Resolve to love yourself...

So many folks resolve to eat healthier, that's the stereotypical New Year's resolution, right? Well, maybe the more common one is deciding to eat leaner foods...

In a way, my body forces me to eat healthy; it literally rejects the really bad stuff. I don't eat anything with preservatives or heavy oils. I just can't digest it. I've said this before, but in college, my diet consisted of a bag of Pepperidge Farm cookies (in one sitting!), tons of soda, a burger, fries, processed dorm food...and I was always sick and broke-out too much! And to think, I weighed 110 when I was eating like this, but I also had high cholesterol and a gallbladder that didn't work. I was NOT healthy, even though I was thin.

These days, I go on the occasional chocolate binge, only to suffer the consequences shortly after. My gut is wimpy, and became even more difficult after the cholecystectomy (gallbladder removal). All of that acidic bile, previously held by my gallbladder, now goes straight to my intestines from my liver. Oh yes, I also found out that 60% or so of my digestive issues were related to food allergies and sensitivities! And have you all ever noticed how expensive pre-packaged and gluten-free/allergy-friendly products are? It's ridiculous.

Problem: Allergy-friendly food is expensive and I can't eat hard-to-digest foods. Solution: Cook and bake almost everything from scratch. This is very time consuming; lucky for me, I love to cook and bake. I usually cook copious amounts of food on Sundays, so that Jose and I can eat mostly leftovers during the week. (Or I cook the main entrees on the weekend and the sides on weeknights.)

Awhile ago, Jose read The Omnivore's Dilemma, and he shared a few eye-opening facts with me...after reading those enlightening facts, we were very convicted. So now we try to shop for more 'humane' meats and as much organic produce as possible. (There is actually a chart, click here for it, you can check out that measures produce pesticide levels, we use this to decide what NEEDS to be organic.)

I bet you're you're wondering how we do it on a tight budget, with Jose in law school and all. Well, like I said, I make as much as I can from scratch. We buy the raw ingredients; the veggies, meats, fruits, and flours. I do the rest! Also, we are very stingy when it comes to everything BUT food. We don't have fancy clothing, I'm always looking for stuff that's on sale. We sold our car before moving to Cambridge, so that we could afford to live this way; we also live in a humble one bedroom apartment. We walk as much as we can, instead of renting a Zipcar or taking the subway (which contributes to an even healthier lifestyle). We also don't have to spend as much on medical expenses!

I'm not bragging; this isn't easy, really. We have our personal incentives and beliefs. I admit, we cheat, but we also try very hard to live a spiritually and physically healthy life; the two go hand-in-hand, in my humble opinion.

New Look

So I changed the look of the blog again...thanks to Poppytalk :).

They featured House of 3 on their site and I really liked some of their fun headers. They're affordable and colorful. Plus, they have other cute stuff on their site...check out their Valentine's Day coupons.

Ah, memories.

I have no idea why, but I was very obsessed with Peewee's Big Adventure (and this show) when I was little, so much that I even named my first dog Pee Wee. (For laughs, I showed my mom, she said I practically had the whole script memorized.) I watched it over and over and over. This scene was my favorite; I had a love-hate relationship with it, actually. I'd pretend to cover my eyes, then I'd sneak a peak when I was ready to behold the eye-popping ghost of LARGE MARGE! I'm totally Netflixing this tonight :P!



Funny thing is, my mother also had a strange liking for peculiar and semi-traumatizing movies when she was a kiddo. She made me watch this with her when I was about 11, it was an interesting experience :P...

Rich in faith

As he looked up, Jesus saw the rich putting their gifts into the temple treasury. He also saw a poor widow put in two very small copper coins. "I tell you the truth," he said, "this poor widow has put in more than all the others. All these people gave their gifts out of their wealth; but she out of her poverty put in all she had to live on."
Luke 21: 1-4

Funny how I tend to glance over what I initially perceive to be the more 'simple' verses in the Bible. Over time, I've learned that there are no simple verses, just simple ways of thinking; I am guilty of the latter. But, when I'm available, God opens my eyes and shows me things I never would've seen without his wisdom, and that's what happened with these first few verses in the 21st chapter of Luke.

So many of us can relate to that "poor woman," as Jesus put it. Whether we're struggling financially or emotionally, we know what loss feels like, and possibly even the self-pity that comes along with that loss. It can be quite engrossing; we get wrapped up in our struggles so much that we forget to give back...

Wait a minute! Give back? What's left to give when you're living a life like Job and you've lost it all? You say you've done everything right and you can't figure out why YOU should be the one giving back; shouldn't the ball be on God's side of the court? Not in this case, God's for us--he's not the opponent we're up against.

That 'poor woman' lost her husband and could only offer God a fraction of a penny, but it was more than enough for him. She gave. This isn't Jesus lecturing his disciples about the importance of tithing; it's not about giving money to the church--it's about faith, giving God the benefit of the doubt when you'd rather not. This woman did not let her heart become consumed with bitterness; she did not give 'reluctantly or under compulsion' (2 Cor. 9:7) but 'freely and wholeheartedly' (1 Chron. 29:9). To think, though she was poor, she was free; she was not a slave to her sadness. Her heart was whole because it belonged to God and he acknowledged her for that, we see it happen literally right there in Luke.

To some, it may seem like you're not giving much to God; your walk with him is a humble one. Others might even think you're a fool for believing in God because you're financially poor or struggling somehow--but God sees your heart, as he saw this woman's. So where is your hope? You can be certain that A righteous man may have many troubles, but the Lord delivers him from them all (Psalm 34:19).

Isaiah says it like this, Surely it was for my benefit that I suffered such anguish. In your love you kept me from the pit of destruction...(Isaiah 38:17) What if it feels like you're in the pit of destruction right now? (Though you probably aren't, as it seems God did spare Isaiah from the worst.) Maybe it's time to focus on the first part of the aforementioned verse; instead of looking for the obvious benefits, look at the ones you can gather from the hardships. It's easy to have faith when all is going well. This woman's faith was tried and true, probably even stronger than that of the wealthy men who gave more money. She'd lost her husband, she was struggling financially, and she probably was going to have it pretty rough for awhile. (Let's not forget that men were the breadwinners back then, and she'd lost hers!)

The ability to have faith when all else fails is one of the greatest benefits/blessings you will ever receive in this life--it means your faith is real. We can take comfort in these golden verses:

Rather, as servants of God we commend ourselves in every way; in great endurance; in troubles, hardships and distress...sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; poor, yet making many rich; having nothing, and yet possessing everything.
2 Corinthians 6:4 & 10

Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the Kingdom of God. Luke 6:20