Winnepeg Humane Society

I was out getting a little reflexology today. Afterward we had a fun chat. She asked if I was on facebook because she had linked a fun video. No facebook for me. But I did look up the cute commercial on Youtube. I hope you animal lovers enjoy this:

All Because of a Rat & a Fat TV

Check out my new super cool homesteader's pantry corner in the kitchen!



Now I can show off all my super cool stuff that I canned and dehydrated and otherwise preserved. I've got apple sauce up there, preserved meyer lemons, jams, dried tomatoes and, well, some stuff from the bulk bins at the co-op. Shhhh. Here, in case you didn't get a good look, here is a close up:



Yes, I'm totally showing off. So, how did I get this new addition to the kitchen? Counter space and cupboards without a remodel? Well, it was the antique store down on Main Street. But why now? Well, it all started with Michael and his giant TV.

Michael has wanted a gigantic TV for years. Each year he politely drops hints like, "Hey, big screen TV's on sale!" or "I can't watch the super bowl on our TV. I can't see anything on it. It's too small." I would roll my eyes and remind him how little TV we do watch. We got rid of cable years ago. The kids only get to watch 30 mins each on Saturday morning plus the occasional movie on the dinky TV. But we could always close the dinky TV off. Out of sight, out of mind.

This year Michael came up to me and said, "Hey. I just found an incredible price on a 50" TV delivered!" I was in the shower at the time and I said, "Okay. Get it." There was a dramatic pause followed by, "What did you say?" I responded, "Go ahead and get it." Then, because I'm sure he couldn't believe his ears, he pulled the shower door open and with the largest eyes I've seen in some time quizzed, "You said YES?" Well, the next thing I knew: point, click, deliver. I caved because although we don't watch a ton of TV, I was finding it difficult to read the subtitles on the movies I like. Totally selfish. Plus, the poor man had been graciously living without cable for years.

In the mean time, we discovered we have a rat situation in the garage. A really, really bad rat situation. (Can you think of a good rat situation?) First, the rat ate through a part on our washing machine. Fortunately, it was under warranty and we were able to get the part replaced. But, our garage is also my pantry because I have such a dinky kitchen. This is truly a 1959 kitchen. They had no appliances in those days. And at first I thought perhaps they wouldn't have had more than the two drawers (not full size, mind you) I was left with. But then I realized, someone probably carved out the drawers in order to put in that dishwasher. Anyhow, most of the food is in the garage. Well, now most of the food is in the garbage or compost. That place is full-O-rat-poop!!! Ewe!

We thought to take the armoire (formally for the dinky TV) and put it in the kitchen and turn that into a new pantry. But then we realized how practical and unsightly that would be. Interior decorators we are not. I said something to Michael about a super cool vintage sideboard I'd been oogling in the antique window for months. So, we jumped right downtown just in time to see a young couple wheeling my dream piece of furniture out the door. Darn! But, instead, I came across this cupboard and set of shelves. Lucky me!!

So, while the family snarfs up chips and homemade guac in front of the 50" super Y chromosome enhancer watching the Packers cream the Steelers, I'm in here showing off my new pantry.

I think the armoire will go back on Craig's list ... or out to the garage to be a giant storage space out there. Not sure.

Hey, look kids! It's the Black Eyed Peas large as life!



Must be half time. Better replenish those snacks.

Minuet No. 2

Groundhog Day 2011

Well, it's Groundhog Day. And that little guy apparently did not see his shadow. So, it will be an early Spring. At least for the people in Punxatawney, PA. I suppose they deserve an early Spring what with all their crazy winter storms.

We, on the other hand, could still use some more precipitation. We took the kids up to Mineral for a day of sledding with some friends of ours. This was last month when we had some wet winter weather. What a blast everyone had. There was tearing down the hill in sleds and saucers and snurfers. My kids would really enjoy a few more weeks of winter if there were some snow involved.








And then the kids took a break and made snow cones out of, well, SNOW and some juice we'd brought along. My kids, squirrels that they are, also took their lunch break in the trees surround the sled hill.





Michael and I survived our cleanse. I have decided that easing into it and easing out of it is the way to go. So, I start of January with absolutely no sugar and gradually increase my consumption until December when I'm out of my mind again and ready to detox. And thus the years will go.

Rex has to be our most open minded child when it comes to food. He loves to cook and will try just about anything at least once. He not only learned how to cook our gluten and casein free almond flour pancakes, but took to eating them with a fried egg on top. And he photographed them too. I think that guy gets to be the resident food photographer.

Here is a recipe for the Almond Flour Pancakes:

4 pastured eggs
1 can organic coconut milk (full fat, baby!)
1 T vanilla
1 1/2 cups almond flour
1/2 t sea salt
1 t non alum baking powder
1 T cinnamon
1/4 t nutmeg

Whip up the liquid ingredients. Sift together dry ingredients. Add dry to wet ingredients. Let chill and set for about 15 mins. Drop spoons full of batter onto preheated griddle. Wait until little bubbles appear and then flip.

Enjoy!






Michael was away traveling during our 13th anniversary this year. But he sent me a picture of us in Las Vegas last year. He also sent a tremendously beautiful bouquet from California Organic Flowers - grown here in Chico and delivered by a parent from Rex's class. They're neat people! And California Organic Flowers delivers all over the place. I highly recommend them. And, thanks, Sweetie! Happy Anniversary to you too!



Next week we celebrate Michael's birthday. And we follow that up with something for Amira the week after that. She had a choice between a sleep over with three friends or a day time party with lots of friends. She opted for the daytime party. Today she said, "How big will the bounce house be?" Excuse me, no bounce house. That is a once a year thing for Halloween. I will bake you a cake and you guys can run around and play games. That's called a birthday party. No bounce houses, pinatas, ponies or goody bags. These kids' parties today are out of hand, I tell you.

Although, with regard to adult parties ... well, maybe a bounce house is in order but I think people would just spill their drinks.

In other news, Rex is loving school at Blue Oak. He absolutely has taken to enjoying the violin. He practices it without us ever asking him to do so. He is really taken with his teacher and seems to be getting along well with all of his classmates. They are studying Ancient Egypt at the moment. That's really cool. There is a huge mural outside his classroom that all the kids worked hard to make. I also saw their names written in what looks like Heiroglyphs on their desks this morning. I had to go in and borrow a chair to stand on so I could pin the mural back up as it was suffering from a little too much student attention.

Both Amira and Valerie are smitten with their teachers. Amira is excited to be able to write more and read more. And her favorite thing is really playing the cello. She is honored to have been invited to play in the orchestra this semester. Valerie continues with the cello, violin, recorder and piano. Plus, Valerie is a voracious reader. She's been through all the Rick Riordan books, the entire Mysterious Benedict Society series, Sisters Grimm series and has picked up Nancy Drew. Generally speaking, the kids seem really happy. And as a result, we are really happy!

Happy Groundhog Day!

What do I do, again?

Yes, with all three kids in the same school all day, what is it I do with my time? Well, first of all, I actually have a job. Sure, it's part-time and I can work from home. But that takes up some time. And I'm really making an effort to go to yoga at least three times a week. Of course there's the tons of meal planning, home cooking, kitchen experiments and research (informal) on food. Oh, there's some laundry too. Actually, quite a bit of laundry. I really don't know. But the days seem to go by really quickly!

Now, back to this candida cleanse. It's starting out better than the one last April which ended in complete disaster (a box of chocolates delivered at a time of weakness). One of the tips to successful cleansing is the meal planning. There's none of this running for cheese and crackers or quick sandwich biz. In fact, even Los Gordos (our favorite taqueria is out of the question at the moment). So, I have to plan all my meals and snacks.

For any of you embarking on a candida diet I will list some meal and snack ideas that are working for me in case you find it helpful. Quite frankly I cannot live off meat and vegetables only. I have approval to have 1/2 cup non glutenous grains 5 days a week. Also, coconut milk and coconut oil are my saving graces on this diet. They're nice and fatty and happen to have anti-fungal properties. So, it's actually a good thing. Also, it has a slight sweetness to it. I use it A LOT.

Breakfast Ideas:

1/2 cup amaranth with crispy walnuts, cinnamon and a huge dollop of ghee
1/2 cup brown rice with coconut milk, cinnamon and 2 drops of stevia
2 eggs (organic and pastured) over easy
3 silver dollar size almond flour pancakes with cinnamon and ghee

Right now those three breakfasts are in my rotation. I have those with a cup of green tea containing coconut oil, stevia and lemon. I also start my day with some glutamine powder and Vitamineral Green in 4 oz coconut water. I also take all my vitamins (pro-biotics, cod liver oil, B-stress, etc.)

Snack Ideas:
1/2 cup plain full fat goat yogurt with a couple drops of stevia and home made vanilla extract and crispy walnuts

celery stuffed with almond butter

hard boiled eggs

pumpkin seeds

green tea with coconut milk & stevia (kind of like a latte)

cup of homemade chicken/beef broth

Lunch/Dinner Ideas
1 cup brown rice pasta with pesto and cooked chicken or turkey
Roast Chicken with roasted veggies (turnip, rutabaga, onion, fennel)
Rack of goat/lamb with side of romanesco/broccoli with ghee and sea salt
Curried Lentil Soup with coconut milk
Eggplant stuffed with ground beef (organic/pastured) and veggies
Oxtail soup
Broiled salmon served with sauteed kale/collards, green salad and roasted veggies

It's a lot of veggies! But the fat really saves me on this. For the first week I looked longingly at the fruit I couldn't have. Now I'm okay. But every now and then I look at the candy aisle in a store (which normally doesn't tempt me) and I think, "Oh! A box of Good n' Plenty!" But I keep walking.

Surprisingly cutting out the coffee and baked goods has really taken the edge off my moodiness. Well, actually, that's probably not so surprising. It's just that I like cooking/baking so much!

Well, in phase two of these scene, maybe I can return to low carb baking. There are some wonderful recipes out there for almond flour biscuits and muffins and stuff. It's the sugar I'll have to watch. Maybe I can use honey or maple syrup? I'm not sold on agave nectar (although I did use a lot of it at one time during my "raw foods" phase). Maybe my pallet will have adjusted enough that I won't need as much sweet?

Okay, speaking of all that, I'm off to the dentist. We'll see if a couple of weeks of sugar-freeness has had any effect.

New Year Honey Moon Phase

Wow! 2011 is off to a pretty good start. I don't really want to jinx it. But can I start off by saying how thrilled I am to drop off all three kids at the same school at the same time everyday? It's like a dream! Not only that, but Rex is actually happy when I pick him up and drop him off.

On Monday, our first day back from break, Rex was a little nervous. What if the teacher was strict? What if he didn't like it there after all? What was it going to be like? Well, I have to admit to helicoptering around a few moments to make sure he got into class okay (as if he somehow wouldn't?) Then I mentioned to his teacher that he was a little nervous. She looked at me like I was the parent of a kindergartner and said, "He'll be fine. But if you want to come in, you may." I suddenly realized I was the nervous person here, and she knew it. Of course he was going to be fine. So, I sauntered off down the hall. As soon as the door to the classroom was closed, I sauntered casually by the door again to peer in the window to see where he was sitting and try and figure he mood based on his facial expression. I couldn't figure a thing except that I was a meddling mother of an independent fifth grader and I was only likely to embarrass him or myself. Needless to say, at the end of the day he was all smiles and so was the teacher.

On Tuesday when I came to pick up the kids Rex informed me that he was placed in sixth grade math. His teacher told me that she had about four students in sixth grade math. Rex followed with, "Yeah. It's easy."

On Wednesday when I came to pick him up Rex informed me that he was now in seventh grade math. You should have seen the grin on that kid's face. He just dropped his math text book on the table near me. I asked if he had finished his math homework. He said, "Yeah. It was fun!" I looked over at the book and saw that it said "pre-Algebra" on the front.

I hope the honeymoon lasts.

In other news, I started another candida cleanse. I officially started on January 3rd, but unofficially started on December 25th (the day after the two martini Christmas Eve). I have to say I was just getting myself used to the idea of being deprived of sugar. I slipped only twice that week, which was forgivable. One night I had a sinus headache and reached for the homemade Sambouca given to me by my friend Holly. I had maybe a table spoon of the stuff and realized I was pretty buzzed. I thought it couldn't have happened from such a small amount. Then my friend Jamie asked me today if I'd tried Holly's elixer. Apparently she experienced something similar. No more elixer on this cleanse. It's the netty pot for me.

What I've found to be the secret to getting through this cleanse is the fat. I find fat to be very satiating. So, quite frankly, it's been coconut milk, coconut oil and ghee on everything for me. I'm allowed to have 1/2 cup non-glutenous grain 5 days a week (per my doctor). So, I have to choose if I'm going to have amaranth smothered in ghee and cinnamon with nuts or if I'm going to have a couple of eggs over easy in a big old pile of ghee. I've also cut out the coffee and substituted it with green tea. I have to say that I miss the ritual of coffee. But, quite frankly, I feel a ton better not having coffee. I'm not so snappish and anxious and speedy. Of course the down side is that I'm a little sleepy too. Or maybe it's just called being relaxed and I have to get used to that? Well, haven't been on the cleanse very long. We'll see how long THIS honeymoon lasts!

Happy New Year!

2011 is definitely starting off on the right note. No, I don't mean the children who woke up whining about the french toast I was making for breakfast. I guess they are a little "hung over" from staying up past midnight (for a change). What made this New Year great was that the first call I got in the year was from my friend Christina in Greece. I even mentioned my friends from Greece in the last blog post (albeit briefly). They must have sensed my thoughts of them. So, there is nothing like having an hour long conversation to catch up on everything in both countries and families. They are definitely my kindred spirits on the other side of the world!!

Last night we actually attended a New Year's Eve party -- for the first time in years. Usually I'm in bed by 9pm on New Year's Eve. I figure it's midnight in New York, yippie, good-night. I guess it was a couple of years ago when the kids realized that all their friends were staying up until midnight to celebrate and they had no idea it was even a holiday. I guess that comes partly from my history with New Years. It's usually a holiday for couples. And I traditionally went through some sort of monster break up at the holidays and was left solo for the New Year. So, New Year's Eve and Valentine's day, I felt, were two contrived holidays out to mock me as a lonesome single person.

My life went a little something like this: Oh! Look at the calendar. It's December already. I guess it's time for one of us to end this thing. And then it would end. I would spend Christmas crying into my stocking and then just get all jaded in preparation for New Years. It seemed perfectly reasonable at the time.

And although I haven't been alone for several years now, I'm still not generally inclined to celebrate them. I think Valentine's Day is a cruel joke. And New Year's still seems like a last ditch effort squeeze another party out of the winter holidays. And frankly, by New Year's I'm done.

But I digress. So, last night we went to a really nice New Year's Eve party with the kids. It was nice and mellow with good people and good food. The teenagers and kids were all really well behaved, as well as the adults in attendance. We weren't even sure what to expect since we hadn't been to a New Year's party for years.

We brought a nice gluten free cherry/blueberry crisp as well as some good champagne ... and then we realized this was our chance to ditch the giant bottle off Cook's that's been in our garage for the last four years. Let me say that again: Cook's. GARAGE. FOUR. YEARS. Ewe! Let's call it our "white elephant gift". And it didn't seem fair to pass it off without a warning. So, Michael created a special label for it:



I love having a graphics guy for a husband. He can make anything!

So, now my plans for the actual living in 2011? Well, I'm starting off with another candida cleanse. Yes, it's three weeks of some harsh dietary restrictions (which I sort of started last week to get used to the idea ... no sugar. no grains. no fruit. no vinegar. no mushrooms. no coffee. no dairy. Ouch). Last night I sipped at my water. I will confess to tasting the crisp I brought. MMMMmmm! (if I do say so myself). But now, the real deprivation.

I did do a cleanse last spring. But someone kindly sent me a box of See's candy right near the end of the cleanse. Just as I came off it, I thought one piece of candy wouldn't be bad. Then I promptly at the entire box. Doh! Totally un-did the cleanse. So, this year I will try it again and put chocolate far from my mind for the next several weeks. And wine. And baked goods. And dairy. And coffee. Go ahead, feel sorry for me. Okay, don't. It's self inflicted and temporary. I guess I can try for a little self control this time.

And with the kids all going back to school Monday (yay!!!) will have the whole house to myself ... imagine all that time to clean and fold laundry without interruption?

Happy New Year, everyone!