My JourKNEE Back

Last week I wrote that I had a 5K event coming up. It was supposed to be last night. It was a glow run on a flat trail. To be honest, when I signed up it was only because I was afraid of missing out. My running friend, "J" and her cousin, "K" (also a running friend) signed up and asked if I wanted to. I did not, but I knew I'd have a twinge of jealousy hearing them talk about it. I signed up and even paid extra for the race shirt. Who does a 5K without getting the shirt to show for it? Haha! Fast forward to the week of the race and I find out that "J" was still not cleared by her doctor to run. "K", who had also signed up with her daughter, runs at a much faster pace than I am able to maintain. I did not expect them to slow down to stick with me and I really didn't want to do the miles on my own. After checking the time results from last year's race, it sealed my decision to not attend the event. Yesterday morning, I headed out for so...

Change is hard. I don't like it. I don't like new things even when I know my old things are out of date or on their last leg. Call me frugal, cheap, boring. I don't care. Although, I do prefer the words practical and loyal. We are a full two weeks into the AIP diet. Some meals have not been very impressive, offering little to no flavor. Others have been promising and keep me inspired. Of course, all of my meals (breakfasts and lunches) have not followed AIP, so I admittedly am having an easier time than my daughter. I have already begun to see changes in her skin, however. The patches are still there, but they do not look as raised or scaly. She already does not feel as bloated and she has even shed a few pounds, which is not the main goal but would be an added benefit.  I have been impressed with her determination. She did amazingly the first six days, but on the seventh day her craving for ice cream or popcorn showed up with a vengeance. Instead, we made an AIP approved b...

Last weekend, my husband, son, sister and I went hiking on a local trail. I knew, because of the date, that it would be a difficult day for my sister and I was hoping that being out in nature and being with us would keep her mind occupied. The main trail is about a half mile to an overlook that looks over the Susquehanna River with a beautiful view. On the one side of the overlook, there are some pretty big rocks to climb down to get to it. We have done this many, many times over the years, even since we were kids. It's a popular local spot. This day, however, my sister and I had some difficulty making our way down the rocks. Chalk it up to old age, I suppose. I finally started down one side of the rocks, and she decided to go down the other side. As I was climbing down, I heard the leaves rustle and said out loud, "Oh no, did she slip?" No one answered. I climbed further down, and I heard her ask, "Am I bleeding?" I thought to myself, "Oh no, she's ble...

Three weeks ago, I wrote to you that "we are in the very beginning of a journey as a family that I will share with you soon," concerning the nutrition part of my goals. My daughter has been dealing with psoriasis, a skin condition that starts in the immune system and causes skin cells to build up and form scales and itchy, dry patches. She has been dealing with it for a long time. She has tried cremes, ointments, liquids and even injections. Some helped, some did not. Some helped but came with side effects that weren't worth the benefits. We decided to consult a Functional Medicine Doctor who takes a holistic, whole-body approach to health and wellness. After bloodwork and discussing other factors, it was recommended that she begin an Auto Immune Protocol (AIP) diet for a minimum of six weeks. An AIP diet consists of mainly meats, vegetables and fruits. She is to avoid gluten, dairy, including eggs and added sugars. We met with a nutritionist this week to get some tips. A...

I was driving home two weeks ago, after picking up my van from the garage. It had had some shifting issues which we thought was the transmission but, thankfully, it ended up being something more minor even though the bill was still quite costly. My husband's truck had transmission issues at the same time which did, in fact, end up being the entire transmission. As you can imagine that bill was even more costly. We thanked God that we had the money to cover the repairs, and at the same time, we would have liked to save that money to use for something fun or more practical. I drove past a man who appeared to be homeless. He was pushing a grocery cart packed full of things. Not only was the cart filled to the top, but he also carried a backpack and several items in his arms. He was about to ascend a hill, and the load appeared to get very heavy. Of course it was understandable why this man was carrying, assumably, everything he owned with him, but it gave me a picture of how we try to...

In the beginning of the year, I set spiritual, physical and emotional goals. Since it is almost the middle of the year and I haven't given an update since March, I thought it would be a good time to check in. 1. Spiritual - Read through a book of the bible repeatedly each month I have completed Hebrews, Romans, Matthew, Mark, Luke, and will complete the book of John by the end of June. I feel like I have stuck with this goal pretty well. There have been a few days that I skipped reading but made up for it during the remainder of the week by reading extra chapters. I feel like I am getting a better understanding of the bible as a whole. This week I listened to "BibleThinker," a podcast hosted by Pastor Mike Winger. In three of the episodes I heard, he broke down the different parts of the bible. I can't say it was anything that I hadn't heard before, but it was explained in a way that made it make more sense to me. I would encourage you, even if you have been readi...