really? the 'r' word, again? (sigh)

So, I didn't want to get into this...it's just a person who will never be swayed to seeing how nasty they really are and so I chose to focus on MY SON rather than the hurtful words of someone I'll never meet or will never interact with my son. In fact, I chose to share this blog because they really do share my view on this matter- that feeding the troll only makes it worse.

But, my word. 

Her initial insult was repulsive but her response to the insult is reprehensible. My stomach *literally* hurts. This is when I can tell that too many people have turned their backs on God. Because those who embrace God's values would not treat people this way. 

These people who stand in filth, spew it out and dare people to respond to the stench they emit. It amazes me how they get through their days. What pain is in their lives? What is it that she has gone through to throw out so much hatred? 

I don't even know that I have any more words to say. 

I'm hugging my son a little tighter tonight. Encouraging him a bit more than I would normally and making darn sure that he knows how fully he is loved. 

~Joy
(c) 2012 Joy-Jasmin Brunnelson All Rights Reserved

milk it.

Umm...it's actually rather ridiculous how easy it is to make homemade almond (nut/seed) milk. I'm embarrassed it took me this long to do it. Got a big bag of almonds from Costco and I'm on my way to saving a noticeable amount of money making almond milk myself! I've done, pumpkin almond milk (used pumpkin pie spice but I might add a tablespoon or two of pureed pumpkin to add more flavor), vanilla milk (using vanilla rice protein powder). For this batch I'm showing you, I added a few tablespoons of cocoa powder because Boogie asked for "chocolate almond milk". 

What you need:

• 1 cup of raw almonds (or other nut or seed)
• 4-5 cups (I've done both) of water (spring or filtered)
• 1-1.5 tsp of vanilla extract
• Just a dash of sea salt
• 1-2 Tbsp of maple syrup (you can also use raw honey/honey or stevia) NOT pancake syrup!! (Feel free to leave this ingredient out if you prefer to make a batch of unsweetened milk).
• Nut milk bag
• Blender

Soak your nuts or seeds in filtered water overnight. 

Drain and rinse the nuts. 

In your blender, put in nuts, water and all ingredients.

Blend. And blend until chunks of nuts are pulverized. About 1-2 minutes.

Pour the blended mixture into your nut bag (which should be inside of a medium to large-sized bowl).

Pull nut bag up and gently squeeze out all of the liquid into your bowl. 

If you have froth at the top, scoop it out.

I am known to make lots of messes while I cook, so I use a funnel to pour the milk into my container.

Ta-da!!! Again, I made chocolate milk so that's why it's not white. Feel free to play around with different flavors! Just put in the fridge to cool. You may notice it settles and separates while in the fridge...just shake it up before drinking and ENJOY!!!!

No really. That's it! I told you...

~Joy
(c) 2012 Joy-Jasmin Brunnelson All Rights Reserved

and by "tomorrow" i meant "tuesday"...

**Please note that you should consult your doctor before using any of these herbs. You also should work with a holistic health coach or herbalist for proper dosage and uses (i.e., tinctures, teas, etc.). This article is for informational purposes only and should not be used as a replacement for expert medical advice.**

There are two herbs I want to focus on today specifically for women with PCOS and/or fertility issues. 

The first is Shatavari, also known as "hundred husbands" and is used for reproductive health. 

This herb promotes fertility, helps regulate menstrual cycles and ovulation, relieves anxiety and stress, helps heal vaginal tissue and cervical inflammation. It is great for energy and libido. It also supposedly helps to improve the production of milk in nursing mothers but I've also read in other articles that it should not be taken by pregnant and nursing mothers. Again, this is where you should consult an Herbal Practitioner to make the best decision for your situation. 

The second herb I want to focus on is Licorice. 

Not the candy! Licorice can help decrease testosterone in women with PCOS. You must avoid high doses if you have high blood pressure. This herb helps increase the production of stress hormones when they are too low. 

There are several other herbs that women in general should include in their diets but these two specifically are amazing for balance and to help the difficult symptoms that come along with PCOS.

~Joy
(c) 2012 Joy-Jasmin Brunnelson All Rights Reserved

i can't believe i forgot!!!

I'm still pulling together all the information for the herbs post I promised but in the meantime, I realized that I forgot a GLARING omission from yesterday's post. The most exciting part of what happened to me at Mother Earth News Fair!

I.met.Temple.Grandin.

Yup. I shook her hand and had a wonderfully awkward conversation since I had no idea what to say to her. She was standing by her most recent book, Animals Make Us Human: Creating the Best Life for Animals.

She was ready to autograph the books for those purchasing it. I felt nervous about approaching her to talk to her about autism when she was at the MENF for her animal work. Having a child with autism, I KNOW how annoyed she might feel with me. How irritating the useless social nuances might feel to her. I almost talked myself out of it. My SIL convinced me to just go and do it. She said, "you of all people can read how she's feeling. If she looks uncomfortable, just back off but you have to go or you'll regret it." She was right. I had to go. So, I walked up to her and this was our conversation:

Temple <sticking her hand out to shake hands>: Hi, how are you?
Me: <taking her hand to shake and feeling a piece of lead drop in my stomach>: I'm good, thank you. 
Temple: So, what do you raise? <she was referring to animals>
Me: A kid. <she didn't see the humor in this statement but I must say it was brilliant!>
Temple: Oh. So, you must know me from my autism things.
Me: I do. I have a young son with autism and we are very inspired by you.
Temple: <eye contact is beginning to shift>: So, how's he doing? (this question felt incredibly scripted...I can tell at this point that she is done with the conversation).
Me: He really is doing well. He's a very happy kid. I am so glad I got to meet you!
Temple: Good. Nice to meet you.
<At this point I walked away>

So, that's my celebrity story. I met Temple Grandin. The example of hope for my child. Don't get me wrong, I know that God has amazing plans for Boogie. He has set a path for him as He has done for us all, but other special needs parents know what I mean. Temple is the inspiration that our children will be okay. So...that's it...just wanted to share. 

~Joy
(c) 2012 Joy-Jasmin Brunnelson All Rights Reserved

food and soap and PCOS

This past weekend I went to the Mother Earth News Fair (MENF)! It was absolutely amazing! It was at Seven Springs Mountain Resort in Pennsylvania, so as uncomfortable as it was to be in "Steeler Country"...the beautiful mountain views made up for it! My mama graciously let me take her Honda Insight for the trip (the gas mileage is pure awesomeness) but "Little Buddy" had a rough time with the mountain air. He huffed and he puffed but never gave up. He truly is the Little Engine That Could. 

I loved being around people that cared as much about food, health and the earth as I do. I made several friends, including a 66-year-young man named Don. He was my favorite. He taught me about the history of Hawaii (I know it seems random but it was awesome) and he told me about his juice fast journey. So inspiring! He has lost 40 pounds in 28 days juicing. Way to go Don! With recent major health diagnoses, he decided he "might be getting old but didn't need to be fat, sick and nearly dead". The documentary "Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead" inspired him to make a change...and he did it! He definitely inspired me to put into action the changes I want to make for myself. And to care for myself and be okay with that. 

I got SO MUCH information at MENF; herbs that can heal, what supplements will help my body work in the way I need it to, what veggies really do for you...kind of overloaded but so pumped to making the best food decisions possible for me and my family. It really opened my eyes to see how God has provided us with everything we need on this earth to heal and be healthy. Plus, I learned how to make soap and salves...BONUS! So, now you know what you're getting for Christmas this year! :)

Coming off of this past weekend at MENF, I also just started my PCOS Diva Jumpstart program this past Monday, which is perfect timing. Because this is a paid program that Amy (PCOS Diva) has put her heart and soul into, I will not give out recipe information and/or program details but I will say that learning how to eat to correct my disorder is hard and awesome and a lot of work and delicious. I have always believed that food is medicine and learning which foods can regulate my body falls right into line with that. The fact that everything that Amy teaches from PCOS Diva is exactly what I learned from the holistic health coaches at MENF makes me feel very encouraged that I've made the right decision in joining her Jumpstart program. I need someone to hold my hand and tell me what I can and can't do and what I can and can't eat...and Amy does that. She rocks. And here's a yummy picture of my dinner last night:

Salmon dinner with roasted root veggies and kale

As Amy has warned will happen around day 3-4, today I have felt awful (flu-like symptoms, nausea, and fatigue). Removing certain foods from my diet has caused my body to release toxins which is a good thing once they pass through but until they do, it is just "ugh". I will get past this though, I will push through. It makes me realize how much crap I was still feeding my body even though I thought I was eating healthy. I'm going to bed early tonight and hope to feel better tomorrow. 

Anyway, I'll pick one of the subjects I learned about from MENF and share tomorrow. Night y'all...

~Joy
(c) 2012 Joy-Jasmin Brunnelson All Rights Reserved

please hold while your party is being reached...

Sorry for the delay. 2 month delay to be exact. After losing my job and acclimating to the SAHM position again, I was more like a chicken with its head cut off than a smooth-writing blogger. But I'm back now that my big Kindergartener is all settled in school and I have a bit of breathing room. Today's post is just a little silly but something to fill the page and catch you up on our summer while I organize my posts for next week.

To start, here is me on my first day home, unsure of what to do with myself now that I'm home...

I decided to make bread and Boogie watched intently:

We went on Walkersville's Southern Railroad for the 4th of July, Boogie brought Stitch and Sweetgirl brought a MH doll:

We went to see Daddy/Hubbs sing with the Waterboyz for Jesus at Keys Stadium:

Getting comfy while we wait to go in the stadium

No pictures, please!

Boogie got a haircut:

My aunt and uncle came to visit from Germany and this was my favorite family photo taken while they were here:

Boogie got to meet Bob the Tomato at the Family Christian Bookstore grand opening:

We went to the beach and celebrated Sweetgirl's 12th birthday while there:

We had a Monster High Sleepover party when we got home for Sweetgirl:

 

 

And finally... Boogie started Kindergarten!

~~Joy

(c) 2012 Joy-Jasmin Brunnelson All Rights Reserved.

i'll huff and puff and...

Oooooh... he thinks he's sneaky. He thinks he's smart. He thinks he can derail me, deter me, scare me, push me away. Look at what he's done in the past couple of days:

• The announcement was made of my job loss happening this week rather than later in the year (due to merger).
• The company that bought us decided to play into a loophole of letting us go when we are "their" employees in order to give us their dinky severance package rather than the one that was negotiated by our company.
• My bank account was hacked into and subsequently I had to shut down my debit card, so no card for 7-10 days. Business days.
• During this past crazy storm, part of our tree fell and busted our pool. Our brand-new pool. 

What he didn't count on....me and my faith. God is showing me again and again that the Holy Spirit is guiding me. With the perspective from God, THIS is how I see it:

• I have the luxury of knowing ahead of time that I'm losing my job. It's a job that served its purpose in helping sustain our family when Hubby was out of work. It's run its course and it's time for me to go.
• I'm getting a severance package. Whatever money I receive is a blessing and will help carry us through the summer. A summer I get to spend with Boogie before he becomes a big Kindergarten boy. 
• I found the issue right away. My bank is making it easy to fix the issue. I'll have a beauteous new  debit card since mine is worn down anyway. It wasn't my last dime they took. 
• The tree missed our bedroom by inches. Hubby, Boogie & I were all dead asleep when the tree cracked and fell. Had it hit the bedroom, we wouldn't have heard it in time. We also have insurance on the pool. Who gets insurance on a pool from Wal-Mart? We do and we'll actually get our money's worth. 

Really looking back at it, these are all first-world problems anyway. These are nothing compared to the real sadness and suffering I see around me; friends losing all they own and their home due to a house fire, losing their fathers, getting their possessions stolen, having no money to eat for several days, suffering with tremendous health issues, preparing for surgeries, testing for cancer, laying to rest beloved pets, preparing funerals for their children... 

My problems aren't really problems at all in comparison. 

~~Joy

(c) 2012 Joy-Jasmin Brunnelson. All Rights Reserved.

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