Tuesday, January 11, 2011

More Optimistic Today

This happens a lot in my blogging life, I've noticed. I find myself at a wall, frustrated, upset beyond belief, and so I regurgitate it all over my blog; venting, unleashing. Then I get a string of calm-minded comments which always put me in my place and give me optimism and hope --pretty much immediately. I always have two reactions:
1. I feel so stupid! They all think I'm soooooo stupid!
2. I have amazing friends who really do care about me even though I keep doing this (this = getting it wrong all the time).

So, thank you, dear reader. Thank you for not judging me, for lifting me up, and for being the kind of friends everyone needs.

For those who would like, here are a couple of links from those amazing friends. Go read them. Right now. Seriously! Go read them! Because they were answers to my prayers --maybe they'll be answers to yours, too, eh?
Elder Christofferson's CES talk (which I still have to watch but have heard rave reviews about).
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Parable of the Soda Bottle

Last night, I had to find a 2 liter soda bottle. #1 is having a Science Day at school today, and the 2 liter bottle was a requirement. Not so hard, right? I'll check the food storage.
Nope. Just gallons of water. No liters.
We don't buy soda, so... should I go to the store? Brandon's in Texas (for work; he left yesterday and he'll be gone all week), so if I leave, I'll have to make #1 stay up late to keep the kids safe or call a quick sitter or take them all with me or...

I'll make some phone calls and see if anyone has an extra bottle I could buy.

Luckily, I found someone who had a soda bottle on the second try. Another mother of a fourth-grader (with the same assignment) who lives around the corner happened to have one extra bottle of Sprite in her food storage. I offered to pay her for it; she wouldn't hear of it. I ran over there and thanked her over and over for the bottle. I dumped the soda out, cleaned it, cut it where the instructions said to cut it, added it to the bag with the other supplies #1 needed and sighed with relief.

What I learned:
*Sometimes, food storage isn't for the starving or bereft --sometimes it is for Fourth Grade science projects and the neighbors who forgot to prepare for it.
*What may seem insignificant and small to the giver is usually miraculous to the receiver.
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Blenders:
(This is mostly for Marianne!)

Do you need to buy a nice expensive heavy-duty blender to have green smoothies?
No. Technically, no.
Should you?
Absolutely, yes.

My Blendtec blender is the best kitchen purchase I've ever made, hands down. I use it every day --sometimes more than once a day! I make green smoothies, soups, sauces; grind wheat; make almond milk (only once. I need to try it again); mix dough; make guacamole; etc. I LOVE my blender. I've even taken it on vacation!

It may seem ridiculous to drop hundreds of dollars for "a blender," but honestly? With the green smoothies I do, I would have already done that by now by just replacing my cheap blender over and over.

So, trust me. Do the research, choose your Vitamix or Blendtec and get blending!
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I got Josh's new CD for Christmas! This is one of my favorites; the lyrics are so awesome:

10 comments:

Amy said...

Do you know what difference between the Blendtec and Vitamix? I can't remember if you talked about it before :)
We've got a pretty good kitchen aid blender, but I want something with more power.

Alison Wonderland said...

Grind wheat?

Anonymous said...

I'm glad today is better. And I love the parable of the soda bottle. So true.

My parents used to have a wheat grinder because we use to keep whole wheat in our food storage. I can see where that would come in handy.

Next time I'm in your neck of the woods, I'll have to have you make me a smoothie.

Dorri said...

My sister uses her blendtec to grind rice to make rice flour, her son has celiacs (sp?). I drool over it. Some year when I'm done with school and making lots of money doing other people's taxes, then I'll buy one. But until then, I just dream.
Glad you are having a better day.
Yesterday I turned my stress and frustration with life into an hour long walk on the treadmill, it felt good for my soul.

sariqd said...

Nah, you're not stupid. You're an amazing woman so knock off the name-calling. :)

Glad to see you're doing better!

Cardalls said...

http://blog.cjanerun.com/2011/01/fats-out-of-bag.html

did you read this cjane post? stop the fat talk!

my best friend growing up had a strict no sugar, no treat house. she always binged when she went other places..especially college where she gained 50 lbs. She was never taught what to do with treats/sugar when it was around. she was never taught moderation. I think its similar to teaching our kids how to live in but not of the world...

Coming from a home where weight was a BIG issue and we were lectured about it a lot (and my sister had/has an eating disorder), teach about health but not weight. don't harp on it, let her make her own choices. I try to teach my kids that many times they eat because they are bored or tired and to find somehting else to do, if they are still "hungry" in 30 minutes they can have a healthy snack. Just my 2 cents.

Cheryl said...

Clarification:
I have never told ANY of my children they were too fat. Nor too thin. Whenever I talk about weight loss or exercising or eating better I speak in terms of "health," "Word of Wisdom," and "Our Bodies Are Temples" and "ME." I don't forbid them from eating sugar. I don't forbid them from pizza. I let them occasionally eat hot lunch and if it's cold lunch, it always includes Greek Yogurt, PB&J, and a fruit/veggie of some kind. When I speak about my frustration to the blog, my children don't read it. They don't hear me bemoan. The only time they hear my frustration is when:
1. They refuse to try something new
and
2. They whine and complain about what I make for dinner.
Yes, they know I love The Biggest Loser. Yes, they know I want to be healthy. But I don't talk about it all day long. I'm not a Nazi about this stuff. On my blog it may appear this way because this is what I talk about here. It's safe to talk about it here. I can think it "out loud" here instead of to my children.
So, no worries. I'm not destroying my children's positive self-image. At least I hope not!

Cheryl said...

Amy-
I can't remember why I chose the Blendtec; I think it was better for my needs?? Maybe??

Marianne said...

Thanks for answering my question!

Guess I'll start saving my pennies for an awesome blender...

*heads to the couch to dig for spare change* ;o)

Cardalls said...

I think it is the nature of kids to balk at something new. my kids do every.time i try a new recipe even if they like ALL the ingredients! I only have one adventurous child who always tries it! They weep and wail and gnash their teeth and demand cereal. I ask them to taste one bite but then i always have something for dinner that I know they will eat, whether that is rice, potatoes, bread etc so they won't go hungry.