How does your garden grow?

I was starting to feel slightly worried about the state of our garden compared to everyone else's in the neighbourhood but then my WONDERFUL TCC friends, as ever, made me feel better.......send me your garden pic and I'll add it to the gallery......

This is our garden, there is more mess round the corner!

Response to the 'mom on iPhone meme'

Acht fuck off interfering 'see it all'. 

Did you see me wake up at silly o'clock to feed my baby? Did you see me earlier lying on the ground looking at slugs? Did you see me up in the middle of the night with a sick child? Did you see me climbing a tree with one on my back and one barely out of nappies? Did you see me navigate my through the supermarket without a single meltdown? Did you see me barely sit down all day? Did you see me feed three different sets of tastes? Did you see me watch them twirl on a pole thirty times over? Did you see me watching them dance and sing to the same song 100times over? Did you see me empty and fill the dishwasher and washing machine innumerable times? Did you see me holding them when they fell? Did you see me wipe their snot away with only my fingers because there were no tissues? Did you see me hold two hands whilst they both climbed the same wall?

Did you see me tend to their needs 24hours a day, often forgoing my own? Did you see me??????

No. You saw me in that wonderful moment when they were doing their thing and having a good time and I was having a rest. 

So fuck of you 'sanctimonious see nothing, know NOTHING, probably couldn't manage one day alone with one kid or two kids or three kids or even ten kids' little twat. 

DID YOU SEE THAT!?

breastfeeding a sore face better

response to THIS photo post

Paleo Piece

Post by Miriam Berlow-Jackson.

About a Week Ago

                                   

So, 8 days ago, I wrote about doing THIS diet because of THIS. I quickly realised that the Newcastle Diet was too much like suffering and crash dieting and would be basically impossible for me to manage for 8 weeks. I asked for advice and opinions from all and the ONLY person that was advocating for it was my brother! Then a trillion different people suggested Paleo, there were suggestions of other ones, but they had numbers in their title and that put me off, being number dyslexic and all! 

I had heard many online friends talk about Paleo in different threads, but I usually skimmed over them.  I was also clearly still in denial about needing to change, scoffing chocolate every day since Millie was born and living on high carbs easy quick saturated fat coated in breadcrumbs type meals most of the time.  It was like chocolate was my reward for doing a Gestational Diabetes diet during my pregnancy with her! Yeah I know two years is a long time to keep saying 'I deserve it!'. I deserve to be healthy.

Anyway,  I'd caught the jist that this was a way of eating that dated back to the beginning, before oven ready food and before agriculture found grains and before sugar. 

It's only been a week but  what I can gather so far, are that the things to be eaten are meat and berries and fish and seeds and fruit and chicken and veg and basically REAL food, not processed fish in a batter and chips, not garlic bread or tinned soup or quorn pie or pizza or filled tortellini with pasta sauce or porridge and most certainly not sugar.  No chocolate or crisps or biscuits. Easy quick tasty food.  And it is tasty. But not healthy. I did occasionally cook real vegetables but I almost always mixed it with some type of grain or legume (cous cous, pasta, rice, chick peas, butter beans, lentils- is that Paleo, no idea?!)  and of course chips. Usually oven chips.  I've already been converted on the benefits of cooking with coconut oil instead of vegetable or sunflower or any other high smoke oil, so that was helpful.

I'm reading about it now, lots of different articles, stories and I'm cooking food.  I'm making meals. I'm eating fresh real food just without the grains and the sugar and the dairy for now. I'm getting loads of encouragement and support which is totally brilliant and definitely needed with such a massive change.   I know I need to watch my fruit intake because blood sugar level reduction is my ultimate goal. Tonight my level was 6.8, the lowest for a long time! 

I'm still learning about whats considered paleo or not but I'm beginning to understand since joining the trail (see if it leads me to eating better) that many people do things differently and at their own personal pace and journey. There are just some foods that are harder to leave behind than others and as many people have pointed out, as we evolved, so did our food availability and no-one *really* knows.  

That means, I'm still eating ketchup, although I've made my own no sugar healthier version suggested to me.  I'm also seeing the problems arising since the initial flourish and highend kick ass motivation is dying down and I realise that I will at some point need to make food that my children and hubby will also eat, since I am still cooking separately for them.  Hubby is still on the quorn version and girls are still on pasta or fish fingers!! I'm definitely going to start missing things like chickpeas and cous cous and potatoes and putting things inside a sandwich or a bun and sometimes cheese but I'm hoping that this jump start onto healthier eating will allow my body to eat those things again if I need to. 

I am also pretty sure at some point, I'm going to want chocolate. Like milk chocolate. All the chocolate eggs in the supermarket are taunting me. I LOVE my chocolate.  I know there are substitutes and maybe the healthy eating and supplements with decrease my cravings but I doubt they will be gone forever. I mean just LOOK!

Of course I'm not forgetting the  massive  small issue of exercise and getting more....one step at a time!

I am obviously drawn to Paleo for some reason. Yet, it also makes sense. I raise my babies the cave way, surely I should also be eating the cave way!!!

Meltdowns - something is going on with Ellie, she is ALL over the place

Losing the Plot - in the restaurant today after the girls were just too much

Breastfeeding - yup! still happening.  All. The. Time!!!

Thinking about it....

(Post written on Thursday 3rd April that I forgot to properly publish)

I've started researching the paleo diet. SO many people have been talking about it and have said it's the best way to go. I'm dubious of my abilities to ditch the processed food and actually properly cook.  Not sure when I'll find the time and energy but here goes.....what harm could it do me? None as far as I can tell. Although the detoxing side effects will be tough and the cravings will be hell, apparently it will all be worth it.

I've downloaded the app Is It Paleo? to help me along. All I need to do is get rid of all the processed stuff which means eating it, so I won't be starting yet. I enjoyed my breaded Camembert tonight and my fish in a batter. I'll miss the easiness of sticking it in the oven. 

Oh crap. What am I doing? Oh yeah...getting healthy!!

Is it worth the MASSIVE effort?

Do I want to be free of high blood sugars and the threat of type 2 diabetes? 

Although I'm only prediabetic, it's inevitable that I will develop type 2,  the GP said. I have many of the risk factors. Genetics, overweight, stress....

THE DIET RULES

This study on the 800 calorie diet, has only be done on 11 people, of them, 7 reversed their diabetes and there hasn't been a follow up yet. There is anecdotal evidence all over google of others who have tried it. Some didn't even do it to the letter. 

Sustainability afterwards is the key but maybe this is the injection turbo booster quick fix crash diet magic pill popping elixir I need. 

I anticipate that like lack of sleep, lack of food will create a crazed deprived mama and the short term result will NOT be fun. Or pretty. 

Long term though....it could be the jackpot. 

I crash dieted a lot when I was younger. I went through phases like most teenagers of poor body image and always *knew* my life would be better if I had a flat stomach. I became vegetarian firstly because I imagined it would mean eating less.  I tried that slimfast diet that was ALL over TV in the 80's.  I was so consumed with dieting I wished I was anorexic. I wished I had the will power and strength not to eat. How messed up is that!  Not eating was difficult. I like my food!  I was also bulimic for a few years. That was a joyful time. Not. Ultimately though it was all about trying to feel in control of my life. I see that now. 

This is also about taking control of a situation. I just don't know if I have the wherewithal or enough support. Could my family handle me even more crazy for two months! Can they afford not too? Diabetes can be problematic to say the least. I'm running out of time. 

Do you think this diet is possible for 8wks? 

Do you think I have the will power, the motivation, the strength?

Would you if your life depended on it?

Meltdowns - they will be mostly from me!

Losing the plot - I most probably will!! 

Breastfeeding - will it be affected?

Click the blue links for more information:

Info on the study:
from the University

Articles about the study: 

from the university
from The Express
From Diabetes.co.uk

Articles from those who have tried it:
from The Guardian