Elderberries

On Thursday, my son came home from school and told me how one student "definitely had strep throat, but his mom is going to take him to the doctor's later so he could take all his tests," and how another student was in the hospital with the flu for two days and his parents (who are both doctors) medicated him up and sent him to school today so he could get all his work done." Seriously? My son is 13-years old. He's old enough to stay home by himself, just like his classmates. If a parent can't take leave, just let your kid stay home! Why spread the germs???? So on Friday evening, my son started coughing...he woke up with a fever on Saturday and started vomiting as well. On Sunday it was the worst. My daughter became ill on Saturday, and today (Monday) is at her worst with a fever that won't quit. My husband is also sick. Me? I've been popping elderberries like candy and consuming an obscene amount of vitamin C. I've washed my hands so much that I've probably lost a layer of skin, and I've sprayed so much Lysol that I am sure the lining in my sinuses is ruined. Will we be healthy enough to go to Nashville this Thursday? Honestly, I don't know. What I do know is that the stupidity of parents has no bounds. Education is not more important than health!

Hello again.

I'm really bad at this. I wanted to at least begin updating once a week...even once a month. Kind of pathetic. But...here I go again.

What's been going on in my life? Well, I took on too much in my life. Nothing new there. I love to be busy. In fact, I love being so overwhelmingly busy that I have to multitask. It makes me happy. I think I enjoy that feeling of chaotic juggling because it makes me feel useful: like I am a part of something. If I didn't move, I'd sleep.

But as all good things, it came to an end as the holidays approached. Thanksgiving to Christmas always causes me stress. Unfortunately, this stress level was higher than usual and I ended up finding myself at the cardiologist's office.

Was my cardiomyopathy back? The arrythmias sure were. The Supraventricular Tachycardias were as well. I didn't want to think about it. I "survived" postpartum cardiomyopathy all those years ago. I couldn't go back to those days.

We learn from things. That's how we grow. That's how we move on. That's how we make progress.

So I learned from that moment of fear. I learned that sometimes I need to let go. Sometimes, I don't need to juggle a dozen hats.

So now I take naps.

Now I say "no"... not always. But 1/10x is better than 0/10. It's a work in progress.

What else can I learn from this?

Welcome back, me

I can't believe I've forgotten all about my blog. It's been years. Literal years since I last updated. I don't even know where to begin! I suppose I need a new theme. The first time I started this blog, I *think* it was (if I remember correctly), to vent and share my dealings with my second pregnancy and having HG. It wasn't very pleasant having an IV stuck in my arm and still wanting to puke for nine months, while chasing a four-year old and trying to stay upright at work full time. Yeah, it sucked. However, the good --no, GREAT -- news was that there was a light at the end of the misery, and that light was my beautiful baby girl, Isabella. She's eight now.

I think I then went back to writing in this blog a few months after she was born and I was diagnosed with post partum cardiomyopathy. Also, really sucked. It was scary and it was sad, and I was lucky to have recovered.

Then, I went back to my blog when I decided to change up my diet.

Guess what? It didn't last LOL But that's okay, because I am still pretty healthy and have a lot of energy. In fact, today I taught an inclusive dance class for families with and without special needs. It was awesome :) Not as many kids came as I would have hoped, but more will come next week.

So, what else? My son is 13-years old. 13! I have a teenager. It's crazy, I know.

I am not sure what else to post. I will give it some thought, and maybe decide of a theme. Perhaps it will be something healthy-related. Who knows :)

Life is a dance

When Julius was small, we used to have little dance parties: just me and him. When he started nursery school, I would turn on the music as soon as we got home. It was a great transition to "home time."
Before Julius was born, I used to dance whenever there was music. I loved to dance.
Somewhere, sometime, I seemed to have forgotten.

When I became pregnant with Isabella, I was too sick with HG to do much of anything. That's when I stopped dancing.

After she was born, I was still too tired to dance...I figured from being sick for all those months...but turns out I had developed cardiomyopathy. I didn't dance.

And when I finally, thankfully, recovered, I was too busy to dance. Too busy making up for lost time.

Recently, I've been feeling pretty damn awesome. Maybe it's because I've been gluten free for awhile now and my energy level is fabulous....but I'm dancing again. In the mornings, I turn on the music and dance...when I cook or clean, I dance...and now I remember the awesome-free freedom I used to feel when I would dance.

Julius doesn't want to dance with me anymore. I won't let the mommy guilt weigh me down. He's 9 now, 9-year olds don't usually want to dance with their moms.

Isabella loves to dance. We dance together, sometimes. Most of the time it's just me, in the kitchen, dancing like an idiot...and I love it.

Werewolves vs. Vampires

When I was in high school and college, I loved everything-vampires. Blame it on Anne Rice, she fueled the obsession. But even before then, I thought vampires were the absolute coolest, scariest, hottest thing in the world.

I even visited our "local vampire" in Potomac (world's best basement shop EVER).

But then something shifted...I can't pin point exactly when. God knows it wasn't from watching that Twilight shit (yes, I read the books, but damn it was hard...I can't even sit myself through the movies...there isn't even alcohol in my bloodstream to survive that).

But one day I picked up a book, because I'm a reading whore, and it was about werewolves, and I thought "damn, not bad." So I read some more, and let's face it, they were Porn With Plot....and they were good. So I checked back with the vampires and....eh. Didn't do it for me.

I wonder if it's a maturity thing? Perhaps when a person hits 30, hot vampires turn into hot wolves?

Hmmmm, someone must have a research paper written about that somewhere....

In other news, I am still a gluten free vegetarian and doing FABULOUS :)

Lovin' it

I am loving being gluten free. And guess what? I've lost 8 pounds! And I am not even exercising!

And I love Silver Diner...they have a great gluten free menu :)

Pics

Hey! Posting pics is easy with this app :)
So in that case, let me update with pics of my kids!
Julius is now 9, and Isabella is 4 (will be 5 in November).

Paleo cake and more

Yesterday I made a paleo chocolate kitty cake. If I ever out how to load a picture using this blogger app on my phone, you'll be able to see it.

Though I am not 100% paleo, I am happily enjoying being 100% gluten-free.

It hasn't been an inconvenience, and today I am going to try some gluten-free pizza over at Potomac Pizza.

Update

I feel GREAT without gluten. I love this!
And I don't miss wheat at all!

Friday!

I love Fridays. And I am finally starting to feel better...less itchy!

For breakfast I had strawberries and bananas. For lunch I had a greek salad, and for dinner I am going to have spinach & artichoke dip with veggies and a side of gluten free sweet potato fries!

I am really proud of myself :)

Slow and steady

Thanks to the wonderful powers of social media, it was recommended that I try adding Xantham Gum next time when attempting to make coconut pancakes...and, I received an easier recipe that sounds super delicious!

http://detoxinista.com/2012/01/paleo-pancakes/

Of course, we are peanut and tree nut free here, so I would minus that part...or maybe use sunflower butter?

The above website also has a yummy snack recipe using dates.

So I decided to just aim for being grain-free for the moment. Once I am comfortable enough with it, then I can start removing dairy. I didn't have any dairy today, and I may not have any tomorrow...but I think keeping that possibility open makes this all the easier.

Back to square one

Today is the day.
For breakfast I had a hardboiled egg, and then later, sliced bananas in raw honey.

For lunch, I was excited to try making vanilla pancakes out of coconut flour. Guess what? NOT as fantastic as it sounds. Very grainy. The first bite felt like coconut flavored sand.  Not sure how to fix that.

So I am still trying to figure out lunch, but I know I can do this. I am just going to go through this one day at a time.

Try again

I decided to try again. My skin is on fire. I hadn't notice the connection between my dry skin and what/dairy until I eliminated them from my diet.

Yesterday after the chips, I ate some crackers with cream cheese and then the itchiness started. It was so bad I jumped in the shower and put the water as hot as I could stand it.

This mornings I ate a bowl of cereal, had a bag of chips, a slice of cake, and some pasta for dinner....and now my skin is killing me! Cream won't work, I am this close to throwing myself against the wall.

So...I am doing this paleo veg diet AGAIN.

Failure 101

This must be what a drug addict feels like. I could SMELL the carbs...it was slowly destroying me....

I gave in.

Yes, I know, I suck.

I couldn't even stick it out a week. That's pretty pathetic.

Day 5

After a weekend full of carb temptations, I had hoped to treat myself this Monday morning with pancakes made of coconut flour.
Sadly, after walking the dog, packing the kids' lunches and getting dressed, there was no time :( so I had a sunny-side up egg and left to work.
I had planned for avocado for lunch, until my co-worker informed me that "good fat or not," too much isn't good for you. So, sadly, I did not have my delicious avocado at lunch time. Instead, I ate watermelon.
I am beginning to rethink this 30 day plan. I don't know if I can actually do this...

Day 4 of my paleo-vegetarian diet

This morning, after drinking way too much alcohol (hey, I bet paleos had moonshine!), I ate an obscene amount of watermelon.
Wegman's opened up, so we checked out their produce and I bought a ton of delicious fruits and vegetables, plus coconut flour so I can make paleo pancakes..

I think I am going to make a sunny-side up egg with shredded coconut on top. I saw that recipe on primalpalate.com and it sounded pretty interesting!!

3-day, continued

So by the time I was ready to figure out breakfast, it was time to go to my son's hockey game.
All the hollering made me light headed, so when I got home, I made myself a peach and edame salad...and after eating it, I remembered that edames weren't around during the paleo time. Damnit!

Dinner time was an avocado and egg salad. And I am really at a loss over potatoes. Some paleo sites have recipes with sweet potatoes in them, others say paleo diets do not allow for potatoes....

What's a girl to do?!

To potato, or not potato?

Day 3- morning

This isn't as hard as I thought it would be. I have already learned that I need to eat more than what I am used to. For example, in the past, I was fine eating three meals and occasionally have a snack or two during the day.

Last night, I started feeling light headed and uber-cranky about an hour after dinner. I realized I really wasn't having that many calories and needed to up the ante.

I went online and found some fantastic recipes on primalpalate.com ...I just skipped over all the meat, nuts and fish dishes because those are things I don't eat.

I did notice that some dishes had dairy in it (cheese). That confused me because I didn't think dairy was allowed in a paleo diet. So I guess once in awhile, it won't hurt. A friend of mine gave me a paleo recipe for a carrot cake which has "primal cream cheese," which contains dairy. So I think I will introduce little bits of dairy later in my 30 day plan.

This morning, as I sipped my apple cider, I also noticed how different my husband and I grocery shop. Yesterday he went to the store and came home with one banana, two peaches and a ton of carbs and dairy products.

When I shop, I bring back a lot more fruits and vegetables, but I also have been heavy with carbs. Carbs and dairy have been such a staple in my family!

So I think I need to plan more ahead on things to buy for my meals. I already found a bunch of recipes...but I don't have anything in the house to make them except eggs.

It wouldn't be unusual for me to skip breakfast, but given how much more I need to start eating, I think breakfast is going to be as important as everyone says it is.

Breakfast: apple cider and....????

Paleo vegetarian

I've been a vegetarian since I was 17 years old. Once Julius was born, and we discovered he was allergic to legumes, my protein shifted...and then I became allergic to nuts...and my protein intake shifted again...and I started eating a lot more carbs and dairy... and at first, everything was going great...until I turned 33. Then suddenly I started gaining weight!

So I decided to do some research and discovered the paleo diet! I wasn't sure I could do it, being a vegetarian and all, but turns out there are paleo-vegans out there!

Day 1
Breakfast: fruit salad
Lunch: avocado
Dinner: garden salad

I drank a ton of lime water, and didn't feel tired.

Day 2
Breakfast: fruit salad
Lunch: avocado chop salad
Dinner: vegetable omelet

I feel fine, though my husband and co-worker have commented that I have been a bit short with them.

I am really proud of myself and I am learning about so many fantastic recipes! :)

my second grader loves being a second grader! Can I just say I hope this love continues??? The last two years have been PAINFUL>

As for my little one, she starts preschool in two weeks! 2 mornings a week for two-year olds... she is so excited!