Daniel Fast - Finale

So, the fast is complete.

Truly, I learned a lot about myself.  Reading Piper's book, Hunger for God, was remarkable. So much there for me to meditate on in the days ahead.

A few key points for me:

I want to embrace God's gift of food as a GIFT rather than abuse it or replace the Giver with the gift.

I am free from the coffee addiction once more and feel SO MUCH BETTER without it.  I don't even crave it like I used to.

I am challenged FAR BEYOND my own petty struggles with stress eating, food triggers, and binges.  There is much...much...much more that the Lord wants to do in me through prayer and fasting that reaches outside of my small little world.  Learning to think and act beyond my reach will help me lose this daily obsession with food and weight struggles.

Fasting needs to be a regular part of how I learn to worship and hunger for my loving Savior.



The nitty-gritty on some physical changes I noticed:

I was losing about 1 pound a day for the first week and a half or so. Then I guess I stalled. Not sure what happened. I did stop the morning walks.  It seemed after my cycle ended the weight loss ended too. That wasn't why I was fasting, but I find it interesting to note.

As I mentioned above, my taste for coffee and cravings are gone.  Even with the freedom to enjoy the gift as I choose, I find that I don't choose it as a treat or reward for myself.  I'm seeing it as more of a way to enjoy the company of another, savoring it's warmth and flavor while soaking up a good friend.  I prefer it like that.

I really feel better eating less.  Skipping a meal each day rarely felt like a hardship.  I feel lighter and my day is less hectic without having to stop and feed myself so often.

Now I'm on to making some choices about where I go from here. I like sticking with two meals a day. That has been a great help to giving me more time to rest, read, and just feel less rushed in my day.  I'm still working on making wise choices because I continue to give in to eating food that is empty as far as nutrition goes.  I don't want to keep putting things in my body that aren't meant for good. Hopefully, as I learn to point my heart upwards and outwards, this will become less difficult.

In the end, I'm grateful for another fasting time with the Lord. He's challenged me once again to see myself in new ways and draw closer to Him and His truths. So much to reflect on and ponder as I move forward in the days ahead. I guess my primary focus is this:  How can I continue to increase my hunger for the Lord and serve him whole-heartedly?

My end of fast pic.  Again, not really seeing any big changes, but I sure do FEEL great and free from many of the things that have been weighing me down.

Daniel Fast: Week 1

My first week of this Daniel Fast has been wonderful.  Of course, I'm struggling to keep up with the early rising and morning walks due to some late nights and a head cold that came to visit at our home.  BUT, the time with the Lord has been essential to rebooting my wrongful habits and "life-rut".

That's my new term to describe what I've been living.  It's not a life-style...as that sounds like it should be productive, pleasing, attractive, fulfilling.  I've got a life-rut going on.  Slow, sluggish, lazy, cluttered, chaotic,stuck.  A life-rut.

But that is starting to change, and I'm so grateful. Right now, it's just this time of seeing it for what it is. Seeing what's causing it.  I'm praying in the weeks to come I'll keep learning how to change it so it move from "rut" to "style".  Style sounds so much better.

Here's my one week selfie.  The left is the start of the first week, the right is the start of the second week.

Not sure I'm seeing any huge difference, but I feel it. My clothes are looser, my energy is growing, my head is starting to clear, and I'm even starting to find some of that long lost motivation that is so helpful in accomplishing at least some of the never-ending list that stares at me each day. 

Fasting for Hunger

My husband and I are finishing our first week of another Daniel Fast today. We will continue for another two weeks.

I strongly felt that I needed to reset my heart and habits regarding food and my choices that are effecting my health.  So many ways that life has presented upheaval, stress, challenges in the last two years, but especially in the last few months have left me making the exceptions to my healthful choices the new normal.  And I was feeling it all over.

This fast has been wonderful so far.  We have chosen a Daniel Fast because it's a long-term focus on keeping foods healthful, simple, and centered on God's provision.  It's long enough for me to really dig in and deal with the sinful habits that are surfacing.  We've altered it a bit to provide more time to focus on prayer and the word so that our time fasting is truly not about bread alone but every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.

Our Daniel Fast plan for June 2016

Read together John Piper's book, Hunger for God, discuss and journal
(I'm also having an email discussion on this book with a dear friend for added encouragement and accountability)

I'm reading Psalm 73, journaling

Rising at 5:30 for a morning walk together

Limiting computer time to once in the morning for checking emails, groups, and other internet related needs/uses

Food plan:
Daniel fast foods for breakfast (basically, breakfast salad)
Fasting lunch (not eating at all)
Daniel fast food for dinner
Water only to drink

We chose to skip lunch to cause us to really see this as a fast and a reason to have a focus on the Lord. To create hunger, so to speak, since the Daniel Fast isn't really all that different from our "normal" diet. (though we've drifted too much from that normal in the last few months)

We also wanted to skip a meal to provide a way to allow more time for prayer, study, and reflection on what the Lord is teaching us.  This isn't always feasible during the busy lunch time, but I'm learning to at least pray and keep my heart on the Lord as I battle those lunch time cravings and those late afternoon hunger signals.

I have become consistent in a time of morning devotions with the Lord. That has been a huge blessing. We've also enjoyed our morning walks together and evening reading and prayer.  In short, this time of fasting has created a lot more time for us to be together and be together focused on the Lord. That's really creating a special bond between us.

So, we press on.  We both are feeling much better. My first three days were a struggle. Headaches and fatigue that left me feeling awful.  That seemed to lift by day 4 and I'm beginning to feel more energy and strength as the days move on.  We are both less sluggish, bloated, and our clothes are feeling loose.

Even more, we are so encouraged by our time with the Lord.  So many beautiful ways we are learning that God is enough.  He is our portion.  He is the Rock of my heart.  He is the Giver of all these abundant gifts that surround us and we are learning to long for Him above those precious gifts.

As John Piper states in his book, "Food is good. God is better."  This time of chosen testing causes me to sing this to my own soul daily.

Daniel Fast - Day Twenty One

June 30, 2013

A couple final notes from the fast.

Today we celebrated with friends.  We enjoyed a simple lunch, and I was able to tell myself no to a second helping of beans at lunch.  I heard that reasoning voice in my head telling me it was Sunday and we were with friends and they were healthy, after all, so it was okay.  Then I told that self of mine that I actually was fine with what I had and I still had a yummy piece of watermelon to enjoy so I didn't need that extra scoop of beans.  Smart self I am slooooowly learning to be. :)

Came home after evening church, so it was late and everyone was really worn out.  Nursed the baby for bed. Put new sheets on our bed (since our bedding needed washing from the poison ivy breakout).  Then I headed downstairs and got in a 15 minute workout on the Wii.  It felt great to get in some sweat-able time.  And....I'm down another .9 pounds!!!  Craziness!! I have Never Ever been able to lose weight...even one little pound took every ounce of me to fight off. It is coming off so quickly right now. I'm in shock!

My total loss for this week is 3.7 pounds.  I'm already under the next 10 pound mark! My, how motivating is that?! 

I'm looking forward to the coming week.  I don't have any plans to jump too far from the Daniel Fast way of eating. I don't want to put my body in shock, and well, frankly, this is working for me!  We've got a huge list of new recipes to try. I'll be putting them all together in a binder tomorrow as well as getting some groceries for the week's experiments.  Elizabeth and I are both looking forward to trying Bean Burgers.  I don't feel a bit jealous of David's plans to head to Five Guys and Fries with a friend tomorrow evening.  Okay, well...maybe a little jealous.

Daniel Fast - Day Twenty-One

June 30, 2013

Day Twenty-One

The End. 

Today is the last day.  A bit of fanfare as Elizabeth and I discussed the closing of the fast.  We had a nice conversation regarding what we learned in the last few weeks.  I expressed my gratitude to her for her eagerness and cheerfulness during this fast. Without her excitement over this endeavor, I'm not sure I would have pressed on.  It was especially hard when other members of the family were complaining, cheating, or just plain angry that we were even doing it.  Her sweet disposition and firm resolve helped me stay focused and cheered me on.  She kept me from feeling alone.

She shared that she was very grateful the Lord led me to take on this fast.  She was greatly encouraged by my willingness and determination to stick with it, even in the midst of that first week's struggles and pain.  She was challenged to see me press on when it was so hard.  I didn't realize how the Lord would use my time of humbling to encourage my girl so much. 

I will always look back on this fast with reverence and awe.  The Lord used something so simple to reveal Himself in so many powerful ways.  He used it to also reveal me in many ways. Ways I needed to see so I could confess, repent, and be turned.  Not only is my physical body changed, my mind is better able to understand the patterns and habits that have held me for so long, and my relationships with my family have been strengthened like never before.  Purging my physical body of the toxins may have been painful, but seeing how my wrong choices were damaging my life as a mother and wife was devastating.  You've given me this "land", Lord, and I so want to truly "live" within it.  And that leads me to....

The Beginning.

I see now that this Daniel Fast was the precursor to a major work the Lord desire to do in my life.  Physically, He is at work healing my body, teaching me how to make the best choices, and making me stronger for His tasks.  I didn't know it then, but this fast prepared me to receive that plan.  Eating as a vegan for the last 3 weeks, and a very restricted vegan at that, has shown me what I thought was impossible.  I could live like this because I DID live like this.  I can survive and even thrive on vegetable. Shhhh...don't tell my mother!  And I do believe that changing my habits and choices of food heals because I've experienced it happen in the last few weeks. 

Fasting from my social media hangouts revealed how much I've been missing in my family, church, and community life.  My days are so full, I don't know how to fit it back in, visiting with my internet friends. Yet, I spent so much time there before.  Time wrongly placed.  I'm still unsure how to fit that in, but it won't be the habit it was before.

This fast revealed my need to deal with my emotions in a biblical way.  Rightly handling my disappointments, frustrations, anger, irritations, these are all important priorities that the Lord is working on in my heart.  Learning how to put off the sinful ways I handle these things and put on the commands of the Lord is a primary focus for me in the coming weeks.

This Beginning is exciting.  It isn't a simple resolve. It isn't a New Thing to try out.  It's a response to the work of the Holy Spirit shining the light of God's word on my heart and life.  He has shown me the sin, and now that my repentance and forgiveness are firm, I can begin to enjoy His transformation of my life.  I can take my first step in truly LIVING in this precious land He has given.

Thank you, precious Lord.  May you alone receive the glory for your work in my life.  May it be that you will increase and I will decrease.

Daniel Fast - Day Twenty

June 29, 2013

Day Twenty

Woohoooo!!!!!  Tomorrow is the Grande Finale!  I am really kicking myself for not checking in with my weight when I started this.  This week, where I've been working at implementing some of the Eat to Live ideas for my meals as well as set aside snacks for good.  I'm down almost 3 pounds for just this week! I've never seen the scale go down like this. Yay. :)

Today we worked HARD.  We sweated ourselves into a major stink pulling out poison ivy and pruning back the jungle that took over some of our yard. We gained about 6 feet of yard, depth wise.  We pulled two loads of brush and ivy to the dump.  And I know I sweated out nearly every bottle of water I drank today.  It was hot, humid, and a glorious way to sweat out a pound. Our yard looks wonderful.

Sad part is my husband is now reacting to the poison ivy. He is so strongly allergic that even though we were suited up in long sleeves, pants, and gloves, he is swelling up like crazy. :(  He's headed to urgent care in the morning, as they were already closed when he started reacting. I feel awful that he's fighting this again. I hate that stuff!  I am so hoping we can keep it out of the yard now.

After we finished working, took our showers and just relaxed under the breeze of the fan, we loaded up the gang and walked down to the local pizza place for dinner. Super fun treat. It's been weeks since the children have had pizza. They were so excited.  David, Elizabeth, and I all had a salad. I brought some walnut halves and my own greek dressing since I am thinking theirs likely had some sugar in it. They usually do.  The children enjoyed their pizza and we enjoyed our salads and an order of potato skins shared between us. 

Yes. It WAS hard to see everyone eat that yummy pizza and not have a nibble.  I so love pizza. Then there was that yummy, chewy bread they give with the salad.  Another tough temptation.  However, when we started walking home, I felt quite full but not that uncomfortable full feeling I usually have when going out for a pizza night.  I felt so wonderful knowing I was able to resist the food I love the most while putting food my body needed to restore after a hard day of work.  Even that soda we craved for a Job Well Done wouldn't have given me the great feeling I had when I walked home without guilt.  I didn't overeat, I didn't eat foods that I would later regret, and I felt full and happy.

Even happier when I stepped on that scale tonight!

Tomorrow is the last day. I feel like I should do something to celebrate, but I just don't know what. We are hoping to go to friends after church for lunch and dinner then back to evening church tomorrow. That would be a very special gift.  However, with David's poison ivy so bad, I'm sorta thinking we may just lay low for the day. 

I do confess, I'm a little nervous having no restrictions to my diet.  I'm glad I'm moving on to ETL next.  It gives me a framework and I like that.

Daniel Fast - Day Nineteen

June 28, 2013

Day Nineteen

Super great day!  Started with a fantastic time in the Word.  So much to speak to my heart. So much for me to seek, dig, search, explore.  So many ways the Lord wants to reveal to us right where we are, right where we struggle, right where are questions leave us.  I'm so grateful for such a mighty, loving God that leads me.

Ended my day under on calories and super happy with my food choices. We tried a new recipe, Sweet Potato Chili tonight.  It was..ummm...good.  Sweet.  The recipe called for adding brown sugar and I can't even imagine doing that! The children loved it, so it's another keeper.

I'm working on making a meal and menu plan for the coming month. I'm pulling recipes and ideas from Dr. Furhman's book as well as things we've enjoyed from the Daniel fast and our own collections. This is fun, but I have a LONG list of recipes to try now!  It may take me a while to get it all planned out on paper. Hey, at least we won't get bored of the same meals every week.

I'm still hoping to get a little more time to spend in prayer and reading and journaling. Today filled up too much with other things, so I didn't get the time I was hoping for.  I did get in a great walk with my husband, though, and some good time on the Wii after dinner as well.  Exercise is once again enjoyable. I'm having such a great time on the Wii Fit again.

I'm down almost 2 pounds in the last couple of days! Wow! Now I really do wish I had weighed in when I started this fast. This is the first time in a long time I've seen the scale going down. I wonder what I really was up to a few weeks ago. Scary.

One thing I am super looking forward to when this fast ends: Sleepytime tea.  I have such a hard time getting to sleep when I exercise in the evenings. I feel so great, it's hard to settle down for bed.

Daniel Fast - Day Eighteen

June 27, 2013

Day Eighteenn

This is amazing. I have blogged for 18 days in a row here. I have logged in to mfp nearly every day of this fast.  I have seen some great accountability in the last 18 days!

Today I ended well under on calories again. I am under almost every day now without trying. I still had 200+ calories I could have eaten after dinner but I wasn't even hungry. 

Made a great vegie stir fry tonight.  Mushrooms, garlic, onion, zucchini, carrots, cabbage, pineapple, swiss chard and spinach.  Mixed in a sauce made from Bragg's, pineapple juice, water, and corn starch. Topped it with a sprinkling of sliced almonds and we feasted! At first everyone looked a little panicked over the looks of all that Green.  One bite had them willing to clean their plates. Well, almost all of them.  Adding in the promise of smoothies for dessert certainly helped.

Got my hair cut today. I haven't been in for a cut in about a year. Crazy.  It's SHORT! I love it. Light, easy, and fun.  Does anyone else feel invigorated after a fresh hair cut?  I sure do!

I spent the whole morning with my girlies working on laundry and ironing. We snuck in some library book reading and some language arts lessons.  The afternoon we plugged away at schooling and choring.  Good stuff for a rainy day.

Everyone got in a bit of time on the wii tonight.  I got in about 15 minutes after everyone else went to bed. Short but sweet. Hey, guess what. I'm down .4 pounds from yesterday. Guess I had Heavy Hair. Teehee.

I'm starting to think about what I want to do to celebrate the completion of the Daniel Fast.  I'm not really sure yet.  David is going out with a friend for burgers. I really don't want to eat a burger. Blech.  But, it would be fun to go out with friends.  I'll have to brainstorm a bit. 

The next couple of days I need to see if a plan develops for after this fast. I'm starting to wonder if I am ending it at day 21 or not.  There isn't much I miss, that's for sure. But, I would love the chance to sit with a cup of tea once in a while or enjoy a freshly baked muffin, hold the sugar, of course. :)

Still leaning toward the Eat to Live plan.  More prayer.  Maybe tomorrow needs to be a dedicated day of prayer for me.

Daniel Fast - Day Eighteen - Journal Entry

June 27, 2013

Psalm 37:39-40 "But the salvation of the righteous is from the Lord; He is their strength in time of trouble. And the Lord helps them, and delivers them; He delivers them from the wicked, and saves them, because the take refuge in Him."

Cross references:

Psalm 3:8  "Salvation belongs to the Lord; Thy blessing be upon they people. Selah."

Psalm 62:1-2  "My soul waits in silence for God only; from Him is my salvation. He alone is my rock and my salvation, my stronghold; I shall not be greatly shaken."

Does my soul wait in silence for God only? Silence? No.  Silence is so hard for me. Yet, You are my stronghold. You. You will deliver me from the enemy - from the battle - from our own sinful hearts. 

Psalm 9:9 "The Lord also will be a stronghold for the oppressed, a stronghold in times of trouble."

Psalm 34:22  "The Lord redeems the soul of his servants; and none of those who take refuge in Him will be condemned."

Psalm 54:4 "Behold, God is my helper; the Lord is the sustainer of my soul, He will recompense the evil to my foes; destroy them in faithfulness." 

You are the stronghold.  I sit in silence because there is nothing else for me to do. It is Your work.  Salvation belongs to You, Lord.

I wait. I actively wait by attending to You through Your word, prayer, praise, obedience, living joyfully before you.  I attend to You in these ways, waiting for Your plan to unfold, Your purposes to be accomplished, Your name to be lifted high.

The silence part is so hard, Lord. I ache when the waiting is long. I grieve when my efforts seem futile. Yet, this rescuing comes from you, not me.

My actions in waiting are focused on attending to You, living my life in worship before You.  My efforts are not there to deliver me. They are there to change me while exalting You in my life. More of You, less of me. More of Your truth and grace and less of my strivings.

Like Daniel and his friends, I can be bold and confident while I wait on Your deliverance.

Daniel 3:17  "If it be so, our God, whom we serve is able to deliver us from the furnace of blazing fire; and He will deliver us out of your hand, O King."

Daniel 6:23  "The king was very pleased and gave orders for Daniel to be taken up out of the den. So Daniel was taken up out of the den and no injury whatever was found on him, because he had trusted in his God."

I am not facing a fiery furnace or a den of lions, yet, I do face a hard path when this fast ends.

*A family eager to go back to "normal". 

*A husband who is hard to resist by way of eating habits.  He is eager to make my life "easy" which lends to falling into bad habits again.

*The stresses of life, my reactions to the hard things, my sinful patterns, these are hard to face without the firm boundaries of the fast.

Yet, I am growing.

I am learning.

I am reaching free of some of those strongholds in my life. I am finding You again, placing You, rightfully, where you belongs. 

You will deliver and rescue my soul and my body, my mind, my heart will be strengthened because of this work in my life.  I will find my refuge, strength and deliverance from You.

Psalm 9:10  "And those who know Thy name will put their trust in Thee, for Thou, O Lord, hast not forsaken those who seek Thee."

Daniel Fast - Day Seventeen

June 26, 2013

Day Seventeen.

Sigh.

I'm still feeling slump-ish, unmotivated, irritable. I don't know what the change is for. The weather has been rainy and stormy. It would be strange for that to make such an impact on me. I just can't figure out why I'm feeling so extremely different than I was last week. Sigh.

Today I made up a new something yummy for breakfast. I tried my hand at water sautéing and it turned out delicious. I cooked up some cauliflower and a few carrots sticks that needed to get eaten.  I love how they browned a bit in the pan, almost crunchy.  I topped it with some hot sauce and crunched on my lovely little plate of breakfast vegies.

David and I went out for our date tonight. We decided to try Chinese food since they have a vegetarian section on their menu. We enjoyed two different dishes of mixed vegies. I'm not sure what the sauces were made of, but I'm hoping it was fine since it was labeled vegetarian. Then we headed over to Tropical Café for fruit smoothies, hold the turbinado.  Very yummy. 

Came home and played some wii games together.  It was nice to get in something active with all the rain we are getting this week. Cheered me up some, I think.

Hoping to get to bed before 10pm tonight. I've been up late the last few nights.

Daniel Fast - Day Sixteen

June 25, 2013

Day Sixteen.

Sixteen. Already. Wow.

Today was so.very.busy.  I was helping my oldest prepare for a historical picnic she was hosting with and for friends from her Bright Lights group.  The kitchen was a happenin' place today.  She worked a bit making food and then had the sewing machine whirring while I finished off the meal we prepared.  Because our family came dressed in medieval garb, we brought foods from that time period.  Elizabeth made a delicious pot of soup, called Pottage.  It was filled with vegies, barley, and kidney beans. Very tasty.  I made up four loaves of Irish Soda Bread.  They looked and smelled divine, though I didn't taste even one little crumb.

We also brought candied nuts and fruit and a couple of batches of jello for dessert. So much food! So much food I couldn't eat. ;)  It was well enjoyed, though, by all the guests.

This was the third buffet style even I've been to on this fast. I did so well resisting so many tasty temptations.  I savored my bowl of pottage and slice of cantaloupe with contentment.  It's so freeing to me that I can attend a potluck and NOT fill my plate with a taste of everything.  What a novel idea, eating only enough to satisfy my hunger rather than my taste buds.

Still thinking a lot about the Eat to Live diet.  Praying about how that could work. Talked with David a bit about it tonight as well.  Oh, thankfully, he is off his water fast.  He is working to eat true to the Daniel Fast again.  I'm so thankful. I was so worried about him working such physical work in this heat with no food in his body.

I don't think I got in enough water today. I was so busy, I kept forgetting to drink.  I feel dried out. I have noticed that this whole fast I've felt like I'm retaining water.  My fingers are swollen and I can't seem to shake that. I'm not sure why. I'm starting to pay a little closer attention to my salt intake to see if I need to adjust.

Tomorrow is another busy day with a field trip in the afternoon. So glad we have a lot leftover of that pottage for lunch tomorrow.

Daniel Fast - Day Fifteen

June 24, 2013

Day Fifteen

Today all that energy I've been talking about went missing. I was slow and quiet and not moving much at all. We tidied the house some, but I was mostly directing.  We got in a bit of reading and a couple of people worked on writing some letters. I did some lunch prep, made dinner, and read my book most of the day.  I'm embarrassed to say how much I enjoyed such a relaxing, lazy day. *blush*

I finished my day under on calories again. I'm starting to even out how many calories I eat in a day. When I look at my chart, I can see I may be forming some consistency in my portions and choices for meals.  I'm also going to start dropping snacks and work on consuming all I need during my meals.  It's hard to change my brain about that.  After being pregnant so often, I tend to just eat those snacks as a matter of habit.  I want to try going longer between meals, though, to learn my body's cues for real hunger.

This book, Eat to Live: The End of Diabetes has my mind spinning.  I'm not convinced this is the plan the Lord has for me, but I have certainly gained a great deal of information and learning from it.  I am more firm in my convictions regarding vegetables as the core of my diet. I am intrigued by what I'm learning about legumes and nuts and seeds.  Intrigued enough that I'm considering purchasing the book for myself.  I'm going to keep praying on this. 

One argument that Dr. Furhman makes is that you can easily obtain the amount of protein you need daily from a plant-based diet.  I know that many have said this isn't possible. In fact, that's one of the biggest reasons I almost didn't read the book. Yet, as I've been plugging in my food on myfitnesspal.com, I can see that I am easily achieving the protein goals I set for myself back when I was aiming for a high protein-low carb diet.  Amazing.  Today the largest source of protein I had was one peanut butter ball at breakfast. The rest was simply lentils, beans, broccoli...nothing I would really consider high protein foods. Yet, there I am. Right at my high-protein goal.  And feeling full as all get out at that.

If I wasn't doing this fast, eating a plant-based diet while reading this book, I would never have believed what I'm reading.  But, I'm experiencing so much of what he's saying, I can't help but lend it some validity. 

Off to do some more reading and praying.  My husband has chosen to do a complete fast for this week.  Nothing but prayer and water. If anyone out there is reading this, please pray he remains safe and healthy. He is working hard outside in the heat all week painting on ladders. We need the Lord to keep him alert and clear headed. Thank you!

Daniel Fast - Day Fourteen

June 23, 2013

Day Fourteen

Today went well. It was tough at lunch. Instead of the burgers and hot dogs that my in-laws had planned to make, they served yummy rotisserie chicken and rice.  Oh, how I've been longing for chicken!  I could have easily resisted the burgers, but the chicken was One Tough Temptation.

I did it, though. :)  We enjoyed our vegie skewers and corn on the cob. I figured out that I do NOT like eggplant. I'm pretty proud of myself for trying, though.

I also did great at church tonight. There was a party of sorts after the worship time with all manner of sweets, chips, and treats.  Thankfully, I wasn't hungry at all after eating our peanut butter and all-fruit rice cakes at dinner.  It wasn't a hard thing to resist. Especially when I could visit with friends, the gooey brownies faded from my memory.

What I did do today that left me really defeated was something I told myself I wouldn't do.  I stepped on a scale.  I haven't weighed myself since we were going to the YMCA. I don't know what I weighed going into this fast, so I have no frame of reference.  I shouldn't care about the scale. I did not go on this fast as a weight loss tool. Yet, I can't help myself from wondering if eating this way would make an impact on my weight.  I have been recording my food and I am under on calories almost every day. Surely, I should see some loss. Yet, how would I know??

The number I saw on the scale was NOT a pretty number. Not what I was hoping to see, that's for sure. Sigh.  I don't know what I was hoping to see. But, two weeks on the Daniel Fast isn't going to get me to a pretty number. Now I know.

One cool thing I learned today is that I really like grilled cauliflower.  Yum.

Daniel Fast - Day Thirteen Foodie

I wanted to add that I am declaring my new favorite Daniel Fast treat is my dark chocolate cocoa smoothie.  Yum.

Frozen banana
Frozen strawberry
Peanut butter with flax seed oil
Ice cubes
Dark chocolate cocoa powder

Blend and enjoy the amazing yumminess while knowing it's ALL GOOD.

I am SO ready to start playing with more smoothie recipes.

Daniel Fast - Day Thirteen

June 22, 2013

Day Thirteen

It's official.  After several meals where my husband and children set aside some of the rules of the fast, David has decided that he is now done with the Daniel Fast.  We discussed that since he is making concessions, his heart really isn't in it. It makes no sense to say you're fasting before the Lord when you aren't.  So, Elizabeth, my oldest, and I will press on to complete the 21 day commitment together. 

I'll be honest, it ain't going to be easy.  But, we'll make it.

Tonight at dinner it was difficult to see everyone smearing butter all over their corn.  The children were toting chocolate chip cookies around today and that was hard.  What was most difficult was being so terribly exhausted and not asking my husband to order a pizza for dinner.  The Lord was gracious, though.  We found one last packet of leftover roasted roots in the fridge to heat up and serve with our corn on the cob.  I set out a salad of spinach, lettuce, swiss chard, strawberries, seeds and limes and the meal was more than complete.

I also set up E and I with vegie skewers for our bbq at my in-laws tomorrow after church. They called to say they are serving burgers and hot dogs for our family.  I knew I needed to bring something for E and I to eat.  I made up a marinade for them that I'm excited to try as well. I'll coat the vegetables that are now skewered with the marinade tomorrow morning before we leave for church.  Eating at other's homes is a little tricky. I'm praying it goes well tomorrow.

Not having the full support of my family is going to be hard. Yet, this is about my time with the Lord. The truths He is revealing. The comfort He gives. There will always be times when I am left alone.  He will always be there at my right hand to uphold me.

One more week and I've got some new recipes to try, a fridge restocked with fresh produce, and I'm still feeling great.  Tired, after getting up at 3am with BabyKinz and not getting back to sleep. Tired but great and eager to see what this last week brings.

Daniel Fast - Day Twelve

June 21, 2013

Day Twelve

I didn't get to blog last night. With David home, life gets a little unpredictable.  We spent the day resting and got to go out for a short lunch date.  You should be very impressed that while going out to a restaurant with nothing vegetarian on their menu, I was able to stick to my fast. I ordered the spinach salad with dried cranberries, vegies, slivered almonds and a vinaigrette on the side, hold the eggs!  We ordered a baked potato to share between us. (hold the fixin's, of course.)

Okay, you may not be impressed, but with the selection I was offered, I did excellent!  We had to tell them no to the complimentary bread at least three times. Haha!

Last night I was feeling a little stressed and I did it. I didn't go off the fast, but I did eat more than I needed to. I found myself going to food again, munching because those around me were doing the same. Instead of sitting down to a real meal, I just lay on the couch reading and cracking those peanuts. Ugh.  Out of the bag, even, so there was no way of knowing exactly how many I was eating. I know better. 

It's crazy to me how quickly I can change based on my surroundings. I certainly know, now, that one of the biggest factors in my health struggles is based on the relationships around me and how well I handle them.

Daniel Fast - Day Eleven

June 20, 2013

Day Eleven

I am SO.TIRED.

I was up late, up with baby last night.  Everyone slept in, though, thankfully. I was buzzing around today like I had had a pot of coffee or something. I couldn't believe the amount of energy I had.  Schooling was done before lunch. Got in a quick walk with Verity so she could buy some gum at the store.  After lunch clean up I headed to the post office with a couple little girlies. It was a lovely walk. 

When we got home I started in on some yard work.  Pruned some shrubs, tidied, cleaned, and watered the vegie beds.  We even moved the fire pit to a new location.  Another great day working with my favorite team.

So beat, though. David and Joshua are on their way home.  We take tomorrow off. We all could use the break.  Though, I am still itching to cut back more of the overgrowth around the yard. 

I'm amazed at the energy I've had. I've been upbeat and moving and looking for things to get done. I sit for very little time before I want to get up and get something done. I am just never like that.  Especially when I'm still getting up with the baby at night and lost my bedtime to the workmen outside my window fussing with the hydrants at 11:30pm last night. Grrrrrr....

So looking forward to bed tonight. I almost forgot to post here. Trying to stay awake until my husband and son arrive home.

Lazy day with food. All leftovers. Popcorn and fruit for dinner.  Just too much other stuff to do that's way more fun than cooking. ;)  Planning to try some black bean burgers this weekend, though.

Daniel Fast - Day Ten - Foodie Stuff

I forgot to tell about a couple of our food trials today. All success!

First, we enjoyed the Skinny Pear Crisp for breakfast again.  Today we added a couple of tablespoons of peanut butter again and a few strawberries, sliced to the fruit.  Oh.My.  So good!

At lunch, I sent around a bowl of lettuce, some sliced strawberries, and lime wedges.  We used the lime juice as dressing on our salad. The combination of sweet and tart from the berries and lime juice was great! Very refreshing and a lovely switch from the oil and vinegar dressings we've been making. I confess, I'm really getting sick of the taste of olive oil these days.

For a treat after working hard this afternoon, Benj made smoothies. He started with frozen bananas and frozen strawberries. Then he added his Secret Ingredient. He was so excited about it. He made everyone guess what it was.  So, go ahead. Guess.  :)

Applesauce.  Very good and gave it a great consistency. Sherbet-like and super yum on a lovely, sun-shining day. 

Daniel Fast - Day Ten

June 19, 2013

Day Ten

Here it is. Day Ten.  Sort of a milestone with this fast since it's based on Daniel's fast in which he asked permission to eat only vegetables and drink only water for 10 days and then be tested to see if he and his friends were healthy.  They were found to be stronger and healthier than the others who were eating the king's choicest foods.  So, of course, I should be examining whether I feel healthier and stronger than I did eating "choicer" foods. 

I definitely feel healthier than I did last week.  I'm grateful for that.

Based on what I'm accomplishing every day compared to my pre-fast days, I MUST have a greater amount of energy pouring through my body.  I feel physically tired every night when I go to bed. Yet, I'm not feeling as emotionally drained as I was before.  I am not battling irritability like I was, either.

I'm also starting to feel like this is more of a way of life than just a fast. I mean, I still think of something I'd enjoy eating or drinking that isn't allowed every so often and think, "Well, I'm glad the fast has an end." ;)  Still, we're finding a lot of new ways to incorporate vegetables and fruits into our menu that will stick.  I'm learning some great things about how I eat, how much I eat, and I'm definitely planning to keep this focus on vegetables and fruits as the core of our diet when this is over. 

Today started late for me. I was up with the baby last night and then could NOT make myself sleep.  I'm not sure why I was so restless other than my brain wouldn't stop fussing.  We were late almost all day long with meals and work and such.  Didn't get near what I was hoping to get done done, but I am very happy with what was accomplished. 

Bedrooms are all clean and mopped along with the third floor stairway and the second floor hallway. Smells so good. Two large baskets of laundry are sorted and put away. Shoe bins are sorted and ready for storage. Clothing bins were stored away in the attic. School happened and happened well. Three healthy meals with clean up for dessert.  ;)  A couple more loads of laundry through the machines. A short break with fruit smoothies made by my Benjy-boy this afternoon.  Then we all hit the garden beds again, planting some flowers and building up two more flower beds.  I had SUCH a nice time with my children working on that today. 

I really thought I was too tired for anything, but I was able to tidy up this evening, clean the kitchen, unbury my bed tonight from the work I was doing with sorting clothes and shoes, and help my oldest with a quilting project she started.  I know you didn't hear about this, but take it from my absence over the last year or so, I was NEVER getting this amount of work done on a daily basis before.

It could very well be that refraining from the foods that I was eating is helping me feel less slug-like. It could be that the healthier foods I'm eating right now are giving me a great boost of energy.  It is very likely that the fast from my internet social scene is making a huge impact on how I spend my time and who I spend it with.  Again, this time of refocus, rebooting my body, and renewing relationships has been a treasure I am ever so grateful for.  I'm a little afraid of what happens when it ends.  Yet, I know the Lord has a plan.  He will lead and guide by His word.  I'm so grateful.

Daniel Fast - Day Nine

June 18, 2013

Day Nine

I am so incredibly worn out.  Tonight, after dinner, I just crashed.  I've been going strong both days this week on my own.  Today was getting harder. Staying up late with the kids last night did me in.

We were out this morning, though, working in the yard. Got some more vegies in the beds, weeded, and picked lettuce, spinach, and chard. Our beds are looking so lovely. I used the spinach and chard in some vegetable soup tonight. Turned out so pretty. Yes, I think food is pretty. Especially soup with all those gorgeous colors mixed together.

I jazzed up some pinto beans tonight. I used some of the peppers the Lord blessed us with from the clearance racks at the grocery store this weekend.  I do NOT like to eat fresh peppers, so this was a big step for me. Added in some finely diced red bell peppers, some chopped jalapenos, onion, celery, crushed tomatoes (canned), garlic, some spices, lime juice, and then I tossed in some chopped swiss chard just before serving. It was delicious! The celery needed some more cook time, but every one loved it. My boy even skipped the hot sauce because he said it would cover up the good flavor. Score for me! :)

Today we had our fried rice for breakfast, but served the little girls scrambled eggs and dry toast. We are starting to feel the dollars tighten with this fast, so I am starting to use up a bit of what we have in the house for those who are on the modified version. We enjoyed roasted roots for lunch.  Varying potatoes, carrots, and onion tossed with olive oil, garlic, salt, pepper, and a bit of Dijon mustard. Really great flavor.

I had an idea for some peanut butter balls and Elizabeth took it and made a real treat!  She mixed natural peanut butter with raw, rolled oats and raisins.  Rolled them into balls and viola! Delicious peanut butter balls. The girls kept asking for more "cookies".  They were a huge hit! Another for the keep list.

Dinner was the pintos served with popcorn and cucumber slices.  Another success. I made enough of the beans, plus a huge pot of vegetable soup this afternoon to make life easier in the next couple of days.  We'll be able to heat and serve most of what we eat, which is lovely because I'm feeling really behind on housework and laundry at the moment.  I am just loving working in the yard so much, it's hard to get the inside work done.

We have been doing great on our schooling, though.  Gotta make sure to be happy about the things that are getting done too.

Aside from being really tired, I'm feeling well. My ankle is still a bit sore, but other than that, I'm really happy with how well I've been keeping up. I have to admit, today I was really missing my coffee. It was so rainy and dreary.  Such a perfect day to sit with a cuppa.  I kept busy, though.  We ended up able to walk down to the library this afternoon. 

Looking forward to sleeping soon.  Really want some more time to read, but my body and brain say they want rest.