DAY 334 - Flaxseed

I take two tablespoons of ground flaxseed a day, one in the morning and one at night, with a glass of water. I've done this for years because I read an article about how it is healthy for a woman to do that; however, it's been so long I can no longer remember the reasoning behind it.  But I do it anyway.  

Typically, I get ground organic flaxseed from a health food store, but I've had a vacuum sealed bag of whole flaxseed on my shelf for a few years.  I never bothered with it until recently because I didn't have a grinder.  I kept thinking I would get the grain grinder that attaches to my Kitchenaid mixer, but it never seemed a priority purchase.  In the meantime, we bought a small hand grinder to use in an emergency.

Well, sometime last month as I was leaving for work, I mentioned to my husband that if he wanted some entertainment he could grind some of the whole flaxseed with that little grinder... just enough to fill the small container I use for ground seed.  Being the kind and caring man that he is, I came home to freshly ground flaxseed.

Last night I used the last of it and needed to grind more, so this morning I pulled out the grinder and started to grind.  And grind.  And grind.  I was rapidly getting a sore arm and only had a teeny tiny pile of the ground seed to show for it!!  At this point my husband told me it had taken him forty minutes to grind the previous batch.  Forty minutes!  Oh my goodness that's true love!  

"Are you kidding me?"  I asked.

"Nope."

"There's gotta be a better way!"

With that, I pulled out our blender, dumped in some seed and hit the button labeled Grind. Woolah.  I had a batch of flaxseed ground to perfection in a few blinks of the eye.  You should have seen the look of disbelief and disgust on his face! 

I grinned.  "Honest... honey, I never even thought of using the blender until now!"

They say that necessity is the mother of all invention... well... I think laziness plays a large part too.

DAY 333 -- Well cared for.

Image from Wikipedia

Today, with my job, I drove a 1992 Mercedes Roadster. When I was handed the keys I wondered if the car would be a piece of junk since it was older and going to auction, but I was wrong.  The car was beautiful, inside and out.  Whoever owned that car took great care of it. And I'm telling ya...what a suhweeeet ride! It was such a joy to drive I found myself wishing for a big pocketful of change to purchase that baby.

I've mentioned how my husband says I'm a Ferrari in need of special fuel...well driving that older Mercedes and feeling the joy of handing a quality well cared for machine, made me reflect on how the human body also defies age when treated with healthy respect.  We are children of God.  We are of great worth, quality.  If we make sure our bodies and minds are well cared for, we can enjoy a much sweeter ride through our life.

DAY 332 -- The taste of homemade.

For lunch on Saturday I grabbed a can of organic soup off our pantry shelf.  Thinking we needed "quick" options for some meals, we stocked up on a few canned organic soups, being careful to select the ones without added sweeteners.  They are "okay" in a pinch, but I realized as I slurped a spoonful on Saturday, they leave a lot to be desired when it comes to flavor. After a few bites, I pushed the bowl away.

My husband questioned, "Saving that for your mulligan?"

"No way.  It's not worthy."

Taking the bowl, he sampled the soup, then with a shudder, he pushed the bowl back towards me.

The taste of homemade called to us after that experience, so for our evening supper I prepared a pot of Lentil-Vegetable Soup.  (See Recipe Page.)

Then for breakfast Sunday morning, Kurt mentioned he was hungry for waffles.  Thinking I didn't have enough time to prepare waffles from scratch (we were getting ready for church), I grabbed the whole wheat Insta-Bake.  (It's supposedly healthy as far as baking mixes go, but looking at the label I am doubting that.)  The waffles seemed heavy with an unsatisfying flavor.  We longed for the taste of homemade...again.

So... this morning I whipped up some waffles using a favorite recipe and we feasted on the yummy light flavor of "Annette's Oatmeal Waffles."  (See Recipe Page.)

(For toppings on our waffles we use a small amount of pure maple syrup, or all fruit jam, or fresh fruit.  Pure, 100% maple syrup doesn't trigger cravings for me, but I use it very sparingly, and very infrequently.)

I know some people who rarely cook from scratch (some rarely eat at home, period) but ever since I started eating healthy foods, I realize my mouth rejoices in the taste of homemade.