Maddy's new words: 19 months

-tah-ees (stars)

-poopf (poop- and she says this any time someone uses the bathroom or if she poops in her diaper)

-moon

-moo (cow)

-muk (milk)

-appue- apple

-nana (banana)

-eyee (eyes- when you ask, where's mama's eyes? And she points to my eyes. She also points to nose but doesn't say that one yet)

-tees (teeth- points)

Yesterday when i came home from work, we had a solid ten minutes where where tightly wrapped her little arms around my neck and slathered me with kisses on my face and neck. It was pure heaven; especially since she sometimes plays coy with me when I come home.

-she is learning how time out works. I need to be better about spending time disciplining her, but I admit to slacking on it. We have had one successful time-out so far, so we really need to keep working on this.

Where I Am Now (Health/Food related)

Few things are as exciting as knowing that I get to have a surprise half-day tomorrow at work. Knowing that I get a break in my Tue-Fri maddness and get to experience just a few more moments of what life would be like if I didn't work almost-full-time...

You know me- its midnight and I'm bakin'. I have kale chips in the oven that should be in a dehydrator, but I don't have one. I have an "experiement" rice-flour bread in queue to go in next. I am sipping a vodka and grapefruit juice, because I don't have to be at work until 12:30pm and nothing is more enjoyable and therapeutic to me than cooking/baking while enjoying a cocktail (used to be a glass of wine before this crazy diet).

Crazy Diet Update:

Its going remarkably well. I have tapped my resources (IE- New Seasons and Bob's Red Mill which are very close by; and healthy living blogs) and have discovered some pretty awesome recipes and snacks. I have learned that one, in fact, can live on a more simple eating plan w/o additives. Baking and preparing food has taken up more time that I thought I didn't have; but I have learned that its worth it. Ross knows how to make me sauteed veggies, pork sausage, and quinoa (my new dinner staple) so he does that often. Otherwise; I come home from work, strap Maddy into the Beco carrier so we can have "loves time" while I cook up some other random concoction that adheres to the plan. This has been my best multi-tasking effort yet and I love it. Maddy loves watching what's going on in the kitchen, so its a slam dunk in our house.

The main point is: I'm surviving. Thriving, even. I have never physically felt better, and didn't have any intestinal issues until I had a weak point this week and ate out against my diet. We had a stressful day/week and I succumbed to my weakness of having food as an outlet/comfort. I said I would just do it once and then proceed with the diet as if it had never happened (SHHHH...do NOT tell anyone!). Well...I paid for this BIG time. Today at work, to be specific. And let me tell you; there is no bathroom suitable for digestive issues in my clinic. Its either the patient's bathroom or the bathroom adjacent to the lobby and my manager's office. Not cool. So I decided that yes, even Red Robin is just not worth it. I am back on track and almost thankful to be so.

The details: I lost 5lbs pretty darn quickly! And amazingly, my weight and appearance is not ranking #1 in this quest. I am pretty happy to have that be a pleasant side effect of being healthier and feeling better. I am less cranky and am accomplishing life's tasks a lot more efficiently lately. I have more energy, and just feel better overall. I highly recommend being tested for food intolerances and going through the process of elimination to figure out what causes harm to your body. I am still in the beginning phases and have no idea what food(s) are causing my inflammatory response, but I am so happy to experience life without it for almost 3 weeks! Its pretty amazing. I don't recommend books or fad diets; because those appeal to the masses and the common food allergens, but not the individual. A perfect example being: my body tolerates corn w/o any problems, but limes and oats may be harmful to me. If anyone is interesting in going down this road, I highly recommend seeing an allergist and having the appropriate testing done.

Okay- so was that a soap-box type statement? Because if it was, I am SO sorry. I can't stand soap-box crap. Its 1241 and my rice flour bread still has 30 minutes to go. I convinced the hubs to stay up and hang with me. Gnight!