Gia is doing so great with her hearing aid. The only problem is that when she really gets jumping around (like every other 3 year old on the planet often does) the aid comes off from behind her ear. We're trying to teach her to put it back over her ear, but she doesn't quite have the hang of it yet. Other than that, she's doing great.

Its been a busy summer. Lots of trips out of town for Sean, fun & free summer activites for the kids, our 10th wedding anniversary, a wonderful impromptu visit from my mom, and moving across town. All of that was a wonderful way to pass the summer months, but along the way it led to a lot of poor eating habits. Mainly, fast food & unbalanced meals-on-the-go. For months, Sean has wanted to do a challenge called "The Whole 30." Its a big deal and takes a lot of commitment, so all summer our mantra has been, "After such and such trip, we'll start..." Well folks, the trips are over. Sean's birthday has been celebrated & caupcakes have been eaten. I'm finishing off my Almond Ice Cream Dibs tonight. I had two Diet Cokes today in anticiaption of my month-long abstinence (I'll miss you, DC). We also went grocery shopping. I know there are a lot of wonderful, creative recipes for the Whole30, and we will definitely get to them, but for our first time, we kept it simple. As it really should be. All that's allowed on Whole30 is organic produce and non-hormone/GMO/etc meat along with healthy fats like coconut oil. No sugar, no sugar subs, no bread, no soda, no dairy, no soy, no legumes (peanuts, too)... the list goes on and on. When I say it really is just meat, veggies and fruit, it really is. It was actually nice to not have to go up and down every aisle! But learning to read labels will take some time. We'll make our own mayo & ranch dressing for salads (which I'm excited about!). So, I will hopefully be posting a little bit througout our journey as a means of keeping ourselves accountable.

One of the biggest reasons we've decided to do this is because I've recently had a lot of food allergies issues arise. This is similar to a total elimination diet that many doctors put people on for similar reasons. After the 30 days, we will slowly begin reintroducing foods, while paying close attention to any reactions we may have from the new food groups. Hopefully this will help us adapt a healthier lifestyle overall that is tailored to our bodies' specific needs. This is also the best way to start healing our gut from the months (er, years) of poor diet habits and see if that might have an impact on our mental health as well.

For better or worse, here we go!  This is what a week-ish worth of good-for-you food looks like:

I was almost giddy when I opened up my package from Tyndale and found the beautiful book inside, My Princesses Learn To Be Brave. The latest in a new line of stories that combines Biblical stories with applicable truths, this book instantly captured the attention of my princess-loving three year old daughter. In fact, before I even showed her the book, she saw it laying on the counter. She picked it up and asked, "Can we read this??" She could not wait. It has been a regular in our evening book rotation. 

This is my first time reviewing a cookbook, and I am so excited! My husband and I love watching the Food Network show, "Chopped." The basic gist of it is a trio of talented chefs are presented with a "mystery basket" of ingredients. From the onset, they seem like a horrible hodge-podge of clashing flavors and the chefs are tasked with the challenge to make something delicious using all of them. Cotton candy and kale, sausage and strawberries, eggs and carrots. Somehow, by the end of the show, delectable dishes are presented to the judges and a winner is chosen. 

The NIV Essentials Study Bible is a giant conglomeration of some of the best study Bible tools that Zondervan has offered. I'm one who likes to dig deep into individual scriptures, as well as look at the meaning and context of entire books. Reading the historical backgrounds and getting extra tidbits of archaeological information helps bring the inspired Word to life. Though the NIV is no longer my preferred translation of the Bible, it is (in my opinion) the easiest to comprehend. I usually have my Kindle with me when I go to church, and I love having all of the study tools at the tips of my finger when I want to look up something quickly. The NIV Essentials Study Bible combines the best parts of six different Bibles and study materials. They are: