7 Quick Takes for the New Year

-1-
I have been so lax lately at writing on here. For those of you who keep up via Facebook and twitter thank you. We have had an intense Christmas Season this year.  Just as school was winding down and I was going to take a day to enjoy with my sweet Pi, my oldest, 13 year old daughter, who happens to be smart and was exempt from all of her finals; we get a phone call. You know the type. The life changing phone call. My mother in law had been in a car accident and my husband was now headed straight to the hospital, two hours away, to see her. So instead of heading off on a day of pre Christmas fun, my daughter and I started packing over night bags for everyone. My mother in law, Judy Stice. pulled through two transfers one to the hospital and one to the regional trauma center, she pulled through the first surgery to repair internal injuries to organs and pelvis. She has pulled through two more surgeries since.  There has been a lot of hand holding and praying.  Each day she is with us has been a miracle. The Doctors are cautioning us to be realistic in our expectations. But what does that really mean? 
Thank you so much everyone who has been praying for her and the family. Your prayers mean a lot.
-2-
It is a New Year and that means resolutions, but I don’t do resolutions. I just do. So far this year I have committed to a run a month with the family. We have already done our January Run. New Year’s Day. My son and I did a one mile fun run. (not so fun for me, as I am woefully out of shape), while my daughters did a 2 mile run with 4 Polar Bear Plunges. I would post some pictures. but we have not figured out the new camera that I got for Christmas.
-3-
I so love my kindle fire. Best Gift ever from the best husband ever, not only that he got me a new camera.I am watching Sense and Sensibility as I write this. {Insert happy noises here} My old camera is still in decent shape, but it was lacking in the telephoto department and the flash was not as strong as I wanted. I am so hoping the new camera lives up to expectations. I will let you know once I have it figured out.
-4-
Back to New Year’s Resolutions (which I don’t do, but this falls under that category for many)
After some deep research, I am embarking on a Nutritional Journey. Last fall I did a sugar detox. I am taking that back up again Starting tomorrow. If you would like to join me you can get your own eBook with all the instructions. Simply follow the link.
Not only am I doing the Sugar Detox, but along that I am doing a whole body detox. Some of you may remember that I have problems with Psoriatic Arthritis. In an attempt to clear it up, reverse it and get rid of it and stay off heavy medication I have been cleaning up my diet now for over 2 years. Along the way I have given up wheat, and adopted a gluten free diet, started eating pasture raised, grass fed animals  and added cultured foods like Kombucha to my diet.
Now I am going to start a 6 week detox program that will most likely supersede the sugar detox. I am going to be following Dr. Fuhrman's Eat to Live, this diet will be a vegan diet. Now this should not be too hard for me. I have reduced the amount of animal product I do eat and have been slowly increasing the amount of vegetables the last two weeks.  But folks I do not know if I am ready for eating 1 lb. of raw and 1lb of cooked vegetables a day. That my friends is a lot of food. But if it helps me get rid of the infernal rashes I will do it. I have already seen improvement on a gluten and sugar free diet, and 6 weeks is really not that long I managed to survive longer than that on the sugar detox.

-5-
Since we have decided to do a road race a month I have taken up my walking again, I have enjoyed our mild winter weather and gone out walking after school with my son each day. He is quite the talker when he gets you alone, that is without his sisters.  Who says boys don’t talk? And to think when he was 2 I was worried he would never talk.
-6-
Radom piece of information. I am so glad that braids are in style right now. I love braids, for me my daughters anyone. A braid is a quick fix to just about any hair problem/situation and looks nice on women of all ages.
-7-
Friday is the Feast of the Epiphany and in true Catholic form my tree is still up. We have undecorated it but it is still up and all the decorations are sitting outside the closet under the stairs door waiting for the lights to be taken off. I wonder how long we will keep the tree up?