Boost Your Protein Intake With Greens

I read this in Health in High Heels. I thought it was very helpful. If you need to boost your protein intake then take this advice!!

Tip: Handle your craving for protein

If it's protein you're looking for, then your best bet is definitely going to be found in in crispy, fresh greens and sprouts.

Since sprouts are up to 35% protein and greens like spinach are between 40 and 50% protein, increasing the quantity and quality of greens in your diet will more than adequately meet your ongoing protein needs.

Green smoothies are our recommended way of consuming sufficient greens. Just take your favorite fruit smoothie and add any of the following: kale, chard (take out the stalky part), spinach, lettuce, parsley, mint or celery.

Contrary to popular belief there is absolutely no problem mixing these leafy greens (or celery) with fruit. Enjoy!

Adventures in Parenting a 13 Year Old

Oh Judah. My Judah. She would have to be the funniest and funnest person that I've ever met. Look at that sweet face, cute hair and nerdy glasses. I just love her. Just so you have a little peek into my world I'll share a funny Judah story.

A few days ago Judah asked if she could use my credit card to update her iTunes account. I completely trust her, so of course I let her take the card. She came back to me only a few minutes later saying that she couldn't get it to work. She said she had tried it a few times and something wasn't matching up. I checked what she had, tried a twice and decided we'd have to come up with an alternate solution.

The next morning I stuck the littles in the car and headed to Target to pick up a few essentials. On our adventure through Target I let Havah pick a snack and begin to munch on it. We made it to the check out, but when I went to pay my card wouldn't work. I found another method of payment (there was no getting out of paying - we had already consumed the snacks!) and headed to the car. I called the bank once in the car. The kind lady on the other end said that I had exceeded my limit of charges for a 24 hour period. I wracked my brain, but couldn't think of anything that I'd purchased in the past day except maybe some gas. She then asks if I purchased anything from iTunes. Well...yes...but it didn't work. Apparently it did. Okay, well that can't be the problem. Judah tried it a "few" times and I tried twice. She counted the list of charges from iTunes. Twenty-five charges! Count 'em and weap! We purchased one song 25 times!! Wow. That's a lot of Justin Beiber.

I contested the charges and waited for a few more hours to pass before making any more purchases. When I talked to Judah later that day she told me that, yes, she had tried maybe 20 or so times. :) Her persistence warms my heart. When she sets her mind to something she will not give up without a fight.

Lesson learned, when 13 year old asks for credit card supervision is necessary.

Mothering: Things You Might Not Expect

I am expecting my third and I have two teenagers. I am by no means an expert, but I do have lots of opinions.

This is for the new mother, the friend of a mom with small children and for spouses that aren't around all day. There are so many changes that you can't be prepared for when you become a parent. There is so much that you have to learn as you go... Little surprises. That's the nice way to say little (or big) smacks in the face. Here's one of em: Play Dates.

The idea with play dates is that your kids are going to get some fun play time with other children and the attending parent will get some quality time with another adult. Nice idea, but not reality. Welcome to your new reality. Play dates go more like this:

*Kids play, parents chat.

*Kid steals toy from friend, parents must deal with it.

*Parents return to postponed conversation. Now what was I saying?

*Kid needs to go potty, parent takes them.

*Parents return to fragmented conversation.

*I need a snack.

*I need a drink!

*My hands are dirty.

*That's my cup! Give it back.

* He hit me!!

*Parents give up on conversation and just manage children.

* Family packs up and leaves at the end of the play date. Kids have been entertained, but are now tired and possibly grumpy. Parent leaves possibly feeling disappointed because of the lack of connection.

Play dates are opportunities to parent together. You get to parent your kids while I parent my kids. We just get to do it in the same room. There's always the possibility of a few full paragraph exchanges, but your first priority is still your own children...not your own desires. Did that sound harsh?

Parenting is invasive. It takes over every part of your life and it takes up most of your brain power.

So here are some of my strategies for optimizing play dates. Of course, they are just what work for me currently and I may be humbled in my parenting strategies on any given day. :)

1. I do my best to train my children to be kind and obedient at home. It makes play dates much less work for if my child has already learned to share, some basic personal boundaries (don't hit and extended hugs aren't always appreciated) and to respond to your direction. Of course, younger children don't always learn this as easily, but then the play time may become learning time for that child.

2. Have a plan. When we get to our destination we play and have fun for about 1/2 to 2/3 of the time. When conflict begins to present itself (because it almost always does) deal with it accordingly then move on to snack time. If little ones have food in their hands they aren't touching each other and they aren't talking which maximizes the adult talk time. It also keeps blood sugars stable, little tummies full and bad moods at bay (most of the time).

3. I almost NEVER take my eyes off my children. If we are at a friends house then of course I leave them to play independently, but if we are at the park, zoo, local farm, or the book store then I don't let them out of my sight. New environments are always "growth opportunities". What that really means is they are going to find new ways to get into trouble. Oops I didn't know that I shouldn't lay in that puddle, tear the page out of that book, dump my drink on Caden... you get the idea. I'm keeping the conflict down to a minimum. If they get too out of hand it is usually my fault. Also, I don't want strangers preying on my darling little ones. If I can see them then I don't have to worry. There are times when Havah will be out of my sight for a moment, but I try to keep it at just that. A moment.

4. Conversations take a back seat to my children. I require my children to play with their friends or independently while there is another adult around, but my children are still my first priority. Their needs (which are different than wants) will come before my wants.

5. Pack emergency snacks. I know I mentioned snacks already, but there's regular snacks and then emergency snacks. These could also be substituted with an emergency activity (like a pack of play dough in the diaper bag). If at any time a new mom or tired mom produces tears then most all bets are off. At the first sighting of adult tears do your best to ensure that her (or his) and your children are occupied and safe so you can listen, empathies and lament with this friend in need.

6. Lastly, I play according to naps. I try to get my little ones home as close to their regular nap time as possible. If I push them way past nap time their behaviors have become my fault. I can't expect an exhausted hungry child to be well enough equipped to obey.

Life of fragmented conversations is deflating. It requires a lot of patience. It means you might have to get off the phone to parent. It means you might have to be more direct when talking to someone when you would really rather not be. It means you may have to go home early when everyone else is staying.

So all of that to say...I'm sorry new mother, I'm sorry friend of a friend who has small children, or spouse that gets their ear chewed by a parent who is thankful just to have someone to talk to... We are all suffering together.

Lime Coconut Cashew Cookies

I guess this baby likes lime! I drink stevia limeades all day and try to get as much citrus as possible. The Costco bag of lime just isn't big enough!

This recipe requires a dehydrator, but if you've got one they are SO simple.

3 c frozen raw cashews

2 c shredded coconut

1/2 c maple syrup (it's not raw, but it's not processed)

2 T Lime Juice

1 T Lime Zest

1/4 coconut oil (softened)

Put the frozen cashews and coconut in a food processor and blend until they are all broken and crumbly (don't run it for too long or it will get oily)

Combine the rest of the ingredients in a separate bowl.

Add too your cashew/coconut mixture and combine until lightly creamy.

Roll into little balls and place on teflex sheets.

Dehydrate at 120 for 8 - 10 hour depending on desired crunch.

Today's Morning Smoothie

This morning called for something out of the ordinary. Normally I stick to our regular coconut smoothie, maybe a frozen fruit smoothie. Neither of those would do today.

Here's the recipe for our delish Lime Smoothie:

1.5 cups fresh juiced organic apple (I used a pink lady - next time I will use granny smith for the tart flavor)

1 ripe avo

2 ripe (frozen) bananas (they are ripe when they have brown spots on them)

3 T lime juice

1 T lime rind

Blend and enjoy!

This makes enough to serve two + adults. Havah, Baruch and I finished ours in just a few minutes and enjoyed every sip!

A Little Havah Update

Havah was diagnosed with pertussis Tuesday, November 2nd. It's not quite two weeks later and if you heard her cough you wouldn't know that she has whooping cough. No more "big coughs" really. We have been free of the real ear catching coughs for several days now. The ones that I'm hearing now are more and more under control. We aren't totally out of the woods, but I can see that we're pretty much done with the most of this. As long as I'm keeping her diet as mucous free as we can manage then the girl seems to be doing just fine. She has never stopped being her cheerfully silly self. She's just been a bit more tired, a bit more cranky and coughing obviously.

Monday is our liberation day. Havah's been on lock down for the most part until the antibiotics are wrapped up. Two weeks of antibiotics is A LOT of antibiotics. I have been taking an antibiotic as well because I've been coughing and I don't want to pass this thing on to other people. We went to take her big sisters to the doctor the other day and while on the way we saw a play ground with a bunch of kids. She almost cried when she asked me if we could go play with those kids. It broke my heart. This girl is SOCIAL. She loves her friends dearly. She names her things after her friends (Aubrey cup, Angie cup, Abel cup, Baby Sophie, Baby Aubrey).

Baruch is still showing no signs of WC. He did get a new tooth today - his first. I'm hoping that this means I will get to sleep all night tonight. Come on....say a prayer for me right now. Something like this, "Dear Jesus, please give Danie a full nights sleep tonight. Amen."

Thank you. I appreciate that.

Juicing, Opinions and Vaccinations

Juicing

I've been juicing a lot in the past two weeks. The main things being carrots and apples. Occasionally I throw something exciting in there, but for now I'm pleased with the same old same old. If I were diagnosed with cancer I would live on fresh juice. Probably less carrot and more greens. Juicing is an excellent way to provide nutrition to your body. You get the vitamins and minerals from the item juiced, but almost no work for your body to digest. Digestion is a very energy taxing function of the body. When you are sick you want your body to rest as much as possible.

Anyway...back to juicing. Havah loves it. We wash the carrots and apples together. I trim the ends and let her help me push them into the juicer. Then we put the juice in tiny little tea cups and have our "tea time". She is so absolutely delightful. Havah says the funniest things. I love to sit and chat with her. My sister likens her to a cartoon and it is a perfect comparison. Havah is very tiny, but has a personality larger than life. I wish everyone could know the joy that it is to have her as my own. At the same time I feel very special that I know and not everyone does.

I have a very nice juicer - maybe I should say had. When Sean and I got married we went for it and bought the kitchen appliances that we knew we would love and would last us a lifetime. We got a Vitamix, a 10 cup food processor and a Green Star Juicer. They are all amazing and are all used regularly. The juicer can be a bit of a pain to use though. It produces an amazing amount of juice from the things you stick through it. You can do all kinds of other things with it. The down side is that you have to push quite hard to get a carrot to go through. Also, there are several parts to be taken apart and washed with each use. It has been living at "the shop" where we make soda. I got it back for a few days and remembered how laborous it was to use and quickly traded it in for our old Juiceman JR. Cheap and easy to use. It produces much less juice but I'm done in less than 5 minutes. You can get a Green Star when you are a serious juicer. They are about $450. You can get a Juiceman almost anytime. They are $50. The Green Star is now back at the shop where it belongs.

Opinions

I come from a big family that is very skilled in forming opinions. My sister Angela being the very best at opinions. When I need one I always know that she will have a very good one for me. I am also quite opinionated. I don't think that I'm judgmental (being the humble one that I am), but about things I have looked into I feel pretty confident in my opinions. When it comes to thoughts about people, actions, what's for dinner or why someone did something they way that they did - I usually pass on having an opinion. An opinion is like a nose. Everyone has one, right? My friend Jennifer wrote an excellent blog post on opinions. So in the next few paragraphs there may be an opinion or two. I'm not telling you what I think you should do. I'm just telling you what I do.

Vaccinations

Havah and Barch are not vaccinated or immunized. For anything. Sean and I decided that we were not against them getting booster shots. We just don't feel comfortable with them getting them at such young ages and weights. When we felt it was the right time we planned to figure out exactly which shots we want them to get.

So with all this scare of WC I am getting calls, opinions and recommendations from all kinds of medical professionals and people from the health department. Of course they are all telling me that I need to get Havah and Baruch vaccinated right away. Both of them need to get up to schedule with all of their shots and they need to do it right away. Israel and Judah only had a few shots when they were little so we are being "encouraged" to get them up to date also. I'm also getting lots of questions from these same folks about why I have yet to get my children immunized.

So I have a few facts for you about the pertussis vaccination. They are from different sources - I don't believe all of them to be facts.

The CDC says that WC is the most widely spread disease which is preventable by vaccination.

The CDC said in 2009 that only 0.06 of the US population was not current on their vaccination schedule.

The CDC said that last year there were more than 17,000 reported cases of WC in the US. They also said that many more cases go unreported.

My new friend at the KC Health Department, whose name I won't mention here, told me that it doesn't matter if you get vaccinated for WC. If you are exposed to WC you are very likely to get it.

My doctor at the Urgent Care told me that if Havah's test came back positive for WC that everyone in the house would have to be treated as if they had WC - even if they had been vaccinated for it. She told me that we should plan on everyone getting it (though they haven't) no matter if they had the shots or not.

A nurse at our family doctor (who talked to me like I was a Moron because I didn't take my kids to the well baby visits) told me the same thing. Their patients were getting WC whether or not they had their booster shots.

SO all of this makes me a wee bit angry. The pertussis vaccination has a reputation of being one of the most dangerous vaccinations. It is also one of the most widely used (possibly why it is getting all the bad reports). All of the risk in the vaccination for what??? My child would be just as likely to get the disease and have the exact same reaction to the disease! So why am I getting all of this pressure from my health care providers to get my children vaccinated for WC??? All of this makes me quite angry.

Another thing that really disturbs me is when medical professionals assume that they will make the decisions for your child. Uh no, when my baby is born you aren't going to poke and prod my brand new person. You can't take my child to the nursery. I will decide when my child will go to the doctor. I will decide when my child gets antibiotics, shots or any other medication. Please boss someone else around.

...

I do feel better having written that down. The above does not reflect my opinion on all vaccinations. For example - a few years ago Sean got vaccinated for the chicken pox. He was in his mid thirties and he decided that it was no longer worth the risk of getting chickenpox as an adult. It is much more dangerous for an adult to get chickenpox than a child.

When we decided not to have the little ones vaccinated we took the risk of them getting infectious diseases. When it comes to our decision about not having vaccinated for WC I am glad that we decided to wait. It is one that I do not plan to give them even later in life. Havah's immune system is doing an excellent job of killing this disease. We are seeing almost none of the major signs of WC that the CDC reports. This is not the case for all children, but it seems to be the case for mine. I have worked very hard to keep her in the best of health and nutrition.

We have also spent time praying for Havah's health. I believe that God is bigger than her cough and I tell her that all day.

And this too...

This is not my advice to you. I'm not suggesting that I know what you should do. I'm not suggesting that I know better than your doctor. I'm not giving you advice. Whooping cough is a serious virus! This year alone 10 infants died of pertussis in California because they had been misdiagnosed. So please...if you have pertussis or your child has it TAKE IT SERIOUSLY!

And one more thing. I'm sleep deprived. I'm stressed out. I will spell things incorrectly, punctuate incorrectly and use lots and lots of dot dot dots. I'm not likely to even reread these posts before posting. Hope it makes sense.