tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-61803552424179224842024-03-23T03:14:58.769-07:00The Professor's WifeOne gals thoughts on marriage, ministry, green living, and helping children in crisisThe Professor's Wifehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16729608417909675769noreply@blogger.comBlogger107125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6180355242417922484.post-86335987624596007452013-01-01T18:11:00.000-08:002013-01-02T13:58:58.421-08:00God's Faithfulness in 2012<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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This past year has been, to say the least, a roller coaster ride. In April, after an extremely stressful episode with a friend who we lost to an illness she wouldn't get treatment for (biggest mistake of my life because of all the pain it caused my husband, but I loved this girl like a sister), I had the worst adrenal crash of my life. I was so tired and weak I would pray each morning I would wake up the next day. It took all my strength to walk to the restroom or to the refrigerator to get food. I even tried to make Pete promise to get remarried if anything happened (which he, incidentally, would not promise). Then there were trips to the emerency room where I was tremoring, even stuttering, where the doctors stared at me and said it was all my head, but did I want some Xanax? I remember making a choice - I had to decide to get well on my own as conventional doctors would just watch me die if I relied on them. My osteopath figured out some good pointers for overcoming the intestinal issues which were causing a lot of the crazy symptoms I was having. But I also did a lot of my own research about what to do to overcome them - it was do or die, and I really had no choice. I made a lot of mistakes along the way, and so did my doctor (because we didn't know my full diagnosis then) , but by God's grace with a really good anti-candida diet, some good supplements, daily graded exercise, and lots of acupuncture, I went from praying to wake up the next morning to being able to walk 30 minutes a day and even had plans of starting up a home business painting calligraphy on furniture. I was so grateful and felt like I had a new lease on life that I really didn't deserve. I was the happiest woman alive.<br />
Then in August we both got sick with a bad flu virus. I fought it off, but my energy levels plummeted back down to where I could only walk 6 minutes a day. I got back up to about 20. Then another virus came, I would fight it off, and I would start again. This has happened at least 6 times during this terrible cold and season, even though I've worn a mask to church, take tons of vitamin C, and tried to stay away from sick people. Each time I would get back up, and keep going, but while trying to just be thankful I was alive and could walk around without a cane, it was discouraging to say the least. Mostly because I want to help my ever loving husband more, and not have to rely on him for so much (but that is another post about accepting God's grace in my life...). Add to that some judgmental comments from Christians (NOT from Grace Fellowship) that I maybe wasn't getting well because of doing yoga or acupuncture and wasn't treating my body as the temple of the Holy Spirit. Satan was really after me there for a while, and I really did get pretty discouraged. But in retrospect, his wiles are pretty ridiculous - all false guilt is from Satan himself, never God. And I don't ever have to listen to his lies.<br />
About three weeks ago after a bad reaction to an herb my acupuncturist had me try (which a lot of people do not react to, in fairness), I was at my wit's end. I was crying out to God, "Please Lord, You know everything - show someone, somewhere, what is wrong with me! I need help, and I need it now! Don't leave me here like this, help me!" I demanded. I don't usually pray that way, and I don't recommend it, but like I said, I was at my wit's end. The next day I had an appointment with my DO, who decided that the intestinal stuff couldn't be explaining all my symptoms and maybe I had a genetic mutation which was causing me problems with methylating. I had never heard of such a thing, but sure enough, I have a double MTHFR mutation which explains so many of my symptoms. I will write more on this later as I want to raise awareness and see if I can help others with chronic illnesses get diagnosed and treated. Long story short, with the right vitamins and detox lifestyle and therapies (this mutation causes your body to not process B vitamins and to not be able to get rid of toxins - which can lead to fatigue, immunity problems, and even, as in my case, neurological problems), I can get better over time. It won't be a "quick fix", it will be a marathon, not a sprint. But God is so faithful to hear my prayers, even when they are disrespectful. And He is faithful to let me have relapse after relapse this fall, which led my DO to look deeper than he had already. He is so faithful to give me such a loving husband who insists on taking care of me, even when I don't want to let him. He is in control, and He is so good.</div>
The Professor's Wifehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16729608417909675769noreply@blogger.com38tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6180355242417922484.post-45652716513362572212012-09-11T17:29:00.000-07:002012-09-11T17:56:03.944-07:00How to Overcome Fatigue - More Ways to Cope with Detox<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
I know, I know, another blog about my health, but I have been getting a lot of hits from google, which makes me think that God is using all stuff I've been going through to help others. So here goes:<br />
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Update- <em>Back up to walking 25-27 minutes and able to keep my house clean again, and see some friends. The Lord is gracious and kind!</em><br />
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(I realized that my last post may have scared some of my family and friends, especially if you didn't know what was going on with me for the past few months! I mentioned that I was having tremors because of detox - what I did not mention is that I have had much worse tremors in the past, and this whole detox process, which I have been going through since early May, has made them MUCH better in general. In April, I was having them so bad that on some days, I could barely walk to the refrigerator without my whole body shaking - I would have to use a walker or cane just to get around in my own house! My neurological problems were getting so bad that I would even stutter from time to time. We tried three different traditional doctors, and Cat-scans and blood tests all came back negative. They just acted like I was crazy because they couldn't figure out what was wrong, and offered me valium. So needless to say, I got sick of that sort of treatment and just stuck with my osteopath, who said they were caused by neurotoxins from, ahem, intestinal critters from a mission trip, and candida.<br />
So I am sorry if I scared any of you - Pete posted about it recently on facebook asking for prayer in a particularly hard moment, and didn't mention why I was having them (because he didn't want to embarrass me). So I think it may have scared some of you needlessly! I still have tremors/ shakes occasionally, but nothing like I used to, and doing this detox stuff, which really only involves taking probiotics, probiotic rich food like kefir and sauerkraut , avoiding most carbs, eating organic, and taking garlic and coconut oil - nothing crazy! - is why I am not still bedridden and am slowly but surely getting my life back.)<br />
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Since lately I have been going through some pretty heavy detox symptoms, as I talked about in my last post, I have been trying to be more proactive about getting rid of the toxins from my body before they build up in my brain and give me crazy symptoms! I've gotten some help with this through a new acupuncturist I just found, along with a lot of my own research. As other people may be doing the same kind of research I was doing last week, I thought I would share some of what I have been doing that is helping. I think this would apply not just to candida or instestinal critter die-off, but also Lyme or other types of die-off:<br />
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1) Drink half your body weight in water, everyday. So if you weigh 100 pounds, drink 50 ozs, or 6 eight oz glasses of water, a day. I used to do this quite regularly, but got a little lazy about it lately, which is maybe part of why my detox symptoms were getting worse?! My acupuncturist told me last week that I need to treat water as a prescription - it is extremely important to remove toxins from your body!<br />
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2) Eat lots of fiber - need I say more? ......<br />
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3) Take Epsom salt baths daily - use at least 2 cups of Epsom salt in your bath, and stay in for at least 20 minutes. I would do this sometimes - but not everyday, and not two cups of salt! My acupuncturist gave me these specific directions last week, and it seems to really be helping! I add different essential oils I buy online - like lavendar (calming), peppermint (helps with mood), cinnamon (which is anti-fungal), If you don't have a bath tub in your home, you can always use a big plastic laundry tub like this (where there is a will, there is a way!):<br />
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4) Try Oil Pulling/ Sauna/ Skin Brushing - Here is a link explaining what these are and how to do them: <a href="http://www.thecandidadiet.com/alternative-detox.htm">http://www.thecandidadiet.com/alternative-detox.htm</a></div>
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5) Exercise! Sweat out those toxins! Of course only exercise within your current abilities.</div>
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6) Keep your sanity by reminding yourself it is NOT a spiritual/ emotional problem - just a temporary physiological problem - and distract yourself with something fun!</div>
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7) Drink lots of veggie juice, but limit the sweet veggies if you have candida! Read - green veggies - not the tastiest, but beats die-off! I have found parsley to work, and can stomach cucumber and celery better than bok-choy!</div>
8) If you are doing all of these things, and your die-off symptoms are unbearable, ease off your probiotics or antifungals (example: garlic oil) for a dose or two - you don't have to be a rock star!<br />
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9) Pray and ask for prayer! The battle belongs to the Lord!<br />
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What are your tips for dealing with detox/ die-off?</div>
The Professor's Wifehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16729608417909675769noreply@blogger.com26tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6180355242417922484.post-9788690081795608232012-09-04T16:05:00.001-07:002012-09-04T16:05:50.384-07:00How to Overcome Fatigue – Coping with, and Persevering Through, Detox<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Update - <em>Back to walking 15-20 minutes a day. Looking forward to trying acupuncture more regularly, at my husband's insistance and selfless sacrifice of his own wants, to help deal with some detox symptoms I've been struggling with lately. Determined to not give up, and to keep clinging to God.</em></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Often people with adrenal fatigue discover that at the root of their fatigue problems is a “body burden” such as systemic candida (when candida turns into a fungal form and takes root in your intestinal tract and spreads to other parts of your body*), parasites, or maybe even Lyme disease. This is good news to discover what is going wrong in your body. But then as you go through detoxing your body of this body burden, you may feel like you are in a war. Despite the fact that people may (and quite frankly already have) misjudge me, I am going to open up about what this war is like, because I am sure that there are other people out there who must be suffering<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>the same way. And for this experience to be worth something, I want to comfort others with the comfort God has given me.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Die-off, or detox, from candida, releases seventy-nine different toxins into your body, two of which are acetaldyhyde and ethanol. Here are is an article which talks about some of these die-off symptoms: </span><a href="http://www.thecandidadiet.com/candida-die-off.htm"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">http://www.thecandidadiet.com/candida-die-off.htm</span></a><span style="font-family: Calibri;">, and another blog which talks about some one’s personal experience with die-off symptoms: <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><a href="http://myjourneywithcandida.blogspot.com/2010/02/toxins-or-candida-die-offno-one-told-me.html"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">http://myjourneywithcandida.blogspot.com/2010/02/toxins-or-candida-die-offno-one-told-me.html</span></a><span style="font-family: Calibri;">.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Some of the die-off symptoms I deal with are fatigue, flu-like symptoms, unexplained sadness and anxiety, and off and on, tremors. (I know that may shock some of my family and friends, but this has been going on for months - just decided not to hide it anymore. Especially as they snuck up on me Sunday and my whole church family knows anyways!)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Just realize it is NOT a spiritual problem when you are going through detox symptoms like depression or anxiety. Because some people will misjudge you if they see you crying because of detox. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Don’t let people’s well-meaning, but hurtful, comments about “just trust the Lord” or “just be thankful and have a good attitude”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>be used by Satan. Don't let it give you false guilt on the one hand - it is not your fault, and feeling guilty will keep you from leaning on God who you desparately need during detox! Or on the other hand, don't let it make you bitter – people probably aren’t intentionally being hurtful, and may just need to be educated on this as candida detox is not a well-known topic! These will only deepen any temporary detox depression into real depression! Remember- <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>you can persevere, be thankful and trust the Lord in the midst of detox symptoms, but still feel temporarily sad or anxious because of the toxins being released in your system.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">That is not to say that there is no spiritual element to this. Certainly Satan attacks with even more discouragement when we are physically weak, especially temptations to not keep taking your probiotics or anti-fungal drugs ;) (or whatever you need to take to get rid of your particular body burden).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Remember –the alternative of just staying sick is not worth the temporary avoidance of detox symptoms, no matter how bad they may be (but realize it is OK to temporarily slow down if things get too rough!). I ask myself when I am tempted to give up, "Would I rather be bed-ridden or walk around with a cane?" <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Or just other general temptations you deal with at other times can get stronger, whatever those may be (losing your temper, impatience, lack of trust, etc.). <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And you stand strong in the Lord by clinging to Him through this whole process, resting in His love and grace, resisting these temptations through His strength, and accept His forgiveness when you fail (because as a sinner, you will fail sometimes!)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">You can also stand strong through die-off by accepting help when people offer it (hard for me to do with my pride!).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Or by getting the rest you need and not pushing yourself too hard- your body needs more rest when you are going through die-off. You can stand strong by listening to music – I listen to either Christian or classical depending on the mood I am in. Or doing something for someone else who is sick or struggling – I like to write encouraging notes, or paint mugs for people. It helps me not be isolated from others, and helps me keep my mind off my own problems. Or watching or reading something which brings you joy – I am currently watching episodes of “The Waltons” - that may be the last thing you would choose to watch, but you get the idea.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Or doing practical things to ease the die-off symptoms, like drink tons of water or take Epsom salt baths (draws the toxins out of the body) or easing off your dose of anti-fungals temporarily. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Or take a supplement such as Milk Thistle which helps your liver process toxins faster. (Researching for this article I just read about an essential trace mineral called Molybdenum which may really help with candida detox- will post more about it later if it helps me!)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">And remember you can do all things through Christ who gives you strength – not your own strength, so let Him carry you.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">* Some conventional doctors deny the existence of systemic candida probably because one of the root causes can be over-use of antibiotics, but thankfully my doctor does not. Nor does M.D. Joseph Brasco, co-author of “Restoring Your Digestive Health”, whose protocol I am following.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> Also, h</span>ere is an article by Dr. Oz which validates the connection between candida and chronic fatigue: http://www.doctoroz.com/blog/jacob-teitelbaum-md/candida-eliminating-yeastfungal-overgrowth.</span></div>
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The Professor's Wifehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16729608417909675769noreply@blogger.com52tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6180355242417922484.post-77445253421076761572012-08-19T13:35:00.001-07:002012-08-19T16:07:04.676-07:00How to Overcome Fatigue - NEVER. GIVE. UP.<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Everything was going so well with my recovery. I was walking 25-30 minutes a day, able to do most of my own housework, and had some energy left over to see friends and do crafty stuff. But then came a crazy heatwave, with over 100 degree temperatures. That knocked me down some, despite our best efforts to overcome it. Pete had bought another wall unit for the bedroom and got the car AC fixed, knowing that last summer the heat had knocked me down a lot. And I came up with all kinds of creative ways to "beat the heat", involving hanging sheets over our windows and putting ice in front of fans! I was determined to not let the heat impede my progress. But the heat was still too much for me, and it weakened my immune system so that I caught a summer flu bug earlier this week. Actually, we both did, and spent a couple of days staring at each other through our nauseau. I was too nauseaus to take all of my supplements, but did stick to my candida diet.<br />
Ok, so everyone catches the flu once in a while - no big deal! By Thursday we were over the bug, but my energy did not come back to where it was the previous week. I think this is because the candida has come back with full vengeance because I was too sick to take my supplements! I tried to get back to walking Friday, and was only able to walk 6 minutes! And I feel about the energy level of only being able to walk six minutes in day. That is down from 30 just one week ago! I got very frustrated and I hate to admit, even in a bit of a self-pitying funk for a few days. I was doing so well, why did you let this happen God, that kind of stuff.<br />
God is helping me pull out of this funk, and just accept that this is all part of the journey that He has me on. It is just the nature of adrenal/ chronic fatigue to have setbacks - again and again and again. In "Hope and Help for Chronic Fatigue Syndrome", Dr. Bested writes, "If you become ill or cannot exercise for a while, you will lose some of your muscle mass and strength within a few days. So reduce the time you walk or reduce the amount of wieghts and repetitions and begin again. Expect that you will begin again and again and again on your road to recovery. Do not get discouraged by this, but look back at your progress over time." She is right - at least I can walk 6 minutes, and am not walking with a cane! At least I have the mental energy to complete a sentence, or write this blog! And at least I know that if I get sick again, I need to be more creative about how to take my supplements, even if that means crushing them up in yogurt so I can take them. And at least I know that I am on the right track, and why my body gets so set back after an illness, rather than shooting in the dark like I used to! So yes, I refuse to give up. I refuse to sink into self-pity and stop persevering because of a little setback. I am determined to get well. <br />
Pete pointed out to me that of late I have been falling into a Pelagian mindset about getting myself well (Pelagius, for all of you non-church history buffs, was a heretic back in the day who taught works salvation). And he is right - I am not Pelagian in my theological beliefs, but I have been a practical Pelagian in my approach to getting well - I have been depending too much on my own efforts, instead of trusting and relying on God. I think that is one reason God has allowed this setback - in His grace and mercy, He would rather me be well spiritually than walking thirty minutes a day.<br />
I think part of my struggle with practical Pelagianism is because I come from a family of pioneers. I do not mean they wear bonnets and live off the land, I mean they have a can-do, persistant, and creative attitude to life and obstacles. My sister Melissa constantly comes up with creative ways to teach the autistic children she works with. My sister Monica started a successful real estate home business from scratch - a few years ago she was an administrative assistent. My sister Erica helped, and is helping, her son overcome a neurological problem which used to give him ticks - all through creative therapies and natural means - that is not supposed to be possible. My Mom fed a family of nine on a budget of a 100 dollars a week, using very creative means - and she never complained.<br />
In many ways I am grateful for the legacy of this pioneer spirit. If I didn't have this example, I would still be bed-ridden. But with it comes some pitfalls and temptations. On the one hand, if I succeed in overcoming obstacles, I am tempted to become self-sufficient and forget to give God the glory. On the other hand, if I am not successful or there is a temporary set-back, I am tempted to get hard on myself and get discouraged. Both temptations really come down to pride - pride in my abilities, and lack of a practical daily reliance on God for everything.<br />
So this time around I will try, by God's grace, to recover ....by His grace! I am by no means giving up on getting well - I have to keep trying. I have to keep trying for the sake of my husband, who has been so loving and supportive. I have to keep trying for the sake of my family members who struggle with adrenal fatigue and feel like there is no way out. I have to keep trying for the sake of my own sanity - there is so much I want to do! But I am giving up doing it in my own strength - the battle belongs to the Lord.</div>
The Professor's Wifehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16729608417909675769noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6180355242417922484.post-43595076049602102382012-08-04T14:59:00.000-07:002012-08-04T14:59:48.505-07:00How to Overcome Fatigue - Get Rid of Body Burdens<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Update -<em>Currently, on a good day, I am able to walk 25-30 minutes. I have overall much more energy for doing stuff around the house, am able on a good day to grocery shop, with Pete's help with the loading and unloading. And I have a little energy left over to be social and do small projects around the house or making homemade gifts for people. As I write this, I am reminded of God's goodness!</em><br />
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Adrenal fatigue doesn't usually just happen overnight - usually a lot of different stressful events and health problems build up until finally there is a final straw which breaks the camels back, and your adrenal glands stop producing enough hormones to give you the energy you need. But restoring your health after this occurs is not a hopeless.<br />
Overcoming adrenal fatigue involves simple problem solving 101. You figure out what is putting a drain on your adrenal glands, what your individual "body burdens" are, and you figure out a plan, with your doctor, how to overcome those body burdens, either through traditional Western medicine or through more natural means. Body burdens could include a too-stressful lifestyle, over- or under- exercise, allergies, chronic bronchitus, or chronic worry (too convicting...moving on...). They could include thyroid problems, blood sugar issues, insomnia, hormone imbalances, instestinal problems such as candida or parasites, or addictions like smoking or too much alcohal. (Summarized from "Adrenal Fatigue - the 21st Century Stress Syndrome" by Dr. James Wilson.)<br />
I will give two examples of "body burdens" and how I have/ am problem solving to overcome them to illustrate how you can apply this process to whatever your particular "body burdens" are. Two body burdens I am overcoming right now are candida and seasonal allergies. My doctor diagnosed me with candida this April - I had barely heard of it before. (It is a yeast which can become fungal under the right circumstances in your body - my body had the right circumstances!) He told me to double up on probiotics, and prescribed Diflucan. I doubled up on probiotics, and researched Diflucan - it had so many possible nasty side effects, including seizures, that I decided it was not a final solution. So I did lots of research, and found a natural anti-candida protocal by a guy named Jordan Rubin (he had one of the worst cases of candida possible, and overcome it and Crohn's disease completely naturally). His protocal is outlined in his book, "Restoring Your Digestive Health", and includes 1) avoiding for six months any foods which feed candida, including grains, bread, fruit, sugar, honey, or non-fermented dairy products, 2) a high dose of a probiotic called "Primal Defense", 3) a high enzyme (enzymes eat the candida) diet which includes goat milk kefir, freshly made veggie juice, and bone broth, and 4) lots of water and fiber for detoxifying purposes. I talked to my doctor about using this approach, and he said I earned an A plus for research (always check with your doctor!). And it was significantly helped my health - it is one of the things that have helped me graduate from being house bound to being able to walk 30 minutes on a good day.<br />
Allergies are a body burden which recently have been knocking me down some, this being a summer with the one of the highest levels of allergens in a long time in San Diego's history. Last night I took some Benadryl to see if that would help, and today I had tremors. I think that somehow the Benadryl overstimulated my adrenal glands, and my body had more energy than it knew what to do with (I've had a similiar reactions to other medicines before, and that is the answer my doctor gave me). So I am researching natural ways to overcome seasonal allergies. I am going to try 1) limiting my exposure to the allergens by using an air filter and exercising indoors as much as possible, especially on high allergy days, 2) using natural anti-inflammatory's such as vitamin C, astragulus, and a substance called quercetin which is derived from onions, and 3) ridding my body of as many allergens as possible through drinking plenty of water and using a netti pot. I am hoping and praying that this will work, and will keep persevering until I figure out something which does.<br />
While this is a simple concept, living it out is definately not easy. For me, living it out takes daily dependence on God. It takes perseverence, sometimes, to figure out what your "body burdens" are - it took me over a year to figure out some of mine, and there may be more that I am unaware of! It is simple to realize that I have to get rid of candida to get my energy back. It is not easy to go day after day not eating sweets or bread or rice or even fruit or honey. Nor it is easy to deal with the "die-off" symptoms of candida which include intense sugar cravings, brain fog, and even depression. It is simple to realize I need to figure out how to deal with allergies. It is not easy to get up the motivation to "problem solve" again, just when I thought I had my recovery plan down to a science. And when conventional medicine's answers are giving me tremors - it takes a lot more persistance to figure out safe, natural methods of dealing with things then just taking over the counter medicine. Nor is it easy (for me) to choose walking in a mall instead of in God's beautiful creation, until allergy season is over. I don't say this to complain - I just don't want to mislead anyone that it is easy!<br />
But of course the pay-off is completely worth it - it already has been! And when I am well living the full life I dream of, looking back, these little "trials" will seem so insignificant. When I am able to go on trips with my husband, have people over for dinner, volunteer to help homeless kids, work in my garden to my heart's content, and paint as much as I want for my etsy shop, or whatever other adventure's God has in store for us, I will be glad for God's help in persevering and not giving up!</div>The Professor's Wifehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16729608417909675769noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6180355242417922484.post-81671571809922407612012-07-14T19:10:00.001-07:002012-07-14T19:10:35.440-07:00How to Overcome Fatigue - Exercise!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<em>Update - God is continuing to heal me, and I am so thankful! I am up to walking 23 minutes a day now, and have added some very, very gentle strength training (no weights) which is more than I can believe is possible! Part of the reason is we cashed out some stocks to add acupuncture - so grateful that my husband is insisting we keep doing it even though I think it is too much to spend.... Have I mentioned how much I love my husband! Still keeping on with the "Guts and Glory" anti-candida program, and will persevere with it until I conquer this beast.</em><br />
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The last thing a person wants to do when they are fatigued is exercise. And too much exercise is very bad for conditions involving chronic fatigue/ adrenal fatigue -it can put you in bed for days, weeks, or even months! But graded exercise is essential to overcoming fatigue.<br />
When I was at my worst a few months ago, spending most of my day in bed, the last thing on my mind was exercise. But God works in mysterious ways - I read a book I got from the library called "Hope and Help for Chronic Fatigue" (I mentioned it in my last post), and it gave me the best advice I have ever read on exercise. It said that even if you are bedridden, do a little bit of exercise, even if that means raising your hands above your head three times! So I started there, doing gentle stretches in bed. This helped me graduate to walking around my house with a cane, then without a cane. <br />
Then I decided to tackle my stairs. We live on top of a garage with a very steep set of stairs. Every time I had to go out to a doctor's appointment, I would end up back in bed for a few days. If I wasn't going to be permanently housebound, I would have to tackle those stairs, and I thank God everyday for them! So I did - I started with two stairs, then three, until I did all of the stairs each day.<br />
Then I started tackling my driveway. It is really steep, but I figured if I ever wanted to get the mail (and not drive the car to go get it), I would need to tackle driveway. It took me a few weeks, but I eventually made it. From there, I just kept adding on minutes to how far I walked, paying close attention to how my energy was the next day. If it was worse, I would subtract a minute. If it was better, I would add a minute. In the book, the author recommends no more than adding 10 percent a week. Because of other things I've been doing, I am able to do add much more than 10 percent (at that rate, I'd be just now at the top of my driveway!). <br />
Now I am up to twenty-three minutes, which makes me soooo happy! And how much I exercise is really helping me expand what else I am able to do - I am able to do more and more around the house. I was able to be social (for limited amounts of time - 45 minutes to an hour) twice this week. And I was able to put together a very simple fundraiser involving bath salts and essential oils for one of our missionaries. I just started last week to do strength training so that I can do the lifting and pushing required with grocery shopping, and eventually vaccuuming, without crashing back in bed. This is very, very easy strength training - I am not doing any weights, just 10-15 arm or leg lifts, alternating days, using my body's own natural resistance. Eventually I will add slightly more and more weight as my body regains strength.<br />
And how much I exercise is really helping me expand what else I am able to do - I am able to do more and more around the house. I was able to be social (for limited amounts of time - 45 minutes to an hour) twice this week. And I was able to put together a very simple fundraiser involving bath salts and essential oils for one of our missionaries. A month, or even two weeks ago, that would have been unthinkable! Probably the biggest challenge with exercising everyday is that since I have limited energy, I would rather spend it in other ways, like being social for longer periods or doing more around the house. But I see that it is paying off in those areas, so I am going to keep being patient and keep on keeping on until I am completely well and don't have to make those hard choices!<br />
Exercise has not been the only thing that has helped me recover as much as I have. Jordan Rubin's "Gut's and Glory" program has been essential (another post), as well some different supplements, and lately, acupuncture. But it has been key to my recovery thus far, and will continue to be!</div>The Professor's Wifehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16729608417909675769noreply@blogger.com19tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6180355242417922484.post-57942226623343065972012-06-30T15:51:00.001-07:002012-06-30T16:00:01.833-07:00How to Overcome Fatigue- Pace Yourself<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<em>Update - God is so good! I continue to improve - I am up to walking 10-12 minutes a day, and yesterday was able to walk 13! (This is up from 8 only three weeks ago, and bedridden two and half months ago)! I feel like my endurance is getting stronger - I don't "crash" as easily, and am able to do progressively more and more in a day. I'm continuing to follow the "Guts and Glory" program in "Restoring Your Digestive Health" by Jordan Rubin, and am thrilled to have added in wild-caught fish into my diet and am handling it just fine. I am also working on some hormone issues (a post in itself) which, if I can correct, will hopefully help my energy levels rise even further.</em><br />
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To recover from any chronic illness, especially one in which your adrenals are fatigued, requires very careful, deliberate pacing. Since finding out I had adrenal fatigue over a year ago (before knowing all the reasons why), I have been trying to learn to pace myself, after reading that if you spend more energy than you make, you will continue to stay fatigued, or get worse. But obviously I did not do a great job with this as I ended up bedridden! But then this April I found this chart in a book called "Hope and Help for Chronic Fatigue Syndrome and Fibromyalgia" by Alison Bested, M.D., (one of the top chronic fatigue doctors out there) , and it has helped me enormously:<br />
<a href="http://www.mecfsassist.org/activity-log--functional-capacity-scale.html">http://www.mecfsassist.org/activity-log--functional-capacity-scale.html</a><br />
What has especially helped me is the "Functional Capacity Scale" which rates which activities you are safe to do at different energy levels (which you can rate very precisely by how many number of minutes you can walk - currently I am a level 5 as I can walk 13 minutes a day). It has also helped me think through things like, "I can walk 12-13 minutes - that means I will crash if I try to walk 20 or 30 minutes in Costco. Better go to a smaller store, and get Pete's help with the lifting." In the past, I would have just thought "I feel better - I can go grocery shopping!", and then spent the next few days in bed. It has helped me look for ways of coping, like driving one of those mobility carts in Walmart so I can go to a bigger store and get more done at once. (I did that for this first time this week - at first I was a little embarrassed, but it felt so good zipping along being able to actually do a decent amount of shopping, that I stopped caring about being embarrassed and started really enjoying myself!)<br />
I am still not great at pacing because 1) I have a type A personality trapped in a type Z body, and 2) I don't like saying "no" and either hurting people's feelings or risking them thinking I am "lazy". But I am learning to be more logical about where my abilities are at instead of indulging in wishful thinking and hurting myself in the process (Pete is really good for me for this). And I am becoming more assertive out of necessity. This process is really teaching me a lot about patience - I am NOT naturally a patient person, so I think that may be one reason God is allowing me to go through this trial. If I am not patient, I will NOT get better - so I have to rely on God for this every day!<br />
Two things I make sure to prioritize in pacing myself is Bible/ prayer time, and exercise. God deserves my best energy, and I can not overcome a chronic illness without His constant help (for example, <em>"</em>Please help me resist this temptation to eat cheese!" or "Please help me resist the temptation to carry this laundry basket down the stairs by myself!") Since I am making it first priority, prayer and Bible reading has become more of a habit that I don't have to remind myself to do like I used to. I just do it automatically first thing in the morning (well, first thing being 10 am for me haha, but you get the idea). I am determined to keep this habit the rest of my life.<br />
Exercise is my next highest priority, as this will over time increase the amount of energy I have to spend. Many days I would rather spend my limited energy doing stuff around the house or being social or painting, than exercising. But I keep reminding myself that in the long run, if I can build my endurance through exercise, I won't have to make a choice between doing the laundry or hanging out with friends or exercising - I will be able to do it all! And already it is paying off - I have more endurance to do more housework, and socially it is helping as I can concentrate on what people are saying better :). I could not do this without my husband's support (and I should add insistance!). If he didn't insist on helping with the housework and that I rest like I should, I would not have the energy to exercise and progress in my endurance levels. I am very humbled and realize I am especially blessed with a very supportive husband, which gives me even more motivation to be faithful in exercising each day. (More on exercise in my next post).<br />
Filling out the activity logs faithfully each day (it can be painful as it makes me come to terms with reality if I overdo it and "crash") has been one of the most important tools in my recovery. I plan on filling them out until I am a level 9 or even 10!</div>The Professor's Wifehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16729608417909675769noreply@blogger.com21tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6180355242417922484.post-38000298109776115412012-06-13T20:01:00.001-07:002012-06-13T20:09:10.094-07:00How to Overcome Fatigue- Pray! (Part 2)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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This March and April, before I got my full diagnosis, when I was mostly bedridden, I spent whatever little energy I had to read about adrenal fatigue and chronic fatigue. I was determined to find out anything I could do to get better, and I read six different books on adrenal/ chronic fatigue, and at least fifty different articles. I was obsessed - I wanted to get my life back, and not just so I could pace myself to do dishes and make dinner - I mean get back the energy of a normal person. The books pretty much said all the same things - eat plenty of fruits and veggies, pace yourself, do graded exercise, and relax. Good advice which helped me graduate from bed-ridden to housebound, but not much hope for living a normal life - at least not for years!! I spent a lot of time praying, "God, if it is Your will for me to be this sick, ok, but if there is anything I can be doing to get better faster, can you lead me to what it is!"<br />
While very discouragedly surfing the net one day, I ran across an article about a guy named Jordan Rubin. He had almost died from Crohn's disease but fully recovered eating a kosher/ organic diet and taking something called HSO's (homeostatic soil organisms). His story really stuck out to me, but I figured it was just because was a Christian and he got over an incurable disease, which was what I was trying to do. I couldn't stop thinking about what happened to him, so I ordered a few of his books, "The Maker's Diet" and "Patient Heal Thyself" from the public library, for some inspiration to keep me looking for a cure.</div>
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A few days before I got the books from the library, I finally got my full diagnosis (candida, leaky gut, and ahem, another digestive issue.) I was very thankful for a diagnosis, but some of these problems are rather complicated to overcome. My doctor told me to double-up on probiotics. Now, I have been taking probiotics for years, and my first thought was, "If they haven't helped me yet, I doubt they will in the future!" A few days later we got "The Maker's Diet" from the library, and I realized the HSO's which turned Rubin's health around were actually probiotics! He wrote, "HSOs also seem to act aggressively against protozoa, worms, and other parasites within the intestines and related organs and tissues. Even Candida albicans, along with other yeasts and molds, is obliterated." (pg78)<br />
I was intrigued, did a little more research online, and came across a study which showed that the HSO probiotics his company developed, Primal Defense, (based on customer demand after hearing his story about overcoming Crohn's disease) was proven to fight candida <a href="http://www.crohns.net/Miva/education/articles/FungalDef_PrimalDef.shtml">http://www.crohns.net/Miva/education/articles/FungalDef_PrimalDef.shtml</a>. The study mentioned another product called "Fungal Defense as well. I showed the study to my husband, Pete, and he said, "Order them". Coincidence? I say it was answered prayer!<br />
I took Fungal Defense for two weeks, and while it helped me get better, the die-off symptoms were almost unbearable at times. I have been taking Primal Defense Ultra for about three weeks, and have been feeling great! I have been charting my activities in an "Activity Log" I got from a book about chronic fatigue. Before starting either of these products, I had gradually worked my way up to walking down my stairs and half way up my driveway in about 8 minutes. Now, five weeks later, I can walk about a tenth of a mile in the same amount of time! WAY faster than the chronic fatigue books act like is possible with graded exercise, so I know this is working.<br />
I have also been, for the past three weeks, following the very strict anti-Candida diet Rubin lays out in his book, "Restoring Your Digestive Health", which consists of goat's milk yogurt, organic chicken soup, organic eggs, vegetable juice, and well-chewed raw and cooked veggies (he makes a HUGE deal about chewing!). In a week I graduate to adding organic fish and beef - I am so excited! This has taken a huge degree of commitment (and boy do I miss certain foods!), but I am determined to get completey well, and I see the pay-off already. So by God's grace (I am praying A LOT these days!) and with my wonderful husband's support, I am going to see this through until I am completely well! </div>
</div>The Professor's Wifehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16729608417909675769noreply@blogger.com16tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6180355242417922484.post-88276167550081454512012-05-31T12:09:00.002-07:002012-05-31T12:09:33.415-07:00How to Overcome Fatigue – Pray! (Part 1)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">James 5:14-15 reads, “Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if He has committed sins, He will be forgiven.”</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">In February, my husband and I decided to ask the elders of our church for pray for my continuing adrenal fatigue issues that could not be resolved through rest, diet, and lifestyle changes. We figured we had nothing to lose as God could choose to heal me, or if He chose not to, I’d be no worse off than before. But either way it would be a step of faith of putting my health into God’s hands. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They very kindly agreed to pray, and I remember that they prayed that God would give the doctor’s wisdom about what was causing my fatigue.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">At first, I felt a little better – I had a little more energy and stamina and could do more in a day. But then in early March, a very stressful series of events with a bad upper respiratory virus to boot, landed me completely bedridden. (When you have adrenal insufficiency, your cortisol is low and stress can deplete what little you have – even to the point of being bedridden!) Every time I tried to resume normal life, I ended up back in bed so sick that I couldn’t even get my own food and Pete had to leave me food in a cooler by my bed!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I remember thinking, “God, this is NOT the answer to prayer that I was looking for!”</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Because I was so sick, my amazing doctor, Dr. Adema, ran a bunch of tests, including one for, ahem, intestinal critters. (I can’t believe I am writing this – it is incredibly embarrassing – but if even one person suffering from unexplained fatigue can benefit, it is worth the embarrassment).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I did have them – lots of them, plus a lot of damage they had done to my innards (something called “leaky gut symdrome” and severe candida).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He figured out that I have most likely had this problem for 14 YEARS since I came back from a mission trip in Albania. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>(We had hiked into a remote with very poor sanitation and ate undercooked chicken for the sake of the gospel! The woman who gave us the chicken prayed to receive Christ, so it was worth it.) <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was severely ill after that trip, and my lovely HMO doctors diagnosed me with a virus and depression.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Since that trip, I have struggled with ever- worsening fatigue , intermittent nausea, and even occasional unexplained vomiting. I have been diagnosed over the years with IBS (irritable bowel syndrome) and told to “stress less” and “eat more fiber”, and endometriosis (with NO tests ran to confirm this!) . All along, I was being misdiagnosed! Who but a Sovereign and Merciful God could lead me to a doctor who would give me the right diagnosis after 14 years! He truly is a God who answers pray!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Unfortunately, this won’t be a quick fix – the buggers did some damage which will take some time to heal. It will take a lot of time, patience, reliance on God, determination, and discipline for my body to be able to heal. But I am so thankful to have a God who hears! </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Morals of the Story – Pray!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">*Don’t give up –there <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">are </i>good doctors out there.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">*If you have unexplained fatigue and have been overseas on a mission’s trip, please consider intestinal critters as a possible cause of your fatigue!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">*Don’t not go on mission’s trips if God calls you. But before and after you go on a mission’s trip (or especially if you are on the mission field!), take proper precautions to protect your digestive health, starting with a strong probiotic to increase your immunity.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">*Children in third world countries such as Albania often lack basic essentials to good health, such as clean water, sanitation, etc. Let’s do what we can to help these children be able to grow up healthy!</span></div>
</div>The Professor's Wifehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16729608417909675769noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6180355242417922484.post-14442787613324904352012-03-24T20:37:00.000-07:002012-03-24T20:37:47.491-07:002 Corinthians 12:9<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="MsoNormal" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Magneto; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 115%;"> “My grace is sufficient for you,</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Magneto; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>for power is perfected in weakness.” </span></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-l1nubU2jgB8/T26Q4Uo7J6I/AAAAAAAAATw/MGOEkpUj9ZQ/s1600/thorn.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img aea="true" border="0" height="265" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-l1nubU2jgB8/T26Q4Uo7J6I/AAAAAAAAATw/MGOEkpUj9ZQ/s400/thorn.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Magneto; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 115%;">Most gladly, therefore, I will </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Magneto; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 115%;">rather boast about my weakness,</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Magneto; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>so that the power of Christ might dwell in me.</span></div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"></div></div>The Professor's Wifehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16729608417909675769noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6180355242417922484.post-88949679532245814822012-03-10T12:23:00.001-08:002012-03-10T12:24:03.071-08:00Homeless Babies<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">When you hear the words “homeless person” , what comes to mind? A man who hasn’t showered for two weeks and smells of beer and urine? A woman who is addicted to crack? A Vietnam Vet who has PTSD? You probably didn’t think of a baby:</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-0NnDFDxCnL0/T1u34xLHSSI/AAAAAAAAATo/qyG5t9rPat4/s1600/sad+baby.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-0NnDFDxCnL0/T1u34xLHSSI/AAAAAAAAATo/qyG5t9rPat4/s400/sad+baby.jpg" width="400" yda="true" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Homeless infants usually have low birth rates.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Homeless mothers are less likely to receive prenatal care.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Babies who are underweight, and whose mothers have not received prenatal care, are nine times more likely to die before the age of one.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">The homeless babies who survive their first year have less access to basic medical care than other babies.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One-third of homeless babies lack basic immunizations.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Homeless babies who live in overcrowded conditions, such as a shelters, are more exposed to illness. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">The next time you are tempted to think of homeless people as “lazy” or "crazy", remember homeless babies.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div></div>The Professor's Wifehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16729608417909675769noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6180355242417922484.post-51119512335952088412012-03-02T20:34:00.000-08:002012-03-02T20:34:57.805-08:00Backyard Naturalist<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">Sometimes I forget to be thankful for the beauty around me, as close as my own backyard. This week I made an effort to be more observant, and here are some beautiful things I've seem:<br />
<br />
Here are some bees working away at the blossoms on our orange tree. (Did you know you could use orange blossoms in cooking? I added some to an omelette yesterday, which were amazing!):<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-RF-sbTWbr4Q/T1Gb8VD0VCI/AAAAAAAAATA/hnYXwVF4yhI/s1600/Spring+080.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-RF-sbTWbr4Q/T1Gb8VD0VCI/AAAAAAAAATA/hnYXwVF4yhI/s400/Spring+080.JPG" uda="true" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Here is a hawk in our next-door neighbor's backyard - I think it is a "Sharp-shinned hawk", but I am not sure, as I am a very amataur birdist (started only a month ago):</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zQAJN9ymgWc/T1GdyyuaUWI/AAAAAAAAATQ/j-xIu-C7K4M/s1600/Spring+072.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zQAJN9ymgWc/T1GdyyuaUWI/AAAAAAAAATQ/j-xIu-C7K4M/s400/Spring+072.JPG" uda="true" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">He was not a fan of the camera:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-NXlmzP3LGVs/T1Gc1B1owRI/AAAAAAAAATI/VRe1sbRODjg/s1600/Spring+068.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="298" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-NXlmzP3LGVs/T1Gc1B1owRI/AAAAAAAAATI/VRe1sbRODjg/s400/Spring+068.JPG" uda="true" width="400" /></a></div>And the best sight of all, some tomatoes are finally growing on a tomato plant I planted last year (courtesy of Ron Mears who kindly brought some tomato plants to give away at church). I added some egg shells to the soil as my friend Mary said they were probably not getting enough calcium - they were flowering, but not producing tomatoes, until I added the egg shells!:<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-oPw2x8BU4_o/T1GbzY8q9TI/AAAAAAAAAS4/5WqFGq8O58g/s1600/Spring+086.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="287" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-oPw2x8BU4_o/T1GbzY8q9TI/AAAAAAAAAS4/5WqFGq8O58g/s400/Spring+086.JPG" uda="true" width="400" /></a></div></div>The Professor's Wifehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16729608417909675769noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6180355242417922484.post-89104914032301877402012-02-13T20:40:00.000-08:002012-02-13T20:40:56.168-08:00How to Overcome fatigue - Do Your Own Research<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-2lPMva_Ysqw/TznlZTUc7wI/AAAAAAAAASg/Gkx74JXxghw/s1600/sleep.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="263" sda="true" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-2lPMva_Ysqw/TznlZTUc7wI/AAAAAAAAASg/Gkx74JXxghw/s400/sleep.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">After my doctor diagnosed me with “adrenal insufficiency” last May (he said I was at the lower end of adrenal function based on my cortisol levels), he prescribed an herbal supplement called “Adreset”. I<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>was glad that he had not put me on cortisol, because several of my family members who also have adrenal insufficiency have had horrible side-effects from taking cortisol.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So I enthusiastically took the “Adreset” every day, thinking it would “cure” me. I immediately felt more energy, so much so that I was able to walk a few miles one day and put on a bake sale single-handedly at church.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But even from the first day, I felt overstimulated, like I imagine a person would feel if they were on Speed. I remember <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>jumping two feet when the neighbor’s chihauha barked at me, as freaked out as if a giant bear was about to eat me alive!</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>After a week and a half of being on Adreset, I started having horrible nightmares, terrible heart palpitations, and felt like I was crawling out of my skin. I told Pete, I have to get off this stuff, or I am going to explode! I did, and spent about three days having crazy withdrawal symptoms, which he patiently helped me through. I felt like I would die if I didn’t have more Adreset, and he had to hide it from me. I felt, if possible, more exhausted then I had before taking it!</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Okay, so Adreset was not the answer to getting over this fatigue. I was really discouraged at first, but after a few days I got tired of moping and decided to at least figure out why the Adreset hadn’t worked for me. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Through some internet research, I came across an article by an M.D. who specializes in adrenal fatigue, Dr. Michael Lam, which said, </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">“</span><span class="boldred1"><span style="color: black; font-size: 10.5pt; font-weight: normal; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-themecolor: text1;"><span style="font-family: Arial;">Long term use of stimulatory nutrients can lead to withdrawal problems and addiction.</span></span></span><span style="font-family: "Arial", "sans-serif"; font-size: 10.5pt; line-height: 115%;"> Though they might have other concurrent adaptogenic properties<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">, </b><span class="boldblue1"><span style="color: black; font-weight: normal; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-themecolor: text1;">many adrenal supportive nutrients commonly used are intrinsically stimulatory in nature in a setting of advanced adrenal weakness</span></span><span class="boldblue1"><span style="color: black; mso-themecolor: text1;"><strong>.</strong></span></span> These include ginseng, licorice, ashawanda, maca, vitamin B5, and vitamin B12, just to name a few.”</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I looked on the ingredients on the Adreset bottle, and sure enough, one of the ingredients was ginseng. I reasoned that I must have been at too advanced of a stage for it to work, unlike some of my doctor’s other patients who must <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>not have been as far along, as they reported loving being on Adreset. I was sooo thankful to have found out this information before doing more damage to myself! And to have found out about Dr. Lam. Through his “Adrenal Fatigue Center”, </span><a href="http://www.drlam.com/"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">http://www.drlam.com</span></a><span style="font-family: Calibri;">, I have found so much good information about this condition and how to manage it. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I am by no means “cured” yet, but my periods of extreme fatigue are becoming somewhat <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>fewer and farther between. The last time my doctor took my blood tests, this December, he said my hormonal levels are improving, which shows that something I am doing is working! </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Another really good resource I’ve found, while not by a medical doctor, is a blog by someone who has Addison’s Disease, which is basically complete adrenal failure. Since she is able to have an online business through her blog, and homeschool seven children while having this condition, I figured she was worth listening to </span><span style="font-family: Wingdings; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-char-type: symbol; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-symbol-font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="mso-char-type: symbol; mso-symbol-font-family: Wingdings;">J</span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">.</span><a href="http://anneshealthplace.com/blog/"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">http://anneshealthplace.com/blog/</span></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">I plan on going into, step by step, things which I have learned from these and other sources. But this post is already turning into novel, and it is 8:30, and a good night’s sleep is essential to overcoming any kind of fatigue. So goodnight.</span></div></div>The Professor's Wifehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16729608417909675769noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6180355242417922484.post-31849827739793818882012-02-06T19:43:00.000-08:002012-02-06T19:57:22.090-08:00I am my Beloved's and He is Mine<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">My friend and Candi and I were talking a few months ago about how no one ever told us about s*x when we were growing up, especially about how it's importance in marriage. (I'm not being a prude - just being careful about search engines). Pete and I were told to read a book called "The Act of Marriage" by Tim LaHaye in premarital counselling, and that was about the extent of my education on this subject. (No offense to Tim LaHaye, he did found my alma mater, but he is not the person I would have picked to learn about this from!) So Candi had the idea of meeting a couple of times a month with some of the teenage girls from our church to talk about relationships, purity, and marriage. Meeting with the five girls that regularly come is one of the most joyful, fulfilling things I've ever been privileged to participate in.<br />
With that in mind, I thought that I would use my etsy shop this Valentine's Day as a reminder to married couples of the beautiful gift that God has given to husband and wife. Song of Solomon, with its' rather explicit erotic poetry, as well as many other passages in Scripture (Proverbs 5:18-19 for example), makes it clear that God gave s*x as gift for married couples to enjoy! Not just as a way to have children, or to "avoid immorality", but as a sacred gift to be delighted in. So I painted these set of mugs based on Song of Solomon 6:3a:<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-dKG-f0lyI9g/TzCc-XQSJAI/AAAAAAAAARY/unLm56cWNqk/s1600/valentine+mugs+008.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" sda="true" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-dKG-f0lyI9g/TzCc-XQSJAI/AAAAAAAAARY/unLm56cWNqk/s400/valentine+mugs+008.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-3xf27IR_7y8/TzCgohSKm_I/AAAAAAAAASQ/5a4ztZQs0Jw/s1600/more+valentines+mugs+002.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="346" sda="true" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-3xf27IR_7y8/TzCgohSKm_I/AAAAAAAAASQ/5a4ztZQs0Jw/s400/more+valentines+mugs+002.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-oZ9qdTgL3pc/TzCgqfci3KI/AAAAAAAAASY/yHcp9B0nr_8/s1600/more+valentines+mugs+001.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="316" sda="true" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-oZ9qdTgL3pc/TzCgqfci3KI/AAAAAAAAASY/yHcp9B0nr_8/s400/more+valentines+mugs+001.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-nZGo5FoTyMY/TzCdESxJvHI/AAAAAAAAARw/EjDzfy6qvF8/s1600/valentine+mugs+004.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" sda="true" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-nZGo5FoTyMY/TzCdESxJvHI/AAAAAAAAARw/EjDzfy6qvF8/s400/valentine+mugs+004.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-K1q8Ag448NM/TzCdGBz3WJI/AAAAAAAAAR4/-lWaco0CdoU/s1600/valentine+mugs+005.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" sda="true" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-K1q8Ag448NM/TzCdGBz3WJI/AAAAAAAAAR4/-lWaco0CdoU/s400/valentine+mugs+005.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Bd5tpNolqFo/TzCdHpVOGyI/AAAAAAAAASA/dS4PwRzNNTQ/s1600/valentine+mugs+006.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" sda="true" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Bd5tpNolqFo/TzCdHpVOGyI/AAAAAAAAASA/dS4PwRzNNTQ/s400/valentine+mugs+006.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/--UHlFVbXMOU/TzCdJ9kM99I/AAAAAAAAASI/0UR5roNWJvY/s1600/valentine+mugs+007.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" sda="true" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/--UHlFVbXMOU/TzCdJ9kM99I/AAAAAAAAASI/0UR5roNWJvY/s400/valentine+mugs+007.JPG" width="400" /></a></div> Here is a link to the listing on etsy:<br />
<a href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/92406407/i-am-my-beloveds-and-he-is-mine">http://www.etsy.com/listing/92406407/i-am-my-beloveds-and-he-is-mine</a><br />
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As always, twenty percent of all proceeds goes to buy socks for homeless children.<br />
<div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"></div></div>The Professor's Wifehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16729608417909675769noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6180355242417922484.post-57183080170790692932012-01-25T17:51:00.000-08:002012-01-25T18:38:46.210-08:00Hidden Art<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">One of the books that has been most influential in my life is "Hidden Art" by Edith Schaeffer, the wife of philosopher Francis Schaeffer. She writes about how to make your home inviting using simple creativity, making centerpieces out of things from nature or from children's artwork. She suggests that if you don't have time to take music lessons, put on some Beethoven or sing a song. If you are too busy to be the great artist you wish you could be, draw pictures for your kids (or in my case, nephews and nieces.) This book taught me so much about contentment, and has given me the freedom to be creative in my home.<br />
In that spirit, a few weeks ago I made this centerpiece for some friends coming over for dinner:<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Vc4tWIScZs0/TyCulcjoU5I/AAAAAAAAARQ/BKno8ORTJ5s/s1600/Hidden+Art+and+romans+mug+001.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" gda="true" height="300" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Vc4tWIScZs0/TyCulcjoU5I/AAAAAAAAARQ/BKno8ORTJ5s/s400/Hidden+Art+and+romans+mug+001.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">The white pitcher I bought at the Rock (a local church) Thrift Store for a $1. The oranges are from our orange tree outside, and the yellow flowers from a bush which hangs over the fence from the nursery behind our house. The pewter salt shakers and candle holders were lent to us by Pete's Mom. The sun rays are a gift from God.</div> You don't have to be a millionare to have beautiful centerpieces on your table! </div>The Professor's Wifehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16729608417909675769noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6180355242417922484.post-1614376333386303322012-01-17T14:24:00.000-08:002012-01-17T14:28:02.128-08:00How to Overcome Fatigue - Find a Good Doctor<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-9sAgO75PFgI/TxX0rtx__9I/AAAAAAAAARI/aVwFkjdlXlk/s1600/needle+in+a+haystack.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" kba="true" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-9sAgO75PFgI/TxX0rtx__9I/AAAAAAAAARI/aVwFkjdlXlk/s320/needle+in+a+haystack.jpg" width="212" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"> (<em>I promised to write about my journey out of fatigue - here is my first post!)</em> </div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">For years, I have known something was wrong. I would go for a trip out of town, and be so exhausted I would be in bed for a day or two afterwards. The last time I went on a three mile walk (this May), I slept the rest of that day into the next, and could barely do anything but cook dinner for a week afterward. Little things, like seeing a scary part of a movie, would make me jump out of my seat and wipe me out for the rest of the day. I have seen doctor after doctor about this deep, persistent exhaustion, and they would tell me, “You are just stressed” or “You are depressed”.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When I would try to tell them that maybe I was a little depressed, but it was just because I was really tired, and when I was rested I wasn’t the least bit depressed, they would say, “Depression causes fatigue.” I felt like screaming “You are not listening”, but I would just keep insisting that there was something else wrong. They would run the same standard tests for anemia, thyroid, etc. and come up blank. Their conclusion – another hypochondriac on our hands. My conclusion - like a good man, a good doctor is hard to find.</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">Then this Spring, after praying with Pete about what to do for my health, we heard about Dr. Adema through a friend.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He is an MD who also incorporates natural solutions into his practice. He is also funny, a good listener, and a Christian. After running some blood tests (which would have cost over 1000$ if our insurance hadn’t paid for them <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>- praise God for Pete’s Starbucks job!) <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>told me I had very low cortisol, or “adrenal insufficiency”, as well as a Vitamin D deficiency and <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>low progesterone. I finally had an answer for why I was tired all the time, and a starting place to figure out how to get better. Dr. Adema has helped me a lot, but unfortunately, not enough medical research has been done on adrenal insufficiency and even Dr. Adema hasn’t had all the answers. So I have also had to do a lot of my own research about how to recover. But that is a subject for another post.</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">The moral of the story is don’t trust the system. Just kidding. The moral of the story is keep looking until you find a good doctor, because they are out there, even if finding one is like looking for a needle in a haystack!</div></div>The Professor's Wifehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16729608417909675769noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6180355242417922484.post-1464573024639249172012-01-07T18:04:00.000-08:002012-01-07T18:06:08.935-08:00Cardboard Art<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">In an effort to get better sleep (and more energy - more on this in another post), we have been trying to sleep in complete darkness, which means no lights from alarm clocks, windows, etc. I closed the blinds on our bedroom windows, but the neighbors behind us bright outside light still would go on and off all night long, coming in through the cracks in the blind. Night after night I would be drifting off, and a rabbit hopping by or too much wind would set off that darned light, and I would be wide awake again. Finally one night we decided to actually do something about it. I asked Pete to put this piece of cardboard in the window.</div></div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-yQYAVW1da1E/Twjsh8hvv8I/AAAAAAAAAQI/GmB9X03qv00/s1600/carboard+art+005.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" rea="true" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-yQYAVW1da1E/Twjsh8hvv8I/AAAAAAAAAQI/GmB9X03qv00/s400/carboard+art+005.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: left;">We were no longer tortured by that evil light, but the cardboard looked, well, just plain ugly. I thought about putting in some drapes, but my minimalist soul balked at the thought of extra dusting, and I would rather put any money we would spend on drapes towards paying down the ole' student loans. Everytime I looked at that cardboard, however, its ugliest jarred me so I didn't want to leave it as it was. Looking around the house for ideas, I saw this book that our friends the Moodys had given us when they moved and which I planned on using for some art project or other. Being a country girl at heart, I love barns and pictures of nature: </div><br />
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<div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-xbayvQnGNoM/TwjuVcp08MI/AAAAAAAAAQQ/rgykTssY5KY/s1600/carboard+art+012.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" rea="true" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-xbayvQnGNoM/TwjuVcp08MI/AAAAAAAAAQQ/rgykTssY5KY/s400/carboard+art+012.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: left;">Decoupage! That was the answer! This is the final result:</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-s-QreDs3iFU/TwjupsOlsII/AAAAAAAAAQY/fciG1MUpxz0/s1600/carboard+art+006.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="cssfloat: right; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" rea="true" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-s-QreDs3iFU/TwjupsOlsII/AAAAAAAAAQY/fciG1MUpxz0/s400/carboard+art+006.JPG" width="400" /></a><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-U0hLcyoLfZI/TwjurkSgegI/AAAAAAAAAQg/8-jW_Fg0pUk/s1600/carboard+art+007.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" rea="true" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-U0hLcyoLfZI/TwjurkSgegI/AAAAAAAAAQg/8-jW_Fg0pUk/s400/carboard+art+007.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-f1ddxdEp_oQ/TwjutN5rcVI/AAAAAAAAAQo/NYdsF2_9Bmc/s1600/carboard+art+008.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" rea="true" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-f1ddxdEp_oQ/TwjutN5rcVI/AAAAAAAAAQo/NYdsF2_9Bmc/s400/carboard+art+008.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"> I was so pleased with the result that I decided to cover the cardboard which was above the AC unit in our living room. Here are before and after pictures:</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Qqi36UkMhV0/Twj4nETjgWI/AAAAAAAAAQw/Lnbhia6XJYE/s1600/carboard+art+009.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" rea="true" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Qqi36UkMhV0/Twj4nETjgWI/AAAAAAAAAQw/Lnbhia6XJYE/s320/carboard+art+009.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-V7pNMa0EEU0/Twj4o-xyg9I/AAAAAAAAAQ4/JpeVJdpYAtg/s1600/carboard+art+010.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" rea="true" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-V7pNMa0EEU0/Twj4o-xyg9I/AAAAAAAAAQ4/JpeVJdpYAtg/s400/carboard+art+010.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-3TAbn3ds03g/Twj4qtn4T6I/AAAAAAAAARA/ewm1_E455h8/s1600/carboard+art+011.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" rea="true" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-3TAbn3ds03g/Twj4qtn4T6I/AAAAAAAAARA/ewm1_E455h8/s400/carboard+art+011.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div></div>The Professor's Wifehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16729608417909675769noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6180355242417922484.post-51472176016707575942011-12-31T19:47:00.000-08:002011-12-31T19:57:42.601-08:00Moxie in 2012<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-NBdnyI_A5lQ/Tv_Wq4g38WI/AAAAAAAAAQA/fRzXTuaFtqI/s1600/climbing+Mt+Everest.bmp" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" rea="true" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-NBdnyI_A5lQ/Tv_Wq4g38WI/AAAAAAAAAQA/fRzXTuaFtqI/s400/climbing+Mt+Everest.bmp" width="400" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">One of the reasons I started this blog last New Year’s was to hold myself accountable to accomplish some goals.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I fully intended to do everything on my “50 Things” list, but God had different plans. In May I was diagnosed with something called “adrenal insufficiency”, a condition where you have very low cortisol and therefore have quite low energy and a hard time dealing with stress, be that physical, emotional, relational, environmental – whatever! (Cortisol is the hormone in our bodies which help us handle stress – without enough, the littliest stressor can exhaust you). This condition runs in my family, so I have to figure out how to get better for my families sake so we can all be able to live normal lives! Doing research, I realized that having unreasonable goals was completely incompatible with getting better, and that I would need to be very, very, very patient in waiting on some of these goals, and doing others s…..l…..o……w……l……y. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Despite this, I have had a good year. God has really drawn me closer to Him – I had a goal to pray and read the Bible every day, and I have had to keep this goal to keep my sanity! Some days I am very discouraged and just tell God how upset with Him I am that I can’t do more towards our future goals, and others I feel His presence so near, knowing He will get me through this trial and make me more like His Son in the process . Not only that, but it has changed Pete and I’s marriage completely. We communicate so much better, fight so much less, and act like two silly love birds. So I am thankful.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Next year I have just <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>four goals: (1)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>stay close to God, <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>(2) stay close to Pete, (3) take one day at a time, and (4) have courage. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Because you see it takes courage to get healthy when you have a chronic illness. You have to have to courage to make changes (like not eating ANY sugar, going to bed at least by ten every night, pacing yourself – this has been the hardest for me!). It takes courage to wait on what your heart desires more than anything else, to trust God for His timing. It takes courage to not worry about people thinking you are “lazy” and get the rest that you need, but to still love those people who are unknowingly being hurtful. It takes courage to have enough integrity to not overcommit, to not rashly decide to do things you may not have the strength for but to think them through first. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It takes courage to do what you can instead of giving into discouragement. It takes courage to say “no”! By nature I am not a very courageous person, but I know that God is with me and He will give the courage I need. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">In light of this new goal of having courage, I have decided to, when I can, blog about “How to Overcome Fatigue”. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>2 Corinthians 1:3-4 says, “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of all mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction so that we will be able to comfort those who are in any affliction with the comfort we ourselves are comforted by God.” Before now, I have been too scared of what people will say or think if I blogged about this issue. But in 2012 it is time to have a little moxie and write about what I am doing to get better and how God is helping me through, because I want to comfort others the way God has comforted me!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div></div>The Professor's Wifehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16729608417909675769noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6180355242417922484.post-41110039755745475032011-12-09T17:35:00.000-08:002011-12-09T17:35:52.408-08:00On My Mind - My Grandmother's Legacy and Homemade Christmas Presents<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">When I grow up, I want to be my Grandmothers. That is, I want to have the gentleness, love, and creativity of my Grandma Lindsley, who is in heaven, and the work ethic, homemaking skills, and compassion of my Grandma Owen.<br />
My Grandma Lindsley was the embodiment of gentleness and self-sacrifice; if she had any faults, she was too gentle and self-sacrificing. She had a very hard life, but she used her love and creativity to raise nine children on a very limited income, cooking from scratch and making handmade clothes and toys for her children. She showed this same love to her thirty grandchildren, to whom she faithfully sent presents every birthday and Christmas, despite a limited income. She embroidered me this pillow when I was a little girl:<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-dimwlaEDpSo/TuK0Igo-PkI/AAAAAAAAAPk/aUp-ojPVftQ/s1600/Grandma+003.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" mda="true" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-dimwlaEDpSo/TuK0Igo-PkI/AAAAAAAAAPk/aUp-ojPVftQ/s320/Grandma+003.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>This pillow means more to me than almost anything anyone has ever given me because of the love that it took to make it.<br />
Making our Christmas list this year, I counted twenty-five kids we had to buy presents for (including nephews, nieces, younger siblings, cousins, and god-children). December happens to be a lean month with Pete's teaching, and we are commited to getting out of debt, not incrueing more! I also wanted to give something meaningful to the children in our lives, not just a toy that they will forget about in a week or month. I was trying to figure out what to do about our little dilemna when I saw the pillow sitting on our shelf of toys. Of course! Something with the kids names on them! Hmm, I pondered, I don't have the time to embroided 25 kids names on anything. But I do have time to paint! (I am not going to reveal everything that I am painting because some of the kids might read this blog, but some of the kids, the ones who do not read this blog, are getting hand-painted ornmanents).<br />
Here is an ornament I painted for an eight year old cousin Rylie: <br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Tt4rJ3B8LGM/TuK0LcydI0I/AAAAAAAAAPs/iarLwlJeiCw/s1600/Grandma+008.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" mda="true" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Tt4rJ3B8LGM/TuK0LcydI0I/AAAAAAAAAPs/iarLwlJeiCw/s320/Grandma+008.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Hw2yN8JJ-3o/TuK0NtLuOxI/AAAAAAAAAP0/cI6HlWqR3As/s1600/Grandma+009.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" mda="true" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Hw2yN8JJ-3o/TuK0NtLuOxI/AAAAAAAAAP0/cI6HlWqR3As/s320/Grandma+009.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>I am so excited about giving presents this year!<br />
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What are your creative gift ideas?</div>The Professor's Wifehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16729608417909675769noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6180355242417922484.post-91349556348559466052011-11-18T13:18:00.000-08:002011-11-18T13:18:21.504-08:00Tip from the Green Housewife - Recreate Furniture<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-G6RNwQJdMoI/TsbGwmN_6OI/AAAAAAAAAPc/vJ5DfmlNRe0/s1600/greenhousewife.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" hda="true" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-G6RNwQJdMoI/TsbGwmN_6OI/AAAAAAAAAPc/vJ5DfmlNRe0/s320/greenhousewife.jpg" width="144" /></a></div> Did you know, that according to the EPA, there are nine million tons of furniture in our nation's landfills? 9 million tons! I understand disposable diapers (to keep a mother's sanity!), but disposable furniture?! At least use it for firewood!<br />
For over, ummm, six year, ahem, I have been meaning to refinish our kitchen table. It is beautiful oak, given to us by a family I nannied for in Dallas, but it has always needed a new finish. The labor intensive process of sanding (and borrowing a sander!) and varnishing has intimidated me into years of procrastination. Then about a week ago, I was inspired. I was painting a wooden box with the "Solas" from the Reformation (another post), and had some gold acrylic paint left over. I decided to rub it into the table to cover up all of the flaws in the finish, and then calligraphy one of my favorite verses on top of it. It was an uncontrollable creative urge, a leftover from childhood when I would sneakily color designs on the inside of my dresser, trying not to get caught. (I figured if I messed up the table, the finish was already bad and I always buy a table cloth). I typed out the words on Word, as I am still learning the font (Edwardian), put down some masking tape for straight lines, and started to paint! Here is the final result (which still needs a varnish!):<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-O_WuYGbt4TE/TsbGnjyWroI/AAAAAAAAAPU/pHQgJPV27gg/s1600/calligraphy+table+007.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" hda="true" height="240" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-O_WuYGbt4TE/TsbGnjyWroI/AAAAAAAAAPU/pHQgJPV27gg/s320/calligraphy+table+007.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ZEKNBTVZ-Vw/TsbGkCuIlDI/AAAAAAAAAPM/Gq0Ht1HdJLo/s1600/calligraphy+table+008.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" hda="true" height="240" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ZEKNBTVZ-Vw/TsbGkCuIlDI/AAAAAAAAAPM/Gq0Ht1HdJLo/s320/calligraphy+table+008.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-bfL1UXVBXKo/TsbGdRgC2jI/AAAAAAAAAO8/s9ayKlYRdoo/s1600/calligraphy+table+009.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" hda="true" height="240" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-bfL1UXVBXKo/TsbGdRgC2jI/AAAAAAAAAO8/s9ayKlYRdoo/s320/calligraphy+table+009.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-koPNqfMbjdA/TsbGiMblRvI/AAAAAAAAAPE/4W6hu16DZyA/s1600/calligraphy+table+010.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" hda="true" height="240" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-koPNqfMbjdA/TsbGiMblRvI/AAAAAAAAAPE/4W6hu16DZyA/s320/calligraphy+table+010.JPG" width="320" /></a></div> Who says frugal living has to be joyless?!!!<br />
</div>The Professor's Wifehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16729608417909675769noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6180355242417922484.post-75794430169433836372011-11-12T18:13:00.000-08:002011-11-12T18:13:11.151-08:00Invasion of the Argentine Ants - Part Two<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"> First thing Monday morning, after killing off at least fifty ants in the shower, I called and left a message for our landlords that we had a terrible ant invasion, and could they please send an exterminator as soon as possible. Not hearing anything back, I also sent them an email that evening. I continued killing the ants as I saw them (every few hours), and I also removed everything from the bathroom cupboards because they were pouring in them, climbing all over our towels and soap - everything. Desperate to do what I could to get rid of them in the meantime, I saw a recipe for borax and sugar and water - they drink the stuff and it poisens them - I won't explain how. I put it in the bathroom cupboards and in the kitchen where they were congregating.<br />
The next day they got back to us, and said they would send one of "their guys" (we rent from a nursery) to kill the ants outside! I told them our problem was inside, but they said that should prevent anymore from coming inside. <em>It will probably just drive more inside, </em>I thought. It was Wednes before sending someone, and as I suspected, it just made the problem worse. They came pouring in, especially the bathroom cupboards, and I even found a few on our bed!<br />
I was beginning to feel like Leiningen Against the Ants. I started scouring the internet, trying to figure out ways to get rid of the enemy before they overtook the house :). I figured out that the kind of ant that we were dealing with was an Argentine Ant - they have about one queen for every couple hundred ant, reproduce very quickly, and are thus extremely hard to get rid of. I learned that peppermint oil and tea tree oil are supposed to deter them, and that the best way to kill them, organically without chemicals that is, is with something called Terro. Terro is basically a mixture of syrup and borax, with just the right formula to kill them slowly. They eat the stuff, take it back to their nests, and distribute it to the larvae.<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-EAA4MCzJ-pw/Tr2_GVaihAI/AAAAAAAAAO0/KZfLXFwyPko/s1600/argentine+ant.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="210" nda="true" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-EAA4MCzJ-pw/Tr2_GVaihAI/AAAAAAAAAO0/KZfLXFwyPko/s320/argentine+ant.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I am not this talented of a photographer! Photo credits go to "Alex Wild Photography"</td></tr>
</tbody></table> Peppermint oil made the house smell good, and tea tree oil decided did not, but they did little to deter the ants. The Terro worked well - too well - it began attracting more ants from the walls or outside! Meanwhile, we called our landlords every day, letting them know that we needed them to come spray the inside of the house, as soon as possible. They assured us they would call the exterminator, but Thursday and Friday passed with no word of when they were coming.<br />
Friday I reached a breaking point. My wonderful husband said we should go stay the night in a hotel, so we could figure out what we were going to do. Getting away from the little guys, we decided that if our landlords did not send someone, our options were either to call an exterminator ourselves, or threaten to move if they did not send one and be willing to follow through. We both decided that we did not want to move - we have a good rent, Pete can walk to work, and live in the beautiful countryside- and that if we had to spend money on an exterminator from the emergency fund, that would be ok. But we decided to give it a few more days for our landlords to come through.<br />
We kept calling them everyday. They told us that they were having a hard time getting the exterminators to call them back. Finally they called and said they would send them on Wednesday, the day that I had to get a wisdom tooth removed! We weren't taking any chances so we told them to come out anyways. The guy from Western Exterminators told us that he would have come sooner, but the nursery had owed them money that they just payed that morning! <br />
After getting my wisdom tooth removed, we had to stay out all afternoon so that the poison could dissipate. I got a lot of sympathy from people at Pete's Starbucks, where we hung out and waited. But we came home and I was able to sleep off the vicadine with a house free of ants!<br />
</div>The Professor's Wifehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16729608417909675769noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6180355242417922484.post-69252446227593081332011-11-03T14:43:00.000-07:002011-11-03T14:47:57.373-07:00Invasion of the Argentine Ants - Part One<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div align="left" class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-vq68afQeKRg/TrL_Iyu-Q8I/AAAAAAAAAOs/9AtPrglYHKA/s1600/greenhousewife.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" ida="true" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-vq68afQeKRg/TrL_Iyu-Q8I/AAAAAAAAAOs/9AtPrglYHKA/s320/greenhousewife.jpg" width="144" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"> A month ago, while I was away visiting my friend Beth and her sweet baby Samantha, Pete called me and told me, "We had an ant invasion, but don't worry, I am keeping things clean and killing them." I didn't think much of it, other than feeling a little sorry for Pete because he was so busy, but happy that I would come home to a clean house. And I came home to a very clean house - not a crumb in sight! but there...were....lots....of....ants. In the shower, in the kitchen, even a few coming in through a light socket in the bedroom. Which was weird, because like I said, the house was spotless!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"> So we killed them with some Murphy's Oil Soap and cleaned them up. The next morning I woke up to find hundreds of them swimming in our Brita water filter, and hundreds more coming in and out. The little buggers weren't after food, they were after water! We killed those. Then I went to take a shower and saw hundreds more in the shower. Pete had to go to work, so I very bravely killed them myself. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"> I went about my normal routine, and a few hours later noticed more ants coming in the bedroom. So I put child safety locks in all the sockets. That should help, I thought. But then a few hours later, hundreds more ants were in the kitchen. Pete came home from work, and I was trying to not be frustrated at him for how many ants there were when he had said it wasn't that bad, but he assured me the problem was getting worse. We talked about calling our land lords to send an exterminator, but I didn't want to breathe the toxic fumes, nor did I want to pay the hundreds of dollars for an organic exterminator. So we decided to give it the weekend, and see if we could track down where the ants were coming in and plaster all of the holes they were coming in through.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"> No success. Everytime we plastered an entrance, the ants found another crack or crevice. And we tracked their path back to under the kitchen and bathroom sink, and inside the kitchen and bathroom. There were literally thousands. They must be in the walls, we figured. When we came home from church and found hundreds swarming the refrigerator and freezer, I broke down crying. We decided to call our landlord first thing Monday morning.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div align="justify">(<em>Stay tuned for Part Two)</em></div></div>The Professor's Wifehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16729608417909675769noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6180355242417922484.post-53302834395122386862011-10-25T15:13:00.000-07:002011-10-25T20:30:28.640-07:00How to Be Happy at Home<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">(Yes, it has been forever since I've blogged, but life has been nuts lately! But that is a story for another blog!)<br />
This morning I woke up in a horrible mood. I usually love being a homemaker, and confess to watching episodes of "Leave it to Beaver" and "The Andy Griffith Show" while ironing- this may shock some of my friends, but oh well, it makes me happy. But today I felt more like Rosanne Barr from "Married with Children" than June Cleaver or Aunt Bee. Maybe it was vidonine withdrawals (no I am not addicted - only took it for four days, with a prescription from my doctor to recover from a wisdom tooth being taken out!), or maybe it was the fact that I am dreadfully behind my usual routine on account of a massive three week ant invasion. Either way I felt more like this:<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-V6qDDZklAGs/Tqcs01s-TBI/AAAAAAAAAOU/_kOKPJDfg3U/s1600/crazy+housewife.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="282" ida="true" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-V6qDDZklAGs/Tqcs01s-TBI/AAAAAAAAAOU/_kOKPJDfg3U/s400/crazy+housewife.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">(it had to be the Vicodine withdrawels!)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">than this:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Swmhob78scY/TqcusqnW7oI/AAAAAAAAAOc/7Q1i8Bsd8do/s1600/happy+housewife.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" ida="true" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Swmhob78scY/TqcusqnW7oI/AAAAAAAAAOc/7Q1i8Bsd8do/s400/happy+housewife.jpg" width="394" /></a></div>This got me to thinking, and praying, about how to be happy in my choice to be a homemaker:<br />
1. Stay connected to Christ - Jesus says in John 15:5, "Apart from me you can do nothing." Anyone can mop floors, cook dinner, or pay the bills, but to do it with love, day in and day out, is something only possible through Christ.<br />
2. Find your identity in Christ - People can be downright nasty to homemakers in this day and age where money is what matters most. Fill your mind with true thoughts about your value in Christ, and drive off Satan's attacks.<br />
2. Don't play the martyr - While the obvious point of being a homemaker is to take care of your family, do not neglect yourself to the point that you start resenting everyone around you. If you need to get outdoors, but the ironing isn't done, go for a walk first. The ironing can wait. If you desperately need a nap (and you can!) but that means you won't have time to make a three course meal, take a nap! Everyone will be much happier if they eat spaghetti and meatballs but there is no organic Tiramasu or antipasta salad - if you are relaxed and not snappy.<br />
3. Remember why you chose to be a homemaker in the first place - Was it to stay home with your newborn baby? Was it to homeschool your special needs child? For me, it was to get over adrenal fatigue, to help my husband with his teaching ministry to reduce his stress load, and to learn to live off one income for our ultimate goal... And when I remember these things, and how I don't have to go to work when I feel like I am going to pass out, and how incredibly happy Pete and I are in our marriage, and how God is blessing our ministry, all the bugs, or housework to catch up on, in the world, can't steal my joy.<br />
<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">4. Meet actual needs of those you love - Don't waste energy on unimportant things because you think you "should". Pete is very easy to please and feels loved if I cook good tasting meals with lots of meat, and if he has enough clean socks to wear, and if I help him with his classes - he could care less about whether the closets are organized or windows cleaned. He'd rather be able to spend time talking and being, um, romantic, then live in a spotless house. If your family feels loved when you dust the baseboards, and you want to bless them, do it! But if not, forget it.</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">5. Take advantage of your freedom and HAVE FUN - At a 9 to 5 job, you typically can't listen to whatever music you want, go for a walk whenever you want, cook whatever food you are hungry for, decorate your surroundings however you like. Sometimes I forget this! I've never been able to, for example, decoupage a lamp at an office job:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-sLmIDFm28XA/TqczNQun6GI/AAAAAAAAAOk/d0aaOD6qI5o/s1600/lamp+007.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" ida="true" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-sLmIDFm28XA/TqczNQun6GI/AAAAAAAAAOk/d0aaOD6qI5o/s400/lamp+007.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">(Selling this in my etsy shop - but secretly hoping it won't sell because I love it!)</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">6. Keep up a routine (when you can) - Washing a sinkful of dishes never bothers me - washing mildew off of dishes is disgusting. Doing a few loads of laundry is fine - but when the laundry starts to smell, I don't want to touch it! I realize it is much harder to keep up with these things if you have little children, but I think staying in a routine will be much more important for my sanity then!</div><br />
After catching up on some housework <em>after</em> taking a walk and talking to God, I feel much better. Good thing Pete was at work today ;).<br />
<br />
How do you stay happy at home? At your job?</div>The Professor's Wifehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16729608417909675769noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6180355242417922484.post-81389971757263132452011-09-06T12:11:00.000-07:002011-09-06T15:03:30.423-07:00Working for Grace?<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"> Remember the fundamentalist Mormon cult in Texas which was raided a few years back? One of the things that stuck in my memory is hearing how hard they had to work to meet their cult's demands - sometimes up to 14 and 16 hour days! Local cops would find some of the men driving erratically at night, and pull them over thinking they were drunk, to find out that they were not drunk, just very sleep deprived.<br />
This is NOT Christianity. This is quite-literally works salvation<br />
When I was a teenager, I had a similiar works-salvation issue going on with pro-life ministry. I felt so concerned about the dying babies I thought that my friends and I had to save them all, or we would be very bad Christians. I also was taught at that time that my salvation could be lost, and I managed to mix these two ideas in such a crazy way that I thought not "saving" enough babies could affect my eternal destiny! Talk about pressure.<br />
Salvation is a free gift. It is not something we earn, or keep, through heavy manual labor, or saving enough babies from abortion, or doing enough homeless ministry, or sharing the gospel (what gospel?! if this is your paradigm) with enough people, or any other zealous effort. (If you don't believe me that salvation is a free gift, read the book of Romans and Ephesians in the New Testament. If they can't convince you, then there is nothing I can say that will!)<br />
One of my favorite hyms is "Rock of Ages". And I love bluegrass. So this version, posted by my friend Heather on facebook, <a href="http://redemptionhill.com/rock-of-ages/">http://redemptionhill.com/rock-of-ages/</a> , is one I can't get enough of! I love this stanza:<br />
"Not the labor of my hands <br />
Can fulfill Thy Laws demands<br />
Would my zeal no respite know,<br />
Would my tears forever flow,<br />
All for sin could not atone,<br />
Thou must save and Thou alone"<br />
You may be thinking that those two examples given above are pretty extreme and don't apply to most Christians who have their theology straight. That may be, but I think that many Christians struggle with "works salvation" at a more subtle, but still harmful level. We may not believe that we have to work for our salvation, or to keep our salvation, but what about our sanctification? Do we believe that it is God who makes us holy and produces good works in and through us, or do we think that we need to do this on our own? If we cannot make ourselves holy in the first place, what makes us (and I am including myself here) think that if we exhaust ourselves sharing the gospel enough times, or helping enough needy children, or standing up against enough social injustices, this can somehow make us more pleasing to God? This guilt-laden form of Christianity is bondage, people, that Christ died to set us free from! Jesus says, "Apart from me you can do nothing......You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit, fruit that remains" (John 15).<br />
Fruit that remains is fruit that God produces in us, in His time and in His way. Abide in Christ, and as you do, He will use you to share the gospel or help needy children or do whatever it is He has for you to do, in His strength and when He wants. Remember that if you have trusted in Christ you are "blessed with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ" (Ephesians 1:3), and quit striving but rest in His completed work.<br />
With these things on my mind, I painted this scarf for my etsy shop last night:<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-EDAPWJJWWAY/TmaGW94O4RI/AAAAAAAAAOQ/xL7_Q93HH2s/s1600/Ephesians+1+scarf+011.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" nba="true" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-EDAPWJJWWAY/TmaGW94O4RI/AAAAAAAAAOQ/xL7_Q93HH2s/s400/Ephesians+1+scarf+011.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ck7K-QpcpMY/TmZYtvCN8WI/AAAAAAAAAOA/nK2_K9uCuIY/s1600/Ephesians+1+scarf+007.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" nba="true" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ck7K-QpcpMY/TmZYtvCN8WI/AAAAAAAAAOA/nK2_K9uCuIY/s400/Ephesians+1+scarf+007.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-8FhoZ--NpTo/TmZYyaPqjkI/AAAAAAAAAOE/IxXTLHBRXdA/s1600/Ephesians+1+scarf+008.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" nba="true" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-8FhoZ--NpTo/TmZYyaPqjkI/AAAAAAAAAOE/IxXTLHBRXdA/s400/Ephesians+1+scarf+008.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HRds5GxPMqQ/TmZZNQOJC1I/AAAAAAAAAOI/tOWbcDLWjRY/s1600/Ephesians+1+scarf+009.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" nba="true" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HRds5GxPMqQ/TmZZNQOJC1I/AAAAAAAAAOI/tOWbcDLWjRY/s400/Ephesians+1+scarf+009.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>This week, I am giving a 10% discount for any item in my etsy shop. The coupon code is "Grace" , which contrasts with God's grace that is completely free!<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Here is the link to my shop:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.etsy.com/shop/CreedalCalligraphy?ref=pr_shop">http://www.etsy.com/shop/CreedalCalligraphy?ref=pr_shop</a></div> (20% of all proceeds from my shop this week with go to help starving children in the horn of Africa eat! The rest is going to a long-term goal Pete and I have.)<br />
<br />
Are you striving or abiding?</div>The Professor's Wifehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16729608417909675769noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6180355242417922484.post-84954948722361194972011-09-05T21:03:00.000-07:002011-09-05T21:12:00.729-07:00When the Dog Bites, Create!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">One of my favorite movies is "The Sound of Music". I love how Julie Andrews, when the captain refuses to give her money for playclothes for the children, she turns her anger into something constructive and makes (very hideous) play clothes for them out of green curtains.<br />
This has been one of those "dog biting" weekends, not because any captain is refusing me material for children's clothing, but just a string of hurtful occurances. Instead of moping around all day, I decided to channel my anger and hurt into creating something hopefully prettier than those hideous green clothes!:<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-EjIkq9W64zY/TmWVASvvM2I/AAAAAAAAANo/RYRN-gQMq_4/s1600/Ecclessiastes+bowl+002.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" nba="true" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-EjIkq9W64zY/TmWVASvvM2I/AAAAAAAAANo/RYRN-gQMq_4/s400/Ecclessiastes+bowl+002.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-QWjCvx903rg/TmWVGQBU_LI/AAAAAAAAANs/71w09D3vRZg/s1600/Ecclessiastes+bowl+004.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" nba="true" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-QWjCvx903rg/TmWVGQBU_LI/AAAAAAAAANs/71w09D3vRZg/s400/Ecclessiastes+bowl+004.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-8kOtHVJ_mws/TmWWQHnNnYI/AAAAAAAAAN0/2Q-LyAvS3Wk/s1600/Ecclessiastes+bowl+005.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" nba="true" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-8kOtHVJ_mws/TmWWQHnNnYI/AAAAAAAAAN0/2Q-LyAvS3Wk/s400/Ecclessiastes+bowl+005.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-BrP9wMCTUzs/TmWVK7ho2hI/AAAAAAAAANw/rhP9kelzDgg/s1600/Ecclessiastes+bowl+006.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" nba="true" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-BrP9wMCTUzs/TmWVK7ho2hI/AAAAAAAAANw/rhP9kelzDgg/s400/Ecclessiastes+bowl+006.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-MVZWQOOKauo/TmWZr4dN4VI/AAAAAAAAAN8/yK2oGLDfVnI/s1600/Ecclessiastes+bowl+001.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" nba="true" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-MVZWQOOKauo/TmWZr4dN4VI/AAAAAAAAAN8/yK2oGLDfVnI/s400/Ecclessiastes+bowl+001.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">This is an anti-legalism verse: "Nothing is better than to rejoice and do good in one's life, Every man should eat and drink and enjoy the fruit of his labor, it is the gift of God." (Ecclesiastes 3:12-13) I am thinking of selling this bowl in my etsy shop, but first I have to figure out how to get the paint to stay on when washed! If it doesn't sell, it will be a great Christmas present.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> I also created this banner for my etsy shop: </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Ssw9XwC6Qqs/TmWUjPKgKDI/AAAAAAAAANk/mmZCVizxFzM/s1600/etsy+banner.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="76" nba="true" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Ssw9XwC6Qqs/TmWUjPKgKDI/AAAAAAAAANk/mmZCVizxFzM/s640/etsy+banner.gif" width="640" /></a></div> <br />
Now my day is beautiful.<br />
<br />
What do you do "when the dog bites?"<br />
<div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-DQPGTCG0Tgc/TmWXEQsfUZI/AAAAAAAAAN4/gShMHDnrHzE/s1600/Ecclessiastes+bowl+007.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"></a></div></div>The Professor's Wifehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16729608417909675769noreply@blogger.com3