Ever Feel like this????

I just finished writing a research paper on sugar, and one on milk. My brain is fried completely. I was trying to catch up on email and this was in my inbox. This would have made life easier the past few weeks. Under the desk is 4 cats and a mini bike so I can exercise while typing. The kids are finally outside playing! Yup I am tired... I sure miss you all my blogging friends.

Brain Food

I have been SO busy with my studies that I just haven't really had much time for cooking. I am working hard to finish up my current class (Macronutrients) this week. Lunch was a hodgepodge of veggies with a yogurt dressing, oranges, crackers and hummus and a leftover stuffed Pepper. (the recipe came from Tosca Reno's Eat clean diet cookbook) It was quite good and could have been a meal on it's own.(but I had to share) It's got brown rice, corn, sweet potato, onion, garlic and tomatoes. YUMMY... I sure hope to get back to regular blogging soon...

Uninvited visitor to the B and B

Yesterday as I was finishing up my workout, something on the back porch caught my eye! I couldn't believe that this little raccoon was on my back porch staring right at my kitty that was just below me looking out the back door. As the 5 of us were just looking and laughing he just sat there letting me take photos of him.

There is no way that sucker was going to get in my hot tub. (no water in it right now anyway) We were a bit concerned that he was just traveling around in the middle of the day. He didn't look very healthy. We tried to call animal control who told us that they only do dogs... Gee thanks! We saw him go into the neighbors shed and haven't seem him since, which is OK with me. I love wildlife, in the wild and behaving like they should. Not when they are contemplating my kitty being their lunch. I guess he heard how good it is visiting here......

Journey Through the World Of Books

The Journey through the world of books was the theme of an exciting program called PARP (parents as reading partners) sponsored by our school PTA. I had the pleasure of being the chairperson for the planning committee (it was a committee of two, see how important I was?) For two weeks the children were encouraged to read nightly with their parents, tales and stories from around the world and log their reading into their passports. The last night proved to be fun and rewarding for all and we were so pleased with the participation of parents, students and teachers alike. We had three guest readers, the one pictured here a retired teacher dressed up, and read stories about the Inuit people, you can see that she was sitting near her student built igloo of recycled milk cartons! The children were enthralled with the tales. We also had our principle dressed as a penguin reading stories about penguins and Arctic living, and a princess from England with her castle and fables from her land.

Two crafts were very popular among the children, above are Ariana and Nikolas getting started on their drums from Africa. It was the first stop on their journey. (each family was given a passport with write ups on the activities that night and a schedule of their events to break everyone up into smaller groups) The children really enjoyed finding the flags for each country and rotating to the next activity.

This is a shot of all the drums that the kids made. The just looked so cool all drying on the table.

The kids then tried their hands at Tinikling, from the Philippines. The learned the origination and how it came about. It was originally done with reeds with thorns and was a punishment, today it is very popular and has become a competitive choreographed sport. I was so pleased that there was so much laughter coming from the kids and parents...

They also played a game from Australia called Down, Down, Down, a throwing and catching game.

One of the most favorite activities of all was making the Ojo's de dio's AKA God's eyes. I remember making these in Girl Scouts as a kid but really didn't know there was a history behind them. "In Mexico, The central eye was made when a child was born. Each year, a bit of yarn was added until the child turned five at which point the Ojo was complete. In Bolivia, "God's Eyes" were made to be placed on an altar so that the gods could watch over the praying people and protect them. "

All in all it was a great and busy night. We had prizes at the end in the form of a drawing and certificates of participation and completion for those that earned it. What a great experience it was to be part of the planning and see how much joy it brought to so many people.

Breathing a Sigh Of Relief!!!

And now back to our regularly scheduled programming... Nikolas and I just came back from the allergist, with exception for dust mites and a very very small reaction to cats and dogs (which the doctor said not to even worry about, except that he 'shouldn't' sleep with the cats) Nikolas is food allergy FREE!!! wahoooooo!!!

Be it the regulation of his diet for the past month with probiotics or a false positive for now we are in the clear for food allergies and I am relieved that I can feed the child more than just milk, chocolate and vegetables!

On a great note, Nikolas and I got a few things done and got to go out and have a mommy and son lunch together just the two of us. We indulged ourselves with hot chocolate (which we rarely do) and had a chance to laugh and talk...

Can't even share how relieved I feel.... now I have no regrets about buying the Dyson a few months ago either... lots of vacuuming in my future!!!

Gotta love those tiny baby hats!

So I needed a quick baby shower gift, so I made a quick search for baby patterns on Ravelry and found these cute little gems and I just love them. It was amazing because they are so darn cute and tiny, and I guess I forgot just how tiny they are.... I sure hope that someone near me will have a baby really soon, I would love to snuggle a little baby! Oh and nothing like having a great excuse to knit up some adorable baby items!!

Detoxification and clean eating

I have had several people recently ask me about detoxification/cleansing lately and I figured that I would sit down and write a few words about it here instead of writing people individually. First before I say anything else PLEASE PLEASE do not start any detox program if you are unsure of your health status!! So please don't take this post as any medical advise for I am NOT a physican or liscenced medical provider. I am a student of nutrition and I do believe that you can have a toxic overload.

For example, if you must have caffiene everyday, smoke cigarettes or have cravings and withdrawl symptoms, you are probably toxic of those substances be wary of what they are doing to your health. Even processed sugar and flour have these effects.

Moving forward. How are we exposed to toxins? One way is from the environment we breath in exhaust, industrial waste, mold, pollin, dust, smoke and others, We are exposed through the medicines we use and from the food we eat. It is hard to avoid environmental pollutants as we have to live and breathe the air around us. We can take care in where we go to spend our time outdoors, and we can control how much we contribute to environmental polution (another whole post, yes?)

What we can control is what we actually eat and put in our mouths food, medicine and supplements. For example, I was looking at supplements some supplements (generally the cheaper ones but not always) had more sugars and food dies than the substance for which they are labeled to be. Do we really need to take certain medicines? I some instances yes, in many no. Medicines have their place, but I have seen too many that think it is imperative if they go to a doctor for any reason that they should leave with a prescription, this is not always the case.

The best thing that you can do to AVOID becoming toxic is choose foods that are unprocessed, whole and organic whenever possible and don't forget to wash your produce as well. **** Many local farmers are not certified organic as it is an expensive process many cannot afford; however, if you talk to them they will usually be direct with you. Processed foods are a large source of food additives that have not yet been tested for their long term effects. Use caution when buying and eating these products. Other ways is to avoid things like smoking, and second hand smoke and going outside for exercise in industrial areas.

Some small things you can do to assist your body to get into and stay in good health: -choose whole grain flours over white processed and bleached flours. -choose juicing your own fruits and vegetables instead of store bought -make your own bread crumbs (you would think that bread crumbs were straightforward, alas some have more junk then they do crumbs) -avoid excessive or all amounts of alcohol -choose sparkling juices over soda -avoid artificial sweetners and refined sugar -drink lots of water and avoid drinks high in colorings, additives, sugars etc. -bake or broil your foods instead of frying

Our bodies have a natural detoxification system however most of our organs are overloaded. Just exercising can help release toxins from our body through sweat, do you exercise? A sauna is great too. These toxins enter (and hopefully exit) our bodies through our lungs, skin, liver and kidneys. How are you treating yours? There is a myriad of things you can do, cut out foods that are hard to digest for a bit such as dairy, wheat, and meat, eat natural foods such as fruits and veggies (even more you can juice them or blend them into smoothies) for a few days, see how you feel. Sometimes eliminating foods that cause you to feel sluggish and without energy is all you need.

If you really want to detox (and are in relatively good health), start small, perhaps a day of fresh fruit and vegetable juices, it will give your body a break and most likely you will feel better for it. Do remember that whatever you do it is important to keep hydrated so your body will continue to function properly. A vegetable juicer removes the pulp and allows the nutrients to be quickly absorbed into your body quicker. I would recommend doing as much reading as possible, there are many recipes for detox, and I will say it again. If you are unsure of what to do consult a professional for guidance and have support.

There are some really great books that talk about detox, two of my favorites are The New Detox Diet by Elson Haas MD and Natural Detoxification by Jacqueline Krohn MD and Frances Taylor MS. In my own experience it is better to start detox with natural easy to digest foods than with other items that you can purchase for cleansing. I will recall that most religous and spiritual people use fasting as a means to clarity, and other things such as giving up meat or other foods generally speaking these rituals are cleansing to the body. When the body is overloaded it can not keep up with all the work it has to do. Remember that healthy digestion starts in a relaxed atmosphere and chewing your food well.

****Foods high in pesticides: apples, peaches, nectarines, strawberries, cherries, pears and grapes(imported), bell peppers, celery, spinach, lettuce and potatoes (these are sometimes referred to as 'The dirty dozen')

Food lowest in pesicides:onions, avacados, corn(sweet), asparagus, peas(sweet), cabbage, brocolli, pinneapple, mangos, kiwi, bananas, and papaya