Good morning readers! I'm writing this on Sunday afternoon (maybe someday I'll get ahead of the game, but probably not), and I could've been done earlier, had I not innocently picked up this book that had been on my pile for a while. I was just going to read for a few minutes while enjoying my after-church-coffee. Three hours later I was half-way through and couldn't put it down! It was a treat because this was the first fictional book I've picked up in a long while – mostly I've been skimming homeschooling books for months. Sapphire Ice, by my friend, Hallee Bridgeman, is a refreshing love story void of smut. I quit reading the smut stories years ago (they're so lame compared to the real thing) and switched to more suspenseful books whenever I'd have time to pick up a novel, like this series
- As a little update to my post, The Scales Slapped Me in the Face, I've been doing good and eating well, but the stupid scales have only tipped in my favor by 3#. Oh well, I'm exercising more, and avoiding sweets, so it'll come out ok. I do miss my occasional glass of wine, though… but it's just for the time being. I went rollerblading on the trail yesterday for the first time in a looooong time. I absolutely love it, but since I saw that snake last year, I've been a complete wimp about going. Pretty dumb, huh? So because it had been a while, I felt exhilarated for the first 4 miles, but on the return trip I started pooping out and the prevailing thought in my head was, “Would it kill them to put a stinkin' bench along this trail somewhere?!” I've got some good meals planned for this week, here are a couple of them: Fried fish with garlic pesto (to use up more of my basil) and Yakisoba – I'll use Einkorn pasta and have a little of that along with lots of chicken and veggies, but not my usual PIG OUT portions.
Feel like going on a rant? I've got one for you. Have your kids ever set up a lemonade stand out in front to earn a few bucks? Well you'd better watch out, because many have been shut down in recent months. Yep, it's true. If you're near Washington, D.C., you may want to go show your support this weekend for the Lemonade and Raw Milk Freedom event.
Feel like going on a rant? I've got one for you. Have your kids ever set up a lemonade stand out in front to earn a few bucks? Well you'd better watch out, because many have been shut down in recent months. Yep, it's true. If you're near Washington, D.C., you may want to go show your support this weekend for the - You may remember a while back when I wrote about the ordeal with our doctor's office and then the school regarding immunizations and well child checks we hadn't gone in for. That was probably why the title of this New York Times article really caught my eye, Let’s (Not) Get Physicals. For decades, scientific research has shown that annual physical exams — and many of the screening tests that routinely accompany them — are in many ways pointless or (worse) dangerous, because they can lead to unneeded procedures. The last few years have produced a steady stream of new evidence against the utility of popular tests… The author, a doctor herself, also says later in the article, “I respect my doctors, but I see them only when I’m sick.” I can't wait to hear what you think.
- Have a great week!
Erin says
Hmmmm. I don’t own a scale…I know when I gain weight and I know when I lose weight. The number really doesn’t mean much, yet, seeing it can really impact my day in ways I don’t like.
Doctors? We moved to Spokane from So Cal in 2005. None of my kids have a doctor here. People are confused by my statement that we have no doctor, but we have the ER followed by orthopedists for broken bones (yes, we’ve used that option far too often…sigh), specialists like dentists (no fillings and no flouride) and orthodontists. I don’t see the need for an annual physical. I get a pap smear every few years and have revised my opinion on mammograms, so I’m looking into thermography. I think we will continue to focus our efforts on promoting wellness…it seems to be working well for us.
Smut in books? I like a good story and, as I explained to my daughter, I just turn the pages on the “icky” parts. “Kiss, kiss…okay, I got it”, moving right along now!
Have a great week!
Teena says
I was in the middle of a Harlaquin book when I went into labor with my son (almost 7 years ago) and I haven’t had time to read since 🙂
Hallee the Homemaker says
I’m SO happy that you loved the book! The third one is my personal favorite. I can’t wait until you work your way to it!
Hallee
KitchenKop says
Isn’t that like saying you love one of your children best? LOL!
Kel
leigh says
I find myself in a bind w/ my oldest and his kindergarten shots. When I was in the doc’s office a few months ago for myself, I asked the RN to go ahead and set up my son for his kindergarten shots and my pre-K for his Hep-A (a new one they added 2 yrs ago, whoopie). The RN told me he was all caught up, but she must not have realized that he repeated pre-k.
Here I am at registration and the secretary jots down which shots my 6yo is due for. FOUR shots w/ 2 of them being combos of 3, totalling EIGHT shots!!! Up till now I have taken all 3 of my babies in on schedule and accepted whatever shots they want to give. But even though I haven’t done enough research to be able to rattle off a defense, I have some hesitations. So at best, for now, we will get him caught up on a delayed schedule. So 2 of the singles for now and the other 2 combos 2 and 4 months out. Then I’ll be sure to get my 4-soon-to-be-5 yo started early next summer so we don’t run into this again next year.
My oldest just really worries me b/c he has been so emotional lately and tends to be a bit hyperactive which really gets on DH’s nerves. He has said several times that he’d like him medicated, which breaks my heart. It makes me just wish I could be a SAHM and home-school. But we do our best with where we are.
It’s never just one thing, is it?
Amy Floyd says
My now 12 year old son recently went to the dr. for the very first time because he fell on his wrist at baseball practice and we thought he may have broken something. He was born at home and, because we do not vaccinate, he never had an occasion to see the doctor. He is the 2nd of 6 kids, and 5 of these kids have seen the doctor a total of less than 20 times. The 6th kid, my 10 year old daughter, was born with an extra thumb and therefore had medical appointments regarding that. Then she was diagnosed with cancer and had 2 years of treatment.
Most people think our family is weird for staying out of the doctor’s office. We do get sick, but we choose to treat at home with as natural of treatment as we can. Four or five times, I’ve taken a child to the doctor for upper respiratory issues that concerned me and came home with antibiotics for ear infections. I set that prescription down on the counter and reached for the handy dandy garlic ear drops. I’ve never had to resort to those antibiotics yet. In our family, we treat the medical world as something available if we NEED its help (like when my 4 year old needed 21 stitches in her leg a couple of months ago). It just so happens that we only have NEEDED that help rarely. I am increasingly saddened by how many of the buildings in town are linked in some way to the medical world. That just doesn’t seem normal to me.
ValerieH says
I found it so interesting that the regular screenings have been shown to be not as valuable as previously thought. Maybe one of the values of still getting them is to establish a baseline so that when you get sick, there is a history of your health markers. I only go to the doctor when sick. I haven’t found enough value in regular check-ups to justify the time and expense. I have a high deductible. I’m at the age when the insurance company has started to bug me that they haven’t seen a bill for a mammogram yet. That is one test with lots of false positives and possible harm from the radiation. I don’t know why I would subject myself to that without good cause.
[email protected] says
Agreed on the physicals – didn’t read the article, but sounds like the position we have taken for a long time now. Inevitably someone will have a story that if they didn’t take their child (or themselves) to their physical, then they would not have found out “fill in the blanks”, however, I think their is a lot to say for Mama’s intuition coupled with learning and researching symptoms and such to keep an eye on your child. Some people feel a sense of relief taking their kids to their physicals. I think they should continue as to not stress. And then some, like us, think it’s exposure to a waiting room with sick children, lots of time, and often docs who try to push vaccines. We feel 100% confident and comfortable with skipping annual “wellness” exams.
Donna Bauman says
Kelly, I’d say if you lost 3 pounds in one week you are doing something quite well. Your post inspired me to try some new things and one of the things I am trying is to eat low inflammatory foods… so more fish, more veg, blueberries, avocado, etc. I agree that going to the doctor can be dangerous in that they always want to do more testing and sometimes that can bring its own issues. Keep us posted on your weight loss.
Soli says
1. I had to smile at your comment on the smut being lame. Yeah, a lot of the popular stuff is. 😉
2. Missed the scales talk last week due to my throat being sore and wanting to sleep a lot that day. My weight has been creeping up over the past year thanks to the fatigue. And as I am still feeling said fatigue, plus the heat, moving around a lot is not very appealing at all.
3. With you and the NYT on the the physicals. I think to some extent it also keeps us from developing our own awareness of our health and how we are feeling
Betsy says
If I didn’t have to get a prescription renewed yearly (thyroid meds) I’d probably skip my annual. Luckily my insurance pays for it. I did opt out of my mammogram this year – bet I’ll hear about that next year!