Cooking Day

It’s been a really long time since I have posted.  So many things have been going on.  It’s been a really tough few weeks and I know I am going to want to post it here.  However, not tonight.  Tonight I just wanted to share how I spent my day. 

I spent most of my day in the kitchen.  I made

• Hummus from scratch
• Brown rice to keep in fridge
• Potato Salad
• Homemade Tator Tots
• Started process to sprout mung beans. 
• Got Chicken prepared to make rice wraps tomorrow.

It doesn’t look like much but when you are uses dried chickpeas, the process takes a long time.  I am wiped.  Not to mention all the dishes I had to keep up with.  I am proud to say, all dishes have been washed and I am ready for a new day.  The tator tots did not go so well.  They were falling apart during cooking.  I have done about half the batch (although I lost a lot) and the other half is in the freezer in ball form.  I think freezing them will make it easier to cook.  I don’t think I will be trying this again. 

Well now I am off to bed.  Tomorrow is a brand new day. 

Gluten and Dairy free for a week!

I made it past the first week.  Not without some emotional upsets and frustrations though.  I have been more creative with my meals, which is kind of awesome.  Last night I attempted to stay up late and do some cleaning.  During that time I also decided to update by video.  I can’t believe I talked for 10 minutes though.  I think I talk a bit too much.  hmm… 

Anyways, if you are interested in my update.. here it is. Sorry for the video lag. 

Rough Night…

Last night Annaleah had her 2.5 hours of dance classes.  Dinner was going to be tough.  I decided to make some spring roll wraps filled with spicy chicken salad.  As we rushed out the door and started down the road I realized, I had forgotten the wraps at home.  We left at 5pm.  This meant no eating til 8:30pm. 

Angel had already planned to get himself a burger or two at McDonalds.  I tried racking my brain to see what I could eat.. hmm.. grill chicken salad should be fine.  I know the croutons are in separate little bags. 

I get up front and ask the cashier, “Do you put cheese on your salads?”.  She responds, “yes we do”. 

“Can I have mine without cheese??”

“Our salads are premade”

“Oh, nevermind. Two apple dippers please” 

Angel looks at her and says.. “Cancel the order.”  and walks out. 

I am stunned.. I keep telling him to get himself his burgers.  I don’t want him to go hungry.. He refuses and takes me arm as we walk out.. I can just image the people’s reaction behind us. 

Angel decides we should just get a salad at ShopRite.  I don’t remember there being salad bars there but I am not going to say anything.  I did notice they have prepackaged salad (with cheese of course), but no salad bars in sight. 

I continue with my shopping.. Could not find Udi bread anywhere (and there have a gluten free section that is three aisles long).  Shopping was really difficult.  I did end up finding Gluten free bisquick and just decided to get that.  Although it was over 5.00 for a tiny box!  I also did not find any gluten/dairy free frozen treats there ..  

After shopping, Angel mentioned Chinese food.  I searched my brain for something I may be allowed to eat.  I know I can’t have soy sauce.  I decide on an order of boneless ribs praying it is safe for me.  So we order.. then pull up to Anna’s dance studio.  It is now 7:30.  We have about 45 minutes to eat.. However, they did not pack us a fork.  So we didn’t get to eat til 8:48pm. 

I know things will get easier with time.. Gotta think positive! 

A New Journey

I decided to see a Homeopathic Doctor recently.  I have not seen my regular doctor for about 3 years.  Just got tired of not being listened to.  This doctor was great.  She listened to everything I said and decided that bloodwork was the first thing to do.  I have had bloodwork before but not like this. 

Results came in… 

• no celiac
• liver functioning great! 
• cholesterol good – although good cholesterol should be raised a bit
• very anemic
• very low Vit. D – 14 when it should be in the 70’s
• calcium a bit low
• thyroid a little on the high side
• Low folate and B12
• Positive for Candida
• slight allergy to soybeans and corn
• Very allergic to gluten and Dairy! 

Seriously??  Allergic to gluten and dairy!  This is going to be hard! 

Plan of Action: 
no wheat or dairy, period
10 times the amount of Vit D for 2 months
b complex vitamins as well as the extra b6 I have
High Iron Diet
MSM to help with bone pain and anti-histamine for my seasonal sickness

After all my mineral are up we will start attacking the candida which can take 4-6 weeks in some cases 3 months.

Sigh…

Homeschool Journal

I was roaming through a friend’s blog when a post caught my eye.  I headed over to the original site and thought I should try it out.  I have been so lacking in blogging these days.  I can use all the help I need. 

In my life this week… we have been busy with recovery from Hurricane Irene and unexpected hospital trips.  We lost power for a full week after Irene hit.  I fought to save our food in the deep freezer.  We pretty must lost everything in the fridge.  We have no way to restore these items at the moment.  I just checked the freezer today and it is frozen solid on the bottom from the ice bags on top melting during the outage. 
As for Angel, his white cells are really low.  He had to go in twice for a shot of white blood cells and then his normal appointment on Thursday.  A lot of unexpected driving for sure. 
My Grandson also started preschool this week and I picked him up yesterday.  He was not happy to see me which led to me explaining who I was to the teacher.  Just love those little 4 year old mood swings. 
In our homeschool this week…we started out slow.  Tuesday we took a list of all the subjects and new books.  I had Anna help me plan out the day and we looked through each book and introductions.  She is a bit behind in the Math program but we decided to do a times table review all week.  I believe if she can get this down then it would be much easier to do her division problems.  I think it was a productive week.  Next week will be a bit more work.
Helpful homeschooling tips or advice to share…is to just stick with it.  If you end up behind in an area, don’t fret.  This is something I struggle with big time.  I am learning to just take a step back and re-evaluate the situation.  This is the beauty of homeschooling.  We do not have to be on such a strict schedule.  This is where we tend to lose the joy of schooling.
I am inspired by…other bloggers who homeschool.  They always amaze me with their dedication.
Places we’re going and people we’re seeing…we have not really seen many people this week.  Tonight is Annaleah’s first dance class.  She had a meeting this week for the dance company she is in now.  It is a bit overwhelming but I know she is going to love it.  She will learn so much in dance and character building.  We are hoping the weather will cooperate this weekend for the Ledyard Fair.  We have not been in a while. 
My favorite thing this week was…hard to pinpoint.  It has been a tough week.  I think my favorite thing though was being able to sit and look at Anna’s newletters for US History and Science.  Through these lessons I realized that she is alot like me.  I was able to help her with some tips for comprehending what she was reading.  It brought back a lot of memories from my reading comprehension struggles as a child.
What’s working/not working for us…amazingly, we have been able to just pick up everything and school on the road.  On Wednesday, when Angel got the call to head to the hospital asap.. it only took a few minutes to make some photocopies and pack up a folder for the van.  Anna did schooling two days in a row in the van and managed to finish it all.
Questions/thoughts I have…are just turning around in my head.  It’s chaos in there.
Things I’m working on…organizing things.  Everything around me needs organizing and I really not succeeding at this time. 
I’m reading…way too many romance novels.  Sadly I have not been doing my morning devotions.  I really need to get my priorities straight. 
I’m cooking…very little right now.  With our fridge practically empty and most of our meat gone thanks to Irene, meals have been difficult. 
I’m grateful for…life and family.  Honestly, I don’t know what I would do without my family.  I am so grateful that Angel is still here with us. 

I’m praying for…those in our area still without power.  Also the many others that were affected by hurricane Irene. 

A photo, video, link, or quote to share…
Annaleah got her hair stuck in a comb.  Somehow she thought it was wise to wrap it???
 
Thankfully Daddy was able to cut the comb and save the hair!

The Toilet that won’t flush.

We have been having issues with our toilet for quite some time now.  When we got back after our two month stay in the hospital, it was really bad.  After getting the situation under control, we had to keep a close eye on it constantly.  Imagine, every time you flush you have the plunger in hand, waiting. 

I had just checked out FlyLady again for the hundredth time. I saw an email of someone praising the HeyTom Clog Cannon. 

After showing it to hubby, he said to order it right away.  So I did.  Although the site says to expect it in two weeks, we received it a week later.  After attempting to use it .. took a few tries.. this pops out of the toilet. 

Now I know what the penny is.. but have no clue what the rocks are from.  The penny though is really thin.  I placed it side by side next to another penny..

No clue what the rocks are.. but for now.. the toilet is flushing. 

Bottled juices...

We are on the road, heading to Hartford for Angel's bi-weekly appointment.  We stopped to grab egg sandwiches and juice.  I noticed they did not have regular Orange juice. Angel insisted I try on of the mixed juices.

I am not a juice person at all. Aside from orange juice, I drink no juice or koolaide. Not even lemonade. My beverage is iced water, occasionally soda.  Milk once in a while but mostly with cereal.

So I try the strawberry berry juice pictured below.  Nope. One sip was enough. I think angels peach mango was better but I still wouldn't buy it.  Am I the only one that has a problem with bottled juices?