My turn for diet changes!

Anyone who knows me and DH know that I still eat like a college kid, while DH eats healthier. Like, he's two steps away from being vegan. Now me, I will likely never give up meat. Or dairy. Or eggs. So I would make a terrible vegan. :) But for the past year or so, I've noticed every now and then that I eat a whole crap load of sugar. At one point, I was pretty sure that if I got my blood drawn, it would be mostly made up of sugar. And it started to cause a problem. I will go ahead and warn you that if you don't want to know gross things that people go through in life, just leave now. I'm not shy about it, and I don't mind if the world in general knows. But you might not care to know. Just don't say I didn't warn you.

Back to this problem. It started about 6 months ago, and has been a pain in my butt ever since. Almost literally. I am a victim of almost constant yeast infections. Monistat clears it up for maybe a week, two tops. Went to the clinic to see what was up and make sure I didn't have vaginitis or something else (nope), and they gave me some meds to get rid of it. It lasted a month. Tried more Monistat, and same old story. So I looked up recurring yeast infections, and the term "candida overgrowth" popped up quite a bit. That's where the naturally occurring candida in your gut, well, overgrows. It can spread to other parts of your body and cause lots of problems if it's not controlled. Ever heard of thrush? It's most commonly found in nursing babies, but it's basically a yeast infection of the mouth. If you have candida overgrowth, you might get thrush. I don't have thrush, and I hope to not get it. Migraines and acne are also on the list of things it can cause. I have problems with both of those. Coincidence? Maybe. Maybe not.

Anyway, in researching it, I've learned that OTC meds and even meds that they prescribe you to get rid of a yeast infection don't actually cure it. They only really get rid of the main physical symptoms of one, like itching, burning, & discharge. But the yeast, or candida, in your gut, is still there and flourishing. It will quickly reestablish itself, as I can attest.

Now, I'm not saying I for sure have candida overgrowth, because I'm not a doctor, nor have I been to one about it. And the cynic in me believes that if I even went to my doctor to talk about it, she'd give me a weird look and pat me on the head. But regardless of what I may or may not have, I know for an absolute fact that I have a serious sugar addiction and that needs to be broken. So about a month ago, I did something crazy and didn't buy any more Mountain Dew when the last one was gone. I no longer buy candy whenever I go grocery shopping. Not only have I NOT bought sugary things, I have greatly reduced my consumption of them. Some days I only have 1 glass of orange juice and then maybe something small later on in the day, like a cookie. Some days it's just orange juice. Some days I get lax and drink orange juice for breakfast, a pop at dinner, and some ice cream for dessert. The next day, when the symptoms reappear, I immediately regret my transgressions the day before.

But the surprising thing is, it hasn't been too terribly hard. I expected sucky withdrawals, but then again, I still consume some sugar. Just not tons of it like before. At some point, I'm going to try a hard line kill off diet, where there's NO sugar in any form (((orange juice))) for a week or two. After that I'll add some back in, in moderation, like now. It'll be like Phase 1 of South Beach. There are other things I'm doing for the yeast infection, but this is just about getting the sugar under control for now. But never fear, if things don't work out like I hope, I will go in to the doctor and get some more testing done to see what's up.

Do little details matter in casting a movie?

This summer, my world will most likely be rocked by the Starz release of the drama series, Outlander. Outlander, the first in an epic 8+ book series written by Diana Gabaldon, is my all-time favorite book. It's the book I would choose to bring with me should I ever be stuck on a deserted island forever more. I've read it countless times already, and anticipating the series premier this summer, I recently picked it back up again, just for a refresher, though I'll probably be done with it months before the premier.

Anyway, for years, there've been blog posts by the author which stated that the rights had been purchased by this company or that, to adapt the story for screen, all of which came to nothing. So it's always been a tease. And then one day, she announced that Sony had purchased it! I immediately knew it would be on screen for sure, if a huge company like Sony bought it. Sure enough, it was announced that the story was being adapted and they were bringing in some big names to work on it! I was so excited, although once I found out it was going to be on Starz, I was *slightly* less excited, as we don't even have cable, let alone a premium channel like Starz. But a friend is also a big fan, and she has cable, so I think the plan is that I'll go halfsies on Starz with her, and we'll have Outlander dates every week.

Back to the main topic though... the casting details. The two main actors cast, Caitriona Balfe and Sam Heughan, have obviously drawn a lot of attention from fans. So many love the story of Jamie and Claire, and everyone has a mental image of what each one looks like. No one actor was ever going to fit the image of every reader, so some were going to be disappointed. The funny thing though, is that many are choosing to focus on one little insignificant detail found in the books, which won't happen on screen. And that is the color of Caitriona/Claire's eyes.

Caitriona Balfe as Claire

In the books, Claire's eye color is often referred to. They are whiskey colored, or golden brown, or hawk-like. Caitriona's eye color is blue. She is not wearing golden colored contacts, nor is the production team going to go in after filming and alter the color in editing. And some are swearing off the whole thing over this. Not the acting. Not the screenplay. Not because it's going to be on Starz. Because of eye color! It boggles my mind. Honestly, I don't think the eye color has any importance in furthering the plot. None. It's a nice minor detail that we get reminded of often in the books, but I doubt a production company is going to waste precious time and money over it.

Daniel Radcliffe as Harry Potter

This reminds me of another eye color switcharoo that didn't turn out so important after all, even though some thought it would ruin the movie. That's right. Harry Potter. In the books, we're often reminded that Harry's eyes are green, and that they look exactly like his mother's. It's actually more important later on in the series, what with Snape still holding a flame for Lily. Anyway, the actor cast to play Harry, Daniel Radcliffe, has blue eyes. Big bright blue eyes. And further more, the actor cast to play Lily, Gerladine Somerville, has blue eyes as well. But they're not exactly like Daniel's. The shock! How could Snape look into Harry's eyes and see Lily's when they're not even the same? Yeah, I don't know either. Yes, my sarcastic font is on.

Jonathan Rhys Myers as King Henry VIII

But you know when it does kind of matter? When you cast a famous historical figure. The most recent mis-cast, besides apparently Tom Cruise as Jack Reacher (which I've never read nor care about), is that of Jonathan Rhys Myers as King Henry VIII on the Showtime series, The Tudors. Jonathan is listed at about 5'10", and based on his body, I'd hazard a guess that he's less than 200 pounds. The real Henry was about 6'2" and later on in life, was a very portly man. Completely different body types. Very early on, the production team said that Jonathan was not going to gain weight. Nor dye his hair red, as Henry's actually was (red, not dyed). For a long time, this mis-cast bothered me a lot. Jonathan just was not physically imposing on screen, something which I'd always assumed was needed when Henry VIII was involved. But he acted the hell out of the character, so he eventually made me forget it. Mostly, anyway. Either way, THAT'S when details matter... not when the actor has a different eye color than was originally written.

In the end, I don't want to sound like I'm not valuing the opinions of other people. I do. Really. It's just that *my* opinion is that it's silly to focus on something so little, and of not great importance. So I'm saying so, as is my right. Hopefully, the series will rock and will make people forget whose eyes are what color, or that that shade of red isn't red enough. Only a few more months! Oh, and if you haven't read it yet, now's the time to start!

Swimming 03/24/2014

Today was one of those rare awesome days where you feel great, have lots of energy, and you accomplish more than you set out to do. I went into the pool feeling "meh" because I was crampy and according to DH, bloated. Thanks :P

But as usual, I started out with an easy breaststroke, and as I was nearing the wall for my 50, I was feeling up to going for a 100. So I made the turn and kept going. At the end of that first 100, I was still feeling it, but didn't want to kill myself so early. I made myself stop. Next up was freestyle, again aiming for a 50, but ended up with a 100! Same with the rest of the workout... I did no 50's the entire workout, which is amazing to me, because I only just started swimming again not that long ago. It might just be a fluke, and that's okay. But I'm so happy! I ended up doing 1,000 yards/meters/whatever, and I was still feeling energy at the end. Alas, I needed to get back home, so I couldn't do more. Also, my breaststroke kick seemed to go back to normal, so that's a plus.

Here's my set:
100 breaststroke
100 freestyle
100 breaststroke
100 backstroke
100 breaststroke
100 breaststroke kick
100 freestyle
100 backstroke kick
100 backstroke
100 breaststroke

Fingers crossed that my next workout keeps up with the 100's!

Swimming 03/17/2013

Today felt really good! I changed things up just a little bit, and ended up at 800 yards. There also was a cute guy doing laps in the next lane over, so that helps, too. ;)

4x50 alternating breast, free & back
100 breaststroke kicking
4x50 alternating breast, free & back
100 backstroke kicking, without board. Worked on breathing and position of feet.
4x50 alternating breast, free & back, with emphasis on back

But during my breaststroke 50's, I noticed that I have slightly changed my position in the water, so now when I kick, my feet break the surface of the water. This is desirable in the other 3 strokes, but not breaststroke. Your hips need to be lower, so that your legs can catch more water to "push" off of. Breaking the surface means that your kick isn't as effective, and you slow down. Slowing down = more work. I kind of noticed it last time I swam, but I thought that since I was thinking about it too much, it was just messing with me. Now that I've noticed it 2 times in a row, the next few swims will have more focus on keeping my hips down.

Just keep swimmin'...

I've recently started swimming again, so I thought I would jot down my workouts, such as they are. I'm seriously out of shape, so the first few times, I've not gotten as much yardage as I would have liked. But I also like not drowning, so it all works out in the end. :)

The past few workouts have been pretty much what I used to do when I swam laps 3-4 times a week, before Bubba was born... minus a few hundred yards and modified for my current ability. It's basically alternating 50's of breaststroke, freestyle, and backstroke, with 100-200 yards of kicking mixed in. All in all, my max is about 700 yards in about 30-45 minutes. At my non-teenage peak, I was at 1,200 yards in 45 minutes, with more 100's. So I have some work to do, as well as needing to research better swim sets. What I do now is a little boring.

I'm also toying with the idea of joining Masters Swimming, which is run by the same association that governs swim clubs commonly found in thousands of communities around the country. Except those clubs are focused mainly on youth swimming up until age 18, and all are competitive. Masters is the same thing, but for people 18 and older, and it's more focused on swimming for fitness. There are Masters competitions, though there aren't many, and travel would be required. But my only hangup, is that the closest club that offers a Masters program is 100 miles way. It is possible for me to be unaffiliated and to only work out by myself, but heck, if I'm going to pay the same fees, I kind of want some coaching out of the deal, ya know? But on the flip side, it'd be nice to feel as though I'm a part of something, even if I'm working by myself. I don't know. More thinking to do.

Before I forget

I always tell myself that I will always remember what cute things Matthew does or how he acts because that's what moms do, right? Wrong. There are things I swore I'd remember when he was smaller, but for the life of me, I can only call up a few things instead of the big list I know is in there, somewhere. So hey, I have this blog... it's for, you know, writing stuff down. Kind of like a list, but more public, and probably more coherent. Probably. Anyway, here's my Matthew List at around 18 months old. :)

He is always on the go. I think the only time the kids sits still is if you strap him into his high chair, or when he's sleeping. And the being still while sleeping is debatable. I don't know for sure, because I try not to go in there if he's sleeping. Because...

He wakes pretty easily, and almost completely. Occasionally, I have to wake him from his nap since I kind of want him to have his normal bed time. I just have to say his name, and he's up. He goes from sleeping soundly, to eyes open, to standing up. All within 3 seconds. And if I set him down, he immediately starts to play. I'm kind of jealous actually. I'm useless for the first hour that I'm up.

He is soooo sweet around other kids. Especially the younger ones. He loves babies, and wants to hold them. Wants to have them sit in his lap. Wants to share his pacifier. Loves to pat their heads and give hugs, which often times looks like he's trying to smother them. He will bring his toys over to them so they can play, too. He will gladly share his food & drink... even going so far as to put food in their mouth (done with a girl his age, and NOT a baby baby). With the older kids, he loves to run after them to see what they're up to. Most of the time, they're just running in circles or playing hide & seek. Doesn't matter... he loves it all. So through all this, my initial impression I have of him is that he's going to be that kid in school who likes everyone and everyone likes him.

He is super helpful already. If there is a crumb on the floor, he will pick it up and take it to the trash. If you ask him to throw something away, he will. His first actual chore has become refilling the extra toilet paper roll holder. It holds 3 rolls, and if we're not replacing a roll right away, we'll put the 4th on top. He's so excited to put the rolls in the holder, that he'll eagerly point to it if there are no more rolls in it. And while we're in the bathroom, if the used washcloths that we use to clean him with after a meal are dry, I'll hand them to him, he'll run to our closet where the dirty towel basket is located, and add them to the collection. He's also taken to help me carry laundry baskets full of folded clothes back to the closet to be put away. He also does this with the small basket I use to store his cloth diapers. He'll grab one end and I'll grab the other, and together, we take our load to where it needs to go... with me carrying most of the weight, obviously. He will put his shoes back where they belong, generally pretty straight. He will try to put the tray to his high chair back on after a meal, though he's still a little too short to actually get it up on top the arms. He also likes to put clothes in the washing machine/dryer, though he's a little too short for this chore, too. I love that he loves to help, and I realize that it may be just a phase, especially since we're heaping on the praise when he does something helpful, and that it probably won't be heaped on as he gets older. But something tells me he has gotten his daddy's sense of helpfulness and orderliness, and so he will always be this way.

He's very thoughtful, too. In this dry winter air, the tops of my legs tend to get itchy, so I scratch them a little. He'll come over and start lightly scratching, too, helping a girl out. It actually kind of tickles, it's so light... so I can't say it helps matters. But it's the thought that counts.

If DH & I hug, he insists on being involved, too. I'll be holding him and he'll put his head on my shoulder. Then DH will put his arms around both of us and lay his head on Matthew's shoulder. Then I'll lay my head on DH's shoulder. It's adorable, and we love doing it.

At night after I nurse him, I cuddle him for a bit before I put him down. He'll lay his head on my shoulder and after a bit, I start to feel him rubbing my arms and patting the back of my shoulders. It just makes my heart melt and not want to put him down.

Anyway, there is more, I'm sure. But it's late and I don't want to gush too much. :) So I'll end this post by saying I have one lovely little dude on my hands!
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*I'm still in the process of finding the perfect blog template, so things might be a little wonky as I try new templates out. Have patience!

Goals for 2014

A friend of mine recently came out of blog hibernation to post her goals for 2014, and it has spurred me into doing the same thing. However, I will not call them resolutions. To me, calling something a resolution makes it seem as though I HAVE to do it or I'm a failure. But a goal implies that you're working towards something and the path might not always be perfect, but as long as you get there, that's all that matters. If you look up the two words though, the definitions are essentially the same. So anyway...

#1) Get more active, somehow. I say somehow because I don't know exactly how I want to go about it yet. I love swimming, but there isn't much to work towards while swimming besides getting in shape and losing weight. Joining a masters program online might help, as it would give me opportunities to compete every once in a while (not that I've ever been a good swimmer, but I like competing). I'm also contemplating taking up running, as 3 of my friends have now taken it up and are having fun working towards 5K's and half marathons. The only hitch is that it involves me actually running. Last time I ran, I didn't think it was a whole lot of fun. But if I had something to work towards (races!), maybe it could become my new crack? I don't know. All I know is that I need to do something.

#2) Eat better. I'm the first to admit that I eat like crap. Yeah, I don't eat a lot of fast food, but just because I make it at home doesn't mean it's better for you. Things like ramen noodles, Mt. Dew, shells and cheese and frozen pizza are things I eat very regularly. It bothers the heck out of my husband, who is trying his hardest to become vegan. Maybe I eat this way as a silent protest to his dietary changes. Either way, it's not healthy, period. I aim to cut most of the crap and eat more wholesome foods, including veggies. There's no way I could become vegan, or even vegetarian. But that doesn't mean I can't eat healthy.

#3) Re-connect friendships. Not saying I've lost any friends, but for the past 6 months or so, I've felt myself pulling away more and more from pretty much everyone. I don't want to say I'm depressed, but I'm certainly not happy, and when I'm not happy, I seclude myself. But I'm tired of it. I feel as though life is going on and I know nothing of it. So I aim to get out more, or have the girls over more, or both. And hopefully with me adding exercise and better food to the mix, maybe I can shake the funk that I've been in.

#4) Find another hobby besides the internet. Let's face it: I love the internet. Even some of my hobbies are on the internet. But I think I spend a little too much time on it. So maybe it's time to re-teach myself how to knit/crochet, or pick something else up? I'll have to think on it, as there are lots of things I could do.

#5) Find a workable solution for housework. I'm very sporadic about what I clean and when, although it does get done eventually. It just needs to be more on a schedule, I guess. Yay. But it needs to happen, no matter how I feel about it.

I think 5 goals are more than doable. Of course there are more non-me related things I could add to the list, but focusing on Matthew got me to this point in the first place. This is all for ME!