights on behind me. But even this is not based on blind faith. I have never had an experience where a police officer has tried to harm me. If I were in a town where there was known to be a problem with corrupt cops, or in a foreign country where police use their position to intimidate or hurt citizens, then I would not feel safe. In this scenario, my lack of bad experiences leads me to believe that I am safe in the hands of a local law enforcement position.

I trust that an airline will get me to the other side of the country safely. Again, though, that belief is based on the aviation industry's track record that shows that air travel is so much safer than car travel. Because of this, I am confident that an airline's airplane will get me where I need to go.

I don't know that we always need proof or justification for what we believe in, but I think it is good to think these things through and have that answer ready should anyone ask. If I don't really know why I believe something, I will be more easily swayed to believe something else. It is good to have a foundation for what one believes.

With love, I believe that love is a choice that we make, not a feeling that we have. It is certainly more fun to choose to love someone that you have chemistry with. I still am very much in love with my husband, and I know that he still loves me, after almost 27 years. I do think we prove love. I think we prove it by our actions toward one another. Again calling on my Christian background, Jesus said that the world would know who the Christians are by their love for each other (John 13:35).. That indicates that there will be visible actions that will show love. (Incidentally, I think the Church is really lacking in this area, but that's another discussion.) I think that true love can be proven or justified by actions, although someone who is very self-centered may not recognize the actions of true love. For instance, a group of siblings may intervene in the life of one of the siblings by insisting that this brother or sister check into rehab for drug use. A family member may choose to no longer bail a loved one out of jail because to do so would just enable the individual to continue in harmful behavior. There are any number of instances where tough love is what is best for a person, but that person may not perceive the actions as loving, because the actions mean hardship for the individual. It is still true love when this type of thing occurs, regardless of whether both parties "feel" the love.

I love the questions and the deep thinking! Thank you for deep discussion!

Bethann

Reference

The Holy Bible, New King James Version. Retrieved electronically on April 3, 2011, from http://www.biblegateway.com/keyword/

Respond
RE: Justifying Beliefs Instructor Sanderovsky
4/4/2011 7:30:03 PM

Thank you, Bethann, for the deep and thoughtful answers :).

Respond
RE: Justifying Beliefs Bethann Mathews
4/3/2011 9:18:06 PM

Upon posting, I wanted to clarify something I said. I said that I do think faith needs proof. Well, that's not an accurate statement. I'm not sure how to put into words what I am thinking. If I have cancer, and I have faith that God is going to heal my cancer, that faith is based upon past experiences. At the point that I am cured of cancer, faith is no longer needed, because I have received the thing I was believing for. Similarly, when I get in my Ford Explorer, I assume that my engine will start. I assume that because there have been so many years of it starting that I now have faith that it will. I also understand that there is the possibility that it will not. It might have a dead battery or a bad alternator or a mouse may have chewed through the wires. However, because of my cumulative experiences with it starting, I just assume that it will start, based on my faith founded on my experiences with this truck.

Faith in God is like that for me, too. I have had times when God has not provided for me the thing that I wanted him to. I have lost four babies to miscarriage, for example. I have also had five live births, so should I find out I was pregnant again, my faith would be that God will do what God will do. I would hope for a to-term baby and would have faith that if He were going to see fit for me to become pregnant at 47, when my youngest is 15, I'm probably going to have this baby. But I would always have that little question in the back of my mind until my delivery date. That isn't a lack of faith that there is a God; that is an understanding that this God I love and serve sometimes chooses to do things differently than I want Him to, but that doesn't change for me that He is God.

So...I think that faith is based on proof that what you have faith in is worthy of that faith, but it doesn't always mean that you know you will get the thing you have faith for. Does that make sense?

Bethann

Respond
RE: Justifying Beliefs Instructor Sanderovsky
4/5/2011 9:40:44 PM

It does, Bethann. I appreciate your thoughtful follow up!

BA's Paleo-inspired Ambrosia

2011-04-04T00:11:00.000-04:00

This was SO GOOD! But, let me warn you...don't make a whole batch just for yourself. You may find yourself eating the whole batch...all in one sitting! It is, however, the perfect potluck food, and would be a good way to prove to people that paleo is NOT boring or plain!

BA's Ambrosia

29 oz can pineapple tidbits, in 100% juice, drained (reserve juice)
jar Dole mandarin oranges in 100% juice, drained
4 bananas, peeled and sliced
coconut milk (I used Thai Kitchen. I always have to mix it well first)
1/2 cup toasted, unsweetened coconut flakes (I toasted in the oven briefly under the broiler)

Place all fruit in medium bowl. Add 1 part pineapple juice and 2 parts coconut milk until desired sauciness. I used about 1/4 cup juice and 1/2 cup coconut milk. Mix most of the coconut in, as well. Place in fridge. Before serving, sprinkle the rest of the coconut on top.

This was SO GOOD! I was not expecting it to be so wonderful. It definitely helped me to have it at a dinner that was so full of stuff I love but couldn't eat. However, the ambrosia was just too tempting for me and I scarfed way too much later tonight while working on my online classwork. Live and learn. I'm sticking this recipe in my backpocket, though! I'll definitely use this for potlucks!

What do you believe,and why?

2011-03-31T00:04:00.000-04:00

This is one of my Philosophy 200 discussion board posts for this week. It answers specific questions asked by the teacher, but I still thought it worth posting here, if for no other reason than to inspire thought. You don't have to agree with me (although in my belief system, agreeing with me would be agreeing with Christ, which would be the only way to end up in heaven eventually)...but I do hope you'll think. Just think. I'll pray that the Lord will do the rest in you.

PHI200 Discussion Board 1 post.

I hold the view that the Bible is absolutely, unequivocally true. I believe that there is a God to be feared and a hell to be shunned, and that the only way to the Father (God) is through the Son (Jesus Christ). I do not see that my faith is not intolerant as non-Christians may assume. Because my belief system includes a belief that one can only end up in Heaven through having a personal relationship with Jesus, but that anyone can come to Jesus, I see it as completely tolerant, and I see it as my absolute responsibility to try to lead others to faith in Jesus Christ. I am not anti-other-religions; instead I find myself aching for those who do not know Jesus as Lord and Savior because my belief system tells me that they will be forever lost upon death. It is an intense love that I have for others, not a hatred of those who are not like me, that leads me to want to live my life in such a way that others who see it will want what I have (Jesus).

My reasons for holding my belief in Christianity is based upon several different experiences that I have had through the years that have led me to see the truths of the Bible up close and personal. There was a draw in me from the time I was very young, with me walking to church every Sunday by myself by the time I was five years old. It was not until I was in my mid-thirties and had my first of four miscarriages that my life started to really become identified with Christ. I had spent so many years in a formal, religious denomination, but when my husband and I left that for an interdenominational, basic Bible doctrine church, we found our lives transformed and were finally actually living for Christ.

My belief system ties into philosophy because true Christianity requires one to continually question oneself, one’s motives, and one’s actions. It is a religious system that is founded on man’s lack and God’s exclusive abundance and His willingness to pour that out upon man, which ought to leave the Christian conscious of his inability to make himself “good enough” for a holy God and to draw from God forgiveness, provision, and ultimately, new life in Jesus, the Son. Mosser (2010) defines philosophy as the “love of wisdom” and the “unending search for answers to questions” (section 1.1). I think of philosophy as a need to know, a quest for truth. Jesus said, “And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall set you free” (John 8:32, New King James Version). In Ecclesiastes, God offered King Solomon anything he wanted, and Solomon asked for wisdom. I see direct correlations there between the Christian faith and philosophy.

There really was only one time that I questioned my faith, and even then, it wasn’t that I was questioning God so much as just trying to understand. We had been involved in what is known as a faith-based church, and I had my third miscarriage. We had done all the things that they all had said to do, including not saying anything negative, only claiming positive things for our family and our unborn baby, but I still lost the baby. I was so confused. Our friends informed us that we simply had not had enough faith. This did not sit well with me and it was at this time that my faith grew stronger than ever before. I saw in Ephesians that faith was a gift, not something we muster up on our own. I started that day trusting in God, not in my faith in God, and I have never looked back. I know that there will be things I will not understand while I am here on this planet, but eventually I will be in heaven with Him, and I will know the answers to all of my questions then.

I see myself most closely aligned with Socrates, because he questioned morality and motive. I love that while being tried under penalty of death, he said that “…living correctly is much more important than simply living” (Mosser, 2010, 1.2). I think that this life-stance, or personal philosophy of life, most closely lines up with my Christian beliefs.

Bethann

Reference

Mosser, K. (2010). Philosophy A Concise Introduction. San Diego, CA: Bridgepoint Education, Inc.

Cherishing Life and Loved Ones

2011-03-29T08:42:00.000-04:00

Life is to be so much more than getting through each day. Love is to be so much more than how good someone else makes me feel. Relationship is to be so much more than me naming you as family or as a friend.

Angola, Indiana, lost four young lives this weekend. Four vibrant, charming, successful, quality high school seniors were killed on their way home from spring break. Another young man, 21, from Alabama, crossed the median on I-65 and struck the boys head on, killing all four of them and himself.

Angola is transformed. This little community has rallied around these families. Facebook is abuzz with hurting teens reaching out to the families and to each other. Ecumenical services are overrun. Other communities are sending flowers, trays of snacks, and support to the high school. It seems that everybody in this county knew one of these four boys in some way or another.

I love how the Lord takes tragedy and uses it to build community, to build relationships, to build people. Lord, make it last. Help us to remember these boys and the closeness that their deaths brought to us. Help us to remember the fragility of life that is so tangible today. Help us to make permanent the changes that we are all claiming because of the pain we feel.

Father, help the hurting. When they reach out in the dark, grab their hands, mend their broken hearts and fill their emptied spirits with your love, your grace, your forgiveness. Bring us all to a new sense of repentance. Bring us all to a new sense of need. Use this to make us all better at love, better at relationship. Draw souls unto yourself and bring revival, Lord.

Written by Isaiah, read by Jesus in the temple, leaned upon today:

"The Spirit of the Lord God is upon Me, because the Lord has anointed Me to preach good tidings to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of prison to those who are bound; to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all who mourn, to console those who mourn in Zion, to give them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness, that they may be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, that He may be glorified." Isaiah 61: 1-3.

Oh, Father, make it so.

Recipe from: The Clothes Make The Girl: My Favorite Chili Recipe

2011-03-27T18:57:00.001-04:00

I started with this recipe, but tweaked it a bit for my own tastes/available food choices:

The Clothes Make The Girl: My Favorite Chili Recipe: "If it's Sunday, it means cooking... and today that means my favorite chili recipe. It's cobbled together from a bunch of recipes I've used o..."

Here's what I did:

I kept the base the same, using extra light olive oil as my oil. I don't have access to grass fed beef without driving quite a distance, so I used Meijer angus. There was quite a bit of fat, so I did drain it.

For the spices, I skipped the cumin but kept everything else the same.

For the liquids, I used a 29 oz can of Meijer organic petite diced tomatoes with the juice, 1/2 of a 32 oz container Meijer organic beef broth, one small can (10 oz??) organic tomato sauce, and I skipped the water because I put so much more tomatoes and juice in than Mel called for.

I let it simmer those full two hours.

OH. MY. GOODNESS!!!!! This was better than my regular chili, which my whole family adores!

I had a big bowl of it today served over some chopped bok choy. That was yummy and a great way to add in some extra veggies, but I love this chili just right out of the bowl. And it was definitely even better today than yesterday after just that first two hours of simmering.

This is most definitely my new favorite meal. Just wonderful!

BA's FANTABULOUS Tuna Salad

2011-03-09T12:08:00.000-05:00

This may well be the Whole30's answer to Tuna Macaroni Salad.

I know this doesn't SOUND like it would go together well, but bear with me, and really consider trying this. This was all stuff I had on hand, and I was just trying to find something that would meet Whole30 guidelines out of the stuff I have onhand two days before payday (translate: no interesting food left in the house). What I ended up with took me back 40 years in an instant, right to my backyard in Detroit in the middle of summer. My mom's macaroni salad with tuna. Not even kidding. This will be my new comfort food go-to!

BA's FANTABULOUS Tuna Salad

1 can tuna, drained
10 or so black olives, sliced
1 hard boiled egg, chopped
coarsely chopped sweet onion (maybe a tablespoon or two?)
1/2 avocado, chopped
freshly ground sea salt and black pepper to taste
drizzle of extra light olive oil
sprinkle of garlic powder (fresh pressed garlic would have been even better)

I tossed this all together with my fork, smashing the avocado as I tossed.

It was SO GOOD! YUM! I ate ALL of it!

Resolutions, Smesolutions: How About the Whole 30?

2011-03-09T09:57:00.000-05:00

So, the resolutions are out the window. Big surprise there!

I discovered the Whole30 blog (see the link on the right side of my page) a few weeks ago. I made it through the Whole30 for a Whole7--that is, seven days. I had the typical horrible withdrawals, and by day 7 was just starting to achieve full success. And then I fell. Hard. Everytime I'd get back up on the tailgate of that wagon, I'd just slip again.

And now, it's Lent.

I'm not Catholic, although I used to be. I'm not Episcopal, although I used to be that, too. In fact, I'm now E Free, which gives me tons of freedom within the absolute sound doctrine of the Bible. Observation of specific days and traditions of men are out. However, the whole Ash Wednesday, Lenten observance thing just sort of still resonates with me, and, well, it just seems a good time to focus in on Christ's sacrifice and to meditate on Him and work on crucifying self.

Anyway, all justification aside, I'm starting the Whole30 again today, but plan to turn it into a Whole40 for the purposes of Lent and getting a handle on that elusive part of the fruit of the Spirit known as self-control.

So, here we go! Broccoli slaw, sauteed in olive oil with a little onion and scrambled into two eggs this morning for breakfast. Mmmmm. So far, so good. Yeah, I can do this. And the time I spend with my Savior as I turn the cravings all over to Him will be so precious!

Bring it on, Lent!

My Brother's Keeper? Yes, absolutely.

2011-02-15T09:44:00.000-05:00

Oswald Chambers's selection for today really struck me. Well, every day his selections strike me. I already shared it on Facebook, but Facebook notes will come and go, and I will go back and read this blog from time to time, to remind myself of where I've come from, which can sometimes help me remember where I was going. Sometimes those memories just help me remember to keep running as fast as I can in the opposite direction. But, I digress. Here is the selection for today, and my thoughts about it.

"'None of us lives to himself...: (Romans 14:7)"'

"Has it ever dawned on you that you are responsible spiritually to God for other people? For instance, if I allow any turning away from God in my private life, everyone around me suffers. We 'sit together in the heavenly places...' (Ephesians 2:6). 'If one member suffers, all the members suffer with it...' (1 Corinthians 12:26). If you allow physical selfishness, mental carelessness, moral insensitivity, or spiritual weakness, everyone in contact with you will suffer. But you ask, 'Who is sufficient to be able to live up to such a lofty standard?' 'Our sufficiency is from God...' and God alone (2 Corinthians 3:5).

'"You shall be witnesses to Me...' (Acts1:8). How many of us are willing to spend every bit of our nervous, mental, moral, and spiritual energy for Jesus Christ? That is what God means when He uses the word witness. But it takes time, so be patient with yourself. Why has God left us on the earth? Is it simply to be saved and sanctified? No, it is to be at work in service to Him. Am I willing to be broken bread and poured-out wine for Him? Am I willing to be of no value to this age or this life except for one purpose and one alone--to be used to disciple men and women to the Lord Jesus Christ. My life of service to God is the way I say 'thank you' to Him for His inexpressibly wonderful salvation. Remember, it is quite possible for God to set any of us aside if we refuse to be of service to Him--' lest, when I have preached to others, I myself should become disqualified' (1 Corinthians 9:27)." (Chambers,Reimann, 1992, February 15 selection).

Reimann, J. (editor). (1992). My Utmost for His Highest An Updated Edition in Today's Language. Grand Rapids, MI: Oswald Chambers Publications/Discovery House Publishers

Oh, Lord, help me to live a life that is all about You. Help me to let go of the all about me that tries so hard to thwart this deepest of my desires. You said they shall know we are yours by our love for each other. Oh, Father, help me to love with your love! Help me to love others straight to Your throne! ♥

Happy New Year!

2011-01-01T10:28:00.000-05:00

I typically don't do resolutions, but the start of the new year is a great time to reflect on the past and look toward the future. As I reflect on last year, I can see the blessings and the places that brought conflict to my soul instead of peace. With that in mind, these are the changes I am instituting for my life.

"Count your blessings, name them one by one..." I am searching each day, each trial, each moment for the blessing that lies therein. Sometimes the blessings are just right there in your face, like an unexpected Christmas bonus and an unexpected cash gift that gave us the funds to do the brand new game system--first time we've ever owned the current model while it was "hot"! But sometimes it's a bit harder...today I am rejoicing that my abs are going to be quite trim in no time because of all the coughing I am doing. My gut HURTS--but that means that muscles are working that were'nt working before, so.... it's a little thing, but it's still a blessing, and I'd rather focus on that than on the negative side of being sick.

I feel SO much better when I eat gluten free and when I am not eating sugar and starches all the time. So I am adopting a new WOL (way of life). I am not dieting. Diets don't work. I am going to stay faithful to the body that has been given me to wear until I join my Savior in heaven. I will eat only foods that are free of gluten, and I will all-but-eliminate refined and artificial foods.

Daily aerobic exercise is a great way to keep brain chemistry healthy and get the body in shape, and is the best possible way to combat fibromyalgia. (the gluten and sugar contribute to that significantly, too) So, I will do SOME form of exercise every day, focusing on whole body stuff including aerobic exercise daily. Even if all I do is sit-ups before bed, I will exercise daily.

I will spend 15 minutes cleaning my throw-it-in-there closet and my pantry/storage area of the basement daily. When these areas are completely cleaned and organized, I'll focus that same amount of time improving other areas.

I will get us back on the Dave Ramsey plan for finances, starting today. (yesterday was payday, so that makes it easy to start today!)

I will keep my house CLEAN and TIDY every. single. day!!!!!!

I will read my Bible every day.

These are thoughts and plans that I have had for quite some time, nothing rash. I'm looking forward to some really great changes in '11!!

Doing the Happy Homemaker Hop on the Holidays

2010-10-25T12:52:00.000-04:00

Maxine from The Frugalista Files discussion board has me posting little daily things we can do to get our houses in order for the Holidays so that we can be better organized by the time Thanksgiving and Christmas get here, and so we can develop habits that will not only give us clean, organized homes at the holidays, but also help us to maintain that higher state of organization and CALM! You can find my little daily assignments at:

http://www.network54.com/Forum/500426/

Look for threads starting with "Happy Holiday Helpfuls".

I am sorry to say that I can't really take any real credit for these ideas. These are all a combination of stuff I've gleaned from Marla Cilley, the FLYlady; from reading the Slob Sisters and Messies Manual years and years ago; from watching and learning from my incredibly organized and CLEAN Grandma Montie; and from Maxine's list of household tips that she posted on a previous incarnation of the frugal discussion boards we've been part of together.

I've always said I'd be a great administrator. I am the idea person, but not so great at enacting my great ideas. My house today looks horrible. It was a busy weekend and I'm trying to play catch-up. I'm going to go grab my timer and start in one room and move through, just like I posted about. It's time to get this place in order, instead of writing about getting it in order!

Happy Holidays, folks! They're coming up fast!

2010-09-13T08:46:00.000-04:00

My life is so busy right now that I literally do not have time to shop the thrift stores. There was a time in my life where everything we owned was a hand-me-over or a garage sale or thrift store find. It's just the way it was. But let's face it--shopping the thrift stores and garage sales takes TIME. I can't just walk into a thrift store, find the right top or pants and buy them. I have to try them on. Even if you find Brand X that you know fits you perfectly--with my luck, someone has had them altered! I have to have time to peruse, to try on, to check different shops. Same with garage sales. You have to have time to check the ads, stop at the sales, check over the offerings, and you have to carry cash (which I often don't).

I used to keep a master list of things to be on the lookout for. I need to do that again. My sister-in-law finds THE BEST deals EVER on stuff for her home and clothing, because she and her husband go to the garage sales almost every single week. Same with thrift stores. When her boys needed suits for a formal dance, they spent several days shopping thrift stores until they found the suits.

I just don't have that kind of time right now.

I recognize that my life is so busy, so time-restricted, that it is costing me money. I have to weigh it all out. How much is it costing me? Is what I am doing worth the added expense? I have mastered the cooking at home thing again, even with the busy life. We were grabbing fast food quite a bit for a while there ($1 menu, but even so, that adds up when it's often and for a number of people, and it is NOT good for you, which can mean medical $$ later). I'm back to cooking at home, even if it's a grilled cheese sandwich and carrot sticks for everyone and a salad for me.

And I've gotten back on track with coupon shopping and the pantry principle.

But what about clothing? There is one brand of jeans that fit me and one particular type of dress pants from a particular store that I know fit. So, when those items go on sale, I can pick them up at a decent price at least. I have been trying to keep on top of my wardrobe. I have a tendency to wait until I have nothing that fits me and is still in decent shape and then some event comes up or a vacation or such, and I find myself on a shopping spree for myself to get enough clothes to last the weekend or whatever.

I am learning instead to live within my weakness. I need to set money aside every month for my clothing allowance, whether it's $10 or whatever. When my favorite jeans are on sale and I have a coupon, then I need to pick up one pair here or there. (A pair of jeans will last me at least a year; I like to have three on hand.) As long as I keep a basic color palette (I am a brown, green, and pink sort of person, emphasis on the pink), I can pick up a clearance top for $1 or $2 here or there and know it will go with what I have at home. My two pairs of dress pants (brown and black) are getting very ratty looking, so I'll need to be on the lookout for new. I may even plan in a trip to the thrift stores while I'm running errands to this town or that town. I do that with groceries, so why not thrift stores, right?

I have also started sewing again. I love to sew. I don't do it because I love it. It feels like "me time", and I think my subconscious has me convinced that I don't have time for "me time". So I don't sew. But sewing is what I want to do for Christmas gifts this year, so I need to get started on that anyway. I made my granddaughter a princess gown for her 1st birthday party last week. She's getting her picture taken in it on Wednesday, and it will be her Halloween costume, too. I made it in such a way that my daughter can take the extra frou-frou off of it and it will just be a fancy dress. She should be able to wear it for at least a year, if not two. What a joy it was to sew something beautiful for her!

I've signed up to be a designer pattern tester for my dear friend, Debbie
(http://squigglytwigs.blogspot.com/ ). Her patterns are designed to be super easy to sew and very boutique-y, so that anyone can put them together and have adorable clothes on the cheap. My granddaughter will be the talk of the town with her one-of-a-kind attire! My 10-yr-old foster daughter will probably not be interested in all the ruffles and lace, but I may be able to make her a few things, too. I'll just skip the frou-frou for her. The principles of Debbie's designs can be applied to old people too. :) So I'll be making myself some shirts, at least. Maybe I'll even try pants. And with my 18 yo working at Joann Fabrics, I've got a discount and insider info on upcoming sales!

So...I'm working on it. But busy definitely makes frugal harder. I'm searching for that place of balance. I'm getting closer.

Coupon Shopping Fun

2010-09-01T07:15:00.001-04:00

Had a blast last night doing some coupon shopping! Many of these items are things I would not ordinarily buy, HOWEVER, I've started back to work, and it will be nice to have some on-hand quick fixes. That's my story, and I'm sticking to it! Anyway, here's how I did:

WalMart:
11 oz Gain dish soap; .97 plus $1 coupon
trial size Olay body wash; .97 plus $1 coupon
trial (one load) size Tide liquid; .97 plus $1 coupon

Paid .11 total with tax.

Walmart is on the same side of the same road, .5 mile from Meijer, which I was going next. Otherwise I would not have stopped for those three things.

Meijer:
We rang this up as two orders to get the catalinas (cash register generated coupons) for cash, which we used on the next order. I just marked on my list with an asterisk those things that were supposed to generate the cash-off-next-order coupons and did them first. Then I paid for those and did my next order, then used those to help pay for that order.

First order
--9 Kraft 8 oz cheese sale price 3/$5. Spend $15 on specific Kraft foods, get $5 catalina. It also happened to generate a $$ off next dairy purchase of X amount. I don't remember the details, but that was a nice bonus! That happened with three other things, too. I got $$ off bread purchase and $$ off produce purchase, both of which I had in my cart for that next order! Cha-ching! I would not ordinarily buy 9 packages of cheese at a time, but the price was right with that catalina, and I did not need/want any of the other Kraft items. We will use the cheese well before the November date on the package.
--3 containers Country Time or Kool Aid, with sugar. I had coupons for these, too, and they generated cash back. these ended up being far cheaper than buying the envelopes and the sugar.
--Two Fiber One bars
--Two Nature Valley bars

My total here was $25.04, and it generated almost $20 in cash off next order.

Next order
--Two Axe shower gel, on sale for $3.19, b1g1 free plus get free 2ltr of Pepsi (son uses this stuff)
--Two heads lettuce
--1 pkg Romain hearts $2 off produce coupon
--Meijer 32 oz yogurt .50 off Meijer perks coupon ( you register for the coupon online, and at checkout, punch in your cell phone number and it credits you the coupon amount)
--Three Pop Tarts (my kids are in HEAVEN), $1.00 off coupon plus either Mealbox or mperks coupon
--Three hot dog buns, three hamburger buns, $2 off bread purchase
--Meijer tortilla chips, $1.50 after mperks coupon; we'll use them with fajitas this week
--BBQ sauce (not on sale; we like a particular brand and we're making pulled pork this week (hence, the hamburger buns)
--Four Breyer ice cream $2.50 each, plus $2 off at register when you spend $10; Aaralyn's 1st birthday is this weekend
--Red Baron Pizza, on sale for $3.33; $1 coupon off; good throw-together lunch for Grace and grandkids when I'm working
--Two cans Manwich, $1 each, minus $1 coupon, so .50 each. Will keep on hand for another throw-together meal
--one package Eckrich franks, .30 after coupon
--3 Dynamo free and clear $14.99 for one, b1g2 free
My total was $62 before coupons; I paid $44.98.

All told, I spent $70.13 and stocked up on a couple of things, added some fun variety for days I'm working, and bought some fun grab-n-go breakfast foods for the college kid and for Chris. My coupon and money off at register specials totaled right around $28. It's hard to see your total savings on a Meijer receipt, because some of it is discounted in the line and some is at the bottom, and so many of my deals were with a coupon plus they generated more savings. But I'm looking at right around $28. It's not the several hundred dollars saved that I've done in the past, but I ended up with a ton of food that I donated because it was stuff my family didn't like. These were all things we will definitely use and helped to round out what I had in my pantry/freezer. Kinda fun to be back at it! :)

I should mention that my Meijer receipts say I saved over $97, but I would not have bought any of this stuff at full price, so that point is moot. I also received $4.50 more in cash off next purchase catalinas, good till 9/14. Yay!

Special thanks to bargainstobounty for the Meijer matchups she lists each week! I used her matchups, coupons.com, my Sunday coupons pages, and Meijer mealbox coupons and Meijer mperks. It took me awhile to put my list together, but I had a blast! Now if I can get the Walgreens and CVS deals going again, too.....!

Lessons Taught by a One-Year-Old

2010-08-31T11:48:00.000-04:00

I learned some things today.

I learned that just because the baby isn't crying doesn't mean I don't have watch her. I mean, really WATCH her.

I learned that "line of sight" is not anything near "keep in sight".

I learned that just because the baby is in the same room as I, and in my line of sight, I may or may not SEE what she is doing.

I learned that a partial box of Triscuits still holds a LOT of Triscuits.

I learned that a partial box of Triscuits almost completely covers my large kitchen floor.

I learned that four dogs of various breed backgrounds and size are not enough to eat a partial box of Triscuits.

I learned that a simmering pan of frozen ground beef in water with a lid will spill over onto a just-scrubbed stove top if I am cleaning up a partial box of Triscuits that have now been splintered into smithereens by four dogs who apparently have no taste for whole grain crackers.

I learned that the things that would have sent me into a tizzy with my own children when I was in my 20's are just not such a big deal when I am in my 40's and it is involves my granddaughter.

I learned that I am not quite so vehemently opposed to cabinet locks these days.

Really not liking Blogger's changes!

2010-08-31T09:23:00.000-04:00

Apparently I can no longer use "The Cutest Blog on the Block" backgrounds! I had to completely re-do my background, and the choices that Blogger gave me are BORING! I hate, hate, hate it. Grrr!

Anyone know how to cutesy it up?

A day in the life...

2010-05-04T22:33:00.003-04:00

Is it any wonder I have not posted here since January? Here is what today looked like...

-6AM up with Chris, get him out the door
-Shower
-6:30 foster kids up, dressed, meds, teeth brushed, meet bus by 6:55 (I drive them to the road because they'll hurt each other if I let them walk down)
-7:00 Start waking up the girls
-Make homemade gluten free pancakes
-Katie makes whipped cream sweetened with a little demerara sugar
-I slice strawberries and add some demerara sugar
-We eat
-8:00 morning chores, which include milking three goats, bottle feeding three babies, and feeding the rest of our menagerie of animals
-Watch The Young Victoria as a chunk of our school day
-Take three different phone calls pertaining to foster care
-11:30 leave to take Grace to work
-Go to Aldi and pick up bananas, an apple, light granola bars, a yogurt, a 12 pack of spring water, a package of cheese sticks, all instead of eating lunch out
-Eat yogurt, apple, and piece of cheese on my way to Fort Wayne
-1:00 Pick up J (6-yr-old) from the zoo where his class has been on a field trip today
-Head out for his 1:45 appointment with his therapist
-He eats a cheese stick, a granola bar, and a banana on the way there
-1:40 arrive for his appointment
-2:45 leave Fort Wayne, head to Auburn to pick up grandkids
-3:50 drop by the house to pick up Grace (Kate has picked her up from work and is herself on her way to work at this point)
-drive to school where B has girl scout meeting that is over at 4. I send Grace in for her so I don't have to get everyone out of car seats
-4:10 arrive back at home. Feed everyone a sandwich, the rest of the tortilla chips, and a banana if they want one
-4:30 Grace and I start loading the four kids back up in the car. Grace buckles kids in while I finish wiping the counter and get the food back in the fridge
-5:00 drop Grace off at softball practice in Ashley
-head north and east to Angola for Bree's softball practice that starts at 5:30
-5:20 Drop Bree off and head back toward home. J and baby are asleep in the car.
-5:40 Open doors and windows and pull weeds right next to parking area for 15 minutes while waiting for Chris to get home
-6:05 Get kids settled with Chris and head back out to pick up the girls.
-6:25 arrive to pick up Grace (practice is supposed to be over at 6:30)
-6:55 frantic, I go in with the players and coaches and call Grace out so we can leave.
7:10 arrive to pick up B, 10 minutes late
7:18 on our way home, about 10 more minutes from home, Chris calls to find out where we are and how long we'll be. He's got J in the tub upstairs, and David and the baby downstairs.
7:25 arrive home, help get J his meds and in bed, send B up for a shower, have Grace get her some nachos for a snack.
8:00 kids now in bed, sit down to watch NCIS
9:00 warm milk and put in bottles for babies; head outside for evening chores and milking.
9:45 back in; get milker washed and sanitized, get milk chilled. Chris goes to bed. I wait up for Abby to get her kids, etc.
10:00 sit down to check Facebook, hotmail, and my online classroom before heading off to bed. I decide to write on my blog.

Thankfully, the children were well-behaved today. It would be almost impossible if the children had gotten out-of-hand.

And now, I'm going to bed!

Ordering My Day

2010-01-05T08:54:00.002-05:00

Back when I had a full family childcare home, we had a basic working schedule that added order to our day but allowed for flexibility. With my two grandchildren here on a regular basis, homeschooling to do with two high school girls, two foster children in the public school system, along with my own college classes and a small farm to handle as well, it was time to get a schedule back up on the wall to give us some guidelines for our days. I married a man who loves museum-clean, but with all that goes on in our household, he tends to walk into clutter and chaos instead. While some women would say that he is just being unreasonable, I have to recognize that this really is a need for my husband. I like it that clean, too. He doesn't mind there being toys on the floor when there is someone playing with them, or food on the counter while someone is cooking or eating. But then let's get it put away when we're done. Let's clean up as we go, you know? Finding that balance has been a marriage-long struggle for me.

With that being said, yesterday I sat down and put together another what I call working schedule. What I mean by that is that it is flexible. It's all written out with time slots, but it's the type of thing that if you have a crazy day and it all falls apart, just get back on track the next day and it all comes back together.

This is what I call Family-Childcare-Home-Meets-Flylady-Meets-Bethann's-Crazy-Household. I should also note that I have a poster-board-sized chore chart that I covered with contact paper. We all have a color assigned to our names, and we use a dry erase marker in "our" color to check off the chores as we do them. For the occasional chores, we put the date instead of a check mark so that we know how long its been since the chandelier got washed or the tea pot collection on top of the kitchen cabinets got de-greased.

Anyway--here's the schedule. I hope it's helpful for someone!

Basic Daily Plan

5:30AM Mama and Papa up
6:00 Papa to Work; Mama: daily devotions
6:30 Wake B and J; breakfast, bus by 6:55
7:00 Mama: plan day; schoolwork; housework
7:30 (start laundry, do one daily chore)
8:00 (continue)
8:30 (continue)
9:00 Girls up; breakfast
9:30 Bible; morning feeding/milking chores
10:00 2 daily chores each; start school Mama: change up laundry, help with school
10:30 (continue)
11:00 (continue)
11:30 Lunch
12:00PM Naptime for David and Aaralyn; clean up lunch
12:30 Girls: continue schoolwork Mama: one household task; finish laundry
1:00 (continue)
1:30 (continue)
2:00 Get snack around
2:30 Kids home W, F snack; homework; two daily chores
3:00 …Free time when homework and chores are done…
3:30
4:00
4:30
5:00 Supper T: Kids home
5:30 Th:Kids home from daycare-later supper;homework;two chores
6:00 M: leave to get kids from visit with Mom
6:30 M: Cub scouts
7:00 Evening feeding/milking chores; bath time
7:30 Story time; bed time for under-14
8:00 Evening Family Time for 14 and up

Housekeeping is so much more than keeping it clean, and yet, in this family, clean and tidy is very important to some of the family members. If this is not a priority in your marriage/family, that's great. I'm not preaching or suggesting that because I do it this way, you should too. However, I know that I am not the only busy mom who wants/needs the clean house, too. Part of being a Proverbs 31 woman is finding the things that bless our husbands and striving to meet those needs. In MY house, this is one of them. I hope that this is helpful to someone. I know that it is helping my household tremendously!

No time for writing! And, a gluten free recipe

2009-11-21T10:40:00.005-05:00

I have had no time for blogging! I am finding that my life is so full right now that there is little time for "extras", including my writing.

I did find time on Thursday to put together some gluten free, all natural ginger snaps. They turned out surprisingly well, so I thought I'd share my recipe here. I took a regular gingersnap recipe that my sister-in-law, Terri, makes so expertly. I tweaked it and made it Bethann's-tummy-friendly.

Gluten-free Gingersnaps

1 cup demerrara (unrefined) sugar
3/4 cup butter, softened
1/4 cup blackstrap molasses
1 large egg
2 1/2 cups gluten free flour mix
2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp ground cloves
1/4 tsp sea salt
1 tablespoon Clear Gel, or use 1 tsp guar or xanthan gum
extra demerrara sugar for rolling before baking

Heat oven to 375. Beat 1 cup demerrara sugar, butter, molasses, and egg in large bowl on medium speed. Stir in remaining ingredients except extra sugar. Shape dough by rounded teaspoonfuls into balls. Roll balls in extra sugar. Place balls on cookie sheet, about 3 inches apart. Bake 10-12 minutes. You want these a little more than "just set", but not quite browned. They will be quite dark, anyway.
Allow cookies to set up well on cookie sheet before removing--especially if you use baking stones. Gently lift cookies to a cooling rack to finish cooling. These are more crumbly than traditional flour cookies, but not nearly so bad as many other recipes I've tried! The trick seems to be to get them a little more crispy than soft. They were wonderful!

Enjoy!

SOC 312 paper: Multiple Intelligences

2009-09-17T21:04:00.004-04:00

I love being back in school! The places our kids could go if we only knew more about how they learn, how they develop! I can't wait to take this to parents....

This was one of three assignments due tonight:

Multiple Intelligences Connection (find yours or your child's at http://literacyworks.org/mi/assessment/findyourstrengths.html )

I find the multiple intelligences theory very intriguing! I had been taught the three basic learning styles: auditory, visual, and kinesthetic (Sadker & Zittleman, 2007, p. 37) and have always tried to identify these in my students and in my daughters, whom I homeschool. In learning about the multiple intelligences theory, I see that it has great merit and could be very useful for teachers.
My own results were different than I would have guessed, and yet upon reflection, they do make sense to me. My linguistic score was highest at 4.14; interpersonal was 4. Naturalist found me at 3.86. In the intrapersonal category, I scored 3.71, musical at 3.29, and spatial, 2.71. I was not surprised to find that I had scored lowest in kinesthetic and logical-mathematical, both at 1.57. According to Sadker and Zittleman (2007, p. 38), my strengths are associated with a "sensitivity to the meanings, sounds, and rhythms of words, as well as to the function of language as a whole," an "ability to analyze and respond to the motivations, moods, and desires of other people," and am able "to discriminate among living things, to classify plants, animals, and minerals; a sensitivity to the natural world."

I'm sure that I have been teaching according to my own intelligences. I absolutely love drama and literature and always read with inflection, sometimes even with accents, when reading aloud. While I am not athletic, and thus scored low on the kinesthetic scale, I am a hands-on learner. At first I wondered why these were lumped together, that you had to be athletic to be a hands-on learner. However, I see that learning through handling the natural world (naturalistic) would be quite "hands on", so to speak.

I remember a time when I was reading to my daughters while trying to oversee six little ones in our childcare home. We were outside. My daughters and I were on the porch while the children played in front of us in the yard. As I was reading, my daughters were bouncing a ball back and forth to each other, and it was starting to really get on my nerves. I couldn't concentrate on what I was reading, and I wanted them to "get" what I was reading to them. I snapped out a, "Girls! Would you please stop that!" They looked at me, surprised, and assured me that they were listening. I remember thinking to myself that there was no possible way they were getting anything out of my reading to them. We practice a Charlotte Mason approach to schooling, which includes frequent narrating back what has been read. So, I curtly demanded a rendition of what I had just been reading to them, absolutely certain that I was going to be vindicated. Shockingly to me, they were able to rattle off everything about what I had been reading, with a far better narration than I had ever gotten from them!

This was eye-opening to me. I knew that they learned "differently". It's partly why we were homeschooling. I never again questioned what they were doing while "doing school", as long as their results showed that they were meeting the learning expectations I had for them. It was a pivotal moment for us and for me as an educator, as well! I can see now how I was using my linguistic strong suit to teach, while they were learning through their deep kinesthetic intelligence.
I am excited to take this information and utilize it in my teaching of little ones and my daughters, but especially in my interaction with the parents that I teach. I can watch students for their intelligences and give them learning opportunities to maximize their strengths. I can also share this information with parents so that they can do the same with their children at home, and I can utilize it with the parents themselves to help them learn the concepts about early childhood development that we share with them!

Gardner's definition of intelligence involves problem-solving skills, or deductive reasoning, and ideas or inventions that are culturally relevant (Sadker & Zittleman, 2007, p. 37). It is clear that, as teachers, if we can identify our students' strong points in the multiple intelligences, we can help them reach their full potential as functioning, creative, thinking adults. Someone who has the capacity to reason through challenges and come up with ideas to share with others will by default be someone who continues through life with a love of learning. What a wonderful gift we have the opportunity to give!

References
Sadker, D., & Zittleman, K. (2007). Teachers, Schools, and Society: A Brief Introduction to Education [with CD and Reader]. New York, NY: McGraw Hill.

God is so gracious!

2009-08-04T09:07:00.002-04:00

I emailed my instructor letting her know why I was late with my last assignment and she told me not to even worry about it. It was 4 minutes late. She also noted that she only meant to drop my other late assignment to a 90 rather than an 80. So, all told, I got a 99% in the class. I'll take it!

I'm currently taking a couple of weeks off to prepare for this year's home school lessons and to check into testing out of some other college classes. We're going to be able to get away for a couple of days, as well. I'm ready for that.

I was awakened this morning gently and awesomely by the sounds of sandhill cranes in the back field. So lovely!

God is very good, and I am very grateful to Him!

Whew!

2009-07-28T00:13:00.002-04:00

Another college class under my belt! I just hit the "submit" button for my final power point.

I've never done a power point presentation before. It was fun! I had the slides (minimum of 20, plus cover and references) finished by about 2:30 this afternoon. Grace and I packed up the kiddos and went to McDonald's for a free ice cream cone (coupons we got at the fair). Then we came home and went swimming. The kids had been so good all day while I worked on my final, and I had promised. When Chris got home, I came in and fixed supper (leftover smorgasbord). After supper, I started back in on adding graphics and motion.

I had NO idea how long that was going to take! I hit the submit button before midnight, but this wireless aircard took it's jolly ol' time uploading all of that. My assignment posted at 12:04. I am so bummed! This is 40% of my grade, and I may have to take an entire letter grade penalty for being late! I have emailed my professor, but technically, I am late and that is that. I can't go backwards, but I am so sad.

I really enjoyed this class--as in, a LOT, but I ran into some hard times making deadlines. There was another assignment that was due the weekend we did our chickens. With some really big problems with the foster children in respite the night my assignment was due, I literally had no choice but to let it go and turn it in the next day. I ended up with an 80%, but no corrections on the paper. Just late and you lose a letter grade for each day its late. I thought that would mean a 90, but I guess a 90 is still an A, so she gave me an 80. I'm still getting used to this college thing again. But it's hard for me to receive less than an A. Something the Lord is using all this for, I'll bet. Especially when it's because it's late. I could handle less than an A in Math, for example. I know I am not good at math. But in a class that is my absolute passion, involving lots of reading and lots of writing, which are also passions of mine...well...it's just hard to swallow an 80 on an assignment I'd probably have gotten a 100 on except for a family crisis. Very frustrating!

I'm taking two weeks off so that I can get the girls' lesson plans done. School will start back up for me on the 11th, and I'll probably start the girls at the same time. Wheeeee! Here we go!

Hope this finds all of you well and enjoying fruitful gardens. I've got more beans to pick tomorrow. We've got some in plastic bags in the basement fridge, waiting for me to finish picking the rest so we can get a canner load in. That, and getting goats to the auction. Have some phone calls to make tomorrow morning!

Happy last couple of days of July. Can't believe how fast 2009 is going! Blessings to all of you!

Gluten Free donuts!

2009-07-18T16:25:00.002-04:00

A friend alerted me to this fantastic recipe. I know, I know, right after a post about childhood obesity! But these are super yummy, and if you don't eat too many, then it's all good! Enjoy!

http://www.recipezaar.com/Amazing-Gluten-Free-Buttermilk-Donuts-Doughnuts-201483

Bethann

Looks like this is becoming a monthly blog!

2009-07-09T07:54:00.002-04:00

I can't believe it's been a month since my last post. Life has just been flying past.

Today's homework assignment includes writing a post about childhood obesity. Did you know that 20% of America's four-year-olds are obese? Is that astounding or what? Or how about this: children in America and other of the richer countries are experiencing malnutrition, and it's from overeating and eating the wrong stuff! We're fat, but we're malnourished! How's that for an oxymoronic idea? We have GOT to love our children and our families enough to make good choices for them. Children are at our mercy. If we do not model good behavior, including what we choose to eat, how will they know? Our children WILL DO WHAT WE DO!

On another note, I need to hit the Community Foundation today. Time to get my scholarship application filed. Cross your fingers! They have scholarships for returning women and for "the non-traditional student". Here's hoping!

Other than that, I've got two posts due today, and then four responses due by Monday. Between today and Monday, I need to visit two early-childhood lunch programs, interview and observe, then compare them in a 1-2 page paper due by midnight Monday. I also have to put together the first 10 slides of my 20-or-more-slides Power Point presentation. The first ten are due Monday night, also. The rest, as a complete presentation, plus cover page, appendix, and APA reference page, are all due in two weeks.

I'm actually enjoying this, but my garden is knee-high in weeds, the house is barely presentable (don't open my bedroom door, please!), and meals have been sometimes complete, other times thrown together.

I need to get groceries, too, but will probably wait until tomorrow. Which is kinda cool, really, because that means I've pushed grocery shopping off for several days, invariable saving me at least some money!

Time to go write about childhood obesity and some other topic, the topic for which has escaped my mind at the moment!

Until next time, here's a website you might enjoy:

http://thenonconsumeradvocate.wordpress.com/

Happy Saving and Simplifying!

Bethann

What if you had six months to live?

2009-06-09T16:23:00.001-04:00

I haven't had time to write! We've got a new sibling group of foster children, and one of them is high needs. It's been a whirlwind, a roller coaster, and whatever other metaphor you can come up with that translates into "aaaaaaaaaaggggggghhhhhhh!"

I also started back to school in this mix. I had an assignment this week that required us to really think about what's important in life. What matters most to us? Although it is deeply personal, I decided to share it just the same. It's hard to think this way. It's imperative that we do. We must take stock and live our lives deliberately. Following is the copy and paste from my assignment page:

This assignment has been a very hard one for me emotionally. My mom died at 56 years of age. She had 17 months from finding a pea-sized spot on her mammogram to the day she said goodbye. She did not want people to know she had cancer. Only her closest family members and colleagues knew. She had a wig made to look exactly like her hair, even having it thinned, since her hair was thin. She still worked almost every day. She didn't want to be treated any differently.

That was 12 years ago, and I am still mad at her. I'm mad at her for smoking all those years. I'm mad at her for spending so much of her time with so many other people and not really being around to be my mom. She was my best friend. But she was so busy "being there" for other people that I didn't get to just spend time with her.

I don't want to leave that testimony for my kids. I don't want people everywhere telling them how great I was while they seethe inside for my absence in their lives. And yet, I do it, too. I am so busy doing so many different things that I don't spend time with my children, just having fun. Making memories.

Six months is not enough time to make up for it. And if you are told you have six months to live, you're probably dying of something. Something that is making you sick. So I am thinking I'm not going to feel well enough to run a marathon or go mountain climbing. The things I find myself wanting to do are the things that I should be doing everyday anyway.

I would talk to our therapeutic foster care licensing agency and ask them to find another family for the children in our care right now. Not because I don't want them around, but because it would be so hard on them because of what they've already been through. That would free up so much of my time.

I'd petition Ashford or some other college or university for an Associate's Degree based on my current transcript and my life experience so that I could say that I finished a degree in my lifetime. I really want that Bachelors, but even an Associate's....and then, I think, that really doesn't matter, does it? But somehow that piece of paper has become so important to me. Validation, I guess. Pride, probably.

I would write little notes and I would hide them all over the house, in all kinds of places. The attic. The boxes of Christmas lights. Under dressers. Pinned inside the kitchen valance. Inside a few of the teapots in my collection. In boxes in the barn. The toolbox. Places where my family would find them in years to come, not all right away. A man I know of did this when he found out that he has Alzheimer's. His wife still finds them from time to time. Such a sweet thing to do. I'd do that.

I'd go through all of my journals and take out all the pages that had writings about my discontent or being angry at my husband. Truly, he has put up with so much from me. Any other man would have divorced me. I spent a lot of years in depression and bitterness. I didn't know it at the time. Looking back, I feel so sorry for him.

I'd really work at being sweet and joyful and loving. I regret so much of how I've lived and how I've brushed my family aside. I would delete the phrases "not right now", "I'm busy", and "Shush--I've got to get this done" from my vocabulary.

I would write a blessing for each of my children. I would make sure that they KNOW what I love about them, what I see as their strengths.

I would make a bunch of notes about our finances and make sure that my husband knows where to find all the passwords for bill paying and that sort of thing. Poor guy would be lost! I have everything in order so that he could do it, but it would be so confusing. I'd have to show him. I just always handle that stuff.

I would declutter. I hated that when my mom died. She actually had done a lot of it. But there was more to do. I don't want them to have to go through the junk. I think that part of this is therapeutic to the family members. But the junk--so much junk--I want to get that out of the house first.

I would buy a horse. We had horses. We're waiting until "the right time" to get the next one. I'd get the horse. Even if all I could do was go sit in the pasture with him, I'd have the horse. Maybe my husband would sit with me. That would be such a sweet time.

I have so many things I want to do before I die. I want to fly a plane. My dad loved flying, and it's what took his life when I was 2. He loved flying only second to me, according to my aunts. I want to feel that. I don't need a pilot's license. Just a ride in a plane where the pilot lets me feel the controls once. I'd like to do that. But it's a little thing in comparison to spending time with my family.

I don't care about going anywhere. But I do want to spend time sewing with my 17 yr old. I want to catch for my 14 yr old so she can practice her pitching. I want to have time baking with all five of my daughters. I want to take my grandson on a "horsey ride", but on my horse, not a trail horse that walks the same trail day in and day out.

I want to spend time with my husband, walking our hay fields, holding hands. I want to tell him how important he is to me. I want to keep the house clean for the whole six months. I want to help him fix his tractor.

I would beseech the members of our church's congregation to give to a trust fund of some sort and really work to build it so that our pastor could quit his full time job and be the full time pastor that he wants to be so badly. We're too small to bring in enough money for him to do that now.

I'd spend time every day reading the Bible and getting down on my knees for the many needs that I am aware of and don't take time to pray about. I'd pray harder for my son to really KNOW Jesus, to let Him be Lord of his life, rather than a distant memory.

I would tell my two youngest daughters, 14 and 17, that they should follow their passion. That if they want to go to college, to do it. And if they don't, don't. I'd tell them to find the man that shares their passion and to not settle for someone who does not.

Finally, I would eat more raspberries, even if they weren't on sale, and I'd drink regular Coke instead of diet.

I'm going to print this out and tuck it away with my journals. Maybe, just maybe, if I never get all of these things done, maybe the kids will find this and at least know that I was thinking about them.

I am really looking forward to heaven, but I hope I'm here for my kids for a long time. I have missed my mom terribly. There have been so many times that I've longed for one of our deep conversations. I've missed her wisdom. I hope that my children will allow me those things for many years to come, and that the Lord will allow them to have it. Even so, knowing heaven is my home is sweet comfort.

This Week's Meals

2009-04-29T13:57:00.002-04:00

Meals This Week

Breakfast
Scrambled eggs, toast and jam
Pancakes, fried eggs
Cold or hot cereal
Blueberry muffins, fried eggs
Chocolate Nut Bread, scrambled eggs (x2-leftover bread)
Egg sandwiches, canned peaches

Lunches
Leftovers, grilled cheese or pb-n-j sandwiches, salads

Suppers
Beans and rice and cheese
Salisbury steak, buttered homemade noodles, cooked carrots
Meatloaf, baked potatoes, salad
White chicken chili, cornbread
Pizza rolls, salad
Leftovers—Sundays and Thursdays

Snacks/Sides
Sugar cookies, popcorn, celery and peanut butter, carrots and celery with Ranch dressing as dip, apple slices, salad, chips and salsa

Low Carb Alternatives
Salad, celery and peanut butter, hamburger steak, cole slaw

Pretty basic, but it'll do! I prefer shopping and planning for a week at a time. I have found that with shopping and planning every two weeks, when Chris and I both get paid, I spend more and I don't follow my menu plans nearly as closely. I really save money and use up what's on hand better with an every week shopping and planning scheme.

Now, which one to have for tonight's supper? Maybe the meatloaf? I think I'll soak beans tonight for the white chicken chili.

grocery shopping and a prayer request

2009-04-29T13:31:00.004-04:00

Got my groceries on Saturday, and got 'em all for under my $50 target. The crew is complaining that "there is nothing to eat", but not so! There just isn't boxed or frozen stuff to throw together. I've got to get the leftovers in the fridge built back up so they can have that quick meal when necessary. For Monday night's game, I cooked up some hamburgers and packed a couple up for Chris to eat at the ballpark, where he met us. Katie and I really scrambled to get everything done and get to the park on time, but we did it. When we got home, we cooked up the rest of the hamburgers, and Grace had hers then. Chris had another; so did David. I had a second, also. It worked. McD's would have been easier, but not cheaper, and these were certainly better for us.

My biggest challenge with the $50 budget will be my salad preferences. I really love the spring mix salad, and I eat a lot of it. I've got some lettuces up, but not big enough to pick. And they are just the volunteers from last year's scattered seeds, so most of them will be turned under anyway, since they aren't in a row at all.

I know I saved my grocery receipts from the weekend, but of course, I can't for the life of me find them. Suffice it to say that I bought absolute basics. I went through my grocery list while standing in my basement pantry and checked off the stuff we were out of, the NECESSARY stuff we were out of. I always try to buy one treat when I shop. This week's was for me. I bought some Honey Nut Chex. Not low carb, I know, but gluten free! Yay! I've been enjoying a bowl just about every day, with fresh goat milk. Yum!

I want to get some bagged ice and rock salt to make ice cream this weekend. That would be a fun treat for all of us! Need to make soap, too. Even at only $4 for an 8 pack of soap at the store. I can buy a can of lye for less than that, and I have everything else I need on hand. Some goat milk soap is in order. And it will make a LOT more than 8 bars!

I found a $48 rebate check to Sam's Club hiding in my daytimer (another "little miracle"). So I hit Sam's yesterday and bought some cheese, a one pound box of spring mix salad greens for $4-something (great deal!), and a couple of recipe organizer notebook for the girls. I hunted these a year ago Christmas and could not find them. I was excited to find them, and to pay for them with "found" money! I stocked up nicely, and the cost to my grocery fund was $2. Good deal!

I really let the budget slide over the last couple of months. I'm excited to be back on track, and especially to see the blessings being poured out already as I "do the right thing" with our money! God is good!

Prayer request: please pray for a prospective foster kiddo. Can't share details, but God knows. The effectual, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much. Even though I know the whole situation is in God's hands, I also know that for some reason that absolutely baffles me, Father honors prayer. I don't believe it is possible to change God's mind--He's God. He IS unchangeable. And yet...somehow, for some reason, it seems to me that more is accomplished when we pray than when we don't. I won't understand that until I see Him face to face. Until then, I'm praying. Jesus prayed, and He IS God! Anyway, please pray for this precious little one while we await his ordeal to be settled. Thank you!

Finally! A moment!

2009-04-25T13:59:00.005-04:00

You see? I AM still here! The play was last weekend. That's my Katie in all her glory. Notice the guard in the background picking his teeth in his reflection on his sword! (Click on it to see the whole pic.) These guys were just wonderful to work with! So much talent!

We've sold two of our little boy goats. Still have a doe due any minute. Sold a half gallon of milk the other day, four gallons today! And eggs. Still too many eggs in the fridge! Gotta get that sign down by the road, but first....

The garden. That is hopefully today. Well, at least part of it. And trimming up the raspberries. We have first-year producers, so need to cut down last year's canes.

Back on my $50/week grocery budget. I'll do my shopping yet this weekend. I'll post my progress. Anyone following a budget and needing encouragement or having success stories to share, please feel free to comment!

More later. Gotta get something done while David sleeps!

I'm still here!

2009-04-06T16:24:00.003-04:00

Life is NUTS right now! Five babies, three on bottles, the other two to be switched soon. More babies due anytime after Sunday. On top of that, we're in the last two weeks of our homeschool play. I'm the director. Crazy, crazy, crazy!

So, more later from me. I won't be posting much for the next two weeks.

Please pray for three of our friends. Carey and Bobby for heart issues, and Mark for cancer treatments. We've seen absolute miracles in all three lives and are praying that God continues blessing these good friends with restored health and that closeness to Him that only comes through the fiery trials in our lives.

I'll be back in a couple of weeks with pics of our homeschool production!

Triplets! Or, spring at Promise Ridge Farm....

2009-03-26T08:28:00.003-04:00

Triplets! Boys. And there have been difficulties, but they're all alive at this point, and seem to be on an uphill climb rather than a downhill slide. One is very healthy. A second is in the house, laying in front of a heater. He was all but dead, but I got him in the house and in a sinkful of very warm water to bring his core temp up. We've rubbed him and cuddled him and force fed him about two drops at a time, and as of this afternoon, he can almost stand up. Although, he wants to go to sleep after only a few minutes of exertion. He was barely breathing and I had to blow into his lungs more than once. I still don't think he has full lung capacity.

On Tuesday night when we went out to feed, I noticed that Katie's doe, Annie, had a full udder. One of the things you watch for when you're getting close to a doe's due date is for her to "bag out". In other words, for her udder to fill with milk. Hers had. And when I shined a light on her back end, we saw that she had lost her mucous plug, as well! She was due this next Monday, the 30th.

We watched her all evening, running back out to the barn again and again. Finally, we decided to set our alarms every other hour, so that one of us was checking once every hour. Katie went out at 11:15, then went to bed. I stayed up and checked her at about 12:15, then set my alarm for 2:30. Kate's alarm went off at 1:30. She checked; nothing. I checked at 2:30; nothing. I set my alarm for 4:30. Kate said she never did roll out of bed at 3:30. I had a hard time at 4:30, but finally got out there at 5:20. Each of these times, we sat with her in the stall, because we could see that she was ready, and several times each of us thought we saw contractions.

At 5:30, I called Katie out to the barn. Annie was obviously in labor. Or at least I thought she was. We waited together. I realized it was close to Chris's time to leave for work. I left Katie in the barn and came in to fix him some breakfast and put his lunch together. About the time he was leaving, Kate came back in to say that there was still no real change in Annie. Kate went back to bed.

I checked the doe one more time at about 7:15 and still saw no change from the night before. I was simply exhausted, so I laid down. Abby called me at 8:45 to ask how to relight the pilot on her gas water heater. That woke me up. I went out to look at Annie, and she had two on the ground! All that checking all night long, and that goat dropped her babies while Kate and I crashed from our own exhaustion!

One looked great. The other was this little guy, still soaked in blood and fluids, flat as a pancake (not much air to inflate those lungs yet), and shivering in the cold, laid all out on his side, eyes closed. At first I thought he was dead. I called Kate and got her up. She came out and took over for me rubbing the little one with towels and trying to get him to respond. I blew into his lungs a few times, hung him upside down, swung him some and banged on his lungs. My goat friend tells me I did everything right. I was going on book knowledge and what I'd seen done, none of my own experience. I kept watching Annie, because she wasn't expelling the placenta yet. Sure enough, another hoof emerged, but this was a back hoof! I ended up helping to deliver a breach baby! I thought I would have to push him back in and turn him around, but he was having nothing to do with that, and neither was Annie! With my hand fully inside her, feeling around to make sure the rest of his feet were not going to tear her up, she delivered as I pulled. Amazingly, the rest of his feet were all facing forward and he was fine. He doesn't stand properly on his right back leg yet. I imagine that hip was displaced or at least has some pulled tendons/muscles because of the way he came out and my "help". But he's a voracious eater. Just needs help getting attached from underneath while laying down! She's a good mom, though, and stands very still for him.

I milked her out so I can feed colustrum to our little guy inside. Kate has named him Tyke. The other two are Sprach and Zarathustra. I told her the third one needed to be named "Also", but she really likes Tyke. She's been telling people, "There are three. This one is Tyke. There are also Sprach and Zarathustra." What a hoot!

As of yesterday morning, I was so unsure of Tyke's future. He has made huge progress! He went to youth group with us last night. (We asked permission.) Kate laid him on a towels in a vinyl tablecloth we had brought from home. She took pictures. She's threatening to put them on the church's website with the caption, "We're a kid-friendly church. (And we're not kiddin'!)" Ugh.

She slept with him last night. He sleeps a lot at this point, but he is actually standing on his own now, not just with us helping him up. He only takes about three sips at a time, but he's pooping and peeing, so we know his organs are working right. He's teeny tiny and looks like he's all bones, but he's still here! He's a fighter. He thinks Kate is his mommy, of course. She asked me last night, "Do babies get up over and over again in the night wanting to eat?" I just smiled and nodded.

She's gone back to bed now. He's on the floor in the kitchen again, asleep, with Angel, the Shih Tzu mix by his side. She will not let any of the other dogs anywhere NEAR him!

That puts us at five new boys so far this spring. Any dairy farmer (hehehe, I'm up to THREE milkers now! LOL) wants girls, not boys. But boys bring in fast cash and mean less work because you sell them off right away, or you sell them at auction in a few months for even more. So I'll trust the Lord's perfect wisdom for our lives and thank him for no losses this year! One more to go, in about three more weeks. She looks like she's carrying a baby elephant in there! We'll see how many she drops!

Friday Reflections and This Week's Meals

2009-03-20T07:29:00.004-04:00

"Every commandment which I command you today you must be careful to observe, that you may live and multiply, and go in and possess the land of which the Lord swore to your fathers. And you shall remember that the Lord your God led you all the way these forty years in the wilderness, to humble you and test you, to know what was in your heart, whether you would keep His commandments or not. So He humbled you, allowed you to hunger, and fed you with manna which you did not know nor did your fathers know, that He might make you know that man shall not live by bread alone; but man lives by every word that proceeds from the mouth of the Lord. Your garments did not wear out on you, nor did your foot swell these forty years. You should know in your heart that as a man chastens his son, so the Lord your God chastens you.

"Therefore you shall keep the commandments of the Lord your God, to walk in His ways and to fear Him. For the Lord your God is bringing you a good land, a land of brooks of water, of fountains and springs, that flow out of valleys and hills; a land of wheat and barley, of vines and fig trees and pomegranates, a land of olive oil and honey; a land in which you will eat bread without scarcity, in which you will lack nothings; a land whose stones are iron and out of whose hills you can dig copper. When you have eaten and are full, then you shall bless the Lord your God for the good land which He has given you.

"Beware that you do not forget the Lord your God by not keeping His commandments, His judgments, and His statutes which I command you today, lest--when you have eaten and are full, and have built beautiful houses...and all that you have is multiplied; when your heart is lifted up, and you forget the Lord your God...that He might test you to do you good in the end--then you say in your heart 'My power and the might of my hand have gained me all this wealth.'" Deuteronomy 8:1-17.

Wow. Powerful stuff. I know we live under grace, not under the law. But remember, Christ said that He came to FULFILL the law. I am not an OT Christian or feast follower or Messianic Jew, but the two commandments that our Lord gave us who believe that He is Messiah, to love our God with all our hearts, souls, mind and strength, and to love each other as ourselves, sum up all the law and the profits. In other words, LOVE--real, true, absolute, pure love--1 Corinthians 10 love--love of each other and love of HIM--will just NATURALLY fulfill all that Father God handed down to Moses in the law.

As I see it, the commandments that Moses is talking about here still pertain to us. We are not to FOLLOW them. We are to FOLLOW JESUS. But as we do, this stuff is just supposed to happen. I'm not talking about going through and memorizing all of the commandments and statutes so we can do each one. At the time of the writing of all of that, the Holy Spirit didn't dwell in men's hearts. Men needed written directions, handed down from God, to know what His Will was. We don't need that now. Those of us who have asked Jesus to be our personal Savior have the Holy Spirit living within us. But just as the ancient Israelites needed to "remember these commandments", we have to live in tune with Him. We have to keep our minds and our hearts stayed on Him. He will lead the way. We need to remember that we are not our own. We are bought with a high price. When we asked Jesus to be our Savior, WE died, and it is now Him Who lives within us. But that old man, he's a sneaky ol' guy, ain't he?

I was putting my week's menus together and thought of Jesus quoting the scriptures to Satan, the "man does not live by bread alone" scripture. So I decided to look it up. I was going to say something cute about the fact that we're about out of bread, and how I was going to have Grace bake some today, or maybe I wouldn't because after all, Jesus said.... We don't live by bread alone. True. But that other part--that whole "but man lives by every word that proceeds from the mouth of the Lord"--that's DEEP. Contemplate that for awhile. That's a lot of responsibility on our part.

Anyway---here's my list of meals for this week. This is all stuff I already have on hand. No grocery shopping for me this week! I done spent all my grocery wad last Friday. Stocked up on some stuff, but it still makes it harder to plan out sides and such this week!

Meals This Week

Breakfast
Scrambled eggs, biscuits and jam
Pancakes, fried eggs
Cheese omelettes, juice, toast
Cold or hot cereal
Banana nut muffins
Chocolate Nut Bread, scrambled eggs
No-crust spinach quiche, biscuits or muffins or toast

Lunches
Leftovers, grilled cheese or pb-n-j sandwiches, salads

Suppers
Chicken pot pie
Beans and rice and cheese
Meatloaf, Au Gratin potatoes, green beans
Homemade macaroni and cheese, salad
Pepper Jack Chicken, fried zucchini, biscuits
Salisbury Steak, buttered homemade noodles, cooked carrots
Venison Steaks, beef ramen noodles, peas

Snacks/Sides
Birthday Cake!! Ice cream, sugar cookies, popcorn, celery and peanut butter, carrots and celery with Ranch dressing as dip, grapes, apple slices, salad

Low Carb Alternatives
Cottage cheese, salad, celery and peanut butter, low carb yogurt, pumpkin muffins from freezer, hamburger steak, cole slaw, leftover chicken or crumbled hamburger in salads, low carb ice cream

TGIF, no? Thank God it's ANY day! I hope your Friday is faith-filled and that you choose love today. Blessings to you all!

--Bethann

Sewing, Splurging, and Selfish Slimming

2009-03-17T07:53:00.004-04:00

The dress---I'll have to post a picture. Katie spent all week on it. It's a sleeveless dress. Princess seams. Lined bodice. Invisible zipper. Two rows of ribbon: one right at the waist, one two inches above that. Gemstones sewn onto one ribbon, right of center a few inches (Kate's idea). Bright blue knit, flows beautifully, perfect for dancing! She got the fabric off the $1.50 table at WalMart.Spent a whole $12, including all the trimmings.

Zipper didn't go in right the first time. Kate had to leave for the concert Friday night. (Winterjam. Way cool Christian concert that Chris and I almost went to--multiple headliners plus others, all for $10.) Anyway, I took the zipper out and put it back in. The two rows of ribbon had not matched up right and there was a pucker at the bottom, like it was in cockeyed. When I put it back in, one row lined up, not the other, and the pucker ended up on the other side! GRRRR!

I want to take it back out one more time. If it does not go in better, I'll undo the stitching at the ribbon, take out the stitching on a couple inches of the ribbon, and place it where it matches, even though it won't then be 2" from the other one. And if there is a pucker again, I'll take out the seam under the zipper, let it line up whereever it may, and then put the seam back in, adjusting at the bottom however it needs to be. I'm not sure if that makes sense in print, but I understand it exactly, and I know it will work. In fact, I'm tempted to just do that anyway.

Of course, I'll have Kate help with all of this. I say "I" because I'm an only child. I am really bad about that. Chris is the youngest of six. He says "we" even when he means "I". I say "I" when it's really "we". Isn't that weird? Anyway...Katie and I will do all that. That dress is BEAUTIFUL. Me? I have always made simple things that look homemade but beautiful. Simple. You'd know that I made my own dress kind of like you'd know that a Mennonite woman had made her own dress. It's obvious, and yet, you can see the great seamstress qualities of it (or at least you'd THINK there was a great seamstress underneath that dress). I'd take one pattern and make four dresses, all with different fabric (sometimes cut out all at once with the pattern on top of several layers!), do different buttons, add some fancy stitching around the neckline, etc. But still obvious that woman made her own dress.

This dress is different. If not for that stupid ribbon and that stupid zipper pucker thingy right at her tailbone, making the zipper curve out right THERE and POP at her tailbone, you'd have thought she'd paid $60-100 at Macy's, kwim? I mean, it's a killer dress. With that fitted bodice (which is where I think the mistake is--we altered the bodice pattern), it's a perfect fit, and with her being a toothpick with fabulous definition (all that basketball and softball and tennis, not to mention ballroom dance, really pay off), man she looked amazing!

I want her to have that dress be perfect. She spent so much time on it. I want to work with her to fix the little stuff that makes it look homemade.

I haven't posted about my groceries because I didn't want anyone to know what a bad girl I've been! Seriously. We had a bigger paycheck, so I set aside $200 instead of $100 for two weeks, and it is GONE, and then some. I stocked up on some stuff. I blew the extra $$ on steaks I found on the manager discount rack at Kroger yesterday. I've been craving steak for over two weeks. I made the hamburger steaks last week with mushrooms and peppers and onions and beef bouillon and they were to die for, but I wanted STEAK. The rest? I don't know. It's just GONE. I bought food and toilet paper and feminine products (OUCH) and just necessary items, except for extra produce and a box of Aldi cereal because the kids asked for it. So, I'm staying out of the grocery store for two weeks. It's only the first Tuesday of a two week, Friday-to-Friday pay period! I am ashamed.

I have learned a couple of things about myself and my body. I am realizing that my diet buddy is right: I need to just stay away from sweets, even Splenda-sweetened sweets, PERIOD. I am not happy about this. I am really, really not happy about this. My "sweet" things will be my low carb yogurt once a day or less and the rest of the almond flour pumpkin muffins, which are in the freezer. I'll eat those a little at a time here and there, as a breakfast. If I eat something sweet, I'm craving more.

The other thing I've learned about myself is that I have to eat LOW CARB, not low fat, not low sugar, to lose weight, AND TO KEEP IT OFF. Last week, I was down 4 pounds. This week, back up two. I have not had any flours, gluten-free or otherwise, no sugary desserts, nothing "extra". Well, other than a couple bowls of cereal here or there, I guess. Just too many nuts, too much peanut butter, too much salad dressing (full fat, 12 carbs per serving)--and I don't like the expensive carb free dressing I bought, dangit! Just too many calories, I guess. That really irritates me about my body.

I also know that I need to exercise. For one thing, it will help my fibromyalgia pain. And with the play coming up and kidding season and getting the milk business going again, I will need all the help I can get. But I do not WANT to exercise. Okay? There. I said it. I do not want to! But I have to.

SO....here I go again. I'm going to crack down on the carbs. I'm going to eliminate nuts for right now but keep my high carb dressing, because it is the only way I will eat salad, and I need to eat salad to get my veggies in. I will cut back on cheese. I am going to exercise EVERY SINGLE DAY. I think if I make it part of my day, period, instead of trying to find 3 or 4 days to fit it in, that will really help. I'm going to drink copious amounts of water. And I'm going to really work on getting 8 or 9 hours of sleep every night. That one will be HARD. I am not tired at 9PM, no matter how exhausted my body is. I am not ready for bed that early. But I don't have the luxury of sleeping in past 5:30/6:00 AM. So, it really needs to be 9PM.

Okay, that's it. I'm going to drop these last twenty pounds, dangit! I AM! I'm sick of talking about it for two years. Even at my lowest weight in 15 years, that's still 20 pounds more than high school. And my bone structure has not changed since I was 13. With just that 20 pounds, my belly hangs over my gut and my "thighs are like the cedars". (Man, Solomon was NOT good at complements!) I'm sick to death of it. I'm getting it done. I've given up wheat, rye, barley, oats, sugar, caffeine, msg-laden foods, all to feel better. Why not give up the rest of the foods that keep me heavier than I really WANT to be? Why not just MAKE IT HAPPEN?

I'm not fat enough for it to be a health issue at this point. Other than the exercise--that would help my health tremendously. But the shape/weight? No. I'd be considered pretty "healthy" by most standards today. This is a me thing. This isn't a command from God. I've asked, and He said He doesn't mind if I get gorgeous. LOL But it really is a vanity thing, a me thing, something I want to do for myself.

But that's just it. Right there. How much in my life have I given up for everyone else around me? I am not trying to get into a pity party or a crabby housewife or a "what I deserve" mindset. I just am realizing it---what I have given up for everyone I love? A LOT! So why can't I give up these foods for ME? Once I lose the weight, I'll be able to eat a FEW things that I'm giving up. But after gaining back two pounds while eating healthy foods? If I want to be THIN, then I will have to live a life of sacrifice for myself. And who knows? With daily exercise, I may drop the weight super fast and realize that I HAVE to eat some of those no-no's just to maintain. I really hope that's the case.

I really think it will be worth it. I know that if I continue to eat whatever I want, I'll move right up that scale. It's time to just recognize that I need to eat a certain way if I want to look a certain way. And to decide which I want--certain foods? Or a certain size and shape? I'm ready for the size and shape.

That's all for now. Definitely nothing spiritual today, eh? But, hey, I'm being honest, right?

Frugal Feasting

2009-03-11T14:48:00.006-04:00

I ate cereal today. I have done so well on this low-carb plan, but today I was just craving so badly! I had a bowl of Rice Krispies. As I got near the bottom of the bowl, it occurred to me: what I really had a hankerin' for was the milk. I poured myself a small glass of milk and vowed to try that FIRST next time. Still, I've done really well at eating "on plan". I'm pleased, and I'm pleased with the progress.

All that said, I knew I needed to keep it pretty strict for lunch time after that cereal. I also knew I needed some protein--I was really lagging! I came up with a cabbage stir-fry thingy.

That's my official recipe title, by the way: Cabbage Stir Fry Thingy. I guess you could just call it a Vegetable Cabbage Skillet. Or you could call it Stir Fried Cabbage. Whatever you call it, it was easy and it was cheap, and you could throw in any other vegetables that suit your fancy. I think it would have been better with broccoli and/or zucchini or yellow squash. Here's what I used:

1 lb cabbage
1/2 green pepper
1/2 medium onion
1 stalk celery
1 carrot, peeled
oil
red cooking wine
2 eggs,slightly beaten
salt
pepper

Thinly slice the vegetables. Pour a little oil, about 2 tbsp oil into a heavy skillet. Toss all but the cabbage around with the oil on medium heat until onions are become transparent. Add cabbage. Continue to toss and stir until cabbage softens and lightens in color and onions start to brown. Pour wine over the top of veggies, just enough to add liquid throughout the pan, about 2 tbsp to 1/4 cup. Toss some more and pull the vegetables to one side. Pour in egg onto the bare pan. Scramble some, but then incorporate all the vegetables into the egg. Add salt and pepper to taste. I added quite a bit. When the eggs are completely cooked, serve.

This is amazing with teriyaki sauce, but I don't do well with soy products nor msg. By adding the cooking wine and enough salt and pepper, I didn't miss the soy. It would be good mixed with rice, like fried rice, too, and that would extend it. Skipping the rice skips a lot of calories. If you're dieting and don't want to fix yourself separate foods, you could whip up a batch of this and serve it with rice for everyone else.

Some of you low-carb frugalista types have been making stuff like this for ages. But I remember a day when I would have loved someone to give me some ideas on how to eat healthfully on a budget. I was convinced it was one or the other--healthy foods or low cost, not both.

Anyway, it was yummy, so I thought I'd share! Hope you're all having a wonderful, healthy, frugal Wednesday! Now I'm off to make caramel corn to take to our youth meeting tonight!

Recipe: Sunny "B"

2009-03-07T08:48:00.003-05:00

This is a juice drink that I made up years ago to satisfy my kids' want of expensive breakfast drinks with almost no nutritional value, as well as to simply find a way to stretch orange juice on the weekend or with company, on a budget. This is my version of "Sunny D". ("B" for Bethann. LOL)

Sunny "B"

1 12-oz frozen orange juice concentrate
1 packet unsweetened orange flavored Kool Aid
1 1/2 cups sugar
Cold water

Fill a gallon pitcher about half full of water. Stir in orange juice concentrate, Kool Aid mix, and sugar. Add about another quart of water. Stir well and serve chilled.

Basically, this makes almost a gallon. When I fill the gallon pitcher the rest of the way with water, my family says it tastes a little watery. So test it and make it to your family's tastes.

Yes, this is a lot of sugar. BUT...it's less sugar than you'd have in a gallon of Kool Aid, and it's better for you than the original store bought version--and MUCH cheaper.

I've made it with 1 cup lemon juice instead of the orange Kool Aid mix, too. That's good, too.

This Week's Meals

2009-03-07T08:01:00.003-05:00

We are not eating from our menu list as much as I'd like. We're eating more leftovers than I thought we'd have, or lunches are more hit or miss than I planned. So there will be some repeats on this menu, and I've changed the format to reflect our lunch patterns and my low carb alternatives.

Meals This Week

**indicates a coordinating or easy low-carb alternative

Breakfast
Scrambled eggs, biscuits and jam
Pancakes, fried eggs **low carb yogurt
Cheese omelettes, toast
Monkey bread, sausage-egg skillet
Cold or hot cereal **pumpkin muffins from freezer
French toast sticks, pears, brown-n-serve sausages **sausages and scrambled egg
Homemade doughnuts, Sunny “B”, broccoli egg casserole

Lunches
Leftovers, sandwiches, salads, **low carb yogurt

Suppers
Pork chops, baked potatoes, applesauce, cooked carrots
** Pork chops and salad
Chicken and dumplings
** Chicken Caesar Salad
Beans and rice and cheese
**Seasoned pinto beans with hamburger and cheese
Hamburger steaks, homemade fries, green beans
** Hamburger steak, green beans, cole slaw
Potato soup, dinner rolls
** Leftover broccoli egg casserole
Fried Rice with broccoli
** Fried cabbage(instead of rice) with broccoli
Hamburger-hash brown skillet, salad
**Salad with crumbled hamburger and Ranch dressing

Snacks
Oatmeal cookies, popcorn, **celery and peanut butter, **carrots and celery with Ranch dressing as dip, **sugar free jello “dream”, **pumpkin cheesecake

Friday Shopping

2009-03-07T07:30:00.004-05:00

Again, when I took my 14yo to town for work, I also hit Kroger and Meijer to check out the manager's specials and markdowns. Did better at Kroger, but picked up a couple of things at Meijer, too. I'm over budget by $20, but $8.18 of that will be rebated back to me, and the other $12 I'll shave off of next week's amount. And the reason why I felt comfortable doing that is...

drumroll please...

Chris worked this Friday and will next, as well! How about that! That was a real blessing. That allows us to push the grocery budget back up closer to that $100/week mark. Which I MUCH prefer. Still, it has been fun to actually DO the $50/week thing.

Anyway, here are my purchases.

Kroger

margarine .52(for baking while things are tight--I much prefer butter)
butter 1.99 for breads, rolls, and baked goods that just REALLY need butter!)
cabbage .72
2 half gallons milk .99 each
discounted jumbo hamburger rolls. .75 (also good for hoagie type sandwiches)
10 lbs potatoes 2.49--the cheapest I've seen potatoes in months! Yay!

Kroger total $8.45

That left me with about $3 cash. I probably should have just stayed out of Meijer, but had to just SEE what was marked down....

Meijer

50 oz jar applesauce, $2.25
16oz Cool Whip 2.48 (pure impulse, shame on me!)
carb free dressing 3.99 had a sale price on it. have to go in and demand a refund for the sale
orange juice 1.49, so I can make "Sunny B" (B for Bethann, of course!)
two boxes "Smart Start" cereal--two varieties have a coupon on the box for a "try it free" deal, so I figured, why not? Free is free! Found that David LOVES the strawberry squares.
and a 3 lb chub of ground chuck, regularly $7.68, reduced to 4.61.

Meijer total: $23.00

Now, if I had not been in town already, I would not have shopped Wednesday and Friday. And with my overage, you can see that I would have done better to just stay out of the store. But, I wouldn't have found the potatoes, the meat, the free cereal--there really were some great deals. And some of the items, like the margarine, butter, and milk, I would have bought before next Friday anyway. Now let's see how I do waiting until next Friday for ANYTHING! LOL

The kids have actually talked about keeping the food budget at $50 for the next two weeks even though Chris is working those Fridays, and setting the $100 aside to take a little mini-vacation or something. See? My kids are getting it! If we can live on $50 a week for groceries (I contend that we could live on even less), then we could save money by not buying certain things, and save THAT money to do something special! It's happening! It's sinking in! Woo-hoo!

Meals list and a recipe are next.

Mid-week grocery run, plus a couple more "little miracles"

2009-03-04T14:29:00.007-05:00

Well, I gave in to myself. There was just not enough fresh produce in this house to support a low carb diet. I can only eat so much celery and iceberg salad! I had to take Grace to work, so I hit the local store for manager markdowns and then went to Aldi. Here's my tally:

Kroger

5 low carb yogurt, .42 ea (cheaper than the 32 oz carton today)
2 sf jello .39 ea
cucumber .85
reduced lettuce .49 ea--and I got rid of maybe one or two extra leaves, is all
1 lb sausage 1.00
1.95 lbs bananas, .39/lb

Total: $6.30 I was hoping to buy decaf tea bags to make myself iced tea. Wow, way too expensive! I'll drink water!

Aldi

2 more of those 8 oz packages of cheddar for 1.29 ea
3-pack of green peppers 1.99
3-pack Romaine Hearts 1.89
6 oz sliced almonds 1.99
1 lb walnuts 5.69
brown n serve sausage links, .89
8 oz mushrooms .69

Total: $15.72 I was going to try to do without the nuts, but I go through a lot of nuts when I am doing low carb. They really get me through.

I've got another $12 and some change for the incidentals that will more than likely come up between now and the 13th (next payday).

I am really excited at how well we've done on this cash basis living, especially considering how much less cash we have compared to a couple of months ago! We've been additional-debt-free for over three months now! And we've paid down some huge chunks on what debt we do have.

And again, the Lord has encouraged us with a couple more nice little blessings. We had several financial "surprises" that hit pretty hard in the last few weeks, right as we learned of Chris's income change. We had a chunk of money that was going to be set aside as an emergency fund, but are now expecting most of it to be used by the, well, emergencies we've weathered. I had told Chris just the other day that after all the bills are in and paid off, I'd like to take a little of whatever is left of that fund and hit Sam's Club. There are certain things there that are significantly cheaper than anywhere else, but on a $50/week grocery budget, we'd be hard pressed to eek out enough to make a "Sam's run". And then a couple of days ago, lo and behold, we got a rebate check from our Sam's card. I had used it at Christmas and in November, but had paid it off before the bill had even come in each month. But there it was, a nice little rebate check. It'll be enough for a couple packages of cheese and some toilet paper, and maybe a few other smaller things.

Then today, I stopped in at the hospital to pay one of the bills that had just come in yesterday. Apparently there is a 10% discount if you pay in full with the first statement. Cool! I was already planning to do that with these next couple of bills we're expecting!

And then we got our foster care check for the one night we had a sibling group in our home in February. I'll allocate that according to our original budgeting plan for "extra income" (after tithing, of course!) 50% will go directly toward debt, in addition to what I'd have paid this month anyway; 30% will go into the emergency fund; and the other 20% will be set aside for incidental expenses that we haven't budgeted expressly for--a new homeschool book or a visit to the dentist, etc.

This is actually kind of fun! (I'll let you know if that changes! LOL)

My favorite verse in the Bible is "But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you." Right before that, Jesus was talking about nature having its needs met without a care. NEEDS. "...all these things..." are necessities. God will meet my every need as I keep my heart, my mind, my eyes, my actions, stayed on him. As I seek HIM, not the things, not the blessings, He will provide.

And boy is He! In the words of the famous (or infamous) Hanibal Smith, "I love it when a plan comes together!" As much as it is difficult to walk through, it is also always exciting when a problem arises in my life that I don't have the answer for. When something looms ahead of us that is bigger than our current circumstances can handle, I find myself saying, "Wow! I'm going to get to watch God do a miracle!" And He always, always has, and we are watching Him work yet again. Thank you, Father!

The Proverbial Proverbs 31 woman: out of reach? Stretch f..a..r..t..h..e..r.........

2009-03-03T20:27:00.006-05:00

Grace found a piece of flair on Facebook that said "A clean house is the waste of a perfectly good life." We were cracking up at that. Chris overheard on his way through the kitchen and said, "Ha! I think a dirty house is the waste of a perfectly good WIFE." And then exited the house.

You've heard the term "living in a museum". Chris says he doesn't want to live in a museum. He wants to live in a house that's as clean as a museum.

Actually, I do too. Really. I am just not cut out to be a curator. I'm more the archeologist. You know, digging in dirt, blowing it all around. Yep. That's me. And Chris? He wants to be the guest.

Hmmm...just had a thought...I could keep the house a lot cleaner if I could rope off the "exhibits". Yeah! Make a pathway through the house to the different rooms, but not let anyone actually IN them!

Seriously, I want to be the perfect housewife. I want the antiseptic clean house. I don't mind toys or books being out when they're being used. But then put them away when you're done, you know? But I grew up in a house that cleaning meant stufffing the piles in the closet or extra bedroom. I didn't have to clean my room; I just had to keep the door shut. After 25 years of marriage, this is still the thing we fuss over the most.

I'm so much better than I was. But I have so much farther to go. Tomorrow night we will be discussing the Proverbs 31 woman at our women's ministry meeting. The things I've learned about her I've learned through things I've read and things I've seen in other women or things they've shared. I realize that the verses are about the lifetime of a very virtuous woman. But will my family be able to say that about me in my old age? Not at the rate I'm going!

Lord, oh Lord, make me and mold me. Break me if You must. (Yet again.) Make me what YOU want me to be. Help me to always look to You. Help me to keep my eyes ever on You so that the things that need accomplished in my home and for my family just happen. May I be so in touch with You that I no longer think about me.

Father, I don't care if they say great things about me at my funeral. I pray they say great things about YOU because I lived. May it be so. Amen.

Dieting on a Dime

2009-03-01T23:13:00.000-05:00

I still have that last 20 pounds that I just...can't...quite...get...to...budge. A few years ago I had let myself slide up to, well...let's just say that I was over 40 pounds more than I weighed on my wedding day. Which was already 10 pounds more than I weighed in high school. Oh my goodness. Seeing that in print is horrifying! Anyway, over the course of about three years, I guess, I lost more than half of that extra weight. I followed the South Beach diet for awhile. I tried Weight Watchers twice. But the thing that I did really well on was a basic low or reduced carb diet. I didn't do a strict Atkins thing.

The reason I even looked at a low-carb plan was because I was looking for gluten-free recipe ideas. People eating a low-carb diet aren't eating bread, so low-carb diet sites and books would be full of gluten-free recipes, right? Wrong. These low-carb folks add gluten to everything! (Or so it seems!) But I did find some things my girls and I could eat, and in the meantime, I found a diet plan that worked for me!

When I stayed on it.

Okay, that's the caveat. That's the thing. You can't determine how effective a diet plan really is unless you follow the plan. I get this. Didn't matter which plan I followed. When I followed it, I lost weight. When I quit, so did the weight loss. In fact, that weight would creep back up. The thing about "low-carbing it" (I made that up. Aincha proud?) Anyway, the thing about low-carbing it was that I was able to stick with it longer.

I tend to follow my own version of a low-carb diet. Since I don't eat gluten, sugar, soy, or caffeine (I still eat chocolate--don't even try to talk to me about caffeine in chocolate), I am very limited. Add to that--or maybe I should say subtract!--the fact that I'm shopping on a very limited budget right now, and that REALLY limits my choices.

What to do? What to do? I had to come to a place where I had to just flat out prioritize. Simple as that. My friend Max says "nothing tastes as good as thin feels". I have spent a lot of years wanting to be thin, but not wanting to do what it took to get there. And honestly, I don't know if I could have done what it took to STAY there.

But today I feel differently about all this. I'm not sure why. I've "turned the corner" so many times in these last 14 years of yo-yo-ing that even I don't trust myself when I hear me say "THIS is it!" or "Today is THE day!"

I got myself down to within ten pounds of my wedding day weight the summer my oldest had her own wedding day. I've flitted and fluttered about 5 or 10 pounds above that for the last couple of years. This winter I saw that lower number again for about a week. And then, POOF! It was gone.

I was all ready to HIT IT HARD (my words that particular gonna-do-it-this-time week), and then Chris's job situation changed (same job, different pay, again), and I thought I couldn't do a low-carb diet on my limited grocery budget.

And then, today, something snapped. Or I guess you're supposed to use the word "clicked" when it's a good thing, aren't you? Anyway, it clicked or it snapped or it did something that probably wasn't audible at all, and all of a sudden I was empowered. I can do this. I CAN DO THIS! And I can do it without going out and buying a bunch of special food. I can do this with the food I have on hand. Right now. Today. Well, tomorrow, actually, since it's almost midnight today, and I'm going to be going to bed very soon.

This is what I will be eating this week. I'll eat the following items more than once through the week, but I have all the makings for these items, and some of them coincide with the rest of the family's meals, too. I'll mark specifically low-carb recipes with an asterisk (*).

Mom's Menu

Breakfast
scrambled eggs with bacon bits and cheddar
pumpkin muffins *
flax seed muffins *
cheese omelet
vegetable quiche cups*

Lunches and Suppers
Salads
broccoli quiche
3-bean chili
sandwiches on "spinach 'bread'" *

Snacks
Celery and peanut butter, 3-minute almond cake*, sugar-free jello "fluff"*

Some day I'll post recipes or at least links to where I found recipes. For now, I think I better get some sleep. I've got some baking to do in the morning!

Recipe: "Quick" Cinnamon Rolls

2009-03-01T21:11:00.001-05:00

These are quicker to make than regular yeasted cinnamon rolls. The flavor and texture is also closer to the pop-out-of-a-can variety. My family loves them. If you don't have a food processor, they won't be AS quick, but they're still faster than a traditional recipe. (I've got a killer traditional recipe, too! I'll share that another time.) Without a food processor, use a pastry blender and good ole' wooden spoon and bowl. Email me if you have questions about how to do that.

"Quick" Cinnamon Rolls
makes 12 rolls

1/3 cup real butter
2 1/2 cup flour
1 tsp bulk yeast (about 1/2 package regular)
1 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 cup sugar

Process until crumbly in food processor. Then add:

1 egg
3/4 cup warmed milk

Process until dough cleans sides of processor bowl and forms a ball. Add up to 1/4 cup additional flour if necessary.

Roll out to 1/2" thick on floured surface.

Filling:

2 tbsp butter
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 1/2 tsp flour

Process in food processor until crumbly. Distribute evenly over rolled out dough.

Roll up and and pinch edge onto roll. Cut into 12 rolls. Lay in greased 8" pan. Bake at 375° till raised and lightly browned. Drizzle with icing:

Icing

1 1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 1/2 tsp vanilla
milk

Mix sugar and vanilla in bowl. Mix in milk to desired consistency. Drizzle onto rolls. Serve warm!

These are easy to make and quite a bit simpler and faster than traditional rolls, which take hours to raise! Enjoy!

And for more inspiration and recipes, check out The Grocery Cart Challenge!

Menus!

2009-02-28T20:51:00.001-05:00

Let me just say that many of these are repeats of last week. We either, for whatever reason, never made the meal, or the kids requested it yet again. Anyway, here's the plan for this week.

Meals This Week

Breakfast
Homemade granola bars
Scrambled eggs, biscuits and jam
Pancakes, fried eggs
Homemade “quick” cinnamon rolls, apple slices
Fried mush, cheese omelettes
Monkey bread, apple juice
Cold or hot cereal, orange slices

Lunches and Suppers
Homemade macaroni and cheese, cooked carrots
Salad with hardboiled egg
Broccoli quiche
Chicken and dumplings
Three Bean Chili
Sandwiches, carrots, celery
Beans and rice and cheese
Hamburger steaks, homemade fries
More salad
Homemade chicken soup and grilled cheese
Fried Rice with broccoli
Birthday party pizza!
More leftovers
Leftovers and/or sandwiches

Snacks
Sugar cookies, popcorn, celery and peanut butter

This week's groceries

2009-02-28T14:34:00.000-05:00

Let me preface this with the fact that we thought we were going to have three extra little ones for the weekend. That didn't materialize, so I have a lot of lunch meat and hot dogs that I would not have ordinarily bought. However, we'll eat all of it, so it won't go to waste. After all, we've been getting free bread from a friend lately--good for sandwiches! Just would have been a different shopping trip if I'd have waited until Saturday to shop. Ah well, best laid plans and all...

Aldi:
1 gallon milk 1.99
3 pkgs hot dogs at 1.19 ea
2 pkgs turkey ham 2.49 ea
2 cans corn .49 ea
applesauce .95
iceburg lettuce 1.19
mayonnaise 1.99
bananas 1.42
3-8 oz chunk cheese 1.29 ea
pan spray 1.29
2 lb carrots 1.39
bologna . 99
ranch dressing 1.19
2 pkg provolone cheese 1.69 ea
hard salami, 8 oz 2.29
2 hot dog buns .85 ea
24 oz fresh pears .99
sweet onions .79
chocolate chips 1.49 (wow, those went up!)

total 36.44

WalMart:

diet pop for Chris .78
frozen apple juice .88
imitation vanilla .99
personal girly stuff .93

total with tax 3.69

Meijer:

reduced lettuce .67
2 frozen broccoli 1.00 ea
frozen corn 1.00 ea

total: 3.67

$43.80! Still have money left over for more milk or what-have-you this week!

Disclaimer: remember we raise our own chicken, eggs, goat milk, pork, and beef. Right now we're out of beef, but the freezer is full of chicken and pork still. Although the pork is running low. Gotta get a couple piggies. Not having to buy meat saves me a ton, but look how much meat I bought anyway in hot dogs and sandwich meat. I also keep flour, sugar, etc., on hand so I can bake from scratch.

I'm proud of myself for this week's grocery purchases. Let's see if I can keep it up long term......

What a week it's been!

2009-02-28T14:11:00.000-05:00

Well, where to start?

First of all I had a miracle day the day I ran out for milk. I had to be in town anyway. We had been out of milk for a couple of days, but had the goat milk, so no big loss. We don't really drink milk anymore. I cook and bake with quite a bit, though. The last goat was to be dried up in anticipation of her babies in two months, so we'd need milk by the end of the week. And my grandson was going to be here, so we'd need milk for him. I knew I would be out on Wednesday anyway, so I waited.

I knew I had just about enough money on hand for the milk. A dollar bill still in the grocery money, and some change in my wallet. I knew there would be that $2.59 that milk has been running at Aldi.

When I got to the parking lot at Aldi, I counted out my change. Over four dollars in change! I got milk, which was on sale for $1.99, an 8oz block of cheddar for $1.29 (WOWSERS! cheapest I've seen cheese in like, forever!) Also picked up a package of hot dogs to go with the package of buns we were given this week, and a package of margarine for baking. Still had change left over!

Went to WalMart to make a return, and was given full price. Wasn't expecting that, since I couldn't find the receipts. Had that put on a shopping card,and decided to see if there were any manager markdowns. (Usually aren't at WallyWorld.) Found 5-lb rolls of ground beef for $5.57! Bought one; still some $$ left on the shopping card.

Then took a few things back to Menard's. No receipt. I looked and looked, but didn't find it. Well, they have this neat receipt kiosk thingy. I swiped my debit card and credit cards and found the receipt. Printed it out and got full price back for my items, placed on an in-store credit slip. That will go towards the different projects we hope to finish with Chris's time off.

Which brings me to the other interesting thing about this week. Chris started four day work weeks. We knew he would have to take some extra vacation days this year--without pay--and we had been planning for that. I had taken his pay cut and his extra unpaid days and averaged them out over the year, divided by the number of pay periods, and made my budget accordingly.

Well, this being the beginning of the year, I wasn't quite ready for several weeks of the reduced income! I've slashed my grocery budget in half (that's right--we're working with a $50/week budget now) and have trimmed every bit of fat and then some off the budget. Medical stuff I relegated to the emergency fund. It's still uber-tight, but I am so encouraged by my mid-week shopping trip for milk, that I KNOW I'll be able to do it. By the grace of God, it'll all be fine.

Either of us is ready to take an extra job if need be, but I think we can squeak by without. We're using the extra time with him home to finish several of those almost-done projects we're notorious for.

I'll post this week's shopping trip and menus a little later. For now, we're full, there's plenty in the freezer and pantry, and I've been able to pay cash for everything, even the several emergencies that have cropped up this month! God is so good, so faithful!

this week's meals

2009-02-20T14:04:00.000-05:00

Here's my actual menu for this week, just copied and pasted from Word.

Meals This Week

Breakfast

Homemade granola bars
Scrambled eggs, biscuits and jam
Pancakes, fried eggs
Homemade “quick” cinnamon rolls, apple slices
Hash browns, cinnamon toast, chocolate milk
Fried mush, cheese omelettes

Peach braid, hash browns, scrambled eggs to take to church for snack time

Lunches and Suppers

Hash brown and hamburger skillet
Salad with hardboiled egg

Chicken and dumplings
Three Bean Chili
Sandwiches, fresh baby carrots, celery
More salad

Homemade chicken soup and grilled cheese
Leftovers

Spaghetti, cheesy garlic bread, salad

Fried Rice
Meatloaf, homemade noodles with butter, green beans
More leftovers
Leftovers and/or sandwiches

Snacks

Peanut butter cookies, no bake cookies, caramel corn

What I got

2009-02-20T13:53:00.000-05:00

Here are my actual purchases.

WALMART
17.5 Bag natural Kibbles and Bits dog food (they have allergies) $10.88
Sure antiperspirant 2.07
Suave Hairspray 2.17 (for 14yo)
Gluten free spaghetti 2 8 oz boxes 1.57 ea
2 2ltrs Sam's Choice diet pop .78 ea
12 pack Sam's choice diet pop 2.25 (wow, that went up!)

Total, with tax: 23.40

WALGREENS
50 load Xcel laundry detergent $2.50 Cheaper than Sun...we'll see if we break out from this

ALDI
2 bottles Ranch dressing at 1.19 ea
2 jars spaghetti sauce .99ea
2lb box spaghetti 1.69
parmesan cheese 2.39
2 heads lettuce .79 ea (Walmart's was 1.29 this week!)
3lb bag apples 2.79
28oz package bartlett pears .99
10 lb bag Russet potatoes 3.29 (best price I've seen in months! They're all up over $4 for 10 lb bags of any potato!)
celery 1.29

Total 18.38

Total trip: $44.46.

That wiped out the grocery money. There's a buck and some change left. Might be able to squeeze out a gallon of milk if we need it midweek. That's it! But we've paid a couple of doctor visit co-pays and some other things that came up. I've got meat in the freezer. We'll eat well. I'll post this week's menu next.

Today is grocery day

2009-02-20T07:11:00.000-05:00

It's Friday, and I'm running low on certain items. For instance, we are all out of Sam's Choice Diet Cola, which just happens to be "Chris's Choice", too. :) He's doing great at drinking homemade iced tea when he's out of pop, but he asks often when I think I might be going to the store. I pick up a couple of 2-ltr bottles for him each week, plus a 12-pack of cans every other week. He drinks these at work instead of buying pop there. Currently, he's out. So, we have some really necessary items to buy this week. :)

My list:

ALDI
milk (this kills me since we have milk goats....)
Parmesan cheese
mayonnaise
ranch dressing
sugar
2-spaghetti sauce
spaghetti noodles

WALMART
2-2ltrs diet pop
12-pack diet pop
deodorant for Papa
hairspray for Grace
dogfood
Sun laundry detergent

That's the list, but money is really tight this week, so I may have to cut things out. I'll check back in when I'm done!

Let's talk groceries

2009-02-15T23:31:00.000-05:00

Or how about groceries and menus? I've got a tight budget these days. Times are tough, aren't they? I know so many people who are out of work or working less or have had to give up bonuses they've counted on for years. We've had some paycheck changes in our own family, and it really caused us to rethink everything and tighten up that belt even more.

Groceries is about the only category in our budget that I can tweak from week to week and thereby pull from to do something else, something extra in any given week. By groceries, I mean everything you'd buy regularly to keep your household running smoothly. Food, toilet paper, Kleenex, cleaning supplies, laundry supplies, diapers if you've got little ones, etc., falls into my groceries category.

My absolute ceiling for grocery spending is $100/ week, but I want to spend as little as possible so that I can use some of that money toward other things that are things you know you need to do but can wait, like an eye appointment, a doctor visit, etc. I shop several different stores, including Sam's Club at times, but in my area, the stores I shop are all within 1 mile of each other. Any "long distance" shopping I do gets done when I am in or close to that town anyway.

Here's how this week at the grocery stores went:

Save a Lot (not a regular store for me; I was in another town and stopped in)

3# apples, $2.69
1 lb bacon, $2.29
1 head broccoli, $1.29
1 head cauliflower, $1.69
celery $1.29
2 ltr diet cola, .69
2 ltr det lemon-lime, .69
2lb jar hamburger dills 1.49
1 lb dry great northern beans .99
2 heads lettuce, .99 each
1 gal 2% milk, 2.59
oj concentrate, 1.39
1 ltr chilled pop for moi, .59
1 lb fresh strawberries, 1.50

$21.30

Aldi

bananas .49 per pound: .82
2 pkgs flour tortillas
12 oz chopped walnuts 2.99
Velveeta wannabe, 1 lb, 3.99
Canola oil (big bottle, don't know oz off the top of my head) 2.79
1 lb package bologna, 99
5lb bag all purpose flour, 1.69
2-5lb bags sugar, 1.99 ea
Large pitted olives, .99
Cooking spray, 1.29
12 oz hot dogs, .75
2 lbs red grapes, 1.98
Tall kitchen bags, 2.49
8 oz monterey jack cheese, 1.99
32 oz light pancake syrup, 1.39
32 oz ketchup, 1.15
34.5 oz ground coffee, 4.99
1 cucumber, .79
1 pkg hot dog buns, .85
1 pkg hamburger buns, .85

Total: 38.91

This would have been it, but after shopping on Friday, I got a call from our agency telling us that DCS would be contacting us for respite care for a sibling group of three whom we'd had once before just overnight. This time they would be staying the weekend, Fri., Sat., and Sun. nights. Knowing this, and that our adult kids would be home on Saturday to spend the day, and that there was a potluck at church on Sunday, I decided to pick up a few more things early Saturday morning. And, Saturday morning being Valentine's Day and all....

Aldi

2 more flour tortilla 10-packs, .99 each
15 oz can refried beans (fat free), .65
2 bags tortilla chips, .99 each

Total: $4.61

WalMart

conversation hearts, 1.50
Hershey assortment, 4.96
mini chocolate chips, 2.68

Total: $9.59

That puts this week's total at $74.41.

With these items and things on hand, I've come up with:

Meals This Week

Breakfasts
homemade granola bars
scrambled eggs and toast
orange juice, scrambled eggs, biscuits and jam, bacon
pancakes, fried eggs, fresh strawberries
cereal, milk, bananas
cinnamon toast, chocolate milk
fried mush, cheese omelettes

Lunches and Suppers
hamburgers and hot dogs, fresh veggies (for 10)
Salad with chicken, hard boiled egg, cheese
Chicken-Waldorf salad, leftovers (for 8)
Soft tacos and/or nachos (for 10)
Homemade mac-n-cheese, steamed cauliflower and broccoli, biscuits and jam (for 8)
White Chicken Chili, with shredded Jack and cheddar (took to church potluck)
Three Bean Chili (probably Thur or Fri)
Sandwiches, fresh baby carrots and cucumber slices
More salad
Leftovers
Fried Rice
Meatloaf, homemade noodles with butter, green beans
More leftovers
Leftovers and/or sandwiches

Snacks and Desserts: peanut butter cookies, no bake cookies, caramel corn

Gotta Start Somewhere

2009-02-13T15:59:00.000-05:00

Getting "There". It just seemed like an appropriate title. Where is "there"? I guess everyone has their own "there". It's that next goal. It's the lifetime goal. It's the little challenge that lies ahead in our lives. It's the big challenge that's keeping us from all those other goals. Where is your "there"?

I have a lot of "there"s. There are so many things in my life that I want to do. There are those things I want to do someday, before I die. There are the things that I want to do this week, this month, this year. I want to spend more time with my kids. I want to stop saying, "maybe later", or "not right now". I want to learn to say "No" more often to the things that keep from me from saying "Absolutely yes" to the things that are most important to me. One of my immediate goals is to spend less than I budgeted for groceries so that I have some $$ leftover for some of my other "there"s. Some of my "there"s are dreams that I haven't turned into goals yet. I should. Then I might start working toward them instead of just dreaming about them. I once heard a motivational speaker say, "If you keep doing what you're doing, you'll keep having what you have." How true. You can't get "there" if you don't step away from "here".

It seems so presumptuous of me to think that someone would want to read what I have to say. I guess I'm hoping that by jotting down my thoughts and struggles and victories, maybe I can offer encouragement and hope to others who are looking for the best way to get to their "there". People who have dreams they haven't yet turned into goals. People who have goals that just seem too far out of reach. And even people who are on their way but just want someone to walk alongside. Maybe someone reading this has arrived at their "there" and can advise and inspire me and anyone else who is still very much on the journey.

I tend to write like I talk. I know HOW to write--you know, all that grammar stuff. Heck, I ENJOY diagramming sentences! But here, I would rather "talk" to you as I would if we were sitting across from each other at the kitchen table, sipping on a big mug of coffee or tea, chatting about our latest grocery shopping trip, or how we saved money on our electric bill, or sharing with each other about a sick relative or a wayward child.

Of course, then we'd pray together, too. Faith is a huge part of my life. You'll see that in my writing, too, I hope. Grace is defined as undeserved mercy, or unmerited favor. I am a firm believer that the only reason I get to take my next breath is because God said so. Everything I have, everything I am, all of the people that I love, all of it--it is God's. From my house to my kids to our next paychecks. It's all here because of grace.

What qualifies me to hope to help someone on their journey? Well, I'm old enough now, that I've got a variety of experiences under my belt--bad and good. My husband and I will have been married 25 years this August, but I come from a twice-split household. We are born-again Christians from church-going, but not born-again, families. We have six children. We have five birth children--a son and four daughters, and another daughter who moved in with us the day she turned 18 and has made our house home and our family her family. My husband Chris and I are foster parents. Our home was a family childcare home for 22 years. I've been a SAHM, a WAHM, and presently, a work-7-days-a-month-part-time-working-mom. In my present job, I work with children and their parents. I'm a grandmother. I've got married kids and kids still at home. We homeschool our 14yo and 17yo daughters, but our older children all graduated from public school. We raise our own meat and eggs and goat milk, but grew up as city kids. We've known life under the poverty level, living in low-income housing, and we've known life with money to burn. Currently we are in our dream home, but living on a very tight budget due to pay cuts and fast rising bills. Thankfully, I'm good at cooking and baking from scratch and love doing it, which saves us a LOT of money, but I come from a box-mix household. My experiences come from both sides of the spectrum.

With all this behind me, I also have figured out (finally) that I don't know it all. I look forward to hearing YOUR stories and learning from what YOU have experienced and what you have learned. I hope I can offer you companionship, encouragement, and maybe even help along the way, as you journey to your "there". That's the real reason I'm writing.

God bless you, and thanks for reading,

Bethann