Candida

Have you ever wondered why at the end of a perfectly good, satisfying meal you still feel like you need a little something sweet?  OR, walked around the kitchen opening every cupboard looking for something to eat knowing darn well, you aren't even hungry!  Well, your not crazy, and you certainly aren't hungry.  You're CANDIDA (I like to call this the little beast inside me) is nagging to be fed!  

What?  A beast, inside me?  Yes, candida is a the fungal yeast overgrowth in the human body.  EVERYBODY HAS IT!  The degree at which it may be effecting you is the question.  It can be very toxic and could be the cause of many human diseases.

I learned about my little beast about two weeks into my new menu.  My lifestyle coach, Angela, drew up a nutritional plan for me.  I made some changes by cutting the yeast and sugar from my diet.

I was wondering why I still felt hungry after my meals.  Angela asked me "Are you still hungry or is it a craving for something?"  She told me it's the candida begging to be fed.   It is starting to die.

Wow!  I had no idea...i was an addict.  Addicted to sugar, addicted to bread, addicted to one glass of wine!  After cutting those things out of my diet I noticed a few other changes.  Some strange aches and pains around my body started to go away.  I have more energy.  I sleep better.  All because I stopped feeding the beast!

Six weeks into my new diet I am learning the difference between cravings and hunger.  Angela told me you will never be able to kill the candida because it naturally happens, but we can tame it.  I will eventually be able to reintroduce some things back in (like that glass of wine after my big marathon! but, not really missing the bread).  Everything in moderation, right?

I know I am not a doctor or a nutritionist (yet).  I am telling you this information so, with an open mind, you will think about your own diet.  Think about any complications you might be having and realize that what you're eating could seriously be hurting your body.  


Perhaps portion control is the issue, or the types of foods you may be consuming. I think this is very interesting and have experienced the effects of this little beast.   

Fashion show.

I put the girls in a fashion show at Nordstrom on Saturday morning.  The occasion...Nordstrom wanted to sell us some new spring clothes!  But, it was really cute and the girls had a blast.

Ryann walked the runway first.  She stood up there so cute showing off her new outfit.  I was not quick enough to take a picture of her front, but I was proud of her anyway.

On the way back her flip flop fell off!  She had to stop and put it back on.  Everyone had a little chuckle at her.  She was so cute!  She put the shoe back on and kept walking like nothing even happened.

Grace walked down the runway like she was made for it!  She even struck a pose for us at the end as she showed of her new outfit.    

Grace got a special treat after it was over....a new dress up dress for an outstanding report card!

She is so proud of her prize.  Grace looks beautiful in her new dress and it has really motivated her to help mom out around the house.  Guess it is time to get serious about an allowance!  

Derek is ok.

Derek went to the doctor this morning and he is going to be ok.  The doc said antibiotics were the cause of his problems.  The medicine caused his stomach to be "off".  The horrific pain in his stomach is what caused him to pass out.  The doc took some blood to make sure everything else was ok.  He also said to get some yogurt to help restore all the good bacterias inside and he will feel a lot better.

So, be aware of the side effects of your meds!  The can be evil.

9-1-1...

Last night, about 10:45,  Derek and I were laying in bed watching t.v.  Derek said he wasn't feeling well and went into the bathroom.  I was quietly laying there...CRASH, THUD, BOOM...in the bathroom.  I laid there for another second.  OMG!  I knew something was wrong.  I ran to the door and opened it yelling ARE YOU OK?  There is Derek, laying on the floor, pale, lifeless.

I knelt down and grabbed his face yelling his name at the top of my lungs for what felt like forever!!!  Derek, Derek, DEREK!  (he always plays around with me, so I wasn't sure if it was a joke!)  I realized quickly this was no joke and he was not responding to me.

Maybe a minute and a half had passed.  Thank God!!!!  Just as I was trying to move him flat (he was leaning up against the wall) so I could see if he had a pulse, he started to moan a little.  His eyes were open the whole time, but nobody was home!  I was able to get him up and move him to the bed.  He couldn't figure out why I was yelling at him.  He also couldn't tell me what was wrong with him.

I called 9-1-1!  Derek was so mad, but he still wasn't sure what was going on and the kids were in bed and I couldn't rush him to the emergency room.  The paramedics came and checked his vitals.  Everything seemed to be ok.  Derek thinks his spicy tai food was the problem...but, I watched my life flash before my eyes!  All I could think about was my 38-year-old husband laying on the bathroom floor like a dead man.
I was helpless!

Derek seems to be fine this morning, but I am still a bundle of nerves!!!  I am still thanking God that everything is ok, but this little experience made me realize how fragile life is and how quickly things can change.  I know....we hear this all the time, but...tell the people that you love....I LOVE YOU...as often as you can!!!  It is important they know you love them.

Derek-I LOVE YOU!  Grace-I LOVE YOU!  Ryann-I LOVE YOU!  And if you are reading this blog you are probably my family or good friends and I LOVE YOU!  Be safe and have a great day.

Eat, Pray, Love

I am reading this book and love it!

Although I am not finished with this book, I highly recommend it.  I love how Elizabeth Gilbert writes!  She has turned a painful journey of divorce, life change and leaning of SELF into a beautiful journey of adventure that we can all relate too.  (maybe not because we are going through a divorce or major life change, but...)  

I love that is Gilbert is always having a dialogue with her emotions!  I can relate to that.  My favorite part of the book so far is when she is is having a crazy busy day and passes by a mirror in an office building, somewhere in New York City (you can imagine how crazy busy it is there and how unfamiliar everyone might be).   She doesn't realize she is looking in the mirror, but thinks she sees someone she knows, a familiar face.  She begins to run towards the person with a smile on her face to say hello.  When she is close enough, she laughs and realizes she is looking at herself.  She writes:  Never forget that once upon a time, in an unguarded moment, you recognized yourself as a friend.

This is an important!  Something we all should be reminded of from time to time.  If you can't love yourself and depend on yourself, who can you depend on?  This is something my parents taught me and a I am trying to teach my kids too.

I am almost through the part of the book in Italy and really want to go there after reading this book.  Can't wait to see where this adventure takes us next!

Superstar student!!!

When we got home from our trip last night I opened the mail and there it was...the second report card for the year.  Happy to report that Grace has all E's (in kindergarten that means excellent!)  Not one bad mark and this is what her teachers had to say, "Grace is extremely focused and dedicated to doing good work.  She readily understands and applies new concepts.  We are very proud of Grace for her 100% average spelling!"

Yep, she hasn't missed a spelling word yet.  They have 10 words a week.  Last week they had to spell walk, walked, talk, talked, television, explosion....I know this week robot and dinosaur are on the list.  

Way to go Gracie!!!!  Keep up the good work.  We are so proud.  LOVE YOU!!!

Zion for the weekend.

Last weekend we were supposed to go to Colorado and meet up with Derek's parents, sister and her family, to celebrate Harv's 70th birthday.  The weather had a different plan for them.  They all were snowed in....

....we were all packed with no where to go.....so, we took the kids to Zion National Park for a little sunshine.  Grace described this as the best family trip ever!!!!!  As we entered the red rock area she said,  "This place is beautiful.  I want to ride on my horse through the canyons and the desert."  Well, she doesn't have a horse, but we did take her on a couple of hikes.

Derek was feeling over-worked from a string of travels and the kids and I had a little cabin fever, so this was perfect.  The weather, the scenery and our little hotel were beautiful!  We made ourselves right at home for the weekend.

The first order of business was swimming!  Grace was really looking forward to that, so we got in the water asap.  The pool was freezing, but the hot tub was great!

Then it was off to dinner at the Spotted Dog Restaurant!  Great food!  Ryann ordered the spaghetti!  Yes, she is wearing a white shirt, but I let her have it anyway (and I was able to was it all out).

Saturday morning we decided to walk down the main street of Springdale to find our breakfast.  They have a domestic elk ranch with buffalo and all kinds of animals.  Kinda neat (even though we have them in West Jordan too)  we don't get to see them as close.

Ryann and Grace loved the cactus, but I had to warn them about the cactus and how sharp they can be!

We heard Springdale was having their St. Patrick's Day parade that afternoon.  We had time for a quick hike before it started.

We found a nice hike up the hill above the town where we could see the red rock.  The girls saw a few lizards for the first time in their natural setting.  Ewwww!  But, no snakes.

Then it was off to the parade!

After the parade the girls enjoyed the bouncy houses and Grace was brave enough to try the climbing wall.

Springdale has a 25 year running Jello sculpture contest.  Featuring GREEN jello!  

And Grace decided to enter the Jello eating contest.

She tied for 3rd place!

 We had a fun and exhausting afternoon, so back to our home away from home for more swimming and dinner.  

We really enjoyed the little yard outside our back door.  I felt like we were a million miles from home, just our little family....having so much fun!!!

I made dinner in our room that night and we were in bed by 8:30.  Weird!

Sunday we decided to drive to Snow Canyon, just outside of St. George, and go for a quick hike before we headed home.  I had never been there before.  MORE BEAUTIFUL RED ROCK!  WOW!  Breathtaking.  

I have to agree with Grace...it was a fabulous family weekend.  One of our best trips ever!

Liam's in remission!

Great news!  Liam's in complete remission!

Thank you for all your prayers and good wishes!

Liam will have 3 more rounds of chemo.  His brother Curtis was not a match for the bone marrow transplant, but when the chemo is finished Liam will have healthy cells to harvest for later if needed.

Favorite tortillas

I know already told you that I have cut yeast out of my diet.  I haven't had a piece of bread for 2 1/2 weeks!  Yeah me!  I know all of you are shaking your heads right now, but it is easier then you think.  Anyway, I wanted to share one of my new favorite foods....

Any of you health food nuts may have already seen these before, but I just discovered them!  These tortillas are flourless, yeast free, gluten free...but, full of wholesome goodness!  And, they actually taste good...not like a piece of cardboard like most of the whole wheat tortillas.  The low-carb tortillas taste like paper and when they get wet...ripped paper.

These are great for wraps, tacos, with peanut butter, hummus, or plain.  I even had one for a snack with a little agave nectar...tasted like dessert!  

I will continue to share some of my new healthy foods with you as I go along.    

Pampering myself...

After a couple of weeks of strep throat (Grace), runny noses (Derek and Ryann), cleaning up all the germs (YUCKY!!!), and beginning the training for my races....yesterday I decided I deserved a pedicure!!!  Nothing fancy, but I haven't had one since last summer.  It felt great.  Everyone should treat themselves once in a while (women and MEN)!

My feet finally look cute enough to show off my new flip flops Jolie brought me back from Mexico in November.  I am wearing them today even though it is supposed to snow again.

I also bought some new blush the other day.  LOVE IT!  My makeup artist Erica turned me onto it in Vegas and I was finally due for some new.

It is NARS and a really fab color with a very shocking name.   I can't put in this blog....because it is a family blog and that would be inappropriate.  I will give you a hint though...it start with "O" and rhymes with spasm.  

What do you think?

So, now I am all dressed up..... to go get Grace from school!

Feeling crafty!

I was flipping through a Pottery Barn magazine the other day and saw this little design to organize earrings.  They wanted $49!  No way!!!  I went to the craft store and spent about $13 to make my own.  It makes a really pretty art piece. Think I will go back and make another for my necklaces too!

I finally ordered new bedroom furniture from Pottery Barn, after months of looking (and years of thinking about it)!  I will post some pictures when it comes.  It is on back order...bummer!

Committed to the finish line!

So, I already told you that I am running in a half marathon in April and a full marathon in May.  I am in my second week of a 8 week running clinic to train for the races.  It has been great so far!  We are learning proper running techniques and stretching.  I have learned some things that I haven't been doing right since I started running about a year and a half ago.  I also been going through some nutrition counseling to help me out with my diabetes.  Sugars are doing great!!! I realized that I am in pretty good shape already,  but we know there is always room for improvement.

On our first day of clinic our trainer, Angela, asked us to cut out yeast, dairy and alcohol from our diets...because this is what runners do.  well.....

It is going great!  Because I am eating a well balanced diet I am not even craving the stuff I was told I couldn't eat.  Never considered myself a wine-o but, I can't wait to have a glass of wine when it is all over with!!!!!  Jolie....prepare yourself.