No soup for me!

It's rainy today. So I'm making a pot of chili, and a double batch of cinnamon rolls.

I don't get to eat any of it, but I'm not sad.

I'm fasting.

And I feel great! Let me explain...

I was driving home from a special ed coop meeting (sorta like a school board for special ed students - lots of power in their hands) not too long ago when I just felt awful. Just sitting behind the wheel I felt gross. Unbutton-your-pants bloated. Worn out. I grabbed my phone and called my friend Traci Heim. It was a call for help. I was living through a storm of pure stress. I was even having a difficult time putting together a coherent sentence in conversation. I didn't want to blog because my brain fog was making it nearly impossible for me to find my words. Very concerning.

Now I've always been a dumpling, big boned my mom would say, but I've also always been enegetic, athletic and strong. The past six years - a medically fragile baby, sleeping with one eye on the pulse oximeter, near tragic drug overdoses, emergency c-section, failure to thrive, hospital stays, fights with doctors, fights with insurance companies, fights with school districts, hyper-vigilance, adding four children to our family, two adoptions, whacked-out post institutional behaviors, off the chart levels of stress - all these things and more had sapped my strength and energy.

I could not make it through the day without a nap.

Uncontrollable junk food cravings made me feel worse. And guilt was the cherry on top.

I needed a change, but how? With all my responsibilities? I bought a raw food cookbook, maybe that would help - sounded delicious! How about low glycemic index foods? Fine and good, but a mom who cannot count on getting a shower on any given day cannot count on having time to plan and chop and prepare those wonderful meals. Half of the kale I bought for green smoothies went bad and ended up in the garbage. Same with the beets I got to make borscht.

When I called Traci for help. it was because I knew that she had been doing something called a cellular cleanse. She experienced renewed levels of energy and significant weight loss. THIS! This is what I wanted. This is what I desperately needed!

I found out that Traci was part of a group of friends who had come together to reclaim their health and support orphan loving missionaries, my dear friends, the Twietmeyers, on their way to Guatemala. I wanted to feel better. And I wanted to help, too! I was ALL in!!        

I started my first Isagenix 30 day cleanse in September. Since then I have released 16 pounds and 28 inches, including 6 (SIX!!) inches off my waist. I can sit comfortably in the car with the seat belt on! More importantly, my brain fog vanished within a week. I could think clearly and use my words again! I could deal with the stressful school situations (oh my goodness!) and therapy drama we were experiencing.

I no longer need to "rest" in the afternoon.

I knew I was in bad shape, but I didn't realize how bad until I started to feel better. Oh goodness! I did take my measurements initially, but was too uncomfortable to even take a "before" photo of myself. I have a long way to go to reach a healthy weight, but I'm so thankful that I can say I have taken control of my habits again. I am managing my life instead of letting it push me around and hold me down.

There's more to my journey that I need to share, so please come back...

"Don’t you know that your body is a sanctuary of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought at a price. Therefore glorify God in your body."
 1 Corinthians 6:19-20