Resolutions

Live A Healthy Lifestyle
Blah, blah, blah.  I know this is on everyone's list every January.  But for me, it's no longer just about losing weight and being focused on a number.  We lived a pretty healthy lifestyle last year until August, when Scottie passed away.  We were looking and feeling better than we had in a decade thanks to our healthy changes, but after August, we slowly rolled back down hill.  And once Halloween came, we gave up completely.  By December we felt sick, tired and unfocused.  It's proof to me that all those little choices we make throughout the day add up to a big deal = how we feel.  And I want to feel good, rested, energized and driven. 

So I'm back to my healthy ways that I started a year ago:
Eating the right foods and the right amounts of them.
Limiting foods that make me feel sluggish and give me headaches {sugars and breads}.
Eating as organic and un-processed as possible.
Cooking from scratch using real food {what a concept!}
Eat an apple a day.
Having treats in moderation {duh, I'm a foodie!}
Yoga three times a week {I love Mandy Ingber's Yogalosophy} & trying to be more active in general.
Plenty of sleep because I do not function well when I'm not rested!
As always, drinking lots of water {we've been a no pop family for 3 years now!}
Drinking apple cider vinegar a few times a week {1tbsp acv mixed with 8 oz water}.
Gargling salt water daily.
Taking vitamins.
And my new one I'm adding this year is green tea.  I'm going to try to drink at least one glass a day because green tea has antioxidants and is supposed to have numerous health benefits.

Be Creative and Productive
I've realized something about myself: I spend a lot of time finding great creative ideas and projects to try, mainly thanks to Pinterest {best thing ever}!  However, I rarely take the time to do any of them.  So I'm going to make a real effort to tap into my creative side and actually get things done. 

On my creative to do list:
Learn to sew {second attempt}
Learn to crochet {second attempt}
Revamp old stuff {spray paint is my best friend}
Makeover our house.  I've been working on this one a while.  We've lived here 5 years and my decorating tastes have changed.  I'm slowly trying to change the look in the house and make our spaces what we need them to be.  Projects in the works right now are turning our bonus room into an adorable playroom, turning our formal dining room into an office and making our utility room more functional. {All on a tight budget of course!}
Continue turning our backyard into our personal playground.  I'd love to add more landscaping, rocks, etc.  Maybe get a chiminea eventually.

Get Outdoors and Have Adventures
I hope 2012 is the year we finally take adventures.  We all want so badly to spend weekends camping, hiking and exploring Oklahoma.  And the weekends we aren't out having adventures, I want to be home.  I've decided we all hate running around.  We're just home bodies.  Don't get me wrong, we love going to arts festivals or bowling or any special outing like that.  We're just tired of running around just for the sake of finding something to do.  I think we all enjoy our time more at home, working on projects or playing outside.

Make More Time for Date Nights & Friends
You know when you hang out with friends and you leave thinking "that was fun, we should do it more often"?  Well, I really want to do it more often.  I hope to have lots of cookouts and nights out with friends this year.

Allen and I are pretty good about making time for date nights.  And we're pretty lucky that our Mom's are aways happy to watch the kids for us.  I hope 2012 brings many fun date nights for us, whether it's concerts or just a quiet dinner where we can actually have an un-interrupted conversation...something that's getting harder and harder with two young, happy and energetic kids!

And my last resolution is a biggie for me...

Let Go of Fear
I've been struggling for a while now with fear.  Fear of something bad happening.  But mainly fears over our health and us getting sick.  It seems I have to hit rock bottom on something in order to resolve it.  I have been gradually getting worse over the last year and hit my rock bottom this winter.  In my usual fashion, I've analyzed it all and I think I've figured out why I am trying so hard to control whether or not we get sick.  Even though my Dad died 4 1/2 years ago, this ugly scar of mine has moved to the surface.  I'm afraid of not being able to be healed.  The old me just assumed that if you got sick, doctors would fix you.  But I saw my Dad take his last breath and I could not help him.  And now 4 1/2 years later, seeing that has me paralyzed with fear of us getting sick and dying.  I know it sounds crazy, but it's amazing how such a tragic event can shape your thinking.  It hasn't helped matters that in 2011 both my babies had hospital visits for two very scary things.  And then losing Scottie so unexpectedly in August.  It's no wonder my fear of tragedy has gone off the grid.

But from this day forward, I am making a huge effort to let go of my fears.  None of it is in my hands and I'm just wasting my energy trying to control it.  It is time that I truly trust that God will take care of us.  That doesn't mean we won't get sick or experience tragedy.  But it means that God will guide us through it.  I need to trust his plan for me and I need to trust his timing.  Ironically, our first church sermon of the new year had a lot to do with letting go of fear.  Easier said than done, but I'm ready to take this leap of faith.

I Swear By These Methods

We try to take a natural approach to wellness in our house.  This means trying to avoid the doctor and medications, if possible.  Allen and I have been using these techniques for a while now and we are definitely believers in natural remedies.  However, you can't exactly get a kid to drink apple cider vinegar or use a neti pot, so when it comes to the kids, we preach hand washing, an organic healthy diet and plenty of sleep.  {our kids get 9-10 hours of sleep every night}  Getting sick is a part of life, but here's how we try our best to stay healthy, naturally.

Apple Cider Vinegar

This has been my medicine for a year now.  And for a year now I have not been to the doctor. {except for that pesky flu last January} and have not taken any medicine, other than Tylenol. 

I mix 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar with 8 oz cold water.  It has a unique {nice way of saying disgusting} taste to it.  Allen is a chugger, I am a slow sipper.  After every chug or every sip, we both make the same sour face.  BUT, it works! 

I try to drink it a few times a week to maintain good health.  It is said that apple cider vinegar helps with allergies, sinus infections, acne, flu, blood pressure, cholesterol, gout, fatigue and weight loss.  I can definitely vouch for it curing my sinus and allergy issues.  When I start to feel sick, I drink it 2 to 3 times a day and it does the trick.

Gargle Salt Water

I remember watching my Grandma gargle salt water at night.  I recently read that in addition to relieving a sore throat, it also prevents bacteria from growing.  So now I use it as a daily preventative. 

Humidifier

I'm a huge believer in humidifiers.  I pretty much use mine year round.  But it's definitely a good idea to use one when you have cold or sinus issues.  Using a humidifier every night also keeps my skin from getting dry and irritated.

Neti Pot

Ah, the neti pot.  It will probably freak you out the first time you use one.  But once you get the hang of it, it is a lifesaver.  I have definitely dodged sinus infections by using my neti pot at the first sign of an issue.  It provides instant relief. 

{Note: I wrote this post earlier in the day and since then, this article was released.  Whoa!  That's a little scary, although I'm sure it's rare.  Just to be safe, I may start using distilled or boiled water.}

{I am not a doctor.  Just a girl sharing what works for me.}

Farm Life {Digging Up Potatoes}

This is my second year of gardening, and potatoes are one of my favorite things about growing our own food.  Potatoes are one of the most important foods to eat organic because of their thin skins.  So I absolutely love growing our own.  They are easy to grow and it's fun digging them up.  It's kind of like hunting Easter eggs in the dirt!



We had a lot of potatoes to dig so we made it a family affair. 

Isn't it amazing that planting some plants in early Spring will give you this amount of food by late Spring?  If you've never grown your own food, I highly recommend it.  It's very rewarding.

We got some large onions and a lot of small ones.  You can chop them up and freeze them.  This would be great for making soups and stews in the Winter.

With all our fresh red and white potatoes, plus the ones we canned {more about that coming soon}, I hope to not have to buy potatoes for the rest of the year.

This is our little chicken house.  Isn't it cute?  My Father-in-Law built it.  He's pretty handy like that.  I think the chickens would enjoy a cute front door though.  Maybe I'll paint it for them. ;)

Our chickens should start laying eggs in the Fall.  I cannot wait!  There's nothing better than fresh eggs.  Our little chicken community is funny.  They each have their own personality and there's a pecking order.  My in-laws said they fight over who gets the best spot to roost at night.  There are some definite bullies in the group.  We have guinea hens now too and, apparently, the chickens gang up on the guineas. 

The kids like to try and catch them.  It's easier said than done.  And you learn fast that flip flops are not the best shoe for the chicken yard.  Unless, you like chicken poop on your toes.

This is what the garden looks like now that we've pulled the cool weather plants {potatoes, onions, radishes, broccoli, lettuce, sugar snap peas & mustard greens}.  Now we're hoping for a good crop of tomatoes, peppers and green beans.

I love learning this way of life.  It's hard to imagine there was a time when all you had to eat was what you grew yourself.  I'm thankful for some of our modern day conveniences, but I think it's important to learn to live off the land too.  I think we've found a nice balance.  But I'm eager to learn more every year.  It's a lot of work but there's just something about eating food you grew and prepared yourself.  It makes you proud and it definitely tastes better.  I'm grateful that Allen's parents are passing their wisdom down to us.  You can only learn so much from the internet.  It's great to have people in our lives to show us how to do these things.  The kids think it's pretty fun too.

Pretty Food {Grilled BBQ Chicken}

This is our chicken we raised and butchered on the YouTube farm.  We marinated it in our homemade bbq sauce and grilled it.  It was delicious!

BBQ Sauce
1 c ketchup {organic or make sure there's no high fructose corn syrup}
1 tbsp mustard
3 tbsp worcestershire sauce
2 tbsp vinegar
1 tbsp lemon juice
3 tbsp brown sugar
1 tbsp black pepper

Mix all the ingredients together and enjoy!  We store ours in the refrigerator in an old honey container.

What Can I Have For A Snack?

Lately, I hear this questions about 20 times a day!  Apparently, both kids are going through growth spurts at the same time because their bellies are little bottomless pits these days.  Someone is always asking me for food.  And if one kid asks, the other comes running in to make sure they don't miss out. 

Because of their huge appetites, I've had to expand what I have on hand for them to snack on.  Therefore, I've loosened up a little on what I'm willing to buy to add a little variety in our lives.  I've had to do a lot of digging & reading in the grocery store to find snacks with ingredient lists I approve of.  I try not to buy anything with these ingredients:

* BHT
* MSG
* High Fructose Corn Syrup
* Artificial Dyes

What I have been buying for them:

* Popcorn ~ This is my favorite snack.  It's good for you & the kids love it.  I buy kernels & pop them myself.  Just add a little melted butter & salt & it tastes delicious!

* Kettle chips ~ Everyone in the family loves these and no one can be trusted alone with an open bag.

* Organic apples ~ Sydney absolutely loves apples.  But only if they are peeled, but not cut up.  She's my picky child.

* Organic yogurt ~ Garrett loves yogurt.  Sydney won't even try it.  I wasn't kidding when I said she was picky.

* Organic granola bars ~ The kids like Cascadian Farms chocolate chip & peanut butter.

* Mini bagels ~ These are great!  Sydney loves hers toasted with Nutella on top.  Garrett & I like ours with cream cheese.  They also make great mini sandwiches or pizza bites.  They have become our new staple.  They work great for breakfast, lunch or snack. 

* Fresh bread drizzled with honey ~ The kids love my bread fresh out of the oven.  It's tradition that we all eat a slice drizzled with honey or topped with Nutella right when it comes out of the oven.

* Fruit ~ Garrett loves apples, bananas, blueberries & strawberries.  Sydney will only eat apples.

* Organic crackers ~ I buy Late July brand.  I love mine topped with my new addiction...Laughing Cow spreadable cheese wedges.

* Annie's Cheddar Bunnies ~ The kids like them & Sydney finally quit asking me to buy Cheez-Its...after a year.

* Animal Crackers ~ Not too shabby.

* Cheese roll up ~ Melt cheese in a tortilla and roll it up.  I used to eat these as a kid.

* Coco Roos ~ Here's where I've budged a little.  These are the generic brand coco puffs.  The kids are excited to get some "crap" food.  I had to meet them in the middle a little.  These double as breakfast or snack.

* Jello Pudding Cups ~ Again, not the greatest, but they are a good treat for the kids. 

I also try to make homemade snacks pretty often.  I usually make muffins, breads or cookies. 

Sydney requested popsicles for summer.  I spent 10 minutes in the grocery store looking at every box of popsicles.  Let me tell ya folks, they're packed with all the horrible dyes.  Red # 2, Blue # 2, Yellow #5...you get the idea.  I refuse to buy them.  I bought Blue Bell all natural strawberry fruit bars, but guess who doesn't like them?  Yep, the picky kid who specifically requested popsicles.  So I'm on a mission to find something we both agree on.

Life would be much easier not caring about the ingredients in their food.  But I do care.  So, I spend 10 minutes in the frozen food isle, freezing while carefully inspecting the popsicles.  One day they will thank me.  Right?  Please tell me one day they will thank me! :)

Pretty Food {Bow Tie Pasta}

Boil bow tie pasta.  Brown ground beef seasoned with salt, pepper & garlic.  Add jar of Bertoli organic marinara sauce.  Drain pasta when cooked and add to meat sauce.  Sprinkle with paremsean and fresh chopped parsley.  Enjoy!

When Life Gives You Bad Bread, Make Croutons

I recently had my first bad batch of bread.  I think I got distracted in the kitchen, left what I was doing and when I came back, I could not remember if I had added the salt yet.  Well, it was a 50/50 chance and I guessed wrong.  A loaf of bread without salt does not taste that great.  But I hate throwing away organic ingredients that I spent some time on.  So I tried turning the bad loaf into croutons and it worked! 

I just cut the bread up into small chunks, put on a cookie sheet, tossed them in extra virgin olive oil & garlic salt,  and baked at 400 until browned.

You could also turn old, stale bread into croutons.  Making breadcrumbs is another great option.  Just put bread in food processor with some seasoning of your choice & pulse until you have fine breadcrumbs.

PS ~ That lovely lettuce is from our garden. :)

Pretty Food {Cheese Toasted Buns}

I work hard making all our bread products from scratch.  So you can bet your bottom dollar I'm not about to let any of it go to waste!  I turned these leftover hamburger buns into cheese toast.  Just butter, sprinkle with garlic & parmesan cheese & broil on low for a few minutes.  Just be sure to keep a close eye on them so they do not burn.

Farm Life {Update}

Things are moving along at the YouTube farm.  The in-laws have nicknamed it that because most of our farming education has come from YouTube or Google.  Hilarious! 

We have been enjoying lettuce, onions, radishes, spinach & mustard greens from the garden.  I have never liked radishes until now.  They taste amazing & have such a kick to them.

The baby chicks are growing fast.  Soon they will be laying eggs.  I cannot wait!  Farm fresh eggs are amazing & will make you never want to buy eggs from the grocery store again.  They even make cake, pancakes, waffles, etc. better.  I swear by them.  We let the kids play with these chicks and get attached to them because their purpose is to stick around & lay eggs.

These poor chickens, however, served another purpose.

I was surprised at how fast they grew and were ready to be butchered.  Here's where YouTube came in handy.  My in-laws did grow up farming so it's not like they were completely clueless.  I chose not to participate in the really gruesome part because I know myself & I would've become vegetarian if I had seen the entire process.  So I waited until they were clean and ready to be cut up & then I headed over.  It would've been nice to stay in my bubble and not experience any of it, but it was important to me to participate in some of the process.  I have cooked the chicken twice now & Allen swears it's the best chicken he's ever had.  It is good & it's getting easier for me to eat it.  I know it's no different than what I was buying from the farmer's market, but there's just something about seeing the process that has messed with my head a little.

Nearly everything in this salad came from our farm.  That's a dinner to be proud of!

Pretty Food {Radishes From The Garden}

How To Stretch A Chicken

Ok, well, I'm not literally stretching a chicken.  But I am sharing how I can stretch 1 1/2 lbs of chicken into 6 meals for a family of 4.  One key for us to afford local & organic meat was learning how to eat less meat & make it stretch.  Leftovers get eaten & no longer wasted by going in the trash can. 

The chicken I buy from the farmer's market comes frozen in 1 1/2 lb packages.  When I'm ready to cook it, I cook it ALL and make a couple meals to freeze.  Here's my favorite way to stretch 1 1/2 lbs of chicken:

To Make 2 Pans of Chicken Enchiladas & 1 Batch of Chicken Noodle Soup
Boil all the chicken until cooked through.  This usually takes about 30 minutes.  Now take 2/3 of the chicken and shred to be used in the chicken enchiladas. 

Chop the rest of the chicken up some and put back in the boiling water.  Add 16 oz Reams noodles & one can cream of chicken soup.  Add some salt, pepper & parsley.  Cook according to Reams package.  Once finished, put chicken noodle soup in freezer bag & freeze.  This will be a perfect meal for when no one has time to cook.  Simply put soup in refrigerator the night before to thaw some.  Then put in a pan and heat up on the stove.  This meal feeds my family two nights in a row.  So there's two nights I don't have to cook & two meals from my 1 1/2 lbs of chicken.

Now, back to the shredded chicken for enchiladas.  Mix with two 8 oz packages of cream cheese & two cans chopped green chiles.  Mix well & spoon into flour tortillas.  This will make two casserole dishes of chicken enchiladas.  I get about 11 enchiladas per casserole dish.  {Make sure one dish will freeze well.  I use the aluminum pans from the store.}  Cover both pans with shredded pepper jack cheese & top with fresh cilantro.  Freeze the aluminum pan & re-heat at 350 when you're ready to serve.  Cook the other pan at 350 until cheese is melted and bubbly and enjoy for dinner.  One pan of enchiladas feeds my family two nights in a row.  So again, when no one feels like cooking, pop the frozen enchiladas in the oven & you've got two nights worth of meals. 

Soooo, 1 1/2 lbs local, free range chicken yields:
1 batch chicken noodle soup = 2 dinners
2 batches chicken enchiladas = 4 dinners

And that's how a 1 income, self employed family affords organic!  And cooking at home is always cheaper than eating out.

Note: I serve steamed broccoli with chicken noodle soup and black beans or refried beans with chicken enchiladas.  And I like to use my frozen meals within one month of freezing, to ensure they taste great.

Farm Life

We spent Sunday planting a family garden at Allen's parent's house.  I am so excited to be doing a garden this big for the whole family to participate in.  I'm still going to plant my smaller garden at home too.  

Sydney, Garrett & their cousin Addison had so much fun outside getting their hands in the dirt.  Garrett would never come inside if he had it his way.  Sydney was a really big help planting everything.  I love that we're teaching our kids this great way of life!

All the girls decided to rock bandannas for the day.

We planted potatoes, onions, radishes, & several kinds of lettuce.  We'll be planting much more later.  My Mother-In-Law is going to teach me canning & I am so excited to learn!

Garrett really needs a hair cut!  I tried cutting it myself one time and gave him a very nerdy bowl cut on accident.  I decided to leave all hair cuts to the professionals!  {aka, my friend Roxanne}

We are raising chickens too.  I'm a little nervous about this part & hope seeing the ENTIRE process does not turn me vegetarian!  I think I can handle it.  It is difficult to find affordable, local, free range, antibiotic & hormone free chicken.

A few years ago, I would've never imagined myself doing these kinds of things & loving every minute of it.  Remember...

"It is never too late to be what you might have been."~George Eliot

Making Homemade Food Convenient: Chicken Nuggets

Saying goodbye to frozen chicken nuggets was something else Sydney had to do when we changed our eating ways.  {Note to fellow parents: It's much easier if you start your kids out in life not eating nasty junk.  They don't like it when you realize how bad it is and take it away from them.}  But I promised her I'd make her real chicken nuggets any time she wanted them.  {Another note to fellow parents: Don't make promises that are going to require you to be a slave to the kitchen.}  So, I started making real chicken nuggets and freezing them.  Yay!  Convenience foods are very important to a busy family's life.  Now I can heat up chicken nuggets for the kids any time they want them.  Or any time I don't want to cook & just want cereal for dinner! 

First, make your own breadcrumbs.  Just put bread & some seasoning in a food processor until the bread crumbs are very fine. 

I like to use this seasoning.

I make a big batch of bread crumbs & store in a container in the refrigerator. 

To make the nuggets:  Pre-heat oven to 350.  Cut boneless, skinless chicken breasts into bite size nuggets.  {I use local, free range chicken from my farmer's market.}  Cover the nuggets in breadcrumbs & place on greased cookie sheet.  Bake for about 25 - 30 minutes, until cooked through. 

To freeze:

After the nuggets are fully cooked, let them cool completely.  Then put in a freezer bag & freeze.

When you're ready to heat some, just take out the amount you want & cook on a cookie sheet at 400 for about 15 minutes.  You could also heat them in the microwave, but I like the oven for the crispiness.

Sydney loves these so much, we have nicknamed them "Sydney's chicken".  They are great served with some homemade french fries.  I also like to add them to spaghetti for a quick chicken parmesan alternative.

Baked French Fries
Cut up a few potatoes in long 1/4 inch strips
Toss with some extra virgin olive oil & your favorite seasoning (I like Krazy Mixed Up Salt or just salt, pepper & parsley)
Bake on cookie sheet at 400 for 25 - 30 minutes

Or

Cook In Oil On Stove Top
Cut up a few potatoes in long 1/4 inch strips
Heat vegetable oil in cast iron skillet on med to high heat
To test that oil is hot enough, put a drop of water in & see if it sizzles
Drop in enough potatoes to cover the surface & cook until brown, flipping them halfway through
Remove when golden & lay in paper towel lined dish
Sprinkle with salt & garlic salt while still hot