I was listening to the radio and this Third Day song came on.  I love Third Day, and I love this song.  It takes me back to my early thirties, those first giddy, heady years in love with the Lord.  I remember clearly the first verse I ever highlighted in my Bible:

"Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!" - 2 Corinthians 5:17

You can see by the joy on the faces of all these people being baptized, that as the song suggests, they feel like they are living for the very first time!

(scroll to bottom of page and pause the player to view the video)

Posted in: God Lane, videos on Sunday, March 28, 2010 at at 8:01 AM 0 comments    

A lot of people are not familiar with Dean Ornish and his work, but he is a doctor who is having fantastic results reversing cardiovascular disease through a regimen of eating and exercise.  He wrote a book called "Eat More, Weigh Less" which essentially advocates a low fat vegetarian diet.

This video will give you some startling facts.  If you haven't figured out yet that the way we eat, a relatively new diet and lifestyle, is not health promoting, then hopefully this will help you see the light.


(turn off player at bottom of page before starting video)

Posted in: health, Raw_Vegan Lane, videos on Saturday, March 27, 2010 at at 7:57 PM 0 comments    

Posted in: award on Friday, March 26, 2010 at at 12:11 AM 1 comments    

It is very important to read the labels on the food you buy.  (I use the term "food" loosely here, and you will see why shortly)  I don't want to take it for granted that everyone who stops by this blog knows how important it is to know what you are taking into your body.  The whole point of eating is supposed to be to give your body the nutrients it needs to function and stay healthy.  But we have transformed it into something else - a smorgasbord of sugar, salt, and chemicals to tantalize our tastebuds, and get us hooked like an addict to the very stuff that will ultimately harm us.

Just tonight I pulled out the coffee creamer that my husband keeps in the fridge.  I was curious.  Here's the ingredient list:

water
corn syrup
partially hydrogenated soybean & cottonseed oil
sodium caseinate
mono and diglycerides
sodium stearum
lactylate
dipotassium phosphate

Gag!  I need to get some good raw milk and let hubby use the real cream for his coffee - that would actually be healthy for him. (other than I don't think coffee is good for you, but that's another topic)

Here is another comparison.  I started buying a natural brand of peanut butter. You have to read the labels though.  The last time I went looking for the natural peanut butter, several of the name brand peanut butters had a natural variety on the shelf, but the ingredient list was still long.  Here's the comparison:

Natural peanut butter:
peanuts
salt

Jif Creamy peanut butter:
roasted peanuts
sugar
molasses
fully hydrogenated vegetable oils (rapeseed and soybean)
mono- and diglycerides
salt

So really, what would you rather eat?  What would you want to feed your kids?

The labels are there - start reading them and know what you are really eating.

Posted in: health on Friday, March 19, 2010 at at 9:39 PM 3 comments    

How to feed the world ? from Denis van Waerebeke on Vimeo.

Posted in: videos on Thursday, March 18, 2010 at at 5:00 AM 0 comments    

What a great ride!  I got to know several police officers during my ownership of Rosie, ha!  


I have to tell you about one in particular.  One morning I was driving to the gym before work.  I had to be at work at seven which meant I had to be up at the crack of REM to get in a half hour run, a shower and still make it to work on time.  Translation: nobody out on the roads yet.  


Being Phoenix, the weather was warm even before the sun comes up, so the top was down and I was likely rocking out to Third Day or Zoey Girl. (Zoey Girl was great driving music and what I was listening to when I did the 1/4 mile drag strip at the Firebird Raceway in 13.8 seconds at 102 mph, my best time ever as I was banned from the track after that run... something about some silly rules requiring a roll bar on convertibles running the track in less than 14 seconds... but I digress)


I was sitting at a red light, which was really one of my favorite things with Rosie, because a red light means that I get to GO when it turns green. :)  And I did.  I always took off like a horse released from the gate at the race track...but I did carefully monitor my speed and hit the cruise control when I reached the speed limit, which was 40mph on this particular road.  It was enough to make the car payments, insurance payments, and registration payments without adding speeding tickets to the mix.


Anyway, I had taken off and I noticed that there were headlights approaching rapidly from behind me.  Turns out it was a cop, but I wasn't worried because I hadn't squealed my tires or gone over the speed limit, so I just ignored him.  The cop had come up right behind me, then pulled into the right lane and came alongside Rosie.  The police intercom clicks on and I am sitting there in that split second before he speaks wondering just what is going on, then the officer says, "Wanna race?"  I was stunned.  He shoots me a big smile and peals out.  


And, no, I didn't race him!

Posted in: camaro, Memory Lane on Wednesday, March 17, 2010 at at 4:00 AM 0 comments    

Americans eat way too much sugar.  Besides the sugar we knowingly eat, it is in virtually all our processed foods these days.  Go to your pantry and start reading labels.  You will be surprised just how many of your food items include either sugar, fructose, corn syrup, or high fructose corn syrup.  I know I flipped out when I actually looked at the ingredients on a jar of peanut butter.  Here I thought it was a healthy thing to feed my kids!  But it is loaded up with HFCS and so is the jelly that accompanies it in a traditional PB&J.  Ugh!

Dr. Mercola once again has a great article about the dangers of fructose which I encourage you to read.  But here are some highlights for you:

So a very important point is that if you take two animals and you feed one fructose and feed the other one the exact same number of calories but give it as dextrose or glucose, its only the fructose-fed animal that will develop obesity, insulin resistance, fatty liver, and high triglycerides, signs of inflammation, vascular disease, and high blood pressure.


Today, about 25 percent of all Americans consume over ½ pound of added sugars a day, according to Dr. Johnson's research. That kind of consumption equates to more than 180 pounds of sugar per year! And it just so happens this statistic dovetails nicely with the statistics showing that one in four Americans is either pre-diabetic or has type 2 diabetes.


Reducing sugar in your diet can be tough for some people. After all, sugar is just as addictive as cocaine! 


I encourage you to read the article to learn about the safe level of fructose to ingest and healthy sweetener alternatives.

Posted in: health, HFCS on Sunday, March 14, 2010 at at 5:00 AM 4 comments    

Posted in: Chickens on Saturday, March 13, 2010 at at 9:25 AM 0 comments    

With the arrival of warmer weather, a.k.a. spring, it was time to get chicks.  I found a farm via craigslist that had Buff Orpingtons available as either day old or 2 wk old chicks.  I wanted Buff Orpingtons because they are a good dual purpose bird, which means they are good at laying eggs and they produce good meat birds.  Add to that the fact that they are a friendly breed and good brooders and they are my first choice for a chicken flock.  Our last flock was a combo of the Buff Orpingtons and Silver laced Wyandottes.  We were not fond of Randy the Wyandotte rooster other than as jambalaya.  I am hoping the Orpington roosters are more friendly, especially knowing us from tiny chick to adult.

Anyway, we drove to Gladbrook Iowa yesterday, about 1 1/2 hours north, and picked up our order of 25 two week old chicks.  We actually got 26 as he threw in an extra one with our order.  The girls LOVE these little critters and had to hold one the whole way home in the car, fighting off sleep to keep cuddling their new treasures.







The girls got up at 3am last night and came down to see the chicks.  I got up and explained that it was the middle of the night and they had to go back to bed.  They obediently went back to bed. (fortunately!)  Then this morning, Trinity was the first one up.  The first words out of her mouth to me were, "Now can I hold a chick?"


Angelina got up a little later and asked, "Mom, is it morning now?"  I told her yes.  "Can I hold a baby chick now?"  Again, I told her yes.  "I need to get a towel so it doesn't poop on me."  Ah, yes.  They learn quickly. :)
.

Posted in: Chickens on Friday, March 12, 2010 at at 9:36 AM 1 comments    

I got this in an email this morning and I loved these.  Can I get an Amen?!

When I say that 'I am a Christian,' I am not shouting that 'I am clean living.'
I'm whispering, 'I was lost, but now I'm found and f-o-r-g-i-v-e-n!'


When I say 'I am a Christian,' I don't speak of this with pride.
I'm confessing that I stumble and need Christ to be my guide.


When I say 'I am a Christian,' I'm not trying to be strong.
I'm professing that I'm weak and need His strength to carry on.


When I say 'I am a Christian,' I'm not bragging of success.
I'm admitting I have failed and need God to clean up my mess.


When I say 'I am a Christian,' I'm not claiming to be perfect.
My flaws are farrrrrr to visible, but God believes I am worth it.


When I say 'I am a Christian,' I still feel the sting of pain.
I have my share of heartaches, so I call upon His name.


When I say 'I am a Christian,' I'm not "holier than thou,"
I'm just a simple sinner who has received God's good grace, somehow!

What does it mean to you when you say 'I am a Christian'?

Posted in: God Lane on Wednesday, March 10, 2010 at at 8:00 AM 0 comments    

Great resources given for educating yourself!

Posted in: videos, wake up on Tuesday, March 9, 2010 at at 5:00 AM 2 comments    

Well, it has been about 4 months since I went on a rampage about what we were eating as a family.  It hasn't been easy and we still have a long way to go.  But here are a couple key points I have learned through this process.

Being The Teacher has worked out better than being The Enforcer.

At first I just changed what I would make and everyone could eat it or go hungry.  I had some hungry kids sometimes.  It became a struggle at every meal to not let them eat what was now deemed unhealthy.  Eventually I gave up.  I cooked them meat.  I gave them dairy.  I just didn't have it in me to do the battle.  But I did start really teaching them why mom was eating so differently.  The word "healthy" became an everyday occurrence to describe a food choice.  What has happened is that over time my kids are now picking up on the difference.  Now they will ask me about different foods and if they are healthy or not.  (since daddy still brings home "unhealthy" food choices)  They still choose to eat unhealthy foods sometimes, but they are gravitating more and more to the healthy food.  Nothing rocks my world like my daughter saying, "I don't want that - it's not healthy." :)

There can be a happy middle ground.


I saw on GreenSmoothieGirl  a suggestion for getting kids to eat better.  Make them eat a big plate full of salad first and then they can have whatever they want.  Great suggestion!  They are more likely to eat it knowing then they are free to choose their dinner.  BUT, they are filled up with good raw veggies first, so less likely to eat too much of anything else... a big plus when that choice isn't healthy.

Now, if only dear hubby were as easily taught as the kids!  Sad but true, most of us adults are so ingrained in our way of eating that it will take a health crisis so get us to change.  Kids are our future though, and we just have to start taking accountability for what we are feeding them.

Here is a great video of Chef Ann Cooper, who is known as the Renegade Lunch Lady.  She has a website where you can learn more and get involved in making meals better for kids at home and at school.

Posted in: Raw_Vegan Lane on Monday, March 8, 2010 at at 5:00 AM 2 comments    

Did you ever see that movie with Julia Roberts, "Erin Brocovich?"  There was that scene where she was talking to the mom about how the water was making them sick and the electric company knows all about it.  At first she just didn't want to believe it.  But then she has the wake up moment, and turns and looks at her kids splashing in the pool in the back yard.  She immediately starts calling to them to get out of the pool.


Well, that is a great analogy to what is happening in our country right now.  Last fall began my wake up call when I first read The China Study.  It was the start down the path to learning just how bad our food system really has become in America.  I am now faced with trying to pull my kids and husband out of the pool, so to speak, and help them understand why.


I am becoming more and more convinced that we need to change the way we view food in this country.  The evidence is overwhelming and I am constantly posting things on Facebook about our food.  Now I am going to start posting it here too.  We, as a nation, need to have a wake up moment.

Posted in: Raw_Vegan Lane, videos, wake up on Sunday, March 7, 2010 at at 1:03 PM 1 comments    

Is that an oxymoron?  Or can cooking justifiably be applied to the creation of a meal or snack out of food regardless of whether heat is applied?  Just something I was wondering...

Anyway, in my quest to stay motivated to eat healthy, I have signed up for a slew of health emails to be delivered to my inbox.  This keeps me inundated with information to keep me on track.  I currently am receiving emails from the following:

Renegade Health
Dr. Mercola
World's Healthiest Foods
Natural News
Raw Family
Former Fat Guy
Raw Mom
Dr. Fuhrman  (author of Eat to Live)
Beautiful on Raw
Hallelujah Acres  (this one has been a link to a daily online video during the 60 day challenge, which is almost over!)

I love having the information waiting for me everyday in my email.  If anyone has other recommendations, I would love to know about them!

Sometimes if life is too busy, they just get deleted or put in a save folder to read later if it looks interesting or has a good recipe.  One of these that I saved was from The World's Healthiest Foods.  He sent out a recipe for 15-Minute Dark Chocolate Truffles.  Here is the recipe:
Prep and Cook Time: 15 minutes

• 1/2 cup pitted prunes
• 1/4 cup pitted dates
• 3 TBS almond butter
• 1 TBS maple syrup
• 3 TBS unsweetened cocoa
• 1/2 cup finely grated unsweetened coconut

1. In a food processor, drop the prunes and dates through the feed hole one by one. Scrape the processor bowl and run until the prunes and dates are smooth.
2. Add remaining ingredients except for the coconut. Run until smooth and scrape the processor bowl with a spatula as needed.
3. Roll the mixture into 12 one-inch balls and roll in coconut to coat. Refrigerate for at least 1/2 hour.

Makes 12 pieces

Well, sounded yummy to me and I had just bought prunes so I had all the necessary ingredients.  We were on!


We just put the whole thing in the Blendtec and it whipped it up in no time at all.  The girls loved helping to coat the balls in coconut.  Our batch ended up making 24 little truffles.  Our whole family liked them except for Angelina.  That really surprised me because she is our little prune eater.



Funny side note: I found that out on a road trip back to Maryland a couple years ago.  I had brought a big bag of mixed dried fruit for snacking on.  Angelina was just a little one then, but boy, did she love them prunes!  Unfortunately, too many prunes for a kid still in diapers is NOT a good combination.  I could smell a diaper change was in order and pulled over at the next rest stop.  Boy, did I have NO idea what was in store for me.  It was a diaper explosion!  I had to strip her completely bare and used up the rest of my wet wipes in the diaper bag getting her clean.  Just an FYI for other moms out there. ;)  It is funny looking back on it now, but was decidedly NOT funny then!

So back to the truffles.  I did like the truffles, but I am not so sure that the long list of ingredients garnered that special of a taste or texture to go to that effort.  They tasted very much like any of the chocolate treats I have whipped up before.  Raw almond butter is very expensive to get unless you have a Trader Joe's nearby. (which I don't, boo-hoo!)  So if I could make something equally good without it, that would be my preference.  I probably won't make this particular recipe again.  I usually just mix dates, walnuts, and raw chocolate to make a "raw brownie" and they taste almost identical to the recipe.  I don't usually roll them in coconut, but that would definitely be an option.  I also have done the same thing with raisins, walnuts, and raw chocolate for a "chocolate covered raisin" flavor.

Actually, I think this recipe ended up tasting very much like the raw bar recipe I posted on here.

On to the second raw recipe attempt.

I have read a lot of rave reviews on Kale chips, even seeing them referred to as Raw crack.  Apparently, these are the addictive, can't stop eating them or even wait for them to finish dehydrating, raw version of potato chips.  Now that Kale is showing up in the stores at reasonable prices, I was ready to give it a go.
I cleaned my kale and massaged in the oil and spices.

Posted in: kale, raw chocolate, Raw_Vegan Lane, recipes on Saturday, March 6, 2010 at at 9:00 AM 4 comments