IS THERE ANYONE WHO LOVES MORE HONESTLY THAN A DOG?

                                                            (SORRY ABOUT THE AWFUL BACKGROUND MUSIC)

How we love our dogs. This isn't a new phenomena that came along with the internet and movies, endless videos on youtube or social media sites. We've loved our dogs for millennia before anyone had to confirm it for us. 

They sleep with us as babies and children, keeping us safe and warm. And as adults they love us for exactly who we are. They could care less whether we have a zit on the end of our nose or we're overweight, lonely or slow with age. They wait for us by the door and wiggle all over when we come home, like we're the best thing ever to happen in their day. 

April 2016 - Dogs are a kind of wolf. They were the first animals that people fed on purpose, earlier than sheep or cows or chickens. People have been taking care of dogs in Central Asia since about 13,000 BC, in the Stone Age, before the beginning of farming(and possibly much earlier; maybe as long as 100,000 years ago, before people left Africa). Most likely, dogs themselves began this relationship by hanging around people's campsites (there weren't any villages yet), trying to snatch some of their garbage to eat. At first, people must have tried to scare the dogs away. But ... campsites with dogs were cleaner and healthier than campsites without dogs. Fewer people got dysentery and died.

The people who lived in these cleaner campsites grew up stronger than people who shooed away dogs, and there were more of them. Eventually, the dog-lovers pretty much took over... And dogs evolved to be able to digest more and more people-garbage, especially grains.

Somewhere around this time, people... began to see that the dogs could do other things too. Dogs would bark and let you know if any big animals or human enemies were coming. Dogs could let you know if the baby was getting into trouble. So people began to encourage the dogs to hang around. At some point, people also began to teach dogs to obey them. They useD the dogs to help them hunt other animals, and to pull sleds. Dogs were the earliest domestication of any animal, and may have given people the idea of domesticating sheep and goats... Nobody's sure whether this domestication of dogs happened only once, in one place, or many times, all over Europe and Asia, but all known dogs today are descended from those Central Asian dogs of about 13,000 BC. Even Native American dogs came to the Americas from Asia. Today's European dogs probably came to Europe with the Indo-Europeans from Central Asia, replacing earlier European dogs, just as Central Asian cats replaced earlier cats in China.  (from an article by K.E.Carr)

I'm the first to admit that my dogs are one of the cores of my life. They love me unconditionally. I'm a member of the pack, alpha female. And I take that role seriously. 

I provide their food (make it for them, in fact) and clean water (love my Berkey Water Filter. Although with their amazing gut I'm not sure I need to give filtered water to them. I've watched them drink from the ponds, a puddle on the drive and the chicken trough. Their favorite place to drink is out of the horse's water trough.), and a safe haven for them to run and hunt in. I set the rules and they accept me as a benevolent dictator.

Yup. My 'pack' hunts. Actually I think they may steal some of their munchables from the cats but neither of them will own up to it. Apple (my Golden in the picture above) did go through a short period where she hunted rabbits and brought them home for the kittens. It was an unexpected development that ended fairly quickly, much to my relief. Finding rabbits carefully piled up next to the front door was accepted and praised but hard to deal with since it involved the inevitable clean up. Good skill to have though. You never know when that kind of ability might come in handy, especially if there's a Zombie Apocalypse.

Our dogs are heroes, especially in the eyes of children. Even the wee tiny dogs are fierce wolves, at least in their mind's eye and ancestry. Today they're used as companions, helping people who are challenged by injuries to their hearts, minds, body or emotional state. There are innumerable videos of soldiers coming home to their dogs, babies sleeping with their best four legged friend on guard, and especially of people rescuing dogs from floods, fires or deplorable conditions they're living in. There are activists all over the world who help dogs to find their best partner in life.

The love between humans and dogs is mutual, part of the Yin and Yang of the world. They forgive us our human fallibility, offering one more time to roll over for a tummy rub and sleeping with their heads in our laps even after we've had a melt down over that pair of best shoes with the toes chewed out. ( Shoes are just so tasty! )

One of my dogs, Gypsy, saved my life twice. The first time was when some hopped up meth heads came in to my store at the end of the day, after I'd sent the help home and was just walking to the front to lock the doors. They came in, three of them, spreading out and flanking me. It was obvious they'd robbed before and knew what they were doing.

Gypsy, who probably sold as much product as I did by greeting people at the door and taking them to the newest exhibits with great enthusiasm (her droopy, guilty eye look sold more than one painting!), leaped right over the counter and hit them like a whirling dervish. She bit one of them in the arm, leaving a wound the police were able to identify him by later when he went to the emergency room to get stitches. And chased another out of the front door before turning on the last one and cornering him with a crazed look on her face and bloody froth (from the bite on the first guy) on her mouth. He laid down his knife and peed his pants he was so frightened. She got a special award from the police for her bravery (a lovely, big bone and a star shaped badge she wore on her collar).

The second time was when we had an intruder in our home. I came in after shopping and there she was in the dining room with the 'burgler' cornered in the dining room, shaking and sweating. " Geez lady. Call your dog off! " Obviously I didn't 'call my dog off'. Instead I called 911 and stood there, praising her, until the police arrived. She had a reputation with the local police department by then. Gypsy loved her second bone as much as the first.

Now we live with Miniver and Apple, two characters in their own rights. And both of them are mine because they chose me by sitting on my foot. All of my dogs do that, every single one. And I can remember all of them back to the beginning of my memories as a child. They were all my beloveds and I miss them too. They each taught me something important : Have confidence in yourself. Hold your head up and wag your tail and people will love you for being kind. Never miss an opportunity to chase a tennis ball. Frisbees rock! Tummy and shoulder rubs always make you feel better. Love is best shown with an enthusiastic kiss. Splash in every mud puddle you find. Live and love like every day is the only day. The list goes on and on. Respect your horse and they will respect you too. Barking at moths flying around the lamp at night is lots more fun than watching television. You never know what you'll find in a trash can so tip one over if you have a chance to. Cats drool, dogs rule (although the cats usually reverse that statement. It's an ongoing debate around here.)

But you're probably wondering where I'm going with this story today. No special place. My dogs are happy to be where I am, although rides in the car with their heads hanging out are way cool, especially when passing other cars with dogs who are also hanging out windows, drool flying by. I just wanted to acknowledge the canines who've brought so much joy in to our lives. 

Here's to the laughter they bring in to us, the gentle tussles over a favorite toy. Here's to the nights they've sat up with me while I worry about whatever the latest catastrophy was and the days they've been there with me when I was lonely for my sons, now grown and launched in to exciting lives of their own. Here's to the treasures they've shared, always giving me the best bits, and the laughter that comes with some thing they've dragged in with them. There was the time Joe 'ate' the sofa stuffed with feathers while I was gone. I came back to this amazing cloud of feathers and tatters of feather pillows with an excited puppy running in great loopy circles with excitement. When I opened the door he burst out with one last pillow, shaking it for all it was worth, and 'The Great Feather Storm' following him, making the little girl next door laugh until she fell down. (She'd lost her Mom just two weeks before to Cancer. Her Dad told me later it was her first real laugh since her Mom had died.).

Here's to comfort they've brought me and the gift of how to accept a life well lived and the time to leave with grace and bravery. And here's to the unadulterated love they've taught me to practice. Be kind. Share without expecting anything back, well maybe a scratch behind the ears would be nice but sharing was just for sharing and the pleasure it brings, so an ear scratch can wait. And here's to the fine art of laughter when I needed it the most and remembering that it's just stuff so don't sweat it because it's not worth your time when there's other things to chew up and bury (like the time I was working with Lucky in the arena and came around the corner to find a half buried stuffed bear sticking up out of the sand. That taught me to laugh through a buck!). 

And here's to sitting in the grass under shade of the oak tree in the front yard, reading a best book ever with a four legged friend curled up next to me, making me feel like a million bucks.

And here's to cat litter on the end of their noses, sticky half chewed bones 'buried' under the good pillows just set out for guests because they don't smell like dogs and chewed up bones, and that time Newman and Gypsy ran threw the house trailing toilet paper they'd unwound behind them, right through a reception dinner (and who, I have always wondered, opened the door to let them out of the bedroom?!). 

And here's to the endless stories they've given me to tell at the Thanksgiving table. This story is for Penny, Shotsi, Hans, Fritz, Ernst,  Leipkin and Maepkin, Alexander, Kippy, Rosy, Lightfoot, Gypsy, Newman, Joe, Mona, Tiberius, Miniver, and Apple. I hope I have a chance to add more names to that list before my time to leave comes. I'm not finished learning from them or telling the stories either. I love you guys!

I am, ever yours, Nancy, smiling and rummaging around, trying to find a good bone for them to chew (and laughing because there are two kittens asleep on top of the ever patient Miniver, as I write this)

RECIPES, RECIPES, RECIPES or How to Make Cheater's Pizza

We've talked about how to take yourself on a journey to eating a better diet by eliminating sugar and processed foods. And we've looked at how to find and grow your own vegetables and fruit.

 (Berries. I forgot berries. Raspberries, black berries and strawberries are easier to grow than you thought. Give your raspberry plant some room, at least a space that is five feet by five feet. Same goes for your blackberry plant. First year will not give you a noticeable yield. By year three you will be eating raspberries and blackberries like a King! You'll have so many shoots you'll be able to share them with friends. And strawberries? There are dozens of varieties available. You can grow them anywhere there is soil and sunshine, or plant them in pots. There are places you can pick your own too. Easy peasy!)

This is where the fun stuff begins. Recipes! And easy to make recipes to boot. We'll start with breakfast. Ready? Set... GO!

EGGS: Soft (3 to 5 minutes on boil) boil and serve with 1 tsp real butter, salt and pepper to taste. Serve with a sliced avocado and red grapes on the side. Or hard boil the egg. Make two eggs. Excellent source of protein. Want to make it easier? Use the same teaspoon of butter and fry your egg. Or scramble your egg. Delicious combination of flavors and textures. You can add beans, any kind, with tomatoes as a side for a truly hardy meal, English style. Try this first on a weekend when you're learning timing and experimenting with cooking. After that you'll find yourself fixing a meal like this on week days even when you're zooming around, trying to get things done so you can get your day started. 

OATMEAL : You can use any kind of oatmeal (except for those wretched oatmeal in a pack things, with added fake flavors...total yuck!) but I like the whole rolled oats. A good rule of thumb is 1 cup liquid to 1/2 cup oats for rolled oats. It's 1 cup liquid to 1/4 cup steel cut oats. That's for one serving. Bring to a boil and reduce heat, simmer until creamy, takes about five minutes. Want to dress it up? Throw in a handful of cranberries or raisons, a handful of walnuts or pecans or a couple of teaspoons of whole ground flax seeds at the beginning, maybe a pinch of ginger or cinnamon and use 1/2 cup milk or soy milk and 1/2 cup filtered water. Serve with honey or 100% maple syrup and milk or soy milk (or any other milk substitute such as almond or rice milk). 

YOGURT : I love yogurt, eat it everyday. Sometimes I have it for breakfast, sometimes lunch or a snack. My favorite store bought brand is NANCY'S YOGURT (No, not my brand. Wish it were! I do like the name. Has a certain ring to it that appeals. Big smile here!). It's organic and has a delicious texture to it. All natural and organic, no additives of any kind. I would stay away from yogurts with added flavors and gelatin. Put your own toppings on it. Drizzle some honey or 100% maple syrup on it, add berries, sliced pears or apples, raisons, cranberries, bananas, pecans, walnuts, cashews, peanuts. You get the drift. I use whatever I Have available in the kitchen. It's never dull. Add a pinch of ginger, cinnamon, cloves, vanilla, cocoa nibs, a sprinkle of cocoa powder. Sprinkle on top ground flax seed meal or whey protein powder for an extra boost.

Want a smoothie? Get out your blender and toss in any of the above, adding juice (the real stuff, no fake sugary gunk) of any flavor. Experiment. There are more combinations than I can write here and it's all raw, full of probiotics and fiber and delicious!

Now, let's move on to lunch. Here we go...

Oh, I should stop here and tell you that I really do believe in the old adage ; Eat like a King at breakfast, a Prince at lunch and a Pauper at dinner. (Or make that Queen and Princess, as you will)

I love a quinoa salad with vegetables and fruit added to it. It only takes fifteen minutes to cook quinoa. Use 1 part quinoa to 2 parts liquid. You can do this the night before if you're taking your lunch to work with you. Mix it with any combination of vegetables (like cucumbers, diced onions, tomatoes, zucchini or yellow squash, peppers any colors you like, sweet or hot (your preference) and add in diced cheese such as feta, grated parmesan, raw cheddar, again whatever you love or have as leftovers in the fridge. Mix it all together with some kind of vinegar, olive oil, lime or lemon juice and herbs with a bit of salt and pepper. Or make a dressing with yogurt, lemon or lime juice, herbs and salt and pepper. This is another one of those easy does it ideas with endless variations on a theme. I like to mix fruit, vegetables and cheese to keep it interesting.

Want something light, satisfying and easy? How about slicing an apple in to eight, twelve or sixteen pieces and putting peanut butter on it. Add some slices of cheese (cheddar is the classic with this lunch), some Botija Olives, a glass of kombucha. Voila! Fast, raw, cheap, filling, satisfying. 

Or yogurt in any of it's many combinations. It's good for both breakfast or lunch. And there's a real craft to making it too. You can buy cultures from all over the world on the net. Once you get one going you can make it for yourself overnight. Not to shabby!

Dinner is all kinds of fun. I love to focus on color when I make dinner, which means a lot of different vegetables, fruits, pastas (whole grain organic only), whole brown rice, quinoa, tofu, tempeh, soups, stew, frittata. 

My all time favorite dinner, especially in the spring, summer and fall is salad. A good salad comes in endless combinations of greens, vegetables, fruits, cheeses, eggs, meat if you like meat, dressings. It all depends on the day and what's growing in season. 

Here's my Friday Night Movie Night Special. 

CHEATER'S PIZZA : Things you'll need...
Pizza pan or stone, an oven turned up to 425 degrees F, a chopping block for grating cheese and vegetables, imagination. If your oven cooks a bit cool, turn the temperature up to 450 degrees F. Shorten the cooking time.

Start with whole grain tortillas. You can buy them as whole wheat or whole grain . And there are always organic choices now even in ordinary grocery stores. I like the smaller tortillas for individual pizzas and the larger for extra hungry teenagers.

Put a white dressing or tomato sauce on the tortilla, keeping it thin. They get soggy if you put too much on. I love to use Annie's Organic Goddess Dressing. Sprinkle on top of that oregano, minced garlic or garlic powder, freshly ground pepper.

Next layer is going to be spinach leaves, always fresh. Add minced onions. On top of that a thin layer of mozzarella. 

Layer on top of that thinly sliced mushrooms, green and or red sweet peppers either sliced or chopped and another thin layer of mozzarella. (We shred the cheese but you can slice it really thin too).

Last layer is zucchini, yellow squash, red pepper, whatever colorful veggies (even thinly sliced radishes!), a last bit of mozzarella and Botija Olives, chopped on top. 

Variations on a theme : use different cheeses. Be careful if you use soft cheese. It melts and burns. Might add it the last few minutes.

Cook for 12 minutes and check. It will probably take more like 16 minutes. You'll want the cheese bubbling and edges beginning to brown. Cut it on a wood board in to fourths, serve with parmesan and romano cheeses, shredded. 

Adults can have a good red wine with this, a side salad if you're especially hungry. Kids can have sparkling mineral water mixed with organic apple cider or Lemon Ginger Echinacea by Knudson. Pop your favorite movie in to watch, sit back and enjoy!

There are endless variations on a theme with this kind of wicked bad, ever so good for you (and they won't even realize it!) dinner. Have homemade popcorn for desert. Homemade cocoa with the popcorn tops off the meal. 

You are going to have so much fun learning how to cook and eat like this! If you want to, put out the ingredients and let your friends and kids decide what they want to put on their pizza. It's fast, easy, cheap, fun and just "junky" enough to satisfy.

I am, ever yours, Nancy, smiling and anticipating Friday Night at the Movies!

SO MANY PLANTS TO GROW AND ALL THE TIME IN THE WORLD TO LEARN

How I love to garden. I've been a Master Gardener for more than twenty years and, before that, just your good old fashioned, everyday Mom in the yard gardener. The title Master Gardener came in to my life because I had an opportunity to take a series of classes from K State University . How could I pass that up?

Shall I tell you what I learned from the University programs? The actual geography and biology, entomology and environmental science classes were wonderful. They filled some of the gaps in my education (and I am a life long 'Learn-a-holic' . I never pass up a chance to deepen my knowledge base.) And they reinforced what I had discovered along the way about how we all are interconnected. But the classes on how to use chemistry to garden? To farm? No, nope, nada, never. I have never used chemicals on the land, or in my house for that matter. There's no need to.

I learned how to garden from my Grandfather. His family as well as my Grandmother's family had been farmers for generations. His philosophy was to use what was available. Do it yourself. The earth is healthy on it's own if you know how to compost and rotate the crops and animals correctly. His love of the Earth, the dirt we live in and on, was profound. It's had a lasting impact on my life. I work everyday to carry it forward for my children, their children and their children's children. 

But what does that have to do with letting sugar and processed foods go from your diet? Everything. It's a cycle that interconnects. If you have an opportunity to plant seeds and grow your own food, no matter how small the space, DO IT! In fact I like the smaller gardens, especially if you're in a part of your life where you're going to school, working, raising your family . If you don't have the space, MAKE ONE. 

I've planted something in every place that we've lived even when I was a student living in a one room walk up with a grocery budget of $17 dollars a week. Putting my hands in to soil, whether it's in a pot or the ground, raised beds or even planting directly in to a bale of moldy hay, is always a satisfying process for me.

FACT : 

According to a survey by Gardeners' World magazine, 80 percent of gardeners reported being "happy" and satisfied with their lives, compared to 67 percent of non-gardeners.7 Perhaps it's no coincidence that gardeners are happier…

Mycobacterium vaccae is a type of bacteria commonly found in soil, which people may ingest or inhale when they garden.8 Remarkably, this microbe has been found to "mirror the effect on neurons that drugs like Prozac provide."9 It helps to stimulate serotonin production, helping to make you feel happier and more relaxed. No wonder so many people describe their garden as their "happy place."

In one animal study, mice that ingested Mycobacterium vaccae had a demonstrated reduction in anxiety and improved learning. The researchers noted that natural exposure to microbes may be important for emotional health and behavior: 10

"Recent studies show that contact with tolerogenic microbes is important for the proper functioning of immunoregulatory circuits affecting behavior, emotionality and health… 

Collectively, our results suggest a beneficial effect of naturally delivered, live M. vaccae on anxiety-related behaviors… supporting a positive role for ambient microbes in the immunomodulation of animal behavior."

You're still wondering what this has to do with letting processed sugar and foods go. If you are filling some of your time outside with your hands in that lovely soil you've been building for years, you aren't inside obsessing about potato chips and soda pop. You're focused on learning how to companion plant, using herbs and flowers to protect your vegetables and fruit. You're exercising outside, bending and stretching, in the sunshine and fresh air, watching the tiny hummingbirds that have discovered your mint garden, showing them to your children or grandchildren. And you're discovering the immense satisfaction that comes from eating your first radish that you grew, sliced up in thin slivers and decorating the top of the salad that is made with heirloom lettuces and spinach. Is there any better way to change your eating habits than growing some of your own food?

Want to teach your children how to eat vegetables? Start a garden with them; teach them how to mulch, pull weeds and tell funny stories while you're doing it, water the plants and playing in the hose at the same time. Ask them to cut some of the lettuce they grew, pull some of the radishes they watched and nurtured, and harvest some of the sugar snap peas off of vines they started. The sugar snap peas we grew, while our sons were growing up, rarely made it in to the table to eat. They were too busy eating them right out of the garden. And I watched from the kitchen window while they did it too and never said a word about it. It was exactly what I wanted them to discover!

All of the images I'm using in today's post are from our raised bed garden. We live on a preserve so vegetable gardening is better in an inclosed area. The wildlife around here loved me for the first four years we were here. We had some of the fattest, happiest deer, raccoon, opossum, rabbits and, well, the entire ecology out here thought we were the best thing to come along since sliced bread. I used everything I had learned over the years but, for the most part, they outsmarted me. I loved that! The goal for me has always been happy coexistence rather than battle. I learned from the scary smart four legged creatures who were here before me. And the process is on going too. I laugh every day at the ways they continue to out think me. So far, the best way for us to get a reasonable crop has been in 4 foot by 8 foot raised beds with a five foot chicken wire fence around it. And this year we're adding in a low voltage electric line top and bottom , not enough to hurt but definitely enough to get their attention. And I have no doubt they will, eventually, learn how to outdo us on that one too. It's a challenge that I love and it always makes me laugh even if that rascally rabbit did eat some of my heirloom lettuce.

If you can not find a way to garden, there may be organic produce farms located fairly close in to you who would love to have you come out and volunteer in exchange for produce. Or, perhaps, there is a CSA program at a local grocery or Co Op you could join. In the big cities there are always weekend Farmer's Market's. Take your bags and boxes and shop there. You'll be directly supporting local organic farmers as well as meeting friends in an outdoor space full of beautiful produce stands. Better yet, go buy a flower pot and water proof tray or saucer, set it in your window and grow a tiny herb garden. I promise, it won't take long for you to be addicted.

If you're here, reading this, then you know how to use the search engines and browsers on Google, Youtube, Facebook and so on. There's a multitude of information available, right there on the little screen in front of you. It's the magic of twenty first century technology, the best part of it. Instead of reading the horrible news about who blew up what or terrified who, seek out some of those unlimited professional as well as amateur videos done by folks who are out there learning how to put their hands in to the earth and grow a garden.

Do yourself a favor and get dirty!

TIPS : 

Plant marigolds, mint and borage around the outside of your garden. The marigolds bloom all the way to frost and borage reseeds itself all season long, attracting hummingbirds, butterflies and bees. The mint will spread over the seasons and create a lovely hedge that you can use to make tea. Simply mow around the outside of your allowed mint area and pull out what you don't want from the inside, sharing the baby plants with friends. And there are so many kinds of mint you can use too. Smaller wildlife do not care for the smell of mint and the marigolds and borage will help to deter the insects you don't want in the garden. I also plant zinnias and black eyed susans. They bloom and reseed themselves for most of the season and you can pick them for bouquets.

To build your soil find a local horse ranch and offer to take some of their composted horse manure. Around here we call it the 'gifts of the gods'. It's black gold in it's finest form. Mix it in to your garden space in the Autumn and it's ready to go in the Spring.

Want to start a new garden space without tilling? Mow the grass down as close as you can and lay out flattened cardboard boxes on top. Put hay or straw on top of that. Next layer could be composted horse, chicken and cow manure, then soil, more compost, grass clippings, compost (WHAT? You're not composting the scraps from your kitchen? Not hard to do even in a tiny apartment. Get a plastic tub, any size, put your scraps in it and add some red earth worms you buy from the internet. They will compost it for you.), newspapers (all newspaper companies now use soy based inks, safe for gardens), more soil and so on. It's called lasagna gardening. Build it up the first year, let it sit over the winter (the freezing and thawing will help to break it up) and plant your first garden in it the next spring. Use leaves raked up to add an acidic base, balance that with your compost and soil. There are endless combinations and none of them are wrong.

The best part of a raised bed, even without the sides, is that it drains well. Your soil will be loose and loomy and should end up being chock full of lovely, friendly earth worms.

Your garden is a wonderful classroom for your children. They'll meet all kinds of bugs, birds, snails, turtles, and other citizens they never had any idea were inhabiting the world with them. You can make up funny stories with them, draw pictures and send them to grandparents and friends. And you will have the opportunity to instill in to them a life long love for the earth. Heavens knows we could all use more of that.

This is the face and figure of a life long gardener! John is my husband and best friend forever (before there was a label created for that). He was, initially, dragged in to gardening with me. He's beautiful, isn't he? When you put your hands in to the earth your day to day problems melt away. You're focused on your next harvest, pulling weeds, and just looking at the beautiful space you created. Want to learn the fine art of Zen? GARDEN!

Nothing brings you closer to the earth than paying attention to the soil, planting seeds and nurturing them, harvesting the fruits of your 'labor' and enjoying them directly from your garden. 

Get together with your neighborhood and school and create gardens. Did you know that crime rates dropped significantly in the inner city areas where neighborhood gardening was introduced? When you get the 'tough kids' involved, they will protect, nurture and harvest real food. It improves their connection to their neighborhood, builds confidence, improves overall health and helps them to discover their inner selves where, before, they were fighting and destroying each other.

So my suggestion for week eight is to find a place in your yard, your neighborhood, on a roof top garden or on a window sill and begin a journey in to the world of discovering where good food comes from. I promise you, there is nothing sweeter than fresh mint crisp lettuce (an heirloom variety) mixed with baby spinach and purple rosa lettuce tossed with good first pressed virgin organic olive oil, raw, unfiltered apple cider vinegar and pink himalayan sea salt and black pepper. Mind boggling delicious and so easy to grow. Look at that rich, black soil! 

I promise that you will become hooked on the pursuit of growing your own food, understanding soil, and seed catalogs. Let's not forget the seed catalogs! With the advent of the internet you can find excellent seed sources from anywhere in the world.

I hope you'll stop by as the season goes along. I'll post more images for you so you can see the variety we have here. 

So many plants to grow and all the time in the world to learn!

It just gets better and better, people. 

I am, ever yours, Nancy, smiling with greens between my teeth and dirt under my fingernails.

Go! What are you waiting for? The earth is calling. Now that the sugar is out of your system you can hear it...GO OUTSIDE!

FERMENTED FOODS 101 or How to Get a Happy Gut

Before we move on to week eight, let's talk about how to add some other healthy alternatives to your diet while you're in the process of eliminating highly processed sugars, grains and food. Before I go further, I am not an MD or certified nutritionist. I am a person who loves to eat good food.

Do you have a dog? A cat? How about a horse or donkey? Goat? One of the things you learn about when you live with other animals is the importance of the right diet for each of them as well as unlimited access to clean, clear water. And the end result, literally? You become a 'poopologist' , an expert in what healthy poop is like for each of the pets or animals you care for. 

Dogs and cats will poop at least three times a day. Horses create, on average, 75 pounds of manure every twenty four hours and heaven help them and you if they don't. A horse can sicken and die very quickly and painfully if they cease to move their bowels. 

We're the same. We need to poop at least once a day and preferably two or even three times a day to have be healthy. Keeping our gut happy and healthy with a diet high in fiber and at least eight cups of water or tea (or more in the heat depending on how much you exercise) is imperative . We have billions of bacteria living in our bowels alone. A healthy gut keeps us young, healthy and strong. You really do sleep better, have more energy during the day, think more clearly and have a stronger immune system when your inner flora is thriving. 

So, where do we go from here? Eat color. I love saying that. EAT COLOR. (Must be the artist in me.) You really do need vegetables and fruits in your diet every day. The more colorful your diet, the better. When you have a salad, mix your greens. Have spinach, a couple of kinds of lettuce including purple lettuce, and red vegetables and fruit, yellow and orange. 

In most grocery stores you can buy, year round, red and green peppers as well as yellow and orange peppers. You will almost certainly find zucchini and yellow squash, butternut squash, acorn squash and, well, the list is endless. If you can't find them fresh you need only look in the frozen foods section. Canned vegetables are OK but remember to read the labels. Stay away from cans that have preservatives, salt, sugar, food dyes or other additives. Again, I can't emphasis the importance of eating organic as often as possible. Canned vegetables and fruits will have less food value. Try to eat at least five servings of vegetables every day. And do your best to eat the same number of fruits too. DO NOT peal the fruit unless it's something like an orange. The peal is where a lot of the nutrients are located. 

If you want something, like bread or pasta, that contains grain stick with 100% whole grain. Better yet, if it's available, use 100% sprouted whole grain breads and pastas. It's higher in protein and more easily digested and accessible to your body as a food source. And if you're one of those folks who is sensitive to wheat, go with grain products made with whole grain brown rice, oatmeal or quinoa. 

Eat nuts (of course I'm assuming that you know what you might be allergic to) . I eat both peanuts (or peanut butter) as well as some other nut (pecans, almonds, walnuts, hazelnuts, cashews) every day. I cook them in to stir fry, sprinkle them in to my salads or on top of a soup or stew. Or I have a handful for an afternoon snack. 

Eggs are one of nature's miracle foods. I eat them, yolk and all, several times a week. They're an excellent source of proteins, vitamins and minerals and very easily digested. 

If you are a meat eater, buy locally grown and processed meat such as grass fed beef or chicken. If you like fish, it's considered to be an excellent source of protein too. I'm vegetarian so none of these things are in my diet.

One of my favorite everyday foods to eat are fermented drinks and vegetables, fruits or grains. The list is huge and comes from nearly every culture. I've got a few recipes here for you to try, easy to make, tasty and very good for you. 

KOMBUCHA : A fermented drink made with tea, usually black or green tea, and some kind of sugar source. It's very easy to start your own batch and keep it going for as long as you like. You can even share out your SCOBY (the bacterial colony that makes the kombucha) with friends. It's a rich source of B vitamins and probiotics (probiotics are bacteria that help to keep your gut healthy. Remember, YOU ARE WHAT YOU EAT.) When my Scoby gets large I sometimes give some of it to my dogs to eat. They love it and it does the same thing for them that it does for us, adding in happy bacteria colonies to their already impressive gut. (It would be so easy if we all could eat like a dog!)

Start with a large,clean glass bottle or container. If you can find one, 1/2 gallon is nice. You'll need a bottle of raw, organic, unfiltered kombucha, preferably not flavored. Kombucha has it's own rich, yeasty flavor rather like a mild beer. 

To put on top of the bottle as your kombucha brews you'll need plain unbleached paper coffee filters, just one will do, and a rubber band to hold it in place.

You'll also need a large stainless steal soup pot with a lid, and organic tea bags in either black or green tea. I make mine with English Breakfast Tea. Sometimes I use a combination of plain green tea and black tea for a lighter colored and flavored kombucha.

And this is where you can use sugar, preferably organic sugar such as turbinado sugar. Honey, molasses or maple syrup will do also.

Fill your bottle with filtered water about 4/5ths full and then dump that water in to the stainless steel pot. Bring the water to a boil, turn it off and add the sugar (about 1 to 1/2 cup per half gallon. The bacteria will need the sugar to cause the fermentation process) and stir to melt the sugar, add tea bags and put a lid on to keep it clean while the tea brews. Go do your chores for an hour or two while it cools. You'll want it to come down below 100 degrees F, which should be just warm to your finger. (Wash your hands before sticking your finger in or use a candy thermometer.) Add your bottle of organic, raw, unfiltered kombucha or your scoby. Pour all of this, minus the tea bags, in to the clean glass bottle. Put the paper filter on top, holding it in place with your rubber band. Put it up in a cabinet and leave it alone for a couple of weeks the first time. 

When you make your next batch you will have your own scoby. Pour the finished kombucha in to a bottle and keep it in the fridge. You can also keep it at room temperature . I like it cold. Leave behind a cup or so of the first batch of kombucha as well as the scoby and make your next batch the same way in the stainless steal pot, pouring it in to the glass bottle and putting another paper filter on top. 

I keep two bottles brewing in the cabinet, two bottles in the fridge. Both John and I drink it daily. The second batch taste test it at around 8 to 10 days. It gets closer to vinegar in taste the longer you brew it. Some folks like it like that. I like it at around 8 to 10 days. It's a bit less bitey. 

Your scoby is going to look like a floating island that is a soft grey beige color. If it turns black, throw it out and start again. The kombucha in the fridge is still good and has an active bacterial colony in it. The only reason it goes bad is if you've left the paper off and bacteria from your environment has added itself to it. I've never had any go bad myself. I've kept my batch going for three years now. You can share it with friends by pealing layers off and putting it in a clean bottle with a bit of kombucha. Share it with the recipe. Makes a nice gift.

YOGURT : I love NANCY'S ORGANIC YOGURT. (No, not my company. Wish it was!) but you can also make it. Start with either some of Nancy's plain organic yogurt or a yogurt culture you buy on line. Stay away from the commercial yogurts that have sugar and gelatin in them. Your yogurt is going to be tasty with fruit, in a smoothie, with a wee bit of honey or nuts, as a floating island on top of soup or stew (in the place of sour cream) or in a dressing for your salad, either greens or fruit.

You'll need a large stainless steel pot, whole milk (cow or goat), a glass container large enough to hold the milk/culture and a warm place to put it. Some old style stoves have a warm place on top where the flame is, that lights the gas. Or set your oven at it's lowest setting, preferably around 110 degrees F or a bit more with the door open. Or a heating pad, a cabinet on a warm day, a warm bath of water to set the yogurt container in (keep it inside the oven so it stays warm) or even a cooler with a container of warm water for the yogurt container to sit in. Or you can use a yogurt maker. There are several different kinds on the market. Go with the best you can afford.

Heat your milk up to about 100 degrees F. It will just begin to bubble, NOT BOIL. Cool it down to about 80 degrees F, about finger warmth, like a baby bottle. Add your yogurt, about a 1/4 cup, and stir. Put it in the clean bottle with a lid or a paper filter and rubber band on top, place it in your warm place. The next day you will have yogurt. Love the way that works!

KEFIR : Same as the yogurt but you can put it inside a cabinet. Keeping it warm isn't as crucial. It will be kefir the next day. Use kefir bacteria you buy or a bottle of plain, organic kefir as your colony.

OTHER FERMENTED FOODS : 
Cheese
Apple Cider Vinegar (You'll want the raw, unfiltered, organic vinegar)
Saurkraut
Pickles ( look for the word fermented on the label)
Miso
Tofu
Kimche
Wine (dark red is best)
Beer (We're lucky here. There's a brewery downtown that makes some of the best beers in the Midwest.)
Tempeh
Fermented Vegetables

Each of these fermented foods or drinks brings a different kind of bacteria colony, all of which are good for you. The more of these foods you can add to your daily or weekly diet the stronger your immune system will be. This Spring was my first cold in years and, between you and me, I think that was emotion related. I've been letting myself get more angry than needed about our challenging neighbors. When that happens my body slaps me, makes me slow down and think instead of react. It was gone 24 hours later. I usually get well very quickly.

You're going to find a whole new set of food sources that bring interest to your diet and happy bacteria to ride the wave with you. 

I am, ever yours, Nancy, living with more animals than I should probably have, weeds in the gardens, wild flowers in the fields and tornados on the horizon, laughing at the way things go.

DINOSAURS AT THE TABLE or How I Dumped White Flour

On with the show! Everyone has different ideas on how to let go of your sugar cravings. I need to let you know (and probably will repeat this every time I write  about diet and nutrition) that I am not an MD, or even a Nutritionist by trade or education, at least not a formal education. I'm someone's Mom, Grandma, Wife, Sister, Aunt, Friend, Artist, me. And I pay attention to my inner voice. It's directed me for all of these years and, so far so good. That being said...

We're getting ready to move in to your 7th week of leaving sugar and highly processed foods behind. At this point you've almost certainly snuck in to your best friend's kitchen (because I didn't say anything about your "best friend's kitchen" and, at this point, you're an 'attorney' of sorts who is finding every grey spot there is so you can justify eating glorious, rich, sweet, gooey, sexy SUGAR.) to eat some cake and ice cream, cookies or to have a cup of cocoa. Damn, damn, double damn! It tasted good didn't it? You're an addict and you just took a hit! 

So now what? There are things that mimic sugar. I prefer raw, unfiltered, organic honey myself but there is also stevia. It's so popular as a sugar substitute that you can find it in regular grocery stores and it even looks like white sugar. Sigh... DON'T USE THAT. It's highly processed. If you're going to use stevia go to the health food store nearest you or the section of your store that sells bulk spices and herbs and buy the real stevia. It's green, an herb. And it will probably come in the form of something that resembles ground oregano. And it really does taste sweet. Buy the organic stuff and learn how to use it. It's stronger than sugar so 1/2 tsp will be sweeter than a tsp of sugar. Cooking with it? That's another subject. 

How about 100 % organic Maple Syrup? Organic Molasses? Each of these sweeteners is natural and brings it's own set of flavors and nutritional essence to your table without being highly processed. 

Your 7th week is going to begin the process of letting go of highly processed grains ie. white flour. We'll also start learning how to let go of those oh so easy boxed and frozen meals. Yikes! Teeth chattering thrills and spills! 

Week 7. 1. Go to your pantry (you know what's coming here so put on your Big Girl Panties and get to it!), freezer, basement and garage storage and find your bags of white flour, bleached or unbleached, and THROW IT OUT. 

This step is in two parts. 2. While you're pulling out the flour, get rid of the white bread, tortilla's, pasta and(except the 100 % whole grain pasta), crackers (most of which have sugar in them unless you went head blind and forgot to notice that when you culled this stuff out before...sigh. Believe me, I know all about it. I make excuses too.) 

OK. You're kind of shaky at this point. And you probably need some new ideas on what to fix for dinner when you have crazy kids to feed and the day has been 107 hours long. (My sons grew up eating like this and they did rebel and eat junky crap for a while. But they also did it with money they earned and figured out pretty soon that not only was it expensive but brought on pimples, a tire around the middle and cavities. Not bad lessons to learn by themselves.)

How about fixing some 100% whole grain spaghetti and serving it with your own home made sauce? You can make a sauce by buying a large can of organic tomatoes, blending it in to a creamy texture, adding things like a pinch of oregano and rosemary, some freshly ground pink sea salt and black pepper, a tsp or two of organic first press olive oil and heating it up while the water comes to a boil and the pasta cooks. (My Italian friends are cringing at this point. I apologize. This is my version of 'fast food'.) Serve with grated parmesan cheese (the real deal, not Kraft) and a nice side salad with fresh greens, chopped sweet red pepper, chopped or sliced radishes and a handful of organic, dried cranberries. All kinds of colors and textures. Make your own dressing with olive oil, basalmic vinegar, pink sea salt and freshly ground pepper. Toss it and serve.

Want variations on a theme? How about adding fresh sugar snap peas and fresh pears cut in to thin slices, to the salad? Toss in a handful of nuts to either the salad or the sauce. Mushrooms cut up in chunks and cooked in to the sauce are tasty. Or add some chopped up tomatoes to the sauce for texture; celery, green pepper, sweet peas. Use your imagination! 

If everyone is still craving grains, buy some really good, crusty, 100% whole grain artisan bread and lightly butter the slices and toast them just before you serve dinner. 

If you eat meat, add grass fed, local hamburger, cooked well, to the sauce. (I'm vegetarian. And, yes, not even bacon!)

This meal will take you thirty minutes, tops, to fix. It takes less time if you don't eat meat. Get your children involved in the process too. They can clean and tear the lettuce, slice the radishes and red peppers, or even add in their own ideas. You'd be surprised how creative and willing to eat unusual combinations kids are if they are part of the process. Bonus: Your children grow up learning how to cook. Major life skill there!

Need more ideas? Invite a dinosaur to dinner. They always liven up the meal.

OK. Definitely getting silly here. But laughter always helps while you're letting go of easy, crappy, over processed food. 

How about making a Frittata? You'll need :

A large, preferably iron, frying pan. If you don't have an iron pan (really good for you to cook in, by the way. Wee, tiny bits of iron become part of your diet...microscopic of course. I use the pan my Grandmother cooked in. A good iron pan becomes a family heirloom!) than use a large stainless steal pan with a stainless steal handle. Stay away from wooden or plastic handles. This goes in to the oven as part of the recipe. You don't want to ruin your cook ware.

Olive oil (preferably first press, virgin, organic)

All kinds of veggies, chopped. I like to use combinations of onions, green and/or red sweet pepper, mushrooms of any variety, a sweet potato and/or baking potato chopped in small pieces, zucchini and yellow squash sliced or chopped thinly, fresh radishes from the garden, sliced thin or any other vegetable combination you come up with. Sometimes I throw in some sliced pear, cranberries or apple.

A cup or two of shredded cheese, any kind you prefer. Organic, made from raw milk is best if you can find it. But any kind of cheese will do. Variations on a theme are nice here because your frittata will be different every time. Same goes for the veggies too, by the way. Make those as simple or complex as you like. 

Six to eight eggs, beaten as if you were going to be making an omelet.

Pink sea salt and pepper, freshly ground. A tiny pinch of dried, ground hot peppers is nice. Or add a drop of rosemary essential oil. Or a crushed or chopped clove of garlic. You get the picture. Variations on a theme.

Heat your oven to 350 degrees F. 

On top of the oven put your chopped veggies etc in to your hot pan with the olive oil and cook just until the veggies are in that between place ie. not crunchy, not soft. Pour your eggs flavored with whatever you're using that night over the veggies and evenly sprinkle the cheese(s) on top.

Put your whole pan in to the oven for fifteen minutes. 

Serve with a fresh fruit salad on the side and maybe some nice, dense, 100% whole grain bread with real butter. We usually eat this meal without the bread. It's very filling. But if you have children who are growing and hungry, add the bread. Better yet, make your own! But that's another article.

This meal, again, takes 20 or 30 minutes to prepare. Nice way to relax at the end of the day, cooking. One of my places to meditate. And, yes, both of my sons learned how to cook like this. Make teaching your children how to cook with real food a game. I promise, they'll love it especially if you crank up some good tunes and dance in the kitchen!

Week 8 on the next post. I'll write down some of my all time easy, peasy recipes for you too. You are going to have so much fun!

In the meantime, start keeping a journal. Write about your frustration, your excitement, recipes, funny stories, all of it. You are making some major changes in your life. It's worth noting! Who knows. Maybe you'll end up writing a book!

I am, ever yours, Nancy, head back and laughing at the way things go!

And here's Apple meeting her first tree frog, in case you need to laugh again.