Foods I eat today... that I NEVER ate 10 years ago

Prunes (dried plums)
Sauerkraut
Sweet Potatoes
Avocado
Coconut Oil
Sprouted Bread
Brown Eggs
Raw Milk
Kefir
Kombucha
Garlic
Sunflower seed butter
Raw almonds
Hummus
Blue tortilla chips
Kale
Homemade Vegetable juice
Red beets
Squash
Grass-fed organic beef
Flax seed oil
Raw honey
Oat Flour
Buckwheat Flour
Rice Flour
Cilantro

I have been thinking about this lately. Over the past 6 years our eating habits have changed a lot at our house. It started really small with things like buying Natural Peanut Butter instead of the kind with sugar in it. And each month things changed a little more. The time it takes to research, plan ahead and actually find good quality food is CRAZY. I remember going into 3 different stores looking for Tahini when I was trying to make hummus for the first time. I didn't even know where to look. When I realized how much better sweet potatoes were for you than white potatoes I would buy them more often, but still bought white potatoes too. And I didn't really eat the sweet potatoes (only Justin and Cameron liked them at first). But, now I won't even buy white potatoes! We are blessed to have a local, organic, Amish farmer to buy all of our dairy, meat, and eggs from. And in the summer months we get our fruit and vegges from him too.
A few years ago I didn't like sauerkraut or squash (Yuck!) Now I eat sauerkraut daily and I love spaghetti squash!!!
Four years ago, I had no idea what hummus was. People would talk about it, and I was completely clueless. Now I make my own, and we love it!

Almost all of the foods listed above were foreign to me at one time. Things like prunes, kefir, and raw milk, I was sure I wouldn't like them. I had never tried them in my life, but I was somehow convinced that they would be gross! But, believe me, they are not gross at all. They are really, really good!

So for all of you on a journey to better health, better eating habits, don't give up!! When we add up all the small steps we take, it makes a BIG difference. And years down the road you and your body will thank you for taking the time.

Seeing through eyes of LOVE

http://www.lightsource.com/ministry/joel-osteen-ministries/?gclid=CMOOiYjVkKICFQ0hDQodXQgb-A/

This is a really great message that I listened to today, I thought I would share the link with you all. If you have 20 minutes while your doing dishes, or folding laundry, take a moment and listen. You'll be glad you did.

(Just highlight and copy the link and then paste it into your web browser and click on it.)

What have I been making lately??????

Kefir is a fermented milk drink. The word kefir is said to have originated from the Turkish word "Keif" which means "good feeling". Kefir dates back many centuries to the shepherds of the Caucasus Mountains who carried milk stored in leather pouches where it would ferment into fizzy sour yoghurt.

Elie Metchnikoff, a Nobel-prize winning biologist at the Pasteur Institute, first suggested that lactobacilli might counteract the putrefactive effects of gastrointestinal metabolism in 1908. He attributed the long and healthy life of the people of the Caucasus Mountains to their consumption of soured milk. In modern times there's a great deal of interest and research into probiotics and the health giving properties of fermented milks like kefir.

The Kefir Culture

There are two types of kefir: water kefir - small transparent grains that ferment sweetened water; and milk kefir - white or cream coloured grains that look rather like cauliflower florets that ferment milk.

Kefir is a living culture, a complex symbiosis of more than 30 microflora that form grains or cauliflower-like structures (sometimes called plants) in the milk. As the culture ferments the milk these structures grow, creating new grains in the process. Real kefir from live culture is an endlessly self-propagating process.

Microorganisms present in the grains include lactic acid bacteria, Lactococcus lactis subsp. lactis, Streptococcus thermophilus, Lb delbrueckii subsp. bulgaricus, Lb helveticus, Lb casei subsp. pseudoplantarum and Lb brevis, a variety of yeasts, such as Kluyveromyces, Torulopsis, and Saccharomyces, acetic acid bacteria among others. They give kefir excellent keeping qualities by keeping putrifying bacteria that might otherwise colonise the milk at bay. They've been shown to inhibit both salmonella and E. Coli in laboratory tests.

Kefir and Health

Kefir has many reputed health benefits. It has antibiotic and antifungal properties. It's been used in the treatment of a variety of conditions, including metabolic disorders, atherosclerosis, and allergies, tuberculosis, cancer, poor digestion, candidiasis, osteoporosis, hypertension, HIV and heart disease. You might find it odd that that a drink containing yeasts would be good for treating candidiasis but it has been helpful to many people, both by restoring a better balance to the gut flora and because some elements of the microflora will kill off Candida Albicans. Not all yeasts are harmful.

In addition to beneficial bacteria and yeast, kefir contains many vitamins, minerals, amino acids and enzymes. Particularly calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, B2 and B12, vitamin K, vitamin A and vitamin D. Tryptophan, one of the essential amino acids abundant in kefir, is well known for its relaxing effect on the nervous system. Because kefir also has an abundance of calcium and magnesium, also important minerals for a healthy nervous system, kefir in the diet can have a particularly calming effect on the nerves.

The abundance of enzymes brings more health benefits, especially to lactose intolerant people, many of whom can tolerate kefir without difficulty, as long as the kefir is raw and not cooked (cooking destroys the enzymes).

Bonus

This week I added a BONUS to the kids chore charts. I add bonuses once in awhile for the kids to have a chance to earn some money or privileges. So the Bonus is this: Clean up the kitchen after dinner (table, dishes, counters, everything). This is a Bonus, so it is optional and only one kid can choose it each day, they have to tell me by 4pm if they want to do it. What do they get if they do it? 30 minutes of computer time.
So today right after school, Jalen tells me he wants to clean up the kitchen today after dinner. So now it is after dinner, he looked at the kitchen, table, counters, and he said, "Oh, this is way more than I thought." I said, "You can do it, I believe in you." It took him 5 minutes to get over the shock of how much work it is to clean up after dinner. He's now been working for 40 minutes and doing a great job, no complaining even. Computer time over here is priceless.

Success Happens when Preparation meets opportunity

"How often do we "sit in the wings" of life, wishing we were doing more, believing that we have more in us, waiting for our big moment? Yet if opportunity were to knock on our door, we might not even be ready. If you are really believing and expecting that big things will happen, you have to put action behind your faith and live your life ready to make the most of every opportunity. I've heard it said that success happens when preparation meets opportunity. That's why it is important to use and develop your gifts and talents so when opportunity presents itself, you will have the confidence to walk through those open doors."
"Don't put your life on hold until the big moment, start today. Every day lived well is one day closer to accomplishing your dreams. Start using what you have and doing what you know how to do, and God will open the door to new opportunity."

Hi friends, I just wanted to encourage my readers today! Live Well, Don't Wait any longer to make the changes that you know you need to make. Take a step today! Stretch yourself, do what God has been telling you to do, don't put it off any longer!