Eternal Hippies A Year Homemade and Beyond

I am embarrassed, humiliated. It’s not like family wanted to dine together and we have not space. It was a matter of me being too tired/lazy to fix dinner and Joe just wanting something to eat. I had numerous dinner options at the house. There was no excuse, other than stress. But everyone has stress. That shouldn’t make me sacrifice my health and create a guilty climate where set-backs outweigh achievements. I could have hidden this evening of over indulging, but it wouldn’t undo the fact that I ordered and consumed an unhealthy and promise-breaking pizza. I promised myself I wouldn’t order take out/delivery food. I’ve had set backs during this process, but not this bad. And ordering gluten free didn’t help. I am undone. This set-back goes against everything I have been trying to accomplish. I want to give my body the proper nutrition to allow my body to heal, inside and out. I need my body strong and healthy. Joe and I have big projects and they require both of us to be in b

Last week I took a break from smoothies. I have found that as with juicing, I have a tendency to make the same smoothie recipe and my digestive system doesn’t like that. In my head it makes sense to vary the smoothies.   But when I think about the many smoothie recipes, the only one I want is a spinach, pineapple, mango with a scoop of whey powder. The spinach makes me think it’s healthier. Green means good, right? But too much of a green thing isn’t good. So for the rest of this week I’m going to try different smoothie recipes. Of course, today, Tuesday Feb. 27 th , I am enjoying a green smoothie. I’ll update this post all this week for each day. Update for Wednesday, Feb. 28th, I fell asleep Tuesday evening early, so Joe made to my smoothie for Wednesday. He made me another green smoothie.  This is my smoothie for Thursday, both pictures. Update for Thursday, March 1st. I made a strawberry, banana, pineapple, cocoa smoothie with a scoop of whey. Not bad, but Joe ma

This has been a busy week. Not really an excuse for not posting, but there it is. Can't talk about it yet, but we are working on a big project that could very well put us a lot closer to some major goals in our life. Since Valentine's Day I have made some poor snack/dessert choices and I am now paying for them. Bloating, inflammation and pain of all sorts, have been my punishment. I had wanted to make my own birthday cake (German chocolate) but time got away from me, so my birthday cake was really an icebox cheesecake. Easy and quick. Last night we had minestrone soup and that felt so good! It's like my body was screaming for a break from bread products, even organic ones. We've been too busy to even make smoothies. Good thing most of the ingredients are frozen. This weekend will be a continuation of busyness, but we hope to relax tonight and tomorrow night around the fire pit. Perhaps we will grill as well.

Yesterday, I made, edited and posted a video of me making the laundry detergent I use. But I took it down because of music in the background created a copyright problem.  Three ingredients and a bit of elbow grease and it's done, ready to use. I like to use Dr. Bronner's Pure Castile Bar Soap Tea Tree for my bar soap. But you can use any castile bar soap. I don't recommend other bar soaps with lotions or creams added. So this is what happened. Real story, true story. I was rocking out to my favorite music as I set up for this video. I forgot that the music was playing as I am filming So I couldn't upload the video do to copyright problems.  Also, I missed recording me speed grating the bar of soap. I impressed myself how quickly I got the soap finely grated. Again the ingredients: 1 bar of castile soup, I use Dr. Bronners Tea Tree 1 cup Borax 1 cup washing soda I had to break up any big chunks of washing soda and Borax. I don't get nearly as

Well, today's smoothie WAS awesome! It's gone now.🙂  Joe helped me make this smoothie last night and we froze it overnight.  Then this morning I brought it to work and left it on my desk (with the lid on), shaking it every so often to check how it's thawing. Once it was ready, super cold and mostly defrosted, I enjoyed a very healthy meal. The recipe is adapted from a Tropical Smoothie Cafe treat. I lowered the sugar content by 3/4. Joe did a lot of research on their recipes and we 'think' they add about 2 ounces of the turbinado sugar. That's too much for me. In addition to cutting back on the sweetener, I added 1 tablespoon of organic hemp hearts. Some recipes call for kale, but my body doesn't process kale in a manor I can tolerate. So, no kale. Also, earlier in the week I cut up the mango and pineapple, then froze the pieces in a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. Off-Island Smoothie Ingredients: 1 ounces organic baby spinach 4

Here are the goals for February and how I am doing. Feb. Goals -Do a juice cleanse for 3 days to restart system –   I have decided against this goal. I am having success with the homemade smoothies -Drink at least a gallon of filtered water a day – Daily challenge, but doing it -Get at least 6 hours of sleep each night – I’m getting close to this one on work nights, about 5 ½ hours, weekends are easier -Make own shampoo- I haven’t done this one yet.. and my hair keeps asking why? -Walking 15 minutes at least twice a week . – I’ve only been able to do this once a week, so, I have to work on this one -Make own sweets/stop buying store-made desserts - I haven’t made any desserts unless you count smoothies. But honestly, since I started using the CBD oil, I haven’t been craving sweets -Exploring different grains, sweeteners, oils, etc . – I’m going to need to table this goal until March -Finish reading the book, "Nourishing Traditions," by Sal

Last Saturday Joe and I were cruising down Ocean Blvd in North Myrtle Beach, SC as a heavy fog rolled in. It is so much fun taking a drive, singing to the radio and the fog is just a bonus!

I don't know what to write about. How about the progress on the CBD oil? So far, I have noticed that I can stay calmer than usual. Also, my appetite has leveled off and I don't CRAVE food. The inflammation in my knees has gone down but the pain still peaks at an 8-9 on the pain scale. It's only a constant pain in the evening. I can definitely tell when I need another dose. I've lost 10 pounds in the past week and I  know part of that loss is fluid. I'd like to think part is from not eating as much as I usually do. I just don't feel that intense longing for food. I'm sleeping better too. Not to brag, but so far since Jan. 1st, I have lost 13.4 pounds. Some times I feel like I am attempting to ride a roller coaster in reverse trying to undo the damage I have allowed on my body. Super slow at first, but once the momentum gets going, I look forward to all kinds of progress. I just can't give up. Over the weekend we bought a blender! Yeah! I was able br

 I started 2018 at 345 pounds. Wow! Holy crap I'm fat! I have struggled most of my life with my weight. Growing up, my mother was always on Weight Watchers (she would lose and regain the same 50-60 pounds.) I think watching her struggle and living in a "Dieting Household" made me crave "evil foods." Once I got some freedom, I overindulged to the point of gluttony. Obviously, I have had issues with food my whole life. But it doesn't need to be that way. Food is just fuel/medicine. It's not love, comfort, inspiration, punishment, reward or ungratefulness. It is supposed to be nourishment for the body. Yes, it can bring people together and I love breaking bread with my family. But with my massive weight problem, I am embarrassed to eat around most people. In my mind, "Come on, who wants to see a fat person eat?" I think I look gross. One diet I was on back in the 1990's said to place a mirror in the dining room so I could see

So in my mind the week runs from Monday to Sunday, so that's how I will be planning meals. Feb. 5th, Monday- Bison meatloaf with mashed potatoes and broccoli Feb. 6th, Tuesday- Tuna salad with spring greens mix and sliced tomato Feb. 7th, Wednesday- Shrimp hibachi with mixed vegetables and rice Feb. 8th, Thursday- Spaghetti bake with leftover bison meatloaf Feb. 9th, Friday- Uncured beef hot dog with homemade sauerkraut Feb. 10, Saturday - Hamburger with lettuce and tomato, served with pan fries-updated Feb. 11, Sunday- Pan Seared chicken breast w/ mashed potatoes, green beans and pan gravy-updated I don't bother listing breakfast and lunch since that usually consists of : -on workdays Breakfast - cold cereal with dried fruit an raw milk, Lunch - juice, banana, apple, peanut butter, or what leftovers happen to be around. -on weekends Brunch - eggs, bacon/sausage, pancakes or oatmeal Feb. 12, Monday - Minestrone Soup and a slice of uncured ham, heated on the cast i

This weekend was exciting! My youngest son has moved down to this area over  the weekend with his girlfriend. They drove from Boston, Ma to here in South Carolina all in one day! That's young people for you!  Guilt warning: We took them, along with my daughter who already lives in the area to dinner Sunday evening. I wish I could have had them all over to our home for a meal But alas, our abode is too small and over-furnished. So we ate at the local Chinese buffet. Next time we get together for a meal, even if we have to set up the camp shelter, we're eating at home. It's more fun to eat at home and the cost difference is incredible. Plus having control of the ingredients served means healthier food.  Yesterday, a Monday, I took Mom shopping then picked up my son and his girl so they could spend time with each other. Went to Tropical Smoothie Cafe and everyone got a smoothie, then got one to take to Joe at his work.  So there's my sin. I ate dinner out