Making Progress on Summer Projects Already!

 Well know, it's not even March and I'm making progress on my summer list. 

I've been working under the sink today. My arthritis says I'm done.. My time says I'll probably be done til the weekend...  But I got it cleaned up under the sink, the first step to replacing the faucet.  

This side of the underboard has some water damage- doing this properly and replacing  the cabinet bottom are above my pay grade.. So exploring options on patching and working with what we have to prevent further damage. 

Oh let me count the pipes..... 

One capped off, one hot water, one cold water.  Tap into the old dishwasher (the silver), drain for the dishwasher, main drain, Culligan tap... and the broken sprayer (cause of aforementioned water problems. 

My curious cold water line......  Any ideas of the aluminum duct taped on?  My dad says the white is a air tap.  

I know nothing.  

But I do know process is being made-and that's encouraging. 

-Tabitha 

Making Summer Plans

 Well, here I go feeling over enthusiastic again.  Making plans to fix things, attempting to plan a garden-at least I don't have a tree in the way again! 

So I'm keeping it small.  My two oldest love to help with the garden, so I can pretty much put them in charge of that and we'll be set.  

I want to redo one of the rock gardens in the front...  So pulling out as much vegetation as possible, probably replacing (that's a BIG probably) and making the faucet able to be winterized. Grading the dirt away from the house. Taking the tiller to it, laying down something to help block the weeds and putting the rocks back over that.  There are some lilies and tulips I would love to save and  replant, but I'm also not against just tearing everything out and rebuying the bulbs for those two plants.

Now, as much as I would LOVE to do more than one garden, I'm not planning on it.  There's still general yard maintenance that takes a lot of time so I'm taking things slow.  The vegetable garden is a must to help with the grocery bill and the kids will love to be in charge of that. 

My other big project I'm enlisted my parent's help, which will probably be more of a "sit and tell us how to do it" kind of help. Which is just fine with me.  I learn better if I have to physically do, and so does hubby.  This project doesn't have to wait for summer, but it does have to wait for funds.. Most of the rock garden redo just take the ground the thaw and time, we have almost all of the supplies needed. 

My poor kitchen needs help.  The whole kitchen really does need help, but we can only focus on a bit at a time, so focusing on the worst first-the faucet is leaking and the dishwasher needs to go for storage.  We're saving up for a new faucet.  Under the cabinet needs replaced, the bottom of the cabinet is not fit to use.  The dishwasher is finally coming out, it's been broken for 9 years.  As much as I would love to replace the dishwasher, we simply do not have the money so shelving of some sort is going in for storage.  I'll try to work on getting the green stick on tile up without ruining the linoleum underneath, that's a project I started 6 years ago and am still working on, though every time the floor is mopped (so....daily) a little bit comes up by itself.  Everything from the corner on the left to the set of drawers on the right needs worked on.  I would love to do more, but we cannot right now.  So I will be satisfied with what we can do.  

As far as the healthy changes we've been making. Dennis is losing weight and feeling better.  I'm not losing, but I am starting to feel better until I eat excess sugar.... Then I feel horrible-go figure.  

I'm also saving up for a bucket or two of paint to start painting walls so they are white again.  It's a plan anyway.  

~Tabitha 

Attempting to Be Healthier With a Carnivorish Diet

 My husband started carnivore in September. He is trying to lose weight.  He is doing incredibly well.  The cost and learning to cook things a new way is daunting.  I suppose you could say he is also doing it with intermittent fasting, he skips a meal a day, although we do keep cheese, cooked bacon and boiled eggs around just in case he feels like he needs a snack, then he has something healthy.  

I tried full carnivore for a week.... I know it was sugar withdrawal, but I couldn't stand myself, so I started eating sugar and carbs again...  End of November, I had two teeth pulled... well, mostly just the roots-my teeth are in horrible shape...  One of the roots was clear down in jaw bone still..... It's still healing, but almost there.  I was put on a full liquid diet for a week (no straws, mind you)... I automatically started fruit smoothie bowls with protein powder, only to send my blood sugar for a loop... Because I had been cutting back sugars for a few months, so to go from less sugar to nothing but sugar, even though it was healthy sugar (fruit) my system didn't know what to do with me.  

So as soon as I could stand chewing again, I started cooking steaks and eating that..  I've slowly been working back in crumby and more foods as the hole in my mouth heals.  We're getting there.  But being put on a diet to avoid crumby foods for an entire month has helped me cut way back on the sugar and carbs.  

It's hard to go on a way of eating where the two rules are eat meat and only eat when you're hungry when, by all accounts, I probably would have been diagnosed with an eating at least one point in my life...  Honestly, I can go a day without eating some days... So I force myself to eat at least two meals some days.  

Some days it's as simple as sausage patties with cheese on top... other days I actually eat better meals, steak, hamburgers, cheeseburgers... Stuff like that.  I hate eggs.... Not a huge fan of yogurt...  Previously my breakfasts have been toast with cream cheese and jelly, or cream cheese and chocolate chips.  but I couldn't eat bread for 2 weeks nor could I eat yogurt for those two weeks because I was on two antibiotics.  

When I'm home, I can go make a hamburger or cheeseburger real quick.. Sometimes I put sauce on top (A1 or Arby's is a favorite right now).  

Your probably wondering how we afford that much steak.... I buy roasts, prime rib, chuck... A 8 pound roast is around $10 a pound and gives 8-9 steaks (there's tutorials on YouTube).  When I buy ground, I make a lot of patties all at once so it's easy to just grab a patty or two.  Costco prices are some of the best per pound around here.  

Personally, one of my biggest trials since the baby was born last year was my weight... it never went down.  My wedding ring stopped fitting... I finally got it off a few months ago and am now trying to heal my finger-it was pretty tight and the pattern of the underside of my ring in on my finger even after 4 months of not wearing it.  I would absolutely LOVE to be able to put that ring back on...  but in all reality, I'm HEALTHIER now. I feel better now. I don't have near the amount of low blood sugar, low blood pressure episodes I used to have.  I have energy.   I'm just fine with being at this weight.  For now, I'll wear a cheap silicone band that I had previously bought to wear during pregnancy (NOT PREGNANT).  

The BMI charts put me at obese....But I'm not listening to them... Because if I feel healthier.  I would absolutely LOVE to heal, or even approve my arthritis and carpal tunnel... There's so many reports of people on carnivore being able to heal those.  But I don't know if that will ever happen... it's certainly not improving, but then, I'm not full on carnivore either. 

I know I'm a emotional eater....  And there's still some part of me that wants to splurge "on the kids" and get them those sweet treats...  But the amount of sweets and treats I'm keeping in the house are getting a little less... I'm working on balancing for more salty.  I don't feel right giving up fruit.. Vegetables, I could honestly take them or leave them... A salad is nice here and there-but my salads are more toppings than actual salad-always have been.  I'm not giving up cinnamon rolls-not gonna happen.  But I make a batch every few weeks, when they are gone, they are gone.. And with 7 kids, believe me, one batch MIGHT make it a full two days.  For the most part, I don't crave chocolate or bready foods much anymore.  

I'm also working out three-four times a week-past what I get with housework.  I want to keep my heart and lungs healthy.  

Even with all of these changes, I'm still hovering around 140 lbs.  I'm 5 ft.  But I feel good... and quite frankly, our bodies are supposed to change.  I don't want to be back to the 100 lbs I was in high school.  Honestly, my only thing I want to change in my weight is to be able to get my wedding ring back on... but I'm not entirely sure it's my weight causing the issue, I think it's arthritis swelling my knuckles-and that's probably not ever going away.  

I want to be able to go outside and work on the yard with the kids for more than a few hours because I have to stop from exhaustion.  I want to be able to go on  a mile or two walk and not be winded at the end.  I could care less about my weight, I don't care about "the baby weight" or the "mom belly",  I just want to be healthy-for my husband and my kids.  

~Tabitha 

Starting Again

I'm sitting here attempting to meal plan and write a grocery shopping list. 

Failing.

I know I need to do this, not just for my sanity, but for the budget. 

But I can't.  I can't even eke out 3 days of meals.  

It's so overwhelming trying to figure all of this out.  This is the 5th time I've attempted since school started and I can't get it done.  

What is going on in my mind?  

I'm also binging Jordan Page YouTube shows. Reminding myself how to do things....

This is the best way to help and to save us money but I can't make myself do it and I don't understand why.  

I have a feeling this is all related to the post-partum anxiety I was dealing with last year... But that doesn't mean I know how to combat it. I mean, I can't exactly go to the doctor and say "hey, I think I'm dealing with anxiety".....  They threatened to take my kids away over a slight risk of my baby having markers for possible jaundice (she didn't have any high amounts, nowhere near it even the lab techs couldn't figure out why we were there), but they threatened because I wanted to take her home and get her in sunshine.  If I tell the doctor I'm having anxiety attacks, what would they actually do?  

I know  my only hope is The Great Physician (God).  

I need to stop trying and give it up to God.  

I learned something this morning while reading in Joshua 1.  The original meaning of 'courage'.  Today, we think of it as having bravery and valor... it's original meaning was more the state of the mind.  God kept telling Joshua to "be strong and of good courage".   He was reminding and reinforcing to Joshua that not only did he need the physical strength to lead the people into the  land now known as Israel, but to keep a good attitude, demeanor and treat people in a way to show them he was God's man.  

I keep finding things in the Bible I would love to put on the wall and make posters or something out of... the problem is, I only have so much wall space. 

Sorry, this was a little scattergoried this week.... I don't know if my brain being everywhere is a result of unseen anxiety, or a result of trying to cut back sugar and carbs (as I stare down a homemade chocolate chip cookie)......  but it's getting on my nerves. :/  

~Tabitha 

Change of Diet

 My husband has been on a weight loss journey for about 6 years..  He's trying to lose the weight through lifestyle change, not something fast.. He did slip up in the middle of it and give up.  But he's trying again and doing awesome.  

He has stalled for the past 8 months, but hasn't gone over 440.  Which is awesome (he started at 520).  Now, he is ready to try hard again.  So here we go.  

He has decided to try the carnivore diet-it is what it sounds from everything I can gather.  Just meat, very little to no anything else.  

Quite frankly, I'm a little intimidated.  

We're trying to keep grocery costs down as much as we can, and now to add in more high cost items such as meat, I'm a little intimated.  However, from everything we've been reading and hearing about it, Once his body gets used to eating the meat, he won't need to eat as often. One to two times a day instead of 3 and feeling like he needs snacks in the middle.   

So, I'm going to take what I know about grocery sales and do my best.  We're told the first few weeks the "worst" because he's used to eating so often, so he'll go through more the first weeks while his body adjusts.  

This week so to start him off for lunches while he's at work, I've made chislic, boiled eggs, bacon and drumsticks with garlic and onion.  

We have no idea how much he's going to eat, so we'll see if I'll have to make more midweek or not.  

~Tabitha 

Feeling Accomplished

 Well I did it.   After living here for 13 years I FINALLY have 99% of my books on shelves.  The rest are teacher manuals and answer keys that keep put away until needed. 

I mean, I'm feeling pretty accomplished.  I even have extra shelf space-that will remain as extra shelf space... Because who has money for more books? Not us.  But that's ok, we literally have 100s. And i'm thankful for every single one.  

You see, I'm careful with the books we allow and keep.  I want to be intentional.  I want my kids to have shelves full of books they can peruse and read without question as to whether or not they are appropriate.  While we do have 2 shelves of books (mostly computer tech books, but there a few biographies and science fiction books that we do censor to protect young minds).

While I still have lists of books we want, we are going to be more careful and intentional about what is added to our "little" library. 

There are still some shelves that need sorted and I would love to create our own Dewey Decimal system, but for right now, most things are sorted out and at least in like genres.  

Obviously the top of the shelves need some TLC-but we'll get that taken care of eventually-most of the mess is various flash cards that just need a stackable home. 

Sometime down the road we'll paint them all to be the same color... But at least until that white shelf breaks (the only "cheap Walmart shelf", the rest are homemade), we're good.  That one will definitely get replaced when it does break though.  

My husband half-jokingly calls me Belle, for my mini library... But I am thankful for these books we have received from friends, from grandparents who are willing to buy books for presents for the kids and for the ability to print classics off and bind them ourselves that helped to make up our dream library.  

I am also able to get back into reading more... Which is good because I have a stack of books waiting to be approved for young mind consumption.

~Tabitha

  

Catching Up On The Crazy of Life

 We've spent all summer cleaning up the yard from last year's storm damage and the general maintenance that comes with having a ton of trees. I'm thankful for trees, I'm thankful for the shade they provide.  But right now, I'm sick and tired of trees. 

Now we're actually getting onto cleaning out the garage. 

I had great plans this summer.. Building shelves, building things to be able to USE my kitchen cupboards. Well. None of that happened. 

I'm just now getting to a corner bookshelf.  Every time I think I have it done, something else needs adjusted to make it sturdy. :/  I did finally get up the courage to use the circle saw.  Now I feel a little sheepish for not using it earlier.  

My shelves definitely need some reinforcement...But I personally think it doesn't look TOOOO bad.  I'm  debating if I need to budget money for paint... Because I used my boards  to write measurements so I wouldn't loose them lol. 

I've also been re-binding books.  Our poor books are so loved they are literally falling apart.  So I went on YouTube and learned.  Here's a hymnal I've done recently-needed resewn and rebound.  that was quite the experience.  

We'll see how far I get.  

My parents made some other shelves for me.  One of the ones they made was for Barbie supplies for hte girls-it needs some sturdy that can withstand everyone from the one year old to the 11 year old.  The plastic ones from Dollar Tree have lasted about a year now, but I was hoping to find a better solution.  

I also need some sort of storage solution for beside my chair... Which could get interesting as I now have a very comfy-almost too comfy-overstuffed chair.  My husband laughs every time I sit down because I almost disappear in the chair.  

I still want to fix my lack of storage in the kitchen.. and the floor still needs redone.... But, one thing at a time-none of that is counting everything else on my list... 

Anxiety now on high.  

~Tabitha