He is Risen! That is the highlight of the day today - Happy Easter & Happy Resurrection Day!
We enjoyed an intimate family morning watching service online and enjoying an egg hunt in the backyard. It was chilly, but not chilly enough to force us indoors. It was fun to see our Little Guy collect eggs, he didn't really get it, but he enjoys putting things into containers and dumping them, so it was right up his alley. He really loved tasting jelly beans for the first time! Our girls enjoyed their candies and we watched our new movie -The Last Jedi- as a family over dinner.
Our big surprise for the girls didn't get quite the response we had expected. We used some of our Christmas money to purchase horse riding lessons for a month. Our youngest daughter wasn't excited. She says she enjoys riding horses, but she's done that before. Our oldest is more excited and looking forward to it more. We shall see how it goes. I think they will enjoy it more than they think they will.
My hubby and I were DIY Weekend Warriors again this weekend. We painted our bathroom ceiling and patched up some holes from our old cabinet that we then replaced with a simple glass shelf and hand towel rod. It really makes our small bathroom look more finished and larger. Then today I spent the afternoon packing up more boxes and reorganizing some of the toys into our daughter's room. As I pack up I'm working on keeping things "show" worthy and still livable.
My hubby wants to contact a realtor in the next few weeks to see what they think our home might sell for and what improvements are worth investing in to get the best price for our home. It's too unknown to have a solid confidence in how I feel about it all. I'm just taking each step as it comes along and preparing in the most practical ways that I know how. The more I pack up, the more it feels real that we might move.
The biggest challenge is finding boxes to pack with. Buying them is crazy expensive and I don't have a job where I can find lots of boxes like I did when we were younger and moving apartments every other year. Craigslist has shown the most promise, and of course when I order from Sam's Club or Amazon, I get some good boxes. Diaper boxes are also a wonderful size!
Sunday, April 1, 2018
Tuesday, March 27, 2018
Spring Break!
We are all so thankful we made it to Spring Break! We have a playdate/sleepover planned with friends for the girls and a week of going at a slow pace...except for me, maybe. I'm busy working on the house and planning, but it's all what I want to be doing -so we're good!
It was exciting to see our oldest's cholesterol levels significantly lowered at her check up. (she inherited the high good-bad cholesterol levels that run in our family) She dreads the yearly blood draw, but it was so good to see the results. She hasn't focused on her diet all year and it went down by a lot! I attribute it to our diet (mainly low carb and less eating out). The doctor says it is also in part due to her age and growth. Kids her age tend to see their cholesterol dip in these early teen years, so we'll keep a yearly eye on how she's doing.
The Keystone Approach book came in and I read the majority of it in 2-3 days. My brain was overwhelmed with the amount of information, but I was so motivated to learn that I didn't want to take a slower pace. I took pages of notes and learned quite a lot about what foods help/hurt individuals who have arthritis and the science of why these foods react those ways. She gives a lot of helpful tips and hints, but not a specific diet to follow. I appreciate that because I always feel so skeptical of people who say that a specific type of diet is the "be-all, end-all" of ways to go.
She acknowledges that a low starch/carb diet is very helpful and gives ways to help achieve the best results possible. So my take-away from her book is learning some good specific ways to tweak our current way of eating to help my husband's health. I'm going to be decreasing nightshades, increasing cruciferous vegetables and antioxidant fruits, adding a fish oil supplement and vitamin D3 supplement, adding collagen peptides, and we'll try her suggested blend of probiotics -something that has been a hit or miss type thing with other AS sufferers in our FB group. I found it interesting that many fermented foods are not helpful for those with arthritis. That's part of why I really liked this book. Foods that are beneficial for many people, are not as beneficial for those fighting an auto-immune disease. Many of the Paleo Auto Immune Protocol recipes are a good match or simple to tweak for the foods she suggests. PS. Most of the supplement tweaks are specifically for my hubby, they are a bit on the pricy side!
I'm hopeful that my hubby will not only see relief from his current symptoms -oh, and I nearly forgot! He was diagnosed with an ID allergic reaction to his HRT patches, so it is NOT psoriasis, praise the Lord!!! I am hoping he will see an overall increase of feeling better with less pain and fewer flare ups.
It was exciting to see our oldest's cholesterol levels significantly lowered at her check up. (she inherited the high good-bad cholesterol levels that run in our family) She dreads the yearly blood draw, but it was so good to see the results. She hasn't focused on her diet all year and it went down by a lot! I attribute it to our diet (mainly low carb and less eating out). The doctor says it is also in part due to her age and growth. Kids her age tend to see their cholesterol dip in these early teen years, so we'll keep a yearly eye on how she's doing.
The Keystone Approach book came in and I read the majority of it in 2-3 days. My brain was overwhelmed with the amount of information, but I was so motivated to learn that I didn't want to take a slower pace. I took pages of notes and learned quite a lot about what foods help/hurt individuals who have arthritis and the science of why these foods react those ways. She gives a lot of helpful tips and hints, but not a specific diet to follow. I appreciate that because I always feel so skeptical of people who say that a specific type of diet is the "be-all, end-all" of ways to go.
She acknowledges that a low starch/carb diet is very helpful and gives ways to help achieve the best results possible. So my take-away from her book is learning some good specific ways to tweak our current way of eating to help my husband's health. I'm going to be decreasing nightshades, increasing cruciferous vegetables and antioxidant fruits, adding a fish oil supplement and vitamin D3 supplement, adding collagen peptides, and we'll try her suggested blend of probiotics -something that has been a hit or miss type thing with other AS sufferers in our FB group. I found it interesting that many fermented foods are not helpful for those with arthritis. That's part of why I really liked this book. Foods that are beneficial for many people, are not as beneficial for those fighting an auto-immune disease. Many of the Paleo Auto Immune Protocol recipes are a good match or simple to tweak for the foods she suggests. PS. Most of the supplement tweaks are specifically for my hubby, they are a bit on the pricy side!
I'm hopeful that my hubby will not only see relief from his current symptoms -oh, and I nearly forgot! He was diagnosed with an ID allergic reaction to his HRT patches, so it is NOT psoriasis, praise the Lord!!! I am hoping he will see an overall increase of feeling better with less pain and fewer flare ups.
Tuesday, March 20, 2018
New Path for Healthy Eating!
I am very excited about a new book I just ordered! It is written by Rebecca Fett and called, "The Keystone Approach." It specifically speaks to my husband's type of arthritis and his current struggles with what appears to be psoriasis symptoms. He's been struggling with this recent development and we're both very motivated to find some way to help him.
I read several reviews and the first three chapters of the book online. It has recent scientific information tied to the microbiome and more specifically how individuals with autoimmune diseases can eat real foods that promote a healthier system. I can't wait to read more on the "how" and "why" our bodies react the way they do to the foods we eat.
I know my hubby thinks I internet-diagnose, but in reality I research in depth so that I can understand a topic and then formulate my own opinions. I read the positives and negatives, I look for repeated themes and common ground in the various articles and websites I use. My favorite is to find references to a specific professional in the health/medical field because they often have the best in depth information to share when I specifically read what that professional has published.
We also received a gift of some Essential Oil samples that I am keen on trying once I am able to figure them out. I think diet is our highest priority, and the oils will be an additional help for symptoms as well.
I read several reviews and the first three chapters of the book online. It has recent scientific information tied to the microbiome and more specifically how individuals with autoimmune diseases can eat real foods that promote a healthier system. I can't wait to read more on the "how" and "why" our bodies react the way they do to the foods we eat.
I know my hubby thinks I internet-diagnose, but in reality I research in depth so that I can understand a topic and then formulate my own opinions. I read the positives and negatives, I look for repeated themes and common ground in the various articles and websites I use. My favorite is to find references to a specific professional in the health/medical field because they often have the best in depth information to share when I specifically read what that professional has published.
We also received a gift of some Essential Oil samples that I am keen on trying once I am able to figure them out. I think diet is our highest priority, and the oils will be an additional help for symptoms as well.
Wednesday, March 14, 2018
Health Updates, Food Updates, Etc.
Life continues to go on taking us along for the ride! My hubby has developed an allergic reaction to something, we believe it to be related to his arthritis somehow, but it also interferes with his current method of hormone replacement therapy (HRT) so it gets muddled into a complicated mess. Finding the source is not as easy as I would hope. It could be a reaction to his biologic arthritis medication. It could be that along with the added increase of histamine in his system too since he has had to stop his HRT until we hear from the doctor...his appointment is next month...reminding myself to be patient! It could also be just an arthritic complication of his disease -it's a progressive disease and compared to others with this disease he has been doing quite well before this happened.
I'm finding that our son still has some of the sensitivities he had as an infant. He can tolerate more of the offensive foods before reactions appear, not sure if that is progress or just that he is bigger now. Raisins were the most recent. He absolutely loves them and begs for them. He eats them by the fistful, literally grabbing as many as he can possibly manage and stuffs them into his face! Unfortunately, they are causing a minor rash similar to the one he had from the chicory root milk. He was eating organic raisins, so I'm going to try another brand to see if it makes a difference before giving up on raisins all together.
Chocolate is another food that he can tolerate in small amounts, but it is easier to avoid. It is a food that I have had trouble with when I over indulge or if my system is already struggling. Big bummer because I love chocolate! I am noticing that wheat and dairy still bother me when not eaten in moderation. I find it is easier to avoid those ingredients and indulge only at special times -in small amounts.
Finding a nutritional meal plan that meets our needs is challenging. There is so much conflicting information out there. I've basically resolved to focusing on a real food diet with less processed foods and less grain products.. I buy organic for the "dirty dozen" and focus on making the best choices in other foods as my budget allows.
I'm finding that our son still has some of the sensitivities he had as an infant. He can tolerate more of the offensive foods before reactions appear, not sure if that is progress or just that he is bigger now. Raisins were the most recent. He absolutely loves them and begs for them. He eats them by the fistful, literally grabbing as many as he can possibly manage and stuffs them into his face! Unfortunately, they are causing a minor rash similar to the one he had from the chicory root milk. He was eating organic raisins, so I'm going to try another brand to see if it makes a difference before giving up on raisins all together.
Chocolate is another food that he can tolerate in small amounts, but it is easier to avoid. It is a food that I have had trouble with when I over indulge or if my system is already struggling. Big bummer because I love chocolate! I am noticing that wheat and dairy still bother me when not eaten in moderation. I find it is easier to avoid those ingredients and indulge only at special times -in small amounts.
Finding a nutritional meal plan that meets our needs is challenging. There is so much conflicting information out there. I've basically resolved to focusing on a real food diet with less processed foods and less grain products.. I buy organic for the "dirty dozen" and focus on making the best choices in other foods as my budget allows.
Sunday, March 4, 2018
Finish Line In Sight
We had our science fair this weekend and the girls did a wonderful job with their presentations and answering questions about their projects to all ages of audience members! I am so proud of them and the hard work they put in. It was a very busy several weeks and I loved seeing the spark in their eyes with the motivation they had to work on their projects.
I've been striving to stay rationally focused on our work and seek the Lord with our schooling. Homeschooling is funny...all of January and February you fight the "homeschool slump" where it feels like you've been doing school forever and everyone is feeling the burn-out, and summer seems so far away. Then March 1st hits and all of the sudden you realize you only have 10-13 weeks left to fit in everything you've planned for the year! To top it off, curriculums and planners start going on sale for the next school year and it only adds to the pressure to figure everything all at once...easy to get overwhelmed with everything going on in your brain.
It reminds me of the verse where God tells us not to worry about tomorrow. Matthew 6:26-34 is the passage. If God cares for the lilies of the field, why would you worry about your own tomorrows? Seek Him first and He'll give you everything you need.
I've been asking God what He wants for us this coming year: whether or not we move, whether or not we stay with our current enrichment program, what to add or remove from our lesson plans, etc. I've got a lot of ideas and am waiting for his guidance for the right choices.
On the plus side, today I was able to review our goals for finishing out this year and we're mostly on track. A little behind in some areas and ahead in others. My goal for this year was to be more organized and I feel I've been pretty successful in that. Next year my personal goal is to keep organized with school, and add in being more purposeful in our learning and how we spend our time.
I've also got to figure out how to add in toddler learning time too for our little guy...he'll be on his own track of learning and I'm not sure how yet to incorporate all of the variables into my available time and energy each day.
I've been striving to stay rationally focused on our work and seek the Lord with our schooling. Homeschooling is funny...all of January and February you fight the "homeschool slump" where it feels like you've been doing school forever and everyone is feeling the burn-out, and summer seems so far away. Then March 1st hits and all of the sudden you realize you only have 10-13 weeks left to fit in everything you've planned for the year! To top it off, curriculums and planners start going on sale for the next school year and it only adds to the pressure to figure everything all at once...easy to get overwhelmed with everything going on in your brain.
It reminds me of the verse where God tells us not to worry about tomorrow. Matthew 6:26-34 is the passage. If God cares for the lilies of the field, why would you worry about your own tomorrows? Seek Him first and He'll give you everything you need.
I've been asking God what He wants for us this coming year: whether or not we move, whether or not we stay with our current enrichment program, what to add or remove from our lesson plans, etc. I've got a lot of ideas and am waiting for his guidance for the right choices.
On the plus side, today I was able to review our goals for finishing out this year and we're mostly on track. A little behind in some areas and ahead in others. My goal for this year was to be more organized and I feel I've been pretty successful in that. Next year my personal goal is to keep organized with school, and add in being more purposeful in our learning and how we spend our time.
I've also got to figure out how to add in toddler learning time too for our little guy...he'll be on his own track of learning and I'm not sure how yet to incorporate all of the variables into my available time and energy each day.
Sunday, February 25, 2018
Science Fair Excitement!
We are participating in our first homeschool science fair this coming Saturday. The girls are very excited and for the first time in a while, they have been begging to do school work. Their projects have lit that desire to learn and discover!
Our oldest is doing a project on homemade dog foods to see what foods are healthy for dogs to eat and which of the recipes she has chosen will be preferred by our dog. First she had to do research by looking at books from the library and websites online. We found a lot of recipes, but I was surprised how little there was on the actual nutrition for dogs. Mostly it was "avoid these foods and use meats, veggies, some fruits and little fats." She chose two recipes to try and created a recipe of her own. Saturday we spent the afternoon cooking the chicken (her meat of choice for all the recipes we are trying) and today we spent several hours (yes, hours of school on a Sunday -at my daughter's request!) putting the recipes together and then doing the first of three experiments to see which our dog preferred!
Our younger daughter is doing her project on the consistency of different play dough recipes. We've made one recipe so far and have five others to create in the next day or two. Then she will compare the recipe ingredients and their dough consistencies to create her report and display. Some of her recipes are not toddler friendly, while others are. She even chose two gluten-free recipes for her brother to play with!
I love that they are so excited and interested in these projects. I only wish I had more time to give each of them. We've had to work in bits and pieces over the past few weeks. It has been a great experience so far. Our oldest asked me what place I thought the judges might give her for her project. I told her I thought she had an excellent project, but I wasn't focused on the judges. I was more proud of her for the hard work she was putting in and the learning she was getting from the whole experience. She thought about that and then commented on her previous science fair at her charter school where she didn't really pay attention to the teacher and picked a project that allowed her the most play time at home rather than striving to create a quality project. It was good to hear her tell in her own words what she was gaining from this experience compared to her past experience. I'm proud of both of our girls and looking forward to seeing how things turn out for them.
This is our final week to complete our projects so my lesson planner is basically gigantic words across the whole week of "SCIENCE FAIR", LOL! They are doing math: measuring for their recipes, using real time, and will be making graphs for their displays. They are doing language arts: preparing to speak to adults and peers about their projects, writing notes on all of their experiments, and a several items for their displays. They are obviously working on science with the scientific method in their experiments as well as the chemistry and physics in their project topics.
Our oldest is doing a project on homemade dog foods to see what foods are healthy for dogs to eat and which of the recipes she has chosen will be preferred by our dog. First she had to do research by looking at books from the library and websites online. We found a lot of recipes, but I was surprised how little there was on the actual nutrition for dogs. Mostly it was "avoid these foods and use meats, veggies, some fruits and little fats." She chose two recipes to try and created a recipe of her own. Saturday we spent the afternoon cooking the chicken (her meat of choice for all the recipes we are trying) and today we spent several hours (yes, hours of school on a Sunday -at my daughter's request!) putting the recipes together and then doing the first of three experiments to see which our dog preferred!
Our younger daughter is doing her project on the consistency of different play dough recipes. We've made one recipe so far and have five others to create in the next day or two. Then she will compare the recipe ingredients and their dough consistencies to create her report and display. Some of her recipes are not toddler friendly, while others are. She even chose two gluten-free recipes for her brother to play with!
I love that they are so excited and interested in these projects. I only wish I had more time to give each of them. We've had to work in bits and pieces over the past few weeks. It has been a great experience so far. Our oldest asked me what place I thought the judges might give her for her project. I told her I thought she had an excellent project, but I wasn't focused on the judges. I was more proud of her for the hard work she was putting in and the learning she was getting from the whole experience. She thought about that and then commented on her previous science fair at her charter school where she didn't really pay attention to the teacher and picked a project that allowed her the most play time at home rather than striving to create a quality project. It was good to hear her tell in her own words what she was gaining from this experience compared to her past experience. I'm proud of both of our girls and looking forward to seeing how things turn out for them.
This is our final week to complete our projects so my lesson planner is basically gigantic words across the whole week of "SCIENCE FAIR", LOL! They are doing math: measuring for their recipes, using real time, and will be making graphs for their displays. They are doing language arts: preparing to speak to adults and peers about their projects, writing notes on all of their experiments, and a several items for their displays. They are obviously working on science with the scientific method in their experiments as well as the chemistry and physics in their project topics.
Sunday, February 11, 2018
Day to Day Stuff
The past few weeks have been complicated by illnesses. Our little man brought home a nasty cold that took him nearly two weeks to recover from. He kindly shared it with the entire family, leading to several sick days where we didn't do school and our middle child gained an ear infection from. I can tell we are finally getting to the end of it, but there are still times that it just wipes me out. Yesterday I felt pretty good. Today I took a three hour nap and barely functioned before that nap. I'm hopeful that we'll be able to keep our school schedule this week -we've got a dentist appointment and two homeschool outings planned!
Our homeschool group does "Presentation Days" once per month and this month's theme is "Poetry". Both girls have memorized something to recite. Our oldest is reciting the 'Toddler's Creed' poem by Dr. Burton White, and our youngest girl is reciting John 3:16. If our little guy cooperates, I hope to video tape their presentations, and at least, I hope I am able to keep him busy so he is not an interruption to them. He did well last month sitting in my lap and playing with his pom-pom balls and wipey box.
With the potential of moving this year, I have in my spare time...the little I get...been packing items we aren't ready to let go of, dropping of bags and bags of stuff to the thrift stores, and de-cluttering the house to make it more "show ready".
Whether or not we actually move, this process has been really good for me and has provided a good perspective for working on our home. I re-purposed my prized desk as a tv stand because our little guy was biting the paint off of our hand-me-down desk we were previously using and I didn't know what kind of paint he was eating. My desk actually looks nicer and fits better in our living room anyway. I miss having the surface to throw clutter on, but I'm enjoying the forced organization it is making me do to adjust.
Our homeschool group does "Presentation Days" once per month and this month's theme is "Poetry". Both girls have memorized something to recite. Our oldest is reciting the 'Toddler's Creed' poem by Dr. Burton White, and our youngest girl is reciting John 3:16. If our little guy cooperates, I hope to video tape their presentations, and at least, I hope I am able to keep him busy so he is not an interruption to them. He did well last month sitting in my lap and playing with his pom-pom balls and wipey box.
With the potential of moving this year, I have in my spare time...the little I get...been packing items we aren't ready to let go of, dropping of bags and bags of stuff to the thrift stores, and de-cluttering the house to make it more "show ready".
Whether or not we actually move, this process has been really good for me and has provided a good perspective for working on our home. I re-purposed my prized desk as a tv stand because our little guy was biting the paint off of our hand-me-down desk we were previously using and I didn't know what kind of paint he was eating. My desk actually looks nicer and fits better in our living room anyway. I miss having the surface to throw clutter on, but I'm enjoying the forced organization it is making me do to adjust.
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