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THIS WEEK’S
THOUGHTS AND THINKINGS |
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Okay. Maybe not yet fully, but it's sunny out, so it looks promising. Lol.
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There's a cold, cold north wind blowing today. Brrr! But we're hopeful that this back and forth weather will finally line out. ☺
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Years ago, an old farmer friend told us that the way the wind was blowing on the first day of Spring was an indication of the kind of summer we would have. If that's true (and we've found his saying to be correct more often than not over the years), then we should have a cooler than normal summer.
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That thought makes me VERY HAPPY! ☺
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Come out and see us starting Saturday April 7th. We'll be at the old location on Frank Phillips and Keeler in the Chamber Park there. |
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The Market is looking to be full this year with lots of varied vendors bringing veggies, flowers, meat, eggs, and artisan products from custom t-shirts to wood working to clay pots to turtles, etc., etc.
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And of course, we'll be there with our assortment of things.
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You know, with the onset of Spring also comes the dangers of wildfires, and there's been alot lately with this gigantic wind blowing.
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Some friends' houses have had close calls and such. I hope you've all been safe.
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A couple years ago there was a fire all around us as the neighbors pasture lit up and advanced into everyone else's property. Burned up a lot of our wood pile and container garden, but thankfully it didn't make it to the house. It was quite "energizing" to say the least (aka SCARY).
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They say about 800+ acres so far have been affected around here.
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| | Weight Loss Journey: TRIM HEALTHY MAMA |
Well, the scale still hasn’t moved much. I keep saying it, but it's true... I’m not too worried about it. Still battling a bit of the sickies.
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I do have some non-scale victories this time though that I’m excited about. This March marks my one year anniversary on plan. I originally started Trim Healthy Mama to help with my blood sugar levels. Well, I took my waking blood sugar recently and it was 122! When I first started THM, that reading was consistently 180 in the mornings. |
Anything under 100 is considered normal. So, that means I’m within 22 mg/dl of being normal. Yay me! 😊
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Another non-scale victory is my pants size. I bought my first pair of mediums on clearance at almart the other day. I haven’t been in mediums since my freshman year in high school. I was always a solid large through high school and a solid larger than that for the rest of my life.
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Someone recently asked me what size pants I wear and it was kinda nice to not be embarrassed by the answer. 😊
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Another NSV was a small cheat I had the other day. It's getting slightly warmer and ice cream sounded good. So we stopped at Braum’s and I got a Reese's PB Cup Mix (like a blizzard). Got home and took my blood sugar at about an hour and a half and it was 148. Which is excellent! It should be 140 or less at the two hour mark.
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So, in addition to losing 30+ lbs this year, my insulin resistance is nearly healed. Happy camper, right here. Yes m'am! 😀
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In celebration I wanted to share an awesome recipe that we had lately. Just one of the many things that have contributed to the weight loss and healing my body has undergone this year. It was way yummo!
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This would be a perfect dessert for Easter Dinner. |
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Pink Strawberry Delight. Click the pic to go there. |
We just pureed the strawberries instead of straining them, and used granulated Pyure for the sweetener. We used the THM gelatin, but you can easily just sub unflavored knox gelatin from the store.
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You know, I share about me from a THM perspective, but my hope is to encourage others to find the healing I’ve found on this plan. It's not just for overweight people, but those who have diabetes, high blood pressure, endometriosis, fibromyalgia, and many other diseases.
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Modern medicine would have you believe you're stuck with these things, once diagnosed, but that's not always true. Depression, eating disorders, high cholesterol, pregnancy, arthritis, thyroid problems, and many more issues all respond well to this Trim Healthy way of eating. |
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Wanna talk about Trim Healthy Mama? Send me an email at: |
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Jordanscrossingherbs@gmail.com |
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| | | Product Review:Big Berkey Water Filter System | |
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Remember me talking about the digestive troubles we were having? It was a while back. It started with me having some horrible gas attacks, and then a month or so later, my husband started having the same thing.
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Since it was happening to us both, same symptoms and such, we knew it wasn’t just in our minds.
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We spent a couple three weeks trying to find the common denominator. Through a slow process of elimination, we finally connected up that it was our drinking water which was causing the problems. (We live in the country and have rural water piped in from a nearby town).
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For lots and lots of years, we filtered our water through an AquaRain water filter. It has always served us well, but we figured up, the last time we bought replacement filters was at least 6 years ago. At least. (Ahem).
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The filters are good for maybe 3 years; 4 at the very max. (Ahem).
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But it was unmistakable that it was the water causing our tummy problems. It affected me sooner and more severely cuz I drink alot more of it than my husband, but he eventually caught up with me.
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So what to do? We stocked up on bottled water and started looking into getting another water filter with our tax check.
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Enter: Tax Check.
Enter: Big Berkey.
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In checking into water filters, we found the cost of replacing the filters on our old model wouldn’t be that much less than just buying a new filter. So since the old one had been in our home for upwards of 20 years and was pretty beat up, we decided to just get a whole new setup. We chose to go with a Big Berkey for a couple of reasons, but the main thing was the filters.
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They will even filter out food coloring! In fact, they’re so powerful they’re considered water purifiers, and not just filters.
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“As society advanced so did the complexity of the water borne contaminants that polluted our lakes, streams and wells. We needed something more powerful, something that could remove not only bacteria but new threats like viruses, heavy metals and chemicals....” |
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“..This amazing system reduces bacteria, viruses, volatile organic compounds (VOC's) and trihalomethanes to purification standards and lasts thousands of gallons....” |
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You can read more about these amazing filters here: |
(No I’m not a Berkey rep, just a very happy customer).
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The drinking water produced by the Berkey is very tasty and the filter itself is efficient and well designed. And, in the event of an emergency, if we had to, we can take the filter with us to a water source (pond or lake) and get water we can trust to drink that way. If we had to....
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My hubby hasn’t had any more problems since the switch. I, on the other hand, must’ve had a bit of damage to my gut. I’ve continued on bentonite clay (as mentioned in HHD #6) and added collagen to help my gut heal. But, the attacks are fewer and fewer and farther and farther between and they’re not even really painful any more; more of a nuisance than anything.
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So, was the filter expensive? It's def an investment, but considering our last one lived almost 20 years, and the Big Berkey filters are so powerful and protective of our health, it’s worth the money for sure.
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| | | Healthy Healing:Thinking on Soap | |
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Is the soap you’re using really soap?
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I was walking through the soap aisle at Walmart the other day. I was there to get shampoo and hand soap for a craft project. Of course, I was looking for the cheapest stuff possible. So many pretty colors and scents!
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And there was some really cheap stuff. Which was great for the craft I was working on (which was something that didn’t involve actually using the stuff). |
I looked at the ingredients. So much of it I couldn’t even pronounce.
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Which is usually a good sign that it's a chemical or synthetic.
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It made me start wondering what all the ingredients were in the glycerin soap we sell. It's a melt and pour deal. We get it from a trusted source, so I’ve never doubted its naturalness. But I'd never actually looked up all the ingredients either.
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So here we go... the ingredients in our soaps and its purpose there. All of it pronounceable. 😀 Lol.
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Coconut oil (moisturizing, lather)
Palm oil (hardens the bar)
Safflower oil (moisturizing, lather)
Glycerin (moisturizing, what makes the soap clear),
Purified water (umm, well, water)
Sodium hydroxide (lye)
Sorbitol (sugar alcohol, aides in transparency)
Soy bean protein (emulsifier)
Essential oils (gives it a medicinal purpose and scent)
Soap colorant (makes it pretty, the only thing not natural in our soaps) |
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In looking up all these ingredients I ran across some thought-provoking articles. (I’ll post links below in case you’re |
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interested). Most of the “soap” sold nowadays is actually detergent by definition. Beauty bars (yes, even Ivory), body washes, face washes, shampoos, etc. are all actually made from the same basic ingredients as your laundry “soap”.
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There's a lot of jokes about eating Tide-pods, but how about taking a bath and washing your body in Tide-pods? That's pretty much what one is doing when using commercial “soaps”.
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Because your skin is your body’s largest organ and what you put on it goes into your body. All these chemicals then are stored in your fat. If you can, visualize that yellow layer of fat underneath your skin over-loaded with chemicals and toxic things.
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Then think about all the “mystery” illnesses around today... fibromyalgia, lupus, ADD, cancer, and a hundred other things no one can figure out why they happen, etc., etc. Would it not make at least a little sense that there might be a connection?
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Beyond going into our skin and being stored in our bodies, it then goes down the drain and out into the environment to affect everybody else too. 😞
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God made our bodies so they can filter out a lot of gunk, but we can help the process greatly by being mindful of our toxic load. I’m not saying to be fearful of every bar of soap and bottle of shampoo, but yes, do think about the chemicals around you that you come into contact with and lessen it where you can. Your health, (especially as you get older) will thank you.
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So with all that said, are there real soaps you can get locally? Yes, Walmart sells Kirk's Castile Soap. It's affordable and has pronounceable ingredients. It's not over the top expensive either. We’ve used it often and recommend it. You can find other real soaps online all over the place. And of course, we recommend our glycerin soaps as well. You can find it in our store.
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As promised, here's those links I spoke of: |
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| | Spiritual Ponderings: Surrendering Fear |
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I’ve been struggling with some fear lately.
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A lot of it has to do with the Farmers Market starting up soon. This year, my husband has signed on to be the manager. That means he’s not going to be working our booth as much. That means I’m going to be the primary one working our booth. o_O
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In the past, that wouldn’t have bothered me. But since the stroke... things are a little different.
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We'll be in new area this year. A new routine. New people in that area. (“New” makes me strokey). Then there’s talking. The stroke stole my volume. Will people even be able to hear me? Some folks get irritated when they can't hear. And will they be patient enough with my somewhat slower than normal talking? Some folks you sense their patience. Others ...eww, boy... such pressure to hurry up and get out what I'm trying to say.
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Then there’s my lack of math skills. I keep having the scenario in mind of a large group descending and me being slow to add things up.... and that’s just cash. What happens if someone throws in a debit/credit card transaction? Having worked in retail before I know you just focus on the task at hand and look away from the huge line that’s forming and do your best. But.. yeah.... |
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I know God can regulate all of it. I saw him do that in the stroke itself. Everything I needed when it happened was right there. Right there.
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And I’ve watched him regulate my recovery, putting before me each thing, step by step. So I know this is just the next step. And he wouldn’t be giving it to me if he didn’t think it was time.
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But.. you know... fear. Fear of the unknown. Fear of failure. Fear of people and looking stupid. Fear.
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I read this quote recently by Edward Payson, “Anticipated sorrows are harder to bear than real ones, because Christ does not support us under them.”
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In other words, Jesus is there for me in the real things, not the imagined worst case scenarios. And we all know, 99% of the things we fear never ever happen. But Jesus will be there for me when I need him; when things are actually happening.
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Getting past fear is simply a matter of casting myself on the Lord, and then talking faith to myself. Letting him remind me what he has done in the past. Reminding myself what God can do. And expecting that his heart is to help me (especially that) and not drop me.
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Taking his hand and letting him help me to step away from the negative.
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The thing is, when I surrender my fears, when I start speaking faith to myself, when I believe in his love, he starts sending little encouragements and possibilities. I can already see him doing that. It’s like the fear makes me blind to him. 😔
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I don't want to be blind. I want to see.
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And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him. Heb 11:6. |
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Healthy Healing Digest is published from Barnsdall, Oklahoma 74002 |
| Copyright © Jordan's Crossing 2017-18FDA Disclaimer: The statements and products shown in this newsletter have not been evaluated by the US Food and Drug Administration. These products are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. Those seeking treatment for a specific disease should consult a qualified physician prior to use. | |
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