Because I love you all...

...I'm sharing an amazing recipe with you!

My friend Susan brought this dessert to the Court of Honor last week, and it was a HUMONGOUS hit.  Honestly, it's so simple but it's goooooood.  It is NOT gluten-free, low-carb, low-fat, low-sugar, or anything people should eat everyday, but if you want a decadent and delicious dessert, look no further!


Susan's Sopapilla Cheesecake!



Oh yeah, and the boys earned several merit badges & Nathan earned his Tenderfoot rank. Very proud. :)

And if you're wondering about that crazy look on Nathan's face, let's just say he was a bit sugared-up...

Have a great Labor Day weekend, y'all!  I'm sure I'll post again in the next few days (if anything blog-worthy happens on my birthday, that is)!

How I Spent My Summer "Vacation"...

This week, my husband and sons have been gone to Scout camp.  People keep asking me how I'm enjoying my "vacation".  Truth is, I'm not sure I know how to take one! Oh sure, I talked big about all the stuff I was gonna do (go to the movies by myself, clean and organize the whole house, take 2 hour long baths, go shopping all by myself, catch up on MY shows on the DVR, etc).  Big plans!

Yeah, I haven't watched a single show on my DVR this week.  I HAVE just about conquered Mt. St. Laundry, but that's all the housework I've done.  I've babysat everyday this week, 4 boys under 10, but none of them are mine and all of them are gone by dinnertime! And I've gone to my friend's house to watch Firefly most evenings this week (yeah, that show is NEVER gonna get old).   I never made it to the store.  I still taught at church Wednesday night, I still took care of the dogs and the cats, and I even took a few minutes to try my hand at "advice columnist"! Ironically, that is all about taking time for yourself and taking a break sometimes. Whoops.

I just can't stand to be bored.  I think that's why I have a pathological need to bite off more than I can chew. I do it with school, work, big projects around the house, etc.  I feel like I'm being lazy and useless if I sit around and do nothing.  And there's a time for being lazy and useless, don't get me wrong, but I couldn't stand doing a whole week of it. I've had a few little "wins" - I've stubbornly refused to bake anything or cook dinner at all this week (been too hot anyway), one night I had a milkshake for dinner(!), I've stayed up as late as I wanted (and paid for it the next morning, but oh well), and I've drank as much coffee as I feel like without having to share the pot.  So I guess I've acted like your average college kid this week.

Next week, things will be "back to normal".  My boys will be here to bicker and argue.  I'll have 6 boys to entertain and moderate.  I'll have to make sure dinner is made and on the table at a certain time, and I won't be able to hang at my friend's house until 1 AM.  The laundry will pile back up again and I'll be grossed out by the bathroom within minutes of their arrival.  I'll go back to counting down the days until school starts.  I'll be planning my youngest son's birthday party and spend my evenings catching up on Falling Skies and So You Think You Can Dance with my hubby, because I've discovered that watching my shows with him is much more fun than doing it alone.  I'll be back to being "me" next week, so I guess you could say I HAVE had a vacation this week, from my normal "real life"...it just didn't go the way I planned - and really, what vacation ever goes as planned?




If you don't have this show, you need it.  
That is all.

Ahhhh, gotta love summer!

Ahhhhhh summertime.  Evening thunderstorms, day trips to the beach (complete with jellyfish stings), visits from loved ones, blockbuster movies, and about 100 other reasons to completely ignore one's blog.  :)

So what have we been up to? My family has been REALLY busy since school let out, as are most other families, I'm sure.  So far it's been a terrific summer for us (even with my 12 year old finding the business end of a jellyfish), full of fun times with friends and family. The busyness is not going to let up any time soon, as my boys are getting ready to leave for Scout camp and I will start a new (full time) babysitting job next week.  And I've only got a little over a month before I have to start thinking about school again - Nathan will be going back to his public school, I will return to my online college and will be homeschooling Noah (I sure hope I can remember 8th grade math)!  I wanted to touch base here though and update a few things.

Sadly, after a lot of prayer and tears, we had to surrender my Altman bulldog, Petey.  He was too much for our family, and too rough on my boys.  It was hard to let him go, but probably easier than getting rid of the children.  I do not consider animals to be disposable, and I do not take letting animals go lightly, so this was a very difficult decision for me. I did face some criticism from people who don't even know me, those who DO know me know it broke my heart. 

In other news, I have been letting my kids "cheat" and have gluten-based products this month.  It's an interesting experiment, and a sort of necessary one since with camp and such it's difficult to monitor or control everything they eat.  Obviously if they had celiac I would be far more strict, but they don't and it's been a personal choice to go gluten-free and try to take them off meds or at least reduce them.  In Nathan, I've seen more "hyperness" but not really any other changes.  In Noah, I can't really describe what I've seen other than to say that he seems "more autistic" than he does when he sticks to the plan.  Also, it's worth noting that he has mentioned several times "not feeling well" after eating things off his diet.  So if this experiment has shown me anything, it's that going gluten-free was a good choice for my family.  When they return from camp, we'll be going back to it completely.  In the meantime, I've chosen to remain GF except for rare exceptions.  This is because it's just not really worth it to me to feel lousy and be in pain for a couple of days when I have other options.   In that same vein, I'm excited to try out a bunch of new recipes and products. As always, I'm happy to share what I like, so be on the look out!

I've stopped going to physical therapy for my shoulder.  We'd gone as far as we could with it, and all the exercises I was doing I could do at home.  It's really just about pain management at this point, since the ortho has no intention of fixing it and I'm honestly too busy to seek out a second opinion.  However, I have STARTED going to physical therapy (the same dr) for my neck.  It was injured at the same time as my shoulder (back in October 2010), but I could never get anyone to do anything about it til now.  Some of the problem is irreparable (it's very very straight, no curve), but we are working on stretching and strengthening the muscles and that will hopefully reduce the pain, stiffness, and limited mobility that I've been living with.

Ohhhh, there are probably a dozen other things I could write about. I should really start keeping a notepad handy for when I have the the thought "I should blog this!" because right now I can't remember any of them! This is already pretty long though, and I really SHOULD be packing my kids' clothes, so I'll end this now and promise to NOT wait another month before I blog again. :)

Sometimes You Just Have To Laugh

According to the "blog rules" this should be Wordless Wednesday. Meaning, I shouldn't say anything, should just convey my thoughts via photograph.  Considering the fact that my brain has disengaged from my mouth almost entirely, that would likely be a wise choice.  Which is probably why I'm not doing it.

One may be surprised by this statement, but it turns out that there are disadvantages to not having a single full night of sleep in a 2 week period.  Shocking, I know.  It would appear that the canines in my life have devised a plot to keep me awake forever.  Here are the usual suspects:

"DA BRAINS"

                                                                  
The face-squishing 90 lb Altman who CANNOT sleep unless he's touching me or completely on top of me (tell me again why we spent our tax return on a king sized bed?) wasn't able to keep me conscious all by himself anymore. I learned to just sleep in an awkward half ball with one hand over my face to protect it. So he had to call in reinforcements.

"CUTER IN PERSON...BUT JUST BARELY"

                                           
The little yapper (who they claimed was a pomchi but looks, and sounds, more like a hyena bat) does her part.  Her favorite trick is to whine and scratch at the bed til I pick her up and put her on it beside me, only to jump off and do it again in 5 minutes.  Yes, she has stairs, but what would be the fun in her using THEM?

"DA HENCHMAN"

                                                            
If Petey is the brains behind the operation, Max is definitely the muscle.  110 lbs of pure stubborn.  No amount of scolding, water squirting, smothering myself beneath a pillow or crying will deter him once he's decided it's time to get up.  Be it 2 am, 4, am, or 3 minutes before my alarm goes off, he WILL have his way.  He starts with panting heavily 2 inches from my face.  I know most girls might like that sort of thing, but I'm really more of a "just let me sleep!" kind of lady.  When that doesn't work, he shakes his head to jingle his tags.  Then we progress to the low-growl, the whine, and finally the bark (which could rival a freight train in a silent room in the middle of the night).  Yes, you WILL rise.

  "DA CHEERLEADER"

                                                         
Don't be fooled by the sweet face, this culprit is likely the most nefarious of all.  He plays innocent and cuddly, and rarely instigates any trouble.   However the second one of the others gets any ideas, he's right behind them going "yeah, yeah, what he said!"  Not only does he egg them on, he literally jumps up and down with joy and yelps with excitement.  One is tempted to give him a sidelong look and ask "et tu, Brute'?" 


So far their sleep-deprivation experiment has had interesting results.  Last night after my son's band concert, I complimented my son's teacher by telling him he'd "incensed a still of confidence" in my boy.  Then? I said it again.  You know, for effect.  I'm a little surprised the man let me put my child in the van and drive home.

Also, the "Stop Talking Now" signal in my brain seems to be malfunctioning.  Not that it ever worked all that great to begin with.  But at least in the past, I knew what the mouth was saying before the ears heard it.  Now I'm just as surprised as the person I'm talking to.  Which is also sometimes me.

I find myself concocting schemes that might sound preposterous to a well-rested and/or sane person.  For instance, today I am considering canceling all my plans so I can stay home and watch the dogs for any sign of sleepiness.  As soon as they close their eyes I can pester them awake again.  All day.  Maybe even pant in their faces.

By the way, of course every creature in my house is sound asleep as I write this.  It's almost time to get my youngest up for school, but the house is practically silent.  Or, would be, if Max wasn't snoring (note to self: invent Breathe Right strips for dogs, make millions) and chasing something in his sleep.

If you'll excuse me,  think it might be time to test the smoke alarm...

Dizzy Busy Week!

Good news is, I'm off the hook for shoulder surgery (at least for now). Got a cortisone shot and I'm going back to physical therapy. That is awesome for me, because I REALLY do not have time to be down for weeks on end! Praying the shot and the PT work and that the shoulder problem will go away.

After the dr appt, my friend and I went out to the farm to collect eggs. While we were there, the pig got out so we spent about a half an hour trying to herd him back to the pen, only to get him there and realize we couldn't figure out how to get him IN it (he was afraid of us, poor guy).  The owner wasn't there, it was just us, so we got him as corralled as we could, but I felt bad.  And tired. Who would have ever thought I'd be a farm hand one day? LOL  

My son and "Lil Bit"

I went out and bought groceries yesterday and OUCH, between buying the foods that are better for us and filling up the van - yeah, no extras for us this month! Why does they food that tastes good, feels good, and keeps you healthy have to cost an arm and a leg? But the processed junk that can make (and keep) you sick, is cheap and way easier to find.  BLAH.  BUT at least we are already paying much less for prescription medications in a month, so I'm seeing how it DOES even out. But ouch.  I bought xanthan gum yesterday because it keeps showing up in so many different recipes that I find online.  Got a tiny bag for $12. Thankfully it seems to last a long time (you only use like a teaspoon in a recipe), so I am hoping it's worth it.

This week I'm making a raspberry kombucha and gonna make some yogurt too.  Also gonna make a big yummylicious chicken soup tomorrow night. Maybe even some cupcakes.  It's just that kinda week LOL



Xanthan Gum, 8 oz.

My insanity knows no bounds LOL

This has been a fun few days for me.  My friend and I went and bought a LOT of meat from a local farm here: Hunter Cattle (they offer amazing deals and pet scraps too, and their farm store is adorable, if you're in the area, you've gotta check them out!), so we have enough meat for a month!  I'm all set on milk and eggs too, thanks to my volunteer Life Is Good farm hand side job, lol

I've been busy with preparing our house (and the kids) for our new diet, clearing out the old stuff, rearranging the pantry, going slightly crazily obsessive about jars and labels - I loooooove my new label maker!  Before long, you'll see my puppy run past with "DOG" emblazoned on his side. :)  I'm also researching recipes and testing out some GF foods to see what we think so far.  Nathan doesn't care for the flavor of the basmati rice, but I'm thinking we just need different seasonings.  It's different, it almost tastes like popcorn, but he thinks it tastes like eggs - which he hates.  The chorizo spinach frittata I'm planning to make should be interesting with a child who hates eggs! 

The real evidence that my insanity has no limits, however, is that I've also now decided to start making homemade dog food.  For now they'll be getting a 50/50 kibble/homemade diet, at least until I get the hang of it.  I want to be sure they're getting proper nutrition and hydration, and the healthiest diet possible.  It's really not that difficult, I figure if I'm in the kitchen anyway, why not whip them up something as well? So I've spent a LOT of the past 2 days researching different diets and recipes.  I'm also stocking up on all the yummilicious stuff like livers and kidneys and maybe a heart....mmmmm...  You know you want some. ;-)

Here's the thing, my declaration for this year is healing, renewal, restoration.  I truly believe God gave me those words specifically, and that vision for my life.  For my home, for my family.  I think that should include all members.  Our youngest pet is only a year old and already suffers from chronic joint pain and inflammation.  If my goal is to get us ALL healthy and "off the pharmacy", then I need to take it seriously, right?

Incidentally, an update on the meds thing: I'm already off more than half of what I was taking just to function with fibromyalgia and allergy-related illnesses.  Noah is OFF his ADHD meds completely and is considering giving up his sleeping pill as well (we'll see how that goes, as autism and sleep issues go hand in hand), and my little Nathan (the one I'm mostly doing this for, as he's been so plagued with physical and psychological issues from birth) has already stepped down on his ADHD dosage and we're hopeful that by next month he can go off one of his other psych meds!  I attribute this to the healthy eating and the positivity in our environment. I know we're on the right path and doing what God has for us, and it's making everyone happier and healthier already.  So I'm SUPER excited about what's next.  How much more awesome will it be when we're living gluten-free and making conscious healthy choices EVERYday? 

A note: I do want to say that NONE of this would be possible without support and encouragement from our friends.  We've been SO blessed to have people offer suggestions, advice and even just a little "you go girl!" helps so much when this all starts to get a bit scary.  Nathan often goes to a friend's house after school, and her mom has been amazing about asking what snacks he can have, what to avoid, etc.  People, please understand, YOU can always make a difference, with your words, with your attitude.  You can support and encourage, or you can tear down and sabotage.  Think, then speak with love.  It really does matter.

Now, all that said...HAPPY SUPERBOWL WEEKEND, Y'all!!  This may be just football weekend for you, but for us it's sort of like our own version of Mardi Gras.  Our last chance to "pig out" before we go clean on Monday!  I specifically waited for the 7th, because we are going to a Super Bowl party this weekend and while it all sounds DELISH, none of it is friendly to our new diet.  I may be too busy (or too full) to blog this weekend, but I'll be back Monday for sure to share about DAY ONE!