I'm still feeling improved - a bit more tired today, but still pretty good.
Yesterday (Friday):
In the morning I went to get my fasting blood test with Graham. We got up at 6:00 as Tim needed to get into work extra early in order to get off at 1:00! It felt good to be up so early, esp. as we’d gotten to sleep at a decent time (about 10:30)! YEA!
As it was a dry, fairly sunny morning, Graham took the kids to the Hazelbank Park beach while I had my blood drawn. I’m being tested for celiac disease, liver & kidney function, full blood profile (which I assume includes iron), cholesterol (at my request, that’s why they made it fasting) and hopefully blood sugar (he mentioned that, I hope that they did it as they had to ask him again what he wanted done as everything was not listed on the pink card!).
The day was bright, off & on cloudy, with the evening being the best – like the typical summery evenings of the past, which we get so little of nowadays!! It felt so good to feel the sun!
Praise God, I felt good & energetic all day! :) I got all the bushes pruned along the border with our neighbor's weed-rampant property, including their hawthorne which was growing way over the wall and starting to block our drive. :0 It felt GOOD to work outside and get things nicely pruned & neat! :)
Peter did his first lesson in his grade 4 Math book! He really seemed to enjoy it – well, it WAS easy addition review!
When Tim arrived home we went to Mount Stewart Garden. It wasn't as stunning as it usually is this time of year; many of the flowers seem delayed, probably with all the cool and wet weather. Because of this, it didn't take long to wander through the gardens, and it was cloudy, so we then had a lovely relaxing time in the Bay Restaurant – Tim and the kids got snacks, but there was nothing suitable for me to eat, but I didn’t mind. I was just enjoying being with my dear family! :)
Elizabeth had a chocolate-covered square but managed to not get any on her clothes. She is getting much better that way! She licked her fingers carefully afterwards and I rinsed her cute chubby hands in the bathroom. :)
Then we had a fun wander around some cute shops in nearby Newtownards. The ones on the main street went so far back – long & narrow! I’ve never seen shops like that – seemed to go on and on and on… funny! We had a good time.
In one lovely home shop Tim got fun cookie-cutters for the kids: Elizabeth chose a butterfly, Isaiah a T-Rex, and Peter a cat! :) I spotted some very real-looking artificial roses near the door. They were gorgeous & a decent price but the shop was about to close. If I decide they’d be good with the upstairs hall I want to try to go back & get them soon as it's hard to find artificial flowers that really LOOK real!
I’m also interested in Le Creuset cookware. The Weston A. Price Foundation recommends it to cook with as the enamel coating is very stable so nothing leaches into the food, unlike stainless steel or aluminum or teflon. It's a bit expensive but durable - maybe I can gradually collect pieces over time! :)
Then we got hamburgers for dinner (me the Bacon & Cheddar Double Angus – yum!) and got petrol & milks at Knocknagoney Tesco.
Lastly, a brief visit to the Crawfordsburn Park beach to see what it was like. It had grittier sand and much more seaweed-strewn than the North Coast beaches, but nice enough with a peaty stream that the kids enjoyed throwing rocks into. Elizabeth & I found lots of pink ones! :) She kept saying, “This one wants to go into the water!” and throwing her pink ones in. I kept a few white-marbled pink ones. It was so nice being with Tim by the water hearing the waves roll soothingly in and the sea gulls calling while the kids played. :)
Then we went home by about 8:00 and watched our recorded copy of today’s stunning Chinese Olympic Opening Ceremony. I think it's the best opening ceremony I've seen! Lots of beautiful artwork, traditional displays, rather than weird modern stuff like some other ones had.
Today So Far:
This morning was rainy but since then it's been alternating sun-and-clouds. I was up at 6:30, Tim at 7:00. We watched more of the opening ceremony while eating breakfast in the kitchen – on the parade of nations. It's interesting they’re in order of Chinese strokes. Cool idea. Mixes it up a bit. It’s fun to watch all the different nations with their costumes, flags & info from the commentators!
Oil has dropped in price a lot since a month ago! Good thing, as we need more oil soon! We're just planning to get 300 litres as that should last a few months and by then hopefully we'll have our heating system replaced! In God's mercy! Please pray it goes well! We're trying to get recommendations now for good installers and get some advice from them soon as to how to proceed. I hope it will just mean moving furniture to the side with dust covers, rather than moving all the furniture out!!
We've been doing financial planning this afternoon. It's good to be organized. :) Now to unload the dishwasher!
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
14 comments:
Hey Mary,
I pray the tests will reveal something!
Hasn't the weather been awful this summer? The sun was wonderful yesterday!
Does stainless steel cookware leach much into food? Most of mine is either stainless or cast iron. I do like cooking in cast iron as it's so easy to clean once it's properly seasoned. But I'm having a hard time seasoning my waffle irons! I'd love some le Creuset, but it sure is pricey. I think Tesco has some enameled cast iron that actually got good reviews.
We liked what we saw of the Olympic opening ceremonies, too!
Wow, replacing the entire heating system sounds like a big job!
Hope you have a great day and are able to get out to church tomorrow!
Hi Mary, hope the tests will be come up with a result for helping you with your health. I only saw bits and pieces from the opening ceremonies. As usual here it is very hot , so until five'ish in the afternoon we will be indoors trying to keep cool. then off to the beach for a good swim. Take care and wish you a lovely Sunday. I never read Jane Austin , is there a particular good book that you would recommend ??
Hi Mary. Hope you get your test results soon. I'm still waiting for my appointment for the camera test for coeliac, so we'll see what that reveals. Let me know how your results turn out.
Hey, Danielle! Great to hear from you!
I know! I would like to know what's going on, and hopefully it's nothing serious.
I know, since the end of June it's not really been summer weather at all. I have spent very little time out in my garden. This is the hardest thing for me, not being able to enjoy all my flowers. We are trying to take more walks lately, even if it's raining a bit, as long as it's not raining heavily!
Yep. Stainless steel leaches, sadly. Some types more than others. Even Saladmaster, which has the best type, leaches if you use salt or citric acid in the cooking, both of which are hard to avoid using!!
Here's my source, the Weston A. Price Foundation, on the subject:
"COOKWARE: Glass, cast iron, carbon steel, titanium and lead-free crock pots (slow cookers) and enamels are best. Obtain
Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDS) data from the manufacturers for evaluation if possible, especially in the case of
enamels and slow cookers.1 The FDA alleges that the risks from lead in slow cookers are acceptable, but consumers may
want to find products that have been proven lead free and not just meeting “FDA standards.” Hamilton-Beach claims its
crockpot is lead free. Aluminum and teflon are well known for their health dangers. Less known is the fact that stainless
steel exposes people to accumulations of carcinogenic nickel, and often cobalt and chromium, as well. Although some
high-grade stainless steels are supposed to be risk free, they may be so only in water at near-neutral pH. None of the 300
and 400 series stainless steels evaluated are stable in tomato acids and salt.2 Series 316 corrosion-resistant stainless steel
is the best (used in Saladmaster brand cookware). It is resistant to tomato juice and vinegar, but corrodes with exposure
to citric acid and salt (so add salt after cooking). Sadly, Corning glassware is no longer in production, but eBay is a good
source. There are many high-end enamel cookware products, including Le Creuset."
I assume they think that Le Creuset is safe! I wonder what other "high-end" brands of enamel cookware there are & if they're any cheaper! I'll have to check out Tesco, thanks for the tip. I'd want to make sure they're safe before buying.
Mercola is iffy about cast iron as he says it might cause too much iron build-up in the body. Of course, if someone's low in iron cast iron would be good for them! I tend to be in the highest range of normal iron levels. My dad's iron is too high; he has to give blood every month to keep his levels down.
Yeah... big job... but one step at a time, and lots of prayer!!
Thanks, I did get out to church in the morning! :) Feeling pretty good today (Monday) so far too!
Hope you have a SUPER day!
Lots of love, big hug,
Mary
Hi, Dina! Yeah, I hope the tests are helpful & hope they rule out anything serious!!
Have lots of fun at the beach! We have nice beaches on the North Coast about an hour away. There are closer beaches on the east coast but they're not as clean (more seaweed-strewn and grittier sand). But still nice for walking on.
I would recommend all six of Jane Austen's major novels. Pride & Prejudice is probably my favorite. It's hard to pick, though, they're all so good!
I also highly recommend James Herriot's books if you haven't read them - true stories about his life as a vet in Yorkshire England in the 1930's - 1950's. Very entertaining & well-written!
You take care too and have a great day! :)
Hi, Karen! It's great to hear from you! Did your blood tests show you might have celiac, then?
How have you been? Is your psoriasis gone now? I'd love to see you whenever it's possible, let me know!
Love & big hug,
Mary
Hi Mary , thanks for the notes on the books will look into them. I love reading well written books.
In answer to your question, the beach is only a 15 minute walk or a 5 minute car drive from my home. We go there everyday after 5pm. We thank the lord for giving us the opportunity to go everyday. take care xx
Yes Mary, my blood work showed up mildly positive for coeliac, I was shocked, I didn't expect it, she actually ordered a lot of blood work because I'm anaemic, and that was one of the tests she asked for. I had a meeting with a doctor at the Mater hospital and they did repeat blood work and are going to do a camera test and biopsy, it is the definative test that gives the confirmed diagnosis.
Oh, yes, here's another author who's quite good if you like mystery-romance books: Mary Stewart. Her later books were weird & I didn't read them, but her earlier books are very good. Here are some titles I would recommend from her: "Airs Above the Ground," "This Rough Magic," "Nine Coaches Waiting," "Madam, Will You Talk?", "Moon-Spinners," and "Thunder on the Right."
That's great the beach is so close! Do you usually drive to it? Do you usually eat dinner there?
Take care & have a great evening!
Mary
Hi, Karen! When are your tests? Eek, I didn't realise diagnosis for celiac meant procedures like that!! I guess I'll find out in a few days, God willing...
Have a great evening!
Mary
Mary, check out this website, it has good information on the tests, http://coeliac.org.uk/coeliac_disease/how_to_get_diagnosed/default.asp
I haven't had a date yet for the camera test, but I'll let you know when I do.
Thanks for the link, Karen!
Eek, Karen, that sounds scary!!!
Glad they are checking everything really good! I hope all is well!
Post a Comment