Calm in the storm

I do. And rightly so. We are preparing for a career change, a location change, a home change, a life change - the first one in our three years as Hubs and Feath.

I have resigned myself to the fact that my apartment will never be spotlessly clean until May 31st when it is empty. I know this because my car is loaded with numerous flattened boxes that are just waiting for me to find space in the crowded apartment. Once they make their way up the three flights of stairs, the apartment will never look the same.

It's a weird feeling. Life is still normal because we aren't moving for another 7 weeks, yet life is not normal because we are moving in a short 7 weeks. Decisions hang in the air. Plans are yet to be made. Yet, regular life is still going on. Leaving the life you know and love is so exciting, yet so draining.

That's why, in the midst of all the pressure, all the stress, and all the overwhelmingness, we are going to a place where we don't have to do anything.

We can lay by the beach. We can lay by the pool. We can sit and read. We can go for a walk. We can hike. But, we don't have to do anything. And we won't feel like we need to see or do something, because we've been there before. It is the perfect, relaxing vacation in one of the most beautiful places on earth.

Until then, I'll be thinking of boxes and graduation; tape guns and moving details. I'll be leaving my job to start a new adventure. Leaving our comfort zones, to stretch our wings.

I'm excited - for the move, and the vacation.

Thank you!

I started this blog 1 year ago today. Can you believe it?

Throughout the past year, I have blogged so much (260+ posts), yet about so little. So, thank you for sticking with me, reading my posts, and even more, for commenting.

Now, let's take a journey through the past year...


...or not. Life has become busy and overwhelming and, sadly, I have not had much time for blogging. Nor have I had any sequential, logical thoughts to conform into a blog post.

I will be back; sooner, rather than later.

Our News.

It is official...




We've been talking about it secretly for a week now...





I'm so excited. So is Hubs...





It came as a surprise...





A passing thought...





It turned into reality...





When, today, we booked two tickets to...


HAWAII!

Foreign Foods

High Fructose Corn Syrup & Hydrogenated Oils.

These two substances are absolutely foreign to our bodies. They have no nutritional value. They were invented for the sole purpose of allowing normal, perishible foods to sit on the shelf for up to 12 years.

Yummy.

Think of the foods we need to stay healthy and live. Water: God provided us with plenty of that. Vegetables: God made those. Fruits: God made those. Animals: God made those. Everything He provided has nutritional value and necessity.

Think of the foods we eat a lot of. Pop: man made that. Packaged cookies: man made that. Potato chips in a sack: man made that. Hardly any (if any) nutritional value.

I haven't wiped out those un-nutritious foods from our home (do you really think I could stay away from ice cream?). But, I have tried to buy more wholesome options.

For example, I've switched to this:

And, I love it. There are 5 ingredients, all real things. The consistency is more liquid than normal peanut butter because the partially hydrogenated vegetable oil is absent. The taste, however, is delicious and I have been eating it almost everyday. I haven't baked with it yet, but considering this is what they used to use in the olden days, I am not too concerned.

So, try to eat less foreign foods and more real foods. That is what you body needs and wants.

I don't think it is about losing weight or being thin, anymore. It's about eating and living healthy lifestyles.

Information taken from "Eat Well! Live Well!" by Pamela Smith, RD.

Oils & Fats

You should have 2 main oils in your home for cooking: Olive Oil & Organic Canola Oil.

Olive Oil should be the oil used most often and in low-heat cooking; the best to use is extra-virgin olive oil (EVOO). EVOO is derived from the first pressing of the olives and has the most delicate flavor and most antioxidant benefits. It is one of the most healthy foods, protecting against degenerative diseases and heart disease. The mediterranean diet is very high in olive oil (it is their primary fat intake), and interestingly enough, these people are the most healthy and live the longest. But, do remember, it is a fat and should not be consumed in great quantities.

Organic Canola Oil should be used when cooking at high heat and, of course, when baking. Even thinking about brownies with olive oil makes me cringe! Canola Oil does not have all the health benefits of olive oil

Both of those oils are monounsaturated fats and should make up no more than 20% of your total fat intake.

Examples of polyunsaturated fats are liquid vegetable oils and should make up no more than 10% of your total fat intake.

Saturated fats include animal foods and coconut and palm oils and should make up no more than 7% of your total fat intake.

And, trans fats are things such as shortening, margarine, crackers, and cookies and should make up not more than 3% of your total fat intake.

Information taken from Dr. Low Dog.

Organic or not?

I'll admit that I've always thought the whole "organic food" thing was a little ridiculous. I mean, I buy smart chicken because I like it better, but other than that, my cart steers clear of the organic section.

Then, I heard about a study that took blood from 10 newborns' umbilical cords . You would think newborn babies' blood should be pure and clean, right? An average of 200 industrial chemicals and pollutants were found; a total of 287 different chemicals between the 10 babies. Of those 287 chemicals, 180 cause cancer, 217 are toxic to the brain and nervous system, and 208 cause birth defects and abnormal development.

Now, I am not naive enough to believe that all those toxins came from food. Nor am I putting myself on a rigid organic diet. There is some produce, however, that we should just buy organic because we can't get rid of the pesticides by simply washing.

By the way, until 2 weeks ago I never, ever washed my non-organic produce before eating it!
There is a more complete list, but I think this one simplifies it pretty well. Keep in mind that pesticides cling to the fuzziness of peaches. Fruit with a rind or peel (cantaloupe and bananas)aren't a big deal because you eat the inside. Berries are hard to rid of pesticides, too.

I checked out our organic produce area this past weekend. Sadly, they had only 2 cartons of organic strawberries and no organic grapes or berries. The organic apples are delicious, though. I know I can't keep out all the toxins, and I know I can't buy everything organic; but I am going to check out our organic section more often and even purchase more organic items in the future.

Let me know if you are interested in the larger list of produce you should buy organic.

Information taken from Dr. Low Dog.

April Fools

This morning I turned on the wii fit and my balance board (on the screen) was wearing a funny hat. Odd. THen it told me, "Balance...board...not...responding...no...signal..." Hm.

Seconds later, it popped up and said, "Just kidding. April fools!"

It scares me how smart that thing is sometimes.

-------------------------------------------------------

Hubs and I are headed out of town, again. Which means no access to a computer and therefore no blog posts for 4 days. Gasp.

Wait, it's okay. I have good news!

For those two of you who will miss reading the Feather Files, I am still going to post. But, instead of it being all about Hubs and Feath, you will get little health and nutrition tidbits that I picked up at the dental conference.

I hope you enjoy them, but if you don't, I'll be back on Monday.