Friday, March 30, 2018

Easy Peesy French Bread

We are a low-carb family, but I make a loaf of this bread once or twice a month because sometimes you just gotta have fresh-made bread! Even if you work full-time, you can have a yummy loaf of bread ready with your dinner within an hour of walking in the door! Try it soon - I don't think you will be disappointed!


The basic recipe is from My Mundane and Miraculous Lifebut I have tweaked it over time to make the most perfect loaf of bread for our family!

Here is her recipe with my tweaks in red.

Ingredients:
1-1/2 cups warm water (use a thermometer and make sure it is 110°F)
1 Tbl honey
1-1/2 tsp salt
1 Tbl active dry yeast (or 2 of those small packets)
3-1/2 to 4-1/2 cups flour

Directions:
1. Combine the water, honey, salt and yeast in a glass bowl. Let sit for 5-10 mins. until there’s some bubbling, foam stuff on the top. (I combine the water, honey and salt first. Then I add the the yeast on top and make sure the yeast is wet. I let mine sit for the full 10 minutes).



2. Next, add a bunch of flour. I used just regular white organic flour. You want your dough to be sticking to itself, not your fingers. So, keep adding flour and keep kneading until that happens. (I start off with the 3-1/2 cups of flour. You want as little flour as possible in order to make sure it isn't too dense once baked. I have left it a bit sticky on my fingers and all has turned out well. ).


3. Form the dough into a loaf shape. Cover with a towel and let sit on the counter for 20 mins. This is the time to set the oven to 400 degrees. (I put my dough in the oven on the Warm setting instead of letting it sit on the counter. I seem to get a bigger loaf this way.) You can shape this into a typical French Loaf oblong shape if you prefer. I am going to try to cook this in a loaf pan next time!


4. After 20 mins., cut slits in the top and bake for 16-20 mins. (I do not cut the slits in the top and I do check the loaf with a quick knife stuck in the center to make sure it comes out clean. I cook mine for 18 minutes turning the oven to 400°F while letting the bread cook while the oven comes up to temperature).


Julie's Notes: "I’ve started adding garlic powder to the dough and sprinkling the top with oregano and some small pieces of butter to melt all over during the baking. Oh. My. Word."

I love being creative!

I really enjoy not working so that I have lots of time for my creative outlets. I love crochet, but I also enjoy cross-stitch and papercrafting. This year, I have a plan to learn embroidery and how to work with felt. I have to say that I have not been crafting to the seasons or working on my study of hygge as planned, but there are still nine months left in the year, so no worries!

I have worked on 3 baby blankets this year. I have only finished one and gifted it already. I made this for one of my husband's co-workers who is expecting her first grandbaby in a few months. It is the 6-Day Kid Blanket made of Lion Brand Mandala yarns.


I still need to add a border to this one and will be working on that within the week. It is a simple V-Stitch blanket made with some Mandala yarn as well. I love having this blanket on hand because it doesn't have to be a baby blanket ... I could gift it to anyone!


I have made this baby blanket for a past co-worker of mine expecting a girl. I love the way it looks when combining two yarns together at the same time!


I have to admit that I have a TON of yarn ... it's like a mini yarn store! I've been wanting to make a sort of scrap blanket, so got out a bunch of coordinating Papatya cakes from Hobfy.com and a few Lion Brand mandala cakes to work on a simple stitch pattern. I am loving the result! I know who I want to gift this to, so will finish it in April as well.



I also have plans to make at least 3 more blankets this year - one for my son, finish one I started for my husband last fall and a blanket to coordinate with a quilt my mom made me last year and that will be used in my son's room (soon-to-be guest room) once he graduates college and moves out on his own. I've been working with this square called Painted Roses for the guest room blanket.


I do believe that I will have time to finish a few more crochet projects by year's end as well.

I also spent a little time this month making some cute Shrinky Dink stitch and hook markers for some online crochet friends. They came out great! I had so much fun repeating a craft that I enjoyed so much as a child.


An embroiderer I follow posted about two weeks ago that she is starting a Stitch-A-Long for The 12 Days of Christmas. I have been absolutely drooling over these patterns (order here on Etsy) since I stumbled upon them last year. They are gor-ge-ous!!!


So, I have purchased almost all of the supplies to make these beauties and will start on them next week. Look at the stunning stack of felt fabric that I ordered. Of course, I had to order more sets of colors than is needed for this project because it is soooooo pretty! (Order the felt needed for this project here.)


This may be an adventurous start for a new embroiderer, but I'm up to the task! To help me, the creator of the patterns has put up a very helpful webpage with lots of tips! After reading this page, I am sure I can do this even though it is my first embroidery/felt project.

The hard part about having a creative streak is that there are definitely more projects I want to complete than time available to do so! Almost daily I add crochet projects to my Ravelry favorites or I admire a beautiful item in an Instagram post. I probably just need to quit visiting these sites and spend more time creating!

The best part about being a crocheter is when new "squishy" mail arrives. Some new beautiful yarn arrived at my home this week! These are King Cole Curiosity (first 3 pics), James C Brett Northern Lights and then all 15 colors of the beautiful Scheepjes Our Tribe yarn. I have ideas for all of them ... just gotta find the time to work on some new projects!

 

 


So, it looks like I have a pretty busy spring & summer planned when it comes to my crafting. I sure hope I end up making a lot of pretty things this year! 

Wednesday, March 28, 2018

Taking Care of My Skin - HydraFacial, SkinPen and MyChelle Dermaceuticals

I'm sorry I haven't blogged in a while. I took a bit of a break, but I have a lot to share so will be playing a bit of catch up for the next few weeks!

One of my goals for 2018 is to make sure that my skin is being well taken care of. I must admit that I haven't maintained the best skincare routine over the past few years. I started off the year with a HydraFacial. It felt great and really made my skin feel different. My skin felt softer, looked brighter and the texture was better. My aesthetician and I had discussed last year what I wanted to do for my skin this year, so the next step was treatment with the SkinPen. I set up my three appointments with the first one to be in March.

I had two months between the facial and first SkinPen treatment, so I returned to using the skincare line by MyChelle Dermaceuticals that I had started using three years ago, but had been neglecting. Because I know that skin is our largest organ, I also know that it is important to use the best products on it because we don't want to add toxins to our body! From the website, "All MyChelle Dermaceutical products are Vegetarian, Cruelty-free, and Free of Phthalates, Parabens, Sulfates, Ureas, Artificial Fragrances and Colors, Petroleum, GMOs, and Gluten." You can read what they recommend for beauty regimens on their website.

I use their exfoliator (twice weekly), eye creams, several serums, Vitamin C Peel (once weekly), moisturizers and SPF lotions - I use most of their products for anti-aging. The difference in my skin from using the MyChelle products in the past two months is absolutely AMAZING! MyChelle is always running a sale on their products and they offer free shipping on purchases and returns if you aren't satisfied. You cannot go wrong trying them out. They have special prices on bundled items as well. I will continue using their products as long as I'm seeing results. MyChelle is also available at Whole Foods.

Then it was time for my first SkinPen treatment "Microneedling, also known as collagen induction therapy, is a minimally invasive skin rejuvenation procedure that helps minimize the signs of aging, improve the appearance of acne scars and rejuvenate aging skin." My main purpose in having the SkinPen procedures done on my face and neck is to induce collagen production. Numbing gel was applied and allowed to dry, but honestly I don't think it helped much. The procedure did hurt, I won't lie. I looked like I had a really bad sunburn afterwards.


My face felt so warm! I drove with the AC vents pointed towards my face to keep it cool. I was given some HA5 moisturizer to put on whenever my skin felt like it needed it, which was often! It didn't sting and relieved the tightness. I was also given a peptide mask to use the first night and it really helped my skin feel better before turning in to bed. I was still very red the next day and kept applying the HA5. The redness was gone on day 2 post procedure, but I had started peeling around my mouth. This peeling would eventually extend to most of my face. You can see the beginning peeling above my mouth below.


You can also see the condition/texture of my skin in the above photo. It is kinda bumpy/not smooth. This is one thing I am hoping to see improvement in once the SkinPen treatment is completed.

I waited until the 4th day post procedure to return to my skincare regimen and begin wearing makeup again. I am now one week post-procedure and most of the peeling has stopped. I have one area that was still peeling this morning. However, my skin is sooooo soft and smooth, especially my neck which had a lot of  "chicken skin" texture to it before.

It takes at least 14 days for the induction of collagen production. I am having three treatments one month apart. Once that is completed, I will assess the end result and decide what to do next. SkinPen is not permanent and maintenance treatments of every 4-12 months are recommended depending upon what the patient desires.

In doing my research on how to take care of aging skin, I have read the recommended list of items to use regularly to continue a collagen stimulation program at home.

- SkinPen is recommended at least every 12 months.
- Growth factor serum: My plastic surgeon recommends TNS Essential Serum. It is expensive, so
  I buy mine new from eBay. I have just started using this, but will report back my opinions once I
  am through the first bottle.
- Retinoid: I used the retinal products from MyChelle - Remarkable Retinal Serum, Night Cream and     eye cream
- Anti-oxidant serum: I use the Vitamin C products from MyChelle - right now, I am using the
   Perfect C 12% Lotion. I will move up to the Perfect C 17% serum next and then the Perfect C Pro       25% serum.
- Hyaluronic Acid moisturizer - I will continue to use the HA5 moisturizer and will also buy it at a        discount online.
- SPF of at least 30 - I use MyChelle's Sun Shield Liquid SPF 50 Tinted

Currently, I use an Estee Lauder foundation that I have used for many years because I like a matte finish. I am not sure if I will continue to use it once it is gone so will be on the lookout for a matte foundation that doesn't contain toxic ingredients. I use Bare Minerals makeup, except for my mascara. I will pop into Ulta and get a sample of the Bare Minerals foundation to try when it is time.

I still am not happy with the condition of the skin under my chin and on my neck. Here are two pictures showing that area.



The CoolSculpting got rid of a lot of fat, but I still have a double chin and I hate it. So, I am looking into a neck lift and will have two consults done this summer to determine if I am a candidate. I know I sound vain, but I don't want to live the second half of my life hating my neck. It just isn't worth it to me. I am waiting to see if the SkinPen has any effect on the appearance of my chin/neck before I make a final decision. If I have a neck lift done, I will share it here just as I did my tummy tuck.

So, that is an update on what I am doing to take care of my skin! If you have any questions about the procedures/treatments I have had done, I'm happy to answer any questions ... just leave a comment!

Sunday, February 18, 2018

Saving Money on Pet Care

This week has not turned out at all like I thought it would! I have spent many hours in the car getting two of my dogs taken care of by multiple vets in our area. Having four dogs to take care of is not cheap and I have learned a lot this week about the varying prices that vets will charge for the same service! Here are several ways that I have learned to save money while still providing excellent care for our pets.

VACCINATIONS AND MEDICATIONS - First off, let's start in October which is when we have to update the dogs with their shots. If I go to my local vet, it's around $200/dog which is insane. So, about 4 years ago, we started using the local weekend shot clinics offered at our PetSense in town. The cost is only $79 per dog which saves us a ton of money each year! Cody (see right) is a biter so I was hesitant to let him get his shots at the clinic, but he did just fine once the vet tech let him know that HE was in charge. LOL! My local vet will price match online prices for heartworm meds (I usually use Allivet.com) and this saves me almost $100 every 3 months compared to what I would pay if I bought it from them without the price match ($150 vs $56). So, ask your vet if he will match the online prices or give you a subscription so you can buy your meds online. It is a LOT cheaper that way!

A PET SPECIALIST USUALLY MEANS HIGHER PRICES - Jump to November. My shih-tzu, Gizzy, had an ulcer on his left eye when we adopted him 4 years ago (you can see it in this photo). Late summer, the eye started to bulge a little more and he had a lot of red in the whites of his eyes. My local vet (vet #1) said it was caused by a cyst that had formed on his eyelid. I had it removed ($200), but it didn't solve the problem. So, in December, I took him to the pet opthalomologist (vet #2) in Knoxville, TN and found out he had glaucoma in that eye! It needed to be removed to lessen any discomfort he was having due to the increased pressure in his eye. That vet gave me a quote of $1500. Yikes! I called my local vet when I got home and he gave me a quote of $800 for the same surgery. Well, that was a lot better, right? So we had the surgery early January. Gizzy had also had a dental done in December and required 5 extractions - total was $300. Remember these prices - they come into play later when I learned I could have saved HUNDREDS more on both of these services!

BE WILLING TO CALL AROUND TO GET BEST PRICE - Fast forward to February 1st. My husband got home early from work and decides to throw the ball with one of the dogs. Xena, our dachshund mix, ran out quickly when he opened the door and went down the long flight of stairs to the yard. Now, I had not been letting her go down the stairs since she started limping a few months back, but she is quick sometimes! When she came back up the stairs, she would not put any pressure on her back right leg. I thought it was her back again and, on February 2nd, called vet #3 in Rogersville, TN that I have used before because they have laser therapy. (I tell you, there is not a vet with ALL of the services I need in my town!) Vet #3 is almost an hour drive one way. I get there on February 5th and she is diagnosed with a tear in two parts of her knee structure. During her exam, I remarked about Gizzy's eye surgery and they said they would have done it for $250 (not $1500 or even the $800 I spent - argh!) However, vet #3 cannot do the knee surgery because they don't have the equipment, so refer me to vet #4 in Jonesborough, TN. I call them and get a quote of $650-850 for the knee surgery which is WAAAAAAYYYYY better than the $3200 quote I got from a vet in Knoxville that was also recommended. Major yikes! I actually called another 4 or 5 area vets to see if they even did the needed surgery. None of them did. So, I traveled to Jonesborough on February 13th to confirm the diagnosis and Xena is now scheduled for surgery next week in Jonesborough. This vet was so nice and our exam was complementary as well!

BE WILLING TO TRAVEL FOR A BETTER PRICE - In the meantime,  I had Shadow scheduled for a dental this week which he needed BADLY. The base price at vet #1, my local vet, is $200 plus extractions and pain meds, so I estimated it was going to be another $300 because I was pretty sure some teeth were rotted. However, looking at the possible $800+ bill for Xena, I knew I couldn't afford it. So, after scheduling Xena's surgery, I called and cancelled Shadow's dental thinking it would just have to wait until March or April. Then I decided to call vet#3 because they are known for their quality service and affordable prices and they told me their base price is $65 plus extractions and meds. They actually had an opening yesterday and I grabbed it and my final bill was $93 ... I saved about $200! They are definitely going to be my go-to for doggy dentals! Now, this was not a fun day as it is a very small town and so lacking in things to do and places to visit or shop. So, my day was like this - one hour drive there, drop off dog, one hour drive home, wait 2-1/2 hours, drive one hour back, pick up dog, drive a final hour back home. I was exhausted!

SHOP ONLINE FOR FOOD - A final recommendation is to check out Chewy.com or any other online dog food supplier for cheaper prices and more variety than what you can find in the stores. Cody must eat grain-free and it is less expensive to buy our chosen dog food online. We pay no sales tax and shipping is free if you set up an auto-ship. (I am not affiliated with Chewy.com; I just love their service!)

In conclusion, it has been an expensive and busy few months. I am very grateful that we have had the money in our emergency fund to take care of all of these expenses which have totalled about $3000 (there were exam costs associated with the surgeries, a couple of groomings and Cody had 2 ear infections during this time as well.) I actually set aside about $300/month to be sure we have the money needed to take care of the dogs. If I hadn't been doing that, it would have been so stressful to be dealing with these surprise surgery expenses.

On a final note, I am grateful for my local vet and that is where I take my dogs for their groomings. My biter, Cody, is settled there now and I honestly think it is best for him to get most of his treatments there because of his comfort level with the staff. So, please know that I believe it is best to have a good relationship with a nearby vet, which I do. However, there are times when it is easier on the budget to seek services elsewhere and I have no problem doing that as long as my dogs are still receiving excellent care.

If you have ways that you share on pet care costs, please share them with me in the comments because I need all the help I can get!

Friday, February 16, 2018

Change in plans

I posted earlier today that I was going to move this blog. However, I've had a change of heart and am going to keep blogging here as well as at the other domain - Silver Hair Life - for now. I'm not sure that I want to keep paying for a blog (this one is free!) once my hosting plan expires and I'm going to look into downgrading my hosting plan for the other site down to one year. So, if you've been following me here, I'm not going anywhere! Sorry for the wishy-washy thoughts today!

Sunday, February 11, 2018

Save Money When Buying a Car


As I was driving through town this morning, I found myself looking at all of the cars on the road. While I'm not "into" cars, I do enjoy reading about new cars on the market and reviewing a car I don't know much about, but am considering purchasing. Then I began counting all of the cars we have purchased in our 27 years together. I came up with 20!! Wow, that's like buying a car every 18 months! What a waste of money - we know that we have not been responsible when it comes to this part of our finances.

I would not recommend changing cars so often, of course. Sometimes we bought a car that seemed perfect only to find that it wasn't - MPG too low, front seat doesn't fit me well, small car too loud when there are two toddlers in it (ha!), car is too noisy, car is not comfortable on long trips, etc. We are settled on the cars we are driving now and plan to drive them until they fall apart! We don't put lots of miles on our cars, so we should be good until retirement. Then, we plan to buy one more car each with cash before Jim retires and drive them until we can't drive anymore.

Here is what we have learned when it comes saving money when buying a car:

NEW VS. USED: We have bought a combination of new and used cars. I, personally, don't have a problem when someone chooses to purchase a car brand new. It really is a thrill to be the first one to own a car ... with the "new car smell," the shiny interior, etc. Our first cars and our last cars were both purchased new and we've bought a few new ones in between. The key to purchasing a new car is to buy a demo model, or make a deal at year's end or when there is going to be a model change. All of these situations have saved us thousands of dollars. For example, our 2014 Kia Sorento SXL (top of the line model with all of the bells & whistles) was a demo car purchased in October 2014 with around 5,000 miles on it. It retailed for $43,000 and we purchased it for $31,000 which was around the retail price of the base model at the time. It still smelled brand new, too!

DO YOUR RESEARCH: If you've settled on a car to buy, read as many online reviews as you can. It's nice to get an overview of all of the different opinions to help you see the entire pictures. We personally use AutoTrader.com to look for new & used cars. You can set the distance that you are willing to travel to get the best deal as well as plug in all of the features you are wanting in order to get a good listing of the cars available to you. Then, find several near you to check out and test drive. We believe it is better to spend a little more for a quality car that will last the long term. We all know that Toyota and Honda have great reputations. We have had great luck with Kia and Hyundai as well.

BE WILLING TO DRIVE FOR THE BEST DEAL:  To purchase my current car, a 2015 Jeep Renegade Limited, we drove from Tennessee to Ohio to get it because the dealer offered us the most value for our trade-in sight unseen! The Renegade was a first year model for Jeep, so there were only a certain amount of them available. In addition, I wanted the Limited edition with a particular interior color and that was even harder to find. We found what I wanted through AutoTrader.com and asked our local Jeep deal to do the same deal. They refused and told us they didn't think the Ohio dealer would honor their phone offer. Turns out they did and we ended up with the payment we wanted! It was a full day of driving, but well worth it!

KNOW THE CAR LOAN RATES: While, in a perfect world, we would purchase our cars with cash and never have a payment, that is usually not the case. So, before you buy a car, know the loan rates at your local banks and credit unions. You do NOT have to use the loan companies that the car dealers recommend. We always use our credit union because they have the lowest rates around unless the dealer is offering a 0% loan, which is quite common nowadays.

CHECK THE INSURANCE RATES BEFORE PURCHASING: Don't be surprised by a rise in your insurance rates AFTER you have already bought a car. Call your insurance company before and get a quote for the car you will be adding to see if it is going to cost more than you want to spend. You will need to know the VIN (Vehicle Identification Number) of the car you are trying to purchase in order to get the best quote.

KNOW YOUR BUDGET & BE WILLING TO WALK AWAY: Before we buy a car, we know what monthly payment we can afford and that fits well into our budget. WE WILL NOT SPEND MORE! We have walked away more than once when we couldn't get the payment we wanted and we've never looked back. Several times, the dealer has called back to give us the price we want. Don't be swayed into spending more than you want to ... there will always be another car to buy even if you have to wait a little longer.

BUY AT THE END OF THE MONTH: The last weekend of the month is usually the best time to buy a car because the sales people are trying to reach certain goals set by their managers. We've gotten our best deals by following this method! We usually will scope out the cars we are interested in the weekend before and then check back the last weekend to see if the car is still available. If so, we will then try to make a deal that everyone is happy with.

PAY CASH IF YOU CAN: I believe that I must add this here because it IS the best practice for buying a car. We all know that we won't want to drive the same car for 60 years, so there will always be another car to buy. In between car purchases, try and set aside what you can in order to reduce what you pay out of pocket for the "new" car. Who knows? You may find that you end up saving quite a lot and are motivated to save a bit longer in order to pay ALL cash for it!

I hope these tips are helpful to you! I wish we had known all of this earlier in our marriage as I think we could have saved some money over the last 27 years. However, we are smarter now and are teaching our kids how to save money buying cars. Our mistakes will benefit them!

Tuesday, January 23, 2018

In all honesty ... recent struggles

I'm trying to be better about posting once weekly, but last week go away from me. Actually, last week was a bit of a struggle for me. I have been home now for a little over a year and some weeks are hard to get through. There are many reasons I like not working - I keep up with all of the housekeeping, banking and shopping so that my husband doesn't have to worry about it. Well, sometimes, he comes home and ALL of the laundry is on the bed to be put away, but .... he never complains and we put it all away together later. Having four dogs requires time as well, so it's nice to be home to tend to their needs. My oldest dog is starting to decline somewhat and I'm not sure I would be comfortable with him home all day as he has very limited sight and mobility.

We are all trying to eat healthier as well and my being home means that I have time to prepare menus and cook dinners for us all without having to make dinner after a long day at work. When I was working, I often didn't feel like spending time in the kitchen at the end of the day. I FINALLY lost about 15 lbs last year and I KNOW it is because I was home and away from the food people bring in, the potluck celebratory lunches, and the out -to-eat lunches with my fellow employees. In addition, I now have time to exercise in the morning when it suits me best. Finally, I have time to enjoy my own pursuits - crafts, reading, learning on the internet, etc.

However, being home means that I am alone most of my day. Being introverted means that isn't such a bad thing, but I do miss the chit-chat that occurs when working with others. I often find myself spending hours on the internet hopping from page to page reading up on health or spending time reading posts on various group pages. Often I consider this wasted time and feel guilty for being home doing absolutely nothing. Bleh. My biggest issue is I feel like I should be doing something productive with the time I am given and I feel bad when I don't do anything. My husband doesn't care what I do with my day as long as I am happy and the basics are taken care of, so this is pressure I am putting on myself. It's still something I need to work on, I guess.

My biggest struggle lately is thinking about food ALL DAY LONG because of my desire to eat keto and sugar free and to try to heal some of the medical issues I deal with. However, I am failing miserably at losing my craving for sugar. I have not bought a candy bar yet this month, but I have had some desserts and foods that I shouldn't be eating. I have the first two books below which I would like to use to try to get off sugar. However, I think I may need to buy the 21-Day Sugar Detox Daily Guide book to get it done right!

    

The only problem is that I cannot have ANY artificial sweeteners while trying to beat my cravings and I just cannot imagine NOT having my morning coffee with my husband before he heads off to work. I've fixed a morning coffee daily for years and years now and I love the ritual as well as the taste. I drink decaf so it's not about the caffeine, and it's not like I can switch to hot cocoa because I still put sweetener in that. I'm just not sure if I will ever get over my sugar cravings and that bums me out big time.

I was feeling a bit frustrated trying to eat keto and fixed myself some recipes from my cookbooks by Maria Emmerich, Quick and Easy Keto and Easy Dairy-Free Keto. I looked for some yummy breakfast fixings and these hit the spot. Unfortunately, I had a really hard time eating only ONE of them, but both the Pumpkin Cream Cheese and Blueberry Mug Muffin were great! We won't discuss the fact that I ate SIX of the pumpkin cream cheese muffins in ONE day ... sigh ... so, for now, I will not be making recipes like these because they just taste too darn good!


I love collecting keto cookbooks because eating low-carb is probably going to be a rest-of-my-lifetime thing for me as it helps me control my weight and I find myself eating whole foods when focusing on this type of eating. So, for my birthday (which is tomorrow the 24th!), I bought the last keto cookbook on my list, Everyday Ketogenic Kitchen, and boy, is it a good one! Here are some pics of the Table of Contents and I can't wait to dive in and try some of these recipes!





Unfortunately, the caveat with eating low-carb and keto is that I have three food sensitivities which really put a damper on preparing meals. I have an intolerance for nightshades - these include tomatoes, potatoes and peppers as well as spices that include these items. I also find that if I eat too much dairy then my asthma/mucus production flares. So I am trying to figure out what wiggle room I have when using these items in my meals because sometimes they just cannot be avoided. So far, I think I can have tomatoes 1-2 times weekly and I can have a bit of dairy daily - some cheese on a salad or heavy whipping cream in my coffee. What I cannot do is have dairy at every meal or eat tomatoes daily. Everything in moderation, right? I've also pretty much eliminated all grains/gluten from my diet because it causes GI issues for me. I will have a piece of bread a couple times a month, usually when eating out, and that doesn't seem to bother me at all.

I'm glad that it is still January as it means I have 11 more months to work on these struggles and figure out what works for me. In the meantime, I will be thankful that I can stay at home to take care of my family and make things easier for them. I did crochet a baby blanket last week, so my time was well-spent on that. Time to start up another crochet project and my these hands to good use!

I hope you have a productive week while also taking some time for yourself each day!

Friday, January 12, 2018

The weekly wrap-up

This week was ok overall. Gizzy had his eye surgery on Monday and we had a bit of a scare after bringing him home. The vet actually decided to keep him overnight and I picked him up Tuesday morning, but he wasn't walking well at home. He was kinda dragging his back legs or stumbling trying to walk on them. As it turns out, he was pretty much back to normal by late Wednesday afternoon. It just took a while for all of the anesthetic to leave his system. He has done well with his recovery and I've only had to put on the "cone of shame" one afternoon so far!

I spent most of the week reading up on ketogenic eating as we continue to transition to the way of life. I have to admit that I fell off the wagon as I am a huge sugar addict and I caved and ate some chocolate and then a piece of turtle cheesecake from a local restaurant. However, I'm back on the wagon today and not beating myself up about it. This is a process and I have to re-teach myself how to eat!

The most recent book by Maria & Craig Emmerich, Keto: The Complete Guide to Success on The Ketogenic Diet, including Simplified Science and No-cook Meal Plans was released on Tuesday and it is amazing! 


This should be a "go-to" book for anyone wanting to learn all they can about keto. It explains all of the hows and whys of this kind of eating. The best section is Chapter 6: Modifications for Disease which explains how to modify keto to help heal from certain diseases/diagnoses. It also lists supplements to help in the healing process. As someone diagnosed with hypothyroidism, insulin resistance, PCOS and depression, this section really spoke to me! I will definitely recommend it to anyone wanting to learn more about the keto way of life. My grocery bill has gone up about $20-30 weekly, but that's a small price to pay for a healthier body!

I'm still using my planner and trying to figure out how to make it work best to keep me on task and organized. I have been reading a lot about bullet journaling and I do think I would like to give it a try. My current planner goes through June so I figure I can bullet journal the last 6 months to see if I like it. If I don't, I'll just make my own planner again. I found this article very instructive on how to set up a bullet journal if you are interested.

I'm back to the gym this week! I joined Planet Fitness as it's only $10/month. I'm still hesitant to lift weights as I still "feel" my healing tummy when I do simple things like get off the couch or turn over in bed. So until that sensation goes away, I will limit my workout to the machines, mostly the treadmill for now. I finally found a copy of the classes they offer and so am going to take their stretch class after my walk. I have no flexibility and so hope this will help.

I'm working on getting my "crojo" back ... that is the mojo to crochet! I have worked out a plan for my son's "summer forest on the lake" blanket and hope to get it going this weekend.


I worked this up in Excel and it is meant to represent the reflection of the forest in the lake. You can see the sky and sun above the forest. I believe this will be a pretty blanket once it's completed. I also have plans for at least 3 other blankets, so I best get crackin' or I won't get them done!

Those are probably the highlights of my week. I'm still wasting too much time on the Internet, but I know how to fix it and so will work on that next week. My husband and I finally finished our marathon of watching all of the seasons of Game of Thrones. Can't wait for the final season in 2019! We've got HBO free for another 2 months, so better make the best use of that time and watch some other shows we won't be able to view after our trial is over.

I'm looking forward to a better week next week. Here's hoping I can continue to improve in the areas where I know I have issues.

Thursday, January 4, 2018

New habits for the New Year!

I love the week between Christmas and New Year's Day. It is a time to review the past year and take note of what I accomplished as well as things I didn't finish (or even start!). It is also a time of introspection as I look forward to the next 365 days and decide what my goals are and how I want to spend my days. I have high hopes for myself in 2018. I am going to have to set aside some of my crochet time in order to meet some other goals.

My youngest son will graduate from college in December 2018 and he has asked me to finish his scrapbooks. I have 10 years of pictures to work through, so my plan is to tackle a year's worth each month and hand him his scrapbooks at Christmas. I'm not sure if I can meet this goal as I have to figure out which pictures to print, but I'm going to do my best!

Another goal that I began working on January 2nd is changing my diet over to a ketogenic eating plan. There is lots of info about this way of eating online and the results for people with medical issues that I have (hypothyroidism, insulin resistance, high cholesterol) are amazing. So many people healing themselves by eating very low carb. To start the year off right, my husband and I had a Cardiac Calcium CT done at a nearby imaging center. I was surprised to learn that my score was a perfect ZERO! This indicates that there is currently no calcifications in my arteries. Based on my genetic history, it is a miracle - LOL! I've had my bloodwork done and most of it is good. My cholesterol is high, but that is due in part to eating lower carb the last quarter of the year which raised my good cholesterol result.


Eating keto takes a lot of planning and a bit of extra cooking. Thankfully, I am home for now and have the time to tackle this. I cook for 5 adults and every person has food they don't like, so it can be a bit of a challenge to come up with a weekly menu that satisfies everyone! I do my best and everyone is appreciative of my efforts and that is a good thing! The biggest task taking my time is counting my macros for each meal (calories, fat, etc.), but that will ease up with time as I get everything written down and can refer back more easily. I think that is why a lot of people give up on eating healthier - it takes a lot of time to track everything.

I still haven't returned to the gym. I will be 3 months post-op in another week or so and intend to begin walking next week. I hope to begin lifting weights again in February. I am pretty much back to normal. I gave up wearing compression garments about 3 weeks ago and no longer experience swelling in my belly. I can tell that it is still healing because I will feel a twinge or pull here and there based on my movement, but I am so happy with the results!

Here is the little stash of books that I will be reading, studying, and enjoying for 2018.


I can't wait to dive into them and let them help me make 2018 the best year yet! I've already started decluttering the house as I am following the minimalist movement to clear out 2,018 things in 2018. So far, we have removed 250 items from our house! I will use the Spark Joy and Tidying Up books to help me declutter the entire house by spring. Then we will have one huge yard sale and take anything not sold to Goodwill. I'm studying the Scandinavian books (How to HyggeHygge, Lykke and Lagom) in order to take a different approach to how I view life and am enjoying what I have read so far. The Year of Cozy and Scandinavian Gatherings books will help me enjoy each month a little more as I make some new recipes and try some new crafts. Making Winter is an exquisite book and I can't wait to dive right in. I will be reviewing these books over the coming weeks, so stay tuned for more details!

I also want to return to the simple and frugal ways that I used to have. You know the old adage, "You spend what you make." Well, that isn't totally true as we do very well with regards to retirement planning, but it is true that we do spend more now than we used to. 2018 is the year of savings - no extra spending, eat out less, make my own cleaners, etc.


I just received these books yesterday and will probably spend the rest of the week looking through them and choosing several tasks to work on. I will be reviewing both books soon. Little House Living is full of 130 simple, DIY recipes for making beauty products, cleaners, edible goodies. The Hands-On Home is a seasonal guide with information regarding lots of DIY for preserving foods, making home and personal care products, as well as recipes to enjoy each season. It's gonna be a fun year learning so many new things!

Unfortunately, we have to start off the new year with a bit of surgery for one of my four dogs. Gizmo, aka Gizzy, has developed glaucoma in his left eye. You can see the ulcer as it was a few years ago (he came to us this way when we adopted him) and if you look closer at the bottom picture, you can see that the ulcer now covers all of his eye. This is due to the glaucoma and he has now lost all vision in that eye. So, next week the eye will be removed in the hopes of eliminating any pain he is experiencing at this time. I hope he will recover quickly and feel better soon!



Well, I guess that is all for the first post of the year. I have plans to blog at least once weekly in 2018, so I hope you will follow along this year and maybe even be inspired to join me in my adventures towards a simpler, more enjoyable and frugal way of living. Until next time .....