Let's talk taco.

So for quite sometime, I have been veering away from traditional American diet breakfast choices, i. e., cereal, oatmeal, toast, bagels, etc.  I opt for eggs or another protein and veggies.  Because we had leftover chicken taco "fix'ins" in the refridge,  I was a little excited about breakfast this morning.  A few days ago, when I was preparing for last night's Mexican extravaganza (we had out of town family, in for Christmas, joining us for dinner), I had quite randomly picked up some oversized taco shells; when I opened the package, I was pleasantly surprised to see larger sized, sturdier shells.  So, with reckless abandone, I ate up two yummy and "healthy" ( or so I thought) tacos for breakfast.  I had seasoned the organic chicken with my own spices and all my other toppings were whole foods.  I took a moment "post breakfast" though and I got to thinking about the shells.  They were soooo tasty, and unfortunately, for my palate, that usually spells trouble like added sugar or wheat!  I do tend towards being a careful food label reader, but I was reminded that I just kind of threw these into my cart as a last resort; I had been looking for soft corn tortillas at the time, but could not locate them in the grocery store.  At any rate, I sauntered back to my pantry and pulled out the taco shell box--- things were initially looking good, pretty straightforward ingredients until I spied maltodextrine.  I had seen it before on labels, but had no idea what it was and it sounded like sugar to me.  Sure enough, my google search, for the most part, indicated "it's pretty safe," but no one really knows "how safe it really is," it could contain wheat depending upon where it is processed and "it really doesn't have any health benefit."  At the end of the day, I realized maltodextrine is just not quite as "straightforward" as eating an organic carrot, and so next time I buy taco shells (chips, cereal, and crackers, for that matter), I will hope to be able to find some at a decent price that do not contain maltodextrine... I will keep you posted.

Now, it is T-minus one day until I really get my whiteout game on... Feeling scared.

"Sick"

"I cannot go to school today said little Peggy Ann McCay, I have the measles and the mumps, a gash, a rash and purple bumps..." You may be familiar with this children's poem by Shel Silverstein titled, "Sick."  In the end, it turns out Peggy is really not sick at all, just really adamant about not going to school.  Unfortunately, unlike Peggy, I have had many physical complaints over the last few years, that are not just made up excuses, but real, inconvenient complaints that impede me from living my life to the fullest.  Fatigue, joint and muscular pain, carpel tunnel syndrome, nausea, constipation, irritability, mood swings, suppressed immunity, sluggish lymphatic function and yeast infections comprise my list of ailments that I have been dealing with in an ongoing way.  When I have sought help from a naturopathic chiropractor, he has always askedhow my diet is going.  When I research managing my symptoms there is a comon theme...(which I now paraphrase), "White refined flour and sugar exacerbate these conditions... They should be removed from the diet."   In response I have attempted to remove these items from my diet, time and time again, but I have been unable to make any permanent changes.  At one time, I did commit to a paleo diet for approximately 6 weeks... Indeed, I felt ahhhhhmazing!  A child's birthday party, some other type of social get together or the advent of a new pregnancy came around and all my good habits eventually disintegrated.  Here I am again,  I recently visited my chiropractor, bothered by candida related issues, his testing revealed sensitivity to wheat.  I have had a rough go with things the past few weeks -- UTI, flu, yeast infection and lingering aches and pains --- the time seems ripe to have another go at it... Fresh fruits, veggies, unprocessed whole foods and removal of the "whites" (sugar/flour) from my diet.  This time, I think I may be desperate and I figured a blog just may give me some sense of accountability... We'll see--- my journey officially starts in two more days.

On January 1, 2015 my journey begins.  It will be a daily struggle to remove white flour and white sugar from my diet... "Whiteout Journey."  I'm a sugar/flour addict!  I admit that as I sit here with a plateful of carrot cake frosted with buttercream that I brought home from a bridal shower, which I attended this afternoon.  I never say "No" when offered.  I' m an easy target for "food pushers" (folks who like to send home leftovers with guests)--- I have 5 small children.  I think it makes folks feel good to give me treats to feed my small ones.  Problem is, I usually eat the treats before offering them to my kiddos.  It's sad, but I do love flour and sugar sooooo much that... well...(my battery needs to be charged)... More of the consequences of my addiction tomorrow...