Monday, October 29, 2012

Acupuncture!

Early last winter I found myself in a world of pain and discovered that I had ruptured one of the discs in my lower back.

It was agony to go from sitting to standing and ibuprofen and ice became my new best friends.

I sought medical help, and after this was discovered on an MRI, I received two cortisone injections and three months of physical therapy. I slowly recovered and today I am living pain free and am taking every precaution I can to try to prevent another injury like this from occurring.

I refrain from certain exercises at the gym and try to do extra core work to strengthen my back. I try to get massages once in awhile, go to hot yoga, and overall just tend to be more aware of ways to stay out of the physical therapist's office.

I have recently been reading about all the health benefits that acupuncture can offer. At Gundersen Lutheran there are two providers who provide this type of therapy. People from all walks of life and every age have enjoyed many of the benefits that go along with acupuncture. I picked up the phone and scheduled my first appointment. This is a big step for a person who is terrified of needles!

I have several friends and relatives who have sought this treatment for various ailments, including my 89-year-old grandmother. Everyone told me of the positive results they experienced. One such friend said it helped remarkably calm her mood swings and helped her feel more energized. They all claimed that the needles did not hurt, although you may experience a tingling sensation when touched on certain areas. I am nervous and excited, but feel that taking an extra preventative step to staying healthy is worth it.

For more information on acupuncture offered in this area check out the links...
Acupuncture
Integrative Medicine at Gundersen Lutheran

Wednesday, October 24, 2012

Finding balance

If you have a few minutes of free time during the day, do you find yourself using some type of social media?

Maybe you twit or tweet or find yourself checking Facebook. I find myself doing this far too often during the day when I have a few seconds of down time. It does keep me informed of social news on a very timely basis. I have found that I stayed in touch with people or found people I have lost touch with and reconnected. It has allowed me to track events and stay on top of things in our community.

But I have found that although it has become a fixture in my life, with a computer parked on my kitchen counter, it has also become a huge waste of my precious free time. I have become somewhat addicted to checking what others are doing on Facebook, or keeping up to the minute on daily social ongoings.

I need to find a time to dedicate to doing this once, maybe twice a day. I haven't found my happy medium, but it needs to happen if I want to get my laundry done! There are more than a handful of my friends who don't follow any type of social networking, I say, all the more power to them!

As a stay-at-home mom, this type of communication helps me feel connected in a way I don't get from going to work outside the home. I do tire of reading the same posts from people. I really don't care if you just vacuumed your hallway, and I have to admit I feel like people lead far more exciting lives than I do.

There is a constant barrage of vacation photos and shots of gourmet meals and social functions. But when taken in context, it is fun to see how friends lives are being led and places and things they are doing. I have found some great resources along the way, like the Balance Your 7 website, and all the ways it shows to try to lead a more balanced life. While two of the components of balance your 7 are relationships and community, the underlying theme is still balance, and this is something that I hope to achieve with my "facebooking" especially before we run out of clean clothes!



balanceyour7com

Monday, October 15, 2012

Halloween is fast approaching

I have recently begun to realize that there are two schools of thought about this holiday. You either love this time of year and go all out decorating, pick the perfect costume, buy your candy early, etcetera.

If you are not this person, then you are that someone who refuses to get into a costume and for you the only thing good about Halloween is the candy! Well, I happen to be in one camp and my husband entrenched in another.

So with an upcoming party to go to there is always the big costume debate. Now this may sound trivial in the grand scheme of day-to-day life, but it's a decision that requires a great deal of planning and thought. If my husband agrees to be dressed up at all, he wants it to be a costume that is easy and comfortable and does not require any sort of explanation. But even this is done with a great deal of reluctance. Luckily, he loves me enough to go to the party at all!

So here I sit, mid October, trying to come up with the best costumes to suit both our wishes. Last year, at this same party, people tended to go all out. We saw an entire KISS band, several realistic looking superheroes, and quite a few were quite spectacular! We kept it simple and went as the Soul Surfer and the shark who bit her arm off. It was easy, cheap, and comfortable for both of us to wear. I have been racking my brains and the website and I believe I finally stumbled upon a great idea, and one my husband actually agreed to! But this idea requires one prop that I may have a difficult time finding. So, I have begun scouring Ebay and local retailers in the hopes that this will work! Stay tuned to find out what this idea is! In the meantime, try not to be a Halloween scrooge, but enjoy the one holiday where you get to be just about anything you want, even if it's only for a brief period of time and do all of this while eating candy!

Saturday, October 13, 2012

A minivan mom...

So I came to a harsh reality a little over two years ago.

I was pregnant with our third child and realized that the vehicle I was driving would be less than practical for a family of five and their dog.

Now if you were to ask any one of my friends, I was the last person who would ever be caught driving a minivan. I had said "never" and we all know one should never say "never."

We test drove every available SUV, car, or something with wheels.

It was shortly there after that I found myself behind the wheel of a less-than-attractive, yet totally practical minivan. I had officially entered the minivan stage of life.

Now several people swear they love their van and wouldn't dare dream of driving any other vehicle. I am not in that camp. But I will say it is challenging enough to juggle three active kids, so sign me up for anything that can help make this even remotely easier. It's not perfect, but it will do for now, and I like to tell myself that you can still be a thirty-something, mother of three, and look good driving a van!

Friday, October 12, 2012

There and back again...

My husband and I recently had a weekend away to Chicago, sans kids.
Traveling is one of my favorite things in life to do. I love exploring new places, seeing new sites, smells, sounds and tastes. We managed to eat several fantastic meals, have adult conversation, and get to enjoy being together as adults without our kids for a few hours.

I got to explore during the day, as my husband had some meetings to attend. Being in the city alone can be a great thing. I was on my own time schedule, answering only to my growling stomach. Eating whatever appealed to me, shopping in whatever store caught my eye, exploring as I wanted.

My batteries were thoroughly recharged after only two days. But being in a large city, surrounded by people, it's amazing how alone you can feel. By day three I missed my kids, my dog, my bed. It was time for us to get back to reality and our crazy life.

I love to travel and I have an endless list of places I want to explore, but our next adventure will include the kids. And for those of you who have traveled with children, you know you don't have to go far for that to become an adventure unto itself!

Thursday, October 11, 2012

Well done Farm2School!

Our local La Crosse County Public Schools have introduced a new program called Farm2School.

It teaches children about fruits and vegetables, letting them taste, watch and participate in cooking demonstrations, and basically getting kids excited about healthy eating. This is such a wonderful idea, and I have witnessed it actually working.

Our 7-year-old has begun to try new foods, instead of instantly snubbing them. He still holds a grudge against squash and a few other harmless vegetables, but he likes broccoli, kiwi and green beans. He continues to sample everything put on his plate, most of the time with a good-natured attitude.

I made a white chicken chili with lots of beans and vegetables. He LOVED it! For a mom this is a home run.

I think this is due, in part, to his exposure to new fruits and vegetables at school. Seeing his friends try new things, he too has decided this isn't such a bad idea. Every month they have one featured produce item on the lunch menu.

The executive chef from Gundersen Lutheran, Thomas Sacksteder, travels to local schools and gives demonstrations using items from local farms. We live in such an agriculturally rich area, it's wonderful to see this begin to be incorporated into the way our children should eat. This initiative needs to be applauded, especially from this mother!

Watch the YouTube video of chef Thomas Sacksteder by clicking here.

Friday, October 5, 2012

Political overload!

I have officially hit political overload!
I was tired of all the commercials by August, but now we are truly in the thick of things. The debate was predictable, but I did watch a fair amount.

I have friends who eat, sleep and breathe politics. I wish it interested me more but I always feel like they say whatever we want to hear, twist things to sound favorable to their beliefs, and do whatever they want to anyway!

Several of our friends are from foreign countries. They raptly follow all of the state and federal hoopla, and would absolutely love to have the ability to vote. It has been wonderful to get an outside perspective on some of the pertinent topics.

Overall, I continue to tune out the commercials and try to glean my knowledge of the various candidates from many different sources. I happen to celebrate a birthday at the beginning of November, and this year I will be just as excited to celebrate turning one year older as having the elections over with!

Thursday, October 4, 2012

Grandparents

I hope everyone who reads this has had the experience of a wonderful set or two of grandparents. Maybe it was a special Nana or Papa or Oma or Opa. Perhaps it was just plain 'ol Gram and Gramps.

I have had the privilege to see my children grow up with my parents as one of the best examples of what a perfect set of grandparents should look like. On a scale of one to ten on the spoil meter, my parents are way off the charts. Hugs and kisses, laughter and smiles are never ending when Grandpa and Grandma are around. We live about an hour's drive away from their home. Each and every trip to their house is like a vacation for my children. They never tire of the drive or what awaits them at the other end.

They have helped to enrich and round out my children's lives by introducing them to things like fishing, baking, campfires in the backyard. What fun it is for me to watch the sparkle in both my parent's and my children's eyes when they are together with one another. Our 2-year-old is especially close to my mom. She can do no wrong in her grandma's eye!

I am so grateful for all they do for our family and our kids. My mother is here to help out so that my husband and I can get away for the weekend without the kids. I love that she wants to help and is able to do so, and our kids are in such great, experienced hands. So if you have grandparents or the privilege to watch your parents be the grandparents, be grateful. They are truly special people.