Healthy Life Lessons

Who doesn't love pizza?  Really, come on?? Actually, I didn't love it as a kid.  But that's because at that point in time there weren't too many good pizza joints in our small town and the place my parents ordered from always had 'cheese warts', as I called them.  I now realize they simply burned the cheese because they cooked the pizzas too long.  I hated it so much, I generally peeled off the toppings altogether and just ate the crust...the white crust, because no one heard of whole grain crusts or any other kind of crust back then.  Also, I had to eat the toppings my parents liked, including green peppers and mushrooms.  I continue to dislike green peppers on pizza to this day, and I despised mushrooms as a kid.  Geez, no wonder I wasn't a big fan! Now I adore pizza, but I almost always make it homemade.  My favorite crust is using a combination of plantain, flax eggs, chickpea flour and konjac powder .  Its really good, honestly, a...

We're still enjoying our 4 day weekend over here, but its been a wet one in various ways. Today its pouring rain, which definitely means no outdoor activities.  Thankfully all we'd planned was a trip to Costco and Adam is going to take the girls swimming at the JCC. Friday we never made it to the farm because...it was wet...and cold...and icy.  Instead, we took the girls to the Pacific Mall , a super cool Hong Kong style mall north of the city. We had fun exploring the weird and wonderful finds there.  The bulk food stores are hilarious.  Aside from various candy and snacks (think Pocky, etc.), there are some of the most bizarre things there, ranging from salty and sour dried fruits to fish jerky, dried duck wings, and marinated eggs of various kinds.   I wish I'd taken more pictures, because I forget some of the craziest stuff we found. There are also tons of clothing and accessory stores and I bought Little A few hair bands and Big A a few pairs...

  Its Friday and a 4-day weekend! Except not for me because I see clients every day.  That's okay, I love my work and I'm blessed that I can say that. What's more, we've got lots of fun planned.  Today we are hoping to take the kids to Springridge Farm  an Easter Egg hunt with Adam's sister and her family...but we have to see if the weather improves because right now it sucks.  Yes I know we're Jewish but the kids love these things.  Its all about the chocolate!  Truthfully, I wish it weren't so.  Our society teaches kids that holidays are about junk food, when really it should be about spending time with loved ones.    Saturday Little A has her best friend's birthday party.  Sunday my spin class is on (no Easter Sunday closures at the JCC!), I have clients to squeeze in, and then my sister-in-law (my brother's wife) is taking me to Body Blitz , a spa which I've been hearing people rave about for years.  I am so exc...

  My girls love hair fashion.  For Little A, its all about clips, hair bands, etc.  For Big A, who rarely ever brushes her hair, and usually is quite happy having it tangled up into a rats nest, its more about the colour.  She has been begging to die her hair for ages (bleach the ends, specifically, which I oppose simply because of how harmful bleaching is).  But apparently ALL the girls are colouring their hair already.  Ugh! Fortunately, the girls were both thrilled with the products we were sent from Glitzies .  Glitzies are DIY hair stickers that come in a variety of colours and styles. Little A was so excited about them, she wanted to try them immediately, which unfortunately led to a fight because she was just about to take a bath.  I was finally able to convince her to wait a few days and wear them to the birthday party she was attending. This little 6-year-old was easily able to apply them herself and was absolutely delighted...

Unfortunately, my personal fitness goals stalled a bit these past few weeks due to being sick.  Missed workouts and not-as-challenging-as-usual workouts slowed down my get-legs-of-steel plan down. Despite still coughing and dealing with excess mucous, my energy is back 100% so yesterday I was back at it in the gym, squatting, lunging dead lifting. The girls also took an interest in fitness this weekend.  Both jumped on the treadmill to see how long and fast they could run.  Big A started on Saturday and by Sunday, they were both at it, encouraging each other to go faster and further.  Little A did over a mile on a pretty massive incline, I was super impressed! I am trying not to get my hopes up that this will be a regular thing. I never preach to them about exercise, but just hope my example, and Adam's will rub off on them, and the sooner the better, I say! I never fall off the wagon with fitness altogether because of love it so much, and its such an in...

  It's Friday, but this one means the end of March Break and back to rushed stressful mornings with the kids Monday. Ah well, at least we have a quiet weekend with no plans to look forward to.  I have a book review for you this morning! Not sure if its a coincidence or not, but in the same week that I received the request to review Dear Thing , I got one to review this book, In Her Own Sweet Time, which also focuses on my professional work in infertility. This is not a novel, however, but both a memoir, as well as an informative compilation of qualitative and quantitative research about age-related infertility and the choice more and more women are making now to become single parents by choice. Her experience mirrors that of many of my clients.  She simply has not found a partner to settle down with in a committed relationship, and becomes aware of her biological clock.  She ends of freezing some eggs, but then later on opts to conceive via insemination w...

  You all know I'm not much of a snack food fan.  To me, you need nothing more for a snack than fruits, veggies, cheese, nuts, etc.  Products marketed as 'snack food' tend to just be crap.  But the rest of my family does not share my opinion, and apparently nor do most North Americans.  At the very least, if you are going to consume snack foods, you should opt for the most nutritious ones you can find, and even then, its wise to watch your portion sizes. Admittedly, when I was asked to review Simply7s new line of kale chips, I thought they were sending me kale chips.  Like baked kale leaves, like the ones I make.  I was a bit surprised to discover when they arrived, that they were, in fact, green potato chips.  I hadn't read the description carefully when I was sent the inquiry. I was disappointed, but my kids were not!  They sent us the Dill Pickle flavour, Sea Salt, and Lemon and Olive Oil flavours.  I thought the...

Th virus has decimated this household. When Big A first came down with it, she complained her throat was hurting and we thought it was just because she was barfing, but no, it appears to have both gastro and cold-like symptoms.  Its the virus that keeps on giving! After my stomach got better on Friday, I developed a horrible sore throat, congestion and laryngitis...yes, perfect for a psychotherapist! I had to croak my way through all my sessions Friday and Saturday, I am sure I made a great impression on my clients.  Sunday Adam finally succumbed to this bug and developed some, er, gastro symptoms, as well as a cough.  Today I am still very congested but otherwise feeling the pretty good.  Adam's tummy is better but he's developed a bad cough.  We are both very fed up with this stupid thing.  I was on such a long roll of not catching any of the nasty things everyone else was bringing home but this time it got me too.  Of course the two little germ-b...

  Its Friday, thank goodness! This week was a tough one with an icky virus ripping through this household. It shocks me that the majority of North Americans take their health for granted.  I have read the research, I know that there are many complex social, psychological and cultural reasons for this.  I know that there is a positive correlation between socioeconomic status and health. What really confuses me is all the people with money and knowledge who simply make poor choices.  This would include, unfortunately, many family members and friends I care about, and worry about. I don't preach to them. I know that doesn't work anyway. Everyone is free to make their own choices. I try not to judge and I try to understand. Nothing, however, reminds me of the importance of health than when I am sick myself.  This week, being flattened by a flu bug (along with both girls), just served to reinforce for me why I do everything I do in terms of diet, exercise...

  Although I receive tons of requests, I don't often agree to review fiction.  My fiction reading time is my sacred relaxation time (my form of meditation) before bed every night, and I'm not willing to waste it on a potentially crappy book.  But when the request for me to review Dear Thing arrived in my inbox, I agreed immediately.  Its not every day I find a novel written about infertility, the area of psychotherapy I work in, and which I am passionate about. The book is about a couple who have been struggling with infertility for many years and at the point of giving up trying to have a family.  It is suspected that the wife has poor quality eggs and potentially issues that will make it difficult for her to carry a pregnancy.  The husband's best friend, a single mom of one child, offers to be their surrogate.  The only problem is, she is secretly in love with him and always has been. I am pleased to tell you that I loved this book.  I...

Hello and welcome to a new week! I hope you had a stellar weekend. Ours was...eventful.  I worked Friday night and Saturday.  Saturday afternoon I took Big A to get her ears pierced, something she has been wanting for years.  She is so pleased.  I can't believe how fast the girls are growing up.  Big A turns 10 in May! Unfortunately, Big A woke up Saturday night with a tummy bug that's been going around the school.    She is staying home today and my mother-in-law is watching her while I see clients this morning. In other news, I squatted with the barbell for the first time in years at the gym yesterday.  I've been using dumbbells instead more due to not wanting to waste time setting up the bar than anything else.  Now due to my new goal of really pumping my legs, I decided it is time to get back on the barbell wagon.  I am pleased to say I easily squatted 135 lbs...not bad for such a little person!  Yeah, I am to...

    I've written before about how elitist the eco-movement can be. As if most North Americans can afford to tear off their roof and replace it with solar panels, or buy only organic, sustainably-produced food and clothes, or drive a Prius.  If people have money, should they make the most eco-friendly choices they can afford?  Of course.  But too often I've heard extremists argue that everyone should throw whatever money they do have at the most eco-friendly option.  Frankly only someone from a place of privilege would say something like that and it pisses me off.  Who are you to say that someone should spend every penny they have on sustainably caught cans of tuna instead of trying to pay down their student debt, save to buy their first home, or create an education fund for their child? There is one way to be eco-friendly, however, that can save you oodles of money: Be a stalwart.  What I mean is, don't assume you always have to upg...

  I wish I could say that I always set specific fitness goals for myself, but I really don't.  Unlike most people, I guess, I don't need it for motivation, and I really have no interest in completing a marathon or participating in an obstacle race, which I suspect would just be a sure way for clumsy me to get hurt. My general goal is to just be the strongest and fittest I can be...in an enjoyable way.  Currently, I have a more specific goal: I want to pump up my legs!  More specifically, I want to focus on strengthening (being able to lift more weight) my legs.  Oh and if I can make them look more ripped, I'll take that too! I was doing heavy lifting at the gym for legs until I got pregnant with Big A and then returned to it soon after she was born.  I stopped during my pregnancy with Little A again (just didn't like the idea of squatting huge barbells during pregnancy in case I hurt my back or something), then never returned to it because of the ...