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I can’t believe it’s already 2 weeks into this exclusion diet.  The 2nd week has certainly had it’s ups and downs.

Day 8

I was out all day today.  Finding that my energy levels seem to be a bit more even now.  There hasn’t been a big boost in energy but I’m not having the same dips in my energy.  Took Ryvita’s and cheese for my lunch.  That worked fine.  Even came home and cooked tea which is unheard of for me if I’ve been out all day (usually collapse in a heap).

Day 9

Feeling flat and sluggish with headaches.  Not a great day at all.  Really struggled my way through netball training.

Day 10

Feeling a lot better.  Had lunch out at the pub.  A nice big juicy steak.  Discovered the local pub’s chips have wheat in their coating (they’re SO yummy too!!!! ).  So they are “off the list”.  The steak was good though.

Day 11

Had my first attempt at cooking Quinoa which turned out really GREAT.  Had to do lots of cooking for the Youth Group Progressive Dinner.  We are hosting mains and I’m cooking mornays.  Realised that a lot of “buffet” style food has wheat in it.  Did make a fried rice which I could eat (and had some leftover for the freezer).  I now have 3 meals (2 fried rice and 1 quinoa) in the freezer for days when the family has something I can’t have or I need to take my own food somewhere.

Helped out with sheep work in the morning (lifted 180 odd lambs for tailing).  Was exhausted when we’d finished and not sure how I’d get the rest of my days tasks done.  Found that after a period of sitting down resting, I had enough energy to get going again.  In the past, once I get tired, I’m usually tired for the rest of the day.  My body doesn’t seem to regenerate very quickly so this is a good outcome.

Day 12

Another pooled lunch at church so took my own again.  I do feel like a bit of a freak bringing my own food.  Some friends seem to be more supportive than others of what I’m trying to do (some just think I’m a nut I think).  The hardest thing I find with bringing my own food is that it makes me look “different”.  I’m not comfortable drawing attention to myself in any way (says she who shares her life with 100s of strangers LOL).

Day 13

Had a session with my trainer at the gym.  My wrist is sore from lifting all the lambs but I was happy with what I was able to achieve regardless.  Have lost 2 kg since I started on the wheat free diet.  I’m not sure whether it’s anything to do with the wheat or that I’ve been forced to eat more healthily.  Still, I don’t mind what causes it.  Hope it continues!!!!  One thing I have noticed is I don’t seem to need as much food to be satisfied anymore.  I used to get this gnawing feeling that I thought was hunger but now I’m wondering if it was caused by a reaction to the wheat in my food.  I’m not getting it now.

Discovered that our local supermarket stocks quite a range of gluten free foods.  Even though I don’t have to stick to “gluten free” as such, gluten free foods are free of wheat which means I can eat them.  Bought a packet of gluten free pastry to try.

Day 14

Got more housework done today than I have in a long time.  The house is looking good again which helps me to feel good.  Decided to make pasties for tea using puff pastry for the family and making up the gluten free pastry mix for myself.

My gluten free pastry was a big FLOP!  It turned out hard and not very nice tasting at all.  :(  I was pretty disappointed.  Found out that larger supermarkets stock ready made gluten free puff pastry so I will try that when I get a chance to buy some.

Day 15

Another disappointing failure today when I went out to lunch with friends at one of my favourite cafes (in a regional centre about 2 hours from here).  I spoke to the staff about wheat free options which all seemed fine.  I was told to order whatever I liked and have the cashier mark it as wheat free and if I had ordered something with wheat in it, the kitchen staff would let me know and offer alternatives to make it wheat free.

I ended up ordering a fish dish with cous cous.  Not having had cous cous before, I had no idea it was made from wheat and the kitchen staff didn’t let me know so I ended up eating it.

Had a stomach ache within an hour.  Nothing too serious.  Just that gnawing, hungry type feeling and some sharper cramp type pains.  Had it on and off all day.  Noticed that when I ate, it abated for a while but would return a few hours later.  No wonder I was confusing it with hunger when eating makes it feel better.

On the plus side, I think we can conclude that the wheat free diet is having a positive effect.  And I found out that that particular cafe can make gluten free pizza bases if I call ahead to let them know I’m coming.  Have to decide whether I should ring and complain about the cous cous though.  Feel a bit stupid that I didn’t know it had wheat in it.

Had afternoon tea at a bakery and they had a couple of gluten free cake options.  I chose an apricot slice and it was DELICIOUS.  Gluten Free eating seems to be getting easier and easier these days so that’s another plus.

I was able to buy some gluten free flours, gluten free pasta and some more quinoa.  Going to try cooking the quinoa dish for the whole family this week and see how it goes down.  Most gluten free products are rather expensive though so I probably won’t introduce them to too much of my food.  I’m not sure if it’s more expensive to make or whether it’s just not made in big enough bulk to make it cheaper.  Once I get more settled with what products I do and don’t like, I’ll have to do some research and see if I can find cheaper sources for them.

Day 16

I haven’t lost any weight for a few days now so that side of things may have slowed down considerably.  I guess it could be down to the drastic change in diet that I lost the first 2 kg.  Then again, my weight can fluctuate quite a bit so we’ll only know over the long term what the weight loss effects of the diet are (and they’re a secondary thing - a bonus really).

I am a bit tired today and my body seems to be working hard to expel anything inside of me.  It may be the result of the wheat I ate yesterday or could just be my body (you can never really tell with my body).

As I type this, I have some gluten free chocolate brownies in the oven which smell magnificent.  I hope they taste just as good.  Will let you know how that goes.

For those not familiar with the word, it’s pronounced “Keen-Wa”  rather than “Kwinoa”.

I’ve known about it for a while but this wheat free diet has given me the motivation to actually get around to trying it.

Apparently, while often used instead of grains, Quinoa is actually a seed.

Do you know what?

Wheat is actually a seed too isn’t it?  LOL.  Wonder what the difference between a grain and a seed is?  Not that I really care enough to actually find out.  I’ll just believe them when they say one is a grain and one is a seed.  Whatever.

Anyway, plenty of people seem to be raving about it.  What makes it so good?  I did a little bit of research and this is what I’ve found:

1.  Quinoa is Gluten Free

There appears to be a growing demand for Gluten Free foods.  While I’m not actually on a “gluten free” diet it would seem that gluten free products are naturally “wheat free” so I’ve started following the “trend” in an attempt to find more variety in what I can actually eat.

2.  Quinoa is an Alkaline Food

I’ve only recently learnt about this but apparently an “acidic body” is actually on it’s way to becoming a corpse.  A lot of Western foods have an acidic affect on our bodies so most people are in need of more alkalising foods.  It’s not as simple as avoiding foods high in acid either.  From what I’ve been told, Lemons are actually an alkalising food.

3.  Quinoa is a Complete Protein

Quinoa has all the essential amino acids (9 in total) needed by the body to build muscles.  (Source)

From what I can understand, it’s quite rare to get a plant source with all 9 of these amino acids.

4.  Quinoa is high in fibre

I think we all know the benefits of increasing fibre in our diet.

5.  Quinoa has high amounts of Magnesium

Magnesium is a great muscle relaxant and increasing magnesium in your diet can help with migraines, muscle cramps and energy levels.

It also helps the body deal with insulin and blood sugars so can be beneficial to those with type 2 diabetes.

6.  Quinoa has higher levels of nutrients than many grains

Compared to other grains, quinoa is higher in calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, potassium, iron, copper, manganese, and zinc than wheat, barley, or corn. ^(source)

7.  Quinoa acts as a prebiotic

It helps feed the good bacteria in the intestine.

There are plenty of other “claims” when it comes to the benefits of Quinoa and diseases it can help prevent.  These are the ones that seemed most relevant to me.

Of course, it can have all the benefits in the world but if it isn’t tasty to eat, who’s going to eat it?

I have to admit I was a bit unsure when it came to trying it.

I’m not exactly what you’d call adventurous when it comes to trying new foods.

So I tried to stick with flavours I enjoy.

Basically chicken and broccoli.

It was DELICIOUS!!!!

CHICKEN & BROCCOLI QUINOA RECIPE

1 cup quinoa

2 cups water

1 chicken stock cube (check it’s wheat/gluten free if required - not all are).

1 chicken breast

2 cups of broccoli (or more if you like it - I added heaps!)

cream to taste (I used 3-4 heaped teaspoons)

Rinse quinoa well under running water (some websites suggest presoaking but my packet didn’t say anything about that so I just rinsed it thoroughly).  Add quinoa to water.  Crumble stock cube into water.  Bring to boil then allow to simmer until all water is absorbed.

Cook broccoli and chicken breast.  Chop into small pieces.

Fluff quinoa with a fork.  Add broccoli and chicken.

Stir through cream if desired (for a low fat option, leave cream out - but it does make it YUMMY!!!!).

***

This amount was enough for 3 serves for me.  You might want to adjust the quantities to suit your own family.

I did find it was much nicer fresh than reheated, even though I added a bit more cream when I reheated it (the quinoa absorbs the cream).

My next challenge  will be to make this for the whole family and see if they’ll eat it!!!! 

* Disclaimer: I’m no expert and this is just what I’ve found in my research.  I can’t guarantee the accuracy of anything written here.

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I have been contemplating trying diet changes to try and improve my health for some time now.

The problem is, where do you start?

Different people are affected in different ways by foods so it’s really trial and error what may or may not make a difference.

I tried researching the internet but everyone has different ideas on what is and isn’t good for you.

It’s enough to drive a girl crazy!!!!

After listening to a couple of seminars by a travelling Naturopath who visits the area, I started to wonder if my body was even absorbing nutrients properly.

He put me on dozens of “pills” which seemed to be having little to no effect (hundreds of dollars later I might add).

So either he has no idea what he is doing or there’s a deeper problem here that needs to be addressed.

One of my netball team mates is a Community Health Nurse and is also studying Naturopathy so I talked to her about it.

She suggested that I try a wheat free diet.

Apparently the most likely irritants are wheat or dairy and the only way I can find out is by going off one or the other and seeing if it helps.

So I am now on day 7 of my wheat free diet.

It hasn’t been easy.

You don’t even realise how much wheat is in your diet until you try and eliminate it.

It’s been good though because it’s helping me break the toast, toast and more toast diet I seemed to have lapsed into (there’s nothing like hot toast with butter and jam on a cold day!).

I did some research into “wheat free diets” to try and get some ideas and discovered that some of the common problems in those with a wheat intolerance are low energy levels, depression and irritable bowel.  The very 3 things I’m trying to find a solution to.  So, fingers crossed this works.

Not that my wheat growing husband is all that impressed about me going off of wheat.  He thinks if everyone stops eating wheat we’ll go broke.  I think if everyone goes off wheat we’ll just find something else to grow.

So, how is it going so far?

Days 1 & 2 I nearly starved because I couldn’t work out what to eat (very thankful to facebook friends for their suggestions).

Days 3 & 4 I didn’t feel so crash hot.

Days 5 & 6 I felt pretty good but that could be as much to do with better eating patterns than specifically wheat free.  Either way that’s a good outcome.

Day 7 (today)  I’m feeling a bit tired again today but yesterday I did 2 lots of full on exercise (totalling  2 and a half hours) so that might be playing a part in how tired I am.

I’m not sure how long I need to try it to really know if it’s helping.

Probably quite some time given the real improvement should come as my body heals and starts to absorb nutrients from food more efficiently.

And then if it’s not wheat that’s causing the problem….

Hmmm.

Anyway, what I would like from anyone out there is suggestions for wheat free eating.  No doubt there are at least some of you that are wheat free or have tried wheat free.

And does anyone know of any good Australian websites I can source products from?

Our little town is a bit limited in variety.

Yes, we won our netball game today.

I’m very happy about that because I wasn’t ready for the season to finish yet.

This win means we have 2 more trainings for the season (at least).

And without netball training, I find it REALLY hard to maintain my fitness.

I thought we all played really well today.

We are really playing as a team!

Which makes netball even MORE fun!

There really is very little bitchiness in our team this year.

Unless they’re all talking about ME behind my back.  LOL.

I played a full game.

A full game in FINALS!!!!

Talk about stunned!

3/4 of that was in Centre and 1/4 I played Wing Defense.

And boy am I exhausted!!!! 

Exhausted but happy.

I found out later that I played 3/4 of the game against a D-grader who is one of the top players in the Association (which makes her quite a handy little player).

She sure was zippy!

But lots of people told me I played well.

That’s really boosted my confidence going into the next finals game.

Sadly, both Farmboy and Lleyton lost today which means they’re now out of the finals and finished with football for the year.

But Lleyton was given the $10 incentive award from the coach today which he was stoked about.  I couldn’t watch him as my game was earlier today but Farmboy says he played a great game.  Which is wonderful as the team he was playing for is the team he goes up into next year.  I really hope the coach for that team decides to do it again.  He’s a great role model for the boys and a great coach.

We’re coming close to the end of netball season now, with finals starting this Saturday.

We finished the minor round 3rd on the ladder (out of 5 teams).

Now we have to win every game to stay in the competition.

While it would be GREAT to win another Grand Final, I don’t really mind winning or losing.

EXCEPT that now losing means netball is over for another year. 

Just when our team is really gelling well together.

And the coach has really been hitting her straps the past few weeks.

Settling in to her position (as coach I mean), understanding the individuals in the team and their various strengths and weaknesses.

And PUSHING us!

I LOVE THAT!!!!

Often in sport you get this attitude that if you’re not good enough to be the “best” (or at least “up there”), you’re not worth the time and effort.

That’s what I love so much about this coach.

She DOES give us the time and effort.

She DOES expect us to put in time and effort.

She DOESN’T treat us like the “dregs”.

And yes, sadly, there are many in our club who see our grade as not really worth anything (but there are also others who are very supportive).

Win or lose, I think we’re going into the finals a lot stronger than we started out the year.

It’s just a pity there aren’t more games in the season.

I hope she decides to coach us again next year (maybe I should send her this post?). 

P.S.  If my old coach happens to read this, none of this post is a reflection on the job you did as coach!!!  I <3 you too!!!!

P.P.S.  You know my last post about netball, where I was talking about not being “great” but being “consistent”.  Well, it turns out the coach of the opposing team chose ME as player of the day (for our players auction) for the very game I was talking about.  I nearly fell off my chair when they read my name out.  ME????

I tend to be a bit “ho hum” about politics in general.

Not something I’m advocating.

After all, you can’t complain about the state of things if you’re not prepared to do something about it, right?

Still, the whole “politics, policies and parties” generally leaves me feeling rather baffled.

In year 11 Australian Studies we had to follow the election and write a paper on who we would vote for and why.

That was the year John Howard and Bob Hawke were the leaders of the major parties.

I chose John Howard because I liked his smile. 

Not sure I got the best of grades for that paper!

As things turned out, maybe my “gut instinct” was right.  A few years later he spent time in one of my Tafe lectures.  He wasn’t leader of the Liberal party at that time but he took the time to speak to about 10 of us and explain the GST.  He explained it REALLY well.  And when he did eventually become Prime Minister, I think he did a reasonable job.

That was my first Federal Election as a voter and Liberal got my vote because of that.

I didn’t become supportive of any particular party though.

Then I married Farmboy.

Farmer’s in general tend to be big National/Liberal voters.

They’re the ones who tend to look after small business (and therefore farmers).

Of course, Paul Keating certainly didn’t do anything for the Labor vote with farmers when he stated categorically that Australia did NOT need Farmers.

These days I’m not so sure there’s much difference between the major parties.

What were once strong left and right wings (or whatever terminology they use - and don’t ask me which is which because I can never remember!!!!) don’t seem to be quite so much these days.

I do think that’s a good thing.

Maybe both major parties are a little more “balanced” these days (????).

So, the long and the short of it is, I’m still not sure WHO I want to vote for this Saturday.

And I’m not even sure my vote counts really, given I currently reside in a “safe” Liberal seat.

How do you decide who you are going to vote for?

Do you get right into policies?

Do you vote based on the leader of each major party?

Am I alone in feeling like neither of the leaders or their parties are really inspiring?

And I still feel sick with what happened over the ousting of Kevin Rudd.

And it’s not like I particularly like him or anything!

I didn’t like it when Paul Keating did it to Bob Hawke either. 

I like it when people play nice.

And you don’t last in politics if you play nice. 

Isn’t that a sad state of affairs?

*** end political brain dump***

My apologies to international readers who don’t care squat about the Australian elections.

We’ve been very blessed this year to have a music teacher in our primary school.  We only have limited NIT (non instruction time) hours and generally they get used on Physical Education and/or Languages.

I find it kind of frustrating that there is quite an emphasis on sport and very little emphasis on the arts.

So it’s been a welcome change to actually have a music teacher.

Sadly, the school are saying we may not be able to keep her next year.  :(  Which is annoying because I know she would continue.

Anyway, the great thing is my kids are really enjoying it and it has meant our school choir has been up and running again and has gotten involved in a Primary Schools Festival of Music.

This has involved students learning a series of songs and movements  that other students all over the state have also been learning.

Recently we went to a nearby regional town where the students were able to perform with students from many other schools:

It was an absolutely AWESOME experience for the kids.

One they had a lot of fun doing.

That last one is just our choir (those of it who fit in the age group for this particular concert), taken after the concert.

Today the years 6s and 7s head off to Adelaide to do the same thing (on a much bigger scale) at the Festival theatre.

I REALLY hope Singstar Princess gets that opportunity to go to Adelaide when she is the right age.

She’s not the kind of kid who’s likely to get into things like Sapsaasa (state sport for years 6s & 7s) and it’s about time those who are not “sporty” had their talents nurtured.

Now I just need to find a way to convince the school (and the Education Department) that it’s a good idea to continue having a music teacher in our school.

Well, the technician came and discovered a tiny little spider was playing havoc with our satellite reception so we’re back online again now (the part was nearly worn anyway so he’s also replaced it).

It’s nice to have reliable internet again.

Well, as reliable as we get out in the sticks.

I’d like to think this means I’ll be blogging more regularly now.

Problem is, life has gotten INSANELY busy and while I have plenty I’d like to say and share, finding the time and energy to do so is proving to be a challenge.

I will try my best though.

In the meantime, here are the Sultana Buds Giveaway Winners:

1.  Lynette

2.  Jo

3.  Katef

4.  Marita

5.  Katy

Could you please send me your postal address to lightening at lighteningonline dot com and I’ll get Zing to send out your prizes.  I’d love to know how they go in your family so please pop back and leave your experiences once you’ve tried them.

Hi Everyone,

Thanks for sharing your great “cheer others up” experiences.  We’re having internet troubles at the moment so I’m not able to do as much online as I would like (right now in town at the library trying to do this post quickly).  My apologies for not responding to your comments as I would like.

Recently we were sent a pack of the new Sultana Bran Buds to try.

The kids were rather excited when they arrived and wanted to try them immediately.

To be honest, I was somewhat surprised as my kids don’t like sultanas.  LOL.

But they LOVE these!!!

I’d have walked past them in the supermarket every time assuming they wouldn’t like them because of the sultana content.

The packet we were sent to try was wolfed down in a matter of days.

Followed by “can you buy some more of these mum?”

I’m kind of relieved because the younger two are painful when it comes to what cereal they like.

They’ll eat coco pops and nutra grain (and fruit loops if I’d let them) but I prefer them to have something with some sort of nutritional value for breakfast!

And from what I can gather on the nutritional panel, they have more fibre per serve than weetbix!!!

So, I’ve been offered 5 packs of these to my readers as a giveaway.

If you’d like to try them, simply leave a comment below answering either (or both) of the following questions:

1.  A creative idea for getting more fibre in your kids diet.

2.  What kinds of cereal are popular in your house?

I will announce the winners in a few days (internet willing) so don’t delay, get your comments in straight away. 

I feel like everywhere I look (read) at the moment, all I find is blah, blah, blah and boo, hoo, hoo.  Everyone seems so down at the moment. :(  I’m not sure if it’s the winter blues here in Australia or what it is.

There certainly seems to be a lot of illness around at the moment.  Maybe that’s part of the reason.

I’m almost at the point of avoiding facebook.  Not because I don’t care what all my friends are going through but because I’m not in the best place to handle it.

It’s dragging me down.

Making me sad.

Then this morning I read a comment where someone was gloating over another person’s misfortune. 

And that just made me sadder.

Is life so bad that our greatest source of joy needs to be at someone else’s expense?

So, my challenge to everyone today (and especially myself) is to think of something I can do today to make someone’s day a little brighter.

A smile?

A hug?

A note?

Some flowers?  Chocolate?  Cup of coffee in bed?

Why not share your ideas in the comments section?

Or better yet, share something you do to brighten someone’s day.

Let’s see if we can’t bring out a little sunshine and lollipops into the lives of those around us.

Want an extra challenge?

Brighten the day of someone who really annoys or bothers you in some way.