Laser Eye surgery today!

I am sitting here typing wearing oversized sunglasses with Artificial Tears in my eyes. I had laser eye surgery done today and my eyes are still a bit irritated, but it was completely worth it! It is great to be able to see the TV (or dirt on the floor) without the use of my glasses. Sadly, I paid more than all of my relatives who had similar procedures done because I needed to get this done before going on a Euro-trip.

The whole process occurs in about one minute- with the usual hour of bureaucracy beforehand. They give you a Valium (which did jack shit) to relax you and to help you sleep afterwards. They also put cocaine drops in your eyes to numb them. Basically you recline in a chair and this vacuum attaches to your eye while the laser does its job. The worst part is the smell of your retina burning. The surgery is done before you know it and the staff is shuffling you out the door.

I was able to see rather well immediately after getting LASIK with little discomfort. After a few minutes, however, the cocaine begins to wear off and the eyes start to feel light sensitive and irritated. I took a 3 hour nap and felt well enough to go about the housework at home.

I was originally scheduled to get the LASEK/PRK surgery, which is more painful and has a longer recovery time. PRK is where the entire surface of the eye is lasered down, instead of simply cutting through the eye. If undergoing PRK, you will get a contact of sorts to protect the cornea and stimulate regrowth. PRK patients will have blurry watery vision for about a week. It is recommending for people with asymmetrical eye structures who are at risk for collapse. Luckily, the staff re-checked my vision before surgery and were confident that I could undergo the traditional (and much easier) Lasik.

It has only been about 10 hours and my eyes are almost 20/20. They should be even better in the morning. Laser eye surgery is a quick outpatient procedure with few risks and a fast recovery time. I cannot recommend it highly enough.

Easter Pics

Easter Sunday at the in-laws'. The girls had a great time stuffing their faces with cake, running in circles, and generally being spoiled!

Happy Easter!

Organic easter baskets full of.. fruit?

Going to the in-laws' place for dinner. I will be taking lots of cute pics of the girls. Peace and love to everyone on this most Blessed day!

Momma vs. Babies

Another hectic and tiring day doing laundry. Both of my (wonderful) toddlers need baths tonight and there is an entire sink full of dirty dishes to clean. My oldest girl is refusing to use the toilet now, so I don't know where potty training will go next. She went from being completely potty-trained to having 3 accidents yesterday.

What I ate tonight & recipe

The menu:

1. Lamb and vegetable stew
2. Garlic Naan (Indian flat bread)
   
3. hot coffee with Irish cream

Lamb is one of those great meats which is still farmed in the traditional manner, while popular meats like beef, chicken, or pork are usually factory farmed. Lamb is a tender meat that adds a great flavor to a wide array dishes. Some of my favorite lamb recipes are stew and stir fry with Chinese vegetables. It has a taste all of its own and offers a great alternative to beef, but can be cooked in similar ways.

To make lamb stew:

Melt a pat of butter in a large preheated pot. While the butter is melting, lightly coat the lamb with flour. Put the meat in the pot and give it a good sear on all sides (this may take 5 to 10 minutes, but make sure not to cook it through). Next, add 2 cups of organic beef stock or enough to cover the lamb, 4 cloves of minced garlic, some salt, and pepper. Cover and cook for one hour.

After the stew has cooked for an hour, open the pot and stir contents. Add any vegetables and continue cooking, covered, for 20 minutes. I used corn, edamame, red peppers, green beans, and a large diced onion. Carrots, potatoes, leeks, broccoli, and peas would also work well. Vegetables have different cooking times, so it is important to keep this in mind. Potatoes and carrots take the longest to cook, while broccoli and peas only need a few minutes. If you are using quick cooking vegetables such as broccoli, put them in during the last 5 minutes of cooking time. Frozen peas can simply be stirred in after the stew is done.

Now for the finishing touches. Remove the lid and season to taste. I mixed in a packet of concentrated beef broth for an even more intense flavor. The stew can be reduced slightly by cooking with the lid off over high heat. If reducing, closely monitor the lamb so it doesn't overcook. To thicken: mix 2 spoons of flour with 1/4 cup water in a separate bowl before stirring into the stew. It is very important to mix the water and flour together first or you will end up with clumps of flour throughout. Ladle stew into soup bowls and serve.

This recipe is easy to make and tastes great! Luckily, it is also a very forgiving meal, so it will cook up nicely- even if you don't follow the recipe to a tee.

The key to making a great stew is to brown the meat before cooking it in liquid, as this greatly intensifies the flavor. For a tasty vegetarian stew, melt butter in the bottom of the pan and then stir in a few tablespoons of flour. Once the flour browns you can add liquid and vegetables. These steps will take any soup from mediocre to amazing!

The Obama "Myth"

The following was a speech I wrote during last year's primaries. It was a time when Obama could do no wrong and Bush could do no right. Anyone who knows me knows that I am vehemently against Bush and his policies, so this is not to be misconstrued as republican backlash. The two party system has failed this country time and time again. It is time for all Americans to look take off their rose-tinted glasses and start giving a damn about the politics that mold and shape our everyday lives.

I am not a republican or democrat, but a libertarian. That means I believe in the freedoms that America was built upon. Libertarians believe that all citizens should be free to live however we please as long as we don't infringe upon another person's rights. Libertarian philosophy is against taxation without representation, government subsidies, mandatory vaccinations, and large government bureaucracy. Libertarians have a strong belief in national sovereignty, which means that we should not create pacts or agreements with foreign nations (such as the existing UN, IMF, NATO, etc.) that give them a say in American policy. To be sovereign means to be a free and independent nation which, unfortunately, has already been lost. Politicians have to appease our creditors (mainly China and Japan) so they don't pass legislation that would benefit the American citizen and anger these countries. The UN also mandates that all member nations enact legislation that conform to its agenda (which is why the environment is such a huge issue right now) - see Codex Alimentarius and religious censorship.

In the following rant, I have changed some wording to reflect future vs. present tense. Many of my predictions have come true, as Obama has continued Bush's war and started a new one. Now the president supports both NATO and the UN, which he ran against a few months ago. Americans are waking up to the fraud that took place. Since we cannot impeach even the most wildly unpopular of presidents, we remain with little control over our country. It is only a matter of time until it is too late to restore the great republic that this country used to be. My only hope is to inform as many people as I can.

The Obama "Myth"

Obama has been continually portrayed as the HOPE candidate by the corporate controlled media. I am urging all of you to please not buy into the hype.

Obama voted FOR the patriot act and the bailout bill. He is for wiretapping phones, regulating the internet, and the creation of a new citizens army- in addition to our military. Obama wants to fight in Afghanistan and is considering waiting longer to withdraw troops from Iraq. He probably would have voted for the war in Iraq as well, but he wasn't able to vote at the time.

Obama will take away more rights than Bush and you can bet your ass that he won't repeal any of the previous administration's unlawful policies. Just look at his voting record. Our media only covers Republicans and Democrats, whose policies are controlled by so many special interests and lobbyists that America has become a corporate fascist nation.

It is not the job of the federal government to babysit me and my family. If you do not like how your state is run then you can move to another one far easier than you can move to a different country.

Secondly, welfare programs caused the increase in broken families. 50 years ago 80% of black babies were born to a married couple. Now only 20% of black babies and 60% of white babies are - which can be attributed to America's policies. If our leadership did not want this outcome then the government would change these policies. The more we rely on the government the more power we give up.

Another problem. EVERY WAR WE HAVE BEEN INVOLVED IN WAS COORDINATED by the elites (the real rulers if this country and many others). Case in point: The main purpose of the civil war was to give the government more power over the states.

The Federal Reserve gives campaign contributions and media support to presidential candidates if they support their agenda. The main one? WAR... It is the most costly way to control population and push through "necessary" legislation that takes away our rights. The more money we spend the richer the elites get. The more war we have = the more interest the international bankers earn funding it WHILE FREEDOM slips farther and farther out of our grasp.

Still not convinced? Please do your own research. The information is there, you just won't find it in any classroom or on any television program.

The media is owned by 5 corporations, one of which is Pepsi Co. Do not get your news from CNN, FOX, MSNBC, etc. Go out and do your own research. These are not sources of news as they are proponents of what the machine wants us to believe.

Just watch how their is no third party candidate in the debates. News stations constantly calls people who vote for anyone but a Rep or a Dem as "spoilers." I cannot stress enough: Read books. Read SMALL local sources of news, if you can find any.

If the president just laughs about leaving the United Nations and ending the Federal reserve then they do not have the nation's best interests at heart.

Americans need to wake up. Stop buying anything that is made in China. DO NOT SHOP AT WALMART. Everything from Walmart is from China. Buy locally made goods and products. Expect everything to cost more. It is cheaper than devaluing the dollar to nothing and being China's bitch. Use your money as power and buy from companies that support American workers, the environment, and your health. We all have to work together and we have limitless influence, but not if people refuse to WAKE UP!

There are many free informative movies available online. Please check out "The Zeitgeist" movie. It puts things into perspective. Obama still has a high approval rating and will be able to push forward a liberal agenda, which he may actually think is good for the American people. However, I can guarantee you that he will take away our gun rights, starting with a ban on assault weapons.

Bush already took away our right to privacy and habieous corpus. Obama will continue the legacy.

The not-so secret "secret" to staying slim

I have two kids, rarely exercise, and I am 5'1 and 105 pounds. How do I stay so slim? It isn't from starving myself or doing drugs, rather a method which is harder to believe.

Most Americans will treat you differently if you are a fit and thin. I have experienced it through dirty looks, general rudeness, and projected feelings of self-doubt. It seems incomprehensible that a mother of two could actually be in better shape than before her pregnancy. My own mother accused me of being anorexic because I weighed 5 pounds less than she did. The truth is that anyone can be slim and healthy without starving themselves. There are open secrets that the corporations don't want you to know about and I will share a few.

After having my first daughter I became concerned about providing her the best possible health. After reading pamphlets and listening to doctors I got a decent grasp of what foods, chemicals to avoid and what to eat plenty of. I had no idea that it would change every aspect of how my family eats from that point on.

Keeping your body free of toxic chemicals and food additives is key to a slim, sexy body. Toxins become trapped within fat cells and makes it very hard for the body to utilize fat as energy. Water is incredibly important because it purifies the body. I suggest a Reverse Osmosis water filtration system for the entire residence. Despite what the ADA will tell you, fluoride does NOT prevent cavities and it can be devastating to your health. Yes, they are pricey, but the tap water, AKA, "city punch" is full of prescription drugs, hormones, and a whole host of other nasty things that will destroy health and pack on the pounds.

Don't use chemicals or bleach as there are natural cleaning products that are effective and much safer. All of these toxins will accumulate in the body and deposit in fat cells. This means that the fat cells cannot be correctly broken down and converted into energy, making it harder to lose weight, while slowly poisoning you. Toxins also trigger stress hormones which cause the body to store fat, particularly around the midsection.

With all the toxins in modern society, it is even more important to eat natural, unprocessed, organic foods. I made the switch to organic and the weight poured off! As a previously chubby young woman myself, I have 100% confidence that eating unadulterated food will produce results without reducing calorie intake.

It can be very difficult to eat organic if you are used to the standard American diet. Restaurants serve the worst quality food, often prepared at a factory and reheated so it is best to avoid eating out. Cooking at home does not mean eating "light", by any means! I eat more than most women do and I am always tasting my creations. I usually eat between 2000 and 3000 calories a day, which happens to be higher than what the FDA suggests for any person (let alone someone as small as myself).

Many people are turned off by mass propaganda that labels the organic consumer as a "Birkenstock wearing hippie" driving a Prius, but it couldn't be further from the truth. Before World War II, all produce was "organic," grown without the use of harmful toxins and pesticides. The opposite of "organic" is "intensive", which has become standard at the grocery store today. I am surprised that most people have no idea what "invasive" farming is, yet they purchase and consume it on a daily basis. The boom of the manufacturing industry in the 1950's begot modern farming techniques as we know them. DDT was marketed as safe to the American farmers (luckily it has been banned, but not before doing harm). When farming became a money maker for the chemical companies, food safety took a backseat. For this reason I boycott everything that Monsanto (famous for Round Up and Agent Orange) makes as they have a long history of stuffing their pockets at the expense of the American consumer.

Genetically Engineered, GE, foods should be avoided at all costs. Genetically Engineered foods are created by transferring a foreign gene from another animal or plant into a crop. The problem with this is that those "promoter" genes can travel around the plant, turning on all different genes. An even bigger shock is that these genes have been proven to pass into the animals that consume them, turning on pesticide producing genes inside the stomach. GE crops have wrecked havoc on organic farmers by contaminating their fields. Once these lifeforms are released into nature, there really is no taking them back. I will cover this topic more thoroughly in the future, but keep in mind that the same company that invented pesticides, Monsanto, is also the producer of the genetically engineered crops. These foods are highly dangerous to eat and will also cause you to gain weight by disrupting the thyroid.

Since there are no laws that GE foods must be labeled, the only way to assure that you are buying healthy food is to buy organic. After a few years of organic cooking, I have enough experience to avoid most GE foods when shopping at a traditional grocery store. The worst foods are corn, soy, and cottonseed or rapeseed. 85% of all American corn is genetically engineered. Don't buy any product that contains corn, soy, or cottonseed unless they are specifically labeled as "organic."

Avoiding these foods is A LOT harder than it looks. For example, peanuts are not GE, but almost all peanut butter includes cottonseed or rapeseed oil to achieve the creamy consistency. Make sure to buy PB made of only peanuts and perhaps salt and molasses or honey. Once you start reading labels you will see how corn is in almost all processed food. Soups, frozen dinners, ready-made meals almost always contain some form of corn as an emulsifier or thickener. Cooking from scratch will save you money, ensure the quality of ingredients, and (once you get the hang of it) the food will taste much better.

Growth hormones and antibiotics administered to livestock at factory farms are another problem with today's "inexpensive" food supply. Factory farms fuel epidemics live avian flu and mad cow disease. Animals are horribly abused and treated like a product instead of a living creature. Even if you have no compassion for these animals, you should still buy free range organic meats from animals that have never been given antibiotics or growth hormones. The same rules apply to milk and dairy products. Look for "no rBGH" when buying your milk. These hormones remain active in humans who eat them, leading to acne, early puberty, overgrowth of body and organs, etc.

Antibiotics in feed are just as deadly as the overuse of antibiotics in humans. Due to the filthy living conditions of these factory farmed animals, most wouldn't make it to their second birthday before falling prey to disease. In fact, 90% of factory farmed chickens have cancer by the time they are slaughtered while almost all are driven mad and sick. Restaurants have the worst quality chicken available. 100% of all chicken sold at American restaurants contain arsenic and have cancer at the time on consumption, as opposed to 90% of those sold at grocery stores.

Fish is just as bad as factory farmed beef and chicken! 80% of America's fish comes from China. This may be hard to believe since China has less coastal land than the USA (and it is incredibly far away). To compensate for this, most fish farmed in China come from hatcheries ridden with chemicals and antibiotics to keep them alive long enough to sell. Would you eat a fish out of a dirty pond next to a highway? I did once I 10 years ago and I can still taste it. Going along with my current theme, the worst quality fish is sold at restaurants. I suspect that all of it comes from Chinese landlocked hatcheries.

Fish is not a healthy food unless it comes from clean oceanic water, so please don't think that is what you are getting at the grocery store. It is best to check for "wild caught" Alaskan fish. As with any meat product, the less distance it has to travel from death to the dinner table, the better. The "fishy" flavor is not inherent to fish, instead it is the taste of rotten fish. Nearly half of all fish sold in grocery stores is old when it hits the shelf. Any "fishy" flavor means you've got a bad fish and you may want to reconsider what you are having for dinner that night.

After all of the previous information, it goes without saying that one should also avoid any artificial ingredients, food colorings, preservatives, MSG, etc.

I usually shop at my local "Trader Joe's," which has been a real life saver! This grocery store doesn't sell anything artificial or genetically engineered. I can go in the store and buy microwave dinners or frozen pizzas without having to check ingredients. The prices are wonderful given the quality of products and everything always tastes delicious. I urge you guys to check it out, if you haven't already done so. For families like mine, there really isn't an alternative!

The weight you are is mainly factored by what you put in your body. Just imagine what humans ate during 50 million years of evolution and not the last 50 years of science. Cooking meals at home makes this task much easier, and burns calories while you do it!