18.6.15

Grand Opening THIS Weekend!


Hello! Sorry for the blog silence. So much has been going on, but I have to share some exciting news. If you haven't already heard, Unglued is opening a bigger and permanent location in Sioux Falls SD! Their pop up shop in November and December went so well that they decided to run two locations full time, in Fargo, ND and now SD! Yay! This will be a great spot to find unique handmade gifts for family and friends all year round and they also offer several fun workshops. Be sure to check out Unglued on facebook for more updates and information on future workshops as well as the fun they have planned for their Grand Opening!

In other news, our daughter decided to take a creative venture selling her artwork. Her dad and her made the stand last fall and she decided to get it out last weekend.

How has it gone? She loves it and wants to be open 6 days a week! She's enjoying telling people she has a job.

She's been doing pretty good with it too. She even thinks I should serve her food out at the stand because she doesn't want to miss a customer. Maybe when she is bigger she will run a creative business like Unglued... will be fun to see what she comes up with! :)

And a sidenote~ thank you to those who have mentioned they like reading my health/food posts. I promise I will eventually get back to sharing a lot more on those topics. I currently have about a month left on my strict Candida cleanse/detox. So excited about the health improvements I have seen so far and I look forward to seeing even more and then sharing my journey with you!

Have a wonderful weekend! God Bless!

24.3.15

You are so loved! {NEW Art}

{You Are So Loved Art Print}
The giving of flowers primarily shows an act of love. Valentines day and funerals come to mind when I think of moments when flowers are often given, although any time can be special, whether a particular reason or not. It is a caring gesture from one to another.

Love one another. God's greatest commands. If only people of this world followed that one command. Just think how life would be so different. Sometimes it is hard to love others... difference of opinions, jealousy, hurtful words and actions. Someone's negativity can greatly affect us and cause us to react. What reaction do we generally lean towards showing? Is it kindness in return after we have been hurt or is it revenge or even shutting out the other person so we aren't hurt again? I wish I could say I respond in love and kindness just as my heavenly father would and wants us to. But often times it isn't. I am trying to become better at this. I've been slowly reading my way through the New Testament in the Bible. I love how God has given us a life's manual. When we take the time to read His book, learn from His teachings and show it through our own actions life becomes better and full of new meaning. At least that is what I find to be true. Life and situations around me are viewed so differently... better now that the Word is such an important part of my life.

My pencil drawing/charcoal painting, You Are So Loved, was inspired by Him. He blesses the earth with such beauty. It is truly amazing how a simple seed can be planted and it grows into something so beautiful and then can be given to another through a loving action or simply enjoyed where it grows. To me the book of John is one of God's greatest love letters to us. Jesus healing others, comforting others even though he knows what lies ahead for himself. He only did good yet was extremely mistreated. He showed love but was not loved in return. Yet he still died on the cross for each one of us to take away our sins. We are so not worthy of such a sacrifice. When it sinks into our mind of what He did for us because He loves us so much you can't help but want to become a better person and follow His word.

Last weekend we took our daughter to see the new movie Cinderella. It doesn't have quite as a happy feel as the older animated one but it does a great job in showing kindness even when one may not "deserve" it. The big part that stuck out at me was towards the end when Cinderella was leaving the wicked step mother with the prince and Cinderella turned and looked at her and said, "I forgive you." Powerful. For everything Cinderella had put up with you would think she would have reacted with revenge, but she reacted in love. Such a great lesson for young and old alike. ♥

19.3.15

The Great Outdoors


We were blessed with a wonderful day this past Sunday. Bible study and church for the first half of the day, yummy food off the grill thanks to hubby, and then lots of outdoor time enjoying the mid 70 degree weather! Yay for heat! It looks like it will be quite a yo-yo in temps for the next couple weeks plus. Tomorrow should be pack up to mid 60's then snow is forecasted 2 days later. So when a nice day comes along you have to enjoy it as much as possible. Sunday we went on a hike. Love the peacefulness of nature and soaking up the warmth with my family!









I would take another day like this any time. ♥

5.3.15

Journey to Healing {Part 1: Essentials}


Shortly after the new year, I blogged that this WILL be the year I heal. Even though I've done a Candida detox twice before without success I am still determined and sure this will be the year of regaining my health naturally. It is only the beginning of March and I have seen so much improvement already and such nasty things coming out of my body! Yay!!! Nothing is more exciting than seeing advances when you have worked so hard for so long.
First and foremost my praise goes to the Lord for the healing. I don't know how many prayers I have said for healing but still tried every so called health tip I came across. After eating so clean for such a long time and not seeing a big improvement I became really frustrated. It wasn't until I really asked God for guidance on what I needed to do/take that helped me on my healing journey. The end of last year/the beginning of this year I have done my best to listen to Him. As always, he answered and led me to two crucial products that have helped me significantly!
The first product is organic Food Grade Diatomaceous Earth. What is that you ask? Diatomaceous Earth is finely milled silica shells of ancient microscopic freshwater plants called diatoms. What is so amazing about these little silica shells is that when you mix the powder with water and drink it, the diatoms run through your body attracting and absorbing fungi, protozoa, viruses, endotoxins, pesticides, drug residues, E.coli and heavy metals! The good stuff in your body is left unharmed. Pretty darn amazing if you ask me and it comes from the earth, made by God! You can get a lot for not much money. It kinda tastes like drinking sand but I have no problem taking it as I can see it working. After two months of use I noticed/saw the biggest changes so far. So it isn't something that is going to happen overnight... like everything good, it takes time. I worked up to taking 1 flat tablespoon mixed in spring water. I actually mix it in half of a glass of water, drink it right away and then drink a big full glass of plain water right after that. It is a good idea to drink a good amount when you take the Diatomaceous Earth to get it moving throughout your system. 

I just have to note that it was the day I asked God for guidance that I came across the Earthworks site who sells this stuff and what I thought was so awesome was their About Us page actually talks about God and Heaven! I knew in my heart this stuff was going to help me. So far I have not been disappointed and it even has so many more uses! So anyone who is struggling with health issues and not seeing the results they would like to see even after drastic diet changes, I strongly encourage you to look into taking Food Grade Diatomaceous Earth. Make sure it is FOOD GRADE! If it isn't food grade it would harm your health!
The next big essential is good, strong probiotics. You have probably heard the importance of probiotics by now. Your body needs plenty of healthy bacteria to crowd out the bad guys in your gut. Every time an antibiotic is taken, the good bacteria is being killed. You need to repopulate the good! If the bad guys out number the good, sickness and disease will overcome you. One of the problems I found was finding a good probiotic to take. Even the ones my doctor recommended didn't seem to do anything for me which made me feel like I was wasting a lot of money. Since many health conditions are caused by the imbalance of beneficial bacteria, one needs to restore a good balance. Again I prayed about it and came across Saccharomyces Boulardii and Bio-Kult. Saccharomyces Boulardii is recommended for those struggling with Candida/yeast issues. Clinical and holistic nutritionist Christa Orecchio has had Candida herself and successfully overcame it with Saccharomyces Boulardii (and Diatomaceous Earth). After listening to many of her health talks I was excited to give Saccharomyces a try and it has worked well. After using Saccharomyces for about 3 weeks with no other fermented foods, I added in Bio-Kult which comes from the UK. It contains 14 live strains of good bacteria. (My daughter also takes this as it is safe for children too.) Dr. Natasha Campbell-McBride is one who helped formulate this probiotic and I trust her work as she has helped heal many. I currently use both of these probiotics and upped the amount towards a therapeutic grade level per Campbell-McBrides recommendation. After taking them in combination with the DE, I have seen and feel great results. Sure, I have gotten some die off reactions, which are the not so fun feelings of the toxins dying in my body... head spinning, not feeling so well, fatigue... but it is fairly short lived and since I know what it is from I can control it by backing off a bit if I need to. Knowing my body is working on removing the nasty stuff keeps me focused on pushing forward to restored health. Praise the Lord for allowing our bodies to heal themselves given the right conditions! I am currently starting to make my own sauerkraut to get in more fresh probiotics. I have done many kitchen experiments already this year... water kefir, sourdough and now sauerkraut. It has been fun, but sadly our bodies weren't quite ready for everything we tried. In time...

A clean diet free of all processed food is a huge and helpful step. For quite awhile I wasn't seeing a big benefit from it. My doctor suggested I try Betaine HCL to see if my stomach had enough acid to break down the beneficial food I was eating. Sure enough I wasn't getting the good nutrients from the food I was eating. I kind of knew my body was missing important nutrients due to the horrible ridges on my fingernails but at the time didn't know much about Hydrochloride. I thought I was missing some vitamins. Slowly my nails are becoming smoother! Anyway, if you think your body isn't breaking down food properly ask your doctor if you can do the HCL test. You simply take a pill after you eat a meal with protein; you should then have a warm burning sensation in your stomach which means you have enough acid. If you don't feel anything your digestion is needing some help. I got up to the max amount of seven pills and didn't feel anything. After time and more healing I have been able to cut down to one a day and sometimes don't even need any!

I share these items with hopes it will help someone else going through a similar situation. I wish I would have known about them and tried them on my first Candida detox round, but I remain hopeful that the third attempt will be a charm. :) I linked to the actual products I use and think are amazing. Please don't hesitate to ask me any questions about the items. I will do my best to answer.

With these healing essentials I also continue to focus on these points that I previously shared. I haven't been doing the best with spending time outdoors since it has been so cold around here lately, but that will soon be changing... warmer weather should be arriving this weekend. Yay! So excited to get outdoors! I love being out in nature and breathing the fresh air. The photos above were taken on a ride back home. The sky was amazing. A South Dakota landscape can be quite beautiful. ♥

24.2.15

Up, Up & Away!

{Kaelyn's birthday drawing}
Yes, six years have flown by all too quickly. Wow! I vividly remember the day this beautiful girl came into our lives; it seems like it wasn't very long ago. And then somehow time started passing so quickly and everything became a blur. So thankful for photos to remind me of our life's happenings! Now more memories have been made and the beginning of her seventh year is one we should remember for quite some time! :)
The only way I could think to make a hot air balloon was to paper mache around a balloon. Thank goodness it worked as I didn't have a back up plan. Hee, hee. Her chocolate cake was also one of a kind. No one would have guessed it consisted of three different veggies. I was told it tasted like chocolate cheesecake! That made me happy as it was a recipe I imagined and had no idea if it would actually taste okay to eat! The best part was Kaelyn loved it and she did know it was made with veggies. Success! :)

 A wonderful handmade surprise from Grandma Shari!

We took her out for a special family day...
 She wanted to go up, up and away by herself!
 Then she went again with her dad.

Afterwards what put this girl on cloud nine was going to pet stores to find a furry animal she could bring home. She wanted something other than a fish this time around.

Meet Sam...
The girls at the pet store didn't know if it was a girl or boy. They believed he/she was too young to tell, so we named the fuzzy teddy bear hamster Sam (Samuel, Samantha, Samster...). After having the little fur ball for awhile Kaelyn says it is a boy because he snores!!! Ha, ha!



 This one made me laugh! Sam's hands up in the air, "Oh NO, not another hug!!!"


At the end of the day she insisted on family art time with her new gifts.
Happy seventh sweet girl! I look forward to creating many more happy memories with you! 
♥

15.2.15

Be Mine

Hope you had a Happy Valentines Day!

A few snaps from our weekend...
 Special Valentine breakfast ~ my first attempt at gluten free sourdough pancakes!
Kaelyn loved the sour taste and ate almost the whole batch. :)


Love this kiddo!... and my amazing husband! ♥

11.2.15

God Loves You print {& other artwork with wood}

{God Loves You Customizable Art Print}
I haven't done an art post for awhile so figured I'd share a few projects that have been going on recently. Above is a new design I created and made available in the shop last month. A name can be added to the bottom of the cross for a special personalized gift; works great for Christenings, baptismal birthdays, baby showers...
I have had so much fun experimenting with wood burning! I worked on the "You are a wonderfully made child of God" piece during the last art group day. It has since been completed and given to a very special girl for her birthday this past Sunday. :)
{special request to bring out the graphics}

The project below has been keeping my husband from Wisp Woods very busy. The finished pieces are going to be awesome but they are quite complicated to make with so many parts, large size and different colors. I'm trying to help out with the staining. I hope the customer loves the final works!
So that's a glimpse of a few of the recent wood projects going on around here.

28.1.15

TRUTH: The Cause of Sickness & Disease

For you and your loved one's health PLEASE read. 
If you don't want to read my ramblings fine, but I beg you to listen to the youtube links in this post. It has been placed on my heart that everyone needs to know this information. What you do with it is up to you but I urge you to seriously think twice about what you are feeding your body, your children, your loved ones...
God did an amazing job of designing our bodies, to fix/heal themselves, to run smoothly, to be healthy and strong. He provided us with good food to nourish ourselves. We have to do very little to this good food and it will provide us with amazing benefits, both physically and emotionally. What is sad is God's design and purpose is constantly being pushed to the side, which makes our lives so much more complicated than they need to be. When it comes to food we have the choice to eat something that comes directly from nature or we can eat something that is artificial, man made, genetically modified. Some or many pay no attention to what they are putting into their mouth or onto their body. I admit, I was that person for many years. As long as the so called food tasted good that is all that mattered to me. I never thought of the effects the food could have on my body. Besides some skin issues, and not wanting to get out of bed in the morning, I was thin and felt fine, so why should I worry? Life is very busy, I get that; people don't want to take the time to read labels, to cook "healthy" meals, but what they aren't realizing is that by not doing so there will be detrimental effects to their health. Food is either medicine or poison!

Do you know that the more man gets involved with the food process, the unhealthier it becomes? It can be literal poison to your body, causing inflammation. After an extended period of use, the toxic chemicals overwhelm your gut health and the body no longer has the ability of healing itself unless you make significant changes on moving away from the offending products. If no action is taken on your part, sickness and disease will keep multiplying until you die. That sounds fun, doesn't it? Medication is just a bandage, it does nothing for the root cause.

I am no doctor, have had no professional health training, but I have EXPERIENCED many health issues and have also EXPERIENCED some wonderful healing. I have witnessed many people die, all different ages. I've watched my great grandma live into her 100's, my grandma just turned 92 and is doing fantastic. When I hit my early 30's I felt as if my 90 yr old grandma was running circles around me. Why I thought? Why do I feel stuck in an old person's body? Brain fog came after having my daughter. After dealing with secondary infertility and being diagnosed with hyperthyroidism and Graves Disease I had a strong feeling it was the food... my diet. But the specialist told me, food has nothing to do with it, so I pushed my feelings aside. From that day on my health issues only got worse UNTIL I significantly changed my diet! There are thousands of people who have seen the same results. Before I changed my diet my little girl had a horrible allergic reaction after eating nutella. Her tongue and throat were swelling shut, her heart rapidly beating. I was in shock. I took her to the clinic where she got shots to counteract the allergic reaction and to normalize her breathing. I had this crazy sense of calmness that my daughter's health was not in my hands but the Lords, even while the panicked doctor had another higher up doctor on the phone. What scares me after that incident is hearing about other children who die from a peanut/nut allergy. Allergies are becoming more and more common. WHY? Some people think doctors are just more aware of symptoms and diagnosis now. Is that really the truth? I beg to differ as I have witnessed our own health turn around almost completely after changing to a healthier diet. I've heard other people's stories of both healing and sickness and it all comes down to FOOD!

Why is this issue so important to me? I don't want others to suffer when they don't have to. I don't want children being sick when it can be prevented. God willing, I want to live a good, long life... feeling happy and energized and I want that for my family as well. I have had lots of health experiences, sadly a lot of my issues were passed onto my daughter at birth. I don't want this to happen to other mom's to be. I want their babies to be as healthy as possible right from the beginning. There are plenty of other environmental toxins people have to deal with. Many readers know a lot about my health journey ~ secondary infertility, hyperthyroid, Graves Disease, hypothyroid, body tremors, heart palpitations, fatigue, weakness (hard to even climb a few stairs), anxiety, hormone imbalance, ringing in ears, constant congestion, swollen lymph nodes, lumps, allergies, intolerances, acne, rashes, spitting of blood, spasms in intestines, Celiac Disease, Candida, leaky gut, hypochlorydria... Saw several doctors, many tests ~ Brain MRI, cancer tests, spit tests, x-rays, unltrasounds, SIBO test, countless blood labs, radioactive iodine, some antibiotics, medications. Since my thyroid was killed I do need constant medication (which is man-made and contains harmful fillers) and if the dose isn't right my health gets much worse, but other then that nothing but diet has helped. If I would have listened to my gut feelings I would still have my thyroid and am sure I would be back to feeling 100% by now. I made a mistake and took a doctors advice without knowing what I was getting into. Which honestly good has come from that too, because I found a new passion in health and food and probably best of all, my relationship with God has become so much stronger. I know who to rely on now and I thank Him for His grace daily. I am healing! I hope my story will give others hope. I hope it will make another person's life a little easier.

Let my struggle be used for good!
But when Jesus heard it he said, "This illness does not lead to death. It is for the glory of God, so that the Son of God may be glorified through it." ~John 11:4

If you still don't understand the food/health connection I will open up myself entirely and share something I haven't shared with anyone but my husband. A year ago when I was really struggling I also had a large breast lump, (yeah, something I didn't want to share but now its like who cares because if my story helps someone else then awesome!) anyway, it was big enough that the doctor's eyes got real big when it was felt and I was rushed to the hospital for immediate x-rays and set up for cancer screening shortly after. Luckily since the lump was movable it was believed to be non-cancerous but I was supposed to have check-ups and x-rays done every few months. The doctor/nurse said the lump would more then likely grow more during different stages of the month, never saying it will or can dissolve. At that time I knew how important food was and I knew with the work I was doing to rid my body from the excess Candida that my body would heal itself in time. I never returned to the cancer facility or to the hospital for more x-rays. I knew God was in control and guess what, with food and His amazing design, the lump is GONE! Completely gone! Praise the Lord! I have seen so much healing in my body from where I used to be. If my daughter and I are around sick people and catch a bug it does not last long (we eat all organic, clean food), where as my husband can get it and be sick for days (he eats clean food and man-made, plus has a flu shot). I might not get sick if I wouldn't kiss him. Ha! I'm not worried, I believe in my body's ability to heal and His nourishing food. My body fights off sickness quickly now. God is good!

If you don't want to believe me on how serious your health is connected to the food you eat, I beg YOU to listen to these two talks. And if you do believe me, thank you, but still listen to them!!! The one by Jeffrey is lengthy but very good so try listening when your getting supper ready, cleaning up or riding in the car...


309 - GMO Food Allergies & Gluten Sensitivity - Jeffrey Smith


After listening to these talks, I know my health issues were caused by the genetically modified food. Not realizing it back then, I was addicted to the processed junk, macaroni and cheese - all time favorite, tv dinners with the brownie, chicken nuggets, pizza, pasta, bread, desserts, m&m's, ice-cream, specialty iced coffees... that is what my taste buds craved. Veggies were not on my list. Now I assure you they are and I LOVE them! My daughter does too and actually told me she was glad she had allergies so she could eat this good food. A couple days ago she also told me she feels yucky if she eats the "other" food. (Other meaning processed food, artificial candy from school.) I don't let her eat that junk any more. It turns my stomach seeing all the artificial candy kids get at school and at parties. When Kaelyn wanted a piece of candy she brought home from class I read her the ingredients list on the back and she went and threw it in the garbage!!! This mama's heart skipped a beat with pure happiness. No, it is not always so easy but I know how precious health is and I will do everything in my power to keep my child as healthy as possible.

The main GMO foods to stay away from: corn, soybeans, cotton, canola, & sugar beets. (90% of sugar beets in the US are genetically modified and a lot of it is made into table sugar.) Remember all these can come in different names on ingredient lists. Over time consumption of these foods will cause inflammation and autoimmune diseases unless it is only in small amounts, with the majority of your diet being clean veggies and meats. I am all for supporting organic grown foods and small farms that don't alter nature. As Jeffrey Smith stated, a GMO is like saying God Move Over. GMO's are like a silent war going on in our country. The outcome is devastating, not everyone knows about it. I urge you to be skeptical of man-made products that you use in/on your body. Someone may be just making a buck off you and harming your health. It is sad! Please watch what you feed children. They don't realize what is good vs. harmful. Teach them early on. It will be hard at the beginning but it will get much easier and they will thank you for it in the future. God created everything so perfect and good, His works should not be changed! I pray that people will change their focus of money to doing good for others.

"For wisdom will come into your heart, and knowledge will be pleasant to your soul; discretion will watch over you, understanding will guard you." ~Proverbs 2:10-11

"The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction." ~Proverbs 1:7

"If you are willing and obedient, you shall eat the good of the land." ~Isaiah 1:19


Thank you for taking the time to read this and please, please listen to the links!

21.1.15

What we ate Wednesday & a recipe! { for Health }

{Sesame Tahini Salad}
I have been having fun in the kitchen lately. First I made a few little changes to my gluten free buckwheat bread and like it even better. Crazy how a few little tweaks can make significant changes. I will be sharing the recipe later on. I'm off all forms of grain right now as I am on a strict Candida diet/detox once again. Maybe the end of February/beginning of March I'll be able to make the bread again and make sure it is good enough to share. :)

Other recent kitchen experiments include a meatloaf made from liver and grass fed beef. I never looked forward to Kaelyn whining about liver and onions for supper so I decided to try and hide it in a meatloaf experiment. Guess what? She loves it!!! In a crazy way the liver gives a tomato taste to the meat. I'm not sure I love it but it isn't bad and hey its a huge win when she doesn't complain about eating it. She even asks for it several times a day! (I didn't tell her there was liver in it and not sure when I will disclose that information. Ha!)

My favorite experiment has been clam chowder. Oh my goodness, this soup was something I really missed. My grandma used to make it every Christmas eve and it was my favorite soup! After my daughter and I were having so many food allergies/food intolerance issues I didn't think I would be able to enjoy it again. Not too long ago it hit me what I could use instead of potatoes and dairy and it turned out to be a big hit! Yay!!! My family loved it so I tested it on my grandma to see what she thought and she was amazed! Last Sunday we had an impromptu get together at our house and I fed them the clam chowder and it continued to get the thumbs up. So I will be sharing that recipe soon. I never measure ingredients so I should probably go back and get some idea of amounts.

This last week I've been loving this salad I created with sesame tahini. I may be slightly addicted. :)
If you would like specifics, here are the links to several of the ingredients I use and really like:
Kal nutritional yeast flakes ~ gives an awesome cheesy flavor for those who can't have dairy/cheese, and the flakes also contain many beneficial vitamins
turmeric ~ don't need to add but gives a nice burst of flavor and turmeric is a great anti-inflammatory ingredient
Himala sea salt ~ not like refined table salt, HimalaSalt  contains essential minerals
Bragg's olive oil ~ there are many to choose from but I am currently using this organic extra virgin olive oil
sesame tahini ~ could grind your own sesame seeds into a butter or use this spread if you are short on time. I love this spread but it is a bit spendy. It is organic, raw and stone ground with good nutritional value.
pumpkin seed butter ~ I've added this in with the tahini and it tasted good. Good source of iron too.

As far as the meats go for the healthiest version, I make sure the chicken or turkey is free of antibiotics and hormones and no other ingredients are added. Free range and organic are best but hard to find around here. Always get organic celery. The chemicals they spray on some veggies can be extremely hazardous to our health, so make sure the celery and leafy greens have the USDA organic label on them.

Experiment all you want with this recipe. Amounts all depend on personal taste. Seed butters are a wonderful dressing alternative and they are full of nutritional health benefits. Hope you like it as much as I do!