If you’ve read my entire post on the Chest Pains, then you know one of my reasons for boycotting certain products….one of which is Soft Drinks....or rather, the Gum Arabic that goes in soft drinks. Anyway, my 2nd reason for the soft drink boycott is in reference to the crimes against humanity in Darfur, Sudan.
Last week, I read an article that listed the top ten dictators on the globe. One of them is Omar Al-Bashir. The article states, “Under Bashir’s rule, the Darfur region of Sudan continues to be the site of a violent power struggle among government forces and allied militia, rebels and bandits. In 2007, Bashir ordered aerial bombing raids that killed dozens of civilians. While Bashir did appoint an official to investigate the human-rights situation in Darfur, the appointee himself has been suspected of war crimes by the International Criminal Court.”
This same article also reveals that the U.S. Link to Sudan and Omar is “The U.S. government has harshly criticized the abuses in Sudan. The Clinton Administration issued trade sanctions in 1997, but it exempted gum arabic, which is used in products ranging from soft drinks and candy to shoe polish and stamps. The U.S. still imports more than 4000 tons of the substance from Sudan annually.”
Some other articles I read that affect my decision.
http://www1.american.edu/TED/gumarab.htm
http://www.amnestyusa.org/darfur/page.do?id=1351050
My first thought upon reading this is that I’m always hearing about the crimes against humanity over there and while I disagree with our government sticking their noses where it doesn’t belong, I do feel sympathetic and would like to do something to help those poor people. I decided that I would no longer support those atrocities with my purchase of soft drinks. Of course, I’ll have to find a way to combat my withdrawal. Arrgggh!
Thanks for reading and feel free to share your thoughts.
Mar 29, 2009
Chest Pains
Last Monday, I went for a walk down the road with my husband and youngest children. I didn’t get very far at all when I was hit with severe chest pains which took my breath away and radiated up the left side of my neck. We strolled back home where I waited for the pains to pass. When 30 minutes went by with no relief, I told my husband to drive me to the hospital; leaving my girls with DQ.
Upon arrival at the hospital, I was immediately taken back to a trauma room, hooked up to machines, stuck with needles, blah blah blah. About 3 hours later, the docs chose to admit me for observation. Fortunately, all test results were negative (or normal). 2 EKG’s, blood tests for enzymes, monitors, and a treadmill test all showed that whatever I was dealing with was not cardio related. It DID show, however, that I’m very much out of shape. Anyway, if there’s a blockage, we won’t know until an angiogram is done but that won’t be until later…..like much later, when we have medical insurance and can afford such an exam or when it’s absolutely necessary.
I was discharged from the hospital the next day. I went home and proceeded to take 600 mg ibuprofen twice a day along with hugging a hot water bottle at bedtime. After 2 days, there was some relief which led me to conclude that this entire incident and pain was due to a pulled muscle. However, the question remains….how does one pull a chest muscle while walking?
On Thursday, I went shoe shopping with DQ and met a young man who was also purchasing shoes for himself. When I say “young”, he certainly looked to be younger than me. He was in the store with a small packet of papers stapled together at the top. He kept referring to the list while he looked for shoes. I saw him again in the grocery store with his wife, looking at the list and comparing labels on the foods they were putting in his cart. I got curious and approached him, jokingly asking him, “Are you having a lifestyle change?”. His wife responded that he’d had a heart attack a couple of weeks ago, and they were trying to follow doc’s orders by changing the way they ate. During our conversation, it was revealed that this young man is only 29 years old!!!
I learned many things through this experience. I learned that the fast food industry is killing us. I learned that soft drinks leach calcium from your bones, thus requiring those with bone density issues to take calcium supplements. I learned that the only groceries you REALLY need are located on the outside walls of the grocery store….the produce, meat, and dairy. Everything else in the middle aisles are processed junk that our bodies don’t need.
My first lifestyle change resulting from this experience is that I’m boycotting fast food. I’m also joining a gym in order to get some more activity. The fact that this experience began while walking out on the road frightened me into exercising in a more populated area….just in case. Oh, and I’m boycotting soft drinks too….but not just for my health. My other reason is here.
If you’ve read this far, thanks for sticking around to the end. I look forward to reading your comments and suggestions for healthier living.
Upon arrival at the hospital, I was immediately taken back to a trauma room, hooked up to machines, stuck with needles, blah blah blah. About 3 hours later, the docs chose to admit me for observation. Fortunately, all test results were negative (or normal). 2 EKG’s, blood tests for enzymes, monitors, and a treadmill test all showed that whatever I was dealing with was not cardio related. It DID show, however, that I’m very much out of shape. Anyway, if there’s a blockage, we won’t know until an angiogram is done but that won’t be until later…..like much later, when we have medical insurance and can afford such an exam or when it’s absolutely necessary.
I was discharged from the hospital the next day. I went home and proceeded to take 600 mg ibuprofen twice a day along with hugging a hot water bottle at bedtime. After 2 days, there was some relief which led me to conclude that this entire incident and pain was due to a pulled muscle. However, the question remains….how does one pull a chest muscle while walking?
On Thursday, I went shoe shopping with DQ and met a young man who was also purchasing shoes for himself. When I say “young”, he certainly looked to be younger than me. He was in the store with a small packet of papers stapled together at the top. He kept referring to the list while he looked for shoes. I saw him again in the grocery store with his wife, looking at the list and comparing labels on the foods they were putting in his cart. I got curious and approached him, jokingly asking him, “Are you having a lifestyle change?”. His wife responded that he’d had a heart attack a couple of weeks ago, and they were trying to follow doc’s orders by changing the way they ate. During our conversation, it was revealed that this young man is only 29 years old!!!
I learned many things through this experience. I learned that the fast food industry is killing us. I learned that soft drinks leach calcium from your bones, thus requiring those with bone density issues to take calcium supplements. I learned that the only groceries you REALLY need are located on the outside walls of the grocery store….the produce, meat, and dairy. Everything else in the middle aisles are processed junk that our bodies don’t need.
My first lifestyle change resulting from this experience is that I’m boycotting fast food. I’m also joining a gym in order to get some more activity. The fact that this experience began while walking out on the road frightened me into exercising in a more populated area….just in case. Oh, and I’m boycotting soft drinks too….but not just for my health. My other reason is here.
If you’ve read this far, thanks for sticking around to the end. I look forward to reading your comments and suggestions for healthier living.
Mar 28, 2009
Granny's Egg Hunt
We went to visit DH’s parents today for a little while this morning and then we went to Granny’s church for an Easter Egg hunt and party. There were quite a few children there. This little church doesn’t have a very big place for play, so they hid the eggs all over the little cemetery! I know, it sounds a bit morbid but the kids don’t care.
Since my girls were the last ones out the door for the hunt, they didn’t find very many even though over 500 eggs had been hidden. 
Little Bird sat on a grave and pouted that she couldn’t find anymore and poor little Kangaroo didn’t find ANY!!! On the bright side, Kangaroo won a special prize for finding the fewest eggs!
Then the girls took out their frustrations on the piñata and were able to load a little Ziploc bag with some goodies before we called it a day.
Mar 21, 2009
Topsy Turvy Tomato
I'm thinking that my girls watch a little too much TV. Every time they see one of those commercials selling a product that you can get "only on TV" my Little Bird will say, "We need THAT Mommy!". Well, on date night last night, my hubby took me to Home Depot (yeah, an original date idea .... hear the sarcasm?) and we ended up over in the gardening section. I spied this Topsy Turvy thing that Little Bird had been oooohing and aaaaahing over for about a week. The price tag showed that it was only $10!!! I mentioned Little Bird's fascination with the product to DH and he decided it would be a good idea to purchase this product for her and Kangaroo. He said it would be very educational!
So, we get home after our date. I was so excited to show this to the girls but they were already in bed asleep. DH decides to open the box for examination and promptly exclaims, "It's just the planter! No tomato seeds or anything else!" He then decides to that we'll keep the Topsy Turvy a secret until me and the girls get home from church the next day. While we were gone to church, he went out and bought some tomato plants, potting soil, and plant food. When the girls and I got home, we ate a quick lunch and then he began putting the Topsy Turvy together explaining every step to the girls as he went along.
Then he helped them with potting soil, plant food, and watering the plant.
The girls admire their handiwork.
I didn't have a whole lot to do with this Topsy Turvy experiment, just that I pointed it out to DH at the Home Depot. So, I just stood by and took the pictures of this experience. Oh, and please excuse hubby's lack of clothing.....that's his yard work outfit and he stopped his yardwork to introduce the girls to the Topsy Turvy.
Edited to add: (5/13/09) The Topsy Turvy requires watering twice a day!!!
Mar 20, 2009
Strawberry Pickin' with BRHA
We went hunting for strawberries with the Baton Rouge Homeschool Association. It was definitely an ordeal! Last year, we went and had the place to ourselves. This year, that was not the case. There were sooooo many people there and people arriving after us too!!!! Also, it had rained for a few days just before our visit so the strawberries weren't in the best of shape. But here are some pictures to show just how much fun we had anyway.
Here we are, learning about the the strawberry planting process.
And off we go to pick some strawberries.
We also got aquainted with some farm animals.
I thought this was the funniest thing I've seen in quite some time. A plywood cow that gives "milk" from a five gallon "udder".
Trying to "milk" the plywood cow.
But the BEST part of this field trip was coming home 
and indulging in some sweet chocolate covered strawberries!!!!
Yum Yum!!!
Mar 17, 2009
A Potty Story
Okay, it's 11:30 at night and we've had a long day but I experienced a funny moment (well, I thought it was funny) that I just HAD to share! I was getting my girls ready for bed (yeah it's late, we had a very late afternoon nap) when Kangaroo announced that she had to go potty. Since one bathroom was already occupied, I escorted her to the master bathroom. To get there, we had to manuveur through a dark master bedroom. DH was already in bed snoring to beat the band so we couldn't turn on any lights. So, we finally get to the bathroom, turned on the light, closed the door, and got Kangaroo on the potty.
Well, she's doing her business (I'll leave out my version of the sound effects) and says to me in her sweet little voice, with a big smile, "Mommy, it's like I'm having a family in the potty!" OMG!!!
I just cracked up! Gotta love those things that kids say!!! LOL I just had make a posty of this one so I would never forget it. So funny!!!
Well, she's doing her business (I'll leave out my version of the sound effects) and says to me in her sweet little voice, with a big smile, "Mommy, it's like I'm having a family in the potty!" OMG!!!
I just cracked up! Gotta love those things that kids say!!! LOL I just had make a posty of this one so I would never forget it. So funny!!!
Mar 16, 2009
Disney: Countdown
I'm trying to catch up on my blogging for this month. I'm so negligent sometimes!!!
First of all, we've been planning our upcoming Disney vacation, so I made a countdown chain for the girls to see how many days away our trip is. The picture shows all 100 links but as of today, we're down to 60 days!!!! Woo Hoo!!! Oh, each link has a little Disney trivia on it that we read each day we tear a link off.
Puddle Jumping Fun
I had recently purchased some little pink camo rubber boots for my girls. They were so excited about their new boots that they wanted to wear them to the park to play! I told them they are to be used when it’s raining. Well, the Lord provided! So, today, we enjoyed playing in a light rain with no lightning or thunder. They had lots of fun!
Puddle Jumping is so much fun!
Where's "Waldo"?
Here's a couple of shots of the girls. See if you can find them among the teddy bears.
They tell me it's called a "dog pile". Hmmmm.
Learning about Horses
As we were driving down the road one day last week, Kangaroo saw a horsey in a roadside field. She began expressing an interest in riding so I thought about it and contacted a local stable and asked if they gave riding lessons. Guess what!? Yes, they do!!!
I waited until that morning to tell them that we were going horseback riding. I didn't want to build their hopes up only to have a rainy day or something to cause a cancellation.
This is the girl’s first time to ride “big” ponies without them being tethered in a circle. The teacher taught them how to sit up straight and how to steer the horse. Little Bird caught on much faster than Kangaroo, who tired of the ride pretty quickly and requested to end her lessons early. I was truly surprised that Little Bird was so much more confident on horseback than Kangaroo. I anticipated the opposite!
Checking out the riding corral.
Learning to mount the horse.
Riding off into the sunshine!
Riding off into the sunshine!
Little Bird rides like a professional rodeo champ!!!
Here's DQ leading Kangaroo on Snowball.
Grooming the horsey is a very important part of horseback riding lessons.
Giddy-up Y'all!!
Geocaching Photos
These are just some shots that I took while geocaching sometime last week. I just started playing with my camera and different angles a little bit.
Mar 13, 2009
Sons and Chores
The Teen came home from school today. He was excited that he had been able to purchase a Playstation 2 from a classmate and he wanted to get it plugged in immediately! I told him no. Actually, his reason was, "I just want to check it out and see if it works." (Ummm, looks like we need a lesson on frugal or wise spending!)
I told him, No, you can't plug it in right now...there are other responsiblities that have priority. To which I received a loud and long, "Maaaaahhhhhhhhmmmmmm!" I proceeded to tell him that his grandfather was waiting next door for Teen to come over and take care of prior committments. Teen's attitude gradually got worse as the afternoon went on.
When he returned home for dinner, he expressed his feelings regarding unfair designation of certain household chores. Meaning, he didn't want to do certain chores anymore because he's ALWAYS the one who has to do it.
Rather than argue with him (as tends to happen quite often), I suggested that he make me a chore chart that more fairly designates the household responsibilities among the members living here that are capable of performing such duties. To my surprise, he returned about an hour later with the requested chart. His idea is to rotate the chores on a daily basis. As it works out, the older household members will have 2 responsibilities at least once a week.
It's really not a bad idea, but it would be hard to remember (especially for me) that today's "Monday" therefore it's my turn to do the dishes and cook dinner.
Finally, the Teen, DH, and I all sat down, looked over the chart, and decided to try it on a trial basis this week just to see if it would improve things. However, now that the chart has been made, it will be MY responsibility to see that everyone is on task. Hmmm....how did this help me?
I told him, No, you can't plug it in right now...there are other responsiblities that have priority. To which I received a loud and long, "Maaaaahhhhhhhhmmmmmm!" I proceeded to tell him that his grandfather was waiting next door for Teen to come over and take care of prior committments. Teen's attitude gradually got worse as the afternoon went on.
When he returned home for dinner, he expressed his feelings regarding unfair designation of certain household chores. Meaning, he didn't want to do certain chores anymore because he's ALWAYS the one who has to do it.
Rather than argue with him (as tends to happen quite often), I suggested that he make me a chore chart that more fairly designates the household responsibilities among the members living here that are capable of performing such duties. To my surprise, he returned about an hour later with the requested chart. His idea is to rotate the chores on a daily basis. As it works out, the older household members will have 2 responsibilities at least once a week.
It's really not a bad idea, but it would be hard to remember (especially for me) that today's "Monday" therefore it's my turn to do the dishes and cook dinner.
Finally, the Teen, DH, and I all sat down, looked over the chart, and decided to try it on a trial basis this week just to see if it would improve things. However, now that the chart has been made, it will be MY responsibility to see that everyone is on task. Hmmm....how did this help me?
Mar 11, 2009
Laundry
Can I take a moment to tell ya just how much I hate doing laundry? The only thing I like about it is the clean smell of detergent and bleach while a load is going in the washer. Other than that, I can't stand doing laundry.
How many outfits do we need anyway? I don't do anything during the week unless it's geocaching or Walmart. Therefore, teeshirts and jeans are the outfit of choice for me. For the girls it's usually something cute. Then on Sunday, I wear a pantsuit I bought from Stage back in October. I have 4 suits that I alternate each weekend.
For hubby, he just wears jeans and a dress shirt most days. So, how many outfits does he need? I'm thinking that tomorrow's project will be to go through all of our clothing and bag up stuff we don't need or wear. Unfortunately, that means I'll have to get hubby another pair or two of jeans.
arrrrrggghhh! Why did Eve HAVE to eat that apple? If she didn't do so, we would have to worry about laundry at all!!!
How many outfits do we need anyway? I don't do anything during the week unless it's geocaching or Walmart. Therefore, teeshirts and jeans are the outfit of choice for me. For the girls it's usually something cute. Then on Sunday, I wear a pantsuit I bought from Stage back in October. I have 4 suits that I alternate each weekend.
For hubby, he just wears jeans and a dress shirt most days. So, how many outfits does he need? I'm thinking that tomorrow's project will be to go through all of our clothing and bag up stuff we don't need or wear. Unfortunately, that means I'll have to get hubby another pair or two of jeans.
arrrrrggghhh! Why did Eve HAVE to eat that apple? If she didn't do so, we would have to worry about laundry at all!!!
Training Pain Update
Just a quick update. Last night I purchased an ankle stabilizer. This morning I put it on first thing and took 600 mg of Ibuprofen. I called my general practicioner and made an appointment for this afternoon. I called the G.P. because he would have to do a referral to the orthopedic specialist. Then I sat on my rear with my foot propped up until time for my appointment.
By appointment time, there was no pain at all. The doc put the foot and ankle through some range of motion stuff. He felt the ankle at the same time. There was no grinding or popping going on at all.
Finally, he told me to keep up with the 600 mg ibuprofen twice a day for the next few days. He also told me to resume my walks with the stabilizer for a few days but only for a mile. If no pain, then remove the stabilizer and try to lengthen my walk and see what happens. If the pain returns, I'm supposed to stop activity, ice the ankle, and call him immediately. I'm guessing that at that point (if it comes to that) he'll refer me to the orthopedic doctor.
I certainly hope his recommendations work.
By appointment time, there was no pain at all. The doc put the foot and ankle through some range of motion stuff. He felt the ankle at the same time. There was no grinding or popping going on at all.
Finally, he told me to keep up with the 600 mg ibuprofen twice a day for the next few days. He also told me to resume my walks with the stabilizer for a few days but only for a mile. If no pain, then remove the stabilizer and try to lengthen my walk and see what happens. If the pain returns, I'm supposed to stop activity, ice the ankle, and call him immediately. I'm guessing that at that point (if it comes to that) he'll refer me to the orthopedic doctor.
I certainly hope his recommendations work.
Mar 9, 2009
Training Pain
If I haven't mentioned it before, my brother has asked me to accompany him on the Crescent City Classic 5k. I'm not an athlete by any means but I figured that if I can walk a mile or two right now, then surely I can do a 5k in a month. So, I've been out walking every day this week.
Walking is great exercise but I'm not enjoying it so much right now. It seems that I have developed a problem. First of all, after each walk, my left ankle is throbbing and swollen. Immediately after I get home, I have to get off my feet, prop them up, and place ice bags on each ankle for a few minutes. After icing, the pain subsides and I'm okay but not great.
Yesterday I did 3 miles. Halfway through, the throbbing pain returned. By the time I ended the walk and was at home, I was limping. I came in and did the ice, remaining off my feet the rest of the evening. When I woke up this morning and got out of bed....OUCH!!!...Now I'm limping again and dreading today's walk.
I think I've developed tendonitis but I'm not sure. Also, while walking, I can feel the ankle pop and grind. Most likely an arthritic symptom.
This has happened before and I thought it was just my shoes. So I bought more and then didn't do any walking for over a year resulting in my sedentary lifestyle. I would love to do more exercise and/or walking but I certainly would like for it to be painless....well, painless beyond the normal pain, if you know what I mean.
Does anyone out in bloggy land have any suggestions?!!!???? Help!!!
Walking is great exercise but I'm not enjoying it so much right now. It seems that I have developed a problem. First of all, after each walk, my left ankle is throbbing and swollen. Immediately after I get home, I have to get off my feet, prop them up, and place ice bags on each ankle for a few minutes. After icing, the pain subsides and I'm okay but not great.
Yesterday I did 3 miles. Halfway through, the throbbing pain returned. By the time I ended the walk and was at home, I was limping. I came in and did the ice, remaining off my feet the rest of the evening. When I woke up this morning and got out of bed....OUCH!!!...Now I'm limping again and dreading today's walk.
I think I've developed tendonitis but I'm not sure. Also, while walking, I can feel the ankle pop and grind. Most likely an arthritic symptom.
This has happened before and I thought it was just my shoes. So I bought more and then didn't do any walking for over a year resulting in my sedentary lifestyle. I would love to do more exercise and/or walking but I certainly would like for it to be painless....well, painless beyond the normal pain, if you know what I mean.
Does anyone out in bloggy land have any suggestions?!!!???? Help!!!
Mar 3, 2009
Unmotivated and icky
I fell so icky today. I can't seem to stay focused on anything. My house is a wreck. I'm highly unmotivated. I'm everything the Proverbs 31 lady isn't. I can't even think or focus enough to write a decent blog post.
The other day, the right side of my upper lip started twitching. Unless I was talking. If I was just sitting there doing nothing, it would twitch constantly but only for a few minutes. Then it would quit. It drove me nuts! Then this morning, when I woke up, I just laid in bed staring at the ceiling when I noticed that only my left eye was open. I closed that eye and tried to open my right eye. That took much more effort than I thought was necessary. So I started freaking out.
I got online and started looking up stroke symptoms. I've been having pain in my right shoulder for months now and can't raise it up high over my head the way I can with my left arm. So, I went to the doc for the arm and he said I had tendonitis in that shoulder. He gave me some pain killers and muscle relaxers but it does still hurt. Other people I have talked to say that they ended up getting a cortizone shot in their shoulder. I have decided that my arm must be entirely useless before I cave in for a cortizone shot.
All that being said, I don't think my right arm pain has anything to do with TIA or stroke. It's the lip twitching and right eye that bothers me. Of course, each "episode" (with the exception of the right arm) didn't last very long. According to the net, the only time I should really be concerned is if it last more than 15 minutes. Just 5 minutes of lip twitching is enough to drive one crazy!
Okay, I guess that's enough for today. Maybe I just need to put myself on a schedule. You know. Like in the bed at 9 p.m. whether I'm sleepy or not. Then I'll start feeling better. It's too pretty outside for me to feel this way. My poor girls want to go out and play and all I want to do is sit and stare. Arrrrggghh!
Edited to add (5/5/09): I've determined that all of these symptoms are a result of lack of regular sleep. Going to bed at 2 a.m. and rising at 7 a.m. isn't conducive to good health.
The other day, the right side of my upper lip started twitching. Unless I was talking. If I was just sitting there doing nothing, it would twitch constantly but only for a few minutes. Then it would quit. It drove me nuts! Then this morning, when I woke up, I just laid in bed staring at the ceiling when I noticed that only my left eye was open. I closed that eye and tried to open my right eye. That took much more effort than I thought was necessary. So I started freaking out.
I got online and started looking up stroke symptoms. I've been having pain in my right shoulder for months now and can't raise it up high over my head the way I can with my left arm. So, I went to the doc for the arm and he said I had tendonitis in that shoulder. He gave me some pain killers and muscle relaxers but it does still hurt. Other people I have talked to say that they ended up getting a cortizone shot in their shoulder. I have decided that my arm must be entirely useless before I cave in for a cortizone shot.
All that being said, I don't think my right arm pain has anything to do with TIA or stroke. It's the lip twitching and right eye that bothers me. Of course, each "episode" (with the exception of the right arm) didn't last very long. According to the net, the only time I should really be concerned is if it last more than 15 minutes. Just 5 minutes of lip twitching is enough to drive one crazy!
Okay, I guess that's enough for today. Maybe I just need to put myself on a schedule. You know. Like in the bed at 9 p.m. whether I'm sleepy or not. Then I'll start feeling better. It's too pretty outside for me to feel this way. My poor girls want to go out and play and all I want to do is sit and stare. Arrrrggghh!
Edited to add (5/5/09): I've determined that all of these symptoms are a result of lack of regular sleep. Going to bed at 2 a.m. and rising at 7 a.m. isn't conducive to good health.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)