Third time is a charm, right?!

Well...here we are again. Thinking it is time to revamp the blog. I read thru my old posts and noticed this is my third attempt to write this blog consistently. Just maybe, this time will be different. Now I actually have people asking for my recipes! 

I know you're wondering why I'm trying yet again and why people want my recipes! A lot has changed since the last post in 2018. The biggest change is my health. After my post in 2018, I went a few months and it seemed my changes were working okay for me in someways but in others, I was miserable. When I'm struggling, I eat...and it is usually things I don't need. 2019 was a year of searching. I was having health issues that just didn't make sense. I'll spare the details and give the ending, gallbladder removal and a diagnosis of Chronic Gastritis. After a December surgery and new medication, 2020 was looking up! Until it wasn't...my health began to decline, again. My doctor did test after test, blood work perfect. It wasn't until my yearly exam (in April) that my OBGYN suggested I see a rheumatologist. She believed I was suffering from fibromyalgia or lupus. Fast forward to August 13, 2020. I finally went to the rheumatologist and was in fact diagnosed with fibro. This diagnosis truly changed my life. It meant a lifetime of pain, a lifetime of never fully healing, a lifetime of medication and lifestyle change. TRUE lifestyle change. After a breakdown alone in my car, I was determined to make the best of what I was given.

My doctor told me a few major things that have truly stuck with me and motivated me:

1. This is a REAL illness, the FDA wouldn't have approved medications if it wasn't.

2. You have to learn your body, rest when it says rest, say no if you have to.

3. Diet is a major part of improved quality of life. (She said do a whole30 then switch to paleo.) 

Her initial plan overwhelmed me completely! As a wife and working mom of 2, I thought there was NO WAY I could eat the way she wanted, feed my family, and do water aerobics and yoga! But, I had waited years for an answer. I have an incredible support system that has listened to me whine, held me when I cried, and prayed continually for an answer. I decided in that moment, that I was tackling her plan head on. Diet, exercise, lifestyle change. I texted/called family and friends. I told them the diagnosis and the plan. I began new medication, I changed one medication, and I started my whole30 the Monday following my diagnosis.

The 30 days of the whole30 was so much easier than I expected. I had a bestie who gladly jumped in to join me, that made meal prep much easier, more fun, and gave us the ability to have variety. Most importantly, I had GOD on my side, as I always do. One of my favorite stories in the bible is about Paul and the "thorn" in his side. Paul asked 3 times for God to remove his thorn but God didn't remove the thorn. My favorite scriptures below summarize the story...

But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses so that Christ's power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

I knew my fibromyalgia was my "thorn;" my daily struggle that I could use to share God with those around me. To show God's grace, God's power, and the reality of when you slip away, even for moment. 

Now..back to food...after a very successful whole30, the paleo thing was going pretty well but I was cheating a little more than I should! My friend was struggling to find meals that were quick and easy. Then in November 2020, I contracted COVID. During those two weeks, I ate whatever my 12 year old could cook and slide thru the door. After that, I made up for lost time and ate all the things I had been avoiding. It was a delicious and miserable time! My pain levels went up, my weight went up, my anger went up, my temper got short, my fatigue went thru the roof, and I was NOT the woman I was in August. My friends and I missed our weekly meal planning, missed our delicious meals and decided January we would start again. This time wouldn't be a "strict" whole30 but we would use whole30 and Paleo as a guide and pair with things we know we can tolerate, such as RICE. Where my Louisiana peeps? Y'all know a week isn't a week without rice multiple meals. After a few Facebook posts of "man this meal is awesome," we drew some attention and people wanted to know what we were cooking and eating! 

So...all of that extremely long post was just so I can have a place to share and store our favorite recipes for the week! My plan is to at least share one a week, time depending, I may share more!

And since the blog was originally created for my son, here is a quick update... He is no longer allergic to peanuts or milk! It was a happy day when he could eat pizza with everyone else! However, he is still highly allergic to egg white and egg yolks plus he added shrimp and pecans! I'll be sure to denote when a recipe is #jaceapproved and his opinion about actually eating said meal!

God Bless and Happy Eating!