You are currently browsing the monthly archive for September 2009.
Here is what I’m reading this month:
First, a testimony of healing to encourage you – Robin Sampson’s Heart.
Next, a topic near and dear to my heart – Healthcare – this author makes some very good points.
This week I rendered tallow, following this recipe. I was amazed how easy it was. We made homemade fries in it and they were great!
Next, a warning about soy and birth control pills. This is great example of following your gut instinct despite what the doctors are telling you.
And finally, another recipe I tried, whole wheat crackers. These, too, were super easy to make. This is a soaked wheat recipe, so the phytates will be neutralized in the wheat. I really probably spent about 5 minutes in the evening mixing them, then they sit overnight, and another 5 minutes rolling them out the next morning. They bake in about 10-15 minutes.
My kids loved them with cheese slices. There are a couple things I will tweak, but I will be making them again and again.
The UPS man came by the other day. Here’s what he brought me:
From VitaminShoppe.com -
KAL Nutritional Yeast Tablets – a food source of vitamin B. Bs are beneficial for lots of reasons, but for me they reduce stress, keep me from being as irritable (my kids appreciate that), and keep me upbeat. You can read more about nutritional yeast here.
Concentrace Minerals – minerals are vital to health. I add a few drops of this to each glass of water I drink. It makes my water taste so good. Click here to read a primer on minerals.
Magnesium Capsules – I started taking these after researching adrenal fatigue. I’m still taking them to be proactive. The above mineral primer includes information on Magnesium.
Garden of Life Primal Defense Ultra – fabulous probiotic! You really get what you pay for. I decided to save a little a while back and bought a cheaper brand. They did not do for me what these do. When I was still dealing with dermatitis, and after I used up all the cheap probiotics, I ordered these. After taking one pill I noticed a difference in my hand. I don’t even think we fully understand the role of probiotics in our body. They aid digestion and help with intestinal issues, but beyond that, many, many issues are rooted in intestinal health. When our gut is out of whack, the rest of our body is. Probiotics help heal your gut. Dr. McBride has discovered that autism and even dyslexia are rooted in gut health. Click here for a great article about probiotics.
Maca Capsules – I have heard great things about this herb. Click here to read more. I have heard that it is great for your adrenals and even though I have been healed, I want to be proactive and prevent future flare-ups. I have been extra tired lately and am hoping these will give me energy. I have been taking them four days now and am feeling pretty great. I don’t know if it’s a coincidence. I’ll have to see if it lasts. Click here to read one woman’s experience with maca and click here for more information.
Papaya Chewable Enzyme Tablets – I take an enzyme supplement because a few months ago I had a few episodes of intense intestinal discomfort. It happened three times and was horrible. They would last about an hour, but then I was still weak for a while afterwards. My husband discovered years ago that enzymes cured his IBS, so I figured they would help me for whatever this issue was. I bought these chewable ones for the kids. My son has had a few of those episodes like I had in his little life. So he is really the one I bought them for. (On a side note, as I write this I am thinking that I do not recall him having any stomach aches while I gave him coconut oil regularly. I haven’t been giving him any the last couple months and he has had two stomach aches. I am going to start giving it to him consistently again.) You can read about enzymes here.
From Green Pastures –
Blue Ice Cod Liver Oil – this is the best source of vitamins A and D you can get. Amazingly, this cod liver oil doesn’t taste bad and I’m not just saying that. :) Since I have been taking cod liver oil, I have noticed that I don’t ever really get sick and when I do, it’s incredibly mild and doesn’t even slow me down. Cod liver oil is a preventative measure and coconut oil is for fighting sickness when it hits (among other things). Read more about cod liver oil here.
Virgin Coconut Oil (for friends, I still have about a gallon) – You can read about my experience with coconut oil here.
Hippocrates (460BC – 377BC) said, “Let food be thy medicine, thy medicine shall be thy food.” I really try to keep in line with this. However, our modern food supply is very, very deficient, supplements are sometimes needed. The best supplements to buy are those that are from food. Not just natural, but an actual food item, like the yeast tablets and cod liver oil. These are called superfoods. They are food items that are packed with nutrition. As always, remember My Motto. This holds true for vitamins. If it is a chemical version of a vitamin, our bodies won’t absorb it. If it is a compound taken from food, it still isn’t very good, it’s missing all the other parts. The best is in it’s whole food form, with all of its cofactors and such present. There are things that scientists still haven’t even discovered about vitamins, but God knows just what your body needs.
I have been happy overall with my garden this year. I have plans to expand next year. I am going to try square foot gardening.
Here is a selection of photos from my garden.
Here is the dill. As you can see, it went wild!
I harvested the seeds. I wish I had dried some leaves. I will have to do that next year. I like to use that in my homemade dip. I also dried a lot of basil.
I grew butternut squash, by accident! The seeds came up from my compost. When it sprouted, it looked just like the cucumber I had growing in the pot, so I didn’t pull it.
I ended up getting two small squashes from that plant. They were both the size of my hand. They each made a nice lunch portion size for myself. They were delicious!
These are my Purple Beauty Bell Peppers. I thought they would be sweet, but they taste the same as green bell peppers. However, I noticed a couple turning red, instead of purple. I let them stay on branch until they were almost completely red. I picked them last night and ate them in a salad. They tasted great, as sweet as red bell peppers should be. Next year, however, I will be growing red peppers. We just like them better.
My tomatoes have disappointed me. I did not know that heirloom tomatoes are known for cracking. The first few that ripened were so bad I couldn’t eat them. There seem to be plenty now that aren’t cracked. I hope they stay that way. :) Plus, my attempt to keep away the Tomato Hornworms with my Marigolds has been unsuccessful. The marigolds didn’t get enough sun, they were too close to the tomatoes. I have found a few big, fat worms–they make me so mad!
Of course, we had to grow some flowers. We planted a couple of giant sunflowers for fun. And a row of zinnias to cut and make arrangements with. I love the zinnias because they are so easy to take care of and they attract butterflies and hummingbirds.
I harvested plenty of cucumbers and made homemade pickles. I had an abundance of basil and made lots of pesto. Click here to see my post on pickled jalapeno peppers. However, I did not know much about cilantro and didn’t get to harvest much before it bolted (flowered). I do have a second batch growing now, so I hope to harvest before the frost.
When the dill was done producing, I pulled them out and planted carrot seeds in their place. I was so happy that they sprouted and were thriving and then I discovered that they are not carrots, they are dill!!! The dill reseeded itself. So no carrots this year, but more dill. This time around I will dry the leaves.
I made a second attempt at growing a pumpkin. This time I planted in a spot that gets more sun and warned my husband not to run over it with the lawn mower! I planted it around July 1st. It seemed a bit wilted for a while, so I worked in some bone meal (but now I think it was from the excessive heat). It is doing great now (see below), but no pumpkins yet.
I did notice some mildew on my pumpkin leaves. I heard of a natural remedy of 1:9 parts milk to water. I sprayed the leaves with this mixture and they started looking better, but then we started having a really rainy season, so that’s not helping.
My cucumber vines really slowed down producing so I took them out and planted more seeds. I was happy to see that the harvest time was short, only 50 days. So, come October, we’ll be making more pickles. (Hopefully. The little sprouts seem to be slow-growing, probably the lack of sun from all this rain.)
I’m thinking of trying out a fall batch of lettuce when I pull the pepper plants out. And I really want to plant some garlic. It has to be planted in the fall. I will probably put it in when I pull the basil out.
Anyway, that’s my update. I hope it is encouraging to you. I don’t really know what I’m doing. I just check out some books from my library, do some research online, ask friends’ advice, and experiment. You can do it, too! Just give it a try.
Don’t buy fake substitutes! We learned here what is in Cool Whip. It’s loaded with trans fat. When I was a kid, I had a real thing for Cool Whip. Now that I’m grown and I read my labels, I won’t touch the stuff! It just grosses me out to realize it’s just Crisco that is whipped. Have you ever noticed how it never changes if it’s left out at room temperature? I have noticed it on a spoon in the sink, the morning after serving a dessert, and it hasn’t melted like real whip cream will. And it is hard to rinse off a spoon–because it’s grease!
So make it from scratch instead. It really only takes about 5 minutes and tastes fabulous!
1 cup heavy cream (I use raw)
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 Tb sugar
This make about 2 cups of whipped cream. That is plenty for our family of four (with leftover). If you need more, just double this recipe.
I have learned that cream will not whip very well if it is too shallow. So don’t use a big Tupperware bowl. I use one of those square Ziploc disposable containers. This way, when I whip just one cup of cream, it is deep enough to whip in the air.
I fit a collar of foil around the bowl to catch the splatters of cream.
Whip the cream and vanilla on high until thickened, but not stiff. Add 2 tablespoons of sugar and keep beating until it’s as thick as you want. I like my whip cream really thick (thicker than in the photo), but you have to be careful. If you whip it too much, it will separate into butter and whey.
The only disadvantage I see of real whipped cream to Cool Whip is it’s ability to keep. This will keep for a while in the fridge, you can make it ahead, but I’ve noticed it’s a bit runny the next day. Not sure if it would re-whip. I usually make it as close to serving time as I can.
Enjoy!
[Concerned about the saturated fat? Click here.]
Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers;
A peck of pickled peppers Peter Piper picked.
If Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers,
Where’s the peck of pickled peppers Peter Piper picked?
Well, I didn’t pick a peck of peppers, but I did pickle them. I have six quart jars full of jalapenos, lots of garlic, some onion, and some mustard seeds. I have never done this before, so I hope they turn out good. As you can see some of them have turned red. I love the color they add to the jars. I followed my basic sour pickle recipe, with the changes noted above. I also ran out of celtic sea salt and had to use some of my kosher salt for the brine.
Since I won’t be canning (heat processing) these peppers, they will remain alive. They will be full of life-giving probiotics. If you want to learn more about that, check out the book I recommended recently.
Look for my garden update coming soon.
I am going to post a list, every month, of ingredients. These ingredients are found in a common packaged food item. Tell me what you think it is and in a few days I will reveal who is right.
Here is our September item:
Ingredients: WATER, CORN SYRUP, HYDROGENATED VEGETABLE OIL (COCONUT AND PALM KERNEL OILS), HIGH FRUCTOSE CORN SYRUP, LESS THAN 2% OF SODIUM CASEINATE (FROM MILK), NATURAL AND ARTIFICIAL FLAVOR, XANTHAN AND GUAR GUMS, POLYSORBATE 60, SORBITAN MONOSTEARATE, BETA CAROTENE (COLOR).
I have good news to share! I am totally and completely healed from all the symptoms I was experiencing since June of ‘08 (the dizziness had been from August of ‘05). No more dizziness, no more hives, no more itching, no more dermatitis (see pictures), no more eczema, no more blues, no more exhaustion, no more headaches! God is good!
Just looking at this photo makes me, 1)praise God for healing! and 2)cringe in memory of the pain. This isn’t even at it’s height. This dermatitis had spread to my ring finger knuckle and most days was cracked and bleeding. (Sorry to gross you out.) You have no idea how great it feels to not feel bad!
- Before
- After
I can not give you a list or formula for your healing or success. You must seek God’s will for your life. It may be that you need to change your diet. It may be that you need to cut certain things out of your life. It may be that you need to add more physical activity. It may be that you need to do a study of His Word and find out what it says about healing. It may be that you need a revelation of the authority and power that has been given to us as believers (that’s what I needed). No one will know the answer but you. And whatever it is that you need to be doing, you will know, because it will bring you great peace. Being in the center of God’s will always brings you peace.
There is a time for change in your diet and a time for taking supplements, but that must be by the leading of God. Don’t seek out a formula. Don’t be motivated out of fear of sickness and disease. Put your trust in God and seek His will above all else.
What if you are doing everything right? What if you are eating an impeccable diet?
You see, I was doing everything “right.” And I only saw little results, not full healing. It wasn’t until I recognized that the fight is not always in this physical world, it goes deeper. I emphasize physical health a great deal on this blog, but we must not forget that we are spiritual beings, these bodies are just temporary.
II Corinthians 10:3-4
For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds.
Though we walk in the flesh–this natural, physical world, we do not war against the flesh–there is a spiritual world, that we cannot see and there is an enemy out there that wants to destroy us. He wants to keep us from our purpose. He will hit you at your weak points. My weak point was thinking that I could solve any issue with my diet and not putting full trust in God to keep me healthy. But our weapons are not carnal (not fleshly, not of this world, are not our food and vitamins), but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds! I don’t know about you, but that excites me! It means my health is not determined wholly by my environment (much of which I can’t control).
We live in a fallen world. There are so many things wrong with our environment and our food supply that it is practically impossible to keep in perfect health (on your own). But it is not God’s will for me to be sick. He has a purpose for me and I cannot accomplish it if I am constantly tending to myself and obsessing about myself and feeling terrible.
This is one of the reasons He sent His Son. Most importantly so that we can have salvation, but also to give us an abundant life on the earth. (John 10:10) If you are wondering what the Bible has to say on healing, I encourage you to start a study. There are many, many cases, in the gospels, where Jesus healed the sick. He says in Mark 11:23-24 that if we say to a mountain, “Be removed and be cast into the sea,” and do not doubt in our hearts, but believe that we receive those things we ask, we will have them.
Do you have a mountain weighing you down right now? A stronghold in your life? Speak to that mountain and have faith that God will remove it. Step out of the physical realm and into the spiritual.
John 14:14
If you ask anything in My name, I will do it. God wants to heal you.
Click here for a great article on healing scriptures that will build up your faith.
…of what this blog is all about. We are here to help you bring about change in your life, in your health. Not only for the health of your body, but also your soul and spirit. How do we achieve that change? By taking babysteps.
Paul, in his first letter to the church at Corinth said, “I have fed you with milk and not with meat because you were not able to bear it (I Cor. 3:2).” God knows that as baby Christians we need milk (the first and plainest truths of the gospel) and when we are mature we can progress to meat (deeper spiritual insights) just the same as newborn babies drink milk first and then progress to solids. The term “leap of faith” is a misnomer. I believe that God does not lead people to “leap”, but to take “steps” of faith.
I think this can apply to anything in life. When you are wanting to make a change in your life it is best to do it in babysteps. When you make major changes it is too easy to slip back into your old way of life. When you take babysteps, habits begin to form and it’s not as easy to slip back to the old way of doing things. Of course, if you have an addiction it needs to be cut off cold turkey, but I’m talking about changing habits. Also, if you have major health issues, some major changes may be in order.
Health is a buzz word today. Everyone is aware of healthy eating and most everyone, if asked, would say they make healthy food choices. But I say we all have room for improvement, myself included. No matter what place you are at with your eating habits, if you are taking steps, I say, “Good for you!” If you have just taken the first step and cut one unhealthy thing out of your diet, you are to be commended. The danger comes when you feel you don’t need change. I think that we can all be moving forward and learn new things no matter what place in life we are at. I strive to live a lifestyle of learning and there is something to be learned in every experience, mistake or observance in life.
Another important thing to remember is not to look around you and gauge your success on others. Never look around and condemn yourself because you aren’t meeting the standard of someone else and don’t judge others for not attaining the level that you have achieved. We must not compare ourselves or assume that we are the standard to judge others by. II Cor. 10:12 says, “…comparing themselves among themselves are not wise.” Barnes commentary says that the people of the church at Corinth were making themselves the standard to judge others by and that this is stupid and foolish, this is an indication of pride. Peter and James both tell us that God resists the proud (I Peter 5:5 & James 4:6) and Solomon tells us in Proverbs 16:18 that “Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall.” We must do all things in love, as Paul says in I Cor 13:2 “and though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing.” We must always walk in love. Please know that as I post new topics here, I bring them up out of love. I do not presume to be better than anyone, nor do I ever feel that I have “arrived”.
I like what Marla Cilley (the Flylady) says about removing clutter from your home. It’s like peeling layers of an onion. Every time you go through that closet you find new things to get rid of. I think it’s the same with changing eating habits. Every so often we cut out another unhealthy thing, peeling back the layers. So no matter what place you are at in life you can change habits by babysteps. Change one thing, make it a habit and then move on to another thing. Someday you will look back and say, “I can’t believe I used to eat (fill in the blank)”. Don’t go through your cupboards and start throwing all your food out and exclusively shopping at Wild Oats. You will quickly fall off the wagon, but find one thing and take a step.
I encourage you to take a step and I encourage you to never stop looking inward to see what may need changing.
This article previously appeared on this blog, July 28, 2007.
Well, our first challenge has concluded, going without high fructose corn syrup for seven days.
How did you do? Was it difficult? Was it easy? Were there any food items that you were surprised to see HFCS on the ingredients listing?
Well, on day 1, I noticed that the sandwich bread I buy for the family (I don’t eat it), contains HFCS. It’s really hard with sandwich bread. Most of them contain trans fat. This was one I found without trans fat, but they put HFCS in it.
I tried making homemade bread for my family. I even compromised and made it mostly white. (I figured mostly white, made at home, was better than a loaf with HFCS, trans fat, and numerous dough conditioner chemicals and preservatives.) It was delicious! But after about two days, it gets crumbly and stale tasting. It doesn’t stay soft as long as store-bought bread. So my family refused it.
On day 2, I was feeding my kids yogurt with their breakfast. We make our own yogurt from raw milk. I eat it plain, my daughter has recently switched from plain to having it with honey, and my son likes strawberry jam in it. I buy all-fruit jam, specifically to avoid sugar and HFCS. I checked the Yoplait label at the store and sure enough, it contains HFCS. I’m so glad we cut that out years ago. The kids do get it as a treat once in a while. But that’s what it is, a dessert, not a healthy breakfast.
On day 5, I goofed! We were having homemade hamburgers, french fries, and strawberry shortcake. I kept thinking, we’re doing good, because we’re making the shortcake from scratch, no HFCS there! Well, I was in the middle of my meal and it dawned on me that I was dipping my fries in Ranch dressing and I had ketchup on my burger!!!!!! Yes, both of those items have HFCS in them. And guess what else?!? The hamburger buns. It just goes to show how many items contain HFCS these days. It is hard to escape. I am not at the place, yet, of making my own salad dressing and ketchup. Some day, but not yet. Occasionally I do drizzle my salad with red wine vinegar and olive oil. This encourages me to do that more often.
Well, the rest of the week, we were in the clear. Let me know how you did!
If you haven’t noticed already, I highly recommend Nourishing Traditions by Sally Fallon, with Mary Enig. This book is available at my local library, it just might be available at yours.
This book opened my eyes to a lot of things. But I must say that the first time I checked it out, I was overwhelmed and didn’t even read it. It is so thick. Then I learned that it is mostly recipes. The portion on nutrition is only the first little bit, maybe 60 pages. That was doable to me. I have read that portion, now, over and over, each time gleaning new information.
The authors cover everything you need to know on the subject of fats, carbs, protein, vitamins, minerals, and enzymes, and more.
This is a general resource that everyone should check out, whether you’re just starting to eat healthy, or you grind your own wheat and make your own bread. 
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