Real Food Week 2 - Beverages

This week's real food challenge focused on beverages: "Beverages will be limited to coffee, tea, water, and milk (only naturally sweetened with a little honey or 100% pure maple syrup). One cup of juice will be allowed throughout the week, and wine (preferably red) will be allowed in moderation (an average of one drink per day)."

Water - Wow! I have a lot of work to do. I don't drink enough water daily. I know water has so much value and that proper hydration provides so many benefits to the body. Just look on the internet about the value of drinking sufficient water daily. So why don't I get enough water daily? NO EXCUSE! So, I will continue to work on drinking at least 8 cups of plain old water daily over these 100 days. Hopefully, by the end, I will have established a good habit. Instead of eating at night when I feel hungry, I choose to drink water. Sometimes, the body really isn't hungry but simply dehydrated.

Coffee - I need to cut back on my coffee intake. I drink at least 12 ounces daily, sometimes more. Again, I am choosing to drink more water rather coffee. Last week, Starbucks started offering the Flat White.

I fell in love with Flat Whites while visiting my daughter in New Zealand a number of years ago. I have seen it in a few speciality coffee shops here in the USA since, so I was intrigued to see how Starbucks would do Last week, I drank my first American Flat White, compliments of Starbucks. The milk's texture is less velvety than I recall in a true Kiwi Flat White. While pricy, it was tasty and held the texture while drinking it. This first was pretty good. And no, a Flat White is not the same thing as a small latte or caffe latte. Wonder if we will start seeing Long Blacks soon here in the USA. The thing about it: I don't know if there's a correlation but later in the day, I had a little bout of vertigo. The next day I realized my heart was experiencing PVCs, something I hadn't experienced in a number of years. Maybe the Flat White and its two shots of espresso had something to do with my PVCs, maybe they didn't. I didn't drink or eat anything caffeinated that next day and the following day, I had no PVCs when I listened to my heart through my stethoscope. Either way, I'm definitely cutting back on my caffeine, past this second week. 

Soda Pop - YAY! I dropped this back in 2006. The only time I drink pop is root beer when it's mixed with ice cream, which happens about once a year. So glad that I'm not fighting this one.

Wine - I don't drink wine or alcohol, except maybe 10 times/year. So, YAY! Alcohol is not a problem in my real food challenge.

Milk - My family switched to organic milk about a year ago. My husband and I go through a half gallon about every 2 weeks or so. I like milk with my cereal and my coffee. So this is another YAY! Not a problem.

Juice - I tend to eat my juice by eating fruit. Another YAY! No problem.

Bottom line: Less coffee, more water!

Brevity of Life

I woke up this morning and leaped out of bed with full resolve to start my day well by eating a healthy breakfast, having a good time alone with God, and working out with my buddy, Dolvett. 

 Then I felt it.

 The odd beating again in my heart.  I sat down with my mom's stethoscope and listened to the beating of my heart.  Yep, the PVCs.  

I had these back in 2010 and they disappeared in 2012 after working hard on getting active, eating healthy, and generally taking care of myself.  That they should pop up again....where's the dislike button!  

Then it hit me....I'm 59 years old.  I really could be gone in the next 10 years.  Okay, be positive, I told myself and make it 20 years.  10 years! 20 years!

It's odd how that seems like a long time, yet it seems so short.  My next thought was:  only 10 years to study my Bible, to know it, to store in the recesses of my heart.  Only 10 years to make a difference in the lives around me!  Only 10 years to get my house in order (I better clean out my junk drawers) and get rid of ALL the junk in my home.  I don't want my family burdened with MY junk.  Only 10 (Lord, I hope it's way more) years to enjoy my future grandchildren and to know them and have them know me a little.  

I recall to mind how My sovereign Lord is in charge of my life.  Job 14:5 (NLT) says
" You have decided the length of our lives.
     You know how many months we will live, 
      and we are not given a minute longer."

God knows!  The God who keeps the universe in order, the God of the tiny atom and its smaller parts, the God who cares about each detail of my life, the God who loves me perfectly, wisely, graciously, and faithfully.  I could keep adding adjectives here for the next 10 years and it would only scratch the surface of who God is.  So I rejoice in knowing that this life is short and that one day, in God's perfect timing, I will be with Him for eternity because I know Jesus Christ, His Son, who died for my sins, and who rose again and is now interceding on my behalf and is walking with me through each day.  

Jesus Christ is my Saviour, Lord and God.  John 3:16 says, " For God so loved the world that He is his only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him shall not perish but have everlasting life".  I believe and trust Jesus Christ as my Saviour.  Do you?  If you don't, won't you ask Him today to be your Saviour?  

Real Food Week 1 - Fruits and Veggies

I'm glad this 14 week challenge has started on a positive note, to eat more fresh fruit and vegetables, at least two per meal.   I thought it would be a piece of cake (haha) to accomplish this week's goal.  I love fruit and have no trouble meeting my daily requirement of fruit.

However, one take-away from this week's challenge was the realization that I don't really eat a wide variety of quality vegetables on a daily basis.   Yes, I eat a lot of organic spring mix, organic romaine lettuce.  In fact, my family and friends say I make a great salad, all with fresh ingredients.  I like my salads.  But.....there is a vast world of vegetables that I never seem to get around to eating.  Even staples, like broccoli and green beans, aren't making it to my plate enough.

When I signed up for the challenge through the FaceBook site, I discovered a group of local women who were looking for support in cutting out processed food.  One woman told me of an online source for local organic fruit and vegetables.  With a 50% off coupon, I gave the company a try.  In the middle of a raging snowstorm, a beautful box of fruits and veggies arrived at my door.  There were two grapefruit in the box.  Oh my goodness!!! Such sweetness I haven't tasted in grapefruit in a long time.  The organic bananas were fabulous.  The green peppers and romaine lettuce were fresh.  Swiss chard.....tasty!  I'm still eating through the box.

 My husband, bless him, brought home some fabulous green beans at the beginning of week one.  He decided to join Weight Watchers online and is doing his part of helping us eat real food.  He prepared a delicious meal of broiled salmon, roasted potatoes, peppers, onions and asparagus.

So bottom line,  I need to continue working on eating my veggies that aren't salad fixings.

100 days of real food

I am choosing to take the 100 day challenge (14 weeks) of cutting out processed foods this year. I've been following Lisa's blog at 100 days of real food for a couple years. This is my first challenge through her blog. Each week there is one challenge to try to follow.  I'm diving in.

One Word 2015

A couple years ago, it was suggested that you pick one word to describe your goals for the coming year. My word for 2011 was "Grow".2012 was "Faithful" 2013 was "Healthy" and 2014 was "Joyful".

 My word for 2015 is "Kind".

 Ephesians 4:32 says, Be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you.

 Kind encompasses how we think, what we says, how we act. FaceBook and other social media are overloaded with unkind comments and pictures. Hop in your car and you quickly see unkind behavior from other drivers. Look at the news: just think what simple kindness would do to mitigate the strife and conflict so ever present in the news. Kindness can be an act of the will when the mind is struggling to catch up. The best kindness is the kindness that outflows from a heart filled with gratitude for who Jesus Christ is and what He has done for me; kindness doesn't cost anything financially and is an act of worship to God, as I choose to be kind regardless of my circumstances.


 "The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit. Let us not become boastful, challenging one another, envying one another.

 Kind - My word for 2015

 If you were to pick one word for 2015, what word would you pick? Have you considered joining the community at One Word 365?

More or Less for 2015

1. More reading and less TV.
2. More saving and less spending.
3. More vegetables and less sugar.
4. More prayer and less complaining.
5. More faces and less Facebook.
6. More exercise and less sitting.
7. More water and less other drinks.
8. More space and less clutter.
9. More creating and less consuming.
10. More praising and thanking and seeing God, and less self-serving and criticizing and being anxious.