I really don’t think there is such thing as a “healthy” cookie, but these are definitely a good choice for the health-conscious who really want a cookie. :)
Whole-Wheat-Honey-Oatmeal-PB-Chocolate-Chip cookies!
Recipe:
Preheat oven to 375˚ F
½ c. (1 stick) real butter, softened
½ c. unsweetened applesauce
1 c. honey
¼ c. natural peanut butter
2 large eggs
1½ c. whole wheat flour
1 tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. salt
2 c. rolled oats
1 to 2 c. chocolate chips (I used two of couse!)
Cream together the butter, applesauce, PB, honey and eggs.
Add flour, baking soda, salt, oats and choc chips. Mix well.
Drop by tablespoon onto cookie sheet. (Use a teaspoon for smaller cookies)
I recommend putting parchment paper on the cookie sheet first. You don’t have to grease anything and the cookies slide right off!
Bake at 375˚ for 10 to 12 minutes.
YUMMY!
p.s. This a recipe for cakey-type cookies. They are light and kinda fluffy. :)
PregnancyTicker
Monday, December 21, 2009
christmas party extravaganza
Christopher and I have attended several parties this last month, which has been both fun and hectic.Somehow I managed NOT to take one single photograph at any of these events. Sad =(
Monday Dec. 12th, Chris and I had some friends over for a “Thanksmas” party. We roasted a turkey, made pumpkin pie, carrots, homemade eggnog and homemade whipped cream for the pie. Our six friends who came over brought the other sides, which we all gladly chowed down on! Chris and I set up our dining room table with a pretty red tablecloth along with our china and crystal glasses. It was really nice to use all of that stuff- it’s been boxed up since the move! Avery had a field day with our friend’s 14 month old son. Every time Jack screeched, Avery would screech… cute, but annoying. Eventually we had to lock Avery up in the bedroom because his barking was getting beyond obnoxious.
Thursday Dec. 17th, we went to two parties in one night. My work had their company party starting at 5:30. We went for about 30 minutes, grabbed some coffee, Chris snagged a few snacks, then we had to jet over to Versailles, KY for the CMDA Christmas Party at Dr. Randall’s home. We did not know a single person there, but we went to try and make some connections with the medical students and hopefully recruit some members for Side by Side. We had a great time, but I couldn’t eat any of the food there either. Ha! I cheated and had a roll, but it obviously didn’t kill me. Unfortunately, all of the women there were actually medical students already involved in Bible study, so none of them would really want to be part of Side by Side. But at least we had a wonderful time of Christian fellowship! Plus, we played Dirty Santa and I won a $10 giftcard to Kroger. Sweet! I used it to pay for my prednisone prescription. Nice.
Friday Dec. 18th we drove out to Bellewood Presbyterian Home for Children and helped serve food at their Christmas party. My friend, Martha, prepared the meal (she was the one who invited us out). This center is for moms and children who have no place to live. What a wonderful ministry. Anyway, Santa showed up and let all the kids sit on his lap, we served everyone supper, then handed out door prizes for the moms and cookie tins for the kids. It was a loud, crazy evening, but such a blessing to spend the evening with new people.Tomorrow is not a party, but everyone at work is bringing goodies to share. I made whole-wheat-honey-oatmeal-peanut-butter-chocolate-chip cookies. Whew, hahaha. And I’m bringing a veggie tray. =)
MERRY CHRISTMAS!!
Sunday, December 20, 2009
visit from a bff
Daniel Lee had an interview last week at UK, and lucky me, he brought his cute wife with him who just happens to be one of my closest friends. We had a fabulous time.
Dan is deathly allergic to animals, so Chris and I cleaned our house as best we could and locked Avery up in the bedroom so that the Lees could actually come over and visit with us on Sunday evening. Within an hour, poor Dan was already getting itchy. I couldn't believe my eyes. Avery is even hypoallergenic! Poor Dan. Eventually, I got the vibe that we needed to leave and go drive around and eat supper out somewhere.
So we drove them around the horse farms and ended up at Ramsey's Diner for supper- a famous diner in Lexington. For those of you in Memphis, it is very similar to Dale's. It's delicious home cookin', which means they basically ruin all the healthy menu items with butter, sugar, fat, and/or salt. :)
I ordered a chicken breast, plain baked sweet potato, and a house salad. Chris, Dan, and Jen chowed down on some yummy bits of everything from the menu. It was all delicious.
On Monday, I worked until noon, then spent the afternoon with Jen. We got sushi at Good Foods Cafe because they actually have rolls made with organic brown rice!! We then headed down to Berea, KY to check out the little craft shops:
Dan is deathly allergic to animals, so Chris and I cleaned our house as best we could and locked Avery up in the bedroom so that the Lees could actually come over and visit with us on Sunday evening. Within an hour, poor Dan was already getting itchy. I couldn't believe my eyes. Avery is even hypoallergenic! Poor Dan. Eventually, I got the vibe that we needed to leave and go drive around and eat supper out somewhere.
So we drove them around the horse farms and ended up at Ramsey's Diner for supper- a famous diner in Lexington. For those of you in Memphis, it is very similar to Dale's. It's delicious home cookin', which means they basically ruin all the healthy menu items with butter, sugar, fat, and/or salt. :)
I ordered a chicken breast, plain baked sweet potato, and a house salad. Chris, Dan, and Jen chowed down on some yummy bits of everything from the menu. It was all delicious.
On Monday, I worked until noon, then spent the afternoon with Jen. We got sushi at Good Foods Cafe because they actually have rolls made with organic brown rice!! We then headed down to Berea, KY to check out the little craft shops:
Jen is really excited about her delicious pumpkin ice cream.
I was really excited about her ice cream too, so I ate one tiny bite.
Oh it was good.
The cute fat black cat who came to see us was excited too,
but we did not give him ice cream.
Jen, me love you long time. =)
On Tuesday, she came to my work and ate lunch with me, then she was off to Nashville and eventually back to Memphis. :( All I know is that it better not be another 6½ months before I see you again.
BURGER!!!
I finally ate a burger. Oh my, it was so delicious.
I ordered the Bison burger on their Oatie Wheat Bun with lettuce, tomato, pickle, onion and mustard. And a side of steamed broccoli.
I have not had a humburger in about 2 months and this is one of my favorite things to eat. I have never had a Bison burger.
Oh my word, it was sooooo good.
And the best part was that I learned my stomach can tolerate bison! Absolutely no problems.
That night, we made chili with very lean ground beef and I ate that too just fine!!
What a blessing.
Saturday, December 19, 2009
not-so-happy-news
Yesterday I had a CT scan done before seeing the lung doctor. This was supposed to be a baseline CT since I've been off steroids for a month and feeling great.
Unfortunately, we did not get a happy face from Dr. B.
I have two new inflammatory nodules in my lungs, which means I am back on 60 mg of prednisone.
Oh sucky day.
It certainly was not the conversation we expected to have with the doc. We just knew he would come in the room, tell us my CT looked great minus some residual scarring from the thoracotomy and old nodules, but that everything was fine and he'd see us later! Or hopefully not see us later. But no. He broke the news and my tear ducts immediately became leaky. :(
BUT. At least I'm not in pain and we caught them early. Lord knows I do NOT want to end back up in the hospital. So I have to do steroids again. I don't know for how long. My prescription currently is 60 mg for 2 weeks then 40 mg for 4 weeks. Then I see the doc again and we'll talk about the next step.
I'm mad because I have finally lost all that extra weight from being on steroids the first time, my chipmunk face is gone, I can sleep at night, and I don't have 'roid rage. Now I have to go through all that again. Hopefully my healthy diet will help curb some of the weight gain. My food cravings are going to make me go insane, though...
Lord help me.
I can do everything through Christ who strengthens me. -Philp 4:13
Probably a good idea to steer clear of me during the first few weeks. It is likely that I will bite your head off.
Unfortunately, we did not get a happy face from Dr. B.
I have two new inflammatory nodules in my lungs, which means I am back on 60 mg of prednisone.
Oh sucky day.
It certainly was not the conversation we expected to have with the doc. We just knew he would come in the room, tell us my CT looked great minus some residual scarring from the thoracotomy and old nodules, but that everything was fine and he'd see us later! Or hopefully not see us later. But no. He broke the news and my tear ducts immediately became leaky. :(
BUT. At least I'm not in pain and we caught them early. Lord knows I do NOT want to end back up in the hospital. So I have to do steroids again. I don't know for how long. My prescription currently is 60 mg for 2 weeks then 40 mg for 4 weeks. Then I see the doc again and we'll talk about the next step.
I'm mad because I have finally lost all that extra weight from being on steroids the first time, my chipmunk face is gone, I can sleep at night, and I don't have 'roid rage. Now I have to go through all that again. Hopefully my healthy diet will help curb some of the weight gain. My food cravings are going to make me go insane, though...
Lord help me.
I can do everything through Christ who strengthens me. -Philp 4:13
Probably a good idea to steer clear of me during the first few weeks. It is likely that I will bite your head off.
Wednesday, December 16, 2009
diet update
I have been on my healthy eating plan since November 1, 2009. I have never felt better.
#1) I have no Crohn’s symptoms. Zero.
#2) I have lost pretty much all the excess weight gained from the 3-month regimen of steroids. (yippee!)
How I’m eating:
Extremely limited sugar (basically none)
No high fructose corn syrup or other syrups
No “white” foods: I’ve switched to 100% whole wheat flour (bread and pasta) and brown rice
No preservatives/artificial flavors/artificial colors
No hydrogenated oils (i.e. margarine)
No soda of any kind
No deep-fried food
No pork or shellfish (Although I don’t think these meats are sinful to eat, I do believe Leviticus 11 holds true for them being unclean.)
No cow’s milk (excluding yogurt, cheese, and butter)
I was having a serious craving for chocolate earlier this month, so Christopher bought me some 90% Dark Cocoa chocolate. It was awesome, but I love dark chocolate anyway. It had like 3 grams of sugar in four whole squares. =)
This way of eating is such an improvement in quality of life, especially the healthy body weight. I definitely recommend this “diet” for anyone who has an illness like Crohn’s, UC, MS, IBS, etc. I don’t have any credentials and certainly cannot make any promises about miraculous healing. However, I am a perfect example of 100% improvement just by changing the way I eat.
I understand that if you have no “real” reason to change the way you eat, it would be really hard to stay motivated in your avoidance of potato chips, ice cream, cookies, fried food and other such junk. But perhaps you could severely limit the intake of these foods instead of cutting them out completely. Plus, once you get used to eating fruit instead of sugar, it’s much easier to resist the donuts that people insist on bringing to the office on a weekly basis. :)
I wish more people would eat their veggies and fruits… we’d save so much money on healthcare costs… but that’s another story…
#1) I have no Crohn’s symptoms. Zero.
#2) I have lost pretty much all the excess weight gained from the 3-month regimen of steroids. (yippee!)
How I’m eating:
Extremely limited sugar (basically none)
No high fructose corn syrup or other syrups
No “white” foods: I’ve switched to 100% whole wheat flour (bread and pasta) and brown rice
No preservatives/artificial flavors/artificial colors
No hydrogenated oils (i.e. margarine)
No soda of any kind
No deep-fried food
No pork or shellfish (Although I don’t think these meats are sinful to eat, I do believe Leviticus 11 holds true for them being unclean.)
No cow’s milk (excluding yogurt, cheese, and butter)
I was having a serious craving for chocolate earlier this month, so Christopher bought me some 90% Dark Cocoa chocolate. It was awesome, but I love dark chocolate anyway. It had like 3 grams of sugar in four whole squares. =)
This way of eating is such an improvement in quality of life, especially the healthy body weight. I definitely recommend this “diet” for anyone who has an illness like Crohn’s, UC, MS, IBS, etc. I don’t have any credentials and certainly cannot make any promises about miraculous healing. However, I am a perfect example of 100% improvement just by changing the way I eat.
I understand that if you have no “real” reason to change the way you eat, it would be really hard to stay motivated in your avoidance of potato chips, ice cream, cookies, fried food and other such junk. But perhaps you could severely limit the intake of these foods instead of cutting them out completely. Plus, once you get used to eating fruit instead of sugar, it’s much easier to resist the donuts that people insist on bringing to the office on a weekly basis. :)
I wish more people would eat their veggies and fruits… we’d save so much money on healthcare costs… but that’s another story…
Friday, December 11, 2009
dairy goat
Since I don’t drink cow’s milk anymore, I now buy goat’s milk. It is actually very tasty, but is a little pricey. I didn’t realize exactly how much I was paying for it until my mom asked if the milk came in ½ gallons or quarts. I naturally assumed it was a ½ gallon. I was wrong.
I am paying ~$3.69 for one quart at a time.
Do the math and that is about $14.50 a gallon. EEEK!
Can someone please give me a dairy goat for Christmas?!?!
Ha.
Anyway, it’s worth it… I LOVE milk and cow’s milk is very bad on my stomach, so goat milk is the perfect solution. Because of my new diet, Chris and I rarely eat out, which has saved us a ton of money. And the best part is that I am still medicine-free (thanks be to God!), so that is money saved as well!
One day I will have my farm with my horses and my dairy goats.
Aren't they so cute?!
Tuesday, December 1, 2009
delicious fruit smoothie
Part of my new diet- oh so yummy!
Makes one serving:
½ c. plain (unflavored) yogurt
½ c. frozen blueberries
~5 frozen strawberries
1 medium banana
Blend. Drink with a straw :)
You can switch up the fruit ingredients based on what you like. I find that the banana is essential to make the right amount of sweetness since this recipe doesn't use sugar or honey. Also, if you use fresh fruit instead of frozen, you may want to blend in a few ice cubes.
Side note: I buy organic frozen fruit. No need for bananas to be organic.
Makes one serving:
½ c. plain (unflavored) yogurt
½ c. frozen blueberries
~5 frozen strawberries
1 medium banana
Blend. Drink with a straw :)
You can switch up the fruit ingredients based on what you like. I find that the banana is essential to make the right amount of sweetness since this recipe doesn't use sugar or honey. Also, if you use fresh fruit instead of frozen, you may want to blend in a few ice cubes.
Side note: I buy organic frozen fruit. No need for bananas to be organic.
Friday, November 13, 2009
"diet" is not a bad word
Definition of "diet": the usual food and drink consumed by an organism (person or animal)
or a prescribed selection of foods
I started my new diet, or rather my new eating lifestyle, on November 1. To spare you details, I'll just tell you that my stomach is doing great. I have felt better the last two weeks than I have in the last 3½ years. I'm still on Prednisone- should be dropping to 5mg today after seeing the lung doc, and then I'll be coming off of them completely in two or three weeks, praise the Lord! As an added bonus to the enormous health benefits of my diet, I have lost 5 pounds. Yay!
Anyway, it's easier to specify what I'm NOT eating rather than what I DO eat, so here goes the no-longer-eating list:
Sugar
High fructose corn syrup
White flour
"White" pasta
White rice
Artificial Sweeteners
Artificial flavors/colors
Preservatives (eliminates most bagged, boxed and canned items)
Hydrogenated oils (like margarine, etc)
Sodas
Pork
Shellfish
Fried food (duh)
Cow's milk (except cottage cheese, plain yogurt, and real butter)
Anything that contains any of the above items in any amount
I eat a ton of fresh fruits and vegatables. I snack on almonds a lot. We eat chicken and a variety of fish, but we are going to start adding lamb and possibly goat meat to our diet if I can find some. Beef is acceptable, but it is a little hard on my stomach, so we minimize that. I also discovered that white potatoes aggrevate me, so we're dropping those too for the most part. I'm also supposed to be buying everything organic so that I'm not consuming pesticides and other chemicals. All meat is supposed to be grass-fed or range or cage-free, etc.I have a new love for goat's milk. It's expensive (~$4 per half gallon), but it's really good and easy on the stomach! I also like the Ezekiel 4:9 bread made by Food for Life. I like it better than "normal" bread - you should try it. It's in the freezer section. So much healthier than the bread you find on the shelf. Also, I use Sweetleaf (Stevia leaves) instead of sugar. It's not an artifical sweetener.
Kroger has many of the things I need to eat, but my new favorite place is Whole Foods. I could spend all day in there. Of course I've always loved grocery shopping....
Anyway, my GI doc is going to check inflammation levels, I assume with bloodwork, on Jan 11 at my visit. If the inflammation is under control, then we agreed that I don't have to start Cimzia injections.
I have prayed for healing for a long time and I believe with all my heart that the Lord is going to heal me. Perhaps he already has. :) Regardless, I will no longer abuse my body with food because it is God's temple and I am to take good care of it.
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
roadkill
I am always traumatized by roadkill. Seeing a dead opossum can make me tear up. Sad, I know, but that is how deep my love of animals goes. So, the other night on my way home, I saw a cat that had been hit by a car and was lying in the middle of the road crying. I immediately started boo-hooing. Fortunately, a van next to me intentionally changed lanes and ran over it to kill it. The incident completely ruined my evening. I could not stop thinking about the suffering of the poor kitty. Of course my mind spiraled into a whirlwind of thought about how unfair this life is and how much injustice and undeserved suffering goes on. I began thinking about abused animals, and even worse, abused children and abused elderly people. I thought about sickness and disease. And I thought about how God did not create this Earth to see all of this happen.
The trouble is that we live in a fallen world. The presence of sin is the root cause of all things “bad.” (Do not misunderstand me and think that I’m saying your sin directly causes personal suffering in your life. It is a broad generalization.) I love my life on this Earth, but the Lord knows that I anxiously await His kingdom. I do not want any more animals to be dead or suffering on the side of the road. I do not want to hear about anymore miscarriages. I do not want to watch the news and see Satan smiling at the evil going on minute by minute. I don’t want to hear about another victim of cancer.
We need to be good to each other. We need to act like Jesus. Truly, act like Jesus. LOVE people. Take care of the least, the last and the lost. Quit being so selfish with your money- it doesn’t belong to you anyway- it is the Lord’s. Quit worrying about yourself so much- when you focus on other people, your problems become smaller and smaller.
And that reminds me. About Christmas (since it’s coming up so quickly)… for Heaven’s sakes, it is about Christ, not about presents for you or anyone else. The thought of millions of people frantically “Christmas shopping” this year makes me sick to my stomach. And I’m talking about the people who stress to the max about what to buy people or worse, stress about what people are going to buy for THEM. Oh my goodness, this world is so messed up. Why do we do this enormous money-exchange every year? I’ll buy this for you and you buy this for me? If you don’t get me what I want, then I’m going to hold a grudge and be bitter the rest of my life. You know it happens and it’s disgusting. There are people who don’t even own a Bible. What we need to be doing at Christmas is just spending quality time with our families, who we love, and then spend our money on the people who actually need things like food, clothing and/or shelter. (Note: contrary to popular belief, an Ipod is NOT a need) If you want some new clothes that bad, save up some cash and shop after Christmas when everything is like 50% off.
Maybe I should stop looking at roadkill.
p.s. I do not want (and certainly do not need) anything for Christmas. My house is overflowing in excess as it is.
The trouble is that we live in a fallen world. The presence of sin is the root cause of all things “bad.” (Do not misunderstand me and think that I’m saying your sin directly causes personal suffering in your life. It is a broad generalization.) I love my life on this Earth, but the Lord knows that I anxiously await His kingdom. I do not want any more animals to be dead or suffering on the side of the road. I do not want to hear about anymore miscarriages. I do not want to watch the news and see Satan smiling at the evil going on minute by minute. I don’t want to hear about another victim of cancer.
We need to be good to each other. We need to act like Jesus. Truly, act like Jesus. LOVE people. Take care of the least, the last and the lost. Quit being so selfish with your money- it doesn’t belong to you anyway- it is the Lord’s. Quit worrying about yourself so much- when you focus on other people, your problems become smaller and smaller.
And that reminds me. About Christmas (since it’s coming up so quickly)… for Heaven’s sakes, it is about Christ, not about presents for you or anyone else. The thought of millions of people frantically “Christmas shopping” this year makes me sick to my stomach. And I’m talking about the people who stress to the max about what to buy people or worse, stress about what people are going to buy for THEM. Oh my goodness, this world is so messed up. Why do we do this enormous money-exchange every year? I’ll buy this for you and you buy this for me? If you don’t get me what I want, then I’m going to hold a grudge and be bitter the rest of my life. You know it happens and it’s disgusting. There are people who don’t even own a Bible. What we need to be doing at Christmas is just spending quality time with our families, who we love, and then spend our money on the people who actually need things like food, clothing and/or shelter. (Note: contrary to popular belief, an Ipod is NOT a need) If you want some new clothes that bad, save up some cash and shop after Christmas when everything is like 50% off.
Maybe I should stop looking at roadkill.
p.s. I do not want (and certainly do not need) anything for Christmas. My house is overflowing in excess as it is.
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