Cousin B body surfing in my happy place. Can you believe I used to babysit him? They grow up so fast.
I feel bad for not posting for nearly a month. Okay, not really. Well, somewhat. My focus has been elsewhere. Getting life together where I need it to be and not how everyone around me wants it to be. Hypnotherapy has opened my eyes and reminded me what my priorities were before moving to Cincinnati and that they worked for me. It’s reminded me that the little things I stress over these days are things I just need to let go of, forget about, and move on. It’s reminded me that I long for home and that when I feel overwhelmed, I can take a little out-of-body trip to my happy place. It’s reminded me that the book I’ve been writing for over a decade needs to be finished, a story I need to tell whether it sees a printing press and the emotions that flood me while writing it be damned. I. Am. In. Control. I am putting myself first.
I have done a couple of posts on Chocolate Wasteland. If you ever see I’m silent here, it may be that I’m being creative over there.
There are messes all over the apartment. I have to move things around on the dining room table if I want to take food pictures. Yes, I’m still taking pictures even if I’m not doing posts because there is that chance I will. I cook. I clean up my mess in the kitchen. I do the laundry. The basics are taken care of while I let everything else slide. Chaz spent most of this week in Toledo working in stores for his client so even some of the basics slid. Wednesday, I was so immersed in my writing that I lost complete track of time. It was too late to eat a full meal when I realized what time it was so I ate a couple of cookies I made Monday. They were an experiment of grain-free cookies so rest assured they were healthy and that you will get the recipe when I’m done. You know me. I’ve lost track of time all week while writing. Most nights crawling into bed at 2am to wake up at 6am and be at work by 8am. The candles have sufficiently been burned at both ends this week in order to feed this fire in my soul.
Stacy and Matt with the kids
Just in case you don’t believe I haven’t abandoned my passion in the kitchen (and the mention of a cookie experiment hasn’t convinced you), I will share a little of what I have been doing in the kitchen. I mentioned in my last post that I got to meet Stacy and Matt, Paleo Parents and authors of Eat Like A Dinosaur, while at the gfe retreat. They were the guests at the King George Gluten Intolerance Support Group that Shirley leads. They have 3 adorable boys that are typical boys. Screaming one minute about something and then happily playing the next. I was talking to Heather (I think) about popcorn and coconut oil. Stacy overheard me talking about popcorn and issued a challenge to me. Make Melissa Joulwan’s Caramelized Coconut Chips from her cookbook, Well Fed.
You know how I love a challenge.
I made them a couple of weeks ago. I was having a craving for potato chips and I was determined to not give in. I’m trying to stay away from inflammatory foods to help my body fight the inflammation I already have thanks to plantar fasciitis. Easier said than done when I’m faced will all kinds of potato chips at work. Good thing I’m not normally on that side of the store, but they are also at the check lanes and in the vending machine in the break room. Never mind that I keep trail mix in my locker. Not that I crave chips often.
Caramelized Coconut Chips
I got up in the middle of watching a TV show and finally made them. I think I was supposed to let them cool on a plate, but when you have a craving, cooling be damned! I silently thanked Stacy for issuing the challenge after my first taste. Salty. Crunchy. Healthy. Just what I needed. So now I say THANK YOU, STACY! I now say good riddance to potato chips and helloooooo Caramelized Coconut Chips. They are a snap to make. Faster than running to the grocery store when you have a potato chip craving. The funniest thing to come from the first time I made them, Chaz thought they were too salty. That was the first and probably the last time he thinks something I make is too salty.
I was also busy making some food from Eat Like A Dinosaur. Sometimes simple whole food is what you need, whether you are cooking for kids or not. I would do a full review for you, but I haven’t read through the whole book yet. Just snatches of it here and there. I have enjoyed everything I’ve made from it so far and there are more things I need to try.
Kale, Bacon, & Black Olive Egg Pie
Halupki Casserole
Maple Butternut Squash Puree, Fool’s Gold, and Zucchini Latkes
Egg Scramble & Little Cabbages
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