NOTES FROM THE FRONT PORCH...

Healthy Chocolate Gluten Free Pancakes

2012-02-05T10:19:00.000-08:00

This morning was the first day back from a wonderful vacation the kids and I took out west. Everyone slept in as we enjoyed our own beds, smells and comforts. Things like that we take advantage of until we miss them. I made everyone chocolate pancakes. Now anybody who knows me knows I don't serve treats for breakfast. (I like treats-rules are after noontime). However, I love chocolate and I knew that in some way I could make this healthy too. They were a HUGE hit.

1 cup cottage cheese (Next time I will try kefir)
6 farm fresh eggs
1/2 c. almond milk
1/2 c. GF flour mix
1 tsp. vanilla
1/4 c. coconut oil melted
dash of pink salt (pink salt is RAW salt-it has not been stripped of its minerals)
2 Tbs. raw cacao powder (antioxidant rich)
1 banana
1 Tbs. maca root powder (vitamin rich)

Mix in blender-pour on hot griddle. These make thin, crepe style pancakes. We loaded them with organic raw almond butter and agave. I think sliced bananas would have been a nicer addition, but ours were not ripe yet.

Homeschooling

2012-01-21T01:38:00.000-08:00

This year has been a great year of homeschooling. I feel that I am finally getting my groove on. Ella is in 5th grade, Rex in Kindergarten and Zeke in preschool. Ella is excelling in Math at an awesome rate. She gets that from her Dad's side of the family. I never did real well in Math. Her great uncle was even a High School Math teacher. She has only a few lessons left in the book and then she moves on to the next one which is designed for a 6/7 th grade level. Many of the lessons she is doing are the exact same things I was learning in college a couple of years ago. I'm not sure if this is a good thing or not. At least I remember much of the teachings.

Rex is doing great! He is in Kindergarten technically, however a lot of his paperwork is 1st grade material. He is reading very well now and is able to work independently much of the time. I show him a few new concepts and he can do the rest on his own. This has freed up some of my time to work with Zeke.

Zeke is in preschool and learning the fundamentals. One of the fun things he gets to learn this year is reading site words. These are words that you cannot pronounce- like "the, a, etc". You just have to remember them. He has memorized his color words, yes and no and more. He is learning his phonics and doing awesome. Wow-this whipper snapper is going to keep me on my toes if I don't keep school a bit challenging.

Healthy Eating 2012

2012-01-20T16:37:00.000-08:00

2012 Marks a time in my life where I make a huge commitment to healthier lifestyle choices. This goes above and beyond growing and harvesting our own food. This is learning how our bodies respond to certain foods and what that outcome is. We recently made the choice to become gluten-free for various reasons. 1) Josh and I both suffer with autoimmune disorders. Autoimmune disorders can be gluten related. 2) Autoimmune disorders can be genetically transferred...meaning we pass these nasty genes on to our children. 3) Gluten is massively distrubuted in our everyday eating. I have even found it in my makeup and hairspray. We (Americans) have been over indulging in gluten for years , thus causing sensitivy and several other health problems you would not even believe could be linked to this tiny protein. But, believe me it does!!! Some of the things that I am learning to do is create a healthy flora in my digestive track. Especially since 80% of our immunity lies within there. These things include learning how to make homemade Kombucha. Kombucha is a delicous, effervescent, fermented tea that derives from a scoby mushroom. It is loaded with healthy probiotics. (See above center photo) The other picture (right) is of my Kefir. Kefir is also a fermented drink made from raw dairy milk. The bacteria and yeasts in the culture absorb all of the lactose in the milk leaving a drink rich in B vitamins, healthy lactobacilli amoung several other things. The picture on the left are some new superfoods that I am trying. Chia seeds which I absolutely love are mega rich in protein, omega 3's and fiber. They plump up when in yogurt or liquid creating a tapioca type texture. They have become a daily staple in our household. Another thing is hemp seed. Hemp seed is similar to chia seed nutritionally, but have a completely different flavor. More nutty. I usually mix the both of these in my yogurts. Yum-O! I have just gotten maca root powder and royal jelly. These 2 super foods help me keep my energy levels up! Just what I need with 3 busy kids in tow. Having thyroid issues can take a toll on you physically, but these super foods are promising.

Back in action again...

2012-01-04T20:39:00.000-08:00

It has literally been years since I have updated my blog and decided that it was high time that I get on this. I really have enjoyed reading other's blogs and their musings and hope that you might find mine just as interesting. As some of you know, I am a stay at home mom and we have 3 beautiful children whom we homeschool. This is only our 2nd year homeschooling and I have to say it is going well. In the days to come I hope to post pictures and musings of our daily life here in Northern MN. Until my next post...

Blessings,

Wendy

PORKY THE PORCUPINE

2008-09-21T17:11:00.000-07:00

I wish you could see this picture a little better. It was a porcupine that we had come across on the trail we were riding on. It was really cool to see one up close. It scurried up the tree ~ AS IF we were going to harm it.

The Last Day of Summer

2008-09-21T16:57:00.000-07:00

It is officially the last day of summer ~so we loaded up the kids, packed a picnic and took the 4 wheeler out to Josh's moms property and rode around in the woods. We came upon a porcupine which wobbled its way up into a tree and a couple of deer. We then found a nice grassy, sunny spot -layed out the blanket and ate our lunch. The kids picked leaves for a project I will be doing this week with the kids in my class at school. Before we knew it, it was time to get home for naps. We all slept except for Ella who read quietly. Then later we had Jan and Gary over for supper. It was the perfect last day of summer.

My Hooligans

2008-07-21T08:52:00.000-07:00

I never thought I'd see the day that all three kids would look at the camera at once and actually be smiling. I love this picture. Notice my little Rexy'x mischevious twinkle (he gets this from his daddy), Ella's sweet pose and Zeke is eating his fingers as usual these days.

Ella, Rex and Zeke in Grand Marais

2008-07-18T13:21:00.000-07:00

This morning, it was so beautiful as the fog lifted from Lake Superior off into infinity. It had rained very hard the night before, but the day already promised lots of sunshine and warm temps. We are all having so much fun on our very needed and highly anticipated vacation. Rex asks us every day (while we are here) if we are going to "Grand Marais" today? I am thinking he does't understand the concept of we ARE in Grand Marais. To him it has been a mirage for so long and when we finally arrived he is lost to confusion. None the less, he loves the water and throwing rocks. He continues to keep us in absolute wariness as he thinks nothing of wandering and exploring by himself. (So much for vacation.) Zeke is doing awesome and catches naps anywhere he wants as we stroll around town, shopping, grabbing a java or dining at Sven and Ole's. Ella wants to do everything at once and is disappointed when we can't. Oh to be a child again!

Rex: 5 1/2 Months

2008-07-02T19:37:00.000-07:00

Zeke: 3 Months

2008-07-02T19:32:00.000-07:00

Wendy and Baby Zeke

2008-06-24T18:58:00.000-07:00

Zeke: 3 1/3 Months taking a snooze after a long day of birthday partying for cousin Leif.