Get Your D’s from “D” Sun

There is a common misconception when it comes to skin damage from the sun. The sun is actually something to welcome because it helps us to get Vitamin D. *Vitamin D is a valuable nutrient that can help prevent osteoporosis, depression, prostate cancer, breast cancer and can even effect diabetes and obesity.

Vitamin D is produced naturally from UVB rays. The sun gives off both UVA and UVB rays but the UVB rays are the only ones that are beneficial. However, UVA rays can penetrate through glass, unlike UVB and they can also penetrate much deeper. UVA therefore may be the real culprit behind photoaging, wrinkles and skin cancer. The real kicker? Most sunscreens today do a pretty good job filtering out the good rays, UVB, while letting through skin-damaging UVA light. Even a sunscreen with SPF 8 can block up to 95% of Vitamin D synthesis. Furthermore, many sunscreens contain major toxic chemicals that your body is absorbing. Your best bet is to avoid the sunscreens altogether! Does this mean to soak up the sun without any protection? Absolutely not.

The best way you can catch some “D’s?”…start getting your sunlight in ten minute increments. Most of us produce about 20,000 units of vitamin D after about twenty minutes in the sun. That is one hundred times more than the government says you need every day. So, at ten minutes a day, you are still getting the vitamin D that your body needs and you aren't harming your skin by absorbing too many UVA rays. The most important thing to remember when out in the sun…don’t get burned! If you are going to be in prolonged sun exposure and are at risk of a sunburn use zinc oxide or titanium dioxide. They are nontoxic and block out harmful UVAs.

*http://www.naturalnews.com/003069.html

What to Eat, What to Eat...

What is a balanced diet? The food pyramid has changed over the years and it can be confusing trying to decide portions and balance of food choices. Food combinations are usually very important and can vary from one person to the next, but in general there are two major food groups you should always have on your plate, protein and vegetables. Green leafy vegetables are best but more colorful veggies are great alternatives to change up the routine.

Protein choices vary depending on your health and metabolism. Just remember, fat is necessary in your diet but best from food sources other than animal so lean cuts of meat are generally healthier. Healthy fats can be found by eating avocados, walnuts, fish and using coconut oil and extra virgin olive oil.

Things to avoid when deciding on what to feed your family include alternative sweeteners, processed food, high fructose corn syrup and dairy. Try to avoid meals that contain too many starches like heavy pastas and breads. Vegetables actually count as a carbohydrate so adding high starch items is usually overkill on the carbs.

For more information on what food choices you should be making, I recommend reading "Eat Right 4 Your Type" by Peter D'Adamo or "Take Control of Your Health" by Dr. Joseph Mercola.

Peter Cottontail

I bet you guys didn't know that Peter Cottontail lives in front of my apartment in the woods? It's true. Tillie wakes up every morning just dying to go outside and hunt him down and chase him off. I think she's more about Jesus' resurrection than about the fluffy bunny. She's not a fan of the cottontail. Not a fan at all.

Have You Heard About This?

There is currently a House and Senate bill that will virtually kill all organic farms and produce. It's called the Food Safety Modernization Act (HR 875): Criminalization of Organic Farms. The bill is House H.R. 875 and you can find out more information here and bill Senate S 425 here. The Bills will require organic farms to use specific fertilizers and poisonous sprays. All farms and growers will be instructed and regulated by the newly formed agency to 'make sure there is no danger to the general public and the appending food supply.' The attempt is to 'standardize' the agricultural industry.

At first this may appear as if it is only directed at commercial farms but this WILL include backyard gardens that grow food for consumption by a single family and not intended for resale. Most prior Bills that started off with such intent are later expanded in their scope and become more restricted in nature.

Please click to SIGN UP to put an end to this bill and send to anyone you know asap. From what I understand, this bill is on the fast track and could get voted on very quickly.

The bill is lobbied by the Monsanto Company, the maker of Round-Up and GE (genetically engineered) seeds. You can get more information on Wikipedia or on the web elsewhere about them if you're interested.

The name of the plan is Food Safety Modernization Act of 2009. Safety, huh? I'm not feeling so safe. Let me know if you have any questions about what you can do!

Big Plans

Busy bees are we! Michael and I have been so overwhelmingly busy the last few weeks.

The sublease of the current space for our business is up next month. Can you believe it?! I can't. The first months of owning a chiropractic office have flown by. I say with a breath of relief that I am now only remembering the triumphs and the tribulations are beginning to fade into the background. With this big step, we fall back to square one. Are we going to be approved to stay in the current space or are we going to have to run around frantically trying to find somewhere else to dwell within our current patient base? Eeeek! I'm counting on the first one. ;) If not, I know that God will provide and I will be in the space that is best for me and the business. I'm still going loopy on the inside waiting for this decision to fall. Tough go.

The wedding details are coming together...finally! I know everything has been last minute and if anyone is unable to go due to prior arrangements then we will understand. You better have a darn good reason but we will understand.Just kidding!I'm going this afternoon to look at more venues and will have a date soon (hopefully!). It's been really hard finding a venue this close to the date but we both really like one venue in particular. It's The Little Chapel In The Woods on TWU's campus in Denton. The only availability they have is the Sunday night before Memorial Day so be sure and keep that weekend open! Here are some links to the chapel. It's looking like we will have the reception somewhere else because their reception halls are "vendor exclusive" with no outside food allowed. It's back to the drawing board on that one!

http://www.twu.edu/tour/little_chapel.asp

Our original plan was to save our wedding money that my family so generously saved for a house! That means we are house hunting as well. Uhm Cameron, can you be our minister and our realtor? :D I'm sure I'll be calling Steph about that soon enough! Exciting!

What You Don’t Know You’re Eating Could Be Making You Sick!

It is well known that monosodium glutamate has severe side effects. It can poison your nervous system and cause things like headaches, tremors, mood swings, hives, heart palpitations, seizures and even death. It has been classified as a neuro-degenerative causing agent. Some neuro-degenerative diseases include Parkinson’s, Multiple Sclerosis, Alzheimer’s and Huntington’s disease.

Do you know what to look for to avoid MSG in the foods you may be buying? Because MSG has been considered a preservative, it may not read “monosodium glutamate” on your labels. Know what to look for and you can avoid physical symptoms of neurotoxicity.

Here is a list of additives that ALWAYS contains MSG:
Hydrolyzed Vegetable Protein
Hydrolyzed Protein
Hydrolyzed Plant Protein
Plant Protein Extract
Sodium Caseinate
Calcium Caseinate
Yeast Extract
Textured Protein
Autolyzed Yeast
Hydrolyzed Oat Flour

Here is a list of additives that FREQUENTLY contain MSG:
Malt Extract
Malt Flavoring
Bouillon
Broth
Stock
Flavoring
Natural Flavoring
Seasoning
Spices

Here is a list that MAY contain MSG:
Carregeenan
Enzymes
Soy Protein Caseinate
Whey Protein Concentrate
Soy Protein Isolate

Make sure these “preservatives” aren’t in the foods you are eating and keep your nerves free flowing!

We're Engaged!

At midnight on New Year's Eve, Mike popped the question! I am so unbelievable happy and honored. Mike is such a wonderful man and makes me feel so special. He took so much care in keeping the proposal a surprise and making sure our moment was perfect. It was just that. Perfect! I was dumbfounded when he pulled out a ring and asked me to be his wife!

The night started with tickets to the Stratosphere on the west end of the Las Vegas strip. The tickets were for the New Year's Eve On Top Of The World party. I'm still on top of the world even after! :) We had reservations for dinner and then a New Year's Eve party on the top floor. The Stratosphere gives you a view of the entire strip so we were excited to see the fireworks start at the far end of the strip and progress to us. We had the most amazing food at the revolving restaurant at the top of the sphere. You really must pause here to reflect on the depth of the awesome-ness of the food. Each. course. was. that. good. Because of the tickets Mike had purchased, we both got four courses so we ordered different things shared bites of this and that. Of course it was waaay too much food but every bite of every dish was the most unbelievable experience.

With dinner, Mike ordered us a bottle of Perrier Jouet champagne. It's the champagne with the beautiful hand-painted bottle and flutes. It came with a commemorative box encasing the bottle and glasses that we used. I can't wait to pull those out on our anniversary every year and reflect back on this moment. Our wait staff was overwhelmingly courteous. They give you 2 waiters per table to make sure your glass is never empty and you never have a lag between courses. I felt like a princess.

The party on the top deck had everything you can ever imagine a party to have. We had already ate and drank so we didn't indulge in the drinks or the hor d'oeuvres of egg rolls, pastry puffs, fondue fountains, fruits or desserts but I'm sure they were tasty. There was a live DJ who played dancing music and it was fun to watch people try to jive with the beat. There were a few who I feared were going to hurt themselves but I suppose they made it through without severe whiplash or over-exertion. Hehe. They didn't have enough seats, so we were left with no choice but to lean on a low unused bar. A couple from Mobile, Alabama had the same idea so we got to know them pretty well. Nora and Bill. She is a teacher and he owns a music retail store. They were celebrating their 36th wedding anniversary and were a sweet, Christian couple with an adorable accent. They didn't gamble, just came for the shows (so they say ;)). They kept us entertained until midnight when we left our spot to find a better viewing area of where the fireworks were going to be set off. (I ran into her after the fireworks when we were leaving and was able to tell her the news. That made it so exciting to be able to share it. She was jumping up and down for joy and said that it had made their trip to Vegas worth it. So sweet!)

We walked around the sphere and stopped at a great view of the strip. Party favors were handed out so we each had a fun brightly colored top hat/tiara and noise maker. When the DJ started the count-down, fireworks immediately started at the opposite end of the strip and progressed toward us. "Auld Lang Syne" began to play and I turned to kiss Michael. As I turned back around to see the fireworks, he showed me the ring and asked "Will you be my wife?" I was stunned. Sweet Michael proposes every time he kisses me so my first thought was that he was just doing that, being sweet. I was like "Mike, is this real?" Ha ha! I couldn't absorb it. He had been redirecting any thought that I had about him proposing all week. "We need to wait until your business is settled. We need to wait until finances are in order. I haven't had a chance to talk to your dad (even though he had). I need to start saving for a big screen TV!" (Yes, he actually said this just a few hours before! I slyly pointed out the fact that he should be saving for something shinier. He just shrugged. Like it wasn't a priority. Even though all along, he had already purchased a ring!) Sneaky devil. I think my jaw was on the ground. He laughed and says, "Yes, it's real!" I just started crying and hugging him when he was finally like "Are you going to answer?" I was so overwhelmed with emotion, I forgot to say yes! "Yes, of course! I love you I love you I love you!" I think I cried with joy for the rest of the night. I am the happiest girl alive! My Michael is the greatest man and surprises me everyday. This one, though, is going in the history books. ;)

Us right before the engagement.


There was a photographer at the restaurant and Mike bought these pictures they took of us!


I'm almost blinking in mine but I think his is really good!

Mike at our table. You can see the pretty champagne glasses in front of him!

The banana bread-chocolate mousse explosion dessert at the restaurant.

The view from our table.

A picture of the table looking out at the view.

The original table set up.

Even the butter was in little "Stratosphere" moldings!


An ice sculpture in the foyer of the party.


The ring!

Mike playing video poker later in the trip.