13
Feb 2012

Meal Plan Monday

Jennie
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Monday ~ Rosemary chicken breasts, roasted potatoes, and peas

Tuesday ~ Stuffed peppers that we didn’t get to last week

Wednesday ~ Pork steaks and fries

Thursday ~ Chicken pot pie in the crockpot with biscuits

Friday ~ Pizza

Saturday ~ Val’s 3rd birthday!  Loaded nachos.

Sunday ~ Undecided for her party, but you can bet on cake :)

Category: Meal Planning  Leave a Comment
12
Feb 2012

Sunday Inspiration

Jennie

This week has been a trying one because my Grandma started showing us signs that she wouldn’t be with us much longer.  That was one week ago today, and my family took turns spending time at her side at the nursing home, telling stories about old times, and just being with one another.  On Wednesday, when she passed away her bedside was filled with the people whose lives and hearts she touched.  I had a waiting room filled with her legacy of great-grandchildren romping around, toddling, and cooing.  Yesterday was the services, and although it was filled with a lot of tears of her passing, it was also filled with the remembrance of the type of woman she was.  Strong, compassionate, fiesty, giving, a homemaker, a mother, a grandmother and great-grandmother, and a fighter right until the end.  My Grandma Mary – so grateful to have had the years I did with her because the impression she left on my heart will be there forever.

Sunday Inspiration Links~

*The wisdom of parenthood at the end of this post 

*You’re Gonna to Miss This

*12 Reasons to Homeschool

*100 Ways to your Marriage Rock

Category: Inspiration  Leave a Comment
10
Feb 2012

This Moment

Jennie
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Inspired by soulemama

{this moment} – A Friday ritual. A single photo – no words – capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

 

Category: Moments  Leave a Comment
07
Feb 2012

Interview with Beck about her coffee challenge. Join for a chance to win $200 worth of prizes!

Jennie
I have a great friend Beck who does crazy things.  Okay, so they aren’t that crazy but you know what I mean…. she eats a raw egg yolk instead of letting it drip on her counter, she drinks raw milk, she makes her own kombucha, ya know that kinda crazy. ;)  Now she wants to step it up a notch and stop drinking coffee…. see… told ya!
Do you already know you want in?  Give up your cup and get some FREE stuff at Wellness Hammock!
Tell us a little about yourself, Beck.
Well I like red wine and long walks on the beach…  hehe just kidding

I grew up in Minnesota, the oldest of 3 girls. My dad is an entrepreneur and it sort of rubbed off on me–I like the lots-of-work of starting a business versus working for someone else and trying to keep up to someone else’s standards.

When I was 18 I started having skin issues–a sign of detoxification–and I became very interested in healthy eating. I was very self-conscious about my skin, and slightly bitter because while I was concerned about what I ate, it seemed that all the other people who ate junk didn’t suffer. But everyone has their own constitution, and mine was sensitive to sugar, pasteurized dairy products, chemicals, etc. In a way i feel lucky because if I didn’t have sensitivity to the foods I ate back then, where would I be today?

I went to University for sociology and art (double major), graduated in 2003 and married Elav. We moved to Southern Illinois a week after we got married. With my degree, I had the limited choices of a) going for my masters or b) getting whatever job I could find, not in my field. I chose B because Elav was in school. I worked at a bank for 1 year and 8 months. The women and men I worked with ate McD’s, Burger King, and other fast food for lunch every day. And  almost every day they would complain about bloated stomachs, gas, or other gastrointestinal issues. I ate food I brought from home: full fat, animal protein, healthy vegetables and didn’t have health complaints. They kept eating their fast food, and I was an abnormality. I didn’t make many friends there :)
I was interested in health, but it wasn’t until 2009 when I went to my first Wise Traditions Conference in Chicago, IL that the light turned on and I knew I needed to teach health, not just live it. Wise Trad is 3 days of speakers, amazing food, vendors where you can buy raw milk, kombucha, ghee, cod liver oil, wild caught salmon and lots of other foods (usually at discount because of the convention). It’s all in 1 hotel so you sleep, eat, learn and do everything in the same place–no driving. It’s a whole convention where everyone was LIKE ME! I went to my 2nd one near Philidelphia in 2010 and shortly afterwards I started writing my blog (started out with realfoodbybeck.blogspot.com). I took a course through kevin brown (liberation wellness) that certified me as a health and wellness instructor. THat was enough to get doing health coaching, but I feel I need more.
This fall I plan to begin another program that will give me more hands-on holistic practice, I will be able to do more hands-on health coaching. (There are a couple distance-learning programs I’m looking at.)
I hear you are hosting a challenge on your blog – tell us about it.  Why should we join?
Yes, I’m hosting a challenge. Most challenges are about doing something, whereas mine is about not doing something. Drinking coffee, specifically. I always wanted to drink coffee; it was a grown-up thing to do. When I was 16, mom decided I was “legal” and took me out for a lattee at Lighthouse Coffee house in River Falls, WI (now has changed owners and is called The Dish and The Spoon Cafe). In college I drank whole pots of coffee during the day. I worked at the Whole Earth Grocery (a co-op) in River Falls and, as an employee, we could drink as much coffee as we wanted. I usually was nursing a warm cup every time I worked. The fact that it was always warm for a 6-8 hour shift should say something about how frequently I refilled.

So the challenge is a 28-day challenge. the goal (challenge) is to stay off coffee for 24 of those days. Seems pretty easy, right? I remember I went off coffee once and was a zombie for a week, I felt like I was viewing the world through a haze.

Why should you join? 
1. If you drink lots of coffee, have you ever tried to go off coffee? If no, you should join and test yourself. :)  

The goal of the challenge is not to go off coffee forever. The goal is to go off for 28 days–basically a short term detox from coffee. And during those 28 days, take note without judgement about what is happening in the body. 
Do you feel healthier? Cleaner? Grumpy? After the first week did waking up seem easier? Is it easier to fall asleep at night? Do you go to sleep earlier than usual? What about the 4 days you can drink coffee–do you have those specific dates planned out already? Are you looking forward to those 4 days even before you begin the challenge? Are those 4 days less important as the challenge gets underway? Do you “binge” on coffee during those 4 days or do you seem to enjoy each cup more than before? Is the craving for coffee more psychological or physical do you think?

What motivated you to have a coffee challenge?
I started thinking about having a challenge after Cheeseslave started the Kettlebell Challenge. I wanted to do something that would actually be a challenge. The thought of going off coffee (since that first attempt) came to me, and my heart nearly stopped. And I thought, “No. I can’t do that.” That’s when I decided to do it: it was the fact that I don’t want to do it that prompted me to write the challenge.

If something is that scary to quit (even temporarily!) why not try?
Are there any benefits to coffee?  
Some studies have shown positive effects of minimal coffee consumption: reduces the likelihood of developing Alzheimer’s disease and dementia later in life. The Pioneer Press ran an article about a study showing that women who drink coffee are less likely to be depressed.
What are the negative effects of it?
Some people are more sensitive to the effects of caffeine than others. Caffeine is a contributing factor to insomnia, anxiety, irritability and stomach problems. 

When a body consumes caffeine, the neurons in the brain start firing triggering the pituitary gland to secrete a hormone that tells the adrenals to produce adrenaline. Adrenaline is that rush athletes feel during a race or crossing the finish line, that rush that give you the courage to jump out of a perfectly fine airplane to skydive, the rush that pushed our hunter-gatherer ancestors to run away or fight animals. It’s our “fight-or-flight†mechanism.

So caffeine is putting my body into “fight-or-flight†for normal every day things, like waking up this morning (actually that is a fight) and later this afternoon. :)

If this is prolonged, the adrenals become exhausted and just plum give out on us. (FYI, I’m currently readingThe Help.) For women, this is detrimental because we need those adrenals when our ovaries “pass the baton†(as Nora Gedgaudas says) during menopause.


Explain your perfect cuppa coffee…
Oh an easy question!! :) A light roast Guatemalan coffee fresh roasted from the Whole Earth Grocery with enough raw cream to change the color to a light brown.
Will you be replacing your coffee with something else?  What would you recommend to others taking this challenge?
I’ll be replacing coffee with Teeccino and Dandy Blend, which can give the same taste and consistency of coffee. Also, I’ll be drinking herbal teas.

I’d recommend to plan ahead. If you know you have an addiction, be ready to weather out the worst. Use the challenge to form a support group–maybe even invite a friend to join the challenge with you. And take note of what is happening in the body (questions from above).

If you already know going without coffee will be a huge challenge for you, consider Crave Control Plus as a supplement that will help reduce your dependence on coffee.
WHO’S WITH ME AND SAYING NO TO CAFFEINE AND COFFEE FOR THE REST OF THE MONTH?
Go to Beck’s blog to sign up!  There are over $200 worth of prizes on the line here!
Category: Coffee, Friends, Health  Leave a Comment
06
Feb 2012

Meal Plan Monday

Jennie
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Monday ~ Hobo packets

Tuesday ~ Venison stew in the crockpot

Wednesday ~ Tandoori chicken

Thursday ~ Spaghetti, salads, garlic bread

Friday ~ Sloppy joes and tuna salad

Saturday ~ Shrimp stirfry and crab rangoons

Sunday ~ Stuffed peppers

For other meal ideas, visit The Org Junkie

Category: Meal Planning  Leave a Comment
30
Jan 2012

Meal Plan Monday

Jennie

{Photo Credit}

Monday ~ Chop Suey Hotdish

Tuesday ~ Chicken fajitas

Wednesday ~ Barbeque Chicken

Thursday ~ Kale quinoa with sweet potato tots

Friday~ Porkchops, mashed potatoes, and green beans

Saturday ~ Hobo packets with venison

Sunday ~ Jumbalaya 

Category: Meal Planning  Leave a Comment
29
Jan 2012

Sunday Inspiration

Jennie
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This past week I’ve been inspired by two friends, Beck and Stacy, and a little ball with a handle on it.  I’ve been working out and doing a kettlebell challenge, and even though it’s hard it’s been SO good too.  I had forgotten what it felt like to chisel out a little time for me in a day and what it feels like to sweat a little, have fatigued muscles, and feel the soreness from a hard workout.

I’m gonna be a buff mama!  :)

What’s been inspiring you?

Inspirational Links to share~

::Murphy’s Law for Mom’s

::A list of free classic children’s books on audio

::Upcycled boxes for cute fabric “baskets”

::Arnold’s 6 Secrets of Success

Category: Inspiration  Leave a Comment
25
Jan 2012

Don’t let yesterday use up too much of today!

Jennie

{Photo Credit}

Confession: The last few days around here have been less than peaceful.  It’s been a whirlwind with the toddler and lacking in compassion, love, and patience.

I can blame the craziness on things, but I’m not sure that it holds any weight.  Sure, she’s vying for attention now that she has a baby brother.  Sure, she’s on the verge of three and as I’ve heard three is so much worse than two.  Sure, she’s old enough to know better but still wants to test her limits.  Sure, she wants autonomy.

Really though, I’m the adult here and I can process all of this stuff going on.  I can be more aware of it all.  I can be present with her.  I can show her compassion, love, and patience so that she will show it back to me and others.

I can let go of yesterday.

I did when I went up to her this morning looked her in the eyes and said, “I love you.  You’re a cool kid.”  She smiled at me kind of shyly and then I pointed at her.  She pointed back and made a funny face.  We did this back and forth making faces and pointing all around in silence.  We made a connection, a silly little connection.

I’m ready to start anew.

Category: Motherhood, Peaceful Parenting  Leave a Comment
22
Jan 2012

Sunday Inspiration

Jennie
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{Photo Credit}

Oh baby, it’s been cold outside!  I’m talking negative numbers and even bigger negative numbers with the windchill, and I swear one day I could feel the cold breeze move through our old farm house.  So.. I’ve been inspired by comforting foods, reading or working with mugs of hot tea, and preparing for new projects around here (like goat kidding season).

What’s inspiring you lately?

::Coconut chocolate pie.  It’s easy with 4 ingredients and super rich and yummy!  It goes good with hot coffee. :)

::Oat bread by SouleMama.  Bread is a comfort food in my book and goes so good on the side of some soup.

::Thoughts on Meaningful Consumerism.  Don’t give up having beautiful things around you because you are afraid of being too much of a consumer.

::Join the kettle bell challenge with me!  It’s a good way to stay warm and fit this winter. ;)

Have a blessed Sunday!  Stay inspired, friends!

Category: Inspiration  Leave a Comment
16
Jan 2012

Meal Plan Monday

Jennie

So… I’m a little late posting my meal plan today but hey, it’s still Monday and I have my meals planned a month in advance so I know what’s for dinner tonight already.  :)  What are you eating this week?

Monday – Beef nachos with cheese, lettuce, and homemade jarred salsa.

Tuesday – Gluten free spaghetti and salads

Wednesday – Stuffed zucchini

Thursday – Autumn Sausage Casserole

Friday – Jumbalaya

Saturday – Venison steaks with mashed potatoes and steamed veggies

Sunday - Minestrone soup and homemade bread

Category: Meal Planning  Leave a Comment
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