I Think I Am Going to Like This!!

I am not a food critic by any stretch of the imagination. I am certainly not a whiz in the kitchen. The fact that I have even written a blog about food almost makes me laugh because I can promise you this....that was never my intention or plan. But thanks to so many messages, texts, and calls with words of encouragement, I thought I would write a follow up to my big 10 day challenge of real food.

Tomorrow will be the last day of my challenge and the beginning of a new one. Why? Because I really think there is something to this whole idea of what we put into our bodies. I have not been 'clean' so to speak for the full 10 days. I fell off of the wagon for 2 days and chased that crazy thing until I got back on for many reasons. So here are a few things I have learned in a very short amount of time:

1. I am not the avid coffee lover that I thought I was. Actually, I am a French Vanilla Cream lover with some sugar and a shot or two of coffee. Seriously, I have not missed coffee AT ALL! And it's not that I couldn't drink the coffee, but I couldn't put all of the good stuff in it for the 10 days. And let me tell you, I do NOT like the taste of coffee.

2. To cook and plan ahead a little has not been as traumatic for me as I thought it would be. To my surprise, I have really enjoyed cooking. Carly has LOVED every minute of it and is right by my side to help, which is truly my favorite part. And to my even greater surprise, the recipes have been SO GOOD!!! All of the recipes I tried were from www.100daysofrealfood.com and www.faithwayfamily.blog.com

3. I am weak! Seriously, it only took Honey Buns and Nutty Buddies (which I truly would never just walk into a store and buy because I wanted one) to kick me off the wagon. So although I CAN eat in a way that makes me feel better and tastes better, if I have an option for the 'junk' I will go for it. Jack teased me about hearing the plastic wrap from the Honey Bun being opened in the morning hours and me sneaking to eat them. So to prove a point, I just started eating them in the open....until the box was gone. I guessed I showed him, uh?!

4. I honestly prefer the real food over the other stuff. I am probably the most shocked by how much better the food tastes. On Monday I hadn't been to the store so I pulled out a couple of old staples from the freezer: Bagel Bites and nuggets. I can't explain how bad I didn't want to fix them because even the kids had been eating the real food without complaining (except for Carly inspecting her 'new' pancakes for any hidden fruit, which she does not like in her pancakes). But desperate times call for desperate measures and let me say that the processed stuff didn't taste good at all in comparison to the real thing. I think that is when I realized that eating real food is not only something that I need to do, but I want to do.

5. I feel much better eating this way. After the Honey Buns, Nutty Buddies, and frozen nuggets, my belly did not feel good. Maybe the fact that I ate WAY more than my portion size had a little something to do with it, but I think it was more than that. All jokes aside, I did eat the yucky stuff over the course of two days. At first, it didn't bother me at all. But after several meals and snacks of the junk, I did feel yucky. I truly believe that our bodies digest real food better than the overly processed food. (If there is a nutritionist somewhere reading this, I am sure she is smacking her forehead thinking, "Wow, you are a real genius!")

6. Eating real food is not as expensive as I thought. The initial start may be more than I bargained for, but once you get several of the staples of real food in the kitchen, you can use them over and over again in many different recipes. Actually, the first time I shopped it was a little less than my normal grocery bill. However, the second time I went to the store it was about $60 more than what I would spend in a week. This is because the second time I learned to buy more in bulk. It will last longer and be cheaper in the long run rather than buying smaller packages more often.

So, tomorrow I will keep incorporating more and more of this lifestyle into my day. Let me clarify something though, I have not gone cold turkey by any means. I still buy things in a jar, my kids still have the gummie snacks, and I will indulge in flavored cream with a little bit of coffee. :) I still haven't figured out how you would eat so good while on vacation, although I will say up front, Olive Garden is not up for debate; I will eat there and love every bite of it!! I still have questions about wheat-free versus glutten-free and too much information can be confusing. But what I can say is that we have more of the good than the bad and that feels real good. Instead of eating the good stuff occasionally, we are doing more and more of the opposite. We are eating the good stuff the majority of the time and the bad stuff on occasion. And eating the 'real food' way is not salads and greens all of the time. Actually, I have yet to make a salad in 10 days, much less crave one! However, that is one of my goals this week......to make and eat a salad!

I truly hope that you all keep letting me know your own stories and challenges. They have blessed me in more ways than one. They have kept me motivated, challenged, and encouraged. I will leave you all with some words of wisdom that have helped me:

"Everything is permissible, but not everything is beneficial" ~1 Corinthians 10:23

In other words, no amount of a good cold root beer or sweet tea will ease my heart, my mind, or my emotions!! So I am trying to stop and think when I grab something. And as you know, I do not always grab the beneficial thing (I already confessed earlier!), but I am choosing the beneficial more and more!

God, I cannot thank You enough for starting this work in me and in so many others. I pray that with each day I will truly consider Your Word more and more; although EVERYTHING is permissible, what is BENEFICIAL? I pray that I will live by these Words with more and more integrity and conviction in all areas of my life; not just with my food choices. I love You Lord and I thank You that You have began a good work in us and You will complete it! In Jesus' name.

Note To Self: Perfection is NOT the goal!

"It is easier to make excuses than changes." ~Lysa Terkeurst

Well, today is Day 1 of my ten day challenge of real food. It does make me chuckle to think 10 days. Seriously, how hard can this be?! I will let you know after I overcome my sugar withdrawal.

We have had a full weekend. The days flew by and I didn't get to the grocery store with my list for the week, so I felt a little unprepared last night. I even let the thought cross my mind that I should just start on Tuesday, but then I read the above quote from Lysa. And that is just what I was doing...making an excuse. Procrastinating.

So, I went back and read my last blog to get motivated again and remind myself of my determination to do this. When I invited others to join me on the challenge, I said "the more the merrier". When I wrote that, my first thought was actually "misery loves company", but I stopped myself from defeating myself and others before we even started! It was easy to think of the reasons I didn't want to start the challenge, but I started to think about the reasons I WANT to do the challenge and they are truly worthy reasons. Here are just a few:

1. I want energy.

2. I have too many people that depend on me in a day to run out of gas not long after I get started.

3. I have a new little one on the way and I need not only energy, but a strong body.

4. I think sugar makes me grouchy. (I will be shocked if I still get grouchy after this and then I will have no idea what the cause would be!)

5. I want to stop feeling frustrated with my choices only to turn around and choose them again.

6. I want to feel good and taking care of myself and my family definitely makes me feel good!

7. I have too much I want to do to not take care of myself.

I will have to read these more than once in the day to stay on track. I will have to ask myself what I want more...the junk that keeps me in a vicious cycle or the good things that are more lasting and meaningful to me. I think a little bit of self-doubt causes me to want to make something known....I will still eat treats from time to time, so I have not fallen off the wagon or forsaken the lifestyle when I have an ice cream cone with the fam! :) But for 10 days, I am serious!!

I also remembered something so very important as I read the last blog....perfection is not the goal. I will not do it all "right" in the next few days, but I will begin making new habits. Too many times I have given up on things because of the "all or nothing" mentality. But honestly, that mentality is so bad because who has it all or can do it all? That means there is alot of nothing going on! So today, I don't have all the ingredients for alot of the homemade recipes I wanted to try, but I do have chicken, eggs, salad, and veggies that I can use. And honestly, a trip to the store will give me a short burst of motivation, but then I will still have to fix the stuff! And I do not need one more head of lettuce in the fridge to go to waste or one more limp cucumber because I "forgot' it was in the veggie drawer. I know I am not the only one that has opened the refrigerator FULL of fresh fruits, veggies, and other goodies only to shut it and say there is nothing to eat!!

Nope, today is the day of progress! I will not rationalize why I don't really have to do this. This is not about my weight. My goodness, I am 28 weeks pregnant today so I will not be seeing the scale drop. Instead, this is about feeling good from the inside out. I have never had a weight problem. Yes, I have been in shape and out of shape and had a few extra pounds to shed, but I have never had a battle with numbers. But I have battled in other areas. I have battled feeling bad about myself. I have battled exhaustion and frustration. I have battled wanting one thing and doing another. I have battled going against what I truly want for a quick fix instead. But I will remind myself one more time, today is the day of progress!! This is not a diet. This is a new way to live. One more time, perfection is not the goal.


God, there is no part of my life that You do not want to be a part of. In Your eyes, there is no separation of spiritual and physical. We are Your creation, created in You to do great and wonderful things. But I am scared to death of failure. I fear a great start and a lousy finish. I am afraid of not finishing what I start. But Your Word says that it is You who works in me to will (the want to) and to act (really do it) according to Your good purpose. (Philippians 2:13) I pray that today You will help me to make choices that are in line with how You want me to take care of myself and my family. And although You will encourage me, You will not be sprinkling me with pixie dust or tapping my head or hands with a magic wand to make these choices for me. Help me to do the hard stuff until it's not so hard anymore. How blessed to serve and love a God that is in every part of my life! In Jesus' name.

How Many Days of What?!

I keep running across this challenge called 100 Days of Real Food. I have looked at it several times and it always strikes a cord with me. It's one of those things that I always think I would really like to try, but then I go on. I can't help but believe this is something that I should try. I mean, it's not a fleeting thought. When I talk to others who have done something like this or who are living their lives like this, I don't think, "That's nice for YOU, but....". Instead, I truly want it, but my emotions and taste buds want something different.

So what stands between me and this challenge? Let's see: sweet tea, the occasional ice cream, exhaustion, lack of planning and organization that will probably be required until I adapt to the changes, hormones from pregnancy that are unpredictable and all over the place, and any unknown event in the future that would have something so delicious that I would have to turn from it, and did I mention sweet tea? I think that's it!

On the flip side, I WANT this. A while back, Jack and I did a 21 day Daniel Fast, which is full of 'real foods'. It was amazing!! I found a recipe book full of really great food (only a few recipes were a total flop). Sometimes the food tasted so good that I felt like I was cheating. But for 21 days we ate 'real food' and completely did away with sugars, processed foods, and that type of thing. What I remember the most was the amount of energy I had (no more crashing by 2 in the afternoon) and I slept so much better.

I felt so great that I had every intention of keeping the backbone of the fast as my normal, adding in a few other things. By using the word "intention", you know where this is going! I went through the drive-thru for one sweet tea. It tasted horrible! It was beyond sweet and actually made me more thirsty. It actually tasted thick. So how in the world I started drinking them again, I seriously have no idea. But whatever the reason, it was back to some of my old ways.

Well, after many signs that I need to try this challenge, I met a friend by the name of Laura Meadows. On her facebook page, she shared several healthy recipes and articles on eating well. At first I was intimidated, thinking I could never get together with her because I would crawl in a hole if one of my kids asked for a root beer or a candy bar in front of her! But then I thought, "This is it. I am doing this!!" I was inspired, motivated, challenged. And Laura is more than willing to share with you in any way she can help. She has just started a blog to share some great things, so take a visit soon at www.faithwayfamily.blog.com So thank you Laura for spurring me on to good things!

I went to www.100daysofrealfood.com to get the facts. And let me tell you that more than once in my life I have been over zealous and tried to fight hell with a squirt gun and that's what the 100 day challenge felt like. Sooooo, I found the 10 day challenge. Much better!! It's silly, but I am nervous and excited. I keep thinking I better get one last sweet tea; like that one tea will stay with me for 10 days! I already think of things coming up that will initially make me regret this decision. I think of how tired I am and how I will have to work at this and cook and stuff. (haha)

But we are doing this for 10 days. Perfection is not the goal, but new habits are. More energy, stronger minds, and stronger bodies. Seems like a pretty tall order for just 10 days, but here goes.

By the way, if anyone sees me drinking a sweet tea, don't start throwing twinkies at me in judgement- it was merely a moment of weakness and I seriously hate twinkies. And for my buddy Mel, I am starting Monday!! :)

If you want to join me, the more the merrier! Let me know you are going to start and we will help each other. Leave me a comment here or on my facebook page.

Here we go.....

(To visit the 100 Days website and Laura's blog, you can click on the links in the blog. Laura has just started the blog, so she may not have her recipes and articles posted yet.)

A homeschool mom's worst nightmare!!

Today I experienced every home school mom's worst nightmare. Someone had asked my son Jacob how he was doing in school. I was actually excited to hear what he was going to say. My goodness, we have done so much! (you will see the humor in this thought very shortly!!) Would he mention all that he is learning about weather as our "meteorologist" for the month of March and all of the cool science experiments, in which we have all learned something really interesting from? No, as much as he loves math it would have to be all the hands on ways we have learned about fractions using real-life, everyday experiences. Wait, he loves history too, and is always asking questions about that, so I am sure he will share about his timeline and maps. But then again, he loved making his own animal habitat with a few of his friends and them all sharing their projects together. Or maybe it will be our character study of Tim Tebow and the qualities he has that has helped him to overcome. My goodness, what in the world will he say?!

Well, the answer he chose left me speechless. He said, "Well, we don't really do school that much." WHAT?! Now I have heard about these 'home school moments' and even chuckled at a few of the stories, but this is certainly not even close to being funny....(yet)! I can't even explain the wave of emotions that ran through my mind and the embarrassment and the shock I felt when I heard his words. I fought the tears and tried to hold my composure until I could make it home and run into the bathroom and cry my eyes out!

On the way home, I so wanted to let it rip with my little guy, but thankfully God quickly stopped me. I am the grown up and he was just being himself; an 8, almost 9, year old boy who answered a question without any hidden agenda or motives. I am so grateful that God stopped me before I unloaded all of my own insecurities onto Jacob and burdened him with my own heavy load, which he is NEVER intended to carry. So, I drove as sane as my emotions allowed and I prayed. Now, I didn't pray a prayer of faith or surrender. Actually it went something like this....

God how could You? How in the world could you let him say that? You know my heart. You know where I have come from on this home school journey. God, You have literally changed me in huge ways for the better and then this? How could You, Lord? You know what we do in a day. I have felt such peace and excitement about finally surrendering to You and what You have asked of me and our family. I have loved what my kids are learning and how they are learning and all that goes on around our kitchen table at any given moment. God I finally found comfort, confidence and freedom in this area and now this?!

Not pretty, but sometimes the truth is just ugly and only God can make it beautiful.

Honestly, this is not the first time that Jacob has told people that we don't "do school". I can remember him saying that during kindergarten, but that was a little more understandable(although no less embarrassing at the time!). At that age, we really didn't do school everyday and SO much of what he learned was through play and hands-on activities. I think the only worksheets he did in kindergarten were letter sheets and even those were cut and paste! But now? What was he talking about?!

But to be honest, several things made this situation so dramatic for me. Mainly, God has truly brought me SO far and has used this call to home school to deal with many deep seeded insecurities in my life. And I have grown leaps and bounds and our "school" is always becoming more and more the way I envisioned in my heart. It's a whole other story to share all that I have gained, the lessons I have learned, and the issues I have had to face head-on and overcome to walk out this journey called home school. Which is why I have turned to the life of Moses from the very beginning because I "get" him. I know what it feels like to feel in your heart God asking something of you that seems to magnify every insecurity and weakness that you have. I know the struggle of trying to come up with a 'better idea' than the one that God just gave you because you just don't seem to fit the bill. I am fully aware of how it feels to jump the gun and take matters into my own hands rather than waiting on God and then feeling completely foolish. I am all too familiar with the questions that you ask of God when you feel so inadequate: What will I say? How will I explain this? What will they say? How are You going to make this all come together? I have this issue and that hang-up... and the list of fears go on. And I also know what it feels like to follow the plan only for it to look and feel like God left you hanging.

In Exodus, God told Moses to tell Pharaoh to let his people go. So long story very short, Moses did. Not just once or twice, but several times he does exactly what God said to do and I am sure Pharaoh's answer was as shocking to Moses as Jacob's answer about school was to me, "Did you just say you would not let them go?". I am sure Moses was just as confused as me when Pharaoh didn't seem to be on the same page as him and God. I know it is not nearly as significant as freeing an entire population, but that is how I felt today when Jacob didn't say the 'right' answer. I caught a glimpse of how Moses felt and what maybe ran through his mind and what he possibly said to God in his heart, "OK, I didn't see that coming. Did I misunderstand You? What more can I do? I have faced alot of opposition to be here and do exactly what You say and he says THAT?"

Well, as the smoke began to clear and my emotions slowly became more controllable, I began to hear the voice of Truth. God used my amazing hubby Jack and the most precious, priceless friend to help me see yet another truth that would set me free. Both of them responded the same way to my desperate, pitiful cry, "It sounds like Jacob just gave you the best compliment ever!" Once again, I feel like I am living in a different world than the people around me. I am as confused with their words as the ones spoken earlier! How can, "we don't do school much" possibly be a compliment to a home school mom?! Then the lesson began to unfold.

As Jacob and I sat and talked before bedtime, I casually brought up some things we would be doing in school for the week because I wanted to peek into this brain of his. What did he think school was anyway? I asked what he looked forward to the most about school and what was the most interesting thing he has learned in the last couple of weeks and people, if you could have heard what he said!! I thought to myself, why in the world could you not have said something about the weather or China or Hudson Taylor just hours earlier?! Then I knew the truth in my heart....it would require more than the weather, China, or Hudson Taylor to grow my roots in Him deeper. It's always the struggle and the hard stuff that makes the beautiful possible. It's the force it takes roots to push deep enough to find water that enables them to anchor the tree. It is the struggle of the butterfly coming out of it's cocoon that gives it the strength to fly. It is the mommy bird pushing the bird out of the nest that gives it the courage and the realization of what it can really do...fly!!

And that's what happened to me today. It wasn't about school. It was about me being confronted once again with a choice...will I shrink back and listen to my fears and insecurities or will I believe God and His promises to me? Will I trust the plan of God or the heart of God because so often the plan doesn't look much like the promise. But I know that today my roots went a little deeper and I gained a little more courage to obey my God.

It's 3:25 am and Jacob just walked through the living room and said, "Good morning!". I told him it was way too early to be awake and he looked at the clock and said, "Oh" in a silly way and just turned around and went back to bed; so funny!! Yes, I am so blessed to home school my kids and I love them more than I can say!!


God, I can't thank You enough for your love and mercy in my life. I am always amazed at your goodness, although I don't often see it until the smoke clears!! But when it does clear, You are always there! And I thank You that every time I call out to You, I am right where I need to be. Give us the courage today to live out the dreams You have for us Lord. Help us today to know that Your plans for us are always for good. And help me to remember that it is You who works in me and that with You, I will bear much fruit; fruit that will last!!