XfoundmycureX

Seriously, I need to stop.  Like I have written lately, I am still maintaining right at 168-169.  I have been here for months it feels like!!  My issue is that I continue to cheat.  If I only eat the all natural foods, I KNOW my body will go right back to where it belongs (somewhere I am assuming between 130-140).  But I justified a few cheats in the past and then that just became a spiraling decline into the abyss of junk food on an almost daily basis.  I should be ever so happy to have maintained, but I am not.  I am pissed off at myself!  Why?  Just read my last post about the pudge!  Gaining 2 inches at the waist and seeing more belly and hip and arm fat is NOT a good thing!  My clothes are slightly tighter but not uncomfortable.  I just know if I continue down this path, I may just give in totally to bad eating with everything!  Just the other day I was talking to my sister and she was telling me how one of her kids was reminiscing about pop-tarts.  I have not had one in 10 years, but I swear I started drooling!!!  How crazy!  I do not DARE go to the store anytime soon as I will just be tempted to go buy some!  UGH!!!

So I had to evaluate what helped me 6 months ago to shed like 40-50 pounds in 3 months time.  It was because I feared eating anything!  I was so sensitive and was becoming intolerant to eggs and wheat.  I was terrified of another anaphylactic reaction.  I set out to change everything and I did.  I now am able to tolerate wheat and eggs and even onions.  So I no longer have that fear…..which is going to hinder my next attempt at beating the sugar addiction.  I have to have a STRONG motivation to get through those 3-4 days of shaking, crying, anger, etc.  I have nothing strong enough.  Sure I want to be healthier and I want my kids to have healthy habits.  Good motivators, but my sugar addiction is so much stronger.  My only guarantee is asking God for help.  He is the ONLY one who can help me through this.  I have started to pray for help and guidance in this area.  I feel confident He will help.  Now I just need to make a plan.  I have the tools (the ability to buy all the whole, natural foods, raw milk, grass fed beef, etc), and now I need to set it up.  I debated going back to the Maker’s Diet where the first 4 weeks is grain/sugar free, but I know that is too much for me right now.  I will just go back to the basics of whole grains, organic fruits and veggies, raw dairy, meat, fish, and chicken, and eggs.  That in of itself will be hard enough. 

So my start date will be the beginning of a 10 day stretch off I have from work.  It will also be the end of TOM so I will not have that to deal with at all for the first week of pain (LOL).  I start Oct. 20th.  That means no Halloween candy!  UGH I know that would typically be just the very wrong time to do this, but there never is a good time is there?

6 Months or so ago, we committed to eating an all natural diet.  We stayed on it very well for about 3 months.  Then I went back to work and all that natural eating went down the tubes.  Not completely as at least 60-70% of what we eat is all natural.  But the cheating has gone on the up and up. When we started cheating more (pizza, pasta, jar sauce, snacks, creamer in coffee, etc), the weight stopped coming off so quickly.  Thankfully I have not gained, but hubby has, and my body has changed….not for the better.  You see, when processed foods are taken out of the diet and whole grain that is soaked in buttermilk is used instead, the gut stops being so swollen.  All that belly fat is from your processed foods….all the refined sugars, processed (aka chemically laden) flour, and other chemical rich foods accumulate in your gut fat.  Why?  Well you see that “food” is not real food, but the body will start storing it as fat when it realizes it is deprived of real nutrients.  In a sense you can eat all the calories you want, or even very few calories, but if the body does not recognize it as real food it can use for good energy, it will store it as the body thinks it is starving.  So for all those people who watch what they eat carefully and don’t lose a pound for weeks and weeks, that is why…..you deprive your body of anything real and it will store every last calorie it can even if it is a bad calorie. 

Everyone has heard the term “A calorie is a calorie, is a calorie”.  NOT TRUE!  Calories rich in dense nutrients (say an avacodo) are going to be utilized completely different in the body than say empty calories say from a can of coke.  A person eating an 1800 calorie diet rich in all natural foods vs the person eating 1800 calories on say smart ones meals (or lean cuisine or whatever) will win out in the weight loss game.  The person eating the “dead” food as I call it will lose less or maybe not at all for awhile and will inevitably suffer from stomach problems, reflux, depression, fatigue, and oh so many other problems.  Since eating an all natural diet, my reflux went completely away, my constipation (chronic since childhood) went completely away, my energy is coming back significantly, AND my belly fat went down A LOT!!!  Of course we come back full circle to the title…..gaining the pudge back…..yep with the recent increase in processed foods these past 3 months I have gained back that pudge around the middle.  As witnessed by my handy dandy belt!  I went from notch 3 all the way back to notch 1!!  A whole 2 inch gain and not a pound gained!!!!!!!  Hmmmmm……goes to show for me at least that a calorie is truly not just a calorie!!

I have this jacket from L.L. Bean that I bought with Christmas money back in college (1996 I believe).  This jacket is old, but still in decent shape.  I lost the inner liner (that zipped in) long ago, but the outer shell is more like a rain coat and is great for fall and spring and sometimes winter.  It is a size medium (back when medium meant medium), but since my 2nd child, the jacket has never been buttoned all the way nor zipped.  A few winters ago it only buttoned at 2 spots.  It was sad.  I almost gave it away then thinking it was NEVER going to fit right ever again.  The issue is it goes past the butt/hip area - so basically 3/4 of the jacket was never going to close (in my opinion).  I took it out yesterday as it was time to get the cooler temperature clothes out.  The kids tried on their winter jackets and other clothes to see what fits and what we need to buy.  I just hung my jacket up not even bothering to try it on.  Figured it wasn’t going to fit yet again.  But this morning we all went for a walk.  Put the coat on and went to button up the 2 buttons known to close.  Tried a third, then a fourth, then lo and behold, all of them snapped closed without being tight!!!!  Now THAT was a GREAT feeling!!!!  Hope everyone is having a good day!! 

Is it just me or is there a rise in people with lactose intolerance?  Maybe it is because I am back in the work-force among many sick people.  All I know is there is a reason for this and those that are intolerant can actually “cure” the intolerance (without a prescription!!!!).  HUH????  FYI: Even though I am a nurse I am against 95% of the drugs the drug companies produce. 

Anyway - what is lactose intolerance?  It is an inability of the body to break down the sugar found in milk called lactose.  Lactose must be broken down when ingested or it can cause a host of gastrointestinal maladies.  Our bodies can produce lactase, but for many people, their bodies stop producing it.  Why is that?  Number one reason: we do not have enough beneficial bacteria in our intestines due to too many antibiotics taken in our lives.  And the number 2 reason is we do not drink raw milk.  Raw milk contains beneficial bacteria that helps our bodies produce lactase, therefore allowing the lactose to be broken down properly.  If raw milk is not an option, then taking probiotics with many different strains of bacteria may help.   Of course taking probiotics will help with soooooo many things, especially GERD (reflux), gas, and even constipation.  I take a lot of probiotics - and I mean a lot.  I drink raw milk, eat kefir and raw yogurt, drink kombucha, and eat a ton of other things rich in natural bacteria.  On top of that I take a high dose probiotic tablet (50 billion).  I do this as I have been on antibiotics nearly yearly from early childhood until I was about 25.  I was ALWAYS sick and my mom was always requesting antibiotics for me.  That nearly killed my liver by the time I hit 30.  It also almost killed me from my multiple anaphylactic reactions to various foods.  My body was so stripped of good bacteria….when I started taking probiotics and eating good food, my body reacted quickly!  My reflux went away completely and so have my “allergies” to eggs and wheat.  I have also seen a significant improvement in my liver function and my eczema.  I still have a tad bit to go in fighting certain things, but I am almost there.  I still fight my sugar cravings from time to time from the over population of yeast I have (side effect of antibiotic use), but that is down to a minimum.  I doubt I would have lost all the weight I have if I had not started taking probiotics AND eating an all-natural diet.  They go hand in hand to fight obesity. 

Funny thing is I am not perfect in this:  just today we ordered pizza and I ate 3 slices, 1 chicken wing, 1 package of whoppers, and a package of powdered donuts (the small ones).  But I only eat like that about once every other week or so.  I eat chocolate and doritos still almost daily which is BAD and the probable cause of why I am losing about 1-2 pounds a month, not a week!  I know I need to get my act together and just stop this snacking.  My weight loss will then speed up and then slow down probably around 140-150.  The thing is I shouldn’t be losing still with all this snacking, but I am.  And I can only attribute this to all the natural foods I DO eat - raw milk included.  Had I not made all these changes, I would have joined the millions out there who are lactose intolerant.  Milk would have come off the list of foods I couldn’t eat.  That list was getting too long!!!  Thankfully it is now only a very short list!!  You can go to www.realmilk.com for more information about raw milk and lactose intolerance.

I have read some great blogs on motivation over the past few days….some damn good ones!  Motivation is key right?  ONLY if it is the right motivator for YOU!  Seriously, when I had the motivation to look better, the weight barely came off.  I obviously didn’t want it bad enough.  That was in my 20’s when I wanted to lose 15 lbs.  Then when I wanted to lose 100, my motivation was my health.  Ok, a bigger motivator, but it still was not enough as my cravings were too strong and my will was too weak.  My personal motivation to losing all the weight I have has been multi-faceted.  BUT it came down to one thing….trusting God.  I somehow knew deep down my decrepid body was not making God happy.  I had screwed up the only body I was given.  Yes I had pre-existing medical problems from a child that were not in my control, but I allowed my body to spiral out of control for years.  So the control came back through God, my prayers for the knowledge to what was making me ill were answered, and the weight is now down to an acceptable level.  It took only a year give or take, but the majority of weight came off in just 3 months and have stayed off for an additional 3 months.  I could still use to lose another 30-40 lbs I suppose, but my ultimate goal has already been met….to be healthier.  I now have my medical issues almost resolved.  It is now time to get my body back into shape.  The arm wings and the thigh flaps will not go away by themselves.  I will start walking and doing some resistance exercises right here at home. 

I can honestly tell you I did not lose this weight on my own will power.  I just did not have it.  And I tried for years to utilize my own will, but I failed each and every time.  I wanted my health back not just for myself, but for my husband, for my kids, and ultimately to be able to help others.  How could I talk about healthy eating if I myself were not personally affected by bad eating through my health and weight?  I needed to go through what I did in order to help others.  We all have a calling in life I believe and mine has always been to help people any way I can.  I wanted to be a nurse since I was 8 yrs old.  I wanted to be a good example to others, especially kids.  Couldn’t do that being over weight telling others they needed to lose weight.  Nope, doesn’t sit well.  So my weight loss was something I wanted bad for a lot of reasons. 

What is YOUR reason?????

Hi Joy!  Thank you for the comment!  Was going to personally email you, but thought the clarification and information might be useful to others.  I personally have tried a detox for all of 2 days - that was the end of that.  I do not agree with colon cleanses - the thing I think you may be referring to regarding detoxing.  You are correct - they strip your body of electrolytes and I have read enough about them that I will not try them again.  What I took was actually a mineral complex in an ionic solution - basically electrolytes that are easily absorbed and by the nature of the ionic solution, draws out toxins from the cells.  All our cells - especially fat cells - hold onto dangerous toxins from food, the air we breathe, and anything we are injected with or ingest.  They are dangerous to harbor in our bodies and we are better off getting them out as they will only bring our health down further as we age.  When the toxins are released, they are processed through the liver and excreted through the kidneys, and the skin if enough water is not available in the body to get rid of them.  The solution I took were simple minerals - potassium, magnesium, iodine, and about 30 others.  Things our body needs but never seem to get enough of as our foods are so depleted.  So that is what my “detox” was all about.  I was not intentionally trying to detox actually - my practitioner told me I was highly deficient in most minerals, so I got what was considered the best mineral complex out there.  I am learning as I go about this path.

I hear you about the natural herbs and whatnot.  I do not take supplements unless I know I have a deficiency.  And then I will not take it for a long time, as even herbs were never intended for long term use (just like modern medicines were not intended for long term use either).  As for the FDA, well I will have to stop there as I think the FDA does NOT have our best interests in mind - 1/2 their funding comes from the drug companies - a conflict of interest in my mind. 

And as for unpasteurized milk - there are multiple studies out there stating more people get sick from pasteurized milk than from unpasteurized milk, however the studies I believe did not consider the ratio of people who drink which milk, making the LIKELIHOOD of getting sick from unpasteurized milk statistically higher (as much fewer people drink raw milk in this country than store-bought).  With that said, I further researched raw milk before starting to drink it myself.  The bottom line comes down to how the milk is milked from the cow - that is where the highest likelihood of contamination comes about.  Poor hygiene of the person milking and the cow (or goat) ’s udders is the leading cause of bad bacteria in raw milk.  It is crucial to KNOW the farmer and their practices of milking.  We have a very trustworthy farm we get our raw milk from.  Never had one problem.  They have a very strict routine of cleaning the udders, the machinery, and their own hands prior to milking.  Also if the milk is left at room temp for longer than 2 hours, bad bacteria will start to grow rapidly.  Hence the other important step is for the farmer to place the milk in ice buckets immediately after milking.  This cools the milk down to less than 45 degrees (the temp at which the USDA says milk has to be under) quite quickly to prevent bad bacteria from growing. 

I just wanted to throw all that out there….don’t want anyone to think I go about these things on a whim.  I have researched natural health for well over 3-4 years now and make sure I research things before trying them.  Where I went to nursing school, research was the pivotal thing they taught.  I remember getting frustrated at the lack of hands on vs. research we did.  But now I am thankful for that education as it has taught me exactly HOW to research things and what to look for.  I have tried things on a whim in the past out of desperation when my health was really bad and I was still going to doctors.  The doctors were only prescribing me stuff that made me worse and wanted to start experimental treatments.  I figured my own experiments in natural health could not be as dangerous as what the doctors were wanting to try.  After a year or so of trying a whole lot of things, I started being smarter about my research and started reading a lot before I tried anything.  And I have pulled myself out of liver failure, eczema, and now obesity.  So I guess I am biased, however I still think modern medicine is good for emergency situations (hence why I only work in emergency rooms).  I think as long as we are smart about it, and see things for what they are, we can have the best of all worlds. 

It means that when you slack off for one reason or another, the weight does not just pile back on!!!!!  I have “slacked” in the sense that I am not 100% natural eating and exercising like I know I should.  Eating out 2 times a week and eating sugary sweets 2-3 times a week would turn me into a PIG in the past and the weight would just pack on.  But all these months of truly healthy eating are helping to keep my binges locked up.  I cheat, but it is never a binge.  The past month since going back to work I have been really off track…..trying to cook healthy meals has been a challenge due to all the changes in our lives.  BUT I have still managed to lose a few pounds still.  I got on the scale today for the first time in a few weeks and was pleasantly surprised at the number…..169…..which puts me at 76 lbs weight loss!  I had to really think on that today as it seemed almost over whelming to me (my emotions are a bit touchy lately).  The thing is I have yet to incorporate any exercise into my life…..anything consistent anyway.  We have taken walks from time to time, but my arms have wings and my legs are jiggly so I know I need some toning.  But one thing at a time. 

The past few weeks have been a true trial for me.  I started some remedies from my holistic practitioner in NC and had my typical detox reaction for a week.  Started to feel better, but decided to add the mineral solution she recommended.  Well the mineral solution states it is a very powerful detoxifier.  Didn’t think too much of their claims until a week later I was not able to function….severe brain fog, muscle weakness, severe fatigue, hair falling out, etc.  Luckily after a week I realized what was happening and cut back on the amt I was taking.  Today the brain fog finally lifted and I have been able to slowly start getting back on my feet.  It was a scary few weeks but it just made me more aware of just how sick I used to be, just how far I have come, and just how much further I need to go! 

Life other wise is well!  I enjoy working more than I thought I would.  I really like my co-workers and am getting back on the “bike”…..riding along as if I never fell off.  I have had many chances to teach others about natural health and have been welcomed with open arms from so many people on the subject.  Even today I met a lady at the campground who had a bad cold coming on….she would have had a hard time getting to a store so I offered her my homeopathy tablets for congestion.  She was actually very open to it and said she perferred the natural way of doing things.  It is good to meet people with whom I can relate to! 

We are still doing the farm food thing….in fact we bought some homesteading DVDs that teach all about farming, animals, dairy, homemade foods, canning, etc.  We hope to learn from the DVD’s, practice what we can and use the other info for when we get our own land.  Tomorrow we plan to make our own butter.  We can buy fresh butter from the farm, but we want to practice all on our own.  So we have some fresh cream from the farm and plan to whip it up! 

This past month we went to NY to put all our stuff in storage and to arrange to have the house cleaned and repaired so it will hopefully sell.  We also made 2 trips to NC to establish residency there.  It has been VERY busy.  Hopefully our trips now will be for actual family visits!!!  Not this rush rush rush!  Once we are able to pay for the repairs and painting, we will be able to start paying off the remainder of our debt and start saving.  We will be needing a new truck soon.  Ours has 140,000 miles on it - thankfully mostly highway miles, but still we have to be realistic it won’t last forever!  :)  And our travel trailer will only do for so much longer…..the kids will continue to grow and eventually outgrow the little makeshift beds they have.  We have a 27 or 28 ft one with no slides….we plan to upgrade to a 40 ft plus with multiple slides…. it will seem like a mansion to us I am sure!  But that is still a year or so off.  We plan to be thrifty and make this one last as long as possible.  We have no plans on getting back into debt ever again. 

Anyway that is all for now.  I just want to say for all those still struglling, hang in there!  I have had my fair share of struggles and I can say that being on the other side of some of those struggles is a tremendous feeling!  It is not about that magic number….but more about how you begin to feel in your own skin. 

P.S. I had to adjust my weight ticker again….found an old diary that I wrote in that stated I was 245 at my highest weight, not 240. 

I have been mad crazy busy!  I gave up on the homeopathy due to the time demands of it….too much.  Luckily my holistic practitioner in NC decided to do phone consults, so hopefully I can battle this fatigue once and for all!  I have been on the computer off and on but have so little time!  I know it is a matter of getting the details ironed out.  Unfortunately we have eaten out way too much due to me returning to work….hubby is all too happy to bounce out the door for Wendy’s as all the cooking is left up to me.  I cried the other day asking him to help me plan meals on the nights I work as I just can’t do it all.  He agreed and apologized.  Thankfully the rest of the food we eat is healthy and I have acrually lost a few pounds. 

Returning to work as a nurse was hard….I do not agree with modern medicine, but thankfully I believe in emergency medicine….so working in the ER is ok.  I get to teach a lot of people about natural eating and whatnot….my passion.  The kids are actually doing BETTER with Dad home more and me working.  I thought there would be more drama, but hubby is so on board with their discipline that they have not been allowed to act out, and in fact the kids seem happier!  He incorporated work, school, and a lot of fun all together!  And hubby himself is so much more relaxed now that he is not working 60 hours every week or stressing about the bills!  I did a lot of praying that gong back to work would be less stressful, not more….and so far so good!  Like I said, we just need to iron out a few details and all is good!  I plan to start incorporating some walking into my life once I get my remedy from my practitioner….it worked last year with my faitgue, but the fatigue returned after 9 or so months as I did not do the regimine like I should have.  I remember being able to walk/run for over 45 minutes!  I can’t even walk for 10 minutes now!  I get so out of breathe!  But hopefully that will change soon! 

I hope all of you are doing well!  I miss all my buddies and keeping up with your lives!  Maybe once things settle down, I can spend more time here!  I MISS YOU BUDDIES!!

This is very difficult for me to do, but it is not without serious thought and consideration. I am saying goodbye to my BlackBerry and hence my modem. We have been wanting to get more and more away from the online world as it is, so now is the time. I will therefore be saying goodbye to Buddyslim. I had to make some tough decisions and this was one of them. Once a week I will get online via free wifi near our campsite and upload a weekly journal on my Blogger blog. I have the blog mostly to keep family updated on our adventures on the road. I also write a lot about our healthy lifestyle there too. It is free of drama as too many family members read it and I keep my mouth shut when it comes to all that. This has been my one true place to vent and cry and you have all been there for me! But I will not have the capability to write often or check my comments. I will have to check my email like the old days…..when I get online! (GASPS).

You see I had to make a choice. Either keep things the way they are and stop my homeopathy treatments, or get rid of the cell phones and continue with the homeopathy. The microwaves emitted from the cell phones will adversely affect the remedies I am taking, therefore hindering my healing. I did the research on the all this and can say with certainty that the cell phones are truly dangerous in of themselves. I cannot live in a cell phone free world….too much of it all around. But I can directly impact my health my removing the direct contact with cell phones to my own body just by not using one. We will keep the phones….just keep them turned off unless needed in an emergency. We will get a calling card and use the pay phones to call relatives if need be. And I will get online once a week to keep in contact with family that way. My hubby and I realize we are “strange” and many people will think we are truly bizarre for stepping away from technology, but so be it. We decided we want to do all we can for our health and the health of our children. And we now realize that health is attained through all the small steps and small changes. We are getting there and hopefully one day we will be running circles around our kids instead of always feeling so tired and worn down.

My sister and I have been researching the GAPS diet and are more and more convinced it will do more for our health than anything else. I will be embarking on that journey soon! If you want to keep up with me I invite all of you to visit my blog. I apologize so VERY much for not being able to stay and support you all! I have some truly amazing buddies here and I am having a hard time saying goodbye! But I just will not be able to stay online long each week and keep up with everyone. I wish we had landline connection here but we do not. All my best wishes and prayers for your success!!!!!

http://thescarpullatravelingfamily.blogspot.com/

I am going to say something here that may come across as harsh, but I make no apologies as it is 100% true: WE ARE WHAT WE EAT!  It is either wishful thinking and/or ignorance to think that the food we eat does not directly affect our health.  I am here to say that what we eat DIRECTLY affects our health.  It is a scientific fact.  What amazes me is that the big regulatory agencies out there are allowing so many chemicals and processed foods into our stores…..causing the increase in cancer, heart disease, strokes, diabetes, allergies, and the list goes on and on.  Instead of changing what is in the stores, they instead allow doctors to keep on prescribing drugs that only mask the problems and cause more and more problems in the body.  Drugs will not cure your heart disease or prevent that stroke from happening….it may delay it for a bit, but it will still happen!  The only way to prevent these disease is eating the right foods.  Unfortunately the government in all its wonderfulness does not want you to eat the good food!  Raw milk was consumed for thousands of years, but for some reason in the last 50 years, it is no longer good for us according to the FDA and USDA….it is illegal in many states to buy it.  I find it hard to believe that raw milk would all of a sudden be harmful to us when humans have survived this long drinking it daily.  Scientific FACT:  Enzymes are killed off in temperatures above 120 degrees (or so depending on the food).  Enzymes are PROVEN to be necessary for our bodies as we do not manufacture all the necessary enzymes to break down food.  All living food contains enzymes….including meat, milk, fruits, veggies, etc.  So heating up the foods (as in pasteurizing milk) is BAD especially when all the food you are eating has been processed or heated.  We need that living food.  I do not encourage an all raw diet.  We can benefit from cooking some of our food, just not all of it.  We eat our meat as close to raw as possible.  Fish I cook through and chicken I cook through. 

Anyway the sad thing is most foods in the grocery store contain chemicals or have been processed.  All those chemicals are BAD for our bodies.  The FDA likes to state things as “In the amount present, X chemical is considered safe to consume”.  KEY point:  In the amount present is a farce as just because the chemical in that ONE food item is THOUGHT to be safe, you have to remember you may be consuming 20X that amount daily because it is more than likely in the rest of the food you are eating.  Sad thought.  Especially since our bodies are taxed beyond belief because we are not consuming any enzymes to break down all those chemicals.  You think eating a few pieces of fruit each day helps?  NOPE.  That fruit you are more than likely eating has been engineered and altered along with the soil it grows in so that that piece of fruit contains less than 40% of the nutrients it once did many years ago. 

I could go on and on.  I have studied nutrition and read the scientific journals.  Thing is too many people want convenience, so the garbage sells.  Low fat stuff is literally garbage….fat is good for you!  Our diet in the last 4 months has contained at least 40% fat!  We butter everything and eat fatty meat!  We eat full-fat cheese, and drink full-fat milk!!  YET Joe and I both lost OVER 30 pounds each without trying!  We did not watch portions nor did we exercise any more than an occasional walk.  We even have cheat days where we eat out (due to traveling).  So low fat is a gimmick!  It is another lie.  BUT the foods we eat at the store…even the milk are bad for you.  That fatty beef is loaded with hormones and antibiotics from sickly cows.  So of course low fat makes sense to some.  But it is only because it becomes more convenient to buy that packaged food at the store than to seek out a good quality farm that raises their animals right and is strictly organic.  Too many people find cooking to be a chore because of other responsibilities.  But since I have been getting significantly better health wise from diet alone, I can tell you that it is no longer a chore.  I enjoy the task as I know I am doing something right for my children and my husband and myself!  I know that they will not grow up obese and at risk of diabetes by the time they hit 30.  I know they will not keel over from a heart attack at age 45 or have a stroke.  I am confident that what I am feeding them is going to help prevent cancer and keep them healthy for many many years.  As for me and Joe, well we are hopeful that we can reverse some disease processes.  I had gestational diabetes with my first 2 pregnancies.  That was supposed to GUARANTEE me having type 2 diabetes within 10 years!  Remmington is 8 1/2.  No diabetes yet, nor do I plan on having it.  We are still at risk for cancer and heart disease as we both grew up eating the standard junk everyone else did.  But by changing our habits now we can at least hold it off much longer now.  To think I reversed my sensitivity to wheat and eggs in a few months time is nothing short of amazing.  I eat scrambled eggs 4-5 times a week as eggs ARE GOOD FOR YOU!  As long as they are from free range organic chickens that is!

When we first started this major change I really thought I was going to not be able to live without certain foods….truly I did!  Here is a brief rundown of what I thought we could NOT live without but that we no longer miss:

* cereal (yep no cereal for 4 months now!)

* macaroni and cheese - this was a major convenience food for us!

* bread - how could we live without sandwiches?  I struggled with having to change from standard sandwich lunches to something completely different. 

* instant meals like instant soup, ramen noodles, pasta, etc.  - we do from time to time eat rice pasta which is better for us but not perfect. 

That is a very short list, but I can assure you it is much longer!  The thing is we no longer miss these things.  The kids stopped asking for cereal months ago.  They don’t even seem to think about it like they used to.  I truly had to change my entire way I viewed food.  We no longer eat 3 meals a day.  We have a standard breakfast of usually eggs or oatmeal, although today was homemade strawberry yogurt (with no added sugar!).  We then snack in the afternoon…..typically a piece of cheese from the farm, olives, fruit, carrots, or maybe even tuna plain.  Dinner is then early (4-5pm) which always has 2 veggies and meat/fish/chicken.  This is not always the case as today I wanted to try soup and since we had such a light breakfast, I made homemade organic soup for our snack.  I bought chicken stock from the farm as I no longer have the capability to do it myself here in the travel trailer.  It was excellent!  I cut up organic carrots, garlic, and celery and made it with organic rice.  The kids all loved it!  And for dinner I am using leftover meatloaf and mashing it up and adding it to some rice pasta and sauce.  The sauce is from a jar, but I have learned that I need to compromise in some areas due to our limited room here.  I can no longer cook like I did at the farm house.  I only have so much room!  :) 

As you can see we do not follow everything strictly but we eat at least 80% organic and fresh foods.  20% is either processed or store bought.  Not bad….when we have our own land and a bigger home with a much bigger kitchen, I plan to change that to 99%….with 1% being an occasional cheat!  If you are concerned about the food you eat and want more information on what is truly the right foods to be eating, I suggest visiting (and joining) the Weston A Price foundation website:  http://www.westonaprice.org/