Best Waffles Ever

And they're Gluten Free!

I'm experimenting with bringing the family to gluten free lives.  My #2 daughter has been on Miralax for four years and now my #1 son is on Miralax too.  I'm nervous to potty train him because I know constipation complicates potty training; it certainly did with #2 daughter!  I won't go into detail here, but it was a traumatic experience.  Seriously, poop everywhere.  And add to that, #2 son has an ongoing rash which I can not really get rid of, not to mention frequent excrement.  I know this is a lot of information.  Gross.

So, I'm hoping that gluten is the culprit.

I'm also hoping that gluten is a reason that my body has rejected my weight loss attempts.  I'm really frustrated on that end.  But then again, I think I haven't been taking it seriously enough.  It's like everything in life, a quick fix won't last.  Therefore, I'm willing to try gluten-free, in fact, grain-free (more akin to Paleo) to see if that helps move things along.  At all.

I stumbled upon this by reading The Blood Type Diet back in December.  Among other things, type O's should avoid gluten as it clogs up the pipes, if you know what I mean.  But I didn't really commit to the eating lifestyle. It seemed so drastic.

Then I started reading about gluten intolerance and Celiac disease.  Reading about those things, putting together my kids' issues and my own issue, I thought it was worth a shot.  Thankfully, the wonderful Erik is willing to give it a shot.  At the very least, we'll all be eating less bread and way more meat and veggies.

Well, it was interesting the first week.  The kids were always hungry and it was hard to get them to not crave bread snacks.  This is difficult on all of us.  But I am really hoping worth it.

I decided for myself to go basically Paleo.  I have some weight to lose and it's not going anywhere with my "everything in moderation" lifestyle.  Moderation has done nothing for me physically.  My BFF encouraged me to be radical, her point being that mediocre diet changes yield mediocre results.

All this leads me to my new favorite waffle.  Weekend meals are pretty tricky to come up with since going GF.  We usually have bagels or pancakes or the like.  So, finding this recipe is wonderful.  However, I don't really eat them because I'm trying to lay low on carbs, but if I eat one of these in the morning, and then no other carb during the day, then maybe, just maybe that will be okay.  (Still can't quite give up my moderate ways!)  These GF waffles seriously rock.  Erik, Of The Discerning Palate, even loved them.  The kids loved them.  We are all happy.

Give them a try.  You might like it!

http://www.food.com/recipe/gluten-free-waffles-54529

• 1 cup brown rice or 1 cup rice flour
• 1/2 cup potato starch (NOT Potato Flour)
• 1/4 cup tapioca flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 cup oil *I used coconut oil.
• 2 eggs (or not...see notes)
• 1 1/2 cups buttermilk (regular milk works, too)
• 1 teaspoon sugar

Directions:

1. 1
   Mix all ingredients together with a whisk, and pour into waffle iron, in batches.
2. 2
   Add a bit more milk if too thick or a bit of rice flour if too runny.
3. 3
   Can be made without eggs, if necessary; just add a little more liquid to make up for them.

Read more: http://www.food.com/recipe/gluten-free-waffles-54529#ixzz1wx5uIeLh

Thai Shrimp Salad

What's left of my delicious creation today.

I threw together about 3 cups of mixed greens, about 1/2 cup of shelled edamame, 1/4 cup carrots, 1/8 cup red onions, about 2 tablespoons of fresh cilantro (I'm growing in my garden) and about 4 ounces of cooked mini shrimps.  Then to dress it I combined 1 tablespoon of Thai Sweet Chili Pepper Sauce, a dash of Siracha Hot Sauce, 1 tablespoon of lemon juice, and 1 tablespoon of Rice Vinager.

OH YUM!  Muy Delicioso!  It had a kick because of the Hot Sauce, but the sweet chili pepper sauce with the cilantro completely complemented it.  I hope you'll give it a try.

And best of all, the salad was about 220 calories.  WOW!  Love that!

Where Did the Month Go?

Well, here we are, almost finished with February and I've barely posted.
We were SUPER busy last week with THREE birthdays in THREE days.  Matilyn turned six.

Declan turned one.  He LOVED his cake.  Oh, he's the cutest thing.

 The girls had their first piano recital at ASU.  It was very nice and the girls performed very well.  And yes, that is correct, Matilyn has outgrown Reagan.

Here is a rediculously cute picture of Reagan and Declan last month.  I could just eat them up!

 Here is a picture of me terminating my relationship with American Express.  She's outa here...

And here is our family picture from January that my BFF Katie took for us.  That's about the best picture anyone can get of Jack.  He's cute, but he also stinks.  Below is a picture of him hitting Erik during the photo session.  It's really funny...

So, yep, it's been a crazy busy month.  Hope you enjoy the pictures.  They don't happen very often you know...

Book Review: Stop Acting Rich and Start Living Like a Real Millionaire

I had to switch up my order of non-fiction reading because this book was due back to the library before Power Thoughts.  So, I stopped reading Power Thoughts, put it aside, and picked up Stop Acting Rich and Start Living Like a Real Millionaire by Thomas J. Stanley.

This was one of the most influential books I've read.  I'm seriously glad I read it.  If you recognize the author it's because he also wrote The Millionaire Next Door, which I have not read, although Erik has.

Stop Acting Rich is a statistical book that analyzes the purchasing trends of the millionaires and decamillionaires, and makes sense of what the majority of your average millionaires do for a living, do with their money, and where they live.

Would you believe that your average millionaire lives in a house worth less than $300,000?  I was shocked.  It turns out that millionaires have figured something very crucial out: live in a home below your means.  You see, when a person, whether a millionaire or not, lives in an affluent neighborhood (homes upwards of $600,000) there is a social pressure to keep up with the neighbors and their purchases, cars, activities, hobbies, etc.  The problem is that these neighborhoods attract the wannabes (Mr. Stanley uses a different name, I just can't remember it).  And the wannabes do not have the financial ability to responsibly keep up with the neighbors, so they either go into debt or they are stressed about life.  Average millionaires know that to live in affluence, you must continue to be affluent, and that only leads to less satisfaction.

Which leads to the main secret Mr. Stanley found average millionaires believe: to be happy in life, live below your means.

Genius.  How have I never gotten that?!?!

There is a three types of millionaires: the glittering rich, the investment rich, and the income rich.  The glittering rich make up about 1% of all millionaires and they do live below their means because their income is unbelievably high.   On the other hand, high income earners report very little satisfaction in life because they are constantly trying to keep up with their neighbors habits.  And still differently, the average millionaires, the ones with investments, report very high life satisfaction.  Satisfaction and dissatisfaction have everything to do with spending.  

Most millionaires surveyed do not have wine cellars, do not pay more than $10 a bottle on wine, do not own prestige brands of clothes or jewelry, and when they buy suits, they buy them from JC Penny's or Macy's.

The majority of the high-income wealthy have premium watches (several), the prestige cars (European), and typically talk about their purchases.  And they have very little investments and savings.

They are also the ones who have high stresses and low satisfaction in life.

What I've learned from this book is to be careful of the messages the brands are sending to me.  The premium brands are marketing to wannabes.  I consider myself a recovering wannabe, so this is an important lesson.  The prestige brands know that the average millionaires are far too sensible to buy $60 a bottle vodka and $5,000 watches.  Instead, they market to the people who think that owning these things will somehow bring wealth their way.  I can't believe I subliminally bought into that!

I also learned that it's entirely possible to become a millionaire.  I thought one had to strike it big in order to attain millionaire level, but that is not typical.  The average millionaire became a millionaire at about 45 years of age and while making about $110,000 in annual salaries.  And then continued to live at means well below the income.  While on the other hand, the high-income earners made average salaries above $500,000 a year and lived that way.

The key to becoming a millionaire is to live below your means, frugally, even after you have reached your millionaire status.  Then the occasional splurge can be justified.  

I highly recommend this book!  It was interesting, and not bogged down on stats, in case you're wondering.  The stats were enlightening and the pace was good.

 

The Best Show on T.V.-Downton Abbey

Watch it.  It's amazing.  Right up there with Mad Men.

I don't even know where to start about it.  It takes place in England (swoon!) immediately preceding WWI.  The show follows both the upstairs, gentry, of a great house, Downton, and the downstairs, the servants.  And all of the interactions.

This time in history was the end of the gentrification in England and the beginning of socialism.  Oh the tension!

And then there's the romance.  So refined, so controlled.  There is something so exciting about love restrained. Am I right?  It's positively scintillating.

If you have Netflix, do yourself a favor and start watching Season 1.  And then catch Season 2 on Sundays on PBS.  You will thank me.  I accept hugs, gifts and cash.

Book Review: The Money Saving Mom's Budget

I recently finished The Money Saving Mom's Budget: Slash Your Spending, Pay Down Your Debt, Streamline Your Life, and Save Thousands a Year by Crystal Paine.  In keeping with my number one goal of living debt-free I decided this would be a great resource.  I have read MoneySavingMom.com for a couple of years, but mostly for the coupon advice.  I didn't really think I could be debt free.  I didn't really think I had it in me to slash our grocery budget.


But that was before 2012.  In combination with other books I've read, and this book, I don't just believe it's possible to be debt-free, I believe it's actually possible to live frugally and then be able to save and generously give.  I've seen the light, Praise the Lord, AMEN!


Anyways, The Money Saving Mom's Budget was one of the books I thought I would read to kick off 2012 the right way.  I'm so glad I did read it.


The book covers everything from the necessity of organization to how to play the drugstore game.  The author believes that being organized is one of the most important steps to becoming financially responsible.  If you're going to buy something, then you should probably know if you already have one, or it's a waste of time and money.


I really appreciated her views on going plastic-free.  Plastic as in debit and credit cards.  I do not use my credit card, but my debit card is another story.  Often I will use my debit card to fill in the gap between my purchases and my cash.  And look at where I am!  So, I understand that it's a great thing to leave the debit card at home.  Now if I can only make myself do it.  I'm working on that one.


I also really liked the encouragement to live frugally.  For the first time I finally saw the beauty of frugality.  I had always equated frugality with cheapness.  But I understand it differently now.  It is not cheap to be able to help a neighbor out with groceries because my spending is under control.  It is not cheap to have the cash to give to someone in need.  Frugality frees up money to be able to BLESS PEOPLE!  How wonderful.  I always thought we just needed to make more money in order to be more generous.  I had it all wrong.  I need to live responsibly so that we can give more of what we have now.


Yes, most of what I read in the book I could have read on her blog.  But I think I read and retain better with a book format.  If that's you, and you need a good financial and frugal living advice book, I highly recommend this book.

Goals for 2012

I rarely publicize my goals.  And truth be told, I've had a very difficult time making goals in the last few years.  And I know you're probably very tired of my using the two-pregnancies-in-three-years excuses, so I'm not going to use that as an excuse for not making goals.

The truth is that I've been in a rut.  And it could have been the above, not mentioned reason, also sleeplessness,  or anything else.

But I've found that the things that I want to change are actually the things or behaviors that have kept me in a rut.  No more; this is MY YEAR!

First, I'm breaking up with Debt.  He's a horrible friend.  He lies all the time and totally backstabs me when I'm turned around.  He's actually like one of those horrible boyfriends who says all the right things to manipulate me and then WHAM! I'm on my face because he's knocked me around.  I'm done with Debt.  He's bad.

Declan-November 2011

We are on the cash envelop system.  I believe it is the best way to move forward financially.  I am trying to cut down my grocery budget by 30%.  And once the bad guy, Debt, is gone, we're moving to the 3-6 months of expenses stage.  I'm really excited about my financial goals.  (And yes, Erik is way on board with me!)

Secondly, it's time I lose some weight.  The baby is nearing one-year old and it's time.  I will do this by eating better and somehow will find time to exercise.  Since I've been eating healthier I've noticed significantly fewer mood swings.  Dang it!  I guess my diet does affect my moods and hormones!


Thirdly, I'm looking for work.  I stumbled upon this site, RealWaysToEarnMoneyOnline.com and I'm very enthusiastic about finding some sort of online writing work.

Fourthly, I think knitting is cool and I've been trying to teach myself to do it for a couple of years.  Well, I think this is the year for it!

Fifthly, I need to get my sewing machine fixed.  I realize this may not seem like a goal worth listing, but since I will have to save cash for it, it is.

I'm believing that with posting my goals the Lord will give me strength and perseverance.  And that if I do fail to meet all of my goals then it will be all for His Glory anyways! :)