Feb 6 2010

love {6}

I love my family. When my family was falling apart, I depended on my aunts and uncles to help guide me and help me. They stepped up and encouraged me. They helped me see goodness when I could not see it myself. I remember calling my aunts and asking for help. The relationships we have developed as I have grown are so cherished by me. When I was my little boys age, I used to look at them and think how old they were. Now I feel like we are all the same age, they just have more knowledge of life and living than me.


Feb 5 2010

love {5}

I love the color (or absence of color) white.

It is soothing unlike any other color. I love waking up to a new snow and breathing the fresh crisp air. Just like I love waking up to white sandy beaches and breathing the salty sea air.

Or the clean smell of a bar of soap with and abundance of happy floating bubbles.

White calms my soul and cheers me.


Feb 4 2010

love {4}

I love the way they play together.

Above is not a great example of it. She is in the basket.

He wants to hold her all the time. She is happier if he is near. He asks to hold her everyday and if he hasn’t gotten to in a day, he will cry. He likes her best in just a onsie or a diaper. She does too.

She is getting heavier and harder for him to hold, but he still tries. He loves to love her.


Feb 3 2010

love {3}

This is JJ and potato blossoms. Potatoes fresh from the garden are so good. Did you know you can plant the ones that are growing legs in your pantry. That is what these blossoms are from.

I love The Seed Savers Exchange. They have a million kinds of seeds and a farm out in the middle of somewhere you can go and sample the produce. Oh, how I would love to be there during tomato season to taste all the amazing varieties. They have all sorts of them. Green ones, purple ones, striped ones. So much heavenly goodness.

This year I placed our order early so that I could get the peas that we love. Here is our current list of goodness:

Eden’s Gem Melons
Rosemary
Russian Tarragon
Jacob’s Cattle Gold Beans
Painted Pony Beans
Poona Kheera Cucumbers
Kenearly Yellow Eye Beans
Anise
Genovese Basil
Fin de Bagnol Beans
Amish Snap Peas
Blacktail Mountain Watermelon

I can hardly wait to get started this year.


Feb 2 2010

love {2}

Shoesday continues. Have you heard of 6pm.com. I heart them. Kateka hates when I say that.

6pm.com sells shoes that are not selling well at Zappos.com for a discounted price. I love to peruse their selection of Simple, Keens, Pikolino Boots and shoes for Gentry. Of course, Gentry has opinions about this sort of thing and wants to wear the ugliest thing available. Preferably with IronMan or blinking lights or the best option would be some hideous thing that contains both. It is a battle.

I would love to get him these cute Keens. He had some last summer that he never wore though. So maybe we can compromise and get a pair of semi-hideous Crocs.


Feb 1 2010

love {1}

I thought I would write about things I love this month. One thing everyday.

mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm

Have you smelled this?

I know it is so late 90s. But a friend got me some for my birthday this year, along with a pair of naughty underwear that I have not put my pregnant and recovering rear in.

Anyway, back to the lotion.  I have relished it. It is so delicious.

You can get it at Victoria’s Secret.


Feb 1 2010

22 – the end

This detox is a lot more complex than I originally thought. I think though, that if you take some of the advice your quality of life with be greatly increased.

Day 22: Include high quaility Omega-3 fish oil, specifically EPA and DHA, in your diet. Fish oils benefit heart health, diabetes, depression, and even brain development. When it comes to detoxification, EPA and DHA have the ability to be incorporated into cellular membranes, thus improving cell function.

Day 23: Reduce you your consumption of sugar (substitute stevia, honey, xylitol, or agave nectar) and consume more complex carbyhydrates. In addition, you should eat less meat and, when you do, make sure it hormone-free, organically grown meat.

Day 24: Eat ample amounts of fresh, brightly colored fruits and vegetables, when have naturally occuring antioxidants that act as direct antioxidants and support the production of glutathione. These antioxidants include vitamin C (asorbic acid), carotenes (such as lycopene and lutein), polyphenols, and dozens of other phytochemicals.

Day 25: Eat 1/2 cup per day of cruciferous vegetables, which include broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cauliflower, cabbage, collard greens, and rapini. These vegetables contain a number of important nutrients, making them extremely beneficial for general health. They are high in vitamin C and soluble fiber, but, more impressively, they contain multiple nutrients with well-known anticancer properties. These include diindolylmethane, sulforaphane, and selenium.

Day 26: Eat one clove of garlic per day and a handful of cooked onions. Onions and garlic are rich in a variety of organic sulfur compounds. Sutdues show both of these vegetables help lower blood pressure and cholesterol levels, regulate blood sugar, and provide antibiotic effects.

Day 27: And orange a day keeps the doctor away. Lemons, oranges, and limes have had a long history of use for internal cleansing, and are high in vitamin C and bioflavonoids, phytochemicals and powerful antioxidant effects. These compounds can quench free radicals and thus support the body’s detoxification pathways.

Day 28: Eat red fruits. Pomegranante, raspberries, and strawberries contain ellagic acid, a phenolic compound that has some excellent detoxification properties. Ellagic acid not only acts as an antioxidant, it also has liver-protective effects. Some research suggest that ellagic acid may help prevent cancer.

Day 29: Eat 1/2 cup (combined) of liver-friendly foods. Artichokes, dandelions, and beets have all been shown to help move bile more efficiently. Bile is produced in the liver and stored in the gallbladder. One of the important functions of bile is to move toxins from the liver to the gallbladder and eventually into the duodenum. Artichokes contain cynarin, which not only improves the flow of bile in the liver, but also helps lower cholesterol. Dandelion has a long history of use in liver conditions and has been shown to enhance the movement of bile from both the liver and the gallbladder. Animal studies have also show dandelion to significantly increase the clearance of toxins. Beets also improve detoxification.

Day 30: Drink at least 8-ounce glasses of purified water daily. Science tells us that the human body is anywhere from 55 to 75 percent water, depending on body size. To function properly, you need to replace the water lost through sweat and urination on a daily basis. Although our recommendation is for eight 8-ounce glasses per day, the precise amount depends on the level of activity, temperature, humidity, and other factors.

Day 31: Get your beauty sleep. It turns out that not getting seven to eight house of sleep per night can have some serious health consequences. In a landmark study at the University of Chicago, researchers found that people that slept 6.5 hours or less had a 50 percent increase in the insulin blood levels compared to those that 7.5 to 8.5 hours per night. Make sure that you get your eight house of sleep each night to ensure optimally functioning physiology and improved detoxification.