January 2008 New Year Check in

[Guest guest]

Hello Will & Group,

I don't think I've ever posted as I use this digest as a place to

glean information from.

Let me introduce myself and my family.......

I joined the digest prior to it becoming incoming moderation.

I'm Michele, wife of Dave for over 20yrs now. We have a large family

by today's standards. Our children are 19, 18, 15, 14, 12, 10, 10, 9,

7, 5, 2 and we have 3 temp children ages 5, 3, & 1. We have 10 bio, 1

adopted and fostering a family members children.

I was introduced to this list by a friend as we were trying to get our

family's on a healthier course. We live in NW IL. We purchased a

farm over 4 yrs ago. Since purchasing we have grown beef cows and

thrown them into our freezer. We have had a milk cow. We were unable

to keep her but enjoyed her milk. We have chickens and have enjoyed

their eggs. We butcher our own after visiting a local butcher. My

husband also is looking into doing butchering as a side business.

We have been drinking raw milk on and off for over 3 yrs now. The cow

we just recently had milk from is now gone. So we are drinking

plastic (that is what my children call it) milk. We try to make our

own wheat bread including grinding our own grains. We have had kefir

and enjoyed that.

This year we need to make some major changes. I got Sally Fallon's

Nourshing Traditions book for Christmas. I'm hoping to implement some

ideas. But with having this many children we need to eat healthy or

the effects of being sick are multiplied. Plus we have figured out

the 3 temp children are ADHD. I'm doing research on diet changes so

it's a little more peaceful in our house. Plus the oldest goes to

school and it's effecting his schooling. Our dr's doesn't recommend

meds until after 7 but I don't want to go that route unless necessary.

I have a herbal friend a few country blocks away. She has helped us

get off store bought meds and used herbs to heal the body during sick

times. That has been a huge blessing on us! Since this we have

hardly been to the dr's office in the past 2 years. Our recent trip

was due to my oldest dd being kicked in the head by a horse and she

ended up with a concussion.

My goals this year is to change our diet out of processed foods to

more veggies & fruits with little processing. I will admit we eat a

lot of processed foods as for me its a convenience right now. Also we

have 2 gardens that are about 60 X 120. I'm hoping to fill them up

this year and be able to keep them weed free as much as possible.

I'll go back to quietness but thank you all for your imput to this

digest.

Michele

Dave & Michele

Dad & Mom to 11 precious blessings ~ages 19 to 2yrs~ & 3 temp's ~ages

5, 3, & 1yr~

[Guest guest]

Hello Everybody!

I've been gone a lot, and busy, so haven't posted for a while, so

I'll make up for it now! This summer I finally sold my big, 15-room

house in Minneapolis, so last year was mostly spent getting rid of

35 years worth of " stuff. " Thank you to all of you who provided

good homes for all the canning jars and the huge pressure cooker,

the big crockery jugs and bowls, the nearly 2,000 pounds of vacuum-

sealed organic grains I had stored in 35# buckets in the basement

(mostly for sprouting), and all the assorted other things the local

charities and food shelves wouldn't take because it seems their

clientele " wouldn't have any use for " anything that wasn't junk

food! Special thanks to both Alvin and Kimi for their help.

I gave away the last gallon of sauerkraut to friends, the stockpot,

and all the frozen berries. I let the kefir grains and kombucha

scobys die (with dignity), and dismantled the sprouter and juicer

and dehydrator. I said good-bye to all the big, old house plants

that I left out on the porch for Freecycle to take, and the

beautiful crop of dandelions and nettles that the neighbors so

despised. No more shovelling snow! No more worrying about getting

all the apple and plum trees pruned! No more mosquitoes breeding in

the lilac hedges! And a very nice musician from the Minnesota

Orchestra came and cleaned out the garage in exchange for the

electric lawn mower (and all the other stuff he found there).

So, what's on the agenda for 2008? That depends on where the Good

Lord leads next. For now, I am with a daughter out northeast of St.

. There's no room to set up my beloved automatic wheatgrass

sprouter that I built in a giant Tupperware bin with a mist system

like the produce department at the grocery store, and put on a lawn

sprinkling system timer in the basement, to produce a " tray a day "

all by itself. I no longer have my 3-story house with 3 double

flights of stairs to climb several times each day, and the treadmill

had to go in storage for lack of space here, so with that, and all

the changes in diet, I've already gained 30 lbs that need to come

off! Other than that, I don't have any health problems, don't take

any drugs, and have plenty of energy. Pretty good at my age, don't

you think?

First on my list for this year is to get the cultured vegetables

going again. I use the starter from Wilderness Family Naturals.

You don't need any salt, and I get 2 full gallons from a packet by

pureeing a couple cups of the cabbage with some water, and leaving

it out longer than suggested. Plus, it's delicious--I used to have

some with every meal. I really miss Alvin's wonderful jumbo eggs,

which I like raw, and the raw cream I was getting from my other

daughter's drop site at her homeschool store in St. . But she's

moving to Florida, so I need to find another site out this way.

Then I'll take Kimi up on her promise to start me up with the kefir

again.

I bought some real full-spectrum light bulbs from Mercola, and have

been taking 1000 IU of Life Extension Foundation's Vitamin D3, and

their Mega DHA capsules, and use Pastureland butter. I want to get

some good CLO and also butter oil soon. I'm driving in to Mpls once

a week, but couldn't find any at the Wedge. I also couldn't find

Thousand Hills beef liver, which is the only kind I trust. Haven't

had time to look much further, but that, too is on my list.

Meanwhile, I'm using plenty of coconut oil and eating a lot of raw

organic vegetables and fruits, and Thousand Hills beef, and venison

from up North where they don't eat the farmers' corn like they do in

the southern part of the state. And I'm having fun with all the

great Jozlyn's Remedies products I got from Amber. Those of you who

know me know my hair is at least 3 ft long (and still its natural

brunette color, by the way!). I never use shampoo on the long part,

only water. Well, I found out I can use Amber's bar soap on the

scalp part instead of shampoo, and it seems to clean much better

without drying. And with the incredibly dry air during our winters,

a little coconut oil on my fingertips run through a few times takes

care of everything.

One thing I brought with me when I moved was my last jar of aged

garlic, which I need to replenish very soon. I peel a pint of

garlic cloves, cut each one in half across, and put them in a jar,

as many as will fit shaken down. Then fill with Balsamic vinegar

till they're all covered. Either put a plastic mayo jar cover on

the jar, or a piece of plastic wrap over the jar under a metal cover

so it doesn't corrode, and refrigerate for at least a month,

preferably 6 months or more. I put at least 4 or 5 halves on my

salad every day, along with some of the vinegar. I got this from my

Chinese acupuncturist years ago, who told me the benefits are in the

garlic, not in the vinegar, and it's much better for you than Kyolic

capsules. The vinegar that is left when the garlic is gone is

fantastic on fish, or for making salad dressing. I usually start

aging a new jar every month or so, so I always have a well-aged

supply in the fridge. You can actually chew it without burning your

mouth--and it tastes great! Next time I'm thinking about mixing half

chunks of ginger in the same jar and see how it tastes--sounds good.

God bless you all in 2008, and may all your food be real.

Colleen

[Guest guest]

>

> Hello Everybody!

>

> I've been gone a lot, and busy, so haven't posted for a while, so

> I'll make up for it now! This summer I finally sold my big, 15-room

> house in Minneapolis, so last year was mostly spent getting rid of

> 35 years worth of " stuff. "

I must have missed the announcement, dangit.

~Joe

[Guest guest]

Congratulations to all of you who are making progress in your journey.

I'm so envious of all of you who are able to document your successes

in '07! It's not that I don't think I had any, I'm just not good at

remembering them!

I did manage to lose 25 lbs. in the summer of '07, which is huge for

me. I had been slowly gaining throughout pregnancies and middle age

and wasn't too terribly concerned about it until my size 14s (which I

said I'd never buy) were getting tight. This is the first time I have

really ever lost weight without delivering a baby. I feel so much

better and can do so many things more easily like yoga, running,

skiing and just working out in general (or just life in general!).

Even though I have gained a little back by adding some refined carbs

back into my diet AND not exercising as much, I am still wearing a size 8.

For '08, I need to put into practice the realization that daily

exercise HAS to be a part of my lifestyle. I can't control my weight

just by watching what I eat. That said, I also need to explore whether

I can continue to eat grains and even dairy for that matter. I have

struggled with hypoglycemia for years and now have some insulin

resistance issues I am sure. I just am not happy with the idea of

never being able to have a sandwich for lunch or a plate of pasta for

dinner! After all, I am a foodie!

I also will continue to work on forgiveness and letting go of the

resentment that has been EATING ME for some years now.

I am so grateful to have this great group of people for inspiration

and support! Thanks to all of you!

Kathy

[Guest guest]

My whole family has problems with hypo/hyperglycemia so I have lived with the

problem for years. I was lucky enough to be raised on a farm and have always

been a gardener. As my weight was creeping past a size 12 some years ago we

went on the Adkins diet. Our success there gave me the determination to stay

with food changes. Sally Fallon and WAP gave us the tools to make eating fun.

If you research Optimal Nutrition on the net you will find information which is

a real eye opener on nutrition and some fantastic recipes.

Our breakfast is either two-three eggs or a slice of my fermented flour bread

with gobs of organic cream cheese or peanut butter which takes us to noon.

Lunch is usually hamburgers topped with cheese and some of my fresh carrots plus

celery stuffed with peanut butter or cream cheese. Supper is a roast with gravy

made from bone broth and some canned beans or beets and home fremented pickles.

Often I will cook a pound of side pork to go with the eggs for breakfast for the

two of us. I do not eat or drink, except water, between meals.

I LOVE carbs, they raise insulin levels and give you a satisfying 'high' which

is hard to give up. If I want some potatoes or corn or pasta or rice to

compliment a meal I serve half what I used to and make sure there is plenty of

butter or oil with it. After spending the first half of my life in the doctors

office I have mostly regained my health. I am close to 70 and as active as I was

in my 20's. Life is good. June