Food

I couldn't think of what to title this post...in training, eating healthy, new adventure.  Blah... who knows!  All I know is that I'm learning and practicing some new habits with food.  I've said for awhile that I am a healthy eater which really meant that I ate decently healthy meals and then loved a dessert afterwards.  :-)  My meats were always lean and prepared well and I ate lots of fruits but my veggie intake was seriously lacking.  When I bake I like to use wheat flour, that's healthy right?!  Seriously, I have been trying to take care of my body for awhile now but I recently have a renewed interest.  I think it's called "baby weight."  YUCK!  The first time the weight literally just fell off.  This time it has hung around a bit too long.  Along with the baby weight I have been doing some reading and we have watched a few food documentaries on Netflix. 

I have made a few changes...

1.)  Thanks to Forks Over Knives I have decided to start a little vegetarian adventure.  I'm not saying that I won't ever eat meat again (I may eat it tomorrow) but my meals for the last 3 weeks have been meatless and I've really been enjoying it.  The really exciting part is not just that I'm not eating meat, but I am eating a TON of vegetables, which hasn't really happened before.  We used to have our 1 token vegetable at dinner and sometimes lunch would be a salad.  My lunch and dinner plates are now full of veggies! 

2.)  I have kicked a lot of processed foods out the door.  No more crackers, chips, cookies, etc.  I am still eating cereal/granola for breakfast because I can't find much else to eat (any whole food/plant strong suggestions?).  I am also still doing whole wheat pasta and the occasional slice of bread but that is pretty much it. 

3.)  This kind of goes with the above statement of no processed foods but desserts have been limited to one visit to the frozen yogurt store a week.  No more dessert after every meal. 

There are a couple of issues that I am still struggling with though...

1.)  I'm still learning what is healthy and what is not healthy.  The internet is full of information but it's the sorting of it that is the problem.  I recently read that Olive Oil was bad for you.  Everything I have ever read before said it was a healthy fat... that you should not over do.  This article said to stay away from olive oil like you stay away from sugar!  I've read a few other conflicting articles about other "healthy" choices. 

2.)  I'm also learning the difference between eating healthy and eating to lose weight.  Nuts and avocados may be really healthy and I happen to love them both but I'm not sure that they will help on the weight loss journey.  Since I have been eating so many fruits and veggies I have not started with the old standby of counting calories.  However, that may be happening soon..

3.)  I'm also having to acknowledge once again how many of my eating issues are born out of our culture and how I was raised.  Food has always been a reward, used for a celebration or even to make a bad day better.  If I am going to live a healthy lifestyle I can't continue to make food the focus.  We even caught ourselves tonight doing it.  I mentioned our recent trips to the yogurt store.  After dinner Mark spontaneously said we should go get some yogurt.  On the way over I asked him what had spurred the trip and he replied, "It's been a long week and we've both worked hard."  How do we avoid it?  What other ways can we destress/celebrate?  I'm thinking new clothes or pedicures for me!  :-)

I've lost 5 lbs since New Years (bye bye baby weight) and am hoping to lose some additional.  Even if I don't lose more, I'm enjoying the new foods and am hoping to stick with the veggies for awhile...we'll see.  I'm really wanting to do it for myself and my family.  I couldn't stand feeling like I didn't take care of myself so that I couldn't see this sweet face everyday!

Caroline's Sillies

Caroline's vocabulary and understanding of conversation has been growing like crazy.  The other day I asked her if she wanted lotion on and she replied, "I'm good." as in "No thanks Mom." It was so cute!

She has been calling me "mommy" for a long time but the other day I casuaaly mentioned in conversation with her that I liked when she called me mama.  It's been mama ever since!
She has also started to really enjoy her play kitchen. We have it in her room and lately she has been playing in there by herself. This afternoon Mark and I both spent some time in there watching her cook.

While playing with Mark she said, "I'm cooking you dinner. Be patient." Bah! It's so scary the things that they pick up!  When Mark first told me that she said that, I thought oh no, we have a sassy girl on our hands.  However, she said it a little bit later while she was cooking for me and it came out very sweetly!

While cooking with me, she brought me a play chocolate chip cookie. I asked her what kind it was and she said, "a polka dot cookie." I think they may have to be the new name.

Caroline Sings

Caroline has turned into a little song bird.  She is singing all the time which means we still occassionally get to hear some Christmas tunes!

Words

"My peoples" (as Caroline would say) and I run in a fairly tight little circle.  Our Sunday School class is a pretty close little group and then I am blessed enough to add a sister and brother in law in the mix.  I have been learning a lot lately about the importance of words but also the intent behind the words.  I ran across the verse/idea below on one of my favorite blogs today and am thinking that I need to be practicing this more often.  I think I may be talking a lot less!  :-)

"My wise friend Holly taught me years ago to put the ugly and unkind things through the Phillipians 4:8 test:
Is it true?
Noble?
Reputable?
Authentic?
Compelling?
Gracious?
The best, not the worst?
Beautiful, not the ugly?
Because these are the things God tells us to dwell on."

Rookie Mistake

I've made a rookie mistake with Libby.  Is she not my second child?!?  Poor girl (or poor mama depending on your perspective) does not take a bottle.  She only has love for me.  We have tried on and off over the past 5 months but have failed most every time.  The last few weeks I have told myself that this is going to happen.  I've got to be able to have a break at some point before she turns a year old!  Tonight we decided to try again and we took some extreme and sweet measures that enabled success!

Mark thought it would be best if he wore the sweater I had been wearing so he smelled like me!  I think they are both adorable!

Our second piece of the recipe that made success...Caroline's first prayer.  :-)  Libby was boohooing as Mark started to feed her.  As I was running around grabbing stuff to help Caroline get to bed, I asked her to pray for Libby and she actually did it!  Her sweet little prayer..."Dear God, Thank you for Libby.  Help her to feel better.  I love her. Amen."  My heart turned to mush and God's must have too because Libby stopped crying and took the bottle!  Thank you Jesus!

New mamas (and second timers too) don't make the rookie mistake. Give your baby a bottle.  Your husband, your babysitters, even your baby will thank you.  You will most definitely thank yourself.  Here's to another try with the bottle tomorrow night!

Howling Winds and a Tiny Voice

Last night the wind was holwing outside and there was a draft coming through the house.  Our church normally hosts 100 or so homeless on nights that are below 25 outside, as it was.  I'm assuming that since we just got through the holidays we were all a little behind in our game because we didn't have people in last night.  I think because I could hear the wind all night long I felt really bothered that people were living outside in the cold.  As I was laying in bed with Caroline doing our nightly routine I asked her who she wanted to pray for.  She said "ladybugs and butterflies"...while I was thinking homeless folks.  I talked with her about how cold it was outside and that some people didn't have homes and beds to sleep in like we did.  She caught on very quickly and said, "My peoples need jackets and blankets too.  It's cold outside."  She is 2 and 1/2 and it's very normal to claim everything as her own.  Mark and I always giggle when she says, "my people" as if she has a posse or something!  :-)  But it made me think...my people.  They are my people in that it could be us any day and more importantly it is my people in that they are God's people.  Am I caring for my people?  We prayed for them last night (along with ladybudy and butterflies too) and just got word that the church is opening our doors tonight.  We will be headed down to help for a bit with jackets in tow.

God's Love

The young adults led our service at church on New Years Day.  The sermon was on God's unfailing love for us and some of the most familiar verses were used (John 3:16).  However, the sermon was presented in a way I had never heard before.  Whenever I hear of God's love, I hear "God loves you so much that he sent Jesus."  God loves me so much that he sent Jesus.  True, true!  But here's the new part ...God wanted me!  As a parent, would I choose to have children knowing that they would disobey me and thus experience death?  It's a little sad/scary thinking about that answer now because of the love that I feel now for my children.  My immediate answer is no way! 

Crazy side thought...I often lay in bed at night and have visions of the girls being hurt in some way...hit by a car or something.  They are the most terrible thoughts.  I find myself praying that God will take away those thoughts or images because it is more than I think I could ever bear.  I can't imagine the pain of losing a child.

It's hard for me to imagine that God still wanted me even knowing that we would disobey and experience death due to our choosing ourselves.  In grateful awe of the pain that God was willing to endure so that we could be in relationship with Him. 

Christmas

I'm sure I've said it before but we had a really great time celebrating Christmas this year with the girls.  As I said in the last post, I've really recognized the importance of being intentional.  Caroline is picking up on EVERYTHING that we say and do so we made the most of it this Christmas.  If she's not being too shy or silly she can tell you the whole Christmas story from the angel telling Mary "Don't be scared." to the wise men bring frankincense and myrrh to Jesus as presents.  We also taught her a couple of Christmas songs, "Joy to the World" and "Away in a Manger."  The preschool did their job and taught her "Rudolph" too.  :-)  At times I thought it might be crazy to be teaching her so much stuff but she is a little sponge right now and it's sooo fun!   I'm trying to get her to soak it all in before her little brain realizes how big the world is and how much other junk there is to soak up.  Besides, who can resist hearing "Happy Birthday Jesus" for days on end.  :-)

Christmas Eve we all went to church together and then back to Brad and Lindsay's house for dinner.   

We then ate Jesus' birthday cake that we made earlier that morning.  Caroline insisted that Ariel and Sleeping Booty be on his cake.  At first I thought it was silly but I she was serious about it so I had to be too.  :-) 

Afterwards we put the girls in their Christmas pjs and played for awhile. 

We headed home, only to be back at Brad and Lindsay's at 9:30 on Christmas morning to open presents together.  We keep saying that eventually we are going to have to have our own family traditions but the girls are still so young that even though we teach them a lot, they still don't have a clue what is "supposed" to happen.  Maybe next year...

We had a good time opening presents.  I think some of my favorite were the handmade gifts.  Mark made a "helping tower" for each girl.  Caroline loves to help me in the kitchen and this little guy is perfect for her to stand in safely. 

I made little aprons for the girls too (and Mom monogrammed them).  Gigi also did a great job getting crocheted hats for the girls.  I love the one she gave Caroline! 

Caroline had a good time opening presents but she wore out much more quickly than I had anticipated!  I had a few pictures on my camera (that were deleted) that show Caroline and Kelsey sitting and coloring while they still had a stack of presents to open.  We really didn't get them that much but I wrapped everything individually thinking the present opening would be the most fun.  Wrong.  The presents weren't that fun anyway...a few boxes of towels for the girls bathroom redo that we just completed! 

I also had some pictures of Libby's new trick...she is now sitting.  It's hard to believe that she is growing so fast.  She is getting so big that even Caroline is beginning to notice.  Instead of "here you go Libby" it's turned into "no Libby, don't touch that." 

Oh what joy 2012 will bring!!