Friends and family visits

We were so very, very lucky to see some friends and family this summer passing through town. I love it when this happens!

My Aunt Sharon stopped by, and I had such a nice visit. We actually had ‘Dukes of Hazzard’ on at the time, and talked about when she worked on the show with Mom. I totally biffed it on not taking a picture, but I absolutely love it when Sharon sees me:)

My old buddy Andy and sweet Stacy made an epic road trip with their little men to visit their family out here. We had a mass friend gathering in their honor. So much food, and people everywhere socializing. At one moment, I wondered if this is what big family gatherings were like. It was so great to see them!

 

Last week, my cousins and their families were heading south and stopped to see me. It made my day! I’ve been following them on their blogs. They are amazing, beautiful, and so talented. To see them in person was so much better than just on the blogs. The boys had fun playing with other kids, and I wanted to talk and talk with all the adults and learn more about them. Only had so much time before they left.

My dear cousin Lana!

Kids brought the kitchen out, always a hit. I laughed when Kris mentioned Kevin climbing right up there. I think I’m so used to my boys climbing and being so physical everywhere, ha ha!

Penny is SO cute!

Oh man, this picture is so great but hard to get all the kids to coordinate, but this is a real kid moment:) My goodness, my boys are SO tan! Desert heat summer, that’s for sure.

Last time we did this shot, it was at Kevin’s baby blessing! There’s Kevin down there in the pic, doing a good job wearing his big boy underwear. Melany, me and Lana. Love them:)

My little girl and me. Too bad I blinked, but still love this pic!

Now, the fall begins. So thankful for this summer. All the church pool parties. The swimming lessons. The food, library, and friends. A new chapter starts now, with new adventures of well, working, getting caught up with bills, and the fall season, the best!! Love Fall:)

Memories from the mission

I have a friend who will be leaving soon to serve an 18 month mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. This post may or may not be written for her, and any other sister going on a mission soon:)

The thoughts I’m about to share with you all reflect my personal testimony of this church, this wonderful, beautiful gospel. I completely and honestly know that this church is the only true church, with all the missing doctrine pieces, on this earth today. This church is a ‘living’ church, with a true, living prophet, a modern day Moses or Noah. I was brought up in the church, but have always felt the Holy Ghost confirm to me of it’s truthfulness as I lived its teachings, kept the commandments, and read from my scriptures. When I served in the Jacksonville Florida mission in 2002-2004, my testimony of the gospel exploded as I was in new surroundings, far from home, and needed to rely heavily on the Saviour for answers, peace, and direction.

Now, for my friend, and some good memories for my dear mission friends:)

You are about to embark on one of the greatest experiences of your life. 18 months will fly by, fast. You have no idea what you are getting into. No idea. The images that you see on church videos, posters, and such about missions don’t hold a candle to the truthfulness of missions. It will be hard and it will be wonderful. First, get ready for the Missionary Training Center, MTC.

The MTC alone is an amazing experience all of its own. You enter an ocean of missionaries from all over, tons of suits and dresses with name tags. You get to sleep in ‘dorms’ with tons of other sister missionaries, and have a blast at night. You’ll make a ton of friends, and have good scripture/devotional time. In the morning, the power may go out from the maximum use of hair dryers simultaneously. It’s really funny.

Class time with your district, small group of missionaries, will be precious, golden, spiritual education. You’re teachers will be so kind and impart to you their humble testimonies and excellent wisdom you’ll need for the field, wherever you are called to serve. You’ll love how in class, it’s always started with prayer, and everyone kneels to pray. Every time. There is great power in a kneeling, vocal prayer. I think just the action of kneeling truly makes prayer more meaningful.

Be prepared to witness sacred and amazing moments. I have to tell this story from my MTC time.

In my little group, there was one elder (19 year old young man missionary. The name ‘elder’ means teacher.) that you could tell was the slightly rebellious, class clown type. He was funny and kind, but didn’t take anything too seriously. Well, about a week into our classes, something special happened. During one of the lessons, he was asked a question by our sweet teacher. He started to cry. After a moment, the teacher asked “What are these tears? Are they tears of sadness or joy?” to which he said “I don’t know” Then, he said “I just know that I have to get home, and tell my friends about the church. I have to tell them as fast as I can. I want them to know its true.” ( Ah! Goosebumps writing this and remembering it now)

After he said those words, his buddies sitting next to him hugged him, and warm peace was felt so strongly in that room. The words I remember thinking at that time were “Oh, if the parents could only see this.” I thought about his parents far away, and how they probably knew that their son didn’t have a strong testimony yet, and were praying for him to grow and learn on his mission. You see, the parents don’t get to see the middle of the mission, the growing part. They only see the before and after, the young 19 year old boy that they say good bye to for 2 years, and the returning 21 year old young man who has matured and grown leaps and bound from his mission. You are the lucky one who will serve around these young elders, be in plenty of meetings and teaching areas with them, and see the growth. It’s awesome, a real treat.

Everything you’ve learned about the gospel from your family and church attendance will be dumped on with tons more learning from your MTC time. The first week, we couldn’t stop staying “ I can’t believe how much I’ve learned in 3 days.” Journal it. Take notes in the side panels of your scripture pages. Hang on to everything, because you’ll need it in the field. Kind of. The field is a completely different experience from the mtc, ha ha!

It’s an humbling experience when an apostle of the Lord comes to speak to the missionaries at the MTC. Being in the same room, hearing his voice give counsel, oh, it’s one of those best days ever. When you shake their hand, you just feel their goodness and spiritual magnitude flow from their hand into yours.

Then, it’s time to get on a plane and go to your where ever you are serving. A tad exciting? Oh yeah! Nervous? Incredibly. Get used to standing out like a sore thumb. Everyone will see you dressed in church clothes, and that black name tag you’re wearing. Smile at everyone, because everyone is watching you out of the corner of their eye. Start planting good seeds about the gospel by your smile, a humble act of love.

Now, get ready for this. The only alone time you will ever have for the next 18 months is when you use a restroom. (On a mission, missionaries are always teamed up with a companion, another missionary their age. One of the rules is that you must always be with your companion for safety and protection, 24-7, except of course, when using a bathroom:) The bathroom will be a sacred haven. There are times when you might be with a companion that has a different personality or quirks that you just don’t mesh well with. It happens. The bathroom is a wonderful place for a personal time out. Maybe that’s why today in my home, I have spiritual thoughts and stuff plastered on my bathroom wall next to the toilet:)

You’ll have companions that will be great friends, and companions that you may struggle with. You might even have the fun of being in a ‘threesome’, the blessing of two other companions with you. Those are good times. When my companion and I had bunk beds delivered to our apartment, my companion danced around singing “We’re going to be a threesome”. All I could think of was, “Well, let’s see how this flows” Well, it flowed in many ways. Water fights at night, giggling at bedtime, and three entirely different personalities with ideas and opinions going everywhere. One time, we had some struggles, and I was trying to keep everyone afloat. You know that part on “Sense and Sensibility”, when Elinor is trying to comfort everyone, but all her sisters and mom are in separate rooms crying? Yea, pretty much had the exact same thing happen, but it all worked out, and it will be ok. You learn to be humble, and think of others more than yourself. Patience, patience, and more patience is needed when being in a companionship, and you’ll learn some great life long lessons. Totally applicable for marriage, too.

There will be kind church members in your area that will take on the role of ‘mission mom’. They will have you over for dinner regularly, make sure you are well fed and given anything you need, and look out for you. These people are saints, and in my opinion, will be granted a seat in the celestial kingdom. It can be hard to be so far away from home, family, and familiarity. Mission moms rock.

Mail will never be more valued than during your mission. Getting letters from home, packages, or emails, are gold. My dear, sweet mom would always try to send me $20 here and there. She loved to send me clothes and slippers. Sometimes, the slippers would not fit me but it was a score for my companion. Expensive ones, too. Glad it helped her. (Just had to make you smile while you’re reading this, dear companion, ha ha!)

If you are not afraid to talk to people, you will have a blast talking to them on the street, store, everywhere about the gospel. One of the best parts of the mission is meeting so many different kinds of people and hearing their stories. Some may slam the door in your face, swear at you, tell you what they think of the church, or give you a gatorade and tell you that you’re doing a good cause, and then, some may want to hear more of your message. Try not to freak out and scream for joy when this happens, and scare them. Baby steps. The spirit will guide you to these people who are waiting and ready to learn about the gospel. There will be many who are not ready, who you will plant seeds of small tidbits of the message, and these seeds will bloom later. You will plant lots of seeds, by giving out a Book of Mormon to someone on the street, sharing your testimony, praying with someone, and more. Don’t get discouraged. Keep your chin up, and remember how lucky you are to be on a mission. No utility bills, car insurance, and kids to worry about yet. Just the simple tasks of filling you back pack up each day before you leave, getting up at 6:30, personal studies. It’s wonderful.

One of the greatest things you will ever do is teach someone how to pray. Oh, how I loved this. You see, some people don’t know that they are a child of God. They don’t know that there was life before here on earth, and they don’t know that they have a Heavenly Father who knows and loves them.

I served out in redneckville of central Florida. I loved it. Anytime I see “Oh, Brother, where art thou?”, I get a little emotional. Just the language and feel of the south brings it all back to me. One time, my companion and I taught this sweet truck driver about prayer, and how to say one. Then, (this is where you have to be brave and trust the spirit), we asked him to kneel with us and say the prayer, his first one. The most humblest and sincere prayers come from those who are offering a vocal prayer for their first time. It’s so beautiful, and I can’t wait for you to have this experience.

Ok, funny stuff. You are going to be serving and hanging out with the other missionaries in your area constantly, the majority of them guys. Be prepared, because most of the elders will be stinking hotties. No joke. It’s like this; when a guy is righteous, lives his life clean, keeps the commandments, is obedient to the mission rules, has a sense of humor, and a darling personality, he’s dead gorgeous. Celebrities and Calvin Klein models don’t hold a dime next to LDS missionaries. Girls in the wards where elders are serving swoon for them secretly. You’ll be surprised to hear of how many elders and sister missionaries fall for each other, hook up after the mission, and some don’t even make it out of the MTC without going home to marry their MTC teacher. The poor mission president sometimes has to keep track of these little romances, and transfer the missionaries apart. Some are meant to find their eternal sweeties on the mission, and some are not. It’s all good. The funny thing is that even though you’re a missionary, and do not date or do anything of the kind on the mission, youre still a girl, and will still have to stay focused on the work, even when you’re around hottie elders. I recently saw a picture of my cousin serving in Australia on Facebook. Yup, he’s a cutie, and is a wonderful missionary judging by the great emails he sends home. No doubt he’s causing a stir with girls in his ward over there, ha ha!

Also, when you’re around your companion all day, and just need a girl break, there is nothing more relieving than to answer the phone at night when the elders call to make sure you’re home safe and to get some daily info, just to be able to talk to a guy. It’s hilarious to hear the phone ring, and see three girls screaming and diving for the phone, wringing it out of each other’s hands. Oh man, this post is so fun to write.

A small blessing; if by chance you happen to make friends with one of the hot elders in your district that knows how to be friends with you without crossing the line of being too close for mission rules, who looks out for you, and helps you stay sane through all the trials of mission life, count yourself very, very blessed. 

Working with inactive members of the church is so incredibly rewarding and wonderful. Sometimes, all it takes is small act of service of lending them some church clothes to attend church again. Never underestimate that by ‘small and simple things are great things brought to pass.’ Small things are huge things.

It’s ok to eat mac and cheese or top ramen for breakfast regularly. Try to be brave and get rid of the roaches and mice yourself in your apartment, rather than calling the kind ward member to come and do it for you.

Zone conferences and mission conferences are spiritual powerhouses. Elder Gene R. Cook came out to our mission and taught us. Another ‘apostle’ moment, when the spirit is so strong you can cut through it with a knife. You will leave those conferences energized and ready to get back and serve better.

You’ll learn to pray always, literally. Always involve the Lord in everything. When you’re companion is teaching and your sitting next her, mentally pray for your companion. It’s a wonderful habit to form, and you’ll end up doing it after the mission, when your friend is teaching the lesson at church to the young women.

You will fall in love with your scriptures. So many jewels will be found. It helps to find church answers in the bible, along with the rest of the scriptures, because the people you teach mostly know the bible. Then, it helps to back up the bible scriptures with the Book of Mormon verses. They go hand in hand beautifully. You will be so excited to do your personal studies. It’s true. Never again in your life will you have the opportunity of getting up and doing personal studies, with no distractions, for an hour. Don’t get me wrong, when you get home, you still can schedule your personal study time, but life happens. You get married, have kids, and have more distractions from that unique personal study time on the mission. The trick is to keep up the studies all through out life.

Lastly, don’t let Satan get you down. He’s such a jerk, as he tends to work hard on the thoughts of good missionaries, making them think that they’re not doing good enough. Much wasted time can come from letting him have control over your thoughts. Memorize scriptures, immerse yourself in the work, have good music to listen to. Just keep swimming, but be aware of the adversary so you don’t let him wreck your day. You will be a fantastic missionary.

Then, it’s time to come home and resume normal life, because mission life is not normal. It’s wonderful, special, super hard, sacred, spiritual, and the best 18 months of your life. How blessed you are to have the opportunity to serve a mission. I cannot wait to return on a mission with my dear husband when we’re cute, old foggies.

Oh, there is so much to write about a mission, but I must stop and get to bed. Today was a day of potty training, breaking up fights, hugging and loving my kiddos, and feeding the dogs. Thank you for giving me a chance to go back in time, and remember an amazing chapter of my life. It was wonderful.

I wish my stinking printer was working and I could scan more mission pics for this post, but thankfully, here’s on of me and my dear companions. We served 6 months together, and had some great times. She helped me so much. Oh, the Florida humidity, the hair! Pre-sulfate days, ha ha!

Summer’s almost over

Can you believe it? Somehow, this summer flew by. I’m trying to keep up and slow down at the same time. Swimming lessons, park in the morning, learning from this year’s gardening experience, and more.

Here’s some instagrams of our moments. I love trying to capture the moments with Instagram!

Cuties:)

Love it when this happens, although it usually ends up rowdy and rough.

Water parks! Can’t live without them.

One weekend, we decided to get rid of all the landscaping rocks in our backyard. They give off a ton of heat, and were roasting the garden. My goodness, what an enormous job that was. We hired one helper, and between him and Shaun, we got it done. I remember helping out raking up the little piles, while they took loads out to the large dumpster. We were bone tired. We took turns resting while one of us took care of the kids. It was so worth it. You could feel the difference in the temperature back there.

All from the backyard, wow!

Sweet Brooke, on a teething day.

 

Isn’t this picture darling? Ethan is so huge, and Brooke is so tiny! This just makes me smile.

Swimming lessons for Ethan!

I have always felt that books are such an important part of life. I make sure there is a basket of books in the most rooms to grab from. We use the library SO much. It’s a candy store.

Glow sticks at bath time!

Our random rain that we cherish!

Ever since I stumbled upon the idea of ‘child led weaning’, feeding Brooke has been tons easier!

Ethan and Kevin at our homeschool play group. They had a big birthday party for everyone. Lots of fun.

Love this pic. I got a sitter, and took Shaun with me to one of my wedding jobs. This was a beautiful outdoor reception, and it was so fun to have him there. I’d go around taking pictures, and then eat some yummy food with him. I loved this night.

I went on a church activity with the youth, and the boys had a blast. Boats, I mean, come on? Boy heaven. There were lots of fish in the water. One touched Ethan’s leg and he completely freaked. It was funny.

Boys in my new garden boxes. Nothing makes me happier than having more space to grow food!

I’m preparing to start our homeschooling in September, and have been buying curriculum of Amazon. It’s exciting. I’m trying to not get overwhelmed, and keep things simple. Simple, simple, is what I always love and yet, its not always simple over here. Crazy at times, of course. It will be a great learning adventure.

Brooke is finally pushing herself up on her tummy more! I got to get a pic of it to show, but at 10 months she’s getting there:) I love hearing her giggle and her holding on to me when I carry her. It’s the best.

Yesterday, we got Kevin a little potty, and tried for the third time to potty train him. He shocked us by pooping in it, his first success. Highly great! Today, he’s done fabulous. I think I’ve learned. Feed him popcorn and lots of juice, time it, and then try to get him to sit when its about time to tinkle. I’ve learned not to let him go hide in his room and tinkle in there, ha ha! So, I think I’m getting somewhere with this potty stuff. He’s three and a half! It’s about time.

And, Kevin is up! Here we go again with the focus on the potty stuff. We got Netflix at just the right time, as he sits on his potty, watches a show, and we try to master this task. We’re also trying not to have cabin fever, too. Oh, this week will be good, but I wonder how going out with Kevin will be now. New chapters:)

I want to write more, but gotta go. Simple, breathe, pray, hugs and love, that’s the goals around here.

My day at Girls Camp

Tuesday was a very special day for me. I had the wonderful opportunity to attend one day of my church’s annual girls camp, for girls 12-17 yrs. It’s known for being one of the best weeks ever for the girls. Tons of fun, silly songs and skits, friendship making, and spiritual growth. I was burning out from motherhood trials, and this day was just the dose of medicine I needed. I count it as a tender mercy from the Lord that he gave me Tuesday. So thankful for Shaun being home with the kiddos.

I was asked to be the photographer, and as always, I love my job. It was so much fun to capture so many funny and beautiful shots.

The last time I went to this particular camp was back in 1991, when I was a little spunky, socially clueless, tomboy 12 year old. As I walked down into that camp, I vaguely remembered the same mountains, rocks, and surroundings from so long ago. What a turn of the tables to now be one of the camp leaders, and see all these cute 12 year olds around me.

I want to share some glimpses of this day:

My “Dances with Wolves” roots kick in whenever I see one of these:)

Such a neat view when you’re laying down on your back pointing the camera up!

Me looking like a goofball papparazi, with my friend’s camera, along with mine, around my neck.

Rounding up all the girls in the big arena, with the older girls down on the floor, singing silly camp songs and having a blast.

Here’s to give you an idea of the amount of girls at camp! Pretty large crowd of fun. (Thank you, Jessica for helping me get this shot! I know your reading this, ha ha:)

Wonderful, spiritual lessons from kind church leaders, out in the beautiful woods. Does it get any better?

Some of the awesome chefs, totally goofing off and being so darn cute!

The wonderful head chef made these darling aprons for her crew. Each year, she plans and prepares  amazing meals for the mass amount of girls. I heard she baked 200 bread bowls for soup night. She’s amazing.

Now this is a very special part of the day that I just had to share. There were a few little spiritual talks that the girls went to hear. We split up into groups, and rotated around. This particular talk was incredibly well delivered, and so very, very touching and spiritual. The girls were asked to come up, and put blindfolds on. They were then told various commands, such as ‘stay standing if you’ve ever walked out of a movie that was inappropriate’ or ‘if you’ve asked someone to stop swearing’, or ‘if you’ve ever ate lunch with someone sitting alone at school’. Those who had not done these things would take their blindfolds off, and quietly go sit down.

 

As the crowd slowly diminished, and a few girls were left standing, the leader would ask them how they were feeling, to which they replied ‘Alone’, not knowing how many girls were standing up there. The leader emphasized that sometimes when we make the right choice, we feel alone in the world.

The leader said ‘Stay standing if you’ve ever gone to church alone without your family’, and only one girl stayed standing. Another leader brought up a stand, and placed that beautiful picture of the Savior there. The leader continued to speak about how when it feels like we are alone choosing the right, there is always one person who will be by our side. She then told the girl to take off her blindfold, and see how that person was. Oh, writing this now makes brings the spirit again of that wonderful, teaching moment. So tender.

The rest of the day was just as fabulous. Knowing that it was my only day that I could come to camp made me treasure each moment greatly. If only I could take that attitude with me each day, and I could have much better mothering days. That is my goal.

After the classes, the girls had some ‘grove time’, time to find a place in nature, open your scriptures, take notes, and be still. Listen to the spirit speaking softly to you. Feel the love your Heavenly Father has to you. Feast upon the word. Knowing that this was a quiet moment of studying that rarely happens at home, let alone out in nature, I grabbed a chair, and ran for the hills.

I was so thankful I had scriptures on my phone, and I sat for a bit and was able to read and ponder them. I was reminded of how good it felt to truly read the scriptures, to search the footnotes, to slowly read a verse out loud, and let it sink deep into my soul. I think that’s how you have a real scripture study, and it leaves you feeling so enriched. I stopped and listened to the birds and sounds of the mountains, and thought about my sweet husband and kids back down in the desert. I walked away from that moment with renewed strength to be a more patient and loving mom.

My favorite pictures I took. I hope you can see better what I am describing of ‘grove time’ through these shots. Seriously, sometimes life gives you these moments that cannot be bought with money, and last in your heart and mind forever. Thanks for reading this post:)

The sugar story

Ok, here we go. This is a whopper of a blog post!

Last month, I discovered a healthier way to take care of my hair. Little did I know I would be embarking on a bigger quest; healthier eating, ha ha!

So, it all started 2 weeks ago when I was chatting with a good friend. She and I were talking about how to eat healthier, lose weight, and take better care of yourself. She cut out ‘the whites’, no white sugar or flour. Refined sugar. Deep down, I thought “Well, of course that would make you healthier! Sugar is wonderful tasting, but crap for your body.”

I can’t exactly remember how I came to the decision to try it, but I decided to try cutting out the whites. I started my good old researching at night, and learned a ton. I’ve gotten a lot of interesting responses to my quest. Lots of ‘you’re crazy!’, ‘ I can’t live without my sugar’ , and some from friends who have gone this route. I totally agree on the crazy part. I mean, hello. You all see the fun recipes I share on FB, and we know how much I love that darn good nutella cheesecake.

So, part of me wondered, ‘why am I attempting to go without sugar??’ and the other part of me wondered, ‘Well, let’s see’, because I do want to be healthier, and wouldn’t mind losing a little weight, but above all, it just feels good to be healthy and take care of your self.

At first, I read a lot from Sarah Wilson, this Australian lady who cut out sugar completely. Hardly any fruit, no honey, agave, etc. She had good things to say about the health benefits of no sugar, and the addiction factor, but I like to eat fruit.

That’s another thing. A lot of the articles I read mentioned sugar being as addictive as cocaine and other drugs. Crazy! I don’t know how often we think of sugar in that manner, but I don’t doubt it being addicting.

I read about how eating healthy food gives your body the cue that it’s full, and you don’t gorge yourself. White sugar does not, and if you’re not disciplined, you can easily eat too much of the sweets.

Along the way, I read about the benefits of eating healthy fats, and not sugar fats. Full fat milk and other things don’t necessarily put on the weight; the sugar and fructose does. How low fat things tend to have more sugar in them to make them taste as good as the full fat item. (yogurt and such) So, its really doing you no good to get low fat this and that. Interesting. 

My favorite thing I learned was about beans! I learned, well, was reminded since my Mom did this, that if you soak dry beans over night, it de-gasses them. So, no toots! I soaked a bunch of pinto beans, put them in the crock pot with onions and garlic, cooked for 8 hours, mashed them up with a bunch of cumin, and they tasted great. You can freeze them easily for burritos, bean dip, etc. So, my favorite snack now is chips and bean dip. I’m so silly, but beans are dang healthy for you:) Plus, they tasted ten times better than canned refried beans!

I made a few sugar free desserts, just to try and see. Well, they tasted like crap to me. Even the kids didn’t like them. The brownies were the equivalent to cardboard. It was pretty funny. We went to a friend’s party. Shaun wolfed down some apple pie, thinking it was the last chance he would get sugar, since I got rid of 4 bags of panty food. I saw him doing that and laughed.

The crazy thing is sugar is in everything!! BBQ sauce, ketchup, salad dressings. High fructose corn syrup is worse, and is also everywhere. There’s more sugar in BBQ sauce than in chocolate ice cream topping. I tossed Aunt Jemima’s pancake syrup out. Shaun cried. To explain, I haven’t changed everything. The kids still eat their food, and I kept some jam and Jiffy for Shaun, but I’m trying to cut out the high fructose corn syrup for the kids, and help them eat a little healthier.

I also read about hydrogenated oil. Wow, that was an eye opener. All of sudden, Jiffy peanut butter doesn’t taste so good. Bought a healthier peanut butter quick.

I decided to try brown rice pasta to solve the white flour issue. Thankfully, it tastes great to me, so we are friends:)

I learned about refined oils, the ones to avoid and why, and the blessings of coconut oil. Check out link here to learn more about that. Reading about canola oil not being so good for you made me think, ‘Does Bobby Flay know this? Because he sure dowses everything he cooks in canola oil!' I’m sure not all the chefs on Food Network are nutritionists.  Hello, Paula Deen!

So, it’s been crazy, but I have been making little changes here and there to our eating. On the sugar issue, I decided that I’d like to really cut back on eating refined, white sugar. Once a month treat. I have been reading a lot of whole food blogs, and that’s what I want to do. Eat more organic, whole foods.  Cut out the processed crap.I decided to try using organic palm cane sugar for the moment. I’m open to using honey and maple syrup for sweeteners.

I also know what I want for Christmas, and it’s called a Vitamix. It’s a super blender, food processor, soup maker, ice cream maker, and more, and it’s perfect for whole food eating. Saw it at Costco this weekend. Oh, man that will be a fun investment someday.

In a way, it just feels like I’m coming home. My mom and grandma ate super healthy like this. Seeing the same brands of health food that I saw growing up is neat. I remember being at my grandma’s house, and looking in her fridge for something to eat. Nothing but tofu, veggies, and weird condiments to me as a kid, thinking ‘Is there anything normal to eat in this house?’ And yet, now I love health food. Eating good food tastes so much better to me. Strangely, I’m not going bonkers to have chocolate and sweets. I read all labels in the store now. Basically, the shorter the list of ingredients in the food, the better it is for you.

Bottom line is this; the first week I was off sugar, I felt good. I had good energy, and my mind seemed to be more alert. I just felt better. It was really neat to see that. I did have a little strawberry shortcake with Shaun on our date this weekend, and I didn’t go crazy and binge. Go, me!

Ok, getting pooped, and need to post some links for you guys below, so I must retire. I still have lots to learn on the food topic, so feel free to share what you’ve learned. I love hearing from you all:)

http://www.100daysofrealfood.com/ Great blog of a family who quit processed foods.

http://www.100daysofrealfood.com/2012/06/07/milk-101-whole-raw-organic-low-fat-etc/ Healthy milk talk

http://wholenewmom.com/recipes/how-to-store-prepared-beans/ The beans!

http://deliciouslyorganic.net/ Good food blog

http://www.foodrenegade.com/ Another good food blog

Brooke’s update

I was trying to decide to either blog about Brooke or the sugar story. Sugar story will be a longer post, and it’s late, so let’s talk about our angel:)

Well, first, let’s get caught up with our adventures. I’m so scatterbrained!

Twice, our air conditioning has broken this summer. The first time, we had a lovely breeze blowing the whole night. We left the windows open, and it felt just fine. It made me remember my time living in Provo before serving an LDS mission. I would leave the windows open at night, and the cool Utah summer wind would blow through my room. Then, I woke up and remembered we were in Vegas, ha ha!

Here’s the 2nd time it broke. Ethan liked all his tools.

More summer pool fun!

Love this!

One massive pizza for a fun dinner!

Best toy in the house; the maze ball. Ethan loves it. It’s addicting and fun.

Getting ready for bed:)

Ok, Brooke! Recently, I noticed Brooke around a few babies her age. Those babies were crawling, sitting up, and moving everywhere. Brooke can’t sit on her own, push herself up on her tummy, or crawl. She can only roll everywhere. I called up Early intervention, and some nice ladies came out a couple weeks afterwards. Turns out Brooke is 50% behind in her gross motor skills, the sitting up stuff. She’s great with her fine motor skills, but a little behind in her speech. They said she should be doing more babbling, and she doesn’t. She does a lot of cooing, and a few good giggles for us. Once she can sit up and improve her gross motor, the speech should kick in.

Of course, any time, she could take off. I’m totally not worried at all. I just know we need to do some physical stuff with her daily to help her get caught up. She’s so tiny and sweet. This is a first for us. The boys were moving just fine, and keep on moving great. They never STOP moving:)

So, we have some work with Brooke. Any of you sweet friends do this stuff with your kids?