Barefoot and Fancy Free

I’ve been thinking about feet lately. Strange, I know. Here’s why.

I’ve always had problems with my feet. I had orthotic inserts as a child for fallen arches. I seemed to grow out of that problem as I got older, but my feet still would get achy and tired much quicker than anyone I knew. I found that foot massages would help and made it through my twenties able to wear cutsey shoes. And then, I grew up. I mean, I got old(er). I mean, my body did this thing at age thirty which told me suddenly that I was not in my twenties any more. And my feet were a part of this mutiny.

I found my feet unable to tolerate anything but good quality sneakers. Now, at age 36, I wear them every day. They are my “lace up shoes” and I wear them to work at my job, in the home.

Learning from the Flylady how important it is to wear shoes in the house only confirmed to me that barefoot was not a good thing. But now, I am reconsidering.

The other day we went for a walk to the park. We took off our shoes to walk barefoot in the grass. My two year old cried and thought the grass was hurting his feet. And it didn’t feel too good to me, either. I realized I’d caused a problem.

By saying “no” to bare feet, I think our feet are getting to be too sensitive. I am now wondering if perhaps my sore foot problem is actually a lack of strength, caused by wearing shoes all the time.

Have you seen these funky shoes? They are like gloves, to be worn on your feet, so that you can still feel the ground.
Here’s an interesting article about running barefoot.
And another article.

And a whole site for “Healthy and Natural Barefoot Activities

Welcome, Spring. I think it’s time to kick of my shoes for a little while.

Do you like being barefoot? Do you let your children go barefoot? Let’s talk.

Lentil and Potato Stew with Spiced Oil

This is one of our favorites. Lentils are about as nutritious and inexpensive as you can get, so those are two big pluses in my book. Make a double batch and stick half in the freezer for a ready made meal.

From The Occasional Vegetarian by Karen Lee

6 cups water
1 1/2 cups lentils
1 red or yellow bell pepper, cut into 1 inch squares
2 med potatoes, peeled or unpeeled, cubed
2 unpeeled carrots, cut into 1/3 inch rounds
1 large Spanish onion, cut into 1 inch pieces
2 celery stalks, cut into 1 inch pieces
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1 bay leaf

SPICED OIL
2 tbsp olive oil or butter
1 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp turmeric
1 tsp ground cumin

1. Combine the water, lentils, bellpepper, potatoes, carrots, onion, celery, soy sauce, pepper, and bay leaf in a large pot. Cover and bring to a boil; reduce the heat and simmer for 45 mins.

2. Meanwhile, warm the oil in a small saucepan over low heat, 1 to 2 minutes. Remove from the heat and add the ginger, turmeric and cumin. Stir and set aside.

3. When the stew is cooked, add the spiced oil. Season with salt and additional pepper, if needed. Remove the bay leaf. Serve hot.

I like to remove a little and puree it, then return it for a thickened stew.

This stew can be refrigerated for up to 3 days. I recommend doubling it and freezing half. Simple!

Assigned Dinner Helper-Works For Me Wednesday

I don’t know about you, but the hours between 4:30 and 6:30 are really tough for me. Really tough. Naptime is over, snacks are dealt, and The Dinner Preparation Begins.

I’m feeling a grroannn just thinking about it.

That’s because, in my family with 5 littles, it’s not that simple. One or more will need a diaper. One will get hurt. Two or more will argue or fight. And they all want to help. In the kitchen. With me. Laugh.

Hey….wait a minute. If someone could actually be of help, well, that would be helpful, right? Right.

I recently discovered that my older children are actually capable of real help. I’ve been training them since the beginning to do chores. Of course, with little ones, the work they do is usually not helpful at all, to say the least. Now that the oldest are 7, and 6, I’m finding that they and even the 4 year old are able to provide actual help with what they can do. (Yes, that’s my 4 year old cutting with (gasp) a real knife. Preparing a salad) It’s wonderful! Yes, they are slow. Yes, their work is not high quality. But with good scheduling and lowered expectations, they get good practice at things they need to know how to do, and I get help.

Enter: the Assigned Dinner Helper plan. It’s just as it sounds: I have an assigned helper for each day of the week. The older 2 get 2 days each, and the 4 year old gets 1. Twice a week I have no helper; I just don’t want one on those days.

The boys are always very excited to help and look forward to their day. They get to wear an apron, ring the dinner bell to call everyone to the table, and be proud of their contribution. And you would be amazed how a child will devour a salad that he has made himself.

Having Assigned Dinner Helpers works for me.

What works for you?

See what works for lots of other moms at WeAreThatFamily.com

Serious Germ Paranoia

“So it’s come to this. Kleenex Disposable Hand Towels: the ultimate in germ paranoia. Our dear friends at Kleenex want you to think that you NEED protection from nasty cloth towels that, heck!, everyone in your family uses. Shudder. Think about it: you’ve all dried your CLEAN HANDS on the SAME TOWEL. What are you, savages?”

I didn’t write this. But I really liked the post. You can read the rest here at Enviromom.com.

Proper Food Combining: Radio Show

Did you know that it’s not just what you eat, but what you eat together? Even really healthy food, when combined improperly with other really healthy food can cause indigestion, heartburn, gas, bloating, cramps, general malaise, fatigue, and more. Alternatively, proper food combining causes you to digest and assimilate the most nutrition out of what you eat.

My friends over at WellWithU.com host a BlogTalkRadio show every Monday at 2pm EST.

Click here to listen to The Combo Platter show.

Join Dr. Jeff and Chaim to find out what a healthy “combo platter” looks like.
Topics to be covered: * Who should worry about food combining?
* What is food combining?
*Why is proper food combining essential for many people?
* Common symptoms of not combining well.
* Combining foods properly.
* A practical plan to institute good food combining in your diet.
*** Plus the last 15 mins of the program is reserved for listener questions. *** (Dr. Jeff broadcasts from Ft. Lauderdale, FL; Chaim from Jerusalem, Israel.)

You can listen to the player here (after the show, of course), or click this link to the archive.

This is an important topic: I haven’t gotten to it yet as a post, but realized I can just send you over to the good information there. Enjoy! I know I will.

update: I created a newer post from the info in this same radio show. If you prefer to read than listen, you can go here for it.

Menu Plan Monday-May 10

I hope you all had a wonderful Mother’s Day. Hubby made me a special breakfast, after which we all spent the day at the zoo together. The together-ness was wonderful, but after all of that I really enjoyed a quiet bath, book, & bed. It was a special treat.

Now, back to reality 🙂 Here’s what’s coming up:

Monday-Shakshuka, Hash Browns, OJ (I didn’t make it last night as I’d planned)

Tuesday-Homemade Hummus, Couscous Tabouli, Roasted Eggplant & pita

Wednesday- Lentil and Potato Stew with Spiced Oil and salad

Thursday – Homemade Foccacia & salad (like pizza without cheese-see recipe)

Friday – not sure yet

Saturday – leftover Lentil and Potato Stew with Spiced Oil

Sunday – Whole Wheat Pancakes with fresh fruit, apple juice

Visit orgjunkie.com for lots more meal plans.

Let The Sun Shine In–Frugal Fridays

When I was little, I’d see movies or commercials that showed little girls running through the sheets that were hanging out to dry. It looked like so much fun & I asked my mom why we didn’t do our drying like that. She basically said that only “poor” people dry their clothes that way and that it didn’t look nice to see laundry hanging. And I saw that she was right; in our neighborhood nobody would do such a thing, but driving into other sections of town we could see their laundry hanging. I just accepted it as the way it was and went about my business.

Until I moved to Israel. Here, hanging laundry is the socially accepted norm. For years I couldn’t fathom hanging it every day like my neighbors and didn’t like the way it looks. Then one summer my dryer broke. And I hung all summer long, until the rainy season began (winter here), and we prioritized the dryer repair.

But I’ve been thinking about it again, and a few weeks ago I decided to start utilizing this (free) power we all have-the sun, to save on electricity (translate: $$$). Good for the environment, good for the pocket, I’m happy.

It does take more time to hang the clothes and bring them in than it does to load and empty the dryer, and that has been my main objection. However, I have decided to enjoy those few minutes outside by myself as a little break. All moms need that!

And as for the way it looks, I hang it out on my roof deck where it doesn’t show-not to the neighbors; it’s out of my view as well. But twice a day I have a reason to stand and look at my gorgeous view of the Judean hills. (That’s my laundry and my view) Nice!

I do one large load every day (keeps Mt. Washmore away), plus a load of cloth diapers. My drying rack holds only the one load; for now I’m still using the dryer for the diapers or if I need to do more than one load. Another drying rack or a line would solve that problem. I’ll get there. Babysteps.

For more Frugal Friday ideas visit LifeAsMom.

For more about saving electricity, visit this site.

Mexican Taco Casserole & Salsa Recipe


As a busy mom of five little ones, I’ll take any help I can get; anything that makes life a teeny bit simpler. Enter: The Casserole.

Casseroles can be assembled when convenient and baked later. They freeze well. We lived on soups and casseroles for a while I’d prepped ahead when baby#5 arrived.

And Mexican food….Love it. But once the little guy became 2 guys and then 3 guys (now 4) who all needed help assembling tacos, we knew something had to be done.

Time to combine the two. How to do it? Simple. Take all your ingredients, layer them in a casserole dish, and bake. It’s as easy as that.

Ex: salsa first (helps to prevent sticking), rice, salsa, beans or meat, cheese if you’re using it, another rice or beans layer, chopped onions & black olives, cracked corn chips w/cheese to brown on top. Serve with lettuce and tomato, guacamole, salsa & sour cream. Yum.

You can sneak veggies in there too. This time I sauteed onion&garlic with eggplant, carrots, and cabbage. Usually I add zucchini but I didn’t have any. You just make them taste “Mexican-y” with salsa, garlic, and lots of onions.

Make your own salsa cheap & easy w/canned crushed tomato, lemon juice, chopped fresh cilantro & chopped onion.

Aspartame’s New Name

Too many folks know that aspartame is bad for you. So what’s a manufacturing company to do? Why, change the product’s name and re-market it, of course!

“Ajinomoto believes that the time is right to remind the industry that aspartame tastes just like sugar, and that it’s made from amino acids – the building blocks of protein that are abundant in our diet.

The name AminoSweet is appealing and memorable. It reflects that AminoSweet comes from the same amino acids that are abundant in the food we eat every day.” -quote from this article.

Do NOT be deceived. Aspartame is POISON! To read more about what’s in it, go here.

The following chronic illnesses can be triggered or worsened by ingesting of aspartame:(2) Brain tumors, multiple sclerosis, epilepsy, chronic fatigue syndrome, parkinson’s disease, alzheimer’s, mental retardation, lymphoma, birth defects, fibromyalgia, and diabetes.

And that’s BEFORE it breaks down into formaldehyde as it does when sodas are stored at room or warmer temperatures! (think-outside at the gas station….) See this article for more about aspartame converting to formaldehyde. Remember: formaldehyde is the stuff that preserves the dead animals (specimens) to be dissected in anatomy class! You do NOT want to drink it!

Of course, everyone loves a good commercial 😉

Curried Pumpkin Soup


This is one of my favorite soups. It’s very rich, so I don’t make it very often. But the flavors of these ingredients combined are amazing. I first found the recipe here and it was an instant hit. I’ve made a few changes/substitutions, and as always, with soup, am not too specific with measurements. I’m attempting to measure so that I can write it down for you here.

1 large piece pumpkin (5 cups chopped)
2 large onions
3 cups chicken or vegetable stock
2 cans coconut milk (of course, fresh would be the best)
8 Tbsp molasses or 1 cup black rum (I’ve tried both; I prefer the molasses)
1 stick butter (you could substitute oil, I’m sure. I haven’t tried.)
Zest and juice of 2 large lemons (limes would be better)
1 Tbsp (approx) of curry powder
Kosher salt and pepper
2 bay leaves
1/3-1/2 white wine
*brown sugar — you can substitute a little extra molasses and honey. About 1/2 c or to taste.

You will need 2 pots.

1.Pot 1: Boil pumpkin chunks with stock, rum/molasses, and water if needed to cover until very soft.
2. Pot 2: Saute sliced onions in butter or oil until soft. Add coconut milk, lemon juice & zest, curry, honey, bay leaves. Simmer about 1/2 hr.
4. Combine all and blend or puree
5. Taste and adjust seasonings and thickness (you can add more water or stock or wine or…)

Soup is a very forgiving dish. You can really play around with ingredients and amounts; feel free to experiment! I don’t have any white wine today and am making it without it. Never think you can’t make something unless you have all of the exact ingredients.

Serve it up with some freshly baked french bread, a salad, and enjoy!