Another week

I am still waiting....  waiting for the spirit of joy, birds singing in the back round and an easy, stressless day.  Ha!  Ha!  I think I would have found myself living on another planet.  Seriously though, it is slow going.  I feel slightly less edgy but that is it.  I also added Gaba another amino acid which helps with relaxation and eases nervous tension.  Hee, hee, hee that is totally not me!  I want it to be.  So I guess I will be waiting some more.  I am finding reasons why my body kept getting sick,  one of them is endorphin deficiency.  So I am looking in on an amino acid called DPA which helps with being too sensitive and sadness.  Some of it is from my genetics, I cried all the time.  Almost everyone picture of me I am bawling my eyeballs out.  I am an emotionally sensitive creation!  The way I have lived my life I have created too much prolonged stress which depleted my endorphins.   I love my children, but having a child every 2 years for 10 years with an eating disorder was a drainer on my body.  Also, not allowing my body to rest and relax, exercising to train for this or that has taken their toll.  God has created my body wonderfully but as a flawed human being I have not honored it the way I should have.  Quite humbling really.  Who knew GAPS would take me on such a journey about myself? 

I have been fighting a cold for the last 2 weeks and I thought I would get it for sure this week. To my amazement I am still feeling fine.  This may seem uneventful to many people, but for me this is amazing. 

On another note, if there was an amino acid which helps with pain I would take it in a heartbeat. Who knows there are 21 or 22 of them!   I went to the dentist on Monday and found the tooth they were watching was a pretty bad cavity.  They weren't sure if I would need a root canal.  I have only had 1 other cavity in my entire life, which turned into a root canal. Let me tell you it was horrible.  I wasn't worried, why be? I had to get it fixed anyway.  Well they ended up putting a pulp cap on.  What on earth is a pulp cap? To me it was just as bad as a root canal, well except for the yanking the roots out part.  I had tears streaming down my eyes and I was shaking all over.  Thank goodness they were oblivious to me.  I came out at a quarter to 10 in the morning and I was in pain until bedtime.  I even alternated between tylenol and ibuprofen. I am a pansy!  How could I have had 5 children?  Oh yeah, 4 of them I had drugs to cope!  Ha! Ha! Ha!

Kale chips

 they make a wonderful snack- I am going to try growing it in my garden this year.

I needed more ideas for lunch, crackers.  

 ground sunflower and pumpkin seeds, an egg, butter and salt

put in the oven and bake for 20 min.

 MAYO- for tuna and egg salad

 ranch dressing

  Our table runner, the kids and I made this a few years ago.

 For lunch this week we had crackers, tuna and cheese Some of us skipped the tuna-gross

remember I tried fish and still dislike it!

 but the kiddos really loved the crackers with peanut butter and bananas!  Even COZI!

 Today's science experiment on taste:  we checked to see if the we could taste sour, salty, sweet and bitter on the places the scientists use to believe where we taste these 4 ways.  Hannelora and Analise tasted salty where sweet was believed to be.  It doesn't matter, it was fun to do.

lemon juice, cocoa powder(bitter), salt and honey

 Can you guess what they are tasting?

 so excited, I think she is tasty salt here....

 lemon juice of course!

 

The Mood Cure

I am reading The Mood Cure by Julia Ross.  Since I began intro, I stopped taking my antidepressants.  I wanted to get more healing.  I am way more agitated, irritable, short tempered and edgy.   Just ask my kids!  I seriously think I was going to start twitching.  So I needed to either go back on my antidepressants or  do something else.  Teresa and Stacey introduced me to this book.  It is about supplementing amino acids for depression, anxiety, concentration, poor sleep, lethargy etc.  Even though GAPS is high protein, (amino acids are stored in the gut) with gut problems many GAPS people are low anyway.   There are 4 questionnaires.  I am very high on two of them.  I have decided to try one type of amino acid at a time however.  I am taking 5-htp.  I am not sure if I feel much better except I do sleep better.  Even better than I do with my herbal sleeping pill.   Nathan and I began taking them Tuesday the 19th.  3 nights, 2 days.  The waiting game...

I am sure I didn't do intro the way I should have because I finished in about 8 days.  I am a testimony that GAPS does heal.  I rarely have stomach pain, maybe a little gurgling every now and then.  I am still considering doing the kids in April.  Maybe not in the beginning of the month, I need to start making more broths and soups.  Probably in the same amount of time as well.

Tuesday, I ate 3 eggs cooked in ghee, broth and fruit.

Chicken stir fry with chicken broth.   Very tastey

 May 20th

This week has been crazy busy.  Hannelora and Analise turn 12 & 7.  They get to choose what meals they want.  Hannelora wanted sausage, winter squash bars and fruit.  For lunch: Oriental chicken salad.  Dinner: spaghetti with spaghetti squash.

 Unfortunately, we had to hurry and eat (all week- not easy when trying to prepare everything from scratch under a time crunch) because Hannelora and daddy have hunters safety all week. 6:30-9:30 p.m.

making a wish

 carrot cake with no frosting

I was going to make a cream cheese frosting by dripping my yogurt and then adding honey.  It turned out watery and I didn't have time to start over.  However none of us missed out because the cake was awesome.

 Grandma Carol bought Hannelora and Analise 3 Easter egg chickens (they lay colored eggs)

 yesterday morning I found them sitting and holding the baby chicks

 The only time Cozi likes chickens- when they are babies!

 Of course, Analise likes anything to do with babies.

Her and Hannelora are still debating on names at this time.  Hannelora is thinking of peanut as one.

May 21st

 Breakfast: same as Hannelora    lunch:  blt salads  dinner: pizza

 German chocolate cake!  So good!

Zeb is lighting the candle for sis.

 blowing out her candle

 The girls hemmed and hawed about what they wanted to do for their birthdays.  They never did decide what they wanted to do.  My friend Jen came over and I saw her beautiful nails and she told me they were from jamberry nails.  Her mom is a consultant so I decided this would be a perfect thing.  We shall see what they pick out.  So cute!

Finally healing

I am soooo happy to report No stomach pain today!  This morning I decided try food without the DGL and the HCL.  I drank my cup of broth and scrambled 3 eggs.   I was so hungry, it tasted so good.  No pain.  For lunch I had another cup of broth/ a hamburger with guacamole on top/ vegetables roasted with olive oil.   Nothing, nada, zippo!  I am so relieved. I figured I wouldn't be able to move on until my pain subsided and it did.   






Guacamole Burgers and roasted veggies.  MMMMM!!!!!

The king and the poison

The king and the poison, this is what may have happened with me.  Let me explain:  The kings overseers fed the king small amounts of poison, barely enough so he wouldn't die. This way he would build a resistance to the poison. (just in case someone wanted to kill the king this way)  I was eating well and then I fed my body some poison (highly processed), it couldn't handle the toxins so my body had a reaction.  A bad reaction.  Makes sense to me.  It is the story I am sticking to.  I am not going to dig any further, because what is important is healing.

I thought I would add:  Analise told me the other day, "Mom, I can actually tell when I am full."  You see, she never could tell when she was full and she would eat and eat and eat until we had to stop her.  My parents and my mother-in-law have often said this as well.

On the other hand, Hannelora slept over with some of her girlfriends and they ate pizza for dinner.  (which we allow ever once in awhile)  She told me, "mom I had 5 pieces and I never felt full."  Hmmm....  Really food, not doctored up is so nourishing, but any other kind is not.  I am happy we have decided to eat more traditional.  (Of course my bugs still talk to me, I love candy especially easter candy.  I have to practically run past the candy aisle. hee, hee!) 

Stage 2 and 3:  I am checking off the list I have of the foods I am eating and tolerating.  I think I may have found my stomach solution.  I take DGL-chewable licorice which helps coat and soothe my stomach 20 min. before I eat and take 2 HCL pills (helps create stomach acid)  with my food.

I added 2 egg yolks- so excited

 ghee:  clarified butter, don't really like the texture, but I can handle it.  Remember, I get to eat egg yolks!  One good thing about intro, I am so giddy when I get to move up, it means more foods!  I long for crunch!

 chicken broth-this also helps create stomach acid, I eat it with every meal

 2 egg yolks don't look like much, but I need to take it slow.

 dinner:

I was suppose to make cooked peppers, but I ran out of time.  I was happy I added beef broth and brussel sprouts.  Also, tomatoes were new.  The rest of the family sprinkled cheese over theirs.  I am so excited to not be eating chicken right now.

  2 eggs with egg whites today!  They are from our chickens, look how nice and orange they are!  I love it!

Cozi is making the family eggs with butter and I have my small pan with ghee.  For lunch we I had leftovers and dinner I am going to try hamburgers with guacamole on top!  I am almost drooling!  Oh of course my broth...

Feeling better

Today is stage 2:

Breakfast:  2 egg yolk cooked in ghee. (Clarified butter), broth and yogurt (homemade)

An hour later, I had a stomach ache.  Of course, I introduced 3 new foods.  I am assuming it may be the yogurt.

Lunch:  boiled chicken, veggies, broth and yogurt.   I took HCL pill, it is natural.  No troubles.  So either the yogurt is fine or the HCL helped my stomach create acid to help break the food down.  

Dinner:  chicken and veggies. With the HCL.  Feeling great !  Tomorrow, I will try the eggs and ghee  with the HCL.  I am so bored with my food but I have a hard time creating a new meal when it is just myself.

My die off symptoms are very light.  My cheeks feel really warm today, I am a bit irritable too.  Another good thing is everyone but Cozi is asking for broth and sour crout.  I went to the store and Bjorn had to use the bathroom twice in 5 minutes.  I know this is die off for him.  I am happy the kids are actually asking for food they normally wouldn't have.

Yesterday, I went to the nutritionist.  Amazingly, I average 2000 calories a day.  I just need to add 500 calories a day to gain weight.  I will begin working on this as soon as I am done with intro.  I feel good that I can actually trust myself.  I am eating really healthy and I am not eating like a bird.

Feeling poor part 2

I have so much sympathy for people with chronic diseases, I have been having stomach pain for 8 days straight.  The pain is right below my belly button.  An hour after each meal, I would have pain for at least 2 hours.  That is 6 hours at least a day.  I was emotionally and physically drained. Day 7 I broke down and cried.   My sister may have figured out what happened.  She thinks that since I irritated my intestines by eating something I was "allergic" to, caused a down hill spiral of pain.  She possibly thinks the diarrhea may have caused less bile to be made and since GAPS is high in fats, bile helps break down the fat. My body couldn't digest what I was eating causing intestine inflamation, bloating, pain etc.  She suggested I get DGL- licorice which coats the lining of the  intestine to help soothe the pain.  Also to eat white rice, turkey and broth.  Basically only soothing bland foods.  Staci S. recomended I do intro even if I shorten it drastically between the 6 stages.  Yesterday I decided I was going to jump in and do it.  Analise and Hannelora said they would do it with me, but only after their birthdays and Easter.  Very sweet, but I need to do it now because I can't eat the usual food I would prepare. 

I went to the naturalpath this Monday.  She wanted a blood test to rule out appendicitis.  My white blood cells were normal high, but the test also showed some kind of allergy.  I am assuming I am eating something that is not sitting right.  She told me also to double my probiotics as well.

Stage 1- day 1:

I took an Epsom salt bath (1/2 c.) Amazing!   Anybody who knows me, knows I don't do baths.  I have a thing with hair, ugh!  Even if it is my own.  So I grinned and bared it for 20 min.  I taught Cozi Suzan B (her reading program) hee, hee!  I do have to say, I felt so relaxed I could have taken a nap.  (Sigh)

Breakfast: I had a bowl of chicken soup
Lunch: bowl of chicken soup, boiled chicken and broccoli
Dinner:  the same:  I know boring!

Here are some pictures from last week:

 kind of cool and disgusting:  One of the frog's crickets shed its skin and became twice as large.

 Sebastian talking to Grant (he moved away 2 years ago)

 I tried venison steak twice now.  I thought I would make a tamari marinade, no can do!  Only Zeb, Bjorn and Hannelora gulped them down.   Regular beef steaks from now on for me.

 

 We dog sat Eddy for 2 nights.  The kids loved him.  Hannelora was in seventh heaven.  He followed her around like she was queen.  So cute.  No I have no desire to have a dog, chickens are perfect for me.

 Sleepover with Eddy.  He was very much pampered.

Breakfast on Sat.  (I had a stomach ache afterward)

Bacon, eggs and blueberries