Disclaimer: I gonna be very honest about myself here, if you don't wanna know me - you should stop reading cause I'm about to lay it out.
Even people who know me well, would probably say that I'm not a people pleaser/approval seeker, BUT I AM! Honestly, my pride goes down a couple notches when people don't comment or like my facebook posts. Truth be told, I look on the blogger dashboard to see how many post hits I got on the Vegan Blog. Are you shocked? Well? I have a problem.
I want people to like me and I want them to be pleased/happy with me. Sometimes it's more important than God's opinion because sometimes God's opinion isn't tangible like a 'like' or comment on facebook. Right?
On the surface I might look like someone who can handle just about anything, but the truth is...your opinion matters to me. Over the past week, I feel like God's trying to tell me gently (Thank you for gently) that other people's opinions matter far too much to me...
I want to change. How can you stop craving people's approval? I don't know, but I hope to learn.
Luke 6:26 (The Message)
There's trouble ahead when you live only for the approval of others, saying what flatters them, doing what indulges them. Popularity contests are not truth contests - look how many scoundrel preachers were approved by your ancestors! Your task is to be true, not popular.
Double DANG! My whole life I wanted to be popular...in school, with my friends, at work. Then God changed me and I still seek the approval of others probably before the approval of God. It's a problem. God...continue to fix me. Oh! Also, I'll try not to look at the blogger dashboard for post hits (;
Breakfast: Banana
Mid-Morning - Leftover Plantain/unsweetened ketchup from last night
Lunch - Raisins (I seriously can't remember if I ate anything else)
Mid-Afternoon - Leftover Lettuce, asparagus, strawberry, soy nut salad
Dinner - Spaghetti squash (the kids loved theirs with sausage and fire roasted tomato)
I took the kids to Misty Meadows for ice cream cause they did so good with dinner!
Dessert - Apple/Spoonful of PB
Monday, April 30, 2012
Kelly's DAY TWENTY-2
This morning I did my grocery shopping for the next couple of days. You can read about my shopping experience HERE (if you missed it).
I had a Naked juice for breakfast.
Lunch was a HUGE salad that I added black beans and corn salad to. It was massive...and good.
Dinner for the family was Cuban Pork Chops (boy, did THEY smell good), rice, Black beans (that I couldn't eat because they had "extras" in them), sauteed butternut squash. The smells comin' outta those chops were amazing! MY dinner, on the other hand, was butternut squash and Lentil Soup. I was FINE eating the soup since I was freezing all day long (totally thought it was supposed to push 70 here today).
I'm starting to realize more about the ramifications of following God's call in your life. People are always going to be quick to give advice, quick to give their input, quick to tell you, "you should do this" or "have you tried this?" or "WHY on EARTH would you do THAT?" But, it reminds me of Paul, who said something along the lines of "am I trying to please man rather than God?" Answer: NO! God's ways are HIGHER than man's ways! "For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord." Is 55:8 I have learned that in very concrete ways today!
So, all in all, after my minor Tea (pity) Party in Walmart today, God moved anyway. He doesn't NEED me in order to accomplish HIS plans (go figure!).
I had a Naked juice for breakfast.
Lunch was a HUGE salad that I added black beans and corn salad to. It was massive...and good.
Dinner for the family was Cuban Pork Chops (boy, did THEY smell good), rice, Black beans (that I couldn't eat because they had "extras" in them), sauteed butternut squash. The smells comin' outta those chops were amazing! MY dinner, on the other hand, was butternut squash and Lentil Soup. I was FINE eating the soup since I was freezing all day long (totally thought it was supposed to push 70 here today).
I'm starting to realize more about the ramifications of following God's call in your life. People are always going to be quick to give advice, quick to give their input, quick to tell you, "you should do this" or "have you tried this?" or "WHY on EARTH would you do THAT?" But, it reminds me of Paul, who said something along the lines of "am I trying to please man rather than God?" Answer: NO! God's ways are HIGHER than man's ways! "For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord." Is 55:8 I have learned that in very concrete ways today!
So, all in all, after my minor Tea (pity) Party in Walmart today, God moved anyway. He doesn't NEED me in order to accomplish HIS plans (go figure!).
"Am I now trying to win the approval of men, or of God? Or am I trying to please men? If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a servant of Christ." Gal 1:10
I cried in Walmart today~Kelly
I cried in Walmart today.
Let me back up...
We've had friends and family with good intentions sending us recipes and suggestions, all with well meaning intentions, which is GREAT! HOWEVER, it's simply tempting me to "cheat the system." For instance, I had a suggestion to buy non caffeinated herbal teas. This is a GREAT idea, right? So, I went to the tea section today and looked into them. I called Kristin for backup.
Me: "Hey! What do you think about buying non caffeinated herbal tea?
Kristin: "I've just been drinking hot water with mint in it."
Me: "Me, too...whaddaya think?"
Me: "Actually, I'm just trying to find loopholes in our fast. Nevermind. I actually want some tea...ANY TEA...so bad right now I feel like I'm gonna vomit."
Kristin: "(laughs) WE'RE HALFWAY THERE!! WE CAN DO THIS!"
Me: "I know. I JUST REALLY WANT TEA!!! I WANT IT SO BAD!"
Kristin: "WE CAN DO THIS!"
Me: "I know. I know. I'm walking away right now. I'm CRYING, but I'm walking away. KRISTIN! I'm CRYING OVER TEA!!!"
Kristin: "Good job."
Me: "Thanks. Talk to ya later."
I cried over tea in Walmart today.
Let me back up...
We've had friends and family with good intentions sending us recipes and suggestions, all with well meaning intentions, which is GREAT! HOWEVER, it's simply tempting me to "cheat the system." For instance, I had a suggestion to buy non caffeinated herbal teas. This is a GREAT idea, right? So, I went to the tea section today and looked into them. I called Kristin for backup.
Me: "Hey! What do you think about buying non caffeinated herbal tea?
Kristin: "I've just been drinking hot water with mint in it."
Me: "Me, too...whaddaya think?"
Me: "Actually, I'm just trying to find loopholes in our fast. Nevermind. I actually want some tea...ANY TEA...so bad right now I feel like I'm gonna vomit."
Kristin: "(laughs) WE'RE HALFWAY THERE!! WE CAN DO THIS!"
Me: "I know. I JUST REALLY WANT TEA!!! I WANT IT SO BAD!"
Kristin: "WE CAN DO THIS!"
Me: "I know. I know. I'm walking away right now. I'm CRYING, but I'm walking away. KRISTIN! I'm CRYING OVER TEA!!!"
Kristin: "Good job."
Me: "Thanks. Talk to ya later."
I cried over tea in Walmart today.
Sunday, April 29, 2012
Kristin's Day 21
I do believe I have entered the 'this fast sucks' phase of this journey. I was doing pretty good until about yesterday and then I sunk...fast and hard.
I am tired of eating the same things and I miss food. I want bread, eggs, cheese, coffee, even milk and that's wierd for me. It's not like I'm gonna quit or anything, so don't worry too much. I'm just going through rough patch. Eh, it'll be over soon enough.
IN FACT...I learned today that Ezekiel (one of the Old Testament prophets) obeyed God by lying on his side for 430 days in order to display how weak Isreal would be in front of their enemies! He was instructed to eat only bread made of barley, wheat, beans, lentils, millet, and emmer wheat. SUPER DANG! Some people eat a form of this today and they call it Ezekiel bread.
He ate this everyday for 430 days. I do not have it anywhere close as bad as Ezekiel, so I'm gonna shut up about my own complaints now. If you wanna read about this, it's in Ezekiel Chapter 4 and it's some crazy stuff. The Lord kept warning Israel, but they just didn't listen - guess some things never change (we need a listenting lesson too).
Anyway, I also learned about enriched flour today. I had no idea what that meant. If you didn't already know...this is the deal - Kristin version.
1. People were getting sick because of grain with mold or fungus, so they started processing/refining it to get the mold/fugus out.
2. They noticed nutrient definciencies and pinned it to the bread.
3. They continued to process/refine the grain and then add nutrients back in that were stripped during processing/refining.
Let me get this straight. They stripped the grain of nutrients and then added them back in? Yep. If you wanna read for yourself...here ya go - Wiki's Definition of Enriched Flour.
I AM FOOD DUMB! But, as you have been reading...I'm getting smarter everyday (:
I am tired of eating the same things and I miss food. I want bread, eggs, cheese, coffee, even milk and that's wierd for me. It's not like I'm gonna quit or anything, so don't worry too much. I'm just going through rough patch. Eh, it'll be over soon enough.
IN FACT...I learned today that Ezekiel (one of the Old Testament prophets) obeyed God by lying on his side for 430 days in order to display how weak Isreal would be in front of their enemies! He was instructed to eat only bread made of barley, wheat, beans, lentils, millet, and emmer wheat. SUPER DANG! Some people eat a form of this today and they call it Ezekiel bread.
He ate this everyday for 430 days. I do not have it anywhere close as bad as Ezekiel, so I'm gonna shut up about my own complaints now. If you wanna read about this, it's in Ezekiel Chapter 4 and it's some crazy stuff. The Lord kept warning Israel, but they just didn't listen - guess some things never change (we need a listenting lesson too).
Anyway, I also learned about enriched flour today. I had no idea what that meant. If you didn't already know...this is the deal - Kristin version.
1. People were getting sick because of grain with mold or fungus, so they started processing/refining it to get the mold/fugus out.
2. They noticed nutrient definciencies and pinned it to the bread.
3. They continued to process/refine the grain and then add nutrients back in that were stripped during processing/refining.
Let me get this straight. They stripped the grain of nutrients and then added them back in? Yep. If you wanna read for yourself...here ya go - Wiki's Definition of Enriched Flour.
I AM FOOD DUMB! But, as you have been reading...I'm getting smarter everyday (:
Kelly's DAY TWENTY-ONE
It's the FIRST DAY of the SECOND HALF of this long, hard road!
VICTORY!
I'm sitting here chomping on my dessert (apple slices) right now.
This morning, my husband sent my six-year-old daughter in to wake me up at 8:20. We leave for church at 8:40, and NONE of my (3) kids were dressed. My two girls' hair wasn't done, and I...well, just woke up. Shortly before we were walking out the door, my youngest got sick. Change of plans! My husband dropped us me off, then dropped the kids off and left our small group coffee/blueberry muffins where our small group meets. I rush in, sit next to my friend, turn around, and...VOILA! Farmer Matt and Farmer Mary were sitting right behind me! SWEET! I chatted with them for a couple of minutes before I rushed over to set up for small group. (I REALLY like my new friends!) Anyhow, when I rushed off, Matt hollers after me, "STRAWBERRIES THIS WEEK!" Oh, dear me. I almost dropped dead in my tracks! I have been dreaming of those sweet things since I scarfed them all down the day after our farm visit! I'm PUMPED! So, FARM FRESH STRAWBERRIES at Matt and Mary's by THURSDAY, folks!!! GO GET 'EM! (If you want me to pick some up for you, just let me know!)
VICTORY!
I'm sitting here chomping on my dessert (apple slices) right now.
This morning, my husband sent my six-year-old daughter in to wake me up at 8:20. We leave for church at 8:40, and NONE of my (3) kids were dressed. My two girls' hair wasn't done, and I...well, just woke up. Shortly before we were walking out the door, my youngest got sick. Change of plans! My husband dropped us me off, then dropped the kids off and left our small group coffee/blueberry muffins where our small group meets. I rush in, sit next to my friend, turn around, and...VOILA! Farmer Matt and Farmer Mary were sitting right behind me! SWEET! I chatted with them for a couple of minutes before I rushed over to set up for small group. (I REALLY like my new friends!) Anyhow, when I rushed off, Matt hollers after me, "STRAWBERRIES THIS WEEK!" Oh, dear me. I almost dropped dead in my tracks! I have been dreaming of those sweet things since I scarfed them all down the day after our farm visit! I'm PUMPED! So, FARM FRESH STRAWBERRIES at Matt and Mary's by THURSDAY, folks!!! GO GET 'EM! (If you want me to pick some up for you, just let me know!)
13220 Edgemont Rd
Smithsburg, MD 21783
(if you live in town, it's just down past Cool's Pond on the right)
By the time I made it over for our small group, I realized I hadn't had anything to eat or drink this morning, and there were some good lookin' blueberry muffins and organic coffee was brewing! I had hot water, but this time, I was smart enough to not let it get to "scald-your-entire-mouth" temperature.
We hit up Chipotle for lunch! BAM! SO GOOD!
I had some of my corn salad for dinner, a baked apple that Kristin brought over, some roasted soy beans and apple slices for dessert.
I find it odd that I STILL do not miss meat! It didn't even pain me to watch everyone eat their steaks that were cooked to perfection on Friday night! I've missed bread on occasion, and I've DEFINITELY missed coffee and tea and sweets, but not meat! Although, I think my brain function has slowed significantly, and if you've ever had kids...you know you don't have many brain cells to spare. So, I believe that your brain either needs meat, grains or dairy products to function at 100% (or as close to 100% as you can get). !) At least, that's what I'm telling myself.
Hey! Have a great week! Don't forget to eat your veggies! !)
My husband and some guys are meeting right now, and they asked me to come into the room so they could read me a verse, Proverbs 15: 17, which says, "Better a meal of vegetables where there is love than a fattened calf with hatred."
I agree.
My husband and some guys are meeting right now, and they asked me to come into the room so they could read me a verse, Proverbs 15: 17, which says, "Better a meal of vegetables where there is love than a fattened calf with hatred."
I agree.
Saturday, April 28, 2012
Kristin's Day Twenty
Okay...I've waited five days to say this. We're half way through!
I got up and Andy took the kids to breakfast and then to the Y for Peyton's soccer lesson/Healthy kids day. I was alone and had the perfect opportunity to clean or read or pray, but I didn't want to do anything. I ate a banana and laid down. Then I got some PB and celery and some green juice. I was just dragging.
At 11am, I got up, threw together a lettuce, asparagus, soy bean, and strawberry salad and headed off to Lori's Blessings brunch. Judy and Millicent did an awesome job at pulling this together and Lori (who is now cancer free :) was so surprised.
I came home exhausted. I needed to do laundry, clean, and complete a list of other things, but it was not in me and to boot, I had been cold ALL day - like goosebumps under sweatshirt cold.
At this point, soup sounded great so I popped some Progresso Lentil Soup in the micro and was eager to savor its warmth. I read the can as it was heating and saw that it had SUGAR in it. I was actually upset. I wanted to cry. I just wanted warm soup. Andy ate the soup and I ate PB and celery and then hummus with veggies. blah.
I am really struggling today. I feel exhausted and on the verge of tears - tears of frustration. Just a few short days ago I was relishing in fresh revelation of God and now I feel like I'm a puddle of pathetic. I going to get in bed, read, pray, and hopefully sleep. Tomorrow is a new day (:
I got up and Andy took the kids to breakfast and then to the Y for Peyton's soccer lesson/Healthy kids day. I was alone and had the perfect opportunity to clean or read or pray, but I didn't want to do anything. I ate a banana and laid down. Then I got some PB and celery and some green juice. I was just dragging.
At 11am, I got up, threw together a lettuce, asparagus, soy bean, and strawberry salad and headed off to Lori's Blessings brunch. Judy and Millicent did an awesome job at pulling this together and Lori (who is now cancer free :) was so surprised.
I came home exhausted. I needed to do laundry, clean, and complete a list of other things, but it was not in me and to boot, I had been cold ALL day - like goosebumps under sweatshirt cold.
At this point, soup sounded great so I popped some Progresso Lentil Soup in the micro and was eager to savor its warmth. I read the can as it was heating and saw that it had SUGAR in it. I was actually upset. I wanted to cry. I just wanted warm soup. Andy ate the soup and I ate PB and celery and then hummus with veggies. blah.
I am really struggling today. I feel exhausted and on the verge of tears - tears of frustration. Just a few short days ago I was relishing in fresh revelation of God and now I feel like I'm a puddle of pathetic. I going to get in bed, read, pray, and hopefully sleep. Tomorrow is a new day (:
The Farm, Stand, Herb Garden Photos
So...Kelly posted some pics of the greenhouse, and here are some pics of their farm.
These strawberries are SO GOOD! There are called Sweet Charlies (I think)
Look at these beauties
I actually don't know what that is...kinda looks like corn
Their Market Stand
My New Herb Garden (: Thank you Matt, Mary, and Priscilla!
Kelly's DAY TWENTY
HALF...WAY...THERE!!!
WHOOOOOOP!!!
Breakfast for me today was cantaloupes and Kelly's "not-at-all-famous" tea.
Next, we hit the soccer fields for back-to-back action of freezing cold soccer mania for an hour. (Coulda used a hot chocolate from the concession stand, but I just froze to death instead. For the record, my feet finally warmed up at 4:30)
Kristin and I went to a brunch at noon celebrating our friend, Lori's, victory over breast cancer!!! YAY! I was nervous about having foods there that were "approved," so I shoved a big spoonful of peanut butter into my mouth and ran out the door. Swallow, Swallow, SWALLOW! I'm pulling outta my driveway, and realized, "it's not going down!" So, I had to pull back in, run inside and gulp down some water. I was running late, and that didn't help, but I made it (AND, I didn't choke to death, either)! I was thankful that Kristin brought an "approved" salad with her. It was fantastic! Matt and Mary's lettuce, Matt and Mary's asparagus, Matt and Mary's strawberries and roasted soy nuts or something like that. I took one bite and leaned over, "What kinda DRESSING is this?!" Kristin: "Olive oil, garlic, salt and pepper." Me: "WOW! It's REALLY GOOD!!!" (Are we officially WEIRD?)
For dinner, we pretty much scavenged around here because we had a lot of leftovers from our dinner last night. I had salad and some black beans, OJ and strawberries for dessert.
I made mac-n-cheese for the kids, potatoes, corn and strawberries.
My HUSBAND made THIS for himself...
WHOOOOOOP!!!
Breakfast for me today was cantaloupes and Kelly's "not-at-all-famous" tea.
Next, we hit the soccer fields for back-to-back action of freezing cold soccer mania for an hour. (Coulda used a hot chocolate from the concession stand, but I just froze to death instead. For the record, my feet finally warmed up at 4:30)
Kristin and I went to a brunch at noon celebrating our friend, Lori's, victory over breast cancer!!! YAY! I was nervous about having foods there that were "approved," so I shoved a big spoonful of peanut butter into my mouth and ran out the door. Swallow, Swallow, SWALLOW! I'm pulling outta my driveway, and realized, "it's not going down!" So, I had to pull back in, run inside and gulp down some water. I was running late, and that didn't help, but I made it (AND, I didn't choke to death, either)! I was thankful that Kristin brought an "approved" salad with her. It was fantastic! Matt and Mary's lettuce, Matt and Mary's asparagus, Matt and Mary's strawberries and roasted soy nuts or something like that. I took one bite and leaned over, "What kinda DRESSING is this?!" Kristin: "Olive oil, garlic, salt and pepper." Me: "WOW! It's REALLY GOOD!!!" (Are we officially WEIRD?)
For dinner, we pretty much scavenged around here because we had a lot of leftovers from our dinner last night. I had salad and some black beans, OJ and strawberries for dessert.
I made mac-n-cheese for the kids, potatoes, corn and strawberries.
My HUSBAND made THIS for himself...
First of all, I think this looks DISGUSTING. Seriously! Potatoes on a TACO? Is that even a TACO? What purpose was he trying to accomplish in making this? Is this a mockery? It's like EVERYTHING I cannot eat wrapped into a tortilla, which I cannot EAT! (I can have potatoes, but you get the point)
I've been staring this cake DOWN...ALL...DAY!
It's 13x9 inches of chocolately dreaminess.
This cake is my downfall.
I love it.
I love it so much I would marry it.
(What am I, in Kindergarten?)
HALF...WAY...THERE!!!
A Preview of Matt and Mary's greenhouse
If you were with us on DAY EIGHTEEN, you know that Kristin and I went to a local farm for a "farm lesson." Whereas, I would still call myself a COMPLETE amateur, it was insightful! Matt and his wife, Mary, both went to Virginia Tech, and Matt has a Master's degree in farm management from a university in New Zealand. New Zealand is basically organi-topia (I think I just made up a new word). Matt and Mary's farm is not an organic farm, but I like how they do things, and they do not buy GMO seeds. They gave us our "farm lesson" in their greenhouse, which was warm and cozy amidst the threat of an oncoming thunderstorm.
Check out their BASIL!
Oh, this smelled so good! I wanted to grab a whole flat!
(Hopefully the basil I planted a couple of weeks ago turns out like this!)
Rows and rows of starter seeds were packed into this greenhouse!
Matt and Mary nurture these plants like they were their own children!
Before "salad mixes" were "popular," Matt and Mary were planting different lettuces together.
Check out this colorful mix that Matt gave us!
I made an awesome salad with this stuff last night, and Kristin (thankfully) brought a salad that she made with Matt and Mary's lettuce to a brunch that we attended this afternoon.
So colorful and tasty!!
Check out the bell peppers! If you are in our area, you will see these bell peppers gracing the produce section of the nearest WEGMANS soon!
(I sorta feel like I know someone famous because I know who supplies bell peppers for WEGMANS!)
(...Matt and Mary, may I grab your autograph next time I stop by?)
All in all, word is spreading about this hidden gem of a farm, and I have a lot of interested friends! Matt and Mary, you'd better keep your farm stand stocked THIS SUMMER! !)
~Kelly
Friday, April 27, 2012
Kristin's Day Nineteen - Herb Gardens and Willy Wonka
Hey there! I have wonderful pics of strawberries, Matt and Mary's market stand, and my new herb garden! I was SO excited to post them, but alas...I cannot find the camera/computer cable - which I used, ummm yesterday. I went out a bought a card reader, but alas AGAIN...it's the wrong size. FAIL. I'll try to put them up soon, I promise.
Sure, sure you say...a herb garden is easy? Well, let's see if I can keep one going. Priscilla Harsh (Matt's Mom) gave me a lesson on herb gardening today and started me with: Basil, Oregano, Savory, Rosemary, Parsley, and Chives. The planter that I bought for - get this - $3 at ACE hardware looks beautiful in my dining room basking in the sunlight....now...let's hope it still looks as good in a few weeks. I'll keep you posted.
On another kinda bizarre note, I cried during the last 5 minutes of Willy Wonka's Chocolate Factory. Call me overtired or fast weird, but the whole thing struck me.
The whole movie, Wonka wants to find someone worthy of carrying on his factory. He puts five children through bizzare tests only to find one, Charlie worthy of such a task. In the movie Wonka says something like...I knew I needed to find a child to run the factory because an adult would do it his/her way instead of mine. I really lost it on that part.
Believe me, I'm not trying to say God and Wonka are the same, but doesn't God what us to be like Charlie? Completely trusting even when things don't make sense? Willing to stand up to tests that are painful and confusing? He wants to build His kingdom through us. So many times we get stuck on stuff and miss the pay off in the end like Veruka Salt. Well, I don't know about you, but I don't wanna be a blueberry, lol. I want to get it and then have God teach me how to do things his way instead of my own.
PS - The hubby and I went to Chipotle for dinner (date night). I have to say. I MISS CHEESE something FIERCE! Chipotle is just not the same without it frankly.
Sure, sure you say...a herb garden is easy? Well, let's see if I can keep one going. Priscilla Harsh (Matt's Mom) gave me a lesson on herb gardening today and started me with: Basil, Oregano, Savory, Rosemary, Parsley, and Chives. The planter that I bought for - get this - $3 at ACE hardware looks beautiful in my dining room basking in the sunlight....now...let's hope it still looks as good in a few weeks. I'll keep you posted.
On another kinda bizarre note, I cried during the last 5 minutes of Willy Wonka's Chocolate Factory. Call me overtired or fast weird, but the whole thing struck me.
The whole movie, Wonka wants to find someone worthy of carrying on his factory. He puts five children through bizzare tests only to find one, Charlie worthy of such a task. In the movie Wonka says something like...I knew I needed to find a child to run the factory because an adult would do it his/her way instead of mine. I really lost it on that part.
Believe me, I'm not trying to say God and Wonka are the same, but doesn't God what us to be like Charlie? Completely trusting even when things don't make sense? Willing to stand up to tests that are painful and confusing? He wants to build His kingdom through us. So many times we get stuck on stuff and miss the pay off in the end like Veruka Salt. Well, I don't know about you, but I don't wanna be a blueberry, lol. I want to get it and then have God teach me how to do things his way instead of my own.
PS - The hubby and I went to Chipotle for dinner (date night). I have to say. I MISS CHEESE something FIERCE! Chipotle is just not the same without it frankly.
Kelly's DAY NINETEEN
My day began like this...
I was doing my hair (the messy way, so it only takes 5 minutes, tops), and my two-year-old comes upstairs covered...COVERED in FLOUR! She said, "Mommy, I was makin' you pancakes." DREAD. I walked the plank downstairs to survey the damage. Flour ALL over our leather ottoman. Herbs de Provence were out...I'm just glad she didn't add the other necessary ingredients, and that WAS thoughtful of her, but I CAN'T EAT PANCAKES!!! !)
So, I ate the strawberries that Matt and Mary gave us last night for breakfast. Oh, MAN, were they good!
For lunch, I had some vegetarian soup that I bought from The Butcher Shop. While I was at the Butcher shop, I asked the butcher where the meat comes from. He told me the western US and Canada. He said they're grain and grass fed, but not organic, and while The Butcher Shop does have a fair selection of organic produce, they are not an organic store in total. After learning more about organic vs. conventional farming, I'm not totally convinced that going organic in my vegetables is completely necessary, but I totally agree with Matt that we need to know our farmers and "pick their brains" regarding what is in and on my food! The soup was "OK." It wasn't fab, but it definitely left me full!
We had dinner guests over tonight, so I made a homemade Texas sheet cake. We grilled out steaks, I made a rockin' salad with the greens that Matt and Mary gave me yesterday, corn salad, fruit salad and crash potatoes (a Pioneer Woman recipe). I could have gone to town on the bread rolls. They looked (and smelled) so good! I got them from The Butcher Shop-the french bread rolls. I also could have gone to town on the finished cake.
My "downfall" of the day was when I had finished icing the cake, I had extra icing that I just wanted SO BADLY to chow down on! I didn't, but, OH, MAN, did I want to!
I didn't have a good day in general. I think it was because my night owl friend, uhem~Kristin, kept me up writing our blog about being "down on the farm." Okay, so she didn't twist my arm, but I was up past my "curfew," and I felt it today.
Bedtime.
I was doing my hair (the messy way, so it only takes 5 minutes, tops), and my two-year-old comes upstairs covered...COVERED in FLOUR! She said, "Mommy, I was makin' you pancakes." DREAD. I walked the plank downstairs to survey the damage. Flour ALL over our leather ottoman. Herbs de Provence were out...I'm just glad she didn't add the other necessary ingredients, and that WAS thoughtful of her, but I CAN'T EAT PANCAKES!!! !)
So, I ate the strawberries that Matt and Mary gave us last night for breakfast. Oh, MAN, were they good!
For lunch, I had some vegetarian soup that I bought from The Butcher Shop. While I was at the Butcher shop, I asked the butcher where the meat comes from. He told me the western US and Canada. He said they're grain and grass fed, but not organic, and while The Butcher Shop does have a fair selection of organic produce, they are not an organic store in total. After learning more about organic vs. conventional farming, I'm not totally convinced that going organic in my vegetables is completely necessary, but I totally agree with Matt that we need to know our farmers and "pick their brains" regarding what is in and on my food! The soup was "OK." It wasn't fab, but it definitely left me full!
We had dinner guests over tonight, so I made a homemade Texas sheet cake. We grilled out steaks, I made a rockin' salad with the greens that Matt and Mary gave me yesterday, corn salad, fruit salad and crash potatoes (a Pioneer Woman recipe). I could have gone to town on the bread rolls. They looked (and smelled) so good! I got them from The Butcher Shop-the french bread rolls. I also could have gone to town on the finished cake.
My "downfall" of the day was when I had finished icing the cake, I had extra icing that I just wanted SO BADLY to chow down on! I didn't, but, OH, MAN, did I want to!
I didn't have a good day in general. I think it was because my night owl friend, uhem~Kristin, kept me up writing our blog about being "down on the farm." Okay, so she didn't twist my arm, but I was up past my "curfew," and I felt it today.
Bedtime.
Thursday, April 26, 2012
Kelly's DAY EIGHTEEN~I'm outta fight.
When I have fasted in the past, it's been a "I'm going to give up all foods for thirty hours or so...just enough to make me hungry and remember to pray" kinda thing. I've observed Lent before where I gave up some seriously tough things (YOU try giving up sweets when your favorite candy in the whole wide world~Cadbury Mini Eggs~is only available at Easter time). I mean, Dallas and my birthdays BOTH fall during Lent! I couldn't even eat my own birthday cake that year! I did that to focus on Jesus (I'm sure my birthday cake pity party made Him feel extra special, I mean, LOOK at what I sacrificed for Him~note: sarcasm).
I was talking to Kristin this morning, and I was going into a little more detail about my "stuck-in-a-tunnel" experience. I told her that I'm fresh outta "fight, and I'M A FIGHTER!" To which she replied, "You ARE a fighter!!!" To which I replied, "I WAS a fighter. It's all gone."
I was talking to Kristin this morning, and I was going into a little more detail about my "stuck-in-a-tunnel" experience. I told her that I'm fresh outta "fight, and I'M A FIGHTER!" To which she replied, "You ARE a fighter!!!" To which I replied, "I WAS a fighter. It's all gone."
Spent.
Done.
Out.
Fresh.
Outta.
Fight.
I surrender.
On Easter Sunday, our church sang a song (I believe it's by Chris Tomlin). The chorus says, "We raise our white flag, we surrender all to You..." I'm wavin' my white flag high (not literally...that'd just be weird). It's over. The war between who's gonna be "god" is over. You win, Lord! You can have Your job back. I took my idol off Your throne, and then I jumped out of it (dethroning myself). You can do what You do best, and I will TRY to follow as best as my mortal/carnal man self can do.
Is it possible for giving up everything but fruits and vegetables to hurt this much? Or is that just the Refiner's fire that hurts? Kristin said that she read somewhere that the Refiner's firs should be a happy experience, but that she disagrees, and I do, too. FIRE HURTS, MAN!
I said to Kristin, "I ASKED Him to do this! I INVITED this when I said, 'Yes, Lord'." But, this is PAINFUL! It's stretching me BEYOND my limits! As in, "I don't know if I can carry on" stretching me! This Refiner's fire? It's HOT! HOT!!! But, He's removing the dross in the process. I'm hoping that after DAY FORTY (haha! That seems SO VERY FAR AWAY RIGHT NOW), I will be able to say that this was ALL WORTH IT, because I already see how God is working in me through this fast! It's amazing! HE is amazing!
I'm going to say G'night now. It's late. I'm tired. I've got nothin' left.
Grace and Peace,
~k
I said to Kristin, "I ASKED Him to do this! I INVITED this when I said, 'Yes, Lord'." But, this is PAINFUL! It's stretching me BEYOND my limits! As in, "I don't know if I can carry on" stretching me! This Refiner's fire? It's HOT! HOT!!! But, He's removing the dross in the process. I'm hoping that after DAY FORTY (haha! That seems SO VERY FAR AWAY RIGHT NOW), I will be able to say that this was ALL WORTH IT, because I already see how God is working in me through this fast! It's amazing! HE is amazing!
I'm going to say G'night now. It's late. I'm tired. I've got nothin' left.
Grace and Peace,
~k
Kelly and Kristin's Great Farm Adventure~DAY EIGHTEEN
Tonight, Kristin "hooked us UP!" She has old friends, Matt and Mary Harsh, who were educated at Virginia Tech in horticulture and biology (respectively). Matt also has a Masters in Farm Management from Lincoln Tech in New Zealand! Well, the good news, for you local folks, is that they are BACK IN TOWN and Farmin'! BAM!
We visited their amazing greenhouse and farm tonight, and were innundated with new ideas and information to chew on...AND...they gave us REAL stuff to chew on as well (ie. their own lettuce mix, asparagus, and strawberries!)
We asked Matt and Mary about organic farming. They made us aware that organic does NOT mean that it hasn't been treated and is "au naturale." There is a list of organic approved insecticides and pesticides that will blow your mind, baby!
Matt talked about two kinds of GMOs (genetically modified organisms) tonight, "Round up ready" and "BT infused." We found out that very nearly all corn IS "round up ready" meaning it is nearly impossible for corn and soybeans in the world to NOT include some form of "round up resistant" gene in it. "Round up ready" gene is patented by Monsanto, which you may have heard of if you've watched the documentary "Food Inc." The good news about this gene is that when round up is sprayed on the field to kill the weeds, it will not kill the corn. Farmers no longer have to till their land in order to plant their corn or soybeans, which reduces soil erosion and sediment in the Chesapeake Bay (sediment being the #1 pollutant in the bay). Since the round up ready gene has made its way into the general corn population, it is nearly impossible to get corn in America that does NOT have the gene. Our question is, "Is this a BAD thing?" Kelly watched a lecture a week or so ago that mentioned that food allergies have increased drastically since the round up gene was introduced, so we're at a loss right now. So here's the deal. Kristin and Kelly both LIKE CORN. We're not going to stop eating it, so deal with it. You kind of have to be okay with eating round up ready corn. It's everywhere (except, apparently, New Zealand) !)
Onto the "BT corn gene." BT is an insecticide that has been introduced into the DNA/RNA of the corn. BT corn will kill any worm that bites it. BT is also on the list of organically approved insecticides, meaning that some organic farms use BT. So how do you tell the difference between Round up Ready corn and BT corn? We will never know. This also only scratches the surface of GMO corn, we realize, but it's all we could comprehend tonight, and we think Matt picked up on that. By the way, we must put a disclaimer up: We may have gotten this ALL WRONG. !)
After our "lesson," we got a tour of their (Kelly) "FABULOUS" (Kristin) "AMAZING" greenhouse! They have it ALL! Flowers, herbs, veggies, lettuces, even llamas (though they were NOT in the greenhouse, and you may not want to eat them). Matt let us taste his tasty lettuce (and then GAVE us a whole lotta lettuce!). Kristin is going back to buy her herbs to grow at home soon! They even sell their bell pepper to WEGMANS! Well, Wegmans, we can one-up you now! We're goin' straight to the source!
After that, Mary gave us some asparagus from their market stand, which...listen up, folks: YOU CAN BUY FROM, TOO!!! They are not an organic farm, but they do not (knowingly~remember, the round up ready has made its way into the general American corn population) use GMO seed. They are very environmentally conscious, which is a perk! They do not currently use manure because of the risk of infection, and if he does use it in the future, he told us that he will apply it in the fall.
Then, they gave us a tour of the farm, and we chatted it up for awhile in under the cover of the barn, and we were on our way! We found out that WALMART does what they can to buy their produce locally (better than Weis and Martins), however, they don't do a good job marketing that! How are we supposed to know it's local, WALMART?! We'd love to see them clearly display when they buy locally. TIP: If a fruit or vegetable is not in season...it is NOT LOCAL. Matt also mentioned not to buy pears from the Northwest (he would not feed them to his own children)...cuz they spray those suckers somethin' fierce (emphasis-ours). His big tip was this: "KNOW YOUR FARMER!!!" Your farmer knows exactly how the produce is grown. He knows exactly what he treated the crops with. That's important, folks!
All-in-all, we will both be hittin' them up for fruits and veggies ALL summer long, and they even pointed us in the direction of a book that will help us cook with produce that is in season. We can tell y'all more about this after we figure it out, but we're EXCITED!
Our "painful" next field trip will be to Misty Meadows to learn more about milk, hormones and antibiotics..."PAINFUL" because they also sell ice cream. And, you know...we're "VEGAN" right now, so pretty much everything they sell will be "painful."
We visited their amazing greenhouse and farm tonight, and were innundated with new ideas and information to chew on...AND...they gave us REAL stuff to chew on as well (ie. their own lettuce mix, asparagus, and strawberries!)
We asked Matt and Mary about organic farming. They made us aware that organic does NOT mean that it hasn't been treated and is "au naturale." There is a list of organic approved insecticides and pesticides that will blow your mind, baby!
Matt talked about two kinds of GMOs (genetically modified organisms) tonight, "Round up ready" and "BT infused." We found out that very nearly all corn IS "round up ready" meaning it is nearly impossible for corn and soybeans in the world to NOT include some form of "round up resistant" gene in it. "Round up ready" gene is patented by Monsanto, which you may have heard of if you've watched the documentary "Food Inc." The good news about this gene is that when round up is sprayed on the field to kill the weeds, it will not kill the corn. Farmers no longer have to till their land in order to plant their corn or soybeans, which reduces soil erosion and sediment in the Chesapeake Bay (sediment being the #1 pollutant in the bay). Since the round up ready gene has made its way into the general corn population, it is nearly impossible to get corn in America that does NOT have the gene. Our question is, "Is this a BAD thing?" Kelly watched a lecture a week or so ago that mentioned that food allergies have increased drastically since the round up gene was introduced, so we're at a loss right now. So here's the deal. Kristin and Kelly both LIKE CORN. We're not going to stop eating it, so deal with it. You kind of have to be okay with eating round up ready corn. It's everywhere (except, apparently, New Zealand) !)
Onto the "BT corn gene." BT is an insecticide that has been introduced into the DNA/RNA of the corn. BT corn will kill any worm that bites it. BT is also on the list of organically approved insecticides, meaning that some organic farms use BT. So how do you tell the difference between Round up Ready corn and BT corn? We will never know. This also only scratches the surface of GMO corn, we realize, but it's all we could comprehend tonight, and we think Matt picked up on that. By the way, we must put a disclaimer up: We may have gotten this ALL WRONG. !)
After our "lesson," we got a tour of their (Kelly) "FABULOUS" (Kristin) "AMAZING" greenhouse! They have it ALL! Flowers, herbs, veggies, lettuces, even llamas (though they were NOT in the greenhouse, and you may not want to eat them). Matt let us taste his tasty lettuce (and then GAVE us a whole lotta lettuce!). Kristin is going back to buy her herbs to grow at home soon! They even sell their bell pepper to WEGMANS! Well, Wegmans, we can one-up you now! We're goin' straight to the source!
After that, Mary gave us some asparagus from their market stand, which...listen up, folks: YOU CAN BUY FROM, TOO!!! They are not an organic farm, but they do not (knowingly~remember, the round up ready has made its way into the general American corn population) use GMO seed. They are very environmentally conscious, which is a perk! They do not currently use manure because of the risk of infection, and if he does use it in the future, he told us that he will apply it in the fall.
13220 Edgemont Rd
Smithsburg, MD 21783
(if you live in town, it's just down past Cool's Pond on the right)
We met up with Matt "down on the farm" after that and picked strawberries that were amazing! Matt came up to us and said, "If you're REALLY committed to this, try THIS ONE!" ("THIS ONE" was a strawberry that was littered with worm holes) Our reply? "WE have Young Life in us. We'll try anything once. Your worm hole strawberry doesn't scare us." Chomp, chomp...oh, baby...SO...GOOD. Matt said the worms eat the GOOD ONES, and he...was...right.Then, they gave us a tour of the farm, and we chatted it up for awhile in under the cover of the barn, and we were on our way! We found out that WALMART does what they can to buy their produce locally (better than Weis and Martins), however, they don't do a good job marketing that! How are we supposed to know it's local, WALMART?! We'd love to see them clearly display when they buy locally. TIP: If a fruit or vegetable is not in season...it is NOT LOCAL. Matt also mentioned not to buy pears from the Northwest (he would not feed them to his own children)...cuz they spray those suckers somethin' fierce (emphasis-ours). His big tip was this: "KNOW YOUR FARMER!!!" Your farmer knows exactly how the produce is grown. He knows exactly what he treated the crops with. That's important, folks!
All-in-all, we will both be hittin' them up for fruits and veggies ALL summer long, and they even pointed us in the direction of a book that will help us cook with produce that is in season. We can tell y'all more about this after we figure it out, but we're EXCITED!
Our "painful" next field trip will be to Misty Meadows to learn more about milk, hormones and antibiotics..."PAINFUL" because they also sell ice cream. And, you know...we're "VEGAN" right now, so pretty much everything they sell will be "painful."
"Nutrition Nuggets"
Anyhow, yesterday, there was an article entitled, "What's in my food?" My interest peaked. Now, what does our school have to say on THIS subject? They suggest that we teach our children to "check the ingredient label on packaged foods..." Great advice, right?! I mean, I just started checking labels 18 days ago! I know how it works, but they explained we should have our kids take a couple of things out of the pantry and read the ingredient list: "Explain that ingredients are listed in order by amount-the food contains the most of the first ingredient and the least of the last ingredient..."
For kicks, I just pulled a box of KRAFT Mac and Cheese.
Ingredients:
Enriched Macaroni Product (How am I supposed to explain to my kids what "ENRICHED" macaroni is?)...OH...it must be the "ferrous sulfate, the thiamin mononitrate and riboflavin that makes it "enriched." Never mind my previous question. It's crystal clear now.
Cheese Sauce Mix:
Whey
Milkfat
Milk protein concentrate
salt
sodium tripolyphosphate
blah-de-blah (more stuff with "ates" at the end)
Yellow 5
Yellow 6
enzymes
cheese culture
Step 2, according to the article, is to explain sugar: If it ends in "ose," it's sugar. STAY AWAY! !)
Step 3: "When it comes to ingredient lists, shorter is usually better...long and complicated [words] are likely to be chemicals rather than natural foods." Huh? Yellow #5 is a "natural food"? It's short and readable. !)
Something I liked about this article: It's suggesting that you actually look at ingredient lists and teach your children how to as well. That's a really great step! To me, that says, PAY ATTENTION to what you are eating!! It also suggested that you agree to only buy things that have five or fewer ingredients (another great tidbit!)
One thing that this article lacks is a lesson on produce. I mean, how do I teach my children how to choose produce that's not loaded with pesticides that have been added to their very DNA? How do I teach my kids how to choose "good" meat and milk? I don't even know how to tell this information! It's "hidden" from us! Until two weeks ago, I didn't even KNOW that stuff was happening to our fruits and vegetables in America!
I'm super excited about tonight! Kristin has a friend who is an actual farmer! She and her husband graduated from Virginia Tech with some sort of agricultural degrees. We're going to the farm tonight to learn more! I mean, really...do we NEED to go organic? Do farms exist that don't use GMOs? I think we'll come away with tons of info for y'all! I'm taking my notepad, pen and camera! So, tune in for more later! Have a good one, y'all!
Kristin's Day Seventeen - Bread success!!!
Hey there! Sorry about last night, but after YL Club Tuesday and YL Campaigners Wednesday I'm worn out!
Anyway...I borrowed* my sister's bread machine yesterday. Once I got it home, I watched the VCR instructional tape (yep, the machine is a tad dated) and attempted a loaf of Whole Wheat Bread.
Here are the ingredients - Andy calculated that the loaf cost to be approx $1.20
1 cup + 2 tbsp Water
3 tbsp Honey
1 1/2 cup Bread Flour
1 1/2 cup Whole Wheat Four
1 tsp Salt
1 1/2 tsp Bread Machine Yeast
I really LOVE that ingredient list!! No crazy words I can't read or comprehend!!
The tape showed some loaves that failed and I was sure that I would get a dud - me and baking (even machine baking) are not friends. Kelly taught me how to make chocolate chip cookies just last year. My poor hubby loves soft cookies and I couldn't get it right until Kelly taught me, ugh. So I had a tad bit of anxiety as the machine did its thang. BUT! Lo and behold this was the result
YUM (can't wait to try this)! The slices are so big that I can use one piece for sandwiches for the kids. I might get a bread slicer guide thingy to help me cut thinner slices with the electric knife. Straight lines whether cutting or slicing are an impossibility for me too, ha.
I know that rising and kneading your own dough might taste a little better or be more rewarding, but I have three young kids and a crazy schedule so a bread machine will be okay with me!
*When I 'borrow' from my sister it usually means I keep and use said item for an extremely long period of time and then end up buying her the item that I 'borrowed'.
PS - I also bought the fam some Trickling Springs Farm Fresh Milk (now at Paul's Country Market) and drank green juice for the first time yesterday. I couldn't tell ya how the milk tasted, but at least I know where it came from! The green juice was scary looking to be honest, but pretty good.
It's hard to find some good quality time to spend praying and reading on Tuesdays and Wednesdays...I feel like I'm running on fumes. Hopefully I'll get a date in with Him today (:
Anyway...I borrowed* my sister's bread machine yesterday. Once I got it home, I watched the VCR instructional tape (yep, the machine is a tad dated) and attempted a loaf of Whole Wheat Bread.
Here are the ingredients - Andy calculated that the loaf cost to be approx $1.20
1 cup + 2 tbsp Water
3 tbsp Honey
1 1/2 cup Bread Flour
1 1/2 cup Whole Wheat Four
1 tsp Salt
1 1/2 tsp Bread Machine Yeast
I really LOVE that ingredient list!! No crazy words I can't read or comprehend!!
The tape showed some loaves that failed and I was sure that I would get a dud - me and baking (even machine baking) are not friends. Kelly taught me how to make chocolate chip cookies just last year. My poor hubby loves soft cookies and I couldn't get it right until Kelly taught me, ugh. So I had a tad bit of anxiety as the machine did its thang. BUT! Lo and behold this was the result
YUM (can't wait to try this)! The slices are so big that I can use one piece for sandwiches for the kids. I might get a bread slicer guide thingy to help me cut thinner slices with the electric knife. Straight lines whether cutting or slicing are an impossibility for me too, ha.
I know that rising and kneading your own dough might taste a little better or be more rewarding, but I have three young kids and a crazy schedule so a bread machine will be okay with me!
*When I 'borrow' from my sister it usually means I keep and use said item for an extremely long period of time and then end up buying her the item that I 'borrowed'.
PS - I also bought the fam some Trickling Springs Farm Fresh Milk (now at Paul's Country Market) and drank green juice for the first time yesterday. I couldn't tell ya how the milk tasted, but at least I know where it came from! The green juice was scary looking to be honest, but pretty good.
It's hard to find some good quality time to spend praying and reading on Tuesdays and Wednesdays...I feel like I'm running on fumes. Hopefully I'll get a date in with Him today (:
Wednesday, April 25, 2012
Kristin's Day Seventeen
Okay. It's now 11:15pm. Ten minutes ago, I wrote out my post, saved it, pulled it up on my iPod to attach the picture of my loaf of bread and the entire post was deleted!
I'm bone tired.
I'll post something about my bread making experience tomorrow. Night (:
I'm bone tired.
I'll post something about my bread making experience tomorrow. Night (:
Kelly's DAY SEVENTEEN
Today was a tough day...in general.
You know you're in for a GREAT day when you go to get your two-year-old, and there's poo smeared everywhere. I don't even know how she got it out of her diaper! The diaper was still in tact! Anyhow, the sweet little thing said (as I was cleaning poo off her walls), "Thank you, Mommy, for cleaning the poo off my wall." How do you get mad at THAT?
So, that's how it started...
I went to Bible study, where there was some fantastic looking chocolate cake with peanut butter frosting. There was also a fruit salad that looked fantastic, but someone "messed with it," and therefore, it was NOT okay to eat. Bummer. It seriously looked and smelled amazing.
Lunch: "Israeli salad" We recently went to Israel, and in Israel, they start off every meal with "salad." It's miniscule chopped cucumbers, tomatoes, red onion, olive oil, salt, pepper, and lemon juice. I make it every so often now.
I had a couple spoonfuls of peanut butter today (I'm seriously nervous that my body is not getting enough protein, for some reason, although, if you read my post yesterday, you know that I've gone through 1 and a half jars of peanut butter in the last 17 days-Pretty sure I'm getting ENOUGH).
I had an avocado for an afternoon snack, ran 5 miles, and then had bell peppers and hummus for dinner.
Spiritually speaking...
A lot of things are all jumbled up in the wash right now...spiritual things...things God is working through and out in me...things I still can't put into words yet, because they don't make sense to me. And, if that doesn't make sense to you, or you would like me to go ahead and just spat it out on paper here, forget it. That post would be a billion pages long, but so you get an idea of what I'm talking about, read on:
I was telling Dallas the other night..."You know how they say they can see the light at the end of the tunnel? And, then there are those people who say they can't even see the end of the tunnel? I feel like I stepped into a tunnel at some point, the tunnel disappeared, and now I'm just standing in blackness. No tunnel to follow, no road even. No light at 'the end.' No end in sight." This is in relation to our adoption, not this fast or my faith. On the contrary, I KNOW my God has this entire tunnel mapped out. He knows where the end is. He IS the light. I don't even need to know those details right now. All I need to know is that HE is the ALPHA and the OMEGA, the FATHER to the FATHERLESS, the EVERLASTING FATHER.
You might be wondering what this has to do with eating. It has EVERYTHING to do with eating, because when you take away what consumes you, THEN God can "get to work" in you! If it weren't for this fast, my jumbled mess would just remain a jumbled mess, and I would obliviously continue on in my life thinking that I was trusting and resting in God. In stripping my diet down to only fruits and veggies, I'm stripping off that "top layer" where I can put on my "christian girl costume," and all that's left is "REAL Kelly. RAW Kelly." The stuff that bandaids won't cover up. The stuff that God will deal with is exposed. It's a weird place to be, "exposed." But, HE is refining me. I feel like this is REALLY the first time I have actually allowed Him to be the "Potter." It's the first time that I've been okay with being pummeled and reshaped into HIS design.
So, Day 17...good riddance.
And, Lord Jesus! If I am the clay, please tell me you're making a SMALL pot!!
You know you're in for a GREAT day when you go to get your two-year-old, and there's poo smeared everywhere. I don't even know how she got it out of her diaper! The diaper was still in tact! Anyhow, the sweet little thing said (as I was cleaning poo off her walls), "Thank you, Mommy, for cleaning the poo off my wall." How do you get mad at THAT?
So, that's how it started...
I went to Bible study, where there was some fantastic looking chocolate cake with peanut butter frosting. There was also a fruit salad that looked fantastic, but someone "messed with it," and therefore, it was NOT okay to eat. Bummer. It seriously looked and smelled amazing.
Lunch: "Israeli salad" We recently went to Israel, and in Israel, they start off every meal with "salad." It's miniscule chopped cucumbers, tomatoes, red onion, olive oil, salt, pepper, and lemon juice. I make it every so often now.
I had a couple spoonfuls of peanut butter today (I'm seriously nervous that my body is not getting enough protein, for some reason, although, if you read my post yesterday, you know that I've gone through 1 and a half jars of peanut butter in the last 17 days-Pretty sure I'm getting ENOUGH).
I had an avocado for an afternoon snack, ran 5 miles, and then had bell peppers and hummus for dinner.
Spiritually speaking...
A lot of things are all jumbled up in the wash right now...spiritual things...things God is working through and out in me...things I still can't put into words yet, because they don't make sense to me. And, if that doesn't make sense to you, or you would like me to go ahead and just spat it out on paper here, forget it. That post would be a billion pages long, but so you get an idea of what I'm talking about, read on:
I was telling Dallas the other night..."You know how they say they can see the light at the end of the tunnel? And, then there are those people who say they can't even see the end of the tunnel? I feel like I stepped into a tunnel at some point, the tunnel disappeared, and now I'm just standing in blackness. No tunnel to follow, no road even. No light at 'the end.' No end in sight." This is in relation to our adoption, not this fast or my faith. On the contrary, I KNOW my God has this entire tunnel mapped out. He knows where the end is. He IS the light. I don't even need to know those details right now. All I need to know is that HE is the ALPHA and the OMEGA, the FATHER to the FATHERLESS, the EVERLASTING FATHER.
You might be wondering what this has to do with eating. It has EVERYTHING to do with eating, because when you take away what consumes you, THEN God can "get to work" in you! If it weren't for this fast, my jumbled mess would just remain a jumbled mess, and I would obliviously continue on in my life thinking that I was trusting and resting in God. In stripping my diet down to only fruits and veggies, I'm stripping off that "top layer" where I can put on my "christian girl costume," and all that's left is "REAL Kelly. RAW Kelly." The stuff that bandaids won't cover up. The stuff that God will deal with is exposed. It's a weird place to be, "exposed." But, HE is refining me. I feel like this is REALLY the first time I have actually allowed Him to be the "Potter." It's the first time that I've been okay with being pummeled and reshaped into HIS design.
So, Day 17...good riddance.
And, Lord Jesus! If I am the clay, please tell me you're making a SMALL pot!!
Tuesday, April 24, 2012
Kristin's Day Sixteen
"Fasting is a very effective way of freeing ourselves from preoccupation with our physical wants and desires in order to concentrate on our relationship with God."
"When we become physically dependent upon any substance, even food, it is an indication that our spirits are not free either. God indicates that there is a kind of fasting that leads to the freedom we really desire; the benefits are mental, emotional, spiritual and physical (emphasis by Kristin)."
These quotes are from the book I'm reading:
"When we become physically dependent upon any substance, even food, it is an indication that our spirits are not free either. God indicates that there is a kind of fasting that leads to the freedom we really desire; the benefits are mental, emotional, spiritual and physical (emphasis by Kristin)."
These quotes are from the book I'm reading:
3 Principles that will Change your Diet and Improve your Health
by Rex Russell
Well, Rex, I'm totally down with what your saying! Hey, I've fasted before. I've gone without certain things, but never like this. This fast hurts and it's the good kinda of hurt. You know, like the pain you feel after a good workout? It hurts, but you know it's gonna pay off in the end. I'm feeling this fast and it's changing my life.
Breakfast: Banana, OJ, celery, PB
Mid Morning: Avocado
Lunch: Seaweed, hummus, broccoli sprout wrap, strawberries
Mid Afternoon: Roasted Soy Beans
Dinner: Veggies and Hummus
Night Snack: yep, PB and celery
I have never eaten so many fruits/vegetables in MY LIFE and I think I'm okay with that.
Kelly's DAY SIXTEEN
This morning did not go as planned. My alarm clock (my two-year-old) went off just before 7am. I forgot to reset my REAL alarm for 6:15, my normal waking time. That threw me off.
Anyhow, I had some grapes, peanut butter and OJ for breakfast.
Lunch was a couple carrots, more grapes, and a can of Amy's organic soup.
Dinner was a can of Amy's organic soup and a bag of "French Green Beans" from Walmart's new "Marketside" line. I sauteed them in olive oil and garlic. On the bag, it says, "ALL NATURAL." I scoff at things that say "ALL NATURAL" these days. That's a bunch of bologna, folks! DEFINE..."ALL NATURAL." This Marketside stuff is NOT organic. It's probably blasted full of GMOs (genetically modified organisms), but I can't just assume that, so I wrote an email to the people at Walmart who deal with produce related inquiries:
"In the quest to make sure I'm serving my family healthy ingredients, I have recently researched GMOs and organic produce verses "regular" produce. I decided that I was "food dumb" before my recent research. What bothers me is the fact that Walmart stores do not have a wide selection of organic vegetables and meats. On top of that, they allow labels to charm their customers into buying them with slogans such as "All Natural." What vegetable ISN'T "All Natural"? To the "food dumb" consumer, that slogan probably works, but I'm not buying that slogan anymore. I refuse to feed my family produce that has been intoxicated with GMOs any longer. Why would I want to feed my family something that has been genetically altered? I understand that Walmart in other countries has catered to the consumers when faced with tough decisions, but that the "food dumb" Americans have not caused enough hype to make any change in our nation's food supply. I want you, at Walmart, to know, that as for me and MY family, we're choosing to purchase the slightly higher cost organic produce, be it from Walmart or a local farmer. I believe there has been a shift in our society ongoing for some time now, and it would benefit Walmart to be proactive in stocking their shelves with organic certified produce and meats."
We went to a local ice cream place tonight and got ice cream (I should say, I sat there and watched them eat ice cream). Oh...ice cream...one day we will dance again!
On top of my "food stuff" today, we've been praying, praying, praying about adoption related stuff that would be more relevant for me to post on our family blog than here, so I will do that as soon as I can sort through my thoughts on things related to our adoption. However, I have made Psalm 63: 1-8 my "Battle Cry," and my soul will cling to Him!
He will satisfy me as with the richest of foods, that passage tells me. So, I continue on, eating only fruits and veggies, and cling to that hope. That, though I'm eating carrots...again. Though I eat yet another apple...again. Though I have gone through 1 and a half jars of peanut butter in the last 16 days... Though I have only just 16 days ago started to eat avocados as they stand...GOD is, to me, the "richest of foods!" HE is my "steak!" HE is my "yogurt!" HE is my "ice cream!" HE is my "spaghetti!" As much as I crave the foods that everyone else in my house, and most people in America can eat, I should be craving HIM with as much enthusiasm! I make that my prayer, that I would crave GOD with a steadfast heart...more than I crave ANY food or thing on this earth.
My Battle Cry~Kelly
If you read "Kelly's Day Fifteen," you know that I'm experiencing a "void." Today, I went on a word search. I did a little word study on "satisfy," but I didn't look far before I found my new "Battle Cry." Maybe you'll adopt it as your own!
"O God, you are my God, earnestly I seek you; my soul thirsts for you, my body longs for you, in a dry and weary land where there is no water. I have seen you in the sanctuary and beheld your power and your glory. Because your love is better than life, my lips will glorify you. I will praise you as long as I live, and in your name I will lift up my hands. My soul will be satisfied as with the richest of foods; with singing lips my mouth will praise you...My soul clings to you; your right hand upholds me." Psalm 63: 1-8
Monday, April 23, 2012
Kelly's DAY FIFTEEN
I
am
not
satisfied.
I wanted chicken and tortillas in my tortilla soup for dinner. I wanted cheese in it, too. Oh, and sour cream would have been nice. I wanted a glass of red wine this evening, and as it turns out, orange juice in a wine glass still just tastes like orange juice in a wine glass. I wanted a cup of hot tea or hot chocolate on this frigid spring day, and hot water just doesn't cut it on days like this one! I wanted a handful of chocolate chips. I wanted to make cookies...and EAT THEM this time! I wanted some Starbucks since I drove past two today! I wanted a bowl of cereal for breakfast! I wanted a cup of chocolate milk! Yogurt! Macaroni and Cheese!
I've been eating a variety of vegetables and fruits. It's not like I'm only eating raw carrots of anything, but what I AM eating is just not "hittin' the spot." There's this desire for some sort of food that I just can't have. Nothing I'm eating is satisfying me! It's not filling the VOID! I have a LITERAL void in my life right now!
MILK...VOID!
MEAT...VOID!
BREADS...VOID!
SWEETS...VOID!
TEA...VOID!
STARBUCKS...VOID!
I CANNOT FILL THE VOID!
It reminds me of the void I had once. The void that only Jesus can fill. The void that I feel now, only Jesus can fill...otherwise it's just a void that will be filled with my idol in 25 short days. I want to turn my urge for foods and beverages into an urge for Jesus and His Word! I want Him, and Him alone, to satisfy me! I want to take my hurts, my hopes, my dreams, my desires, my voids, my dissatisfaction to the cross! I want to REST in Him...TRUST in Him and His plan! I WANT THAT!
Fill the void, my Love!
~Your Beloved
am
not
satisfied.
I wanted chicken and tortillas in my tortilla soup for dinner. I wanted cheese in it, too. Oh, and sour cream would have been nice. I wanted a glass of red wine this evening, and as it turns out, orange juice in a wine glass still just tastes like orange juice in a wine glass. I wanted a cup of hot tea or hot chocolate on this frigid spring day, and hot water just doesn't cut it on days like this one! I wanted a handful of chocolate chips. I wanted to make cookies...and EAT THEM this time! I wanted some Starbucks since I drove past two today! I wanted a bowl of cereal for breakfast! I wanted a cup of chocolate milk! Yogurt! Macaroni and Cheese!
I've been eating a variety of vegetables and fruits. It's not like I'm only eating raw carrots of anything, but what I AM eating is just not "hittin' the spot." There's this desire for some sort of food that I just can't have. Nothing I'm eating is satisfying me! It's not filling the VOID! I have a LITERAL void in my life right now!
MILK...VOID!
MEAT...VOID!
BREADS...VOID!
SWEETS...VOID!
TEA...VOID!
STARBUCKS...VOID!
I CANNOT FILL THE VOID!
It reminds me of the void I had once. The void that only Jesus can fill. The void that I feel now, only Jesus can fill...otherwise it's just a void that will be filled with my idol in 25 short days. I want to turn my urge for foods and beverages into an urge for Jesus and His Word! I want Him, and Him alone, to satisfy me! I want to take my hurts, my hopes, my dreams, my desires, my voids, my dissatisfaction to the cross! I want to REST in Him...TRUST in Him and His plan! I WANT THAT!
Fill the void, my Love!
~Your Beloved
Kristin's Day Fifteen
I am horrible at math. All day I was thinking we were half way through this adventure and I was excited to blog about that. Nice. In five days I will talk about that :/
Anyway, I didn't tell you! I went to MOM's for the first time yesterday. Fifteen days ago I would've thought it was an overpriced grocery store for granola people, but with my new found perspective...it was AWESOME! I found all five superfoods that I talked about on Day Thirteen there. Mung Beans and nutrional yeast flakes (NYF as my friend Sarah calls them) in bulk none the less. Hmmmm, hey Kelly...wonder if they'd let us open one of those here in the Boro??
Okay, so today. I did NOT want to get out of bed, but I did without Java. Took care of the kids and ate a banana and drank some OJ. Took Peyton to school and then popped some raisin stuffed apples with peanut butter on top in the oven. Maybe I should bake apples everyday? The house smelled so good! Here is the fruit of my labor, pun intended.
For lunch I tried a seaweed wrap stuffed with broccoli sprouts and hummus. Again, fifteen days ago, I would've NEVER done this. It was actually good. I do not recommend it unless you like sushi cause the seaweed wrap made me think of sushi. Ah...sushi...we will meet again.
Considering that the wrap was like negative calories, I was hungry in an hour. I ate Amy's Organic soup that was seriously like heaven in a can - if that's possible. It's their Golden Lentil Soup (Indian Dal) and it's so good. Go get some.
For dinner I had hominy with marinara, spinach, and mushrooms. This was a tasty day!
On another note, I am beginning a new book: What the bible says about Healthy Living by Rex Russell. It's pretty interesting thus far. Fifteen days ago, I wouldn't have sniffed at this book.
Wait a minute...do you notice a trend here? Fifteen days ago, I did some things a lot differently. Huh...(;
Anyway, I didn't tell you! I went to MOM's for the first time yesterday. Fifteen days ago I would've thought it was an overpriced grocery store for granola people, but with my new found perspective...it was AWESOME! I found all five superfoods that I talked about on Day Thirteen there. Mung Beans and nutrional yeast flakes (NYF as my friend Sarah calls them) in bulk none the less. Hmmmm, hey Kelly...wonder if they'd let us open one of those here in the Boro??
Okay, so today. I did NOT want to get out of bed, but I did without Java. Took care of the kids and ate a banana and drank some OJ. Took Peyton to school and then popped some raisin stuffed apples with peanut butter on top in the oven. Maybe I should bake apples everyday? The house smelled so good! Here is the fruit of my labor, pun intended.
Nate and I thought it was very good, but here's the thing. I expected the peanut butter to melt over the apple. Call me hydrogenated crazy, but I totally thought that would happen. I made two so I'm looking forward to eating another one tomorrow. I should probablymake some for the family too, lol.
For lunch I tried a seaweed wrap stuffed with broccoli sprouts and hummus. Again, fifteen days ago, I would've NEVER done this. It was actually good. I do not recommend it unless you like sushi cause the seaweed wrap made me think of sushi. Ah...sushi...we will meet again.
Considering that the wrap was like negative calories, I was hungry in an hour. I ate Amy's Organic soup that was seriously like heaven in a can - if that's possible. It's their Golden Lentil Soup (Indian Dal) and it's so good. Go get some.
For dinner I had hominy with marinara, spinach, and mushrooms. This was a tasty day!
On another note, I am beginning a new book: What the bible says about Healthy Living by Rex Russell. It's pretty interesting thus far. Fifteen days ago, I wouldn't have sniffed at this book.
Wait a minute...do you notice a trend here? Fifteen days ago, I did some things a lot differently. Huh...(;
Bread
Hey Gang!
It's Kelly.
I just have to get this off my chest: BREAD!
BREAD!
Folks, it's yeast, flour and like eight other ingredients! I basically gave up in the bread aisle this morning after I called Kristin in a frantic stupor. Her family eats more sandwiches than mine. My daughter will eat everything ON a sandwich, but she will not eat the bread. It's how she rolls. Anyhow, we just don't eat it a whole lot, and to be honest, I've been avoiding the bread aisle because I know it's going to open up another can of worms. After looking at the ingredients of every brand and kind of bread in the aisle while standing next to the "bread man" who was restocking the shelves (and surely looking at me like I was nuts), I finally grabbed "Sara Lee 45 calories and Delightful 100% Multi-Grain" bread. Whoa! That's a mouthful! Here's why. After looking at other breads where the second ingredient was "high fructose corn syrup," I thought that a "low cal" bread wouldn't have as much sugar.
Bear with me here while I step onto my soapbox...
FOR CRYIN' OUT LOUD!!! bread. Bread! BREAD...has more high fructose corn syrup than it has FLOUR?! Is it just ME, or does anyone else want to picket outside the bread factories with me tonight?! (jk.)
Here's what's in the bread that I bought:
Whole Grain
Water
Wheat gluten
Corn starch
yeast
sugar
cellulose
Then is states: "Contains 2% or less of each of the following"
High fructose corn syrup
salt
dough conditioners (What the heck is THAT?)
calcium propionate (preservative...um, GROSS!)
Distilled vinegar
guar gum (There's GUM in my bread? And, WHAT is "GUAR"?)
soybean oil
maltodextrin
yeast nutrients
flax seed
wheat bran
sucralose
corn syrup solids (now, doesn't THAT sound appetizing?!)
natural flavors
honey solids
soy lecithin
milk
soy flour
Count 'em! That's 25 ingredients. (Two-Five)
My mom grinds her own wheat and makes her own bread. These are the ingredients in HER bread:
wheat flour
water
canola/olive oil blend
honey
freshly ground flaxseed
salt
egg
lecithin (ground up soybeans)
(sometimes gluten)
yeast
That's TEN ingredients, and I know what they all ARE! To boot, the MAIN ingredient is FLOUR!!! WHOA!
I think I'm going to go ahead and have mom teach me how to make my own bread when we're in TX this summer! WHOOOP!
(She steps back down off her soap box and takes a bow.)
It's Kelly.
I just have to get this off my chest: BREAD!
BREAD!
Folks, it's yeast, flour and like eight other ingredients! I basically gave up in the bread aisle this morning after I called Kristin in a frantic stupor. Her family eats more sandwiches than mine. My daughter will eat everything ON a sandwich, but she will not eat the bread. It's how she rolls. Anyhow, we just don't eat it a whole lot, and to be honest, I've been avoiding the bread aisle because I know it's going to open up another can of worms. After looking at the ingredients of every brand and kind of bread in the aisle while standing next to the "bread man" who was restocking the shelves (and surely looking at me like I was nuts), I finally grabbed "Sara Lee 45 calories and Delightful 100% Multi-Grain" bread. Whoa! That's a mouthful! Here's why. After looking at other breads where the second ingredient was "high fructose corn syrup," I thought that a "low cal" bread wouldn't have as much sugar.
Bear with me here while I step onto my soapbox...
FOR CRYIN' OUT LOUD!!! bread. Bread! BREAD...has more high fructose corn syrup than it has FLOUR?! Is it just ME, or does anyone else want to picket outside the bread factories with me tonight?! (jk.)
Here's what's in the bread that I bought:
Whole Grain
Water
Wheat gluten
Corn starch
yeast
sugar
cellulose
Then is states: "Contains 2% or less of each of the following"
High fructose corn syrup
salt
dough conditioners (What the heck is THAT?)
calcium propionate (preservative...um, GROSS!)
Distilled vinegar
guar gum (There's GUM in my bread? And, WHAT is "GUAR"?)
soybean oil
maltodextrin
yeast nutrients
flax seed
wheat bran
sucralose
corn syrup solids (now, doesn't THAT sound appetizing?!)
natural flavors
honey solids
soy lecithin
milk
soy flour
Count 'em! That's 25 ingredients. (Two-Five)
My mom grinds her own wheat and makes her own bread. These are the ingredients in HER bread:
wheat flour
water
canola/olive oil blend
honey
freshly ground flaxseed
salt
egg
lecithin (ground up soybeans)
(sometimes gluten)
yeast
That's TEN ingredients, and I know what they all ARE! To boot, the MAIN ingredient is FLOUR!!! WHOA!
I think I'm going to go ahead and have mom teach me how to make my own bread when we're in TX this summer! WHOOOP!
(She steps back down off her soap box and takes a bow.)
Sunday, April 22, 2012
Kelly's DAY FOURTEEN
Late last night, I made a grocery run to get some strawberries for breakfast this morning.
Leann and I went to her home church in Manhattan (C3 Manhattan). It was SO amazing! (I was so looking forward to this morning because last year, when I visited her church, I was FLOORED...and it happened again this year) Anyhow, I mean, think Praise Band teeming with ACTUAL Broadway singers (I'm pretty sure they compose their own worship songs). Yeah...it's kinda like that. The pastor actually had to dismiss the Broadway stars ten minutes early because he was running over a little bit and they had calls to get to. Anyhow, he was talking about the HOLY Spirit this morning (in his FABULOUS Australian accent), when he made a minor detour to...DANIEL...where he talked about Daniel's fast for a millisecond, at which point my jaw dropped, and he moved on. HELLO? BUELLER? WAS THAT JUST FOR ME, GOD?! DID THAT ACTUALLY HAPPEN?! I'm pretty sure all the beautiful stars in that room disappeared, and it was just me and the Aussie preaching right at me (in that fabulous Aussie accent). Amazing.
After church, it was officially raining cats and dogs. We snuck into a diner and ate lunch. I felt bad, because Leann really wanted to go to this burger joint for burgers, fries, and shakes. OH, how I wanted to go there! She had a salad, and I had French onion soup (hold the cheese, hold the croutons), a baked potato (hold everything), and the avocados and cucumbers off of Leann's salad (which looked so good it hurt, but when stripped down to something I could eat, would only consists of lettuce).
After lunch, I hopped on the NJ Transit train and headed home (ate some peanuts for a snack). I jumped in my car and got on the highway (in the torrents, remember), throw my window wipers on, and watched one of them fly off into the horizon (cars dodging, rain falling, me...well, blast it! I was hosed). I pulled over (per Dallas's instruction on my cell phone which was on the verge of dying) and searched for Autozone, but I had about 6 feet of median, and the car is like 5 feet 8 inches wide, so I pulled over as close to the guardrail as possible. Make yourself a mental note right now: Do NOT pull as close to the guardrail as possible!!! I repeat (you get the point)...YOU WILL SIDESWIPE THE GUARDRAIL ALL DOWN THE SIDE OF YOUR HUSBAND'S CAR!!! And, IF YOU'RE SINGLE, YOU WILL SIDESWIPE THE SIDE OF YOUR OWN CAR!!! I made it to Autozone, where I said, "My window wiper fell off." I could tell the guy wanted to laugh, but my facial expression probably let him know that if he did that I would burst into full on ugly cry, so he didn't. I looked him in the eye and asked, "Do y'all install these? I don't know how to do it." He looked back and said, "Only in nice weather, but I can try to sneak out to help you." See? Jersey boys can be gentlemen! Haha! Read on. He snaps that bad boy in place in about 0.3 seconds and I was on my way.
For the record, GPS doesn't really help in New Jersey because of all the jughandles. For those of you who have never BEEN to Jersey, just keep reading. It's this whole, you-have-to-turn-right-and-loop-around-and-go-through-a-stoplight-to-turn-left thing. So, when your Aussie lady comes on and says "turn left," you have to remind yourself to merge into the righthand lane. It's a big ugly mess, Jersey, but whatever. I digress. I finally make my way back to the NJ turnpike, but it was out of order or something, and I freaked out for a minute because if you don't take a ticket when you get on, you're fined like $25 or something ridiculous. Then, I exit, and the cashier guy asks me for my ticket. How do I EXPLAIN THIS? I told him my windshield wiper flew off...blah, blah, blah...(He's a Jersey boy, mind you...he didn't CARE what HAPPENED...he just wanted my darned TICKET!)...he asks me for my license (DANG! He's going to slap me with a ticket here...is that even POSSIBLE? Could this day get any WORSE?!!!)...he asks me where I got on the turnpike! HOW AM I SUPPOSED TO KNOW THAT? I JUST TOLD HIM I ONLY STOPPED BECAUSE OF MY UNFORTUNATE LUCK!!! I tried to explain. He charged me $3.60 (yeah, I drove that turnpike for a good half mile...that was an expensive 30 seconds). BUT, I DID find the PA turnpike, and only had to do two jughandles and a little back street to get there. However, at this point, I couldn't see through the tears AND the rain, but was thankful for the window wiper, and that angel of a man at Autozone (I should shop there more often). I had 3+ hours left to drive home. Stopped for dinner: Strawberries and OJ.
The point in telling you about these stressful events is this:
After all this happened, I passed a Starbucks and another Starbucks, OH, HOW I LOVE STARBUCKS! I'm beginning to think they put an addictive substance into their drinks...oh, right. They do! Anyhow, I realized that my body actually NEEDED a Starbucks to "recalculate" and decompress after that stressful event. WHAAA?!! I drove right on past those bad boys. I ran to the cross for my "recalculation and decompression."
...and THAT, my friends, is what it's all about.
Cue hummus and celery and carrots for dessert, a nice bath in my AHAVA salt (you can check out my blog post about our Dead Sea experience for more on that), and I'm off to bed. Monday is going to slap me in the face since I've been on college student AND toddler schedule all weekend (ie. up until 2am, up by 7am).
Leann and I went to her home church in Manhattan (C3 Manhattan). It was SO amazing! (I was so looking forward to this morning because last year, when I visited her church, I was FLOORED...and it happened again this year) Anyhow, I mean, think Praise Band teeming with ACTUAL Broadway singers (I'm pretty sure they compose their own worship songs). Yeah...it's kinda like that. The pastor actually had to dismiss the Broadway stars ten minutes early because he was running over a little bit and they had calls to get to. Anyhow, he was talking about the HOLY Spirit this morning (in his FABULOUS Australian accent), when he made a minor detour to...DANIEL...where he talked about Daniel's fast for a millisecond, at which point my jaw dropped, and he moved on. HELLO? BUELLER? WAS THAT JUST FOR ME, GOD?! DID THAT ACTUALLY HAPPEN?! I'm pretty sure all the beautiful stars in that room disappeared, and it was just me and the Aussie preaching right at me (in that fabulous Aussie accent). Amazing.
After church, it was officially raining cats and dogs. We snuck into a diner and ate lunch. I felt bad, because Leann really wanted to go to this burger joint for burgers, fries, and shakes. OH, how I wanted to go there! She had a salad, and I had French onion soup (hold the cheese, hold the croutons), a baked potato (hold everything), and the avocados and cucumbers off of Leann's salad (which looked so good it hurt, but when stripped down to something I could eat, would only consists of lettuce).
After lunch, I hopped on the NJ Transit train and headed home (ate some peanuts for a snack). I jumped in my car and got on the highway (in the torrents, remember), throw my window wipers on, and watched one of them fly off into the horizon (cars dodging, rain falling, me...well, blast it! I was hosed). I pulled over (per Dallas's instruction on my cell phone which was on the verge of dying) and searched for Autozone, but I had about 6 feet of median, and the car is like 5 feet 8 inches wide, so I pulled over as close to the guardrail as possible. Make yourself a mental note right now: Do NOT pull as close to the guardrail as possible!!! I repeat (you get the point)...YOU WILL SIDESWIPE THE GUARDRAIL ALL DOWN THE SIDE OF YOUR HUSBAND'S CAR!!! And, IF YOU'RE SINGLE, YOU WILL SIDESWIPE THE SIDE OF YOUR OWN CAR!!! I made it to Autozone, where I said, "My window wiper fell off." I could tell the guy wanted to laugh, but my facial expression probably let him know that if he did that I would burst into full on ugly cry, so he didn't. I looked him in the eye and asked, "Do y'all install these? I don't know how to do it." He looked back and said, "Only in nice weather, but I can try to sneak out to help you." See? Jersey boys can be gentlemen! Haha! Read on. He snaps that bad boy in place in about 0.3 seconds and I was on my way.
For the record, GPS doesn't really help in New Jersey because of all the jughandles. For those of you who have never BEEN to Jersey, just keep reading. It's this whole, you-have-to-turn-right-and-loop-around-and-go-through-a-stoplight-to-turn-left thing. So, when your Aussie lady comes on and says "turn left," you have to remind yourself to merge into the righthand lane. It's a big ugly mess, Jersey, but whatever. I digress. I finally make my way back to the NJ turnpike, but it was out of order or something, and I freaked out for a minute because if you don't take a ticket when you get on, you're fined like $25 or something ridiculous. Then, I exit, and the cashier guy asks me for my ticket. How do I EXPLAIN THIS? I told him my windshield wiper flew off...blah, blah, blah...(He's a Jersey boy, mind you...he didn't CARE what HAPPENED...he just wanted my darned TICKET!)...he asks me for my license (DANG! He's going to slap me with a ticket here...is that even POSSIBLE? Could this day get any WORSE?!!!)...he asks me where I got on the turnpike! HOW AM I SUPPOSED TO KNOW THAT? I JUST TOLD HIM I ONLY STOPPED BECAUSE OF MY UNFORTUNATE LUCK!!! I tried to explain. He charged me $3.60 (yeah, I drove that turnpike for a good half mile...that was an expensive 30 seconds). BUT, I DID find the PA turnpike, and only had to do two jughandles and a little back street to get there. However, at this point, I couldn't see through the tears AND the rain, but was thankful for the window wiper, and that angel of a man at Autozone (I should shop there more often). I had 3+ hours left to drive home. Stopped for dinner: Strawberries and OJ.
The point in telling you about these stressful events is this:
After all this happened, I passed a Starbucks and another Starbucks, OH, HOW I LOVE STARBUCKS! I'm beginning to think they put an addictive substance into their drinks...oh, right. They do! Anyhow, I realized that my body actually NEEDED a Starbucks to "recalculate" and decompress after that stressful event. WHAAA?!! I drove right on past those bad boys. I ran to the cross for my "recalculation and decompression."
...and THAT, my friends, is what it's all about.
Cue hummus and celery and carrots for dessert, a nice bath in my AHAVA salt (you can check out my blog post about our Dead Sea experience for more on that), and I'm off to bed. Monday is going to slap me in the face since I've been on college student AND toddler schedule all weekend (ie. up until 2am, up by 7am).
Kristin's Day Fourteen
Therefore, I urge you , brothers and sisters, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God - this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is - his good, pleasing, and perfect will. Romans 12:1-2
Have you ever read a verse so many times and then one day...it hits you with new revelation?
That happened last night when I was reading. The verse above has been brought up in conversation, in planning for a speech coming up, and in a book I'm reading, but when I read it last night...it was new and different.
Most of the time, we seem to focus on verse one, but kinda overlook verse two. Do you do that too?
This fast, this process has been incredible so far. God is stripping me of what is unpleasing and unholy so that I can be a fitting living sacrifice. This is worship. Wow, yes...THIS IS WORSHIP. Denying myself to seek God is worship. Isn't that beautiful?
Okay, okay I digress. When you allow God to renew your mind through his word and revelation...you will automatically be vastly different than the world. Then, then! We can test and approve what God's will is.
I was floored. All my life I feel like I been searching, asking, longing to know God's will. I wanted to know his will for my life - where to go to school, who to marry, where to live, what to do, how to pray ALL OF MY LIFE. I kinda felt my way around in the dark sometimes like...God...here?...this place?
Friends...this scripture is clear and simple and profound and hard.
1. Offer all of your self - a holy pleasing sacrifice - don't hold anything back
2. Do not conform to the world
3. Be transformed by the renewing of your mind
Have you ever read a verse so many times and then one day...it hits you with new revelation?
That happened last night when I was reading. The verse above has been brought up in conversation, in planning for a speech coming up, and in a book I'm reading, but when I read it last night...it was new and different.
Most of the time, we seem to focus on verse one, but kinda overlook verse two. Do you do that too?
This fast, this process has been incredible so far. God is stripping me of what is unpleasing and unholy so that I can be a fitting living sacrifice. This is worship. Wow, yes...THIS IS WORSHIP. Denying myself to seek God is worship. Isn't that beautiful?
Okay, okay I digress. When you allow God to renew your mind through his word and revelation...you will automatically be vastly different than the world. Then, then! We can test and approve what God's will is.
I was floored. All my life I feel like I been searching, asking, longing to know God's will. I wanted to know his will for my life - where to go to school, who to marry, where to live, what to do, how to pray ALL OF MY LIFE. I kinda felt my way around in the dark sometimes like...God...here?...this place?
Friends...this scripture is clear and simple and profound and hard.
1. Offer all of your self - a holy pleasing sacrifice - don't hold anything back
2. Do not conform to the world
3. Be transformed by the renewing of your mind
AND THEN...you will be able to test and approve what God's will is.
I am SO excited.
Saturday, April 21, 2012
Kelly's DAY THIRTEEN~Big Apple Adventure day two
Thankfully, I stopped by Whole Foods last night and bought myself some fruit cups for breakfast this morning!
Leann and I went to my very favorite place for tea room in the world so she could get a giftcard for some friends. You can read about our adventure last year, and my experience at Alice's Teacup HERE. I'm SERIOUSLY bummed that we couldn't have tea there, but NEXT YEAR we WILL!!! After that, we went to the Met. I love it there! I could sit and stare for hours. Afterward, we went and sat on the steps to the Met, and Leann bought a hotdog from a vendor out front. I waited until we found an organic store somewhere, and I bought this chickpea salad and this fruit-by-the-foot-like thing with no sugar.
Then, Leann took me to her new apartment to check it out before they move in! So cool! After that, we headed WAY downtown to a bridal shower where I got to meet most of her friends from the city! It was fun, and the rooftop deck it was on was so great! I also managed not to eat one of those SO scrumptious looking cupcakes from a cupcake bakery.
After that, Leann and I went to High Line! I've never heard of it before, much less been there! It's an old above ground train track that has been made into a walking path/garden. It was SO...VERY...GREAT!! That was probably the highlight of my trip (aside from seeing Leann) this time!
I was starving after that, so fortunately we found a Chipotle! I got a vegetarian salad. It was SO good, and since I was hungry, but was absolutely NOT looking forward to eating because I knew it would just be more vegetables! It totally hit the spot!
We're back to Leann's apartment now, and we just made my famous chocolate chip cookies! I want one somethin' fierce, but I didn't even lick my fingers!
I'm heading home tomorrow afternoon, and all I have to do is remember to pick up some food before I leave because there's no way "turnpike food" is going to cut it!
In short, I'm totally bummed that I didn't get to enjoy all the amazing food the City has to offer this trip, but I am happy that I had enough self control to honor my commitment to God.
Leann and I went to my very favorite place for tea room in the world so she could get a giftcard for some friends. You can read about our adventure last year, and my experience at Alice's Teacup HERE. I'm SERIOUSLY bummed that we couldn't have tea there, but NEXT YEAR we WILL!!! After that, we went to the Met. I love it there! I could sit and stare for hours. Afterward, we went and sat on the steps to the Met, and Leann bought a hotdog from a vendor out front. I waited until we found an organic store somewhere, and I bought this chickpea salad and this fruit-by-the-foot-like thing with no sugar.
Then, Leann took me to her new apartment to check it out before they move in! So cool! After that, we headed WAY downtown to a bridal shower where I got to meet most of her friends from the city! It was fun, and the rooftop deck it was on was so great! I also managed not to eat one of those SO scrumptious looking cupcakes from a cupcake bakery.
After that, Leann and I went to High Line! I've never heard of it before, much less been there! It's an old above ground train track that has been made into a walking path/garden. It was SO...VERY...GREAT!! That was probably the highlight of my trip (aside from seeing Leann) this time!
I was starving after that, so fortunately we found a Chipotle! I got a vegetarian salad. It was SO good, and since I was hungry, but was absolutely NOT looking forward to eating because I knew it would just be more vegetables! It totally hit the spot!
We're back to Leann's apartment now, and we just made my famous chocolate chip cookies! I want one somethin' fierce, but I didn't even lick my fingers!
I'm heading home tomorrow afternoon, and all I have to do is remember to pick up some food before I leave because there's no way "turnpike food" is going to cut it!
In short, I'm totally bummed that I didn't get to enjoy all the amazing food the City has to offer this trip, but I am happy that I had enough self control to honor my commitment to God.
Kristin's Day Thirteen
Hey! I LOVE Saturdays.
I had some major clothes folding to do, so I watched a couple of my 15 DVRed Rachael Rays today. Here's a few things I learned...
Five Super Foods Recommended by The Biggest Loser Nutrionist:
1. Nutrional Yeast
2. Seaweed Wraps - like for sushi
3. Mong or Mung Beans? I don't know how to spell it
4. Golden Berries
5. Broccoli Sprouts
They sell NONE of these at Walmart. Anybody know where I can get some of these?
I also learned that you can make your own healthy microwave popcorn in a brown paper bag in the microwave instead of using the ones they sell in the store and they make Vegan Mayo - go figure.
The YL guys are here right now for fight night. They watch UFC on pay-per-view and then run down stairs during commercials or between fights to do their own version of the violent wrestling downstairs. I'm not kidding. Some kid just came up with a bloody nose and he said he's having a BLAST, I just don't understand boys.
While all of this was starting up, I decided to run over to Walmart to get some more Smucker's Natural and a few other things. Since the kids were down and I was not interested in what was happening at home, I decided to read some labels.
Anymore, when I pick up an item, turn it over, and see more than 15 ingredients I pretty much put it down unless it's 15 bean soup or something. I cannot believe some things I that saw. Many products that claim to be 'all natural' didn't seem to be at all. I think I need to look up some of these things on 'all natural' products that I can't pronounce. I did find out that Xantham Gum was a natural corn sugar though.
Did you know that Campell's Cream of Chicken soup has MSG in it? Yep, me either.
Ok, nuff for now. Talk to y'all tomorrow (:
I had some major clothes folding to do, so I watched a couple of my 15 DVRed Rachael Rays today. Here's a few things I learned...
Five Super Foods Recommended by The Biggest Loser Nutrionist:
1. Nutrional Yeast
2. Seaweed Wraps - like for sushi
3. Mong or Mung Beans? I don't know how to spell it
4. Golden Berries
5. Broccoli Sprouts
They sell NONE of these at Walmart. Anybody know where I can get some of these?
I also learned that you can make your own healthy microwave popcorn in a brown paper bag in the microwave instead of using the ones they sell in the store and they make Vegan Mayo - go figure.
The YL guys are here right now for fight night. They watch UFC on pay-per-view and then run down stairs during commercials or between fights to do their own version of the violent wrestling downstairs. I'm not kidding. Some kid just came up with a bloody nose and he said he's having a BLAST, I just don't understand boys.
While all of this was starting up, I decided to run over to Walmart to get some more Smucker's Natural and a few other things. Since the kids were down and I was not interested in what was happening at home, I decided to read some labels.
Anymore, when I pick up an item, turn it over, and see more than 15 ingredients I pretty much put it down unless it's 15 bean soup or something. I cannot believe some things I that saw. Many products that claim to be 'all natural' didn't seem to be at all. I think I need to look up some of these things on 'all natural' products that I can't pronounce. I did find out that Xantham Gum was a natural corn sugar though.
Did you know that Campell's Cream of Chicken soup has MSG in it? Yep, me either.
Ok, nuff for now. Talk to y'all tomorrow (:
Friday, April 20, 2012
Kelly's DAY TWELVE~My big apple adventure
Okay, folks...I'm in New York City for the weekend. This could get (and already has been) interesting.
I packed a sliced avocado and some snacks for the road, stopped for a Naked juice at one point, and drank a LOT...a LOT...of water. When I made it to the train station, I circled up four flights in the parking garage, skeedaddled down to purchase my ticket, and by the time I finished, the train was coming. My dear friends, you have NO IDEA how much I wanted to take another train 20 minutes later just so I could go to the restroom! My 80 minute (jiggling) train ride was seriously painful, and by the time I got to Penn Station, I sprinted to the nearest bathroom and peed a marathon pee.
For dinner, my friend, her roommate and I went to Cafe Mocha. It was fun. Leann and Emily ordered some fantastic looking coffee drinks, and we ate dinner. I ordered a salad without the chicken and tortilla strips. Unfortunately for me, it had little slices of cheese throughout the salad that I had to pick out one by one. It's all good. The picking made the salad even better.
When Leann and I were talking about what we are going to do tomorrow, she mentioned that we should go to Serendipity's for a frozen mocha. Yes. She's aware of my fast, but it's easy to forget about dietary restrictions when they don't affect you. The only part I could eat in a frozen mocha is the "frozen" part. I told her we can totally go there, but she wants to wait until next time. Later, we went into Dylan's Candy Bar, where they give way free fudge samples. After I bought a little birthday present for one of Tate's friends, Leann said, "Oh! Let's go downstairs and get a fudge sample!" I just looked at her, as this was the third time she said something like that today. Her reply, "OH! I'm SO insensitive!!!" Haha! No, you're NOT insensitive, Leann! You're just not fasting!
We were able to swing through Whole Foods, and I bought myself breakfast for the next two days, hummus, and some celery and carrot sticks (which I totally whipped out later when we went to see "The Lucky One"). Yep. We ate celery, carrot sticks and hummus in the movie theater.
So, we'll see how tomorrow goes! It's the "Big Apple!" They should have plenty of fruit and veggies! And, I think from now on, I'm just going to tell the waiters/waitresses that I'm "vegan." Maybe they won't throw microscopic cheese in my salad!
I packed a sliced avocado and some snacks for the road, stopped for a Naked juice at one point, and drank a LOT...a LOT...of water. When I made it to the train station, I circled up four flights in the parking garage, skeedaddled down to purchase my ticket, and by the time I finished, the train was coming. My dear friends, you have NO IDEA how much I wanted to take another train 20 minutes later just so I could go to the restroom! My 80 minute (jiggling) train ride was seriously painful, and by the time I got to Penn Station, I sprinted to the nearest bathroom and peed a marathon pee.
For dinner, my friend, her roommate and I went to Cafe Mocha. It was fun. Leann and Emily ordered some fantastic looking coffee drinks, and we ate dinner. I ordered a salad without the chicken and tortilla strips. Unfortunately for me, it had little slices of cheese throughout the salad that I had to pick out one by one. It's all good. The picking made the salad even better.
When Leann and I were talking about what we are going to do tomorrow, she mentioned that we should go to Serendipity's for a frozen mocha. Yes. She's aware of my fast, but it's easy to forget about dietary restrictions when they don't affect you. The only part I could eat in a frozen mocha is the "frozen" part. I told her we can totally go there, but she wants to wait until next time. Later, we went into Dylan's Candy Bar, where they give way free fudge samples. After I bought a little birthday present for one of Tate's friends, Leann said, "Oh! Let's go downstairs and get a fudge sample!" I just looked at her, as this was the third time she said something like that today. Her reply, "OH! I'm SO insensitive!!!" Haha! No, you're NOT insensitive, Leann! You're just not fasting!
We were able to swing through Whole Foods, and I bought myself breakfast for the next two days, hummus, and some celery and carrot sticks (which I totally whipped out later when we went to see "The Lucky One"). Yep. We ate celery, carrot sticks and hummus in the movie theater.
So, we'll see how tomorrow goes! It's the "Big Apple!" They should have plenty of fruit and veggies! And, I think from now on, I'm just going to tell the waiters/waitresses that I'm "vegan." Maybe they won't throw microscopic cheese in my salad!
Sidenote: Free Candy Kitchen PB fudge
SO, forgot to mention...
After asking Candy Kitchen if they wanted to hang a KONY 2012 poster (see Kristin's Day Twelve for details on that). The guy was so pleased with what we were doing that he gave us chunks PEANUT BUTTER FUDGE.
Not joking. I held the oh so scrumptious goodness in my hand and walked out of the store.
Thankfully, Karissa and Nastassja were across the street and I was able to give it to them...
WHEW! Potential crisis avoided!, lol
After asking Candy Kitchen if they wanted to hang a KONY 2012 poster (see Kristin's Day Twelve for details on that). The guy was so pleased with what we were doing that he gave us chunks PEANUT BUTTER FUDGE.
Not joking. I held the oh so scrumptious goodness in my hand and walked out of the store.
Thankfully, Karissa and Nastassja were across the street and I was able to give it to them...
WHEW! Potential crisis avoided!, lol
Kristin's Day Twelve
Hey Gang...this is going out a wee bit early today cause I got a hot date with the hubby later (:
KONY 2012: http://www.kony2012.com/.
If you don't know, there was a video made by Invisible Children that went out in early March that very simply stated some information about what Joesph Kony has been doing for the last 26 years - it's awful. It started in Uganda and now it's said he's hiding somewhere in the Congo. Invisible Children's hope is to 'make him famous' so everyone will know about this and hopefully he'll be arrested and stopped.
Since the video, the founder of Invisible Children basically had a nervous breakdown and did some crazy stuff. The organization is being criticized on how they spend money and on the fact that they over simplified the issues surrounding Kony and the LRA (his army).
Hey, I get it. Invisible Children is not a perfect organization.
Here's where I am though. If it weren't for KONY 2012...I would not have known what I know now. I would not have researched the topic and found out that Obama sent troops last November or that he sent advisors recently to help capture this dude. I do not agree with all things Invisible Children, but I want my town to know about this.
Today, my friend Karissa Stoner and I hung posters. Tonight is supposed to be when this goes down, but we couldn't wait until then. Our town does not allow signs on public property so the Boro guy suggested that we appeal to local buisnesses instead. 8 out of 10 buisness owners didn't even know who Kony was. This is my point. I know that we can't go over and arrest this dude on our own, but we should at least know about what's happening.
I get so caught up in my own little world that I often fail to look at what's happening in the world. The news is tricky with biases and questionable information, but we should sift through it and discover as much truth as possible because we can at least tell others and pray.
There are many organizations that offer hope and help for the children who have escaped Kony's capture. If you can, take some time to research them and possibly donate to help them (:
On another note: I downed two tbsps of PB this morning and two more this afternoon. I'm also snackin on some roasted soy beans. Not as hungry! Thanks for the advice y'all (:
KONY 2012: http://www.kony2012.com/.
If you don't know, there was a video made by Invisible Children that went out in early March that very simply stated some information about what Joesph Kony has been doing for the last 26 years - it's awful. It started in Uganda and now it's said he's hiding somewhere in the Congo. Invisible Children's hope is to 'make him famous' so everyone will know about this and hopefully he'll be arrested and stopped.
Since the video, the founder of Invisible Children basically had a nervous breakdown and did some crazy stuff. The organization is being criticized on how they spend money and on the fact that they over simplified the issues surrounding Kony and the LRA (his army).
Hey, I get it. Invisible Children is not a perfect organization.
Here's where I am though. If it weren't for KONY 2012...I would not have known what I know now. I would not have researched the topic and found out that Obama sent troops last November or that he sent advisors recently to help capture this dude. I do not agree with all things Invisible Children, but I want my town to know about this.
Today, my friend Karissa Stoner and I hung posters. Tonight is supposed to be when this goes down, but we couldn't wait until then. Our town does not allow signs on public property so the Boro guy suggested that we appeal to local buisnesses instead. 8 out of 10 buisness owners didn't even know who Kony was. This is my point. I know that we can't go over and arrest this dude on our own, but we should at least know about what's happening.
I get so caught up in my own little world that I often fail to look at what's happening in the world. The news is tricky with biases and questionable information, but we should sift through it and discover as much truth as possible because we can at least tell others and pray.
There are many organizations that offer hope and help for the children who have escaped Kony's capture. If you can, take some time to research them and possibly donate to help them (:
On another note: I downed two tbsps of PB this morning and two more this afternoon. I'm also snackin on some roasted soy beans. Not as hungry! Thanks for the advice y'all (:
Thursday, April 19, 2012
Kelly's DAY ELEVEN~Got Milk?
After watching this short video the other day, I learned that in 1994, they started using genetically engineered protein and human growth hormones in dairy cows. The instance of ovarian cancer, cysts, mastitis, lameness, skin disorders, and increased antibiotic use in these cows went up exponentially. After learning this, I realized I needed to research milk. Here's what we found locally.
So, like Kristin said, we took a field trip today to "The Family Cow." It's a family farm in a nearby town that provides antibiotic and hormone free, grass fed cow's milk and milk products (cheese, yogurt, and KEFIR, which is apparently some sort of yogurt-like drink). They sell "Raw Milk," which is apparently SO good for you! They say that asthma sufferers (check!) and allergy sufferers (check, check!) should drink raw milk. Also, they say that 90-95% of people who are lactose intollerent will NOT have allergic reactions to raw milk! It's because the pasteurization process kills lacTASE (which breaksdown lacTOSE). I'm still not sold on the raw milk thing, but I'm with Kristin. I'll try anything once...well, almost anything, including, but not limited to, raw milk.
Family Cow sells their Raw Milk to a local creamery called Trickling Springs Creamery, which sells any kind of milk and organic milk products (I still have a little "figuring out" to do here because if the RAW MILK is organic, HOW can they get "organic" and "regular" milk? huh?). Consequently, Trickling Springs Creamery is located on Molly Pitcher Highway. Anyone know anything about Molly Pitcher? My father-in-law is a Civil War historian and told me that "Molly Pitcher" was a gal that used to take water out to the troops and, um, "service" them. Right. Route 11? Named after a prostitute. Our dog is named Molly...consequence? Moving on!
So, my favorite little Mennonite market around, Paul's Country Market, has now begun to sell Trickling Springs products (including ice cream). They carry the "Farm Friends" label. I do not know the difference between Farm Friends and organic Trickling Springs milk. A friend of mine told me about THIS guy, who delivers Trickling Springs milk right to your doorstep!
For some reason, I was telling one of our pastors today that we're going organic. He replied, "Just don't turn into a food nazi." You know, Kristin and I were talking about that on our field trip. We could totally turn this into "Hi, nice to meet you! OH! Yes! I'd LOVE to come over for lunch...is that chicken in the chicken salad grain or grass fed? Grain? Oh, okay. I'm not really hungry. I'll just have a glass of water" real quickly if we let it. While I want to be wise in what I'm feeding my family, I also don't want to alienate others in my quest to do what I think God is calling me to do....and I definitely don't want people to call me a "food nazi"! But, as I already told you, I don't want to be "FOOD DUMB" either!
That being said, I'm definitely going to be buying organic milk, but I would definitely buy the "Farm Friends" label as well.
Goodnight MOOOO-N! (Oh, that was so very, very cheesy...oops! Did I say...CHEESE?)
Oh, no.
I'm on a roll.
Someone stop me!
So, like Kristin said, we took a field trip today to "The Family Cow." It's a family farm in a nearby town that provides antibiotic and hormone free, grass fed cow's milk and milk products (cheese, yogurt, and KEFIR, which is apparently some sort of yogurt-like drink). They sell "Raw Milk," which is apparently SO good for you! They say that asthma sufferers (check!) and allergy sufferers (check, check!) should drink raw milk. Also, they say that 90-95% of people who are lactose intollerent will NOT have allergic reactions to raw milk! It's because the pasteurization process kills lacTASE (which breaksdown lacTOSE). I'm still not sold on the raw milk thing, but I'm with Kristin. I'll try anything once...well, almost anything, including, but not limited to, raw milk.
Family Cow sells their Raw Milk to a local creamery called Trickling Springs Creamery, which sells any kind of milk and organic milk products (I still have a little "figuring out" to do here because if the RAW MILK is organic, HOW can they get "organic" and "regular" milk? huh?). Consequently, Trickling Springs Creamery is located on Molly Pitcher Highway. Anyone know anything about Molly Pitcher? My father-in-law is a Civil War historian and told me that "Molly Pitcher" was a gal that used to take water out to the troops and, um, "service" them. Right. Route 11? Named after a prostitute. Our dog is named Molly...consequence? Moving on!
So, my favorite little Mennonite market around, Paul's Country Market, has now begun to sell Trickling Springs products (including ice cream). They carry the "Farm Friends" label. I do not know the difference between Farm Friends and organic Trickling Springs milk. A friend of mine told me about THIS guy, who delivers Trickling Springs milk right to your doorstep!
For some reason, I was telling one of our pastors today that we're going organic. He replied, "Just don't turn into a food nazi." You know, Kristin and I were talking about that on our field trip. We could totally turn this into "Hi, nice to meet you! OH! Yes! I'd LOVE to come over for lunch...is that chicken in the chicken salad grain or grass fed? Grain? Oh, okay. I'm not really hungry. I'll just have a glass of water" real quickly if we let it. While I want to be wise in what I'm feeding my family, I also don't want to alienate others in my quest to do what I think God is calling me to do....and I definitely don't want people to call me a "food nazi"! But, as I already told you, I don't want to be "FOOD DUMB" either!
That being said, I'm definitely going to be buying organic milk, but I would definitely buy the "Farm Friends" label as well.
Goodnight MOOOO-N! (Oh, that was so very, very cheesy...oops! Did I say...CHEESE?)
Oh, no.
I'm on a roll.
Someone stop me!
Kristin's Day Eleven
Kelly and I took a field trip to The Family Cow this morning. We learned quite a bit, but I'm still unsure about raw milk (sorry, Kelley Williams). I do want to try it after the fast is over.
We stopped by Paul's Country Market on the way home to check out the Trickling Springs Creamery inventory. They now have all natural Farm Fresh milk, but they do not sell the organic milk at Paul's. It was also pretzel day...YUM - for the kids :/
I am finding that I am getting pretty hungry multiple times a day which is SO weird because I feel like I'm eating alot. Guess I need to rework the diet a bit, lol.
Here's where I'm at today. I want to serve God with all that I am. I am extremely thankful to learn so much about food and I want to continue that journey. HOWEVER, I do not want to replace my fallen idols of coffee and TV with the idol of all things healthy food. I need to find balance, so if you're praying for me...;)
On another note...I'll be traveling to Haiti at the end of June/beginning of July with a group of teachers to do workshops for the teachers there. I'm super excited about working with the teachers...but I'm also excited to eat there. It is AWESOME to try new foods, yay!
Do y'all remember the Kashi commercials? That would be such a cool job to travel the world and learn about God's creation, people, and cuisine!
We stopped by Paul's Country Market on the way home to check out the Trickling Springs Creamery inventory. They now have all natural Farm Fresh milk, but they do not sell the organic milk at Paul's. It was also pretzel day...YUM - for the kids :/
I am finding that I am getting pretty hungry multiple times a day which is SO weird because I feel like I'm eating alot. Guess I need to rework the diet a bit, lol.
Here's where I'm at today. I want to serve God with all that I am. I am extremely thankful to learn so much about food and I want to continue that journey. HOWEVER, I do not want to replace my fallen idols of coffee and TV with the idol of all things healthy food. I need to find balance, so if you're praying for me...;)
On another note...I'll be traveling to Haiti at the end of June/beginning of July with a group of teachers to do workshops for the teachers there. I'm super excited about working with the teachers...but I'm also excited to eat there. It is AWESOME to try new foods, yay!
Do y'all remember the Kashi commercials? That would be such a cool job to travel the world and learn about God's creation, people, and cuisine!
Israeli Honey...sweet, sweet, sweet...
Good Day ELEVEN morning!
My husband and I went to Israel in February for ten days to visit our dear friends, Stewart and Elizabeth, who are living there for another year+. You can read all about our trip on my blog if you'd like (use my google sidebar to google Israel) to read all about it, day by day. I still have two more posts to complete our trip, but they're coming! I promise!
Now, I must tell you that I do NOT LIKE HONEY!!! Never have! So, when going to the "Land flowing with milk and HONEY," I thought I should try some HONEY (consequently, I did NOT try the MILK). The honey was readily available. Elizabeth had a huge jar of it waiting for us. It was SO...VERY...THICK (thicker than peanut butter), and (I'm assuming they did not add crack to it) it was SO...VERY...ADDICTING! I bought a jar to bring home with me, inaccurately thinking that it would last me "forever." It lasted one week. I also must say that I am the only one who ate any of it. It was about a quart of honey. Yes, you heard me correctly. It lasted ONE...WEEK.
I begged and pleaded with my friend, Elizabeth...I cried out to her. I bullied her and threatened her. She relented. Okay, so it didn't go like that. It went something more like this:
Me: "Elizabeth, I will love you for ever and ever if you will sent me some of that sweet, sweet nectar. I will be your Bath and Bodyworks supplier if you will be my honey dealer."
Elizabeth: "I can't send glass bottles, but I can put them in rubbermaid containers, and if you will send me rubbermaid containers, because I can't get them here, I will send you honey."
Me: "You are my true hero, and I will give you a kidney, should you need one later in life and we find that I would be a perfect match..."
(For the record, I would give Elizabeth my kidney even if she refused to send honey. I love her that much)
Anyhow, if you've been following our story, you know that I cheated on DAY FIVE when I found raw (American) honey, and I decided that HONEY, for me, would be off limits.
Yesterday, my first shipment of Israeli goodness landed upon my doorstep. My daughter brought a package with that highly anticipated customs slip. Upon further examination, it was, indeed, from Elizabeth. I popped that bad boy open, and inside were TWO rubbermaid containers delicately cradling my newfound addiction. God bless rubbermaid. God bless Elizabeth.
I will enjoy that honey as my very sweet reward on May 19th!
My husband and I went to Israel in February for ten days to visit our dear friends, Stewart and Elizabeth, who are living there for another year+. You can read all about our trip on my blog if you'd like (use my google sidebar to google Israel) to read all about it, day by day. I still have two more posts to complete our trip, but they're coming! I promise!
Now, I must tell you that I do NOT LIKE HONEY!!! Never have! So, when going to the "Land flowing with milk and HONEY," I thought I should try some HONEY (consequently, I did NOT try the MILK). The honey was readily available. Elizabeth had a huge jar of it waiting for us. It was SO...VERY...THICK (thicker than peanut butter), and (I'm assuming they did not add crack to it) it was SO...VERY...ADDICTING! I bought a jar to bring home with me, inaccurately thinking that it would last me "forever." It lasted one week. I also must say that I am the only one who ate any of it. It was about a quart of honey. Yes, you heard me correctly. It lasted ONE...WEEK.
I begged and pleaded with my friend, Elizabeth...I cried out to her. I bullied her and threatened her. She relented. Okay, so it didn't go like that. It went something more like this:
Me: "Elizabeth, I will love you for ever and ever if you will sent me some of that sweet, sweet nectar. I will be your Bath and Bodyworks supplier if you will be my honey dealer."
Elizabeth: "I can't send glass bottles, but I can put them in rubbermaid containers, and if you will send me rubbermaid containers, because I can't get them here, I will send you honey."
Me: "You are my true hero, and I will give you a kidney, should you need one later in life and we find that I would be a perfect match..."
(For the record, I would give Elizabeth my kidney even if she refused to send honey. I love her that much)
Anyhow, if you've been following our story, you know that I cheated on DAY FIVE when I found raw (American) honey, and I decided that HONEY, for me, would be off limits.
Yesterday, my first shipment of Israeli goodness landed upon my doorstep. My daughter brought a package with that highly anticipated customs slip. Upon further examination, it was, indeed, from Elizabeth. I popped that bad boy open, and inside were TWO rubbermaid containers delicately cradling my newfound addiction. God bless rubbermaid. God bless Elizabeth.
I will enjoy that honey as my very sweet reward on May 19th!
Wednesday, April 18, 2012
Kristin's Day 10
It's Kristin...(KELLY! We are 1/4 done already, dude.)
It's 11:14pm and this is gonna be short and sweet. Tuesdays are YL Club and Wednesdays are YL Campaigner nights for us. In short...BUSY!
Breakfast: Amy's Organic veggie soup and OJ
Lunch: Smucker's PB and celery, veggies with hummus, and Popcorners (LOVE!)
Dinner: Red-skinned potato with organic refried beans on top and strawberries for dessert
YL bible study was so great tonight. Working with high schoolers can be challenging, but to see God doing things in them...SO worth it. Goodnight, sleep tight (:
It's 11:14pm and this is gonna be short and sweet. Tuesdays are YL Club and Wednesdays are YL Campaigner nights for us. In short...BUSY!
Breakfast: Amy's Organic veggie soup and OJ
Lunch: Smucker's PB and celery, veggies with hummus, and Popcorners (LOVE!)
Dinner: Red-skinned potato with organic refried beans on top and strawberries for dessert
YL bible study was so great tonight. Working with high schoolers can be challenging, but to see God doing things in them...SO worth it. Goodnight, sleep tight (:
Kelly's DAY TEN
His ways are NOT MY ways!
I know that full well.
However...it's so hard to know when to change directions in life, isn't it?!
Am I going MY way?
Or, am I going HIS way?
Am I jumping the gun if I go in a different direction?
Anyway, we're dealing with some MAJOR life decisions right now. Decisions that will change the face of our family forever, and I feel like I'm SO darn busy that I can't even hear from God! For the last two weeks, I have felt like I'm tumbling head over foot down a very steep hill, and more and more "stuff" just seems to pile up on my "to do" list!
That being said, this fast is not very conducive to being "on-the-go." I mean, when you have to slice yourself an avocado for lunch and then wash the cutting board and knife, when you have to make two meals at dinnertime instead of just one, when you have to pack your own lunch when everyone else gets to eat out...that's time consuming! It's hard! It's frustrating at times! Sometimes I wonder if it's even sustainable! That's when I remember, I am TEN DAYS into this. It will get easier when I have done all the research and found the better choices. When I familiarize myself (and y'all) with the "good stuff," then it will be easier!
My day:
Breakfast~Sliced apple
Lunch~an avocado, some plantain chips, a bowl of bean soup.
Dinner~two cans of Amy's organic soup, while my family ate homemade fried chicken (per my sons adamant request) and homemade macaroni and cheese (per my daughter's recommendation).
Two cups of OJ
On another note: I am traveling to New York City this weekend to visit a friend. I am SO looking forward to seeing my friend, but I am BUMMED OUT that I cannot enjoy my favorite restaurants and coffee shops while I'm there!!!
I know that full well.
However...it's so hard to know when to change directions in life, isn't it?!
Am I going MY way?
Or, am I going HIS way?
Am I jumping the gun if I go in a different direction?
Anyway, we're dealing with some MAJOR life decisions right now. Decisions that will change the face of our family forever, and I feel like I'm SO darn busy that I can't even hear from God! For the last two weeks, I have felt like I'm tumbling head over foot down a very steep hill, and more and more "stuff" just seems to pile up on my "to do" list!
That being said, this fast is not very conducive to being "on-the-go." I mean, when you have to slice yourself an avocado for lunch and then wash the cutting board and knife, when you have to make two meals at dinnertime instead of just one, when you have to pack your own lunch when everyone else gets to eat out...that's time consuming! It's hard! It's frustrating at times! Sometimes I wonder if it's even sustainable! That's when I remember, I am TEN DAYS into this. It will get easier when I have done all the research and found the better choices. When I familiarize myself (and y'all) with the "good stuff," then it will be easier!
My day:
Breakfast~Sliced apple
Lunch~an avocado, some plantain chips, a bowl of bean soup.
Dinner~two cans of Amy's organic soup, while my family ate homemade fried chicken (per my sons adamant request) and homemade macaroni and cheese (per my daughter's recommendation).
Two cups of OJ
On another note: I am traveling to New York City this weekend to visit a friend. I am SO looking forward to seeing my friend, but I am BUMMED OUT that I cannot enjoy my favorite restaurants and coffee shops while I'm there!!!
Rally the ANTS!!!
Kelly here.
I think there may be a little confusion about why I posted about Naked juice the other day. My hope is that at the end of our fast, I will be able to compile a list of "Kelly approved" snacks, foods and beverages so y'all don't all have to go out and do the research. You know, in case you're a mom and want to know what snacks would be healthy for your kids if you're trying to steer clear of pumping your kids full of cow hormones and unnecessary antibiotics.
I started with Naked juice because it was at the top of my list. I did not know it was owned by PepsiCo until my friend, Jen, told me, which was after I posted my story. I went back after the fact and included that bit of information-thought you might enjoy a little useless trivia.
For the record, PEPSI is not a "Kelly approved" company. I'm pretty sure Mountain Dew green does not occur in nature! (wink, wink) Naked products that do not include dairy are "Kelly approved." And, yes. We COULD technically go buy our organic berries and a juicer and juice our own, alongside grinding our own wheat and making our own bread, raising our own chickens, cows and farms, but I'm a city girl at heart and have three young children. I'll buy my Naked products when I need a "Kelly approved" beverage, thank you very much!
Here's my Facebook conversation with my dear friend, Jen (who lives on a farm and has been living organically for two years now...go Jen!!!):
Okay, ANTS!!! It's time to rally!
I think there may be a little confusion about why I posted about Naked juice the other day. My hope is that at the end of our fast, I will be able to compile a list of "Kelly approved" snacks, foods and beverages so y'all don't all have to go out and do the research. You know, in case you're a mom and want to know what snacks would be healthy for your kids if you're trying to steer clear of pumping your kids full of cow hormones and unnecessary antibiotics.
I started with Naked juice because it was at the top of my list. I did not know it was owned by PepsiCo until my friend, Jen, told me, which was after I posted my story. I went back after the fact and included that bit of information-thought you might enjoy a little useless trivia.
For the record, PEPSI is not a "Kelly approved" company. I'm pretty sure Mountain Dew green does not occur in nature! (wink, wink) Naked products that do not include dairy are "Kelly approved." And, yes. We COULD technically go buy our organic berries and a juicer and juice our own, alongside grinding our own wheat and making our own bread, raising our own chickens, cows and farms, but I'm a city girl at heart and have three young children. I'll buy my Naked products when I need a "Kelly approved" beverage, thank you very much!
Here's my Facebook conversation with my dear friend, Jen (who lives on a farm and has been living organically for two years now...go Jen!!!):
- JEN-You're witty Kel! Love it! FYI-if any product does NOT say 100% organic then it is NOT organic. Their sneaky way of passing organic foods off...they may have a couple ingredients that are organic, enough to pass FDA regulations, but not 100% organic because, by darn, that would just cost too much :/ Also, don't you find it interesting that PEPSI Co owns naked?!?!?
- Kelly-Okay, snopes.com just said the Coke and Pepsi are too large an entity for any one group to own. That doesn't mean they don't own large shares of them, but they do not own either Coke or Pepsi outright. That urban legend is apparently just lore. Anyhow, I did check, and YES. Naked falls under the umbrella of the PepsiCo. empire! So, I'm a COKE girl, which owns Odwalla...so I'm torn. Maybe Odwalla will be my next mission! !)
- Kelly-I guess that was part of the "buy out" contract, ya know? I watched a video the other day that said, Walmart, Kraft and Coke have catered to other countries' demands that certain things not be in their food supply, so the ingredients in the same coke we drink here in America are actually healthier for our bodies in other countries! It's because other countries have DEMANDED that they change their practices, and they DID! But, we are so "FOOD DUMB" in America that we don't even KNOW to DEMAND that!!!
- Kelly-For the record: We are SO VERY TRUSTING of the FDA, but we're throwing a FIT when we hear that the government may run our HEALTHCARE! We don't trust the government to run our HEALTHCARE, but we DO trust them to run our FOOD SUPPLY? Hi! Anyone else see the irony but ME?! Anyone else think there's a link between our HEALTH and our FOOD but ME?!!!
Okay, ANTS!!! It's time to rally!
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