For Health and Strength and Daily Bread

I met with another GI doctor at the U of U Hospital to get a second opinion. It was very helpful, and we will try an increased dose of my current medicine before we rule it out as an option.

I also met with a surgeon at St. Marks. After 2+ hours of waiting for my appointment, I finally got in. I really liked the surgeon, and it was good to know what my options would be. Surgery would be a 3-stage process, with 3 major surgeries taking place over a year period. Each surgery is 3-4 hours long, plan on 1 week in the hospital, and 6 weeks of recovery. So that's a good 1/3 of a whole year I would be out of commission. So hopefully we don't ever have to go there.

With my diet, I haven't really identified any other triggers. There are a lot of different diets out there that have supposedly helped people with colitis. The frustrating thing is that many of them are conflicting. I have felt somewhat like Joseph Smith did as a young boy trying to decide on a church. "What is to be done? Who of all these parties are right; or, are they all wrong together?"

Thankfully, the Lord has revealed to us some things about health. I have studied the Word of Wisdom a fair amount over the past year. It's amazing how simple it is compared to all these other diets. I also loved President Uchtdorf's conference talk where he said

"Sometimes, the truth may just seem too straightforward, too plain, and too simple for us to fully appreciate its great value. So we set aside what we have experienced and know to be true in pursuit of more mysterious or complicated information."

So I have been trying to trust more in the Word of Wisdom. I have been adding grains back into my diet, and we have been trying to eat less meat. I am still avoiding milk, sugar, and processed foods. So just trying to eat real, whole foods with no added sugar. I do use honey as a sweetener.

When I first started adding grains back in, I was a little frustrated because I felt like I was doing worse. But then my aunt gave me some great information on how soaking and souring grains improves their digestibility. Basically, different cultures all over the world soak and sour their grains. But here in America we believe in instant everything. So we've lost that preparation of grains. And as a result, we have more and more people who can't eat grains.

Here are some links if you want to learn more:
Be Kind to Your Grains
Preparation of Grains

Also, baking bread with natural yeast helps break down wheat for better digestibility. I have really liked the book "The Art of Baking with Natural Yeast" by Caleb Warnock and Melissa Richardson. And after many failed attempts, I finally have a thriving yeast starter thanks to my visiting teacher!

I don't believe grains are bad, but I think it is possible that the way we prepare them makes a difference in how well our bodies handle them. I also think it is important to get out of the "instant food" mindset. Yes, it can be hard with small kids, but I think it is important to spend time on the food you eat. It becomes a part of you. You only have one body. It's one of the main reasons we came to earth, to receive a body. So I think we should take a little more time, energy, and thought in preparing the food that we eat. I think that could solve a lot of health issues that exist in America.

Also, I think we should take a little more care in the medicines we take. Ibuprofen can make colitis worse. I came home from the hospital with a newborn baby and a bottle of ibuprofen, and I think that was a contributing factor to developing colitis. All medicines have known and unknown risks, even over the counter ones. Take care with what you put in your body. A few months after developing colitis, I felt impressed to stop taking birth control pills. I have since read many claims that it could be a contributing factor to developing colitis. Whether it is or not, I'm not sure, but I feel better about having one less drug in my body. This book was very helpful and informative on natural birth control. It takes a little more time and effort than taking a pill once a day, but I think it is worth it.

Anyway, I've been learning lots! I'm not perfect at any of it, but I'm trying to slowly incorporate some of these things that I have been learning. I've been feeling well, and hope that it continues!

Pumpkins!

We took a day trip down to my grandpa's pumpkin patch with my parents. We had a lot of fun! The kids did great in the car.

We stopped in Nephi for lunch. I didn't order a frosty, but somehow P1 still ended up with one.

When I was growing up, we would go down to the farm every October and pick lots of pumpkins. We were quite spoiled and could basically carve as many pumpkins as we wanted to. I haven't been to pick pumpkins for about 10 years, and I forgot how much fun it is!

 Photo-op at the farmer's market:

P2 would put her head down and pout whenever we tried to take her picture. And when we were at the farmer's market, she stopped and put her head down on the nearest pumpkin bin and pouted because we walked away without her.

The kids had fun in the pumpkin patch, but after they helped pick a few of them, they were content to sit and play in the car.

At the pumpkin patch, they plant 150 acres of pumpkins. It is amazing how many pumpkins they have. This year they planted 74 types of pumpkins, and also many types of squash. It is simply amazing! So many fun and beautiful pumpkins!

Fall Leaves

I don't know why, but I've been really excited about fall this year. I am enjoying the changing of the seasons. The other day I took the kids outside, and P1 started raking up the leaves with a stick. So I pulled out a real rake and made some piles for them to jump in. P1 surprised me by asking me to bury him in the leaves. P2 thought it was hilarious. We had a great afternoon outside!

We tried to recreate the fun on another day, but that didn't go as well because I had to rush the kids inside 3 times for P1 to use the bathroom. Oh, the never-ending joys of potty training!

 

 

Random Pictures

Exhausted from potty training:

The pumpkin plant that took over our stairs:

15 Months

P2 had her 15 month check-up today. Here are her stats:

Height: 32 in (90th percentile)

Weight: 22 lb 5 oz (66th percentile)

She is our sweet little monkey. She has a very independent nature and a strong will. Thankfully her tantrums are short-lived. She loves to "play" with her brother, which of course involves stealing his toys and making him chase her. She still loves to make faces at us, especially during dinner time. When I tell her to stop doing something, she will glare at me and then hide her face behind her hands. All in all, she is sweet and adorable, and makes life so much more enjoyable.

Sleeping in the truck. P2 still takes 2 naps, and sleeps well at night.

Dancing at the shoe store: 

She loves her sloth, and loves to join us in the bathroom for P1's potty training.

She enjoyed the toys at the doctor's office. She did very well for the doctor, and she took her shots like a champ!

Chilean Day

We had another very successful Chilean Day celebration this year! It's always so good to see our college friends. Life gets busy, but we're glad people keep coming each year so that we can stay in touch. We missed our friends that have moved out of state, or out of the country!

We made beef and cheese empanadas. This year we baked some of the beef empanadas and they turned out well. We had completos and mote. And for dessert we had jello with sweetened condensed milk. We had 13 adults and 7 kids (ages 1-6).

I bought 3 bags of hot dog buns (6 ct), because once again I didn't think 2 would be enough. But once again, we had 2 bags leftover. We cooked 2 lbs of beef, and that was perfect!

Next year I need to buy some avocados the day before, so that we have some to eat with our leftovers!

I always forget to take pictures of the food, until most of it is already gone!

We had lots of little girls running around. The 2 boys were definitely out-numbered. P2 made friends with one of my college roommates. P2 went right up to her and let her hold her and everything.

Thanks to everyone who came! Hopefully we'll see you next year too!

Addiction

I heard this month is National Addiction month. That, and a few other things, have reminded me of this article that I read a while back. I found it fascinating, and I think there is truth to it. I really recommend reading it if you have the time. Here is my favorite part:

"We should stop talking about 'addiction' altogether, and instead call it 'bonding.' A heroin addict has bonded with heroin because she couldn't bond as fully with anything else. 

So the opposite of addiction is not sobriety. It is human connection." 

Human beings are bonding animals. We need to connect and love... But we have created an environment and a culture that cut us off from connection, or offer only the parody of it offered by the Internet. The rise of addiction is a symptom of a deeper sickness in the way we live -- constantly directing our gaze towards the next shiny object we should buy, rather than the human beings all around us."

I saw a post from a mom who says her kids will come home sad or crying because their friends spend all their time on their phones and hardly acknowledge each other. I think that's really sad, and a little scary. If these young kids never learn to connect and bond with people, where are they going to turn for bonding? Are we creating a huge new wave of future addicts?

A while ago, we watched the first couple episodes of "The Last Man on Earth". The show wasn't really that great, but the idea of being the last person on earth really made me think. I kept wondering what would I do with all that time to myself? And the more I pondered it, the more I realized that our relationships are truly the only things that matter. I could keep busy for a while, catch up on all my hobbies, learn new things, but it would all be meaningless. Things don't matter, people do.

The Book of Mormon teaches us that all things will fail, except for charity which is the pure love of Christ. All things will fail, except for the love we develop for those around us.

Moroni 7:46-47:
Wherefore, my beloved brethren, if ye have not charity, ye are nothing, for charity never faileth. Wherefore, cleave unto charity, which is the greatest of all, for all things must fail—

But charity is the pure love of Christ, and it endureth forever; and whoso is found possessed of it at the last day, it shall be well with him.

I think we all have addictions to one degree or another. We turn to things to find comfort, satisfaction, or fulfillment. Whether it is drugs, pornography, and gambling; or ice cream, shopping, and Facebook. Cookies have always been a favorite of mine when I'm having a hard day. I bought a huge box of Oreos when P2 was born, so that I could have something to get me through the sleepless nights. When I had to cut out sugar for health reasons, I turned to shopping on Amazon. Getting packages always made me feel better. But it was always fleeting, which I think makes it addicting. It doesn't last, so you go back to eat or buy more.

All things will fail. Except for charity. Nothing else will bring us the happiness and satisfaction we crave in this life. So when we seek for something to help us feel better, don't turn to things. Turn to people. Create real, meaningful relationships with those around you. Look people in the eye. Turn off your phone. Be with people, not just around people.