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Jo-Lynne
Philadelphia, PA
Recent Activity
Thanks, I actually did go out and purchase gluten free soy sauce. Thanks for the heads-up! I'm still learning what I need to avoid.
Stir Fry for an Easy Nutritious Meal
One of our family's favorite dishes is stir fry. It is one of the only meals that all 5 of us scarf down with nary a complaint. It's a great way to get veggies into picky eaters, and it's so versatile. You can clean out that veggie drawer without wasting a morsel, and with the cost of food these...
Isn't it AMAZING what a difference food can make?
Whole Foods for Healthier Meals
Photo by Masahiro Ihara About a year or so ago, I picked up a copy of Michael Pollan's In Defense Of Food. Little did I know, it was going to change my life forever. It just made sense that eating a traditional diet is healthier than the industrialized foods we've become so accustomed to, so ...
Kristen, my health has changed so drastically it's hard to condense into a comment. :-) I was riddled with digestive issues, I was on Nexium and told I'd be on it forever, I had awful stomach aches (gastritis), heartburn and indigestion, and IBS. We couldn't pin point any one food as the culprit. When I changed my diet, I started to feel better, and I decided to try to go off Nexium. I didn't want to be dependent on medicine for the rest of my life. Now I am off the Nexium and the heartburn and gastritis is all but gone. My whole getting-off-Nexium story is on my personal blog.
Jo-Lynne
Whole Foods for Healthier Meals
Photo by Masahiro Ihara About a year or so ago, I picked up a copy of Michael Pollan's In Defense Of Food. Little did I know, it was going to change my life forever. It just made sense that eating a traditional diet is healthier than the industrialized foods we've become so accustomed to, so ...
Hey thanks!! :-)
Whole Foods for Healthier Meals
Photo by Masahiro Ihara About a year or so ago, I picked up a copy of Michael Pollan's In Defense Of Food. Little did I know, it was going to change my life forever. It just made sense that eating a traditional diet is healthier than the industrialized foods we've become so accustomed to, so ...
Hillary, that's awesome. Baby steps are good. I think you're more likely to stick to it when you make gradual changes. Keep it up! :-)
Whole Foods for Healthier Meals
Photo by Masahiro Ihara About a year or so ago, I picked up a copy of Michael Pollan's In Defense Of Food. Little did I know, it was going to change my life forever. It just made sense that eating a traditional diet is healthier than the industrialized foods we've become so accustomed to, so ...
That absolutely gives me cold chills. :-)
Whole Foods for Healthier Meals
Photo by Masahiro Ihara About a year or so ago, I picked up a copy of Michael Pollan's In Defense Of Food. Little did I know, it was going to change my life forever. It just made sense that eating a traditional diet is healthier than the industrialized foods we've become so accustomed to, so ...
I think you hit the nail on the head with "small government and decreased taxation." Our government was not formed with the mission of providing comprehensive public services for everyone. As the government has grown and taken over more and more, I am less and less impressed with its ability to run things efficiently and effectively.
Social Security is almost bankrupt. Medicaid IS a govt run healthcare program, but I have been advised by medical professionals to go to great lengths to avoid it. And think about the DMV. There's a prime example of a government run program where there is no competition and no choice to go elsewhere for the same service. The DMV is about the most depressing place I can think of. Even the public schools continue to decline (although my children attend them, I am glad we have other choices if it comes to that.)
I say no thank you to government run healthcare.
Yes, we need change, but I would prefer to see other options, particularly those that empower the private sector to help those in need. I'd even be open to the idea of a healthcare program run at a state level, but not an overarching U.S. government run system, especially not one that dictates if I can be treated or not based on their perception of my value to this world. That frightens me to no end.
As an aside, I also think tort reform should be addressed before we turn to a government run system.
Thanks, Sarah, for representing the conservative side of this issue. I think all too often we are afraid to speak out.
Healthcare Bill Needs Discussed, Debated, Deliberated
I am not a lawyer or career politician so I will share what I know about the healthcare debate in stories of people I have known. When I was in graduate school, part of my job in the office included overseeing the affairs of two Russian scholars. They had barely arrived in our country in the F...
I think Erin summed up my opinion nicely so I won't repeat her. :-)
How should parents respond if their child disrupts an "adult" event?
"If you can't say anything nice, don't say anything at all!" ~ Every mother on the planet Rare have I written anything offensive and I hope never divisive, but sometimes I feel like I've failed in blogging because I've never received a negative comment. Spam, yes; negative (strongly dissentin...
Lindsay, YES! For the first time EVER this year I have teachers who actually use email. What a novelty. @@
Can we just stick to reading, writing, and arithmetic?
Last week I got a letter from my son's public school informing us of a video that was to be shown the third-grade students. I wish I still had the paper so I could be sure I am relaying this correctly, but this is what I recall. It would be a presentation on the topic of AIDS using puppetry....
I'm joining you! I am struggling with my weight and it's making me MISERABLE. I feel the SAME about Sundays. Or any day I have to take off my comfy spandex and wear clothes that button.
I've done Jenny Craig this spring, didn't quite get to my goal, and have gained it all back already. I'm only talking about 5-7 pounds, but it's enough to make me miserable. I'm 2 days into the Shred, and I'm hoping it will jump start whatever it is I need to lose the weight and keep it off, whether it's a slowing metabolism or just lack of will power to stop eating or whatever it is. I'm SO over it! Because really, it's lose the weight and KEEP it down, or give in and buy a size up. UGH.
Shred It or Dread It
Anyone up for a confessional? I am overweight. That's just the truth of where I am right now. Not only did I never lose the weight gain from AJ's pregnancy, I've slowly been gaining more weight in the past year. In April, I started Jillian's 30 Day Shred and made it about ten days before...
It is so incredibly stressful!! Praying for a buyer THIS WEEK!! :-)
Sparing our kids from our stress
We're really trying not to be obsessed with selling our house. You know, despite that most of our conversations, most of our energy and all of our anxiety is focused on selling our house. We kept having the same conversations over and over and over. One of us gets down (usually me), convince...
Okay, Firefox RAWKS, and I'm so glad to have a new convert!!!! I just wiped a tear from my eye.
You TOTALLY lost me on #2 and #3, but one out of two ain't bad.
Thanks for playing along!!!
What I Learned This Week
Every week, the lovely and ever-so-helpful Jo-Lynne of Musings of a Housewife hosts What I Learned This Week. This week, I thought I would take a minute to play along. 1) It was actually Jo-Lynne's persistent insistence that everyone switch to Firefox that caused me to finally give it a tr...
Great commentary!! I am pretty sure no one would mistake me for a "natural parent" lol. But at the same time, I am in tune to my kids and we do what makes sense for us. Labels have a way of creating divisiveness when it shouldn't exist, and yet at the same time, they seem to be a necessary evil. We like our labels. :-)
Am I "Natural" Enough For You?
When I am amongst other moms who purport to follow a "natural parenting" or "attachment parenting" philosophy, I sometimes wonder, "Am I a natural parent?" Do my parenting decisions qualify me to be a member of the "natural parenting" club? And if they don't, then am I somehow an "unnatural p...
Beautifully written. Thank you for bringing sponsorship alive!
Pride and prejudice
Standing inside their doorway, him dressed in stoicism and a stained white tee, her draped in demureness and a cheerful pink sari, they invited us into their home. It was the first time I've ever been invited straight to someone's bedroom the moment I entered their house. Then again, their ...
So lovely. You're awesome!
Universal language
A smile is the universal welcome. ~Max Eastman The shortest distance between two people is a smile. If you smile at someone, they might smile back. Smiling is my favorite exercise. People seldom notice old clothes if you wear a big smile. ~Lee Mildon The robbed tha...
You're right on target with this point: "The reality is that moms are already using Twitter and because they are an important demographic for Oprah, I am sure that was something she took notice of." Hello. We're already there. The celebs are the ones who are late to the party.
I like the idea of "soccer mom" being replaced with "digital mom" -- much more fitting!
Yes TechCrunch, Oprah And "Social Media Savvy Moms" Will Take Over Twitter
While reading my RSS Feeds today, I saw a blog post title coming from my TechCrunch feed - "Oprah’s First Tweet Will Be Tomorrow On Her Show. Soccer Moms To Take Over The Service?". I am not surprised Oprah joined Twitter, Facebook or that she will do her first tweet from The Oprah Winfrey Sh...
Beautiful post. You encompass all the thoughts and emotions I would be having were I going on such a trip. Is it wrong that I am all too happy to sit here in the comfort of my own home and read about your adventure?
Brown eyes blue
The first time I saw her, the solemn look in her eyes flooded my head and heart with questions-- Was she really as sad as she looked? Was she just camera shy? Is she happy? Does she know she is chosen? Pinki Roy has been waiting for over six months for a Compassion International sponsor; is i...
You know what. I can relate to every word of this. And while I've opted for the "simple" life -- all the conveniences the modern world has to offer -- I still feel that weariness, the effort to put one foot in front of the other, to pick up one more sock, one more toy, do the dishes one more time, one more load of laundry, and it helps to know that I am not alone.
And your photos are too gorgeous for words.
living a complex life
This weekend has been a strange one for me. I'm not sure what it is exactly. I feel like I've experienced all the ups and downs of life in a "fixer upper farmhouse in the country". I feel them all weighing on me in a spectrum of emotions. I find myself in one moment, swooning over the setting...
It looks AWESOME!!!! I love it.
Mama Got a Makeover
Goodbye, green! Hello, CLEAN! (Feed readers and email subscribers, you're going to want to go ahead and click through to see this!) I am so thrilled to introduce to you the new look of SortaCrunchy. What do you think? hoot hoot! What you must understand is that Karen of Simply Amusing Designs...
Colleen, I'm so sorry! Poor Kenzie. I am not in the "never hit back" camp. I personally think the reason bullying is so prevalent is because we have stopped teaching our kids to stand up for themselves and fight back. Of course I do teach my kids to handle their differences with words, as a first defense. But if I had a child with an ongoing bully problem, I do believe I'd teach them to strike back -- either physically or with strong words.
HOWEVER. Not at THREE. My goodness! At this age, a parent must get involved if the teacher isn't handling it. Hopefully her teachers ARE handling it appropriately an now that they have that child's number, it will stop. But if it doesn't, I would have no problem going to the director of the preschool and demanding action. And I'm not a parent to get involved unless I feel I have no other choice, but this sort of thing should NOT happen again.
Ugh. What an awful situation. I really hope it doesn't make Kenzie dislike school. ((Hug))
A Bully on the Philly Pre-school Playground
My little girl is 3. I know someday she’ll face the minor traumas that befall us all in junior high. And I expect a healthy dose of dramatic hormones and attitude when she hits her teen years. And maybe make that more than a healthy dose - payback can be brutal and I remember what I was like a...
Send me your code and I'll put a button up for ya! Love ya, girl.
Parties, prizes, a plea & some pipps
This is one of those times I wish I had my finger on the pulse of every Pensieve reader, to tiptoe into your respective minds to know what I could say in an opening sentence to compel you to read the rest of this post. Please stay...you're not just welcome, you're wanted! Some of you are regul...
Lora - I am too, I suppose. I use them in real life and never on my blog.
Something about seeing them in print is worse than hearing them.
On Cursing
I just finished reading the recent post on using curse words around kids and online (okay, so the topic wasn't about using the words online but plenty of curse words WERE used online) and I decided to weigh in. Allow me to set the stage by saying that I curse. I occasionally curse in front o...
Oh myyyyyyy! LOL!!! I'm glad YOU learned that lesson first-hand and not me! ;-)
What I learned this week
One of my children struggles with spelling. I've been researching ways to help her, and one of the tips was to have her practice spelling the word by writing it in cornmeal. We didn't have any cornmeal, but I did have some play sand. I put 2 or 3 cups of sand on an old sheet pan and set to work....
We've totally morphed into the habit of co-sleeping. If you ask my husband, you won't get the same story, but I love it. I try to keep the one who kicks the most on my side so she doesn't drive him nuts, lol.
As He Leads Us: Thoughts on Co-Sleeping
Good Monday morning, all! Today Laura is back (yay!) with a post on a topic we alluded to in our post on practical ways to manage the drain nighttime parenting can take on our physical and mental health. Don't forget each Monday I'm breaking my closed comments fast so that we can continue ou...
UGH. Reading this just makes me want to disinfect the house. I don't know how we've stayed so well so far but I can't help but feel like we are due for a doozie. UGH!
The Philadelphia Plague
There is something really nasty going around Philly. Everyone has colds, thanks to this wacky weather. Every family I’ve spoken to lately has had at least one bout of the dreaded stomach bug. The lucky ones got it only once. The unlucky ones (like us) have been blessed FOUR TIMES in a single ...
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