B.E.E. 90x Update: I Get It and You Can Too

Sometimes I am stubborn.  I assert my will without considering the consequences.  I ignore that tiny little voice . . . that polite, loving, and patient voice. 

Sorry God.

But I get it . . .  now. 

Almost at the end of B.E.E. 90x. 

Jeez.

Rather than be frustrated with myself, I am thankful. 

Thankful that due to how long it has taken me to “get it” --  to apply what I have learned and know . . . that just maybe . . . maybe sticking with the original plan I declared almost 90 days ago will last much longer into my future.

My family’s future.

Which I think is the whole point I started B.E.E. 90x back in January:

Remember, the B.E.E. 90x Challenge isn’t about outdoing someone . . . or striving to achieve perfection . . . or completing the goal precisely. 

It’s about taking 90 days unto the Lord.  It’s about setting an attainable goal.  A goal with a boundary.  A goal with a finite date.  Not something you attempt to do for an entire year.

That doesn’t mean you will quit after 90 days . . . but it makes your task doable . . . smaller . . . manageable. 

30 days makes a habit.  Perhaps after 90 days your habit will become a lifetime commitment.  You won’t even think of it as a New Year’s Resolution – which was/is the VERY LAST thing I wanted the B.E.E. 90x Challenge to be for me . . . for you. 

But as I have sought to put the B.E.E. 90x plan into action . . . time in the Bible, eating well, exercise . . . I have made good changes.

I have cried.  I have gotten angry.

But I have changed.

 

Like our school.  I’ve given up on the dream . . . the way that I envisioned.  We aren’t in the school room surrounded by our lovely workboxes.  We are in the kitchen.  At the kitchen table. 

Where I am. 

Because I cook.  I ferment.  I sprout.  I grind. 

This is where I am.  I’m learning to be a GAPS girl. 

B is for Bible.  I’ve learned that my morning Bible time . . . might happen in the morning . . . but if I have been up several times at night with one or more of the kids . . . it is OK if I sleep as long as I can. 

Therefore . . . I put up scripture in Naomi’s room.  The Hottie and I are trying to go to bed earlier to read our personal Bible’s before doing our night time devotional.

E is for Eating.  Just because I sprout, doesn’t mean we can eat our nutritionally viable grain if our bodies can’t handle it.  Just because my baby has only had breast milk . . . doesn’t mean her gut can handle my favorite beverage . . . raw milk.

I may have thought I knew a lot about whole foods . . . but I have more to learn. 

And I’m going to.  I’m enrolling in the Reversing Food Allergies Course tonight right after I finish writing this blog post.

(On a side note, if you have PCOS, seasonal allergies, a leaky gut, an inability to lose weight – even if you eat well and exercise, a child with autism or ADD . . . ADHD . . . please join me.  If you have eczema . . . arthritis . . . life doesn’t have to be a series of medications . . . doctors appointments . . . or filled with a longing for the food you’ve been told you can NEVER ever have again.)

That felt like a prescription commercial.  Sorry about that.  Kind of.  I just want you to know that there is hope.  Healing.  One more road to travel down.

You don’t have to do all of this alone.  I don’t have to learn all of this all by myself.

I really think there is hope.  I know that when my Redeemer returns for me . . . I will be changed in an instant.

But while I’m waiting, I really want to live a full life. 

I’ve seen a glimmer of that this week.

(Insert:  E is for Exercise) With the small changes I have made in the past 7 days, I have lost 3.4 pounds.  I have had energy to exercise, even when I was actually significantly sleep deprived.  

I have enjoyed my children . . . which to me – has been the best gift.

And many of those changes have been because of following the guidelines in the GAPS diet. 

If a change in my dog’s diet can make a drastic difference in her behavior . . . and I am more civilized . . . intelligent . . . and motivated . . . than a diet change for me . . . might have dramatic results. 

I picked up my manual from the library. 

Yes, that is my hand.  I wanted you to see that I do indeed do what I say I’m going to do. 

And now, I’m going to go register for my class (before the price goes up).

Because it is the next phase of B.E.E.’ing for me.

P.S. You can use the coupon code HEAL to receive $20 off . . .

Taking the Food Out of Me

Even though I didn’t get pinched today . . . I realized that I’m still kind of angry. (Although it’s hard to be angry when you are holding Miss Sweet Pea.) 

(By the way, I wore my green U2 “I went to the concert” shirt. No St. Patrick’s Day pinches for me!) 

I’m angry at Adam and Eve.

I simply want to blame someone else for my issues. 

I just wish they could have mustered up a bit more self-control (than myself) in that meticulously manicured, seed bearing, organic haven of a garden.  (OK . . . so I’m also a little jealous that they had a tutorial with The Big Guy on horticulture.  Seriously . . . I can’t imagine having God show me first hand the lush leaves in Eden!)

I know that I need to get over it. 

The reality is that until perfection comes (1 Corinthians 13:10) my imperfect is going to be glaringly obvious. 

I have three choices:

• to accept the facts and embrace the large fat molecules that are antagonized by my thyroid,
• stay on medicine forever
• or seek positive change that will offer a better quality of life though difficult for a season. 

And that is just me. 

There are five other reasons why some harsh better changes most likely need to be made in our home.  I actually crossed out harsh this time . . . not to be funny . . . but to help myself believe that some changes don't have to seem like the end of the world.

When the Hottie and I discuss my ongoing attempts to lose my baby weight (that is exacerbated by having PCOS and Hashimoto's thyroiditis– two great reasons to be fat but in actuality are EXCUSES) he often points out that I have to realize and believe that the changes . . . the discomfort . . . the self-denial are worth it for the end result:  feeling better.

God, please!  Please let that be forever present in my thoughts.  Because on my own, I am failing.

I want to be the fit soccer football mom who jumps out of her Loser Cruiser minivan wearing a tiny tank (though I never would) and have the Hottie nudge his oldest son . . . and say . . . “That’s your mom; she’s my girl.  I gotta’ a woman.”

OK . . . not really.  I feel like I jumped into a Hallmark card or something. 

I discipline my body like an athlete, training it to do what it should. Otherwise, I fear that after preaching to others I myself might be disqualified.  (1 Corinthians 9:27)

Not only do I want to know – really know – Scripture, but I want to offer my body to the Lord for His work.  His.  Not mine.

I can’t do that if I am tired.  Or if I am afraid I’m going to bust my knee.  Or worse . . . pee in my pants. 

I can’t tell all of you to go buy organic and ferment and sprout and load up on that coconut oil, if I am stuck at the very bottom of the 5 gallon barrel of Tropical Traditions coconut oil that was delivered by the huffing Fed Ex driver this morning.

I don’t want to be disqualified. 

I don’t want my life to disqualify you.  Give you an excuse to be fat.  Or for you to continue to eat unhealthy.  Or chow down on raw milk if your gut is unhappy.  Or indulge in that sprouted whole wheat cookie if you need to step away from grains for a season.

I told you before that I need to change.  Maybe you do to?

And I have been.  Thanks B.E.E. 90x.

Yes . . . I have been. 

But more is in order.

And wouldn’t you know it . . . God provided just the lifeline that I needed. 

My guide into this journey will be Ann Marie, from The Cheeseslave.  I’ve silently stalked her for some time.  However, she knows who I am now.  I’ve been leaving comments on her blog(s) and emailing her. 

For once . . . I don’t want to study alone.  I’m tired of figuring things out on my own laurels. 

(Nursing Naomi at the St. Patrick’s Day parade today. What I eat affects her.)

Seriously, I heart bread and chocolate.  Barley.  Quinoa.  Sweet brown rice.  These aren’t evil foods.  But myself and perhaps even others (more so) in my family need to get some food out of us (for a season).

Not our entire lives. 

(a meal from Cara’s GAPS menu plan ) 

The subject/course:  Reversing Food Allergies 

The textbook: probably Ann Marie’s life (which is testimony itself) and the GAPS book

What am I going to learn?  I’ll highlight what I desperately need help with --

• Why the GAPS Diet Works
• How Long to Stay on the Diet
• Stocking the Kitchen
• Healthy Fats & Smoke Points
• preparing breakfasts and lunches (Cara has helped me a lot with her GAPS menu plans.)
• snacks, appetizers, desserts, and sweets
• Probiotics & Other Recommended Supplements
• The First 4 Weeks: The “Intro” Elimination Diet
• How to Introduce New Foods

Curious?  If you have some of the same symptoms as us in your family such as moodiness, arthritis, psoriasis, eczema, or an autoimmune disorder . . . you might consider learning more about Ann Marie’s online course, Reversing Food Allergies. 

Other issues that can be helped by following the GAPS diet: autism, heartburn (reflux), indigestion, bloating, cramping, constipation, diarrhea, asthma, dyslexia, ADD or ADHD.

Phew.

The cost is $149, but use the code HEAL and receive $20 off (valid until March 28th)!  The course includes:

• 12 lessons
• 50 video tutorials
• over 200 printable recipes!
• lifetime access to our online support forum.

Simply reading a book, won’t give me all of that information.  And I need information quick.  And not to be whinny (since we don’t speak that language in our house . . . very much), I want someone to teach me. 

Classes start April 6th.

A real person.

Maybe one day I’ll meet Ann Marie.  Maybe she can help me like liver.  Or brain. 

Maybe.

And just maybe by the end of the summer . . . I will have taken the food out of me.