Birth Story of Jesse Seth - Part Three

As I have been rereading up to where we are now, I kept feeling like I was missing something.  I couldn't put my finger on it until I was having Dale read through them.  Dale, my strength and constant encourager, has been in my thoughts as an extension of myself but I haven't written that yet!  His depth of caring and concern can never be explained on paper.  When I opened my eyes, he was there - watching and waiting and usually anticipating my needs.  Cool cloths on my head, an arm to steady me as I moved, pressure on my back...  His concern about how long things were taking was palpable and he was doing everything he could to carry me through.  He is so much a part of me and the whole process that it was easy for my mind to see him there as I walked through it all again but it has to be said so I don't forget in the years to come!

So...

Around 9:30 things got, um, 'crazy' may be the right word.  I had been on my knees leaning against the birth stool on the bed.  When they checked baby's heart rate, they couldn't find it and from this point on, things are a blur and yet I remember most of it so clearly.  In a flurry of activity they had me change positions at the same time that Dale said, 'that's it, we are going to the hospital.'  Without hesitation, my midwife made the call to the hospital while her assistant found the heart rate again.  Apparently baby had simply shifted so the heart wasn't in the same place as before and they had also run out of the Doppler gel which is necessary for it to work!  After listening for a moment, the rate was a bit low but not dangerously low and it was regulating nicely to about 120.

That didnt matter.  The call had been made and everything was set in motion for us to transfer to the hospital.

My midwife came back in while Dale was moving the truck and warming it up (after shooing the children into the game room that the house had) and she told me, 'ok, this is it. One last set of pushes and then we go'.  I still think it is so amazing that she didn't pause or question Dales choice.  I remember laying on the bed, disappointed and knowing that the hospital meant a csection without question but also being at peace about whatever happened.  No one ever asked me if I wanted to go and I have no idea how I would have answered but once the call was made, my midwife never hesitated or questioned his decision.  That meant so much to me in that moment!  I can remember laying on the bed thinking, 'ok, Lord.  I choose to trust you to be leading my husband.' and being ready for whatever was to come.

So, one more set of pushes.  I could do this.  I gritted my teeth, pushed my chin to my chest and I am pretty sure I blew a few blood vessels in my head for those two pushes.  I was determined to give everything I had so I knew I did my absolute best.  (Something I never realized until after everything was over... I was hesitant with my pushing because I was afraid my csection scar would not hold against it. I wasn't consciously thinking that at the time but when I looked back, I remembered in those last two pushes thinking that it would be ok if my scar tore as long as the baby was delivered safe.  Strange thinking but it likely had a big impact! Who knows if things had been shortened if that thought wasn't there.)

After the last pushes, they stood me up and put my robe and shoes on me.  When it was time to take a step, I couldn't move.  Instantly I had a strong contraction and knew something had changed. Looking back I think it was the lifting of my legs to put my feet in my shoes.  Initially we thought it was walking so maybe it was a combination of both combined with those last pushes?  Either way... I told them I couldn't walk and then felt my body starting to bear down with a push.  It didn't matter to anyone, they were starting to drag me along!  

I was able to take about 5 steps to just outside the bedroom door when it happened again!  I stopped, tried not to bear down and push and said 'I can't do this. I can't walk!' I actually started to cry for a second at this point because I felt like I was loosing control and no one was listening to me.  My midwife was listening to my words though because she said, 'just a few more steps. You can do this for your baby.' I gritted my teeth again and said, 'for my baby.' as I purposefully and quickly took the last steps to the door.  (Later my midwife told me that her assistant had seen the physical change of the baby about to be born and had actually held her hand under me the whole way just in case.  I didn't even remember that!)

At the door it happened again though. I had to stop and tried not to bear down with another contraction and then told them they would have to carry me the rest of the way because I could.not.walk. They said they would but they didn't... They just started walking again, dragging me out the door.  I looked up and saw how far I had to go and held on to Dales back as he drug me and the others helped along from behind.  It really isn't that far up to where I had to go: 

(Taken the next morning. The snow was all gone off the step by then but you can imagine how it looked.)

I made it about 5 more steps but when I stepped up onto the walkway, another contraction hit and there was no stopping the pushing this time. (Another reason I think the stepping up/lifting my leg motion made a difference.)  I let go of Dale and turned to the right to hold onto that pillar and totally against my will, our baby's head started to crown right there on the porch!  (Apparently both my midwife and her assistant saw this coming as they were both totally ready for it and not at all surprised when it happened.)

My midwife looked and said something about a head and 'get her back in the house, we are having a baby!' as she and her assistant started dragging me back in.   

At that moment, we could hear the ambulance arriving and it pulled up just as we started back into the house.  Dale later said he didn't realize what was happening at first with the baby and that it was only because the ambulance had arrived that he agreed to go back in!  

The next few minutes are a total blur but this is how I remember it...

I remember next being in the house and turned around facing the door, though not sure how I got there.  I remember being lay down onto the ground at the same moment the next contraction hit and the head fully crowned.  Then I remember the next contraction seemed like immediately after and my midwife catching and pulling out the baby.  It seems like about the same second I actually hit the ground (actually Dales legs and arms behind me) that there was suddenly a fresh new baby laying on my chest with towels and blankets covering us from nowhere (the assistant was on top of everything!).  The paramedic from the ambulance had come in as the baby was being pulled out and was just sitting to my left and letting us know he was available if we needed anything but it was pretty clear we were all set.  He was so kind and patient and even though he wasn't needed, I think there was a sense of reassurance that he was there.  

Then everything stopped and was clear and calm.  

There was a fresh new baby laying on my chest!  I heard my midwife comment that HE was doing well and I said 'oh, it's a boy!!' -never did look to see ;). His eyes were looking all around even though he wasn't yet taking his own breaths.  It was so amazing... His cord pumped forever (I think it was 12 minutes after he was born) and it was a while before he even needed to breathe because of it!  Then there was that sweet, clear, and heart-stopping sound of his first cry.  It was clear and just like breathing life back into my exhausted body.  We did it. 

His apgar was an 8; His cord was long, thick (so thick the usual clamp wouldn't fit), and not around his neck (a first for my babies!); his breathing was clear and not rattly/mucousy at all.  He was obviously totally oblivious to the last 17 hours and not affected at all by the whole ordeal.  Glory to God alone!

From this point on there are chunks of time missing from my memory.  I don't remember getting up from the floor or going back into the bedroom. I remember rinsing off in the shower but don't remember getting in it or going back to the bed.  I remember Dale taking the baby in to show the other children and hearing squeals of delight but I don't remember where I was when that happened or him bringing the baby back.  The exhaustion was settling in and most of what I remember is holding my baby in bed and just praying over and over, thanking The Lord for every single minute of the last day.  

I fell asleep before the midwife and her assistant left and spent the rest of the day dozing on and off.  It was Wednesday before I had much of any strength and that was just fine!  He was here and we were both doing wonderfully.

There have been many thoughts in my head since Jesse was born... 

First to come was the realization that if I had had any other provider caring for me than the midwife I did, Jesse would have been born by csection hours before.  I was a poster mom for 'failure to progress' even though obviously he was delivered just fine.  I can think of no other provider I know that would have spent hours and hours laying on their own back and literally suffering along with me.  (Can you imagine an OB holding a cervix out of the way for hours on end? Yeah... me neither!)  I truly love her and am amazed and humbled by her own sacrifice for us! 

Next came the laughter at his actual birth!  Though it was so long and incredibly intense, his birth will mostly be remembered for the last 30 minutes of it.  I keep laughing as I play it over in my head!  Though it definitely wasnt funny at the time, it sure is to me now -great memories were made in the most unlikely way.  

Choosing his name proved to be more of a challenge than we expected but in the end, his name is so fitting for his birth and we pray for his life.  God does exist and He does care about every part of our lives.  He cares about our dreams and desires; He cares about our fears and troubles; He cares about the big issues in our lives; He cares about the tiny details in our lives.  He also puts us exactly where we need to be for each moment of our life.  Nothing happens without a reason.  Nothing is out of His control.  All things work according to His will.  

The end of Jesses birth story but just the beginning of the best part -his life!

Thank you, Lord for our sweet Jesse... 

Birth Story of Jesse Seth - Part Two

The next several hours were very uneventful. Well, for everyone but me! The children all went to bed; midwife and assistant took turns resting and checking heartbeat; even Dale was able to lay down and sleep for about an hour.  Me? I switched positions between the pool, the bed edge, the stool, and the bathroom in my little space...

I did rest and almost sleep for a bit on the bed around midnight I think.  Then there were many times in the tub I dozed off between contractions.  Overall, it was just hard contraction after hard contraction almost on top of each other for hours and hours.  It was exhausting and yet I never felt discouraged or anxious.  My midwife was so supportive and encouraging- Telling me I was doing amazing when I sure didn't feel it!  

I need to check on these times but somewhere around 6am Sunday morning, I asked to be checked again. I was having slight bearing down urges during some of the contractions but it still was not to where my body was ready to fully push.  I was relieved to hear fully effaced but confused to hear there was an anterior lip of the cervix that was not dilating.  I had no idea what that really meant and had never experienced it before.  They explained that basically the baby's head position was not allowing pressure against that part of the cervix and therefore it was not dilating out of the way and allowing the baby to slide into the birth canal.  Oookaayyy... Now what?!

Well, the answer was to physically hold the lip out of the way while I pushed his head past the cervix and down the birth canal.  Um. It is important to interject here that I had never actively pushed for any of my other births.  I had always waited until my body did it on its own and all my babies were born within just an involuntary push or two.  I had intended to let the same happen this time as that is the ideal way to birth.   So when I was told to push when I didn't feel that overwhelming bearing down urge, I had no idea what to do!

And that sets up the next four hours of labor...

My midwife lay on the bed or floor near me, manually holding the cervix aside waiting for a contraction so I could push with it.  I remember her having to switch arms because her arms and hands were falling asleep on several occasions but she had to be quick as every time she let go, the cervix would go back again! She continually encouraged me through contractions, helping to feel where to focus my efforts.  She and her assistant coached me on how to push this way. Things like putting my chin on my chest and relaxing my bottom into the bed/ground as I pushed.  I felt like I had no idea what I was doing and at this point I was so exhausted I needed to be reminded of most everything I know as a multi-birthed Mama and Doula.  Thankfully controlled breathing continued to come easy and I didn't cry! I knew if I started crying I would give up and not be able to regain my control.  

Somewhere around the middle of this time frame my water (finally) broke.  All over my poor midwife who was of course laying in just the right place to be almost bathed in it! The fluid was blessedly clear and there was no cord in the way.  All the important things to pay attention to were still right where they should be.  Baby's heart beat never dropped below the 120-130's to my knowledge which means he was managing labor just fine and oblivious to all I was going through to bring him into the world.

(Note to interject... I had been taking large doses of Vitamin C -about 8,000mg daily- to help strengthen my amniotic sac and prevent premature breakage. In truth I was hoping for a baby born in the Caul (water sac).  There were several times during the night that I was very upset with myself for doing so as it obviously made a difference.  In my head I thought 'if my water would break it would help to speed things along!'.  It wasnt until much later that I realized how even this small detail was Gods hand of protection on my baby.  Had my water broken earlier, it likely would have stressed the baby and who knows what that would have led to.  I remember my midwife reminding me that it was all happening as it was for a reason.  She was so right!)  

I am guessing it was around 9am when I began to notice longer pauses between contractions and a bit more clarity to my surroundings and thoughts.  I still don't know if something had changed or if my body was just so exhausted that it was slowing down.  I do remember the passing concern that if the contractions weakened, it would not be a good thing.  They were giving me 'energizing' tinctures and homeopathy pistules which had been helping but I was just plain tired.  I know I have never sweat so much in my entire life!

Everyone else could see my exhaustion as well and I remember Dale asking the midwife if there was a point where we would just have to go to the hospital.  My midwife said that was totally our call and she would never question our decision to go.  Dale or I simply had to say the word and she would make that happen.  No one asked me what I thought but in my head I was totally torn for the first time.  I felt discouragement entering.  It was then I realized that both my midwife and her assistant were praying for me and the baby.  Then I heard Dale in my own ear telling me I could do this.  At that moment, I knew again that I wanted to do it and could do it if God gave me the strength.  I prayed desperately that Gods will alone would prevail in however the birth ended and I was prepared for whatever direction He took me.  

To be continued... (just one more time, I promise!)...

Birth Story of Jesse Seth - Part One

Every time I start to write the story of Jesse's birth, I can't think of where to start.  (Or else someone or some thing needs me and I am interrupted!) I have to confess that the last six months of life have been very difficult for me. Between moving and the stress pregnancy always takes on my body and then the general stress of life in a busy, growing family, I was more overwhelmed than ever.  There were times I struggled to see Gods hand working in our life and even a few times when I questioned every thing if know to be true.  I worried about the details surrounding the upcoming birth and being so far from a hospital when the time came (even though we were birthing at home) and the unpredictable road conditions out of the canyon and the winter weather... Looking back now, I can clearly see Gods hand working and orchestrating the very details I was worrying about and so much more!  A reminder I didn't know I needed that we truly can trust Him for all things -large and very small.  He truly cares.

Some background info/details...

My longest labor until now was Austin -6 hours.  With the exception of Cole (my csection), all of my other labors were between 3 and 4 hours long.  Labor length is measured from the time active labor begins (5 cm dilation usually) until birth. 

My midwife lives about 2-1/2 hours from McCall. 

My early labor lasts for weeks, literally.  Getting to the point of no return tipping of active labor is a long and actually annoying process for me. 

We rented a house in McCall so that we could be closer to the hospital in case that was necessary.  The house is less than a two minute drive to the hospital entrance and the ambulance garage is even closer.

So with that background, I had been in early labor for a while when I woke Saturday morning to things being a bit 'different'.  Contractions were staying regular -though still not terribly strong; Bloody show and lots of mucous passing were the biggest clues things were about to change at some point.  I called my midwife to let her know I thought it was getting closer.  She and her assistant packed up and arrived at the house around 11:30am.  (Yes, I was really worried that everything would stop again and they would have to make the trip two more times!) I am so thankful there was no need to worry about her making it in time.  God definitely gave us enough warning that they made it with time to spare.  Plenty of time...

One of the things that always bugged me about hospital births was the frequent cervical checks.  They don't tell you a whole lot in the early stages and can cause more problems than information they provide.  I was super excited that my midwife was totally fine with not doing them unless there was a reason or I was curious.  So when they arrived, all we knew was that last we had checked, I was about 3 cm and 10-15% and that was about a week before.  Since I had been having lots of contractions in the week since, we knew something had to have changed but I really wasn't worried about how much of a change.  I just assumed that things would progress as all my other labors had and within a few hours, we would have our sweet new baby.  

We spent the early afternoon chatting, setting up the room (pool, stool, etc), crocheting and just generally relaxing.  Contractions were regular and definitely getting stronger but also definitely not moving very fast!  Around 5:00 Saturday afternoon/evening, I finally decided I was curious enough to be checked and knew that by doing so, we could also stir things a bit by stripping the membranes.  I was surprised to find I was a 5 that she was able to stretch to a 7 (which she did while stripping the membranes) and about 60% with baby around station -1. All definitely progress and though seemingly slow, I had just then reached active labor!  

Sure enough things picked up. Contractions harder and more frequent and all the other signs more clear.  Our friend arrived to help watch the other children so that Dale could be more available for me and it was a nice distraction to chat with her between contractions in the tub!  Though it was clearly labor, the atmosphere was so relaxed and calm.  Contractions were easy to manage and it felt like things would be over soon based on my past experiences.  I even made the -silly- comment that it seemed so easy.  That it was my easiest labor yet! Hmm...

As the evening wore on, the contractions continued to I be intense but there were long pauses between them where I had total mental clarity and almost like it had all stopped.  Some will remember my comment that this must be transition.  I have experience that twice before where all of a sudden, things feel different and between contractions there is no pain and a feeling of calmness.  It had to be transition! Well, I was wrong about that.  After another stretch of time I asked to be checked again.  At this point I don't remember time frames but probably an hour or so later (so about 4 hours into active labor), I was 7-almost-8 cm and fully effaced with baby at station 0.  Again, all great progress but much slower than in the past!  But at this point I thought, ok...  Now we are there.   Baby is almost in the birth canal and 8 to 10 usually goes really fast!  Yet again, I had no idea what was coming! 

To be continued...

Missing blogging at a time I need to be blogging!

Missing blogging at a time I need to be blogging!

After weeks of ups and downs and backs and forths, God clearly is telling us now is the time to move from the Lowcountry and head west. This has been our dream and goal for so long and yet as it is actually happening there is definite apprehension mixed with the excitement. We have some very special friends here and truly care about our current bosses. We have just found true fellowship with other believers that we have desired for 5 years. Though there are many 'why now?!'s said with a very sad heart, we fully trust God, His leading, and His plan. Everything is for a purpose. God is never late and is never early. His timing is always perfect. There is such comfort and peace in following Him as well. I dont worry that 'we' are making the wrong decision since it really isnt ours. We know His plan for the future of our whole family is perfect. Every time.

And so we have been preparing to leave our job and home here in the Lowcountry and head to the high mountains of west central Idaho.

I am really going to try and update along the way since God has moved in so many ways that have left us speechless. I dont want to forget them and I know others can be encouraged by them.

In all thing, to God alone be the glory!

Vitamins and Such

I am going to write a full post on this topic but there are several who have asked me my recommendation for quality vitamin and mineral supplements.

My first suggestion is to use Senseable Supplements and get their 9 mineral drops, electrolytes with the 4 buffers.  However... since I know that is a bit overwhelming to look at -and on the expensive side initially (though really not long-term), here is what I would recommend instead:

Womens MultiVitamin
(Yes, I know it says women over 40 but the vitamin and mineral content as well as the other whole food components are excellent for every age.)

Childrens Chewable MultiVitamin
Excellent Liquid MultiVitamin(great quality but not always easy to take without mixing with juice)

Mens MultiVitamin


In addition to the above, I recommend additional Vitamin C, D3, Magnesium and Selenium.

Adult capsules/tablets:
Vitamin C(though I also highly recommend the Frontier powder and if you are local, you can order it though our co-op for less than $20 a bag!)  Adults dose is a minimum of 6,000mg for most everyone.  Yes, that is written correctly.
Vitamin D3(yes, take all 10,000IU unless you spent the day outside, then cut it in half and take only 5,000IU)
Magnesium3-4 tablets daily
Selenium2 tablets daily

Childrens Chewables (if they can take the adult pills/capsules, they are much better than the chewables but I know little ones take a while to get there)
Vitamin C(the powder is great here too for mixing with juice -especially when sick- but this is a good chewable alternative.
Another Chewable C
Dissolvable Vitamin D3
Magnesium Powder (epsom salt baths is another great way to get magnesium into your little ones and help them relax for sleep!)

All of these are ones that we either currently use or have used in the past and I checked to be sure none of the ingredients have changed.  There are several things you must be aware of and look for when purchasing supplements such as this.  I will include that information on the full post as soon as I can get to it.  In the meantime, please do email or message me if you have any questions at all.


The law requires me to tell you that there are affiliate links in this post.  Amazon gives me a small commission for purchases you make through the links included here.  I would greatly appreciate any purchases you make through this post!

Redecorating the kitchen

The challenge: Find a paint color for my kitchen to match this. The hard part? It must be in the grey-blue family.
If you know me at all you know I am overwhelmed with just the thought!

Sourdough Brownies

Unbelievably simple and so delicious.  Finally a chocolate treat that is basically healthy!  Remember: It is the quality of ingredients you use more than anything else.  We will be making these a LOT from now on!  

Original recipe is from The Complete Idiot's Guide to Fermenting Foodsbut like most baking recipes, I didnt follow it exactly.  Her book includes all of the information you need to start your own sourdough starter as well but getting a bit from a friend is the easiest way!

Here is what I did:  

Sourdough Brownies

Makes one 8 or 9" pan

Ingredients:

4    eggs

3/4 cup organic baking cocoa powder

1    cup (scant) organic raw sugar (any unrefined)

1    stick butter

1    teas vanilla extract

1/2 cup whole wheat sourdough starter (fed within last 12 hours)

Directions:

• Take the stick of butter and butter the pan with it. 

• Melt lightly melt remaining stick of butter.

• Put all ingredients (eggs, cocoa, sugar, melted butter, vanilla, and extract) into medium mixing bowl and mix well -wisking until smooth and well combined.  

• Pour batter into buttered pan.

• Bake 25-30 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.  

• Remove from oven and let rest for 10-15 minutes.  It will pull away from the sides a bit.  

Serve plain or with fresh whipped cream or ice cream.  Store leftovers in the fridge or freezer.  

My very first attempt at anything soughdough... English Muffins! Will go great

My very first attempt at anything soughdough... English Muffins!

Will go great with our potato-egg casserole and sourdough pancakes with pastured bacon for dinner!

Freezing Lemon Juice

We were given a HUGE bag of lemons a few months ago that we had planned to freeze the juice from.  Well, the weeks -and now months- went by before I got a chance to even pull them out of the bag unless I needed to use one!  Finally, I set the children to work peeling a bunch of them so that we could juice them and freeze it.  They peeled a huge bowl of them and that bowl then sat in the fridge for about a week before I Dale finally juiced them for me one night.  In other words... they lasted forever and still had tons of juice even after sitting in the fridge all unpeeled!  (Thankful for a Husband who continually helps me in these ways too.)

Initially I was going to use ice cube traysbut can you believe I dont have a single one!  I went to buy some but then as I thought about it more, I decided I wanted to freeze the juice in 1-lemon servings.  Ice cube trays are an ounce or less per square and an average lemon (or recipe calling for the 'juice of 1 lemon') is 2 ounces.  Hmm. What to do...

I finally decided to juice them and freeze the juice in jelly jars-which I have a lot of- and then pop the juice out of the jars, put them in baggies and back into the freezer.  It worked great!!

The Great American Fruit Tree Campaign will have full details on how I froze my juice soon so here are just a couple of pictures to hold you over and give you an idea how you could do it too.

(We peeled the lemons; sliced in half cross-ways -revealing the seeds; picked out some of the seeds but not all; and then juiced in our juicer.This gave us lots more juice than hand squeezing but even doing it by hand would be worth the effort!)

Bowl of lemons. The smaller ones are the ones given to us by friends and that we just juiced. The large ones are Meyer Lemons -those are up next!

2 oz/ 1 lemon 'cubes'

Baggie of frozen lemon juice cubes!

Freezing Squash

Kroger had a great price on Organic Butternut Squash ($2.99 each and they were huge) so I grabbed a bunch -eating some now but also wanting to preserve some for later.  I decided to freeze three of them and thought I would share how I did it so you can see how simple it is.  Anytime you have extra veggies that you wont be able to use before they spoil (or a great deal like this), simply freeze or otherwise preserve the extras and you will save money as well as adding to your 'emergency' food supplies.

The 3 I chose to freeze

First peel off the outer skin.  You may need to go over the squash twice in order to get all of the skin off.  See the color difference here?  You want the lighter color all removed so all you have is the deep yellow flesh left.  

(No idea why these two pictures are backwards!?)  

Cut in half (pic below) and then cut off the stem end (above).

Cut the top section in half, slice into crescents, and then dice into pieces.  

Slice the bottom in half revealing the seed section.  

Using a large spoon, scoop out the seeds and pulp.

I saved the seeds to eat later.  (Rinse and soak overnight in salty water then dehydrate or bake until crisp -yummy!)

 Slice off the bottom end

Cut the blossom/hard portion off and save the side pieces.  (Its all about saving every bit you can!)

Again,slice into strips and then dice into pieces.   

The container of diced squash pieces.  

I wanted mine in 4c portions as that will be about 1 meal for my family.  

You can freeze them in ziploc bags if you only want to freeze them for a few months. (Up to 6.)

Or you can vacuum seal them and they will remain fresh for years in the freezer.  (I love our FoodSaver-Jarden GameSaver Silver but even the more basic FoodSaver - GameSaver would be great!)

(Note I recommend labeling your bags BEFORE you put the squash in them -sure is hard to write on those chunks of squash in those bags!)  

If you prefer, you can also cook the squash chunks, mash them and then add them to ziploc bags for freezing.  I may go back to Kroger and get a few more if they still have the sale and do that.  We love butternut squash mashed and cooked with lots of yummy butter and sea salt!

Venison -frozen

Venison is the only meat I can think of that is actually easier to prepare when still frozen. We can a lot (most) of our venison but do freeze all of the tenderloins and larger steaks.

Since I didnt grow up eating venison and didnt really get many chances to try it, I was convinced I hated it. Dales dad cooked it the first time I actually remember eating it and I was shocked that not only did it not taste terrible, I loved it! A while later I tried cooking some for our dinner and it was awful. Needless to say, it DOES matter how it is cooked and it took me a few times watching Dale before I figured it out well enough to make myself. (Though it was nice when I didnt know since that meant he cooked!) Venison is now one of our staples and every one of the children love it.

In a large (10") skillet -cast iron is best- melt 1 stick of butter. Add 1 whole onion diced or sliced (your preference) and garlic (fresh or minced and as much as you like- I do 2 or 3 cloves fresh). Cover and cook while you prepare the meat.

Take frozen venison steaks and slice them in thin medallions. It actually cuts easier while frozen and you also save the juice that way since it is frozen right into the meat. Sometimes I take them out an hour or so before cooking so they are easier to take out of the package. Other times I use hot water to loosen them.

Add the venison to the skillet, stir to mix together, cover, and simmer for an hour.

Stir occasionally but not necessary.

After abt 30 mins, test for tenderness. If still a bit tough, cook longer. If tender,leave uncovered and simmer, stiring often, until juices have mostly absorbed. Once the juices are reduced, it is ready!

Love served with a hot baked potao and cheddar cheesy broccoli.


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Look what is set back up!

I have lots I want to share soon in the food preservation area. Freezing, dehydrating, and hopefully some canning. In looking through preparedness and survival packages, it will be a lot cheaper to buy own own organic produce and preserve it ourselves than to buy the non-organic already prepared stuff!

Lots (hopefully) coming soon!

Also, please visit www.GAFTCampaign.com and bookmark her site. Will be doing some guest posting but there is also tons of great stuff there.

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Kimchi Recipe (AKA Korean Sauerkraut)

This is the recipe I use to make my Kimchi.  As with everything I do, there were slight variations and alterations -left out the radish and used less salt for example.  Mine did fine in a tightly sealed mason jar -no airlock- though when I opened it on day 3, there was definitely good pressure.  (Oxygen in ferments can reduce the amount of probiotic benefit so try not to open them.)

Recipe is from my constant go-to book (and what I keep falling back to whenever I start looking at other nutritional diets and such):

Korean Sauerkraut/Kimchi

Makes 2 quarts

1    head cabbage (Napa), cored and shredded

1    bunch green onions, chopped

1    cup carrots, grated

1/2 cup daikon radish, grated (optional)

1    tablespoon ginger -freshly grated

3    cloves garlic -peeled and minced

1/2  teaspoon dried chili flakes

1    tablespoon sea salt

4    tablespoons whey (if not available, use extra 1 TBSP sea salt)

Place vegetables, ginger, garlic, red chili flakes, sea salt and whey in a large bowl and pound with a wooden pounder or meat hammer to release juices.  Place in a quart-sized, wide-mouth mason jar and press down firmly with a pounder or meat hammer until juices come to the top of the cabbage.  The top of the vegetables should be at least 1 inch below the top of the jar.  Cover tightly and keep at room temperature for about 3 days before transferring to cold storage.

My notes:

I shredded my carrots and it worked fine but I think finer pieces would have tasted better.  

I do use whey in mine so can not say how it would taste with the extra salt instead.  

Make sure your bowl has as flat of a bottom as possible and if it is plastic, be careful as you pound the mix.  I cracked two of my plastic bowls so far from the meat hammer hitting the sides -oi!  

After pressing it into the jars as much as I can with the hammer, I then use my hand to press it again and level out the top.  Make sure your hands are very clean first!

The plastic mason jar lids work for this but I think I recommend using the two piece tops -with a ring- so that should too much pressure form, it will press up the top rather than blowing the glass jar.  (A 

Fido Jarwould be awesome for this and will be what I use next time.)  
You can use smaller amounts and do more jars if you need to -4 pints for example.  Follow all the same instructions.  

Quick Note: We stopped GAPS Intro. Will explain details as I have time but in

Quick Note: We stopped GAPS Intro.


Will explain details as I have time but in a sentence (or 2)... The more I learn, the more I realize I dont know. (and) Every person and family is unique.

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Why are we doing GAPS?

Our family is very healthy in general.  When someone is sick, they typically recover very quickly and rarely does anything come up that causes us to worry during an illness.  We eat very clean -about 50-60% of our diet is raw or lightly cooked; we eat about 75% organic foods (and those that are not organic are either locally grown or typically a 'clean' food); we raise our own chickens for eggs and meat; the list of 'healthy' things we do both in diet and lifestyle goes on and on.  So why in the world would we even consider an extreme healing diet like GAPS?

The first reason is that every single person can benefit from this healing program.  Every day we are subjected to toxins -just about everywhere.  Try as hard as you want, there is no way to completely avoid them.  This is the reason we are including C1 and (as much as possible) C2 on the diet.

The second -and biggest- reason is that several of us have 'issues' that we are hoping to heal and eliminate during this month (or more) on GAPS.  My husband deals with candida, allergies, anxiety, joint issues, and a plethora of gut/intestinal issues; I struggle with candida, allergies (skin and environmental), joint issues, and sensitivities; A1 also struggles with candida and skin issues as well as ADD-type concentration struggles; A2 is my vaccine-injured child who struggles with many gut issues -including IBS, gluten sensitivities, and chronic (severe) constipation. She also has several Autistic spectrum markers; some ADD-type issues; Restless leg; and a few other 'minor' issues.

Though I know GAPS is not a magic-bullet that will heal all our issues forever, I do know that science has proven over and over that it is beneficial and does bring healing.  Even if a portion of our issues are healed and we spend a month detoxing, it will be worth it for us on the whole.

We are going to be learning a lot along the way and since I will forget what I dont record, anyone who follows along with me might learn a thing or two as well!


I do highly recommend getting a copy of Gut and Psychology Syndrome: Natural Treatment for Autism, Dyspraxia, A.D.D., Dyslexia, A.D.H.D., Depression, Schizophrenia . Watch the price as it fluctuates a lot.  (Currently $28 plus shipping and I have seen it as high as $40 plus shipping!)  It is definitely a book you will want to own rather than just borrowing as it contains recipes and step-by-step guides to help you along the way.

We are also using this eBook: What Can I Eat Now?  It contains step-by-step and Day-by-Day guides for the Intro portion that we are doing.  Literally contains a menu with recipes for every day of the typical 30-day plan and how to know when you are ready for the next Stage.  You could probably get away with just this guide if you cant afford the GAPS book right now.

Probiotics and Sick Tummy's

If I dont quickly write about this now I will forget to do so but time is limited right now...

I woke this morning to C2 vomiting in my face.  Yeah, my face.  Thankfully I moved mostly out of the way so she only caught the side as I was in motion but still... ugh.

While she is sitting on my bed and I am trying to figure out how to go about getting up and cleaning us both up without making more of a mess, I can hear C1 in the bathroom moaning.  Whining and whimpering for Daddy.

This cant be good.

That was at 7am and for the next 3 hours there was almost constant vomiting -sometimes both of them together with me holding a bucket in each hand while they retched into them.  By 10am, the vomiting was over and they were begging for food.  Fevers were low but not gone and their faces were fairly ashen as evidence they had been really and truly sick.

By 11:00 they were both begging for food.  By lunchtime they both ate a normal lunch and I sent them to bed -neither wanting to lay down but both falling asleep fairly quickly.

What I did...
When they first started throwing up, I dont do anything at first.  The infection (bacterial or viral) needs to leave their system and one of the natural ways to expel it is via vomiting.  Not fun but necessary and a good thing.  I also dont treat fevers unless they go above 103 for more than 30 minutes for the same reason but that doesnt apply this time.

When their vomiting didnt produce much actual vomit, I begin giving them teaspoonfuls of probiotics.  Initially -since they are vomiting even water- I give them a single teaspoon after each bout of vomiting.  I then set a timer for 15 minutes.  If they havent vomited again, I give them another teaspoon.  If they vomit shortly after the next one, I start over immediately and give a new teaspoon as soon as they finish vomiting.  When they can go more than 20 minutes without vomiting (so they are mostly keeping the probiotic down), I increase the probiotics to 2 teaspoons (or 1 tablespoon depending on the child) and continue giving them more every 15 minutes.  When they have gone 30 minutes without vomiting, it is usually a sign that the worst is over.  At this point, I give them a small (4oz) cup of 1/2 purified water and 1/2 pure juice -fresh squeezed is best- and let them drink HALF of it along with a dose of probiotic.  Set the timer for 30 minutes and repeat with the last half of the cup of water/juice.  Each illness is different but usually after this point you can introduce light and easily digestible foods.  (This time we started with very soft cooked egg yolks -NO whites.)  I like to continue with the probiotic every hour but I confess that I rarely remember.  Thankfully they like it enough they usually ask for it but not always.

I have done this 'routine' three different times now and each time the vomiting stops completely within hours. If there was a lingering fever, I add 250-500mg of vitamin c when I start with the juice.

If you know me at all, you know I am a HUGE proponent of probiotics.  We all drink kefir smoothies every single day for lunch in addition to having sips of kombucha and other fermented foods and drinks.  I know that our overall gut health and regular use of them does help these times of illness as well but this will still work for everyone.

Probiotics:
There are many different kinds of probiotic foods.  You can even buy probiotic pills such as NOW Foods Probiotic-10, 50 Billion, 50 Vcaps (the key is the higher the different strains, the better).  This one is a decent chewable for children: (NO corn syrup or artificial stuff) Rainbow Light Probiolicious Gummies, Ages 4 and Above, Cranberry Flavor, 50-Count The most common probiotic that everyone thinks of is yogurt -which typically has about 1-3 different strains.  Better than nothing but not the best option.
Home made milk kefir has around 50 different strains of probiotics and each teaspoonful has billions of them!
Kombucha has fewer different strains but is equally as concentrated.
Water kefir has around 20 strains and is probably easiest to get little ones not used to them to take.
Milk kefir and Kombucha can both be purchased at stores -with milk kefir being available at most grocery stores that has about 7-10 strains.

Some info on probiotic foods here:  http://www.naturalnews.com/036785_superfoods_probiotics_fermented_foods.html

Fermented foods vs Probiotic pill:  http://www.picklemetoo.com/2012/10/26/fermentation-friday-probiotic-pills-vs-fermented-food/

A collection of probiotic-related links (always adding to them): http://delicious.com/kstrader/probiotic

I am sure most will already guess that milk (and water) kefir are our favorite forms of probiotics.  True but not where it ends.  We also always have kombucha on hand as well as various fermented veggies at different times.  I would run onto a huge rabbit trail here so I will get back to these stomach bugs...

My favorite probiotic for these sick stomachs is kombucha.  Ours is quite strongly brewed since I almost always forget to 'finish' it at the 2 week mark but thats ok -stronger is better!  If I didnt have kombucha on hand, I would likely have made one kefir smoothie (a touch of honey and vanilla) and used that instead.  So far I havent had to but I know it would work.  Kombucha requires no additional 'prep' like kefir, can be kept in the fridge for months, and can be flavored.  I love this site for recipes: http://www.picklemetoo.com/kombucha/

I can never say enough or encourage people enough to start getting probiotics every day.  If making kefir and/or kombucha is overwhelming (kombucha is the least 'hands-on' of the two), then get the pills or buy them from the store.  Your gut and overall health with thank you -I promise you!