Homeschooling

Today is suppose to be the day we start back to school. The temperatures outside are miserable. Although we officially broke the streak of 90s we have had for two weeks, the heat is still oppressive. I have never been a summer heat kind of person, so for us to spend part of each day in the air conditioned basement studying doesn't bother me too much. We also avoid the crowds of young people who are out of school for the summer.

As I was discussing the start of school yesterday with a homeschooling friend, I got "the look". The look that says, " you don't take a summer break, have you lost your mind". Let me ask you this, as we challenge the "norms" for everything else in our world. Why does "summer break" have to be in the summer? Why do schools break at this particular time? Well one reason is the heat, especially here in the Southern United States. While my home in the North GA mountains is much cooler than the one I grew up in; the south can be really warm in the summer time. Having children swelter away in classrooms during the summer time makes them ill tempered, cranky, tired, and generally hard to deal with.

The thing I love most about being a homeschooling mother is that I get to have input and control over what my kids study, when we work, and when we take breaks. I love to say "whatever works for you." That is truly how I feel about all areas of homeschooling! Whatever curriculum, whatever breaks, whatever hours, whatever projects, whatever! Don't let the world define you, even if they don't understand you. You are ultimately responsible for the people your kids become so don't let "the norm" shape them for you!

Off to get busy!

Stockings and Sewing, where did I go????

Well today I started back to homeschooling and was shocked to realize that 3 weeks of my life are gone with nothing more of a haze of embroidery designs to recall for it. Last year I started a 2nd Etsy shop which features all Christmas items. I sold 10 stockings and felt like I was losing my mind. This year I sold 35 stockings and I did lose my mind. :) But it is behind me now and I am happy to create lovely items that are in houses around the US. From everywhere from South Carolina to North Dakota and I hope that they are all hanging in homes bringing smiles to faces. I mailed the last 2 this morning!

I am hoping that each and everyone of you have a lovely Christmas! I hope the holiday and the new year bring you lots of love and joy!

Jennifer

Okay two things to talk about today...

Candida Yeast, I thought I had you beat, but you are back and I only fell off the wagon a little bit. So as of today I am back to diligently avoiding the chocolate, sugar, and heavy carbs. I had settled into my new body with a much less swollen stomach, clear skin, etc...... but it didn't take long for me to see that I still have to be careful and watch it.


I am going to be creating a new blog soon! Title yet undecided, but I have some thoughts. So here is the summary! My paternal grandmother Gertrude Cook was an amazing cook. She had 7 children to feed, and at times additional family members who lived with them. So she was accustomed to feeding a crowd. When she passed away there was great family debate over her recipe boxes... A few years back I asked my Daddy if I could take them and type them all up into a cookbook for the family. As I begin to look at them I found that some of them were just a list of ingredients and the direction "Bake".....obviously she knew what she was doing and didn't need any further direction. This deterred me some from the project because at the time I didn't really have time to figure this out. Lately though I have thought more and more about it. My sister has suggested that I try to make each recipe like "Julie & Julia"....maybe....but I am definitely starting a blog to provide these recipes to the family and world alike.

I am super excited about it and can't wait to get started, so I will give everyone a head's up as soon as I have it ready to go, hopefully you will follow me over on that blog and enjoy the recipes of my youth the way I do.

See you soon!

Candida Yeast....what is going on?

Okay I haven't blogged several days about the Yeast situation. I am going to give a summary of where I am, and what I am still doing.

Hints:

Don't juice carrots or beets. In fact if you are going to juice, then you need green juices: celery, kale, greens ( turnip and collard), cucumbers, garlic, ginger, parsley....all really good choices.

Juicing is not for the faint of heart. I did it for 4 weeks and it was not fun, but it was healthy...so pick your poison.

Cut out as much sugar, bread, pasta, vinegar and aged foods as you can.

Eat Activia yogurt from the beginning

Take Pro-biotic supplements daily, do your research and invest in quality.

Don't give up, it is going to get a lot worse before it gets better.

Take soda water ( 1 tsp in a cup of warm water) once a day

If you can do coconut oil, or coconut oil capsules....do it and don't be afraid of the yucky feeling it is killing the Yeast.


My results have been amazing. My hands, face, head, etc are completely clear of rash. It will probably be months before the condition of my skin is back to normal, it still looks haggard but it is not cracked or open or even red. Daily application of a thick moisturizer will help that.

For the last 2 weeks I have eaten anything I wanted. Including bread, pasta, sugar,etc..... I am eating it in much more moderation than I was before, but still it is in my diet and not causing any issues! YAY!!!!!

From time to time I will post any changes or things that give me trouble, but for right now all is good.

Other things in my life

So I have blogged so much about diet lately I haven't blogged about anything else.

I have had a very busy couple of weeks, I know some of my friends think I have abandoned them, but it isn't personal there is just so much to do and so much going on.

My family is getting ready to celebrate the Feast of Tabernacles and that means cleaning the whole house top to bottom, and buying clothes, and packing clothes.... and lots of work!

In addition we have been going through a huge ordeal with my husbands church, it has literally been like a huge roller coaster of emotions and it has made us question every friendship attached to the church and it is really stressful.

We had a wonderful trip down to my parents for Labor Day weekend. My mother was very sick and I am really concerned about her current and future health. We all love her very much and just want her to be healthy. We had a wonderful time visiting both my parents, my husband's parents, both of our brothers, my cousins, it was awesome. My husband and my son both Kayaked for the first time and loved it. I can't wait to try it myself sometime. I even had a short visit with my Granddaddy. He and my grandmother celebrated 60 years of marriage on September 2 ! I honestly didn't think he would make it to see the day, but he keeps fooling us all.

Since Friday I have been cleaning and purging the house and as slow and tiring as it is it feels wonderful.

Tomorrow night is our Fall Court of Honor for our Boy Scout Troop and my son is set to receive three merit badges and his new leadership position of Den Chief.

So I will be good and ready to run directly into the warm water of the ocean, sit on the beach and listen to the waves for hours and lay in the sun for 2 whole weeks! Even though I continue to work part time even while on vacation, it is still the beach :)

Hope you will all forgive me for being so preoccupied lately....it will get better. Love you all !

Day 26....hmmmm how did that happen

Okay well as you know if you have been reading this blog, I was blogging everyday with my health status and emotional status, etc.... It got a little repetitious, so I skipped several days and I have been trying different things so I am going to just share a summary of what I have been doing and how it is going.

First of all my weight this morning was 194.5 so I have lost around 10-12 lbs on this cleanse. While I did not start this cleanse to lose weight it has been a welcome side effect of the process.

Secondly my diet hasn't varied much from what I had documented prior. Basically vegetable juice in the morning, hummus fresh veggies, meat or salad for dinner. I can tell you I have not intentionally had sugar, bread, pasta since I started this cleanse. I may have ingested some small amounts of sugar through sauces but it has been minimal. For instance on the chicken wings I had for dinner last night.....I did cheat and eat 3 french fries.

I have been emotionally up and down. There are days when I truly believe this is working and I am elated, then I will have a relapse and become depressed. Overall I do see a great improvement in my skin, rash, etc.

Just this week after even more research on the subject, I learned I should not have been juicing the carrots and beets that I was consuming. Which makes sense to me since they are a root crop and have so much natural sugar. I have switched to mainly a green juicing, cucumbers, celery, dark greens.

I have added Activia to my diet in the mornings with my juice. Activia has a lot of good pro biotics which are of a different variety than the Dan Active. I am actually doing both one morning, on afternoon along with a probiotic supplement. I have temporarily stopped the Fish Oil due to some fish allergies I have and the fear that it could contribute to the problem.

I think I have mentioned in the other blogs but just to touch base on it again. I was doing 3tbsp of Coconut Oil orally, I would suffer hot flashes and sluggishness along with a general feeling of yuckiness after taking it. I did some research on Sodium Bicarbonate as an anti fungal, I have started taking 1 tsp in warm water once in the morning and once at night. I have seen huge improvements since starting that.

One thing to note as well is that the rash comes from the yeast die off byproducts. So even though the rash is discouraging, it is actually proof that the yeast is dying away.

My plan is to continue on a complete elimination for about 8 more days. At which point I am going to slowly....very slowly start to add foods back to my diet. While I truly believe I will want to run out and eat a huge pizza and chocolate cake, I am pretty sure I will be gun shy :)


I also plan to continue to juice daily, maybe more than once, because I believe it is much healthier. I also plan to continue the Activia daily to keep the proper flora of the colon.

I will blog again in a few days as this winds down.

Day 14..... I know I skipped some

Weight: 197.5

Health Status: Hands are almost completely healed, as are all other areas of rash. Stomach is less bloated and digestive tract seems more balanced.

Emotional Status: Don't ask! But it isn't related to the diet :).

Diet: Still doing the same sort of diet, when I can't eat at home I have a salad out, with the smallest amount of dressing possible or chicken strips or nuggets from Chick-fil-A where there is less breading and they are cooked in peanut oil.

Now changes I have made that are significant; stopped taking the coconut oil and started taking 1 tsp of baking soda in warm water. The coconut oil was making me have hot flashes and feel real sluggish. I have read amazing things about the baking soda as an anti fungal agent and decided to give it a chance. For 3 days I have been doing 1 tsp of baking soda in warm water and in that time my rash has almost completely healed up. The improvement is amazing!

I am going to continue this until we leave for our upcoming vacation in about 20 days. I will have been on the program for more than 30 days at that point. From there I will begin to slowly add back in carbs and sweets in small doses.

I will be updating as I continue along this path. If you are following because you have the same issues I do, please research the baking soda/ sodium bicarbonate treatments online and form your own opinion.

Day 9, skipped Day 8 it was just too crazy a day

Weight: 198

Health Status: Hands continue to be red under the surface, but skin is greatly healed, skin condition itself is much better! Patch at the back of the leg is essentially gone. Skin on the face has been bad for the past two days despite my sticking very rigidly to the diet. I have read that the Yeast will cause a reaction in your body as a craving for something to feed on, thus the cravings for sweets. I have had the thought that maybe my body is craving the cortisone ointment I have used for years, so in spite of the break out I am avoiding the use of cortisone. Stomach condition is improving.

Emotional Status: Slightly overwhelmed and agitated. Some anxiety and very nervous and uneasy. I am not sure if this is due to the yeast or not, but I have read that anxiety and depression can be a result of the yeast, so I am noting.

Diet:

1 Meal- too rushed to juice today: 1 small cucumber sliced with 1 small bell pepper 3 tbsp of homemade hummus

2 Meal- 4 lettuce tacos= 4 leafs from large Romaine lettuce, 4 tablespoons of scrambled ground beef, mixture of sliced tomato, bell pepper, onion, fresh cilantro, 1 small crumbling of shredded cheese, 1 tsp of sour cream. The cheese is a cheat as you should avoid aged foods to avoid molds.
Lay the lettuce leaf on the plate, layer in cheese, meat, veggies, top with sour cream and sprinkle with salt.

2 Snack- 1 Dan Active Pro Biotic drink

Supplements: 2 Accu Flora pro biotic supplements, 3 Omega 3 Fish Oils 1000mg, 4 Cinnamon capsules 500mg, 1 Vitamin E 500mg, 3 tbsp coconut oil.

Day 7

Weight: 200.5

Health Status: Hands are healing the skin condition is much better, not rough or dry and not itchy. Scalp is almost healed completely. Patch on the back of the leg are healing. Stomach continues to be bloated due to continued constipation issues.

Emotional Status: Not feeling well today. Emotional and edgy. I am wondering about this Candida die off I saw on a website. The website didn't indicate what the symptoms are, only that you will go through it. I need to do more research on that.

Diet:

1 Meal- juice 2 carrots, 2 celery stalks, 1 small handful of parsley, 1 small cucumber, 1 small ginger root chunk, 1 clove of raw garlic

1 snack- 6 chicken nuggets fried in peanut oil

2 Meal-spaghetti salad .....I know it sounds gross, but it was good! 1 cup of spaghetti sauce with ground beef over 1/4 head of iceberg lettuce, 1 slice of onion diced up, 4 small chunks of cheese shredded.

2 snack- apple & Dan Active Pro Biotic drink

Supplements: 3 Omega 3 Fish Oil Capsules 1000mg, 4 Cinnamon 500mg capsules, 2 Accu Flora pro biotics, 3 tbsp coconut oil, 1 Dan Active Pro Biotic drink

Throughout the day I drink large amounts of water and 2-3 cups of hot green tea, first thing in the morning I have a cup of hot water with lemon juice.

Day 6

Weight: 200.5

Health Status: Hands are improving greatly, only the deepest sores remain and they are healing. I have seen a drastic improvement over this past week. Patches on the inside of the arm are gone, the patch on the back of the leg is still rashy and dry. Stomach is bloated today, having some issues with constipation and I am not sure why with all the veggies I have been eating! The scalp is almost healed completely, a huge improvement in the past day.

Emotional Status: Upbeat and optimistic. I am seeing improvements in my condition so it has me determined. It has made my will power stronger. Today my son offered me M&M's and I refused, he continued to insist and I was able to resist.... that is not typical. I think given my lack of nutritional knowledge, my hope is that I am doing this right! My schedule has been off today so I have been a little anxious about my eating.

Diet:

1 Meal - Chicken Strips Salad at Chick-Fil-A, I did drizzle some Light Italian dressing on top, but not much at all. Had I known the amount of sugar in it, I would have chosen something else.

2 Meal- 1 small cucumber, 1 small bell pepper, 5 tablespoons of homemade hummus

2 Snack- 1 Dan Active Pro-Biotic drink


Supplements:

4 Cinnamon capsules 500mg, 2 Omega 3 Fish Oil capsules 1000mg, 2 Accu Flora pro biotic supplements, 1 Dan Active Pro-Biotic drink

Coconut Oil

This website has good information about the health benefits of coconut oil.

http://www.coconut-info.com

Click on the About Coconut Oil section.

Day 5

Weight: 199 lbs

Health Status: Fingers and hands are healing some, still somewhat raw in spots where the deepest irritation is, however, not as itchy tonight. Patches on the inside of my arms and back of the leg are continuing to improve. Face is improved greatly and complexion is improving. Scalp is still irritated in some spots, but seems to be improving some.

Emotional Status: Tired! Not from the diet though :) I am somewhat apprehensive that I am not covering all I need to do kill the yeast. One of the issues is at this time of the year some of the vegetables are not as readily available. I don't think I am juicing enough during the day....I have to do more research.

*****Note a couple of things I haven't mentioned yet. Yeast in your body feeds on sugar, vinegar, carbs. These are the big items to avoid! Bread, potato, pasta, fruits, vinegar condiments such as salad dressing, pickles, etc...

Diet:

1 Meal- Juice, 3 medium tomatos, 2 celery stalks, 4 handfuls of kale, 1 small hand full of parsley, 1 raw garlic clove, 1/2 inch ginger root, 1 small cucumber

1 Snack-3 tbsp home made hummus, 2 small bell peppers

2 Meal- large bowl of iceberg lettuce, 2 small tomatos, 1 small bell pepper drizzled with olive oil and lemon juice

3 Meal- 1 large soup bowl of mixed veggies ( purple hull peas, green beans, okra, tomato) 3 tbsp of hummus with 1 cucumber

3 Snack- 1 Dan Active Pro Biotic shake


Supplements: 4 Cinnamon capsules 500mg, 3 Omega 3 Fish Oil capsules 1000mg, 1 Vitamin E 1000mg, 2 Accuflora Pro Biotic supplements, 1 Dan Active Pro Biotic drink, 3 tablespoons coconut oil

Day 4

Weight: 201 waking weight today, I did not weigh myself anymore through the day because I don't want to be obsessed with weight.



Health Status: Hands are less raw, still dry and slightly itchy today probably from being dry. Rashes under the arm from elbow to underarm seem to be getting better, patch on the back of the left leg has improved greatly. Scalp is still rashy and weepy in spots on the left side. Skin on the face is much better, complexion is improving. Stomach continues to be less bloated.



Emotional Status: Not feeling well today! Late this afternoon I had a bad headache and nausea, I had to lay down and rest for about an hour. I have been overly agitated today, easily angered.

Diet:

1 Meal: Breakfast drink I concocted: 2 cups of tomato juice (juiced yesterday) mixed with the juice from 2 stalks of celery, 1 small handful of parsley, 1 small chunk of ginger root, 2 raw garlic cloves, 4 small hand fulls of kale

1 Snack: 2 small bell peppers with 3 tablespoons of homemade hummus.

2 Meal: 1 small steak 2 cups of steamed broccoli and yellow squash, 1 cup of a mix of peas, string beans, tomatos, okra.

2 Snack: Dan Active Pro Biotic drink

Through the day I drink up to 6 glasses of water, 2 cups of hot green tea, and I start my day with a cup of hot water and lemon juice.

Supplements: 4 Cinnamon capsules 500mg, 4 Omega 3 Fish Oil 1000mg, 2 AccuFlora pro biotic supplements, 1 Vitamin E 1000mg, 1 Dan Active Pro Biotic drink, 3 tablespoons of Coconut Oil

One thing that I have realized is that today I have had no cravings for bread or sugar. In the past 3 days I have eaten a small amount of peanut butter. But today I haven't had any need for that.

Thoughts and Recipes

Just a short blog about things I have forgotten to mention and to also provide some recipes. I am going to be providing recipes only if I came up with them myself to avoid copying someone else's ideas. One of the things I have found is that it is actually hard to find recipes without buying some one's book. The book I have purchased has been back ordered, but I don't want to lose my momentum so I am researching the vegetables and then combining them together to get a (hopefully) desired result. Which is KILLING Candida and making me healthier!

So one thing I haven't mentioned in my daily log, I just forgot, is my very first drink of the morning. I heat a coffee cup of plain water and slice a 1/4 inch section of lemon, squeeze the lemon juice into the hot water and just drop in the lemon slice so the oils from the rind are steeped in the water. Drink while hot! This will gently detox your liver.

My breakfast drink:

3 medium tomatos
2 stalks of celery
2 raw garlic cloves
1 small handful of parsley
1/2 in chunk of ginger root
4 small handfuls of Kale
1 small cucumber

juice all this together!

I am going to tell you something no one told me and I didn't see anywhere. Stir your juice! I didn't read that anywhere and the first time I juice I get a huge swallow of ginger root juice right on top!

Now why is this good?

Tomato is rich in Vitamin A & C and has a great antioxidant Lycopene

Celery is high in Calcium and Vitamin C, a diuretic, and lowers blood pressure

Garlic is a natural antibiotic, great cholesterol reducing properties, it boost your natural killing cells which combat toxins in the body

Kale high in Vitamin A and Beta carotene, a natural cancer fighter

Ginger root aids in digestion, circulation, and pain control

Parsley Vitamin K, Vitamin C, Vitamin A and a natural cancer fighter

Cucumber, Vitamin C, Silica, Magnesium, Potassium, lowers blood pressure


Final thought! I took 3 tablespoons of solid coconut oil and places in a small dish then placed it in the sun, with in 5 minutes it was liquid. I drank it all at once to get it over with :) The taste wasn't so bad it tasted oily (obviously) with a hint of the coconut flavor. Not something I would want to do forever, but willing to try to see if it will indeed kill the yeast!

Day 3

Weight: 202.5 ---- it was lower (198) when I weighed first thing in the morning, but I weighed again about an hour later and this seems more realistic

Health Status: Hands still dry and cracked, not as raw, patches on the back of my leg and up my inner arm from wrist to underarm are still there bumpy and itchy. Scalp still irritated and raw in places, may be improving some. Skin on the face is still dry in places, complexion still off. Stomach is not nearly as swollen or bloated today! YAY it is encouraging to feel like your stomach is becoming more flat.


Emotional Status: Afraid of Juicing.....it was harsh, I know it was worth it, but I have to find some more recipes. Emotionally my family is going through some things right now so I don't feel that I can accurately gage the impact of the yeast on my emotional state. Cravings are not as bad today. I was encouraged when I had lost some weight and noticed changes in the shape of my stomach.

Diet:


1 Meal- 1 small cucumber, 1 small bell pepper, 1 medium tomato sliced and drizzled with olive oil and salt.


1 Snack-1 small cucumber and 1 small bell pepper sliced eaten with hummus



2 Meal -medium bowl of salad with 1 small cucumber, 1 small bell pepper, 2 small tomatoes all drizzled with olive oil, lemon juice and salt


2 Snack- 1/2 tsp of peanut butter....I don't know where that craving is coming from



3 Meal- steak, 1 cup steamed broccoli ( olive oil, garlic powder, kosher salt), 1 cup grilled yellow and zucchini, 1 cup cut up cucumber, tomato, onion, bell pepper mix.



3 Snack -Dan Active pro biotic drink



Supplements: 4 Cinnamon capsules 500mg, 3 Omega 3 Fish Oil 1000mg, 2 AccuFlora pro biotic supplements, 1 Vitamin E 1000mg, 1 Dan Active pro biotic drink

Tomorrow I intend to juice again, I am researching juicing weight loss recipes until my book arrives, which I hope will be in the next couple of days. I really wanted to get in my raw garlic and coconut oil today, but that did not happen. I am going to try and liquefy the coconut oil and take it in liquid form. I think that will be much easier to do than taking it in solid form as it taste like you have mouth full of Crisco...YUK!!!

Day 2

Weight: 206.5-----probably those chicken wings :)



Health Status: Hands cracked and raw, sore and painful. Patch on the back of the left leg is less itchy but still present, scalp irritated and weepy in places, inside of arms from elbow to underarm are dry itchy and bumpy. Skin on the face has improved, but continues to be dry in places, complexion is dull and sluggish despite a good facial scrub. Stomach is still bloated in the morning, but less bloat by the end of the day.


Emotional Status: Determined! I have ordered the book " The Juice Lady's Turbo Diet" but I am waiting on it to arrive. I have a sample menu from the book which I found in a magazine so today I started my day juicing.

Diet:
1 Meal- Juice :) 3 Carrots trimmed and cleaned, 1 cucumber, 1 inch chunk of ginger root, 1 half apple, 1/2 lemon peeled (only the skin leave the white pith). This made one large glass of juice which I drank, admittedly with a large glass of water between gulps.

1 Snack- sliced bell peppers with hummus

2 Meal-Juice 2 medium tomatoes, 3 large handfuls of kale, 1 raw garlic clove, 1 large handful of fresh basil, 2 shakes of hot sauce

2 Snack- cheat.....I know it is only day one..... 1 tsp peanut butter

3 Meal-2 small chicken breast grilled with only herbal seasoning, 1 cup grilled yellow squash and zucchini, 1 cup roasted asparagus ( seasoned with a drizzle of olive oil, lemon juice, and kosher salt), 1 large salad with ice burg lettuce, cherry tomatoes, bell peppers and cucumbers dressed with a drizzle of olive oil, lemon juice, and salt

3 Snack- 1 Dan Active drink and 2 vegetarian crackers

Supplements: 2 Omega 3 Fish Oil 1000 mg, 2 Cinnamon capsule 500mg, 1 pro biotic supplement, 1 Dan Active pro bitioc drink

I did not take the Coconut Oil today because it was really hard to take, I need to find a better way to take this as I believe it is important to the process....maybe tomorrow!

Today was a hard day as I have never done juicing before and it was thicker and more intense than I expected. I was not hungry all day long, but by the evening when it was time for dinner I was STARVING! I was also craving carbs A LOT..... I believe this is from the yeast which feeds off the sugar. All I have read suggest that craving for carbs is from the yeast. It is a little crazy to me that one little thing can cause so much havoc, but I can feel it.

One comment from my blog yesterday asked for some of the websites that I used to research this condition, so I am going to provide a couple of links here, by no means is this the only research I did....so please do your homework and don't go into this lightly.

One anecdotal story I will share with you is I talked with someone yesterday who had the same type of problems with their hands that I have. They went on the diet and pro biotics and now have no issues and are able to return to a normal diet.

The first two sites here give you a quiz that helps you gage if you have this condition and to what extent you may have it. The third has some really good information on what the symptoms are as well as the long term effects.

http://www.thecandidadiet.com/

http://www.candidasupport.org/

http://www.mercola.com/

Day 1

Day 1

Weight : 204.5 lbs

Health Status: Hands are cracked, raw, painful. Back of the left leg is itchy and bumpy. Left side of the scalp irritated dry skin, open places, painful. Patches of dry itchy skin going up both arms on the inside. Face is mildly irritated especially around the eyes and lips. Overall all skin appearance is sluggish and tired. Stomach is bloated and swollen.

Emotional Status: Upbeat because I think I may have found a way to help all the health issues. However unsure and apprehensive anxious to make the "right" changes and have the best results. At times overly sensitive.

Diet:
1 meal: 1 medium tomato, 1 small bell pepper, 1 4 inch section of Armenian cucumber: sliced in a bowl drizzled with olive oil and sprinkled with salt. 1 cup of hot green tea with a splash of lemon juice.

2 meal: 10 unbattered chicken wings with barbecue sauce and a small order of fries.....hey it is the first day :)

3 snack/meal: 1 medium tomato, 1 small bell pepper, 1 12 inch section of Armenian cucumber: sliced in a bowl drizzled with olive oil and sprinkled with salt. 1 cup of hot green tea with a splash of lemon juice. 1 32 oz glass of ice water

Supplements:
1 Vitamin E 1,000mg, 2 Cinnamon capsules 500 mg, 1 Fish Oil Capsule, 1 pro biotic supplement, 1 Dan Active yogurt pro biotic drink, 1 tsp of Coconut Oil orally.

Cinnamon is a proven supplement for the regulation of sugar and insulin in your system, it is also a proven anti fungal. Fish Oil is good for circulation and heart health, the pro biotics help to restore the Intestinal Flora, several websites suggest that Coconut Oil can split and kill Yeast bacteria, suggestions are to take 3tbsp per day.... I am working my way up.

Candida Yeast ...the beginning of a journey

For me the words Yeast overgrowth, or Candida Yeast, have until recently conjured thoughts of the typical yeast infections that women get....of which I have had maybe one or two in my life!

Until about 2 months ago I had never heard that all people of both sexes have a certain amount of yeast in the lining of the stomach. Now that is not to suggest that I was unaware that the human body contained a delicate balance of bacteria which helped our digestive system to work properly. I am only saying that I didn't realize that Yeast was one of these bacterias. Nor did I realize that this yeast could grow out of control in your body, causing a huge mirage of medical problems.

Now, my mother is a very homeopathic person so I have always heard that I should eat yogurt when I take antibiotics. The antibiotics killed the good bacteria in your stomach and is the reason a lot of people suffer with bowel symptoms as a result of that killing of good bacteria.

One thing that I didn't know, and I am not sure anyone in my family knew, is that in addition to antibiotics; corticosteroids can cause a disruption in your bacteria balance too.

For as long as I can remember I have struggled with Eczema, food allergies. The treatment for these allergies were corticosteroids! I have literally taken them my whole life! Every day after my bath and frequently through the day I cover my skin with Cortisone ointment. This has been going on for at least 31 years!

Over the course of my life the Eczema and allergies have gotten worse, then better, then worse but they have never really been gone. I have had menstrual issues, inability to lose weight, depression, anxiety, hair loss, constipation, the list goes on and on. After finding the issue of Candida overgrowth and taking the quiz to see if it could be my problem I found that I have 12 of the 15 symptoms!

Now I am going to come clean right now and tell you that one of my character flaws or "special trait" is this, when I decide that I want to do something I have to do it right then. I may take a while to make up my mind, but once it is made up I do it right then!

After reading at least 20 websites, watching videos, reading testimonies, and a long and very enlightening discussion with a good friend this morning, I have diagnosed myself with this condition. True to my character I went out and purchased a medium grade juicer, and several supplements suggested by the various websites.

For the next few days or weeks I am going to chart the changes I am making in myself , my diet, my routine, etc. I am doing this for me, so I can see if I am noticing a difference, and I am doing this in the hopes of helping others who may have this disorder and not even know it. I will be blogging about what I have found to be symptoms of the disorder, supplements I am taking, juicing diets, cleanses, etc....

If you have questions, ask, if you have suggestions, let me know! I want to learn and grow from this experience. I feel as if I am on the verge of a huge break through for me.

Our Adventures in Boy Scouts continue.......

This past weekend we made a trek down to my parent's place to camp with some of the boys from Joseph's boy scout troop. We had 5 boys including Joseph and 3 adults which is a great ratio. There were times when we also had my husband Brian but we call him a trainee since this was his first overnight scout camp :)

We arrived on Thursday and stayed through Sunday, with lots of swimming, fishing, a trip to Dausett Trails Nature Center, Indian Springs State Park. We worked on our Fishing and Cooking merit badges and spent a lot of time just hanging out and building memories. Some would say that we didn't really camp, because we were close to a house, bathrooms, and showers. The boys didn't seem to mind, and each night they spent under the stars they fell asleep talking into the night.

I wasn't sure how the whole event would come off, but as we got ready to leave the boys had marked their territory with a new fire area and claimed their camping spots. I think they would like to go again sometime, and any time they request a return trip, means it has been a successful trip!

Last night our Troop committee met and discussed the upcoming year. Looks like we will have a busy calendar this year, and that is great for the boys, hope there will be some things Joseph can do. He loves scouts!

Tubing

I can't believe that until a week or so ago I had never been tubing.....how have I missed out on this form of recreation????? For the past 14 years I have lived in North GA which seems to be the tubing capital of GA. All I know is I love it, it combines some of my favorite things, running water, floating on giant inner tubes and having fun!

Today we are taking a group of 6 boys scouts and Genevieve tubing in Helen. It promises to be a good time!

What are the two successful elements of water play with scouts, discipline and leadership. You have to have enough adults and the boys must be willing to obey said adults, if those two elements are in place the rest will follow......or so the adult training website says :)