It's Been a While!

Wow, where to start?  I've been off of here for quite a while.  So much has happened.  Things that I want to talk about, and things that I don't want to talk about.  I've lost a parent, quit my job, my health issues have gotten worse, and my dog has a rare disease.  I've started my garden again this year, started and transplanted my seedlings, and continue to work on finishing a room in the basement that I'm confident will, one day, be a studio/craft room.  I'm working on opening a new shop on Etsy, but in light of all that's been going on, it's on the back burner right now. 

Herb bed on the left, asparagus bed on the right

My main goal with the garden this year is preservation!  My garden last year was experimental.  I tried several types of plants to see what grew well and what struggled.  Here in northwest Ohio, we have very clay-ey soil.  I wanted to know what could grow without amending the soil at all--it was once farmland--and I learned a lot.  I learned that tomatoes and green beans grow well here (but I believe they grow well anywhere!).  I learned that growing a sweet corn variety next to an Indian corn variety will result in cross-pollination and some seriously unappetizing corn.  Haha, once my hubby found out how I planted the corn, he found it hilarious, because he would have told me not to do it!  I learned that there was no need for more than one plant each of zucchini, yellow squash, and winter squashes, although my abundance of winter squash kept very well in the basement for most of the winter.  I learned that potato plants should be planted in a different area of the garden on account of how wet certain areas of the garden become after heavy rains.  I had great success with carrots last year!  A five-gallon pail was overflowing with the harvest.  I processed and froze them in slices. 

A rainbow of carrot varieties

Sugar Baby Watermelon

Melons seemed to like the growing environment, and I ate some of the sweetest cantaloupe I've ever had from the garden.  I learned that garlic just doesn't like my soil.  Vidalia onions seemed to do well, even though I don't like to eat onions.  Home-grown strawberries are delicious, but hard to maintain and keep de-weeded, and when it's time to replant the patch, there will be a raised bed with weed block underneath.  I started an herb garden directly in the soil last year, but moved everything to a raised bed after the herbs struggled to get established in the clay.  I've tried to start a lavender patch, and some lavender came back and some didn't.  This year, we started an asparagus patch that should yield a harvest, even if only a light harvest, next year.  I dried and preserved herbs at the end of last year, and plan to dry and preserve much more this year (more about that in another post).  I dealt with insect issues and other plant diseases.  I fought a losing battle with weeds that continues this year.  So I say all of that to say that this year, I've planted an abundance of tomatoes, herbs, green beans, potatoes, corn, and melons, with the plan of preserving as much as I can this summer and fall.

Strawberry, before the weeds invaded

Herbs drying on a rack in the basement

I love the education that this garden has provided.  Having a large garden space has been a dream of mine for years.  Thankfully now, I have it and can continue to learn.  And maybe even pass a few tips along to others who read this! :)

GAPS: The Good and The Bad

This is the post that I naively started on January 1, 2015, the first day on the GAPS Intro diet:

"Happy New Year!  2015 is officially here.  We spent New Year's Eve eating lots of things that we were going to have to give up, which was fun and tasty.  Say goodbye to old habits (brownies and cookie dough) and hello to the new ones (soups, fresh meats, veggies)!

Along with ushering in the new year comes our GAPS diet.  I will admit that I still feel overwhelmed with all of the work and prepping that goes into preparing our meals now, even with all that I did beforehand to be ready.  I got up this morning with determination and a loose plan:

Breakfast carrot-squash soup

Drink my mineral water
Make breakfast soup:
Assemble ingredients for other soups and get those started
Make coconut honey bites--a mix of 1 C unrefined solid coconut oil and 2 TBSP raw honey
Attempt a new batch of sauerkraut--Picklemeister
Clean the kitchen as needed, keep washing dishes as used

Whew!  On top of that, I also needed to clean up the kitchen, take out the trash from last night, rearrange the pantry to make some more room for things that were going away for a while, get down our Vitamix that my in-laws gave us, and try to find a place to store the microwave, which is now on the do-not-use list.  I'll miss that convenience.

Veggies prepped for the freezer, for using in soups

I probably won't post daily on this, because time just won't allow it.  I'm keeping a journal, and I might post a once-a-week update and summary of how things are going, along with recipes from the week.  I can honestly say that if it wasn't for this dairy intolerance, I wouldn't embark on this lifestyle change.  But I need to heal it, so here we are.  I truly appreciate my husband's willingness to go through this with me, and I know that we'll feel better.  The first step (and first day) is always the hardest when trying something new and completely unfamiliar, so patience and planning will be essential to our success.  It's not that the food isn't good; I thought my breakfast soup was tasty!  I'm just used to toast and orange juice or cereal for breakfast, and I'll miss those things, at least until the bad bacteria is gone.  I'm looking forward to the good things that we'll be able to eat soon, and I think the coconut honey bites will be a necessary snack for right now."

Oh, that's so cute. 

Since I started that post, I've had literally no time to do much of anything besides sleep, work, cook, eat, shop for more food, and do dishes.  I have had no time at all to post anything here, which I correctly predicted 11 days ago.  I have kept a journal, though, and tracked not only the foods we've eaten, but also our transitions through the first phases and the probiotic dosages that we've been having.  I won't lie, it's been tough.  I'll probably never want to eat soup again when this is all over.  But we're starting to introduce other foods now, which is helpful. 

I'll try to post a few updates for the stages (we're currently in Phase 3) in a few days, just to give anyone new/unfamiliar with all of this an idea of what it's like.  But for now, I have to go make dinner!

Inflammation Diet, Phase 1

Well, we were finally able to start our 21-Day Tummy routine on Sunday.  Due to some events that were out of our control, we had to postpone our start date until then.  We had hoped to have three weeks of uninterrupted time to just focus on the plan (but that's already out the window).  The reasons for doing this diet?  My inflammation and gastrointestinal problems, and to lose weight and be healthier.  Good reasons.  So, what do we think so far?

This first phase, lasting for five days, has been hard for both of us.  You pretty much cut out all sugar cold-turkey and eat a  very low-fat meal plan, with limited amounts of olive oil for cooking.  That has been hard for me!  I have a affinity for sweets (like, a whole mouth full of sweet teeth), and the cravings for sugary foods and fats (like using butter for cooking) has been hard to fight.  We've both experienced what I call withdrawal headaches from the lack of sugar--I know it's not caffeine withdrawal, because coffee is allowed, and hubby still drinks it daily.  I don't drink coffee, but I do drink pop, although I don't drink it enough to cause headaches when I don't have it for a day or two.  Ergo, sugar withdrawal!

Simple dinner--baked salmon and potato, sprinkled with parmesan

We've tried several recipes, and have liked most of them.  We have made some slight alterations to account for items we didn't have or personal tastes.  I've also had a need to make quick meals due to a family emergency, and found that it's easy to just use elements from other meals to make something fast, like a piece of fish and a baked potato or sweet potato.  The smoothies are the worst for us--it took a few days to find a tolerable smoothie flavor combo, and because smoothies are part of the first 14 days, finding a palatable combination was important.  Neither of us likes yogurt, and it's more tart than either of us cares for, but we'll soldier on.  I'm hoping that my tastes might change, or I find a sweet enough combination to get me through the duration.  So far, the most tolerable smoothie flavor combo has been banana, cocoa powder, vanilla, and cinnamon.  I miss real food for breakfast, and am counting down the days to no more yogurt smoothies.  Other than the smoothies, the meal suggestions and recipes have been decent so far.  I say "decent" because the book states that spices like garlic are inflammatory (despite the fact that I've always heard that it was anti-inflammatory), so they recommend not using them, and the food can be a little bland when following the recipes exactly (the Hearty Roasted Vegetable Soup recipe should be renamed Cooked Vegetables in Hot Water Soup).  It helps to have a little cooking knowledge under your belt with this plan to make the meals a little more flavorful.  

A typical smoothie--I make them the night before and store them in the fridge in insulated glasses so that we can just grab and slurp in the morning.

The format of the book is taking a little time to get used to.  There are recipes in the book, but there are also general meal directions on the day-to-day meal plans that are not found in the recipe section.  There are shopping lists in the back to make buying groceries easier, but depending on what you plan to make, you might end up with more than you need if you discover you don't like a recipe or if the recipe makes four servings and there are only two of you (such is our case).  I decided to make my own meal plan for Phase 2, and it took a while to go through all of the recipes and come up with a tailored grocery plan.

There is also an exercise section of the book, but I have yet to try any of the routines--I just haven't had time yet.

Vegetable soup--a very bland recipe.

I also found new foods that I like, such as chard (never had it before), sweet potatoes (just never cared for them), kale (a little bitter, but great in salad), curry (although I think it caused some of my symptoms during the week, and will be limiting its use), and zucchini (I've never liked it prepared in restaurants).

I have still experienced some GI issues during this phase.  It's possible that my body is adjusting, but it's also possible that the foods we've cut out so far have not been the cause of my problems.  I think that the severity and frequency of the problems has decreased, and I am not kept up at night with intestinal pain, but the fact that the symptoms still remain gives me pause and makes me continue to wonder what could be causing this.



Here's my summary of these first five days:
Pros--rapid weight loss, decrease in inflammation symptoms (but not elimination).
Cons--constantly hungry, some of the recipes are bland, still experiencing GI symptoms. 

However, after the first five days, I've lost 5 pounds and two inches off of my waist, which is enough encouragement to keep going.  I guess.

Time To Change Things Up A Bit!

Well, hello!  It's been a while since I've written a new blog.  I've been dealing with some pretty low moods lately, and when I get that way, I have no interest in doing much of anything.  That all seems to have changed with the change in the weather, and as I sit here on St. Patrick's Day in shorts with the windows open, listening to the birds sing outside, I am having a hard time believing it's still winter!  But I'll take it, if it means getting me out of my funk and in a better mood (I'm sure hubby will, too).  I'm hoping this beautiful weather is here for a while, but I don't believe that the cold weather is gone for good just yet.

Thanks also to the weather, my thoughts over the past week have turned to gardening.  Hard-core.  I am eager to begin a new garden for the year, and be able to enjoy delicious fresh veggies from my backyard.  On the plan this year will be corn, pumpkins, cucumbers, green beans, peppers, and of course, asparagus.  I had hoped to see an asparagus shoot poking its little head out of the ground when I went out to look yesterday, but alas, nothing yet.  I'm sure I'll see something soon, though.  Hubby and I went to the home of a coworker/friend this afternoon who was offering to give us some lilies that she had split from her garden, and she also gave us some black-eyed Susans to replant, too.  They are sitting on our back patio right now, but hopefully they will be in the ground by tomorrow.  I'll take pictures once they start growing and blooming.

Ingredients for Candy Bar Cake--NOT on the WW plan.

My thoughts have also turned to losing this extra weight (I'd call it winter weight, but honestly, it's about three winters' worth of weight, so it would be a bit of a misnomer).  Hubby and I broke down, after not having much success or motivation trying to manage our diets on our own, and purchased a Weight Watchers membership.  So far, it's working well, especially for hubby, and it's only been a week.  It's not a bad plan, but I think I'd rather go back to counting calories.  Once the membership expires (in May), I may go back to doing that, since I should be back to within my normal weight range by then.  Not down to my goal, but at least back to acceptable.  So, I went online and printed out a bunch of recipes from the website, and I plan to begin trying them over the course of the next several weeks.  I will also review them on here, and if they are good, I'll post them for you to try as well.  I figure, even if you are not trying to lose weight, why not eat healthier anyway?  I went on Pinterest and did a search for Weight Watchers recipes, and found quite a few that sounded good.  You can also just do a Google search and find them.

Since we've started the Weight Watchers plan, I admit that I feel like I'm not eating enough.  According to them, though, I am.  I just feel hungry all of the time!  I know that it's for the best, though, if I want to be healthy.  It's nothing compared to what Jesus experienced in the desert--He fasted for 40 days and 40 nights!  If that's not hunger, I don't know what is.  Just the fact that He was able to go without food for over a month shows that He was more than human.  When the devil came to tempt Jesus to turn stones to bread to eat, and prove that He was God, Jesus replied, "“It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.’" (Matthew 4:1-5).  Jesus could have done it, but it wasn't the reason that He was fasting to begin with.  Maybe when I'm hungry, I should turn to the "soul food" that God offers each one of us every day through His word in the Bible.  Hmm.  Food for thought.