Honest Scrap Blogger Award

Many thanks to Joy of Joy in the Morning and Cory of Searching for God in the everyday for awarding me with a wonderfully lovely blogger award, "Honest Scrap."

In order to keep the award I must do the following:

1. Say thank you the the presenter and link to her blog.
2. Share 10 honest things about myself
3. Present this blog award to 7 others whose blogs are worth visiting.
   

10 Honest Things
1) I still often crave Diet Pepsi, even a year after giving it up.
2) In 2nd grade I began getting stomachaches at school - I was so homesick for my mom.
3) I spend too many evenings in front of television.
4) I just finished lunch by eating 5 No Bake Cookies, followed by two slices of freshly baked bread.
5) I sometimes wish the bedroom which Ben and Kyle share had a lock - on the outside knob.
6) It's nearly impossible for me to keep my eyes open past 9:30 PM these days.
7) I recently discovered that I am totally intimidated by using fresh herbs. I need a recipe - tell me how much, and exactly how to use them. Instructions!
8) I am really struggling with the thought of moving twice. Not to mention the fact that we don't have a place to rent yet.
9) I've found that I have a hard time with holding grudges. Or at the very least...I forgive but make sure that I don't forget.
10) I had a really hard time coming up with 10 honest (and interesting) things!

And now for the nominees ~
Paige
Jeff
Trish
Traci
Ami
Brigetta
Deb

"Not me!" Monday

Hey all - that's right, it's Monday again, and as I am no longer recovering from a recent beach vacation, I'm participating in "Not me!" Monday. This is a blog carnival invented by MckMama over at My Charming Kids. Please stop by her blog and find out for yourselves how fabulous she is!

I certainly didn't look on longingly as my children gobbled up the last of my Rapunzel chocolate bars. Nope, it didn't make me in the least bit sad to see them go. I do not crave chocolate, ever, and I would never begrudge my children of the only candy bars that I know of which are made with Rapadura. No way. I would never be that selfish....

I'm definitely not slightly obsessed with re-viewing the special features for all of Peter Jackson's Lord of the Rings films. I do not turn the DVD on while doing pilates, rolling out pasta, peeling carrots, folding laundry, and....er....blogging. No....definitely not.

There is no way that I determined to practice up at MarioKart for the Wii, and spent a good portion of Sunday afternoon honing my skills. Absolutely not. Because I feel no humiliation whatsoever when my 6-year-old creams me, time after time. Not even the day that he kindly offered to tutor me in MarioKart.

On Saturday morning, I did absolutely not bring home a flat of blueberries, a box of peaches, lettuce, cauliflower, carrots, onion, tomatoes, and corn on the cob. Two days before we get our CSA basket? Surely I'd have more self-control than that. I mean, as great as the Farmers' Market is, will we really be able to eat all that plus what's in our basket this week?

And finally, I am not choosing to blog when I could be cleaning house in preparation for tomorrow's house appraisal. Uh, no. That doesn't sound like me, at all...

halving a cow

Technically...our portion was a quarter.

While attending an event from my homeschooling co-op, I was blessed to come across someone interested in splitting a half of grass-fed, grass-finished beef. She had worked with this farmer before, knew how things worked, and was willing to handle things for our end of it. I was thrilled beyond words - and have been practically drooling at the thought of it ever since.


Today was pick-up day! Now we are lousy with London broil, arm roasts, rump roasts, ground beef, T-bone steaks, stew meat, and more.


To read more about why we choose grass-fed beef, click HERE.
And to read about the significance of grass-finished beef, click HERE.

It seems that this is one of those many times when using traditional methods (such as letting cows eat grass instead of feeding them, say, corn products) makes for an exponentially healthier and more nourishing product. And I for one, intend to enjoy every single bite.

We're having steak this week!

"Don't eat fruit naked."

This advice comes from Jordan Rubin, author of "The Maker's Diet," "Perfect Weight America," and a score of other health/diet books. (I use diet in the sense of what we eat, as opposed to food restriction.)

"Don't eat fruit naked."

This refers not to one's clothing, of course, but how we eat our fruit. Mr. Rubin suggests that when we eat fruit by itself, it causes an insulin spike (much like when we eat other sweets alone). Eating foods such as fruit and refined carbohydrates by themselves causes blood sugar to increase, and insulin is released into the body.

Excess insulin is known to cause:

• Weight gain, since insulin promotes the storage of fat
  
• Lower cellular levels of magnesium, a mineral that is essential for keeping your blood vessels relaxed and your blood circulation efficient
  
• An increase in sodium retention, which leads to holding excess water in your system, which causes high blood pressure
  
• Increased amounts of inflammatory compounds in your blood, which can cause direct physical damage to your blood vessel walls and encourage the development of blood clots which can lead to heart attacks and respiratory failure
  
• A reduction in HDL cholesterol, an increase in undesirable small molecules of LDL cholesterol, and an increase in triglycerides, all of which increase your risk for heart disease
  
• Possibly a higher risk for cancer due to insulin's ability to contribute to cell proliferation (source)

A simple way to avoid this problem is to make a habit of eating fruit, or any other simple carbohydrate, with a fat or fiber. I can't access my books right now, but if I remember correctly, this slows the absorption of sugar into the body. It's kinder and gentler to the system.

Slather real butter on your bread. Toss a handful of nuts with your peaches. Eat strawberries topped with raw cream. Drizzle plenty of extra virgin olive oil on your pasta. one of my favorite snacks is apple slices smeared with peanut butter.

These kinds of foods are delicious as well as traditional. People have been eating these way for ages and ages. I'm so startled by the tendency to view new ideas about food as being so enlightened. Faithfully removing skins from our chickens, drinking low-fat milk, avoiding butter like the plague. Who are we to think we know better than people of older societies what's healthy? Especially when our nation is ravaged by sickness and disease.

But that's another post topic for another day. :)

Bella Beach bums

I can't resist posting just a few more pictures from our beach family reunion. These are provided courtesy of Uncle Russell (and used in this blog with his permission).
Thanks, Uncle Russ!

My smiley Kyle, enjoying what turned out to be the only sunny, warm day of our vacation.

Benjamin anticipating his dinner...

Owen "making out" with the glass in the front door (a passing walker got a great deal of amusement out of this, apparently).

Me, Owen, and Jeff by the fire pit behind the house

One of our group photos. We have such a great family ~ each and every one is a blessing. And I hope no one minds that I include this shot! I just love it. Notice Owen trying to escape from Ben's grasp on the bottom step. And Kyle was a bit distracted....

hit the beach!

We have arrived! This year the family reunion is at a sweet little place called Bella Beach. Yesterday the weather was absolutely stunning. Even though the air was a little cool, we all enjoyed our time down on the sand ~ especially watching the kids frolic.

Jeff and Benjamin, scoping out the water. Beautiful Pacific!

Kyle flirting with the waves.

Owen loves, loves, loves to play in the sand! He could not get enough of it. He just sat and played quietly for ages.

prelude to a vacation

Tomorrow we'll be hitting the road!

It's time for the annual July 4th family reunion, which we all love so much. To my knowledge, it's always, always been in central Oregon. But this year? We're hitting the beach! Central Oregon is lovely, but I am so excited about feeling some sand between my toes again. It's been way too long!

But first things first. Packing.

I've got the boys almost completely packed - minus toothbrushes and sleeping bags. Likewise for my own things. Jeff will take care of his suitcase himself. It's the miscellaneous stuff that's still hanging over my head: food, beach toys, sunscreen.

Today has been filled with additional preparations: cooking the beans for the dish I'm contributing to dinner Thursday night, making cookies to take along, finalizing my list of food items, cutting carrot sticks, making another batch of homemade deodorant (not specifically for vacation, I was just nearly out), getting all washed baby wipes ready to roll with our supply of diapers.

The boys are super excited about this trip - they are true beach bums. Benjamin has his personal backpack jam-packed with toys, CDs, etc. We have pirate music to listen to en route, as well as beach and pirate books. I think we're nearly ready to roll.

The place where we'll be staying does have internet access, and we're planning to bring the laptop along. So I just may treat you with some pics of the fun while we're still there! I make no promises, though. The first order of business is fun, family, and fellowship.

We are so blessed in the extended family God has given us. Every year we're reminded anew just what a great group of people to whom he's linked us. I know this year will be memorable as always!

Just gotta finish packing first...