Somehow the name for this type of post morphed from Friday Wrap Up to Weekly Recap. Or maybe it should be Weekly Wrap up? Whatever! These are the blatherings of a sleep deprived woman. My dog woke me up at 4:30 a.m. because she was thirsty. She does this every once in a while. Of course, once I got up and got her water, I could not fall back to sleep. I am very put out with her because today I have to stay up past my bedtime to go see Becky again in her musical The Music Man. This has an added pleasure though in that I am going to meet Lisa for dinner and then we'll both go to see the musical. Lisa might sleep here overnight if she is too tired to drive back to Winchester after the show. Josh is coming tonight as well. He said he'd get Becky there at 6:00 too for me so that I can go out and eat. He's a very good boy.
Somehow today I have to work in a nap.
Will is coming home tomorrow morning to see Becky's show and also to celebrate Grandad's birthday (how old is Grandad? I don't know. Maybe 85 or 86??? Better find out before Sunday!). Yes we are going to have a birthday celebration on Sunday. Grandad and Peggy and Tom and Susan with children are coming to see the Sunday matinee and then afterwards we are having dinner and cake. Rick says we should just do deli platters to make things as easy as possible. Sounds like a good idea to me!
Things have been rough this week for Sean. He got a further reduction in his SSRI and he is feeling it. I don't know if this is going to work. So that has been difficult and the dominating theme of the week. In spite of this though, good things happened. We had to cancel with the math tutor on Monday because Sean was just in terrible shape that day, but she is coming today. Sean made it to his drawing class M-W but he didn't on Thursday. That means he's got to figure out, once again, how to access his online account so he can see what the homework is over the weekend. That is just the kind of frustrating thing we forget to do and then the hole gets deeper! You know the hole of always feeling like you don't quite have it together. Sean also has been doing his streaming thing with twitch and Super Smash Bros. And he made it to his bass lessons (he really likes the teacher) and he had his Monday session with Noel the Physical Trainer (and you know, now that I think of it, his mood which had been horrible all Monday brightened quite a bit after he exercised for an hour.)
I have continued to torture the family by insisting on no processed foods and making everything at home except for our Tuesday lunch at Chipotle. We are doing Chipotle again today. I have come up with the perfect defense when anybody complains about how I am torturing them because I won't let them eat junk food. "First world problem!" I chirp or bark, as the case may be, at them. The torture is so exaggerated in their minds anyway. I let everybody cheat on the weekends, for example, the deli tray planned for Sunday.
Because of all this cooking my kitchen has not been cleaned in days. I simply can't keep up.
Becky did nothing this week except decide she doesn't want to go to AHG camp. This is what I said all along, that she'd be too exhausted, but she insisted, so I signed her up. But I am really relieved she's not going. She gets so tightly wound up during these performances. She'll need to sleep for a couple of days after it is finally over. She had a pick up rehearsal last night and was very happy about seeing her friends and colleagues again after a 3 day break. She did clean her room this week! That right there is major!
Rick asked Josh what he intended to do with himself once his marina job was over. I had been making suggestions all over the place but Josh has his own ideas. He wants to find another job because he just likes working and he also has started teaching himself computer programming via code academy. So that's a good thing. Honestly, it is wonderful having a 20 year old guy around. He does so much to help around here. He doesn't have a specific career idea, he just likes to have a job to go to every day, but he does have aspirations to own his own car and house one day. He talks about that. He asked Rick if he could buy the CRV from him, but when they talked about the price, Josh realized that he'd have to make much more money to really be able to live independently. So I do think he'll get to independence one day; he is just going to go about it in his own way and take his own sweet time. I am good with that! It is pleasant to have a quiet, competent adult offspring around!
We've seen a bit of Hannah, since she's been helping with driving Sean. She took him for a driving lesson this week. He still hasn't started the on line class though.
This week I have tried to focus more on housework. I've done a lot more cooking than I usually do, of course, but I also managed to dust, vacuum and mop the main level. I also started to clean through the ridiculous piles of junk on the counters and kitchen island and also in the dining room. In fact, I think I'll focus on all that stuff this a.m. as much as possible, trying to finish that up. Then we can do lunch at Chipotle, get back in time for the math tutor, (I think I will try to nap during that). Then I want to go to adoration and I've told the kids I am bringing them with me. Maybe we will try for 3:00 so we can say the Divine Mercy chaplet. After that, I think I'll tidy up Will's room to make ready for possibly Lisa and then Will to sleep in. Then it is dinner (gotta choose a restaurant). Well, I have to make dinner for the rest of the family to eat while I go out. Hmmm. Hadn't realized that until now. Maybe slow cooker chicken. I have a defrosted chicken in the fridge. I must make dinner early so Becky can eat before she leaves for the show. Too many changing details all the time!
End of blathering.
Friday, July 31, 2015
Saturday, July 25, 2015
Weekly Recap - 7/25
I am a day late for my Friday recap but yesterday was a full one. First Sean had a field trip to the National Art Gallery with his community college class. I went too and then we met Rick for lunch, so that was fun.
Also, yesterday Sean and I went in to see his doctor. I was trying to find out more about the Mood Cure. Well the dr does not like any of the supplements but he did say eating whole, non-processed foods has been shown to help with depression. So he did endorse that. Sean had been fighting me on that saying that I was crazy; that everyone ate processed foods, etc. So the fact the the doctor, who is very conservative about treatment said yes double blind randomized studies have shown that eating whole, non-processed foods is good for controlling moods was a huge thing. I am still really worried about the tapering off the meds. I just like the idea of replacing it with supplements. I was frustrated because we didn't talk very in depth at all. I think I have to schedule a separate appointment. Starting today Sean is going to decrease the meds again. He did experience one very bad migraine when he first cut down last time and also he has been fighting some lethargy and some nausea. Last time he had to decrease the real symptoms happened between 37.5 mg and 25 mg, so I am bracing myself. We go back 8/7.
Becky's show, The Music Man, opened last night! I was not allowed to go per Becky's orders. Hannah was supposed to go instead but for some reason could not make it at the last minute. But my sister Ronnie and her husband went. So at least someone from the family was there. Becky really didn't want anyone to come because she said the first night is when the most mistakes are made. I came down at 2:30 a.m. and she was wondering around the house, talking to herself. LOL. A group of the ensemble had gone out to IHOP after the show. She said she got home around 1:30. So she'd only spent an hour being really wound up. She is so high strung. I don't know how to get her through these next three weeks, when she barely eats or sleeps when a show is on. She just gets paler and paler. If she gets any paler, she'll be transparent! If she wants to go into musical theater, she is going to have to learn how to manage all the excitement better.
Then while Becky was out, we listened to Will's radio show. While I love the show and the fact that these young adults are doing such wonderful things with music, I do think he ought to script the chat part a bit more, plus there were technical difficulties, as in mics not being on, etc. But he had a lovely trio playing Beethoven so that was really nice.
Earlier in the week was a lot of driving to and from the community college, twice a day, to voice lessons and back, to rehearsals every night, to food stores to try to figure out what to feed Sean and failing miserably vs. having many successes.
A list of successes:
Also, yesterday Sean and I went in to see his doctor. I was trying to find out more about the Mood Cure. Well the dr does not like any of the supplements but he did say eating whole, non-processed foods has been shown to help with depression. So he did endorse that. Sean had been fighting me on that saying that I was crazy; that everyone ate processed foods, etc. So the fact the the doctor, who is very conservative about treatment said yes double blind randomized studies have shown that eating whole, non-processed foods is good for controlling moods was a huge thing. I am still really worried about the tapering off the meds. I just like the idea of replacing it with supplements. I was frustrated because we didn't talk very in depth at all. I think I have to schedule a separate appointment. Starting today Sean is going to decrease the meds again. He did experience one very bad migraine when he first cut down last time and also he has been fighting some lethargy and some nausea. Last time he had to decrease the real symptoms happened between 37.5 mg and 25 mg, so I am bracing myself. We go back 8/7.
Becky's show, The Music Man, opened last night! I was not allowed to go per Becky's orders. Hannah was supposed to go instead but for some reason could not make it at the last minute. But my sister Ronnie and her husband went. So at least someone from the family was there. Becky really didn't want anyone to come because she said the first night is when the most mistakes are made. I came down at 2:30 a.m. and she was wondering around the house, talking to herself. LOL. A group of the ensemble had gone out to IHOP after the show. She said she got home around 1:30. So she'd only spent an hour being really wound up. She is so high strung. I don't know how to get her through these next three weeks, when she barely eats or sleeps when a show is on. She just gets paler and paler. If she gets any paler, she'll be transparent! If she wants to go into musical theater, she is going to have to learn how to manage all the excitement better.
Then while Becky was out, we listened to Will's radio show. While I love the show and the fact that these young adults are doing such wonderful things with music, I do think he ought to script the chat part a bit more, plus there were technical difficulties, as in mics not being on, etc. But he had a lovely trio playing Beethoven so that was really nice.
Earlier in the week was a lot of driving to and from the community college, twice a day, to voice lessons and back, to rehearsals every night, to food stores to try to figure out what to feed Sean and failing miserably vs. having many successes.
A list of successes:
- Smoothies - though he can't have these every morning - he basically stops drinking them.
- Spaghetti carbonara made with whole wheat spaghetti. He actually liked it.
- Tuna salad made with Greek yogurt served with cucumber slices instead of crackers
- We actually ate through a big container of sugar snap peas (in their pods) as a major snacking item this week.
- He liked his mid morning snack of cheese wheels, baby carrots and a couple of small squares of 70% chocolate (it is bittersweet which he doesn't like as much - but still, just a little bit seemed to make him happy.)
- Popcorn with coconut oil - great afternoon snack!
- One smart thing I did (though people were still hungry because they said they didn't get enough meatloaf, but, guys, you are supposed to eat the potato and the salad as well as the meatloaf!) was to reserve out some of the ground beef from dinner so that the next day I could make Sean a cheeseburger sans bun for lunch. He did like that.
Failures:
- pastured chicken is tough and boney. Not worth the price.
- living without bread has been the toughest thing of all.
- I swear he used to eat salads when he was little but now they make him gag.
- I just don't seem to be able to plan enough meals. Lunch is the hardest because he wants a sandwich but doesn't like anything but white sandwich bread.
This weekend Rick and I are going to make some whole wheat honey sandwich bread and see how it works. Also this week I am going to try to make muffin quiches which I can freeze and give Sean for breakfast.
I started my reconsecration to Jesus through Mary. That has been the best thing.
Sunday, July 19, 2015
The Convenient Marriage - Book 28
This is a reread, except instead I listened to the audio for free on youtube read by Richard Armitage who has (pardon me while I swoon) a DREAMY voice. He is a great reader and really brings an already lively story even more to life.
In The Convenient Marriage, Horatia Winwood, aka Horrie (horrible nickname!), decides to save her older sister from an unwanted marriage by proffering herself as bride instead. The Winwoods are desperately in debt. Since the Duke of Rule wasn't marrying for love but simply to connect with an old, dignified family and have offspring to thwart his odious cousin from inheriting, he is content to switch out the bride, In fact, you can tell right from the get go he finds artless, unconventional, stammering Horrie adorable.
The Duke is rich, jaded and bored. He is used to controlling everything but he has not reckoned on Horrie. As usual for Heyer, the book is full of great side characters too, like Horrie's brother Pellum and the evil Lord Lethbridge. Lots of funny scenes, great suspense building up to the climax; a lovely but understated romance.
You do have to suspend a little disbelief on occasions, like the fact that Horrie doesn't recognize her husband behind the domino mask or the implication that Horrie and Rule must not have consummated the marriage initially even though he married her to have an heir. I always wonder about that whenever I read this book. . . .
Anyway, Armitage's voice is just swoon worthy. He does different voices for each character and he does such a good job. And if Rule wasn't already really sexy, he certainly becomes more so with Armitage's reading!
Here's a picture of Armitage, just for the heck of it!
For more book reviews go to Read 52 Books in 52 Weeks.
In The Convenient Marriage, Horatia Winwood, aka Horrie (horrible nickname!), decides to save her older sister from an unwanted marriage by proffering herself as bride instead. The Winwoods are desperately in debt. Since the Duke of Rule wasn't marrying for love but simply to connect with an old, dignified family and have offspring to thwart his odious cousin from inheriting, he is content to switch out the bride, In fact, you can tell right from the get go he finds artless, unconventional, stammering Horrie adorable.
The Duke is rich, jaded and bored. He is used to controlling everything but he has not reckoned on Horrie. As usual for Heyer, the book is full of great side characters too, like Horrie's brother Pellum and the evil Lord Lethbridge. Lots of funny scenes, great suspense building up to the climax; a lovely but understated romance.
You do have to suspend a little disbelief on occasions, like the fact that Horrie doesn't recognize her husband behind the domino mask or the implication that Horrie and Rule must not have consummated the marriage initially even though he married her to have an heir. I always wonder about that whenever I read this book. . . .
Anyway, Armitage's voice is just swoon worthy. He does different voices for each character and he does such a good job. And if Rule wasn't already really sexy, he certainly becomes more so with Armitage's reading!
Here's a picture of Armitage, just for the heck of it!
For more book reviews go to Read 52 Books in 52 Weeks.
Friday, July 17, 2015
Friday Wrap Up - in which I completely capitulate
This week rushed by. Sean is attending his community college drawing class. He had a mid-term on Thursday in it. This really just entailed the art teacher meeting one on one with him, checking off that he had done all the homework and then somehow awarding him the grade of 91. So I guess Sean's doing pretty well.
Hannah took him driving once this week. So that hasn't taken off so well.
Also, Sean hasn't done much math this week as his first meeting with the tutor was moved to Wed because she was visiting family out of town. But then she got really sick, so no math tutor at all this week. Sean is, however, supposed to be keeping up with the assignments which isn't really happening. Maybe this afternoon.
Sean is still tapering off his meds and we have had some repercussions. He had a bad migraine all night on Sunday. And yesterday he was fighting the blues. I am a little worried. I am completely fixated on the The Mood Cure and completely overwhelmed by it.
Becky and I have been hobbling along with Latin. My new strategy was to watch the Great Courses Latin 101, which we've been doing but she is very reluctant about it of course. Then today, we had a big negotiating session in which I completely capitulated.
Here's my reasoning: Becky liked Latin. But me trying to speed teacher with Henle during the summer was killing that love. This is a kid who won an award in 7th grade for Latin and then also did well on the National Latin Exam Level 1 (cum laude) this past year in 8th grade. I remember having such a bad impression of Henle when I tried to do it with Will many years ago. I thought, well, that was before I knew much Latin and I was so overwhelmed, I bet it is not as bad as I remember. So many people like and use it! Well, it is deadly, deadly dull. I even talked to my friend who taught all her kids Latin and is a language teacher herself (albeit of Russian) and she said that she hated Henle! Henle might be great for some but not for many. Unfortunately I am still going to have to teach it. And maybe in a classroom situation it will work out better. The woman who plans it all for Aquinas Learning works hard and recommends stuff like giving the kids candy for right answers, etc. I am not that kind of teacher, but maybe I'll have to cop that approach. I will strive to make it as interesting and as enjoyable as possible. And I resolve not to complain about it to the powers that be at the co-op.
So Becky is not going to take Latin at the co-op next year. I will teach Latin there but she'll just help out with the Parva kids. Then she'll study at home using Cambridge and also aiming towards taking the NLE II test. She's not that interested in certamen, but she said she'd be an alternate at times. She wants to direct the Latin nativity play. We'll see about that. I decided though it is better to be on our own Latin paths. No more Latin this summer. She can start up with Cambridge Unit 2 for the fall semester and then Cambridge 3 for the spring.
In other big news, I am now enrolled at Catholic Distance University in their Masters Program. So come September I will be taking their intro course that all students have to take on Catholicism and also their Graduate Research Skills class.
Hannah took him driving once this week. So that hasn't taken off so well.
Also, Sean hasn't done much math this week as his first meeting with the tutor was moved to Wed because she was visiting family out of town. But then she got really sick, so no math tutor at all this week. Sean is, however, supposed to be keeping up with the assignments which isn't really happening. Maybe this afternoon.
Sean is still tapering off his meds and we have had some repercussions. He had a bad migraine all night on Sunday. And yesterday he was fighting the blues. I am a little worried. I am completely fixated on the The Mood Cure and completely overwhelmed by it.
Becky and I have been hobbling along with Latin. My new strategy was to watch the Great Courses Latin 101, which we've been doing but she is very reluctant about it of course. Then today, we had a big negotiating session in which I completely capitulated.
Here's my reasoning: Becky liked Latin. But me trying to speed teacher with Henle during the summer was killing that love. This is a kid who won an award in 7th grade for Latin and then also did well on the National Latin Exam Level 1 (cum laude) this past year in 8th grade. I remember having such a bad impression of Henle when I tried to do it with Will many years ago. I thought, well, that was before I knew much Latin and I was so overwhelmed, I bet it is not as bad as I remember. So many people like and use it! Well, it is deadly, deadly dull. I even talked to my friend who taught all her kids Latin and is a language teacher herself (albeit of Russian) and she said that she hated Henle! Henle might be great for some but not for many. Unfortunately I am still going to have to teach it. And maybe in a classroom situation it will work out better. The woman who plans it all for Aquinas Learning works hard and recommends stuff like giving the kids candy for right answers, etc. I am not that kind of teacher, but maybe I'll have to cop that approach. I will strive to make it as interesting and as enjoyable as possible. And I resolve not to complain about it to the powers that be at the co-op.
So Becky is not going to take Latin at the co-op next year. I will teach Latin there but she'll just help out with the Parva kids. Then she'll study at home using Cambridge and also aiming towards taking the NLE II test. She's not that interested in certamen, but she said she'd be an alternate at times. She wants to direct the Latin nativity play. We'll see about that. I decided though it is better to be on our own Latin paths. No more Latin this summer. She can start up with Cambridge Unit 2 for the fall semester and then Cambridge 3 for the spring.
In other big news, I am now enrolled at Catholic Distance University in their Masters Program. So come September I will be taking their intro course that all students have to take on Catholicism and also their Graduate Research Skills class.
Sunday, July 12, 2015
The Mood Cure - Book 27
The Mood Cure by Julia Ross is a book on nutritive therapy for easing or curing depression and anxiety. I am always a bit skeptical about stuff like this, though I do think, for instance, some Weston Price stuff and some other books on food (like I Quit Sugar) make sense to me, though of course I have very limited knowledge about any of this. Since I can react very badly to MSG I already have a reason to not like processed food. However, in spite of my reading over the years and my good intentions, I am a pretty typical American in that I eat too much processed and junk food.
This book focuses much of its attention on getting the proper nutritional supplements that are precursors to things like seratonin so that the brain can produce its own seratonin instead of relying on psychopharmaceuticals. I am always skeptical of this because I was told a long time ago by my old, very trusted pediatrician that things like vitamins don't really get retained by the body. That's why when you take them your urine can turn colors. It basically just washes through and doesn't stick! The body just doesn't absorb stuff like that all that well. It takes in nutrients through food instead. However, so many people swear by these things. And even Sean's doctor was saying that I should let him know if I start giving him cod liver oil or St. John's Wort as that can interact with his SSRI. So the body must be absorbing something? Why such a difference between vitamins and regular food in terms of digestibility and absorption? I do think also they have improved the absorption rate since those long ago days when the pediatrician cautioned me about relying on Flintstone vitamins for the kiddos.
The book is very clear about what kind of supplements to take for which kind of depression/anxiety. Ross has got a questionnaire to help you figure what type of depression the reader may be grappling with, plus she has lots of different 'kits' with summarized lists of supplements to take for various problems. She explains the science behind each one very thoroughly and always relates it to her experience with clients at her clinic. She's been in practice since 1980.
Since Sean is trying to wean away from relying on drugs for mood control, I really am gung ho to try these supplements. The doctor is hesitant because he doesn't really know anything about this nutritive approach. He is all meds. I tried finding someone around here who does nutritive therapy but honestly they scare me to death because they seem very New Agey - guru - weird. I am supremely skeptical there. There is someone who consults long distance but I looked up her website and she quotes Deepak Chopra and Eckart Tolle throughout and I thought, nope! Not for me! So I think I am just going to give this book to the doctor and force the issue with him. Also, we've got a really nice locally owned pharmacy and I really trust the pharmacist there, so hopefully with all this help we will figure this out.
The Mood Cure doesn't really stray into alternative medicine territory too much, though it does mention a couple of homeopathic supplements. What makes me trust The Mood Cure more is the fact that the author doesn't seem to be selling anything (well, except her book). But there are no tie ins with products she produces, etc. You can pick up these supplements at Whole Foods or any place like that. She does offer testing kits and some things through her office, but she doesn't push it and she also cites plenty of other sources for obtaining these supplements too.
The other thing that makes me trust the book is that Ross does repeat much of what I've read over the years in others places. She give good advice on eating better; getting optimum nutrition from your food to boost the brain's power to regulate mood. She warns you away from the usual culprits. She's got a two week menu that seems pretty practical. She wrote another book previous to this called the Diet Cure. Her contention is that one major reason for the rise in depression and people being prescribed SSRI's is due to the dramatic changes in our food and the way we eat. We simply aren't getting amino acids and trace minerals that we easily got before. For instance there is much more omega 3 in game meat than in farm produced food that is fed corn. Also there is a correlation between the rise in depression and anxiety disorders and the rise in the use of vegetable oils. Vegetable oils are full of Omega 6 fat, which we do need in our body chemistry, but too much impacts the production and absorption of Omega 3. And Omega 3s are necessary for focus and mood control. A nice aspect of this book is how practical it is. For instance she concedes that people just eat out a lot nowadays and they are too busy to cook at home from scratch, so she goes into some detail about how to get around that and still eat optimally.
So I am on board with trying all this out. I ran out to the store and got some initial stuff to begin with: 5-HTP, GABA, Stress B complex, Calcium/Magnesium/Potassium, L-Glutamine and flavored liquid cod liver oil (blech!). I haven't tried them yet. I am waiting to talk to the doctor before Seano tries. I need to read the book through one more time to really get the plan down, though I started taking notes halfway through. The book really put me into a home cooking mood. I cleaned out the fridge, started making menus for food that would work with the program and I started looking up recipes for things like salad dressings and mayo. This video isn't too intimidating:
All in all, this book gives me hope that even I, the mess that I am, can implement some of this at least and help Sean (and maybe myself!). Hopefully, the doctor will work with us and keep me on my toes in terms of doing this cautiously and sensibly.
Here's the website for The Mood Cure.
For more book reviews go to Read 52 Books in 52 Weeks.
This book focuses much of its attention on getting the proper nutritional supplements that are precursors to things like seratonin so that the brain can produce its own seratonin instead of relying on psychopharmaceuticals. I am always skeptical of this because I was told a long time ago by my old, very trusted pediatrician that things like vitamins don't really get retained by the body. That's why when you take them your urine can turn colors. It basically just washes through and doesn't stick! The body just doesn't absorb stuff like that all that well. It takes in nutrients through food instead. However, so many people swear by these things. And even Sean's doctor was saying that I should let him know if I start giving him cod liver oil or St. John's Wort as that can interact with his SSRI. So the body must be absorbing something? Why such a difference between vitamins and regular food in terms of digestibility and absorption? I do think also they have improved the absorption rate since those long ago days when the pediatrician cautioned me about relying on Flintstone vitamins for the kiddos.
The book is very clear about what kind of supplements to take for which kind of depression/anxiety. Ross has got a questionnaire to help you figure what type of depression the reader may be grappling with, plus she has lots of different 'kits' with summarized lists of supplements to take for various problems. She explains the science behind each one very thoroughly and always relates it to her experience with clients at her clinic. She's been in practice since 1980.
Since Sean is trying to wean away from relying on drugs for mood control, I really am gung ho to try these supplements. The doctor is hesitant because he doesn't really know anything about this nutritive approach. He is all meds. I tried finding someone around here who does nutritive therapy but honestly they scare me to death because they seem very New Agey - guru - weird. I am supremely skeptical there. There is someone who consults long distance but I looked up her website and she quotes Deepak Chopra and Eckart Tolle throughout and I thought, nope! Not for me! So I think I am just going to give this book to the doctor and force the issue with him. Also, we've got a really nice locally owned pharmacy and I really trust the pharmacist there, so hopefully with all this help we will figure this out.
The Mood Cure doesn't really stray into alternative medicine territory too much, though it does mention a couple of homeopathic supplements. What makes me trust The Mood Cure more is the fact that the author doesn't seem to be selling anything (well, except her book). But there are no tie ins with products she produces, etc. You can pick up these supplements at Whole Foods or any place like that. She does offer testing kits and some things through her office, but she doesn't push it and she also cites plenty of other sources for obtaining these supplements too.
The other thing that makes me trust the book is that Ross does repeat much of what I've read over the years in others places. She give good advice on eating better; getting optimum nutrition from your food to boost the brain's power to regulate mood. She warns you away from the usual culprits. She's got a two week menu that seems pretty practical. She wrote another book previous to this called the Diet Cure. Her contention is that one major reason for the rise in depression and people being prescribed SSRI's is due to the dramatic changes in our food and the way we eat. We simply aren't getting amino acids and trace minerals that we easily got before. For instance there is much more omega 3 in game meat than in farm produced food that is fed corn. Also there is a correlation between the rise in depression and anxiety disorders and the rise in the use of vegetable oils. Vegetable oils are full of Omega 6 fat, which we do need in our body chemistry, but too much impacts the production and absorption of Omega 3. And Omega 3s are necessary for focus and mood control. A nice aspect of this book is how practical it is. For instance she concedes that people just eat out a lot nowadays and they are too busy to cook at home from scratch, so she goes into some detail about how to get around that and still eat optimally.
So I am on board with trying all this out. I ran out to the store and got some initial stuff to begin with: 5-HTP, GABA, Stress B complex, Calcium/Magnesium/Potassium, L-Glutamine and flavored liquid cod liver oil (blech!). I haven't tried them yet. I am waiting to talk to the doctor before Seano tries. I need to read the book through one more time to really get the plan down, though I started taking notes halfway through. The book really put me into a home cooking mood. I cleaned out the fridge, started making menus for food that would work with the program and I started looking up recipes for things like salad dressings and mayo. This video isn't too intimidating:
All in all, this book gives me hope that even I, the mess that I am, can implement some of this at least and help Sean (and maybe myself!). Hopefully, the doctor will work with us and keep me on my toes in terms of doing this cautiously and sensibly.
Here's the website for The Mood Cure.
For more book reviews go to Read 52 Books in 52 Weeks.
Friday, July 10, 2015
Weekly Recap - 7/10/15
This week was about me managing my kidney stone pain. At least I think that is what it is. It feels just like that other kidney stone I had two years ago. It was really bad on Monday, a little better on Tuesday, horrible on Wednesday and much better yesterday. Right now I am barely aware of it. So, that's good!
Sean attended his art class at the community college every day (M-Th). He likes the class and he seems to be doing well in the drawing department. He really got perspective down very nicely. Now they are working in charcoal and I think he's flailing a little bit with that. I've got an arrangement with Hannah that she picks him up some of the time and takes him for driving practice. We've gotta get him driving!
Sean also worked on his Algebra II this week with his tutor. She's an old friend so it is nice getting to chat with her a couple times a week. Girlfriend time!
Sean is starting to wean off his medication very, very gradually. It is kind of a bad time for it though because it has been really rainy and overcast and he hasn't been exercising either. His physical trainer is on vacation right now. But so far so good.
Becky is still so happily part of The Music Man. She has rehearsals every night. All day she practices her dance moves, plays with her hair and make up, sings, reads and chats with friends on line.
I am feeling so stumped about Latin with her. We were booking through Henle but she went into full scale rebellion. Honestly that book is so deadly, deadly dull. Awful stuff. Especially for girls. She who loved Latin before and thought it was fun now hates with all the drama a 13 yo can muster up (and that's a lot!).
So I am just taking the order of different things she needs to learn from Henle but going elsewhere to find ways to learn them. Yesterday all we did was review the 5th declension and then she read some Latin paragraphs from Ecce Romani. But it was a very little bit. We'll never be up to speed by September if we go at this rate. I've got to get my mojo back again! One thing I am relying on heavily is the Latin Tutorials at youtube. They are great! Very succinct, clear, short presentations. I highly recommend them.
Becky is supposed to be attending some voice lessons over the summer but they are at different times than her usual lessons during the year, so of course we forgot completely about it and missed on yesterday. I was in bed resting my kidneys and she was busy curling her hair for photo shoot for the musical and we both completely forgot.
Becky is in a girls book club and they are supposed to be reading To Kill a Mockingbird but she seems reluctant to start it. I wish she would. It is such a great book. I think I over encouraged her to read it and now she is sort of balking because she is 13 and doesn't want to read something mom keeps pushing.
Speaking of 13 - she's turning 14 in two days! Holy cow, how did that happen!!!!
Josh is continuing to go to work. Every week he has a different plan for what he wants to do when this seasonal job ends. Rick and I told him he has to come up with a plan for a future career this fall. Right now though he's decided on land surveyor. It looks like he just takes 5 semesters worth of surveying classes at night through the public schools workforce training dept. Then he has to pass an exam to be certified or licensed or whatever the proper term is. Then he has to get an apprenticeship. Or maybe he can get the apprenticeship while he is studying? I am so grateful to the state of Virginia for holding on to apprenticeships as a way of launching a career. Apparently many other states now require you to attend a 4 year college and get a bachelor's degree. But not in Virginia. They still do it the old fashion way. Maybe because of George Washington? Though Virginia clings to those old ways. I remember my father saying that Virginia was one of the last states that let you become a lawyer via apprenticeship. As long as you could pass the bar, you were good to go. He said many legal secretaries would do this and it actually benefitted women. They'd be legal secretaries for years, learning all about the law, so then the attorney they worked for would make them official apprentices and help them study for the bar. They never had to borrow money for tuition or anything. But all the law schools got together along with the bar association and gradually pressured all the states to change. Virginia was one of the last hold outs. Dad said it was ridiculous. You'd have these legal secretaries who knew way more about the law than these newly graduated law students, yet they couldn't practice and the others could. Sometimes progress is stupid.
Will is doing pretty well up in Cambridge. He's got his radio show tonight. That is always a big hairy issue for him - getting the musical acts, writing the skits, etc. He's a bit down because he wants a real job. He's waiting tables but they don't have enough work for him really. He's got all these little naggy things to do that don't have hard deadlines and require a lot of thinking about detail. It is kind of depressing. Rick had to go to Boston this week for a case he's working on. He got to have dinner with Will.
Hannah has been busy looking for a permanent teaching job. She interviewed yesterday at the school where she was a long term sub. Keeping our fingers crossed! She's also interviewed with several other places. She is coming over today to help me clean out the basement.
I got to visit with another girlfriend yesterday morning which was fun. And next week Lisa is coming for a visit. So life is good.
I finally finished registering for CDU. Today's assignment is to get my transcripts for my B.A. and J.D. delivered. Now they do all that electronically. Maybe Hannah will help me figure that process out. Other schooly stuff I have to do: I have yet to send in the end of year testing for grading. I. MUST. DO. THAT. TODAY!
Sean attended his art class at the community college every day (M-Th). He likes the class and he seems to be doing well in the drawing department. He really got perspective down very nicely. Now they are working in charcoal and I think he's flailing a little bit with that. I've got an arrangement with Hannah that she picks him up some of the time and takes him for driving practice. We've gotta get him driving!
Sean also worked on his Algebra II this week with his tutor. She's an old friend so it is nice getting to chat with her a couple times a week. Girlfriend time!
Sean is starting to wean off his medication very, very gradually. It is kind of a bad time for it though because it has been really rainy and overcast and he hasn't been exercising either. His physical trainer is on vacation right now. But so far so good.
Becky is still so happily part of The Music Man. She has rehearsals every night. All day she practices her dance moves, plays with her hair and make up, sings, reads and chats with friends on line.
I am feeling so stumped about Latin with her. We were booking through Henle but she went into full scale rebellion. Honestly that book is so deadly, deadly dull. Awful stuff. Especially for girls. She who loved Latin before and thought it was fun now hates with all the drama a 13 yo can muster up (and that's a lot!).
So I am just taking the order of different things she needs to learn from Henle but going elsewhere to find ways to learn them. Yesterday all we did was review the 5th declension and then she read some Latin paragraphs from Ecce Romani. But it was a very little bit. We'll never be up to speed by September if we go at this rate. I've got to get my mojo back again! One thing I am relying on heavily is the Latin Tutorials at youtube. They are great! Very succinct, clear, short presentations. I highly recommend them.
Becky is supposed to be attending some voice lessons over the summer but they are at different times than her usual lessons during the year, so of course we forgot completely about it and missed on yesterday. I was in bed resting my kidneys and she was busy curling her hair for photo shoot for the musical and we both completely forgot.
Becky is in a girls book club and they are supposed to be reading To Kill a Mockingbird but she seems reluctant to start it. I wish she would. It is such a great book. I think I over encouraged her to read it and now she is sort of balking because she is 13 and doesn't want to read something mom keeps pushing.
Speaking of 13 - she's turning 14 in two days! Holy cow, how did that happen!!!!
Josh is continuing to go to work. Every week he has a different plan for what he wants to do when this seasonal job ends. Rick and I told him he has to come up with a plan for a future career this fall. Right now though he's decided on land surveyor. It looks like he just takes 5 semesters worth of surveying classes at night through the public schools workforce training dept. Then he has to pass an exam to be certified or licensed or whatever the proper term is. Then he has to get an apprenticeship. Or maybe he can get the apprenticeship while he is studying? I am so grateful to the state of Virginia for holding on to apprenticeships as a way of launching a career. Apparently many other states now require you to attend a 4 year college and get a bachelor's degree. But not in Virginia. They still do it the old fashion way. Maybe because of George Washington? Though Virginia clings to those old ways. I remember my father saying that Virginia was one of the last states that let you become a lawyer via apprenticeship. As long as you could pass the bar, you were good to go. He said many legal secretaries would do this and it actually benefitted women. They'd be legal secretaries for years, learning all about the law, so then the attorney they worked for would make them official apprentices and help them study for the bar. They never had to borrow money for tuition or anything. But all the law schools got together along with the bar association and gradually pressured all the states to change. Virginia was one of the last hold outs. Dad said it was ridiculous. You'd have these legal secretaries who knew way more about the law than these newly graduated law students, yet they couldn't practice and the others could. Sometimes progress is stupid.
Will is doing pretty well up in Cambridge. He's got his radio show tonight. That is always a big hairy issue for him - getting the musical acts, writing the skits, etc. He's a bit down because he wants a real job. He's waiting tables but they don't have enough work for him really. He's got all these little naggy things to do that don't have hard deadlines and require a lot of thinking about detail. It is kind of depressing. Rick had to go to Boston this week for a case he's working on. He got to have dinner with Will.
Hannah has been busy looking for a permanent teaching job. She interviewed yesterday at the school where she was a long term sub. Keeping our fingers crossed! She's also interviewed with several other places. She is coming over today to help me clean out the basement.
I got to visit with another girlfriend yesterday morning which was fun. And next week Lisa is coming for a visit. So life is good.
I finally finished registering for CDU. Today's assignment is to get my transcripts for my B.A. and J.D. delivered. Now they do all that electronically. Maybe Hannah will help me figure that process out. Other schooly stuff I have to do: I have yet to send in the end of year testing for grading. I. MUST. DO. THAT. TODAY!
Wednesday, July 8, 2015
Ways to Strew
1. Have a regular place in your home where you place new things you've brought into your house to expose and excite your children's interests. I used coffee tables. On the coffee tables I put:
- Library books, used books, books you own that haven't been perused for a while, new books, etc.
- magazines or printed out articles, coloring books, activity books such as Mad Libs, Kids sudoku, little Dover crossword puzzles and sticker books, dot to dot books, doodle books, and the like. ( a lot of these things, like Mad Libs and sudoku can be gotten on line. However, I've never really figured out how to strew them. But maybe you will!)
- little games such as a Rubik's cube, a mini oragami set, little puzzles of some sort, play doh, silly putty, paper doll set, cootie catchers (I got a great set of these that taught the catechism!), those little quiz books, etc.
- Montessori trays
- Rotating toys (keep some toys in reserve, so that when the kids get bored, you can pull them out and they'll be like new again.
2. Strewing in the home, that didn't happen via the coffee table:
- Christmas and birthday gifts - give a gift that supports an interest the child already has or something to spark a new interest - every year the kids got Jim Weiss cds in their Christmas stockings. You can also give dvds, books, science kits, art kits, games, technical equipment (their own tools, sewing machine, musical instruments, etc.
- playing games together: board games, card games and jigsaw puzzles
- reading out loud regularly
- listening to audio books from the library or downloaded from audible, etc.
- watching educational videos/TV/movies
- conversation - kids learn a lot through discussion!
- listening to the radio
- subscribing to youtube channels
- following and celebrating the liturgical year
- house projects like painting a room, building something, fixing a running toilet, wiring a lamp, etc.
- cooking
- raising pets
- helping with housekeeping
- essay writing contests
- Nanowrimo
- blogging
- gaming (Minecraft and many others)
3. Fridge or wall strewing:
- post things like spelling and grammar rules, math formulas, fun facts, famous quotes
- have a globe that is easily accessible
- put up maps and timelines on the walls
- or get a map shower curtain!
- rotate your artwork to learn about different artists
- post poems on the door of your bedrooms
- post word root flashcards or Latin vocabulary postcards
- buy neat magnets for your fridge - alphabet and numbers but also, there are all kinds of clever fridge magnets out there now.
4. Out and about Strewing:
- Gardening
- talking a walk
- bird watching
- rock collecting
- other collecting
- hiking at a nearby park
- trips to the grocery store, post office, hardware store, etc
- concerts
- plays
- play dates
- visits to daddy's (or mommy's) work
- farmers markets
- library visits
- storytelling events
- fairs
- art, history and science museums
- nature centers
- camping
- classes in the community - music lessons, art lessons, red cross certification, etc
- participating in co-ops
- sports or marital arts
- volunteering at food pantries, soup kitchens, nursing homes, park clean ups, etc
- pilgrimages to holy sites
- other various field trips (farms, caverns, hospitals, factories, etc)
- travel
- conferences or conventions - Lego, maker faires, county fairs, etc.
- Clubs like 4-H, American Heritage Girls, Scouts, Blue Knights, Little Flowers, Rotary club for youth, youth groups at parish, Junior Classical League, book clubs, Civil Air Patrol, community theater, etc.
Monday, July 6, 2015
Minimilist Monday
I've decided that I am going to try to journal regularly on certain days. After all I changed this blog title to Household Diary a long time ago. So maybe I should use it that way. My plan is on Mondays I will post about housekeeping, decluttering, etc efforts - Minimalist Monday. On Fridays I will go back to something I used to do a long time - Weekly Recap. That will focus more on educational endeavors of the week. Then on Sundays I'll try to do my usual book review for Read 52 Books in 52 Weeks. Of course maybe I'll post other stuff as I feel inspired, but the bare bones blogging will be Minimalist Monday and Weekly Recap, Book reviews.
So this week for Minimalist Monday:
Major, major breakthrough!!! Ding, Ding, Ding! Rick and I cleaned up our Master bedroom! He cleaned up all the stuff that had accumulated on and around his desk which was horrific! And I got rid of all the miscellaneous linens and old clothes that were supposed to have been sorted through and given away eons ago. I even cleaned out under our bathroom sink which was quite a job. I dejunked my dresser so that you can actually see wood! I still have some annoying baskets of STUFF that I don't know what to do with. By that time I was suffering from dejunking fatigue, BUT we got a huge amount of stuff cleaned out. Last night we put it all out for Amvets to pick up today. Please God let them come and pick it all up! Sometimes they don't seem to show up when you think they will.
We are also trying to give an older printer away to our parish or perhaps to some charity that might need it.
The two areas we didn't get to: our bedside tables which are full of dozens of books that have no other home. We need to sort those into give away and keep - and then figure out where to keep them. Also Rick did not get to the top of his dresser which is simply a big pile of junk. But hopefully next weekend.
My goals for this week are to keep chipping away at the kids' rooms. They went through their clothes and put the ones they don't wear anymore out with the Amvets donation. I also want to spend time tidying the dining, which will involve cleaning out old school books and getting things ready for the upcoming academic year.
But the big thing I want to do is really get started with my basement. Hannah said she'd help. I need to make it guest ready again. And that means finding a new home for our poor, wretched cat. Oh dear. That is a big, thorny issue. When will that actually happen?
And one more thing I am going to ask Josh to do this coming Thursday or Friday - take all the accumulated cardboard boxes to the recycling center.
So to break things out in my head:
Monday - 20 to 30 minutes on kids' bedrooms; 1 hour on dining room (that should be enough to get it into order).
Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday - significant time spent on basement on at least some of these days.
Thursday/Friday - big recycling haul.
In addition to this of course there is Latin and math, driving Sean back and forth to art class, and driving Becky back and forth to musical rehearsal.
Today I am going to make a chicken and rice salad (using left over chicken) and also cook up the fresh beets I got from the CSA yesterday. I need to do that this afternoon because I've got to get Sean to a doctor's appt right at dinner time.
So this week for Minimalist Monday:
Major, major breakthrough!!! Ding, Ding, Ding! Rick and I cleaned up our Master bedroom! He cleaned up all the stuff that had accumulated on and around his desk which was horrific! And I got rid of all the miscellaneous linens and old clothes that were supposed to have been sorted through and given away eons ago. I even cleaned out under our bathroom sink which was quite a job. I dejunked my dresser so that you can actually see wood! I still have some annoying baskets of STUFF that I don't know what to do with. By that time I was suffering from dejunking fatigue, BUT we got a huge amount of stuff cleaned out. Last night we put it all out for Amvets to pick up today. Please God let them come and pick it all up! Sometimes they don't seem to show up when you think they will.
We are also trying to give an older printer away to our parish or perhaps to some charity that might need it.
The two areas we didn't get to: our bedside tables which are full of dozens of books that have no other home. We need to sort those into give away and keep - and then figure out where to keep them. Also Rick did not get to the top of his dresser which is simply a big pile of junk. But hopefully next weekend.
My goals for this week are to keep chipping away at the kids' rooms. They went through their clothes and put the ones they don't wear anymore out with the Amvets donation. I also want to spend time tidying the dining, which will involve cleaning out old school books and getting things ready for the upcoming academic year.
But the big thing I want to do is really get started with my basement. Hannah said she'd help. I need to make it guest ready again. And that means finding a new home for our poor, wretched cat. Oh dear. That is a big, thorny issue. When will that actually happen?
And one more thing I am going to ask Josh to do this coming Thursday or Friday - take all the accumulated cardboard boxes to the recycling center.
So to break things out in my head:
Monday - 20 to 30 minutes on kids' bedrooms; 1 hour on dining room (that should be enough to get it into order).
Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday - significant time spent on basement on at least some of these days.
Thursday/Friday - big recycling haul.
In addition to this of course there is Latin and math, driving Sean back and forth to art class, and driving Becky back and forth to musical rehearsal.
Today I am going to make a chicken and rice salad (using left over chicken) and also cook up the fresh beets I got from the CSA yesterday. I need to do that this afternoon because I've got to get Sean to a doctor's appt right at dinner time.
Sunday, July 5, 2015
Stumble - Book 26
Stumble by Heather King is a searing and intimate examination of virtue. It's got wry humor in it too. Each chapter is an essay entitled things like Compassion, Honesty, Chastity, Perseverance. Each essay is a personal memoir of how this virtue, the mystery of it, played out in some ironic, oblique way. Her prose is so honest, so exquisite in nuance and subtlety, she's like an artist who makes tiny amazingly realistic portraits the size of the head of a pin. But she does so by examining her own life in all its prosaic tragedy, absurdity, sordidness, loneliness, and seeing there glimpses of Christ and eternity.
Christian love is a constant battling against taking sides. It is about judgment and forgiving at the same exact time - something that only the Divine can do. Be ye perfect as your Father is perfect. It is about facing down the ugliness of sin, which is unrelenting, and somehow seeing a fleeting glance of beauty there anyway. Christian love is confusing because it is not of this earth. Christian love is confusing because we can only ever offer a cheap imitation and then we have to repent and beg for mercy because we will always get it wrong. But Christian love is the only thing going for us. It's the only real deal out there. And it is so good, that once you get a real taste of it, you are compelled to try again and again.
I wept, I marveled, I pondered, while reading this book in day. It is a book solidly grounded in love.
I think Heather King is a prophet for our time. Thank you, Jesus, for Heather King!
Read this book! For more book reviews go to Read 52 Books in 52 Weeks.
Christian love is a constant battling against taking sides. It is about judgment and forgiving at the same exact time - something that only the Divine can do. Be ye perfect as your Father is perfect. It is about facing down the ugliness of sin, which is unrelenting, and somehow seeing a fleeting glance of beauty there anyway. Christian love is confusing because it is not of this earth. Christian love is confusing because we can only ever offer a cheap imitation and then we have to repent and beg for mercy because we will always get it wrong. But Christian love is the only thing going for us. It's the only real deal out there. And it is so good, that once you get a real taste of it, you are compelled to try again and again.
I wept, I marveled, I pondered, while reading this book in day. It is a book solidly grounded in love.
I think Heather King is a prophet for our time. Thank you, Jesus, for Heather King!
Read this book! For more book reviews go to Read 52 Books in 52 Weeks.
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