Wednesday, November 30, 2011

Steps in the right direction

Lately, I've been feeling kinda depressed.  Boo hoo, cry me a river.  Wait!  Maybe I should go on some antidepressants.  Those fix everything... not.

So here's what I've been doing about it, instead of continuing to let it get the better of me:

Drinking my Rick Style Smoothie
  • told someone (not everyone in cyberspace.  I told the person closest to me, and MAN I felt better just getting it off my chest.
  • started moving (his action steps, not my idea actually).  Today I went to the gym we joined yesterday and did the elliptical for 30 minutes.  That was enough to work up a sweat and come home.
  • garbage in... garbage out.  I started putting better foods into my body again.  Last night I had a smoothie, and after my workout today, I made another one.  Recipes below.
  • gratitude - the one thing my body told me is that I needed to write down all the blessings in my life.  I just didn't feel like getting out of bed at the time.  So I'll start here, and tonight I'll bring my journal back to bed (I shared what I was thankful for with the kids the other day so it moved from my bedside) where I can write before I go to sleep.
I am thankful for my family, and getting to see them again this Christmas.  I am thankful for my sister, who always knows what to say and how to kick my butt into gear again.  I am grateful for my loving, wonderful parents, who are supportive and kind and always love me whether they agree with my decisions or not.  I am so blessed to have my lover and partner, who is by my side helping pick me up when I am down and who is there to laugh with me.  I am thankful for our wonderful, intelligent, kind, and loving children.  I am grateful they know and understand what love really is, how it should be, and how to act with kindness.  I am blessed to be on my chiropractic journey, and discover the things I will and will not do in my office one day.  I am blessed to be challenged every day, especially on who I am, so I can stand firm in that without compromising and still shine.  I am thankful God is present in our lives each and every day, and I am thankful our children can see that.  I am thankful to have good food to eat and share with my friends and family.  I am blessed to live in a safe place, with caring friends and neighbors.  I am thankful for hugs and kisses, smiles, and laughter.  They make the world a better place.
I am sharing this today because it is important to realize that everyone takes steps backwards sometimes.  The best thing to do is to ask for help when you need it, and keep on taking one step at a time into the direction you want to go.

I almost forgot!  Smoothie recipes!!

Grapefruit Goodness
1 grapefruit, peeled
2 kale leaves
1 stalk of celery
some parsley, fresh
some fresh mint
water, to desired thickness

Rick Style Smoothie
My boyfriend likes the thicker, less sweet smoothies and this suits him just fine.  I don't think it's too bad - has a bit of a lemon taste which I like.
1 lemon, peeled
5-6 cherry tomatoes
2 stalks celery
2 leaves of kale
1/3 cucumber
fresh ginger to taste
1 ripe avocado
water, to desired thickness

I use the Vitamix for my smoothies, but any blender will do (really!)

What do you do to get out of a funk?

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Saturday, November 26, 2011

Petroleum free Christmas dress

My daughter and petroleum products don't get along.  Liquids in plastic bottles, petroleum jelly, and even polyester.  That makes for difficult dressing at times, and in the past has led to hospital visits and surgeries.

Last year, I made her a coat that was cotton and wool.  We were lucky enough to have found a 100% cotton corduroy Christmas dress last year at Goodwill - and that was a blessing!

This year, I went to Joann's fabric to pick out something I could make that would be a little more her style (total princess that she is).  I got some white cotton fabric with white embroidered snowflakes and circles on it, some dark red duponi silk, white muslin cotton, and a pattern.

I made her a dress that is gorgeous, fits her, and won't whack her out or make her look like she's sick (due to the dark under eyes, red itchy eyes, runny nose, etc.)

The only thing left to do is sew the zipper, but I can't find my zipper foot so that is on hold for now.

What kinds of things do you do for your children to keep them happy and healthy?

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Friday, November 25, 2011

Healthy Holidays

This was the first year I hosted Thanksgiving, and my boyfriend is the one who kinda had the idea.  At first I was not thrilled, and then I thought about all the things we don't have to worry about - like food allergies. I could make food everyone could eat and not have to worry about what might be in something, hurting feelings by refusing the food, and the crazy children that came from eating something either on purpose or by accident.

Gluten free stuffing with fresh onions, leeks, celery, and herbs.
My kids have the idea in their heads that this meal was somehow "healthy" compared to the rest of the world.  Let's take a look, shall we?

  • No dairy (allergies)
  • No high fructose corn syrup (no corn at all, due to allergies)
  • No gluten
  • No artificial flavors or colors
  • Less than 5 tsp. of salt were used
Does that mean healthy?  Let's see:
  • I used about 45 oz. of coconut oil for the entire feast.
    • That is a lot of fat, although a better fat with 0 cholesterol, still that's a lot.
  • Sugar:  I used almost an entire bag of sugar for this festive charade.
    • Normally, a bag of sugar would last an entire year.
Other factors to consider:
  • We still have a ton of food left over, including the pies
  • Cravings didn't happen later on in the day.  We were all still satisfied from our early meal!
  • I don't have a bunch of wild, crazy, irritated children running around.  I, on the other hand, am jumping for joy!
  • The food was moist, delicious, and our "normal" food eating guests couldn't tell the difference.
    • These guests had heaping seconds of my gluten free stuffing!
What did I really learn about a HEALTHY, happy, Thanksgiving?

Make foods that taste good to everyone, that are of the best quality you can afford, and people will eat like they should.  You don't have to skip sugar altogether, and you don't have to "give in" and buy the crap your kids are allergic to because you want them to enjoy it.

We all enjoyed it, and will continue to, for the next week while we finish all the leftovers!

I also learned to slow cook the turkey and inject FRESH herbs and spices into it for the most moist and delicious bird I've ever had.  Seriously.  Didn't even NEED gravy or cranberry sauce.

My recommendation:  repeat for Christmas, but scaled back because really?  Who needs 6 pies?!

Friday, November 18, 2011

Subluxation

Sub station?  WHAT!?  Subluxation.  The chiropractic term which many have tried to define over the years.  There are two things ALL definitions have in common:

  1. misalignment of a vertebra upon another
  2. nerve interference
I've been adjusted for many years (approximately half my life) and after seeing several awesome changes in my life and of those closest to me, I decided to become a chiropractor.  It just made sense!

Chiropractic doesn't fix anything.  Chiropractic is about one thing: subluxation (finding and removing it).  When there is less interference from brain to body, your body functions better.  That's just a fact.  When we remove subluxation, it allows for your body to heal itself.  Quite honestly, we don't even do that!  We put a very specific force into the body, and the BODY adjusts itself and then goes on to heal itself.

So I came across a post tonight on Facebook.  I know the chiropractor personally, have been to his office, and know he must have been thrilled to have shared:
Had a 12 year old patient with Leukemia. Last week had a blood test by oncologist. WBC count a 2 (non existent immune function) came to me we cleared atlas. 6 hours later had a count of 13 (oncologist stunned)

This guy isn't just any chiropractor.  He is an upper cervical chiropractor, and works at clearing subluxation at the top of the neck where the brainstem is located.

This isn't an example of chiropractic healing cancer.  This is a prime example of a body without nerve interference healing itself!

THIS is why I decided to become a chiropractor.  The body is pretty amazing!  It can put to shame a pharmacy in terms of drug creations, and it can create human life with the introduction of ONE cell from another person.  We don't have to think about how to beat our hearts, we don't have to think about how to grow a baby or divide cells.  We don't have to think about breathing while we sleep... it just happens!  You can't say the brain does it, because a dead person has a brain, too.  The heart doesn't do it - dead people have hearts.  What dead people don't have that living people have... is LIFE.

You can't deny that there is some force doing all these amazing miracles every second of our lives.  I certainly can't.

My job isn't to cure you of everything under the sun, and it certainly isn't to be your chiropractic aspirin.  I'm going to adjust your subluxations, and let your body heal itself!!!

And that is the miracle of life.

Wednesday, November 9, 2011

Natural Deodorant Revisited

After having made a second batch of gel-type deodorant using guar gum instead of xanathan gum, I am going back to the xanathan.  Here's why:

  • it turned a brownish color
  • it has a scent to it - and I don't like it
That said, I may have accidentally used too much guar gum so it's not fair to say it stinks in comparison to xanathan (but I'm going to say it anyway!)

I just made a new batch today using xanathan gum.  What I love:
  • it's a creamy white color, which I like
  • it smells good (I added a drop of lavender and peppermint EOs to the batch)
Added notes:
  • if you add too much baking soda to the water, it won't stay mixed in and it might feel scratchy.
    • Fix: add more water or use less baking soda next time
  • if it's too runny, put it into a roller bottle or add a little bit of xanathan gum
  • if you don't like the wet feel of putting a gel-type deodorant on, use the recipe The Smart Mama had on her site that uses coconut oil as a mixture, and pour it into a regular stick deodorant container.
Also, I didn't end up liking the gel for shampoo in my case - I'm quite happier using the no poo recipe instead.  But my kids use the gel, as it is much easier to use.

What have you found works for you?  Do you like this recipe, and have you used it for your hair or just as a deodorant?

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