notjusthealthnuts

A few years ago after giving birth to my son, I had some life altering changes.  I had two kids and not just one.  Back issues. A dramatic gall bladder removal.  Less hair.  Did I mention more kids?   The hair changes started before having my son, but it was crazy hair loss after his arrival. He was worth it.  I could take the high road and tell you hair doesn't matter. That I realized my inner beauty counted most (it does, but lets be realistic).  We could be petty and mourn over the loss.  It's vain and there are a lot more things in my life to be grateful for.   Let's do both.  Take the high road and cry about it.  Now that's done.  It's not going down without a fight.  Two years ago I made changes to my diet and noticed stronger hair.  It even started curling again.  Then I dove into holistic hair solutions- from DIY hair products to supplements to "what am I eating?" that works.  I also ...

If you struggle with health issues or trying to reach a health goal then sleep is EVERYTHING!  Click the link to our facebook page for a quick read.  Potent health in minutes. Our Basic to Healthy Living Namaste and Good Night

   As a foodie with food allergies I feel that any packaged product is potential death waiting to happen.  That might be a bit dramatic.  Seriously, my step son with bakers dozen food allergies and I of a few call certain products boxes of death.  Largely, because it is. Shockingly it gets worse, food allergies are NOT just in the food aisle. They lurk every where.   As a matter of frightening fact, companies can pretty much put any claim or statement on their product with little to no accountability.  There is one major Federal law to "protect" us foodies with food allergies.  Thank you  foodallergy.org  for informing us that only eight allergies have warning labels on a certain number of food products.  If you clean with it,  take a prescription, take an OTC, put it on your skin, has a kosher label, or smoke it (ew) then a company is not obligated to tell you when an allergen may be in their product. Lesson one is...

This morning was a gigantic reward for us.   Ghost child's visit last fall with her ENT was disastrous.  From a dismissive and massively insensitive doctor to a nurse who told my daughter she needed to behave so she will not "end up with hearing aids and people look at her funny." You heard that right.  Oh, this ate at me for months.   This isn't the first time either, I have heard from the hallway "give her what she wants."  We never went back there either. That's toxic and that toxicity leaks out.  The infection had to be removed and the wound healed.  We sought a second opinion and it rewarded us today.  The part that rewarded us the most is the understanding that part of the problem in the fight was us in communication.  Effective communication is crucial.  It benefits your physical being directly, possibly directly your mental health.  Been there.  Being able to communicate with your doctor affects your emotinal...

I miss Italian food.  Watching all these food shoes makes it worse, unless it's the one where the "f" word guy goes back into the kitchen.  It's kinda like finding out what's in spam or hot dogs, wish you had never known.  Being in the GF life has severely limited our gluten free Italian options.  Finding a non crunch lasagna noodle takes a trek across town.  I am a label reading fool.  I have found some GF penne and rotini made with ancient grains- brown rice and quinoa.  Jumping up and down giggling my friends.  If it has corn in the ingredients, it's crunchy pasta. Gross. Lasagna was my go to comfort meal.  Other than the gluten issue, lasagna tends to be high in fat and calories. Not good for your waist line or brain power.  What's  health foodie to do for comfort food? Make a redo.  The difference in my creation from other recipes are the switch outs.  Still easy with the Italian comfort; yet, no meat/more veggies ...

Healthy food and meals can loose their excitement.  Especially when you take away the fats, sugar, and salt.  Wait, I am to entice you to eat healthy. Hang with me.  Decades ago salt was left by the way side as a  primary means to flavor food for me.   We are in deep with spices and herbs.  By this I mean I get way too excited when they go on sale and enjoy picking them out.  I am in deep.  I love the choices, options, and various ways to can make different flavor profiles.  I love that my food doesn't taste bland and doesn't cause me to bloat (salt does! bastard).  Even better, this is a friends with benefits relationship.  Most spices reduce inflammation which benefits your digestive system, joints, muscles, heart, and brain.  Brain and body love.  Certain herbs aid in memory and concentration, are rich in vitamins (some even have iron!), boost immune systems, and fight free radicals with antioxidants.  If you ...

Warning: make sure you have access to a bathroom for the next couple of hours.  Do not drink then get in the car for a grocery pick up for more than thirty minutes. It. Is. Torture. 

 Recently we decided to join a community group specific to our ghost daughter.  As time approached for the meeting she began to breathe heavier and her personal space boundary became wider.  She is excited but the nerves were too much.  Everything turned out fine; we had a game plan. This is going to be a great thing for her.  We just have some hurdles.   For the ghosts and ghost children, advocating  is twenty-four hour immersion of tactical decisions and communication.  It's exhausting.  Being a part of a community can help with this and extremely important for mental health and soul health.  We need to this.  There are ways to make connecting smoother and intentionally beneficial on both ends. Pick Fellow Advocates and Be Bold  Family and community can be potentially strong support system.   In specifically advocating for your ghost child with family,  I would start with unloading concerns and expla...

AND it's not a salad.  I happen to like salads, but when the temps don't get above freezing for two weeks I want warmth.  I want it fast.  Mid day can be a hurdle to get through which leads to bad food relationship choices.  Suddenly you are abusing your body and brain in desperation of sustenance.  With some effort, like opening packages and dumping them, we have three meal options to beat this.  The last recipe takes a bit more commitment but the reward is bountiful.  Allot thirty minutes (at most) in prep to set a weeks worth of "throw in the microwave" food love. Vegetarian Chili Throw this in a 8 quart stock pot or  8 quart crock pot: 46 fl oz can of tomato juice 28 oz can of diced tomatoes 15.5 oz can of  light kidney beans 15.5 oz of darn kidney beans or black beans 12 oz frozen corn or mixed vegetables 2 packets of choice chili seasoning Throw it in a pot and cook on medium for 30 minutes. If it starts to boil reduce heat...

Here me now- I am not claiming total head monkey control.  However, there are ways to quite them and get them mananged.  This has been HUGE for my daughter and I.  We have monkey riots in our heads often and they just needed to settle the hell down. When the head monkeys are out of control they need to be fed. First in a head monkey's diet is sleep.  Lack of sleep makes them louder or controlling them harder. I am not sure which. Either sucks.  Set a iron clad routine.  For adults, around 10 P.M. and up around 6 P.M. following the rhythm of nature. If that time frame not possible, seven to eight hours where you are able.  Uninterrupted.  My kids and I are still in negotiations on that part.  Settle into a non engaging activity thirty minutes before bed time.  I absolutely CANNOT read  before bed.  Book are engaging and insomnia inducing for me. My daughter it's the opposite effect. As a  matter of fact it can put her t...

This would not be categorized as a vegetarian dish because of our bacon entanglement.  Also, I am literally eating my words on this whole "I won't eat brussel sprout thing." This collaboration of previous brussel sprout consumption dare and my ghost child's new professed love of goat cheese with bacon enhancement.  All culminating in a simple and quick delicious recipe.  Anyone has the time and skill for this. Ingredients and Prep Brussel sprouts (steamed, cut in half) Bacon (cooked, diced) Goat cheese crumbles (package opened) Olive oil- one tablespoon Steps to brussel sprouts in bacon, cheese glory 1.  Preheat oven to 425 F 2. Lightly drizzle olive oil on a sheet pan 2. Steam brussel sprouts and cut in half then spread out on pan 3. Cook bacon but barely (light brown and soft) or cheat like me and buy the pre cooked.  D 4. Dice barely cooked bacon and sprinkle over brussel sprouts. 5. Place pan in the oven for ten minutes. 6. A...

 I am in my mid thirties and until recently, breaking out like an awkward teenager.  Only more awkward because I am thirty something.  It isn't those little things either,  I have had deep cystic acne for decades.  I have literally tried everything on the market: stores or online, plus doctors poking and prescribing everything.  Don't sell me anything.  Seriously, I have tried it all, more than once. Only one prescription worked in my early twenties.  It peeled chunks off my face for months. So that looked gross.  However, I had the best skin for like two years.  Every two years I do not want to look like a molting animal.  It was expensive to boot. No win there. Then these SOB wrinkles start showing up in the midst of all the acne mess. This has to stop.  If you spend anytime with anyone in the skin care profession you get the "talk." About what you eat.  While the debate is out exactly on what that is, there are a f...

We have been in a steady uphill push for the last few weeks.  The winter break is out temporary finish line and it's a mad dash.  So much is poured into a child with special needs- from testing to doctor visits to therapies to extra work at home to extra work from us. Each experience is unique but "extra" is the common thread.  The "extra" is bearing down on us.   The past two Thursday mornings we have had the pleasure of company in the waiting room.  My fellow waiting room veteran mom and I are ecstatic to let our three year old boys impromptu play-date while getting to converse with an adult.  Yay! Today we dealt with the common thread of  the "others."  We have at least three other children plus some transient bonuses.  Each week therapy is two hours by the time we travel and complete a session.   Two hours is a significant amount of time and we integrate/build in extra time during the week.  That's just therapy.  The...

Honest conversation?  As much as I love my healthy lifestyle, I LOVE "splurge" food. I find myself rolling my eyes at the holiday weight loss proclamations. I am a health foodie. I love yoga and nutritious food.  I love food. Oh, I love my family too.  And food.  I don't want to see these "weight loss" things as much as you do.  However, every first of the year the collective we makes the same commitment to loose the extra pounds for about thirty days.  So those people are right. Annoying.   How does one keep a balance of a healthy lifestyle during the holidays without relying on a slim fast commercial diet come January 1st?   Dispel the myths.   I freaking love this quote.  If you have or are starting a healthy lifestyle or diet change then holidays are a special challenge.  There is a good chance you will blow it. Just being honest.  You are supposed to have a splurge day so plan that around s...

I am not a committed vegetarian.   It started as a fling that I just can't quit.  I will be upfront, bison burgers are a comfort treat for me that I will never willingly give up.  Famous last words. I have got to stop saying I won't do these things.  That's how I ended up eating brussel sprouts.  My sister was all too willing to tip that scale.  As my relationship with veggies deepen,  I have hit the irony in reducing my meat intake.  I need more iron. Apparently, desperately.  Meat sources are seemingly the easiest way to eat up my iron intake.  However, I want my veggies and be smart with it. Move past the greens but pick up a couple along the way.  Greens are not the only meatless iron rich sources.  Seeds are fantastic and these are the best: pumpkin, pepita, chia, hemp, and sunflower.  I take these and grind them into flours to bake with or add into salads.  There are a few of fruit and nuts: almond, figs, ba...

As our homeschooling continues, the expected ebb and flow of learning has cycled through a few times.  For any child learning it is normal to do a roller coaster of sorts. For Ghost Child- the highs are euphoric and then you plummet with a few plateaus somewhere in there.  Today we have hit all stages from raging tears to victory shouts. It's draining on the both of us.  Especially fighting Red Reign of Terror's fascination with the sink and lust for pouring glue.  I was torn between stopping a flood, teaching, counseling, and preventing sticky situations.  Some sanity points were lost along the way today.  How do we survive this daily?  This: Do what works best for your family.   Balance is key- do what ever works to accomplish what you need to with time to relax- consistently. Get involved and pace yourself.  I read constantly and now joining webinars on my daughter's disorder with a few reputable organizations.  It can suck y...

Cooler weather should be the interlude of busyness- a reminder to be still.  This health foodie is ready to root into warmth and a major cuisine shift.  I immerse myself blankets (largely so my children can't find me) while I am on the hunt for one pot, crock pot, and soup inspirations.    I am not one for following a recipe exactly or even remotely close.  I like jumping off points that I hope to land like a cat and not on my face.  The recent flurry of pinning sessions has produced a couple of simple, nourishing recipes that I love. As far as soups go, I am either a vegetarian purist or a shameless meatarian.  No in between.  This recipe has ingredient options/switch outs for either preference for you or in my case which mood I am in.  Some prep is required, but it is mostly dumping into the crock pot. Chicken Stew /Veggie Stew Ingredients 4-5 skinless chicken thighs (cooked) or opt out for vegetarian preference Beef broth or Vege...