Life Without Refined Sugar

 
New! Larger type for those of us with near-vision issues. Got to love middle-age!

I've been hearing a lot lately about people giving up sugar for different reasons. Some people give up different forms of sugar. Some people give up all forms of sugar. Some give up white sugar and refined flour products. Sometimes it's about controlling blood sugar. Sometimes it's about having whole grains and natural sugars for improved health or to lose weight. And... some people are just health nuts.

For some ladies cutting sugar out of their diet has helped with hot flashes, which I have been suffering with for several years. I talked to one woman last year who uses herbs and natural supplements. She told me that she rarely eats sugar and assured me that she has no hot flashes unless she's eaten something with sugar in it. Since then, I've been telling myself that I can't live without my chocolate and my cappuccinos and cakes and pies. But I can definitely live without the hot flashes, which for some ladies last TEN YEARS! After one incredibly bad hot flash this week where I sat outside with no jacket or sweater and temps in the 30's with the heat coming over me in waves (it was one of the worst), I thought it might not be so bad to try eating no white sugar for a month as a trial. Typical for me, I've chosen the Christmas holidays, the time of year when people eat, serve and share the most sweets! I'm not planning to make a huge deal of it, I'm planning to just bypass the sweets and go for the veggies and fruits and nuts. (I'm also a vegetarian - not vegan - so I still eat cheeses and eggs and a little butter.) I'm the adventurous type and willing to try new things so I have a good attitude about it. Note: I cannot take hormones because even the lowest dose gives me terrible migraines. I would rather deal with the hot flashes than the migraines I had when I was taking the Pill back in my 20's. But it would be wonderful if this works for me. Then I can encourage other ladies who are suffering with menopausal symptoms and who are ready for a change. (Pun intended!)

Progress report - this is day 4. If I even THINK of something sweet today my mouth waters. I'm warily staying away from the sweets we have, the protein bars with chocolate, and the instant cocoa mixes in the cabinets as I don't want to test my resolve. I'm not really craving sweets. I'm still having hot flashes. I don't think it's been long enough to tell a difference. I went to the store on day 1 and got a jar of unsweetened applesauce (great with cinnamon!), unsweetened peanut butter, and some health food crackers with no sugar. I'm only cutting out refined sugar so I'm still having a little raw wild honey in my tea. I'm having a glass of water with a teaspoon of lemon juice in it each day, and for a treat I'll have a glass of water with a splash of tart cherry juice. I'm still having fruits but not canned fruits. I'm on the fence about raisins and prunes, and will probably keep them to a minimum since they are so very sweet and I don't want to skew the results. I want to give this a real try.

I haven't subjected my family to the same rules. They can have whatever they want. This is my experiment, not theirs. I'm not whining or preaching about it, I just want to see what happens. I will definitely share on here how it goes.

If you are thinking of trying this I suggest looking at several articles first, and see how other people have done it. Also, don't quit cold turkey. There are real withdrawal symptoms to deal with. I'm having jitters, shaky feelings, and the first night was in a really bad mood for while. And this is with cutting way back, not even completely cutting it out. I think today is the first day I've had nothing with white sugar in it. So with my fingers crossed, here we go!

Have you ever altered your diet to deal with physical symptoms? How did it go?

Knitting Journal, Again

My daughter, Katrina, has been keeping a much better knitting journal than I have.

She included a picture with her yarn sample, and a short description.

In the lower example she included the yarn label.

I think she also included the date.

I hope this gives you some good ideas.

Here are more of my knitting projects.

This started out as a case for my sunglasses but ended up as a Kindle case! Flexibility is so important.

On our last vacation we visited a yarn shop in Nags Head. I got some yarn that made me think of a sunset on the beach and a pattern for a shopping bag. That was fun!

I finally, finally started a knitting journal of sorts. I used a folder with prongs and regular notebook paper. (I hated to buy something with all those folders and the notebook paper from home schooling just lying around.) I included the yarn label, a sample of the yarn and a note about the project I knitted. I hope to include some pictures as some point. If only I'd taken pictures of each of my knitting projects! That's 20/20 hindsight.

My Sewing Binder

I've been sewing this summer and enjoyed organizing my materials. I decided to make a sewing binder to take to the store with me so that I wouldn't buy patterns and supplies that I already have. To quote a friend of mine: If you like it once, you'll like it twice! This is the cover for my binder. I used a regular 3-ring binder.

Inside, I put the pattern covers in sheet protectors so I can see the style, measurements and the fabric and notions required. In the pocket I have personal measurements and a pen.

I wrote down the notions I already have on hand and keep them in a baseball card holder.

I have swatches of fabric I have on hand and the measurements of the fabric.

Samples of thread

I have a copy of directions for taking children's measurements

And this is what happens when a husband's old tackle box is empty and they use the words, "No, I'm not planning on using that anymore."

Our Beach Vacation 2012

We took a short trip to Nag's Head Beach in NC in the Outer Banks. We are hooked. We loved it so much. I think each member of our family came to me separately and said that they want this destination for our beach vacations from now on. If you haven't been then give it a try! It's so pretty there and quiet, but there is plenty to do if you want to do more than veg out on the beach. The beaches aren't overcrowded. Plus...it's pet friendly! Our dogs got to walk on the beach early in the morning and later in the evening. I won't say that they loved it but they did find it interesting. Neither dog wanted to go into the water but they loved running on the beach (as far as their flexi-leashes would go, anyway).

Betsy travels very well and enjoyed the trip. She's still young at just 1 yr old.

Typical view of the road

Going by the marshes

Moonrise over the bridge

We found the Wright Memorial by happy accident

Katrina and Andy doing their flight impressions

Rascal needed a nap after a long walk

I made a new friend in the hotel bird, Sabrina

It was always easy to find a spot for our towels on the beach

The hotel had a great grassy area for the dogs to walk and do their "business"

Some of the parking lots had spots like these. We assumed it was for runoff from rain.

The hotel had beautiful landscaping.

I had so much fun with my new camera!

Mini rainbow!

And this is why I keep going back to the beach...

There really is a Farmville!

New Camera!

Andy and Betsy in Andy's homemade hammock

Rascal, my buddy!

Flowers at the Assisted Living Center in Nashville

 I've been having so much fun with my new digital camera, a Canon Sureshot. It's the first Canon I've owned and I'm extremely happy with it. It's a great product and I recommend it to my family and friends. I'm still learning which settings look best under which conditions, but it's fun figuring it out!

Steinway at UT Alumni Center

Anderson Park

Misty Morning

Corryton Sunset

One of my favorite flowers

Fall Gardening

Strawberry Bed

Check out my latch!

New "Fence" for My SFG

 











I'm doing fall gardening this year. I think I started too late last year, plus I had a serious lack of time to put into it since I had a steady job. This year I got bedding plants of spinach, collards and Brussel sprouts. My son and I are the only ones excited about the last one! I also got strawberry plants. Last year our strawberry plants all died last fall due to lack of rain and lack of watering. I've stayed vigilant this year and my son is great to help me when I can't water the plants and our little trees. One of my garden covers just came all apart so after mulling it over I got some stakes and nylon mesh and fashioned a "fence" around it. You can see I got real creative with binder clips! I later went to Mayo's and got some wooden stakes for the four corners. I got part of my plants at Ace Hardware in Halls, a few more at Home Depot and the strawberries from Knoxville Seed Co. on Rutledge Pike.

Before I planted I took the grids off and added a bag of manure compost to each garden. I also am feeding the gardens every 2 weeks. My seeds didn't grow well this past spring and after mulling it over I decided that A - my seeds were old and B - maybe they needed more nutrients. But I really think it was mostly A. I checked the dates and chucked several packets. I have the replacement packets in the fridge in their zip-lock bags.

My first lavender plant! It smells so good!

 Fall Container Gardening

This fall I planted some seeds in containers. I wanted to see which containers would work and which plants would grow in a container, and which would grow in the fall. Another reason is...I ran out of room in my gardens! It's a drawback to having such small gardens but I wanted to plant all my greens in the gardens and not a container. Maybe I can get the guys to help me build another garden...

I planted actual garlic cloves in this large planter.

This is lettuce in a recycled tree container that my peach tree came in.

Yes, this is an old cat litter pan. I washed it out really really well first!

My window box now has echinacea growing in it.

Sissy is checking to see if I'm doing my job!