Our road to health.

When I married my husband and started to make all kinds of yummy recipes in the kitchen, I did not know much about healthy eating, or the good fats, and eating more vegetables. All we knew was how to eat a lot of white pasta, potatoes, breads, cookies, pizza and lots of delicious Ukrainian/Russian dishes. So slowly and surely we started to gain weight. We joined a gym, but did not like to go there and the membership expired. We did not like vegetable or fruits much, the only things we ate were corn, cucumbers, apples and bananas. We had four children and the weight just got more cumbersome, until one day my husband started to have spells of double vision, dizziness and struggling to breathe normally. He got checked and realized that his blood pressure was very high, he had high cholesterol and was overweight. I was diagnosed with an autoimmune disease, with abnormal lab results and was overweight myself, feeling very sluggish and with constant tiredness. It was a wake up call for us.

That was more that a year ago, when we bought our fancy blender and started to drink green smoothies every morning, started to eat more fruits and vegetables and learning about healthy eating and living.  By incorporating more fruits and greens into our daily routine, has made us crave a more healthier lifestyle.

I started to read a lot about plant based diets and raw vegan living. It is very interesting and has opened my eyes to a lot of problems with our food pyramid. We are told to eat more grains and meat, while fruits and vegetables fall off our plates and we don't think them very important. But truly where are the most vitamins and nutrients hidden? Mostly in fruits, vegetables, greens, seeds and nuts. That should be our main source of nourishment. Grains and meat should be a small portion of it.
We started to eat more healthy, more natural, less chemicals and are still striving more every day to enjoy more fresh produce and eat less foods that have the calories but hardly any nutrition. We started to exercise more, especially my husband who is lifting weights and doing a lot of cardio. He lost 30lbs so far! I lost 10lbs. Isn't it amazing! Our health improved, thanks be to God.

I am so trilled to share this with you and hope that you will find this helpful and that your health will improve as well.

No more coffee.

It has been a whole month now with no coffee. Can you believe it, me an avid coffee drinker, who could not function without my fist yummy cup of mocha, now is living without the black bitter goodness. I cant believe it myself. I still have a craving for it, and every time my coworkers are brewing a fresh mug of coffee, I feel my resolve wavering, but since I did this for health reasons, I am sticking to my no coffee road.

Here are the reasons why I quit:
1. Felt like it was an addiction for me, I could not function without my first sip.
2. The high of coffee would wear off by 10 am and I would be so tired.
2. I had insomnia, could not fall back asleep, even though I only had coffee in am.
3. My head felt heavy, muggy thoughts, could not concentrate.
4. It was getting to be an expensive treat, Mochas and frapuchinos add up.
5. I would get a migraine headache if for some reason I couldn't get my first sip of coffee by 9am.
6. Overall I did not care how it was affecting my body organs, read about the adrenal fatigue.

Here is how I feel a month with no coffee:
1. I feel great! I don't need to have my first sip and I can still function.
2. No more late morning fatigue, I feel energized and happy.
3. I lost 5 lbs, no mochas and no frapuchinos... tons of extra calories lost.
4. I sleep better, even if I do wake up, I fall back asleep faster.
5. I am happy that I am not stimulating my adrenal glands.
6. I am saving money.

So overall I am happy that I got to quit my coffee addiction, and even if in the future I would want a sip of coffee here and there, as long as I don't make it into a daily habit, it should be OK.

If you feel very tired and sleepy in the afternoon, it could be the coffee addiction.... or it could be the food we are eating, more on that in the future post.

This has become my drink of choice for the past few weeks. Green fruit smoothies!

Zucchini pancakes.

Have you ever had zucchini pancakes? This year we have an abundance of zucchini that our garden is producing. I keep giving them away to friends and family, so they can share in the green goodness. It is really simple to make them, all you need is flour, tsp of baking soda, a few eggs, some garlic, and salt and pepper to taste. Just grate the zucchini add all the rest of ingredients, make the pancake batter and fry them in oil. Sometimes I add a grated potato and a carrot to make them even more scrumptious.

They are so good! Usually my kids eat them up as soon as they cool down a bit. Enjoy! :)

Eating is always good.

Cooking from scratch is one of the best ways of serving your loved ones. We all love eating good wholesome home cooked meals but sometimes when life gets a bit too busy, we tend to buy fast food, restaurant meals or from the frozen section of the store.  I hate to buy from fast foods or local restaurants, for sometimes it’s not so healthy for you, or a bit too expensive. It was hard to make a home cooked meal, when I was working full time, and taking care of the house, the garden, kids and a husband, with church duties, and a newborn baby.  I always made something easy, quick and simple. Like fried potatoes with salad, some easy soup- borsht is very easy...:), as well as chicken soup, or baked chicken with mashed potatoes, macaroni and cheese is a famous staple in our kitchen, as well as spaghetti.

My husband loves soups, so we always have a pot of soup simmering on the stove, especially when it’s still a bit chilly outside.

Lately I found some great food blogs/websites, and not working as of yet, due to the fact that I have given birth recently to a new baby, I tried some new recipes, and loved the results.

I made a chicken/mushroom dish over rice from Natasha's website.

I made a yummy salad with cauliflower. This and the below dessert was from Olga's beautiful blog.

And just today we made a cream cheese bar, with my little girls, it turned out really good, if not counting the fact that my oldest child turned off the oven in the middle of baking the cream cheese bars… well the joy of little ones!

Here is the shelf my husband made for me, for all the cookbooks I have, above my sink.

I love looking through cookbooks, food websites and get new ideas on how to serve a yummy home cooked meal to my family, it is truly a blessing.

What is for dinner?

Chicken soup!

With carrots, potatoes, green onions, chicken broth, herbs and spices.... it turned out good and healthy for me and the little girls, especially now on this chilly frosty day.

I also love some cayenne pepper that I added in to my bowl. Spiciness agrees with this pregnancy.

Sorrel soup.

Sometimes my life is so blah.... nothing seems interesting, or fun... my moods turn for the worse, and I could be difficult to live with. Hey, I admit that I could be a pain somewhere. Usually I try to see the positives of everything, try to be cheerful, and content. Some days it is just not possible. Either the kids are too cranky and wild, or my hubby is in his daily church commitments, and not home for me to lean on. Some days the sun is not shining, or it is too bright for my tired eyes. I try to pray, I try to read the bible. Sometimes I cant. Sometimes I want to run away from my life, from all the problems and struggles.

I went to see my doctor today for my first physical. Never had one before. It wasn't too bad. My blood pressure was low. Doctor wants to do some fasting labs tomorrow, to re-check the results I had when I was pregnant with my 3rd little girl. I will try to remember not to eat breakfast, or drink my coffee tomorrow morning.

With working full time, I try to simplify my life. Less things = less mess, less for me to clean up. Cook bigger portions, so we can have left-overs the next day.

Like yesterday I made a sorrel soup, with onion, potatoes, and carrots. With a hard boiled egg. We had that with tuna melt sandwiches. I wish I had a digital camera to show you the final results.
Boil sliced up potatoes in water, or chicken stock. Stir-fry shredded carrot, and onion in some olive oil until golden brown. Add chopped sorrel, carrot, onion mixture to the cooked potatoes. There should be enough liquid in the pot with all the veggies cooking to make a nice soup consistency. Add salt, black pepper to taste. Before serving, chop up a hard boiled egg into the bowl, and add a tablespoon of sour cream on top. Sprinkle some fresh herbs, like dill or parsley. Enjoy...

Today, I boiled some potatoes in skins, steamed broccoli and served them in a butter, garlic sauce. Tomorrow we can still have left-over sorrel soup, with grilled cheese sandwiches, and I also have chicken breasts de-frosting, to fry some chicken patties. For dessert we have store bought cookies, ice cream, or fruit. My hubby bought some beautiful apricots, and they are delicious. Again, too bad I don't have a digital camera, I bet you would have enjoyed the color of these beauties. Talking about food sure cheers me up, he he?? Lets talk about a chocolate cake, and I will start singing.... :))

The weather is lovely this evening, and even though I am home without my husband again, at least I have my 3 little girls with me to keep me company. I wish you a cheerful evening. Sorry about the glum beginning.