The Secret In the Sauce

It's a Friday and I've got two weeks of Christmas and personal time I have plans for so I may not be posting and if I do, small and sporadic. I thought I would dedicate this post to those 'naughty colors.' It is really pretty amazing what chemicals can do to us for good and bad. Advil is truly a wonder drug for numbing pain and helping with inflammation, but it also causes nasal polyps (which I have had to have surgically removed twice) and is damaging to the liver. The chemicals that we don't really think about or pay much attention to are those that are in our foods and general every day products like lotions and shampoo. Sodium Laureth Sulfates and other pthalates, parabens, propylene glycol (which is in food and beauty products) all take a toll on our hormones, endocrine system and metabolism (an excellent read on this is Jillian Michaels, "Master Your Metabolism"). For some reason I didn't consider that the skin is a living organism within i...

The last two days of Preston bliss came to a screeching halt this morning when I went down to his room for his morning wake-up call and mentioned his lemonade drink (Mars Venus Cleanse Shake) and he thrashed around and angrily said, "Why do I have to keep having that?" It obviously isn't growing on him yet but he is taking the vitamins and supplements and did reach a happy point with the Mars Venus chocolate shake by using Cacao Coconut milk instead of water. The morning unfortunately didn't improve as he was just bugged, unfocused and not happy. He came home from school hungry (and now that I think of it, probably fueled his irritability) and immediately started pushing my buttons. In the spirit of remembering that I can only control myself, I did just that and remained calm and focused and counted his behavior to a time out. He had to start the clock over three times and I did have to drag him back in there twice, but there was no talk and no emotion on my part (he ...

I promised myself I would get up early tomorrow after getting eight hours of sleep. So, do I get my eight hours and forgo the early morning or get up early and forgo my sleep? Bah. Why is it so hard to get to bed at night? With that being said, I have no major updates tonight or divine words of wisdom, only my health tip for the day. Health Tip For the Day Upon waking, mix 2 teaspoons Bragg's Apple Cider Vinegar with 4 ounces water. It is terrible, there is no getting around that one. But, it jump starts you metabolism in the morning and I think there is some miraculous immune boosting properties to doing this. I haven't actually been to their website to see what they tout, but it is doing something good for me. If you feel a sore throat coming on, mix the vinegar with the juice of 1/2 a lemon and a cup of very warm water, gargle and swallow. I swear by this trick. Do it three times in a day and you might either skip the cold or have it pretty easy. As Black Bart from A ...

It's been a long day but I am smiling in reflection. My cute mother came by to help Preston with his book report (which I didn't object to because I think he does better on the homework front when it isn't me helping him) and he was exciteable but he listened and helped and was in a fantastic mood all night. He wanted to practice his presentation and is very proud of his poster. True, the child has good days and bad days so in the long term time will tell if it is movement in the right direction but he was wonderful tonight. I made vegan Black Bean and Butternut Squash burritos for dinner (I just had mine on a bed of romaine lettuce) compliments of Anglea of ohsheglows.com and they were quite tasty. I even tried the daiya cheese which surprised me as being, well, cheesy! I also made chocolate donuts following a recipe I found on heathereatsalmondbutter.com but I'm going to need to tweak it a bit. Preston scarfed it down though with some ice cream and a dab of chocolat...

First of all, here is the Health Tip for Today : Rock salt deodorant rocks. The Heidi turned me onto this and she learned about it from a sweaty mountain biker man at the Whole Foods store. In our quest for all things natural (for body this includes products that are free of pthalates, sulfates, parabens and propylene glycol for starters) we have been looking for a stand-up remedy to deodorant that is aluminum free. I've tried a couple of 'natural' deodorants from health stores and they are absolutely the pits (pun-intended). I randomly saw a facebook post by some woman I don't know that said, "if you want to smell like a dirty hippy, wear natural deodorant." I laughed out loud because I had on natural deodorant that had worn off and I smelled disgusting; it was SO true! I was repulsive to myself. Then I was told to use Young Living's Thieves toothpaste for my underarms which I actually LOVED! But it is fourteen bucks a pop! Then I started swiping some coc...

Honestly, being a parent is exhausting. I'm exhausted. I'm exasperated. More than once have I wanted to 'cash in my chips.' I remember stopping by a neighbor's house one night and her husband had been out of town and I could she was done - she wanted to cash in her chips - and she told me that she had served cereal for dinner. I laughed. I can't say I've ever actually done that but I sure didn't think any less of her because I know I've cut corners other places too. With that all being said, I'm guessing you can figure out that it was  less than stellar day. The only shining moment was the last hour before bed when he was totally calm, totally normally and actually very sweet. He started crying over a picture of a sad dog in the sixth Diary of a Wimpy Kid book. He can ben amazingly rude and crazy one minute and the sweetest kid you could have ever hoped for the next. I would totally settle for some in between. Like a twinkie. I don't know ...

I came across this simple and helfpul article on yahoo today that I felt was applicable to my little Preston, despite it being written with toddlers in mind. Point Two mentions that during their tantrum, they are incapable of hearing any message we have for them and will be until 'we are able to they're sure we understand and hear their message.' Validation, which is not acceptance per say, is a big deal. This is talked about and empasized in both Love and Logic and 1-2-3 Magic. I realized that this is a key piece that I have been skipping for the last little bit. I should have validated Preston when he came home in a rage the other day (after he cooled off of course) and I could have even have done it when he was frustrated about washing his hands ("I know I struggle being interrupted when I'm in the middle of something too buddy"). This is going on my daily 'to do' list. Below is a link to the article on yahoo. It's short and sweet and worth the...

I have to admit that I went to bed excited and woke up excited - I have alot of faith that the shakes and supplements will work for Preston. I was listening to a woman talk yesterday and she mentioned that God has the power to do anything - if it is the right course of action. She said that it didn't matter what anybody told you (you will never be able to have kids, you have six months to live) because if you had faith and didn't give up, anything could happen. This really struck me as I know several people and have heard stories of people beating the odds; I have even heard of a few miracles. I know people that were told they wouldn't have children, and now have a family. Miracles do happen and I think they happen when there is alot faith. This thought gave me strength and I am excited because anything can happen really. With that being said, when I got Preston back from his dad last night I gave him 1 C-Lyte and 1 Grapefruit Seed Extract capsule. I need to firs...

That's all I've got to say about that. I'm doing my darndest.

Something Simple - Don't Engage Dr. Phelan's overall policy is that of no talk and no emotion. This is also a primary point in Love and Logic. We need to take good care of ourselves in front of our kids and tell them what WE are going to do (I am leaving in 5 minutes for your choir practice) AND we keep ourselves calm (this is a big one I have noticed for Preston because I think if he knows I can handle him he can rest a little easier). When I was going through my divorce, my therapist gave me the great advice to not 'engage' when my then husband was being argumentative or combative. If I didn't engage or 'take the bait' there was nothing more he could do or say; he pretty much had to drop whatever it was he was kicking against or trying to get me to do. I have found this same tactic extremely valuable with Preston when he tries to draw me into one of his negative spirals. Jim Fay of Love and Logic also says to 'never argue with the ri...