Chia Banana Pudding

Seriously delicious, was practically licking the bowl....

1/2c soy milk or almond milk
1 tsp honey or agave nectar
3 tbsp chia seeds
1 mashed banana

Put it all in a bowl, microwave for about a minute until warm. Stir it up and inhale it.

Irony

an outcome of events contrary to what was, or might have been, expected

Clinical Study (Acne) - Week 1

MUG SHOT!

Not a flattering photo but you get the point. No make-up freshly washed face with adult acne. My friend is in esthetics school and I'm her experiment. I have been warned that the Glymed products may cause my skin to peel, flake and be inflamed. Yahoo! - that's something new. (Where is sarcasm font when you need it?) Compared to what my skin looked like about 18 months ago, it's great! definitely not posting a photo of that but maybe this treatment is all I need to make it awesome.

It's a 8 or 10(or is it 12?) week series, I'm not sure I just do what she tells me to do. Every 2 weeks I will get a facial or a peel for a total of 6 treatments. At home, I will also being using a prescribed skin care regimen, this kit has yet to arrive but I am using the Glymed Sal-X Purifying Cleanser that has 2% salicylic acid twice a day followed by Garnier Moisture Rescue Refreshing Gel-Cream and Garnier Ultra-Lift® Anti-Wrinkle Eye Roller until it does. In addition to this I've been taking 100mgs of spironolactone daily and using Acne Free Therapeutic Sulfur Mask twice a week.

After the facial my skin felt clean and smooth. Many of the products used had ingredients that I have become familiar with over the years - tea tree oil, aloe, algae, salicylic acid, sulfur and the like. However, the moisturizer used at the end wasn't enough so I applied more when I got home.

Ch-Ch-Ch-CHIA!

NO. Not these creepy things!

The SEEDS!

Been munching on these little guys for about 2 weeks now and already noticed that my digestion is better and energy levels are up. I have sprinkled them into salads, spaghetti sauce, stir-fries, cheese spreads, smoothies and made them into pudding w. soy milk and honey (chocolate almond milk is the best pudding though!). If I know I'm not going to get a chance to eat after work before Zumba or taking the kids to their various "things" I have some pudding to hold me over until dinner.

The kids haven't noticed them since they take on the flavor of whatever it is they are mixed into. More recently, I soaked a couple of tablespoons into hot water and let them get soft before whisking them into the jello I was making for their packed lunches. Not a single word about the little black things in their snack but the containers were empty. It's not unlike a few strawberry or raspberry seeds.

My dad has incorporated these things to his own diet for a week and has also noticed increase in energy, he no longer needs his 2 hour nap in the afternoon. In fact, he said he napped for an hour and couldn't go back to sleep even though he wanted to! I was worried that it was going to be too much of a chore to get him to eat chia seeds daily since he's a guy and they don't want to be bothered with these things but it was very easy! He has them twice a day - 2 teaspoons mixed into his morning coffee ("It's like sago!" he says.) and then again in the evening he sprinkles them onto his rice or into his soup. He said it's like adding salt or pepper so he doesn't have to even think about it anymore which is amazing! Can't wait to see if it has helped curb his blood sugar levels since he has diabetes.

A few benefits of adding chia seeds to your diet:

• keeps you fuller for longer so you don’t eat as much
• helps stabilize blood sugar levels
• contain minerals, protein, antioxidants, omega 3 fatty acids, low calories, high in fiber
• people who eat them regularly have reported increased energy levels, decrease in aches and pains, less food cravings

(From http://www.mychiaseeds.com/)

Will keep eating and see what happens :)

Prayer is Powerful

That is all :)

Latest Addition to Our Family

No it's not what you think...


Oh yes! I've wanted a KitchenAid Stand Mixer since I was a little girl. So, I got it during a Black Friday sale and told my BF that what he got me for Xmas. I couldn't wait until Christmas to open it though, not will all the cookies I had to make!


With Girlzilla by my side our mixer was born! - this thing is HEAVY! Once we got her out of the box and cleaned up she was ready to go to work! We made sugar cookie dough in minutes flat, snickerdoodles without even bringing the butter to room temperature and a pound of mash potatoes in the same less time than it takes to make the powdered variety.

Yes, I love my stand mixer "Obsidian" like one of my own. She is as strong, as she is beautiful.

Awake....

Girlzilla woke me up about an hour ago asking for lotion because her eczema was bothering her. Poor thing scratches in her sleep until it bleeds. Her prescription medication isn't working anymore so her annual exam couldn't come at a better time.

My mom started putting Neosporin on the flared up spots and it has started to get a little bit better but won't completely clear up. Not sure why it works as well as it has but at least it will keep the spots where she has scratched herself to the point of bleeding from getting infecterated.

I feel awful when she gets self-conscious about her excema coz let's face it...kids can be mean! Flare ups occur when it's the weather is hot or the air is too dry. Girlzilla would rather wear leggings in the summer and endure the uncomfortableness of eczema just to keep the kids from making fun of her. I wish I could just go down to that school and pick on those kids since, Girlzilla doesn't really know how to defend herself yet but I think there are rules against that....brats.