Anita's medical SCHTUFF

Well, I've been a busy little bee. I've decided to go to the doctor for all of the check-ups appointments etc that I've been putting off for too long. I'm super excited because my blood work came back so good. My efforts to eat better are paying off! My cholesterol, blood sugar, everything, is normal! My blood pressure is also normal! Yay! I have been struggling with high blood pressure, high cholesterol and blood sugar for years.
Hippocrates - "Let food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food" 
That's been my philosophy for last couple of years and it is paying off! YAY! 
I've also been plagued with vertigo. I've had it off and on for most of my adult life. But since January it has been plaguing me almost nonstop. So I went to my doctor for that as well. After she ruled out nerve damage and I don't remember what all, she just kind of said "bummer." She gave me a referrral to a hearing and balance center to test for Benign Positional Vertigo. But they wouldn't take our insurance... argh. So I did a little more research on my own and found tons of videos on youtube about how to test for and treat vertigo. There's something called the Epley (sp?) maneuver. Oh my gosh it works. This last week is the best I've felt in four months! During those last four months my vertigo has been so bad I couldn't do much of anything and as a result, I've gained even more weight- joy. BUT I feel like I'm finally able to start exercising again. What a relief. Time to dust off the treadmill:-)
 FULL OF WIN! 
Anita

A little note

Hello my Sisters,
Angie, your smoothie sounds yummy. I think that would make a fun dessert.

Anita, I'm excited to see the trellises and your vertical planting. I recently saw someone make a really pretty privacy screen that they attached to their fence. The privacy screen was covered in flower boxes containing annuals as well as vegetables. I'd love to do that.

   I am very eager for garden season as well. I'm curious about whether any of my recently planted berry bushes have survived the winter and my crazy puppy. I'm currently "garden lusting" after a kind of kiwi plant/shrub that will grow in my zone. The plant produces 1-2" large kiwi-type fruits that have smooth skin and can be popped into your mouth like grapes. I've seen similar plants on vines that require several male and female plants, but appararently this beauty is self polinating and can tolerate full and part sun. I'm hoping that the Mother's Day fairy will bestow this garden fruit upon me.:)

  Ben and I have a health goal to attempt to reduce stress....It's not going well so far...Ha! We are trying to give each other a free day once a week, but in the past two weeks I haven't managed to get mine yet...hmmm. So, I'm attempting to do something small every day that I enjoy. I'll keep you posted on my efforts.

Anita's garden experiments!

As I sit here (having just finished a breakfast smoothie from Angie’s amazing smoothie recipe) I’m looking out of my window at all of the snow we still have on the ground. I’m ready for Spring! Eating well and gardening are perfect companions. This year we are expanding our garden (yes, again… we seem to do that every year.) We will be adding more beds to our front and back yards. I’m going to try to plant lettuce and other leafy “greens” this year, that will be a first for me. But I’m excited to try! I’m also interested in attempting some vertical gardening. I suppose we already do some of that. We have a grape vine planted on a trellis. We also grow our cucumber plants on large tomato cages. But I’m ready to take it to the next level. Our goal is to plant enough, and be able to store enough, that we will rarely have to shop for produce during the entire year. During the warm months we buy very little produce thanks to our garden. I already do some canning and this past year we planted some winter squash (other than pumpkin, which we plant often) for the first time. Today I put my last butternut squash in the crockpot with our dinner. Our winter squash has been wonderful! So, I’m hoping to plant even more. Thanks to some suggestions from a dear friend, I’m going to attempt to grow one of our winter squash on a trellis. We’ll need to build a strong trellis and provide “slings” to hold the heavy squash up (and keep it from tearing off of the plant.) My friend told me about the time she planted pumpkin on a trellis and used old nylons for slings- BRILLIANT! So it’ll be fun. If this works, I may start planting all of my winter squash this way. We don’t have a very big yard and this would be a great space saver! I may also experiment with vertical planter boxes (placing planter boxes on a vertical support system.) Maybe I’ll try planting some of our leafy greens this way… that would help keep the snails out. I’m also going to try something more “controversial” haha. I’m going to attempt to grow dandelions! I know, dandelions are every gardeners nightmare and yet, do you realize how healthy dandelions are? Everything can be eaten; roots, leaves, flowers- the entire plant! And they are little vitamin packed super foods. We have already started harvesting dandelions in the woods (away from the city and lawns that use chemical poisons- we don’t want to eat that!) We’ve started baking bread with dandelion petals. We have also included dandelion greens in our salad. So… I’m going to try growing some. And let’s face it. Finding seeds won’t be hard lol! I’m going to plant seeds in pots on our patio. I’m hoping this way it’ll be easier to control their spread. I can, in theory, remove flowers for use before they go to seed, which will be easier to spot in the pots. I’ll keep you updated. Either I’m a genius or I’m about to make the worst mistake I can in my garden hahaha! So Spring can’t come soon enough! I’m excited for all of my experiments!

Banana Berry Smoothie for One (or, should I say, for the Win?)

I've been getting into smoothies lately. Here's a simple concoction I made up. I've made this one for breakfast or a snack after work.

Ingredients:

Half a Banana, sliced
Strawberries
Frozen Blackberries
Frozen Blueberries
Almond Milk

You choose the ratio that works for you. I usually like to go a little heavy on the strawberries, myself. Blend all the ingredients together. Add a splash of more almond milk if smoothie is mixing up a little too thick.

I haven't yet, but I want to start experimenting adding greens, like spinach or kale, nuts for more protein (walnuts?), and possibly some flax and/or hemp seeds.  If I come up with any more winning mixtures, I shall report my findings!

Full of Win!

I was just reading Anita's post about going off sugar - a journey I, myself, am about to embark on. I anticipate climbing the walls, making desperate pleas, and biting my pillow. Here's to success!

My Sisters

Angie and Anita,
 I want you both to know how much I love and admire you. I am so grateful for the love, support, and laughter you regularly bring to my life. You each inspire me to be a better and happier person. I am grateful for the opportunity to support you in any goals that you have to make yourself healthier and happier. Your greatest fan and cheering section is right here typing away.

Out of the shadows and letting the love shine!,
Chrissy

Anita's sugar withdrawal!

If you search sugar withdrawal or sugar addiction on the internet you get mixed results. Some believe it doesn't exist, others believe it is real.... let me tell you sister, IT IS REAL. I have cut out sugar and I am being punished for it hahaha! Last night I felt if I didn't get a cookie or a nice bowl of chocolate ice cream I was going to start doing my best Queen of Hearts impression and start shouting "OFF WITH THEIR HEADS!" To anyone and everyone that crossed my path. But I snacked quietly on my toasted butternut squash seeds instead. The rather depressing episode of Wallander (A very well acted but depressing BBC TV detective series that is on instant watch Netflix) that we, Kevin and I, were watching last night didn't help (Kenneth Branagh's character makes me sleepy and depressed! And who knew that Loki had such a lovely mop of blond curly hair?) But I am determined to work my way through the withdrawals. I've read that it takes about three weeks to work through the withdrawals. So one week is almost down. I can do this! Right??? YES! I can! And I'm determined to go cold turkey. I'm not going to slowly wean myself from sugar pffft. I'm over weight, I don't want to be, so the solution is simple. So tonight, I have exciting plans. I'm going to watch another episode of Wallander and munch on some more toasted butternut squash seeds. Full of Win!
And Off With Their Heads! (I just had to throw that last bit in there to make me feel better;) )