My God will provide all my needs...

I am thanking God today for His provision. My hubby is part of the government furlough. One day off every week for eleven weeks. That is a 20% pay cut. But praise God we can live on that amount of money. It is just a little less than what we made in Utah. (As of today they are talking of cutting it to fewer days. Another praise)

I have always been frugal, or as my kids call me cheap! Early in our marriage we planned for me to be a stay at home mom. So we made sure to live on only one income. Even when I did work off and on over the years we still lived on one income. We have tried to pay cash when we could. Buy used or on sale when ever possible. I have always cooked from scratch and up until we moved we rarely ate out. We have traveled and stayed in state parks and slept in our van to save on hotel costs. These have been our funnest vacations!

I don't feel we have went without either. We just make sure we have the money before we buy something or go on vacation. I believe all things are a gift from God including our money. I believe to live on credit is not good stewardship of our money. After all buying on credit is buying something with money you don't have yet. And may never have. We have no guarantee of having a job tomorrow. In our 26 years of marriage hubby has  been twice without  a job. But by Gods grace we got through and He provided all our needs. This has also made us more careful with our money for times like these when it is out of our control. I'm praying for my friends that are losing income right now also that God will provide for them and they will have enough.

Some ways I save....

1. Buy used or only on sale (this is clothing, home furnishing, cars)
2. No store bought junk food (chips, cookies, soda, candy) I bake cookies, and donuts. We air pop popcorn and drink lots of water.
3. Turn the heat down and wear a sweater...
4. We don't go to the movies (Redbox or Netflix)
5. Grow a garden and can (when I was in Utah, now farmers market weekly)
6. Basic cable (we never did watch all those channels, and we share my sons Netflix)
7. Car insurance...Shop around. For years we over payed!
8. Before we buy we ask, do we need it or want it?
9. I write out a budget...Every now and then I will keep track of all our spending and see what I can cut out.
10. We just don't buy big ticket items.. Boats, trailers, atv's...But we did put in a pool. Hubby did most of the work and we paid half the price of someone else doing it!

Why I eat the way I do...

I come from a long line of unhealthy family members on my fathers side. And you guessed it I have those genes. Let me go through the list of what I know. My dad had high cholesterol, high blood pressure, diabetes, he had a stint put in his heart in his 50's had a stroke at the age of 62 and died at 70 of a sudden heart attack. My grandfather had a heart attack at age 53 and died from a heart attack at age 55. His mother my great-grand mother had diabetes and died I think late 50's early 60's. Her mother died young also, but I'm not sure what from.
My cholesterol started to rise in my late 20's and by the time I was in my 30's I was on medication. So almost  twenty years of medication. Around 45 my blood pressure was high enough for medication also.
I had always thought in the back of my mind I will most likely have diabetes too.

But that all changed one day in February 2012. I watch the documentary Fork Over Knives on Netflix. It is about a large study on animal proteins and their connection to heart disease and cancers. http://www.forksoverknives.com/about/synopsis/ And how a plant based whole food (vegan) diet can prevent and in some cases reverse these diseases. It was so good. I had hubby watch and he wanted to try it for 90 days (his blood pressure was high also and he was on meds too.)  I only wanted to try for 60 days...lol
So we were off. Out went the meat, dairy, eggs, and  all the processed foods. In came the almond milk, beans, brown rice, quinoa, fruit and veggies! In the first month we both felt better and we both had our blood pressure going back to normal . In fact I was still on medication and mine got so low I was dizzy. So my doctor told me to stop taking the pills! We had both lost weight and we were on our way to a new way of eating. the 90 days were now past and we were not going back. We were excited to see how our health would change and what new things we could eat.

I'll admit I was pretty excited about my blood pressure going back to normal in weeks of changing my eating and who wouldn't be with the list of disease I could be facing. I felt it was the magic pill we are always looking for.
 I don't miss meat at all! Hamburgers and cheese was my food of choice, but now I'd much rather have a big bowl of brown rice with black beans, onion and peppers sauteed with maybe some guacamole.
I'm not going to lie, we don't always stick to it. It is hard if you eat out to find food that doesn't have animal products in them. Everything has meat or dairy. Did you know even McDonald's french fries has beef in them, Yup they add it so they tastes better! Who knew. I never eat meat, but I do have an egg or some cheese once in a while. :( I always feel crappy after with stomach issues.

What we didn't expect from this new way of eating was the hostility, rudeness and strangers questioning us about our food choices. I'm not sure why someone would get so worked up about how I eat and me telling them the results. I only want to share my experiences. Not change anyone. (at some point I might tell about a few of these encounters)

My cholesterol is still high, my body just makes to much. But I'm not worried I rarely eat anything with cholesterol in it. (cholesterol only comes from animals). My blood pressure is perfect and my blood sugars are great. I am no longer afraid of diabetes or the other health problems my dad had. I love this way of eating, it is simple and cheaper and I have so much fun looking for new things to cook. And I really love vegetables now!            
                                                                                                   

veggie burrito bowl. I could eat this everyday!

Surprise

I've had a busy, fun and awesome week.

First my brother and family were in town for a Disneyland vacation and we met them for dinner last Tuesday night at Ruby's in Huntington Beach. It was great to hang out and catch up. 

Then on Wednesday night the best surprise ever. My son came to visit! My hubby told me he was taking a guy from work to the airport, but he was really picking up my son. I had No idea.... So we did all kinds of things over the weekend. We went to New Port beach and Balboa Island. On Friday we went to Universal Studios with my Brother and family. And to an Angels baseball game Saturday night. So much fun.(I am becoming a big fan of baseball!) It was so good to be with my son and so hard to have him leave. I miss him and the rest of my family so much. 

Balboa Island

I even look like a fan with the hat.

Not your mom's tuna!

The funnest part about eating plant-based for me and hubby is trying new recipes. This past weekend we tried and Loved a Vegan "Tuna" sandwich recipe. The question is what do you use to replace tuna fish? Garbanzo Beans!  



Here is what you need.....

1 15oz can garbanzo bean drained and rinsed well

1 cup celery

1/2 lemon juiced 

1 teas. lemon zest

1 teas. agave syrup

2 Tbs. vegan mayo or to taste

garlic powder, salt and pepper to taste

a pinch of cayenne

1 tbs. crushed nori sheets (adds that fishy flavor)

In a bowl mash beans with a fork (my hubby did this and though it was important to get the tuna texture by making sure all the beans go through the fork)

Add celery

lemon juice and zest

agave

spices, nori, and mayo

and eat! 

You can also add nutritional yeast,  or dill pickles !

Something used...

The first weekend we were here, my niece and nephew asked if we wanted to go with them to yard sales. It is something that we have always loved and here in California they are year round. So for most every Saturday we have got up early went and picked up the niece and nephew and drove around looking for signs with arrows pointing us where to go.  (We also get breakfast along the way, yum yum.) My latest obsession is Globes....You can see them all over in decor on Pinterest. So far I have bought five and a yo-yo with a map look.

This light up Globe is my favorite....It was the cheapest at $2.00, SCORE!

We found a web-site to determine the age of  globes. http://www.replogleglobes.com/howOldIsYourGlobe.php
My large one is from the 90's and the medium one is the 60's .

I have even bought a Leap-Frog globe at the Goodwill!. I think I want to start looking for cameras now.....

Here I am.....

So here I am starting a blog....I have wanted to write one for a long time. But like most things in my life, fear puts a stop to it. In this case fear I'll sound stupid. Fear no one will read it or WILL read it. The list goes on and on. But here i am writing!  As we have been in California I have learned a lot about myself and my fears. Just moving was such a big step for me. I want to share "me" with my family and friends so I can feel more connected.  I also want to share my love for Jesus, my love for cooking vegan, my love for yard sales and crafts I might be doing, But most of all our journey in getting back home to Utah.  So here I am....