The End of Week Four

Wow, I cannot believe that we have actually made it to the end of week 4!! This really has been an incredible journey. The beginning was so tough but we all pushed through and are feeling better today and are looking forward to more healing in the future. Hadassah and Kate have both moved on to the full GAPS diet. This means they are able to eat a variety of foods including nuts, seeds, coconut and some fruits. They are so happy. Hadassah is doing great. She has such a wonderful appetite and eats each meal with joy and excitement. You should see her eat her veggies and ferments, never a complaint. She is having 1-2 BM a day consistently, she is joyful and always willing to help. Kate loves her soup. We are having a bit of trouble getting the ferments down but with a little encouragement I have been able to get a tbs or so down her with each meal. She is noticeable less clumsy and her speech is improving. Adelaide has a hardy appetite. We are still at the beginning stages with her because she continues to have loose stool. Still working on getting high fat, gelatinous foods into her. I have also been giving her raw coconut water kefir to aid in healing her gut. I have seen a steady improvement in my digestion. I have more mental clarity as well as more energy through out the day. It's amazing when we fuel our bodies with good, healthy fat, instead of carbohydrates how much better we feel. I began this diet to heal my gut and my children, as well as teaching them the importance of eating REAL food and what effect good eating habits can have on our health. BUT the 16lbs I have lost has not gone unnoticed. We'll just call it a side benefit. What we ate today Breakfast~ cup bone broth 1 egg + 2 yokes sauerkraut coconut flour pancakes w/ ghee and honey Lunch~Chicken soup cucumber sauerkraut Snack (H&K) Apple and soak and dehydrated walnuts Dinner~Butternut squash soup Asparagus sauerkraut Chicken legs w/ skin Dessert~Frozen blueberries

One week down...

Sorry, I can't get this to format correctly. Please enjoy. Wow, we made it a whole seven days. I will admit it was a bit hellish at times but we pressed on and today we, yes we, are all feeling better. A~ is eating like crazy and having better bm. K~eats at least 2 bowls of soup at each meal and is learning to like her veggies. I have even noticed that her speech is more clear. H~The mopey, lethargic attitude has disappeared!! She ate a bowl of soup at dinner all by herself (up to this point I have had to feed it to her). Today my ferments were done so everyone had a tea spoon of kraut juice. They all seemed to tolerate it well. However, this did trigger some die off in me. About 45min after I took it I started to feel nauseous. I put the girls in front of a movie and took a detox bath and that seemed to help. We will continue to increase the amount of juice and then move on to the actual veggies. Oh, when I opened the first jar K was very excited and asked if she could try some so I gave her a small bite of the veggies and she said, "yummy." Good sign. My dear friend Maureen came over on Friday and we made young coconut kefir. It should be ready but I did not want to introduce two different ferments in one day so we will wait until tomorrow. I have heard and read amazing things about this fermented drink and I am super excited to try it out. My probiotics arrived on Friday, yippee!! However we had company over the weekend so I didn't introduce them. We will start tomorrow with just a small amount. It may be a rough day tomorrow. What we ate today Breakfast~ Hamburger soup cup of broth 2 egg yokes each (H & K only) butternut squash and bone broth (A) Lunch~ Left over chicken broccoli and cauliflower cup of bone broth tea spoon kraut juice Dinner~ Left over pork roast Chicken soup cauliflower carrots I am hoping to add egg yokes for A and I sometime this week and ghee for the other girls. If you would like to read some incredible success stories with GAPS, check this out... http://gapsguide.com/about/gaps-results/

GAPS day 4

Well we are over half way through our first week!!

I still have not received my probiotics (yes, I called the company because they were shipped over a week ago-waiting to hear back). I decided to start taking another probiotic I have on hand that my naturopath gave me. I took half a dose to start and did not feel any symptoms of die off. Thank goodness. Since I am still nursing several times a day I would like to keep the die off to a minimum for A sake.

I added egg yoke for H and K today. Soft scrambles. They were so happy and asked for more. I thought for today 2 yokes each was enough. No reaction from either so we will try again tomorrow. If all is well this weekend we will add the whites as well.

H is still struggling with agreeing to the diet. When I call her for each meal she says she isn't hungry. I give her a small amount and it is all I can do to get her to eat it. Every meal takes almost an hour. She was the most agreeable before we started. I am a bit concerned that she isn't eating enough so I gave her some coconut oil today. That brought a smile to her face.

A and K are each eating well.

A is having regular BM but they are still loose. I had put an onion in the last soup I made, wondering if that is the problems. Finished that soup up today so we will see. H and K are not having regular BM, not good. Did I say I was looking forward to getting my probiotic!!

Off to a detox bath and bed. Blessings~

What we ate:

Breakfast~
egg yokes (H & K)
Chicken soup
Carrots
Butternut squash
Lunch~
Chicken soup
Broccoli
Dinner~
Veggie soup w/ chicken bone broth
Green beans

GAPS day 3

I feel like we are making head way. K is eating very well and asking for seconds on the soup. H is having a tough time adjusting and keeps asking when we are going back to our old diet. I adjusted their chore chart today to include eating each meal with a happy heart, very helpful. Of course A eats more than the other two girls and loves her veggie. Especially if she can feed them to herself.

I don't know how I missed it after reading the GAPS Guide several times but as I looked it over again today it says to only have boiled meats, veggies and bone broth for the first seven days. Well I am going to take a cue from Donna Gates 7 Principles of Health from The Body Ecology Diet. Everyone is unique. Yes, tomorrow I am going to add egg yoke for K and H. A and I will wait the seven days and then add it in. I think they need a little something more.

Today I made a list, to put on the fridge, telling us the order by which we will be introducing foods. I think it will help H understand a little more how this is going to work. When she asked about bread tonight I was able to show her when we will be adding it in (of course it is nut flour bread so GAPS legal but she will just be happy to have some with a little ghee). After I showed her she lit up and said, "that's not all that long". A welcome sign of optimism from my greatest skeptic.

H and K both took good afternoon naps. Did I tell you that H hasn't taken a nap in over six month. Something must be going on. A took two very good naps. All had detox baths with epsom salts and are sound asleep. I don't know what it is about the detox baths but the last three night H and K have fallen asleep very quickly which is not normal.

I am having a bit of trouble sleep. Not sure what is causing this. I have NEVER had a problem sleeping so the 2-3 hours I am awake in the middle of the night is tough.

What we ate:

Breakfast~
Carrots
Chicken soup
Lunch~
Hamburger soup
Broccoli
Cauliflower
Dinner~
Chicken soup
Butternut squash

The girls seem to prefer the broth in soups as opposed to drinking it alone. Whatever it takes to get it down. I'll do it.

Off to take my detox bath and go to bed.

Day 2

Well if I thought day one was difficult, day two was even worse. Last night H and K both woke up and vomited several times. I thought this a strange die-off reaction since we haven't started with the probiotic foods or supplements. I now believe it was simply a poor timed tummy bug.

Both woke with stomach pains and refused to eat breakfast or lunch. K took a morning and afternoon nap and H took an afternoon nap. I desperately needed to go to the grocery. Around 4 they seemed well enough to travel. I also promised them some kombucha (not technically legal on the intro but full of live cultures AND they were willing to drink it). They both ate a small bowl of chicken soup for dinner, took detox baths (this time with apple cider vinegar) and are now sound asleep.

A ate well with a good attitude all day. She had one good BM (finally) and took two great naps.

I felt fine all day. Had a burst of energy late morning/early afternoon!!! No cravings!!

What we ate:

Breakfast~
Broccoli
Cauliflower
Chicken
Bone broth
Lunch~
Hamburger soup
Dinner~
Chicken soup-Chicken bone stock, shredded carrot, zucchini, red pepper, onion w/ chx pieces.

Still patiently waiting for my probiotics to arrive. I think I may add in some egg yoke tomorrow. The girls keep asking when they will be able to eat apples again (2-3 weeks, maybe).

Day 1

Man am I glad today is over...almost. Seemingly poor attitudes about food today. Lots of crying by H and wining from K. A was perfecty happy with all the food set in front of her. H felt sick after going to the park so her and K layed on the couch while I nursed A. Both were asleep within five minutes (this was before noon). H hasn't taken an afternoon nap for months. H cried several times today when I wouldn't let her have an apples. K complained about leg cramps after dinner so we did detox baths and that seem to relieve the pain.

I felt fine through out the day a little nausea here and there. My probiotic foods won't be done until the end of the week and my probiotic order has not arrived so dye off is minimal. However I am ready to get the show on the road.

What we ate:

Breakfast~
Chicken
Broccoli
Cauliflower
Bone broth
Lunch~
Hamburger stew made with grated carrots, red peper and zuccini, beef bone broth (yummy!)
Dinner~
Bone broth
Tenderloin
Butternut squah
Bed time snack (didn't plan this but the older two said they were very hungery)
Broccoli
Cauliflower

Off to take my detox bath and go to bed. I am beat. Looking up, as tomorrow is a new day.

GAPS and why...

Well tomorrow the girls and I are embarking on a new adventure. We are all going on the GAPS diet. What is GAPS? you may ask...GAPS stands for Gut & Psychology Syndrome. I have prayerfully decided to move forward with this diet after a year of research. The program focuses on diet, supplementation and detoxification. We will be doing all these things in an effort to heal our gut in order to heal the rest of our body.

Why start now? I believe (and it has been confirmed my our pediatrician) that A may have some food sensitivities. I started feeding her grains when she turn one and since that time she has not had a solid BM and there is often evidence of undigested food in her stool. I suspect that she may be sensitive to grains, dairy and some fruits. Seeing these things in A encouraged me to look at the other girls to see if they may be suffering from food sensitivities as well.
Concerns are as follows...H: inconsistent BM, teeth grinding, night waking, dark circles under her eyes, little bumps on her skin. K: lack of concentration, stomach aches, leg cramps, night waking, little bumps on her skin. Momma: digestion issues, a general fogginess, a constant sense of disorganization, lack of energy,over weight, constantly feeling run down, little bumps on my skin. Disorders like these often can be linked to food sensitivities and digestive disorders.

We will begin with the Intro diet which includes 8 stages. This is basically an elimination diet that is based on the Spacific Carbohydrate Diet. We will cut out foods, especially those foods that are known allergens (grains, dairy, soy, sugars, etc), in order to add foods back slowly, one at a time to find out what we are sensitive to. On the beginning stage we will eat; homemade meat/bone broth, boiled meats and boiled vegetables, fermented veggies and enjoy ginger tea. If after a few days everyone is feeling good and no one is struggling with diarrhea or constipation we will move into stage two. Because our symptoms are not incredibly severe I hope to move swiftly through the intro and start on the full GAPS diet.

The intro diet as well as the full diet is incredibly nourishing and healing as it allows the digestive system to rest and heal. I am SO exited to see what strides we will make by implimenting these changes. Here's to a healthy life~

I am hoping to update a few times a week to let you know what we are eating and how everyone is responding. So stay tuned...

Some resources if your are interested in researching GAPS

Dr. Natash Campbell-Mcbride on Gut health~
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HLRqxGGq9IY&feature=autoplay&list=UL3CsPBIlm45A&index=21&playnext=24

A list of symptoms that GAPS addresses and more~
http://www.doctor-natasha.com/index.php

The author of the GAPS guide rights a blog~
http://gapsguide.com/

There is also a GAPS yahoo group which is very helpful and informative.