4th of July

Happy Birthday America!

We had a really good Independence Day yesterday. In past years, we never really got together with family and friends consistently on the Fourth, and we would go to the big firework shows at nighttime. This year I decided I really wanted to stay home and just have a family celebration.

My parents and inlaws wanted to get togther, and since I'm located in the middle of all of us, I suggested we meet up at my house. So, we did. We have a swimming pool and new patio furniture, so it was the best place really. All the kiddos went swimming and played while the adults sat on the back covered porch sipping drinks, while my husband cooked lunch on the grill. Other than the flies, it was perfect.

It was a flurry of activity during the morning! Lots of cleaning, cooking and of course with me, decorating. I took zero pictures on purpose- I just wanted to enjoy our time and not be fiddling with my phone or camera. I did some quick improvising of Americana decor around the house with my Dollar Tree purchases and stuff I had stashed away!

We had grilled bratwurst and hot dogs, grilled fresh corn on the cob, potato salad, baked beans, deviled eggs, lots of fresh veggie salads, chips and dip, homemade sauerkraut, homemade ice cream and an awesome lemon berry trifle and assorted drinks. Oh, and a watermelon...yes quintessential American summer bbq fare. I did not make all of it myself because everyone who came contributed.

I worked really hard the day and morning before the party so that I could spend the rest of the day chilling. Late in the afternoon, after everyone left except my best friend, it was a lazy group of people all  full of food and tired until dusk. Then my husband ran to the firework stand because most of the time you can get good deals when you wait. When he came home he made a fire in the campfire pit so we could make s'mores. As we started lighting up firecrackers, we could hear everyone else doing the same, all around us. We were all united, celebrating our country's birthday and our freedom loudly!! We could even see some of them high in the sky.

By the time we got to the end of our own personal show, everyone except the firework man was in the pool watching my husband light the fireworks. My 8 year old daughter said, "This is the best fourth of July ever!" Ha ha, that's great because that was my goal. It was just us, in our not awesome to look at but we like it pool, lighting cheapo fireworks, but the feeling I had wanted to capture was there. My friend said, "I'm lounging in a swimming pool that's the perfect temperature, a toasted marshmallow is melting in my mouth, I'm with my favorite people who are all happy,  I'm watching pretty fireworks and I just saw a shooting star. This is the best fourth of July I've had in probably 20 years!" Success! God blessed us greatly!

I did remind the girls what we were celebrating, because they needed a refresher, and that got them really excited. I told my husband he should of dressed up like Samuel Adams and read the Declaration of Independence, but he didn't think that was a good idea. (He is Mr. Drama and is so good at acting, so he would have been good, but it was hot and sounded stupid)

So, now we're in July! Wow, summer is flying by...I gotta finalize school stuff soon, but I really just wanna relax and be in summer mode. Today, well, I did a whole lot of nothing! I was wore out from all the party stuff, so this morning I watched a movie, did light housework, then floated in the pool for awhile, then made dinner and ate, then had a date with my husband and that's it. It was nice.

Grain Free Meal success

In my grain free cooking adventures this week, I finally cooked something really good. A week ago I wasn't grain free nor planning to be. I have turned my nose up at all the paleo-grain free people out there, especially when it seemed every real food blog or website I came across was geared towards eating without grains. I have done low carb diets in the past with no results, and then when I started eating them again, I gained weight.

So to be honest, I am fat. But I'm probably the healthiest fat person out there, as in, I've worked SO hard for the past 8 years to get rid of the weight. I've tried everything except hire a personal trainer or run a marathon. I have spent a lot of money on things that just didn't deliver as well. So, I didn't want to jump on this paleo fad thing for those reasons.

But, I do think I have an overgrowth of candida, and they need sugar to live. So, in order to cut off the food supply I have to not eat anything that turns to sugar in the body. But, since I am also taking something called diatomaceous earth which kills candida and other parasites, I don't think an extreme diet will be necessary for many months. My plan is try to stay grain free until August, then work into eating gluten free grains, then on to regular. My hope is that some weight will be lost, but that's not my goal, and that helps take the pressure off. I'm really at peace with it, and it hasn't been stressful for me.

Now just because I'm not eating grains doesn't mean I'm only eating meat. I'm still eating plenty of veggies, berries, some sweet potatoes and squash and if I'm in a situation where nothing else is available, I'll eat a little starch. Yesterday we took our girls to a waterpark and I ate as grain free as possible, but I did eat some bread and chips to give me a little energy boost midday. Oh well, I did actually lose 5lbs in one day though!

So today I made something good I saw somewhere online. It was cheeseburger spaghetti squash. Then I made a hamburger type salad with a condiment dressing and it was so good! I was really hungry too though...but my husband loved it, so that makes two of us.

 

Cheeseburger Spaghetti Squash

Ingredients:

Approximately 1.5lbs ground beef

1/2 cup chopped onion

1/4 cup chopped green pepper

1t garlic powder

1 T McCormac hamburger seasoning

salt and pepper

cheddar cheese-1 cup

 1 small-medium sized spaghetti squash

 1-2 T ketchup

First, preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Cut your squash in half and remove the seeds and junk. Place cut sides down into a pan with sides. (I used a casserole dish that was oval shaped) Pour in about 1/2inch of water and bake for 30-35 minutes. 

Next, brown your beef, add the seasonings and veggies and cook through. When squash is done, take it out of the oven and let it cool until you can touch it. Using a fork, scrape all the squash threads into a bowl. Next add your meat, the ketchup and the cheese. Refill the squash with the mixture and top with some additional shredded cheese. Put back in the oven for another 15-20 minutes. 

For the salad, I chopped some green leaf lettuce, sliced some fresh garden tomatoes, some white onion and chopped up some hamburger dill pickle chips. For the dressing, I just guessed here, but this is what I think it was:

Condiment Dressing

2 T mayonnaise

1 t yellow mustard

1 T ketchup

1 T honey

2 T apple cider vinegar

salt and pepper

garlic powder

2 T olive oil

I put it all in a small mason jar and shook it up to combine. It was mildly sweet and tangy-perfect for me. It was good enough for company!!

Today I also tried coconut flour pancakes, which were ok, but not awesome. I also made some brownies with sweet potato and coconut flour- those were a yes!! I may post those later as I get them perfected :)