Monday, January 18, 2010

Our new rhythm: Monday

Today was the first day of implementing our new revisited rhythm. All in all, it was very positive and the girls responded very well. Every time I reinforce our rhythm (after having been slacking for a while), I am amazed at how young children crave rhythm and how they just tag along.

Aujourd'hui, c'était la première journée de mise en oeuvre de notre nouvelle routine. Ce fut très positif et les filles ont très bien réagi. Chaque fois que je renforce notre routine (après avoir laissé aller pendant un certain temps), je suis impressionnée de constater à quel point les jeunes enfants ont besoin d'une routine et de comment elles suivent ce que je propose.

Hairbrushing and teethbrushing without fuss: done

Brossage de cheveux et de dents sans chialage : accompli



Going outside after our morning snack without a fight : done, but not without a fight...

Aller dehors après notre collation du matin sans chicane : accompli, mais non sans chicane...



Nature collecting day

Journée de trouvailles de trésors de la nature



Making mayo: done

Did you know that to keep your homemade mayo for up to two months, you simply have to add 1 tablespoon of whey (you know the clear stuff that rises on top of your yogurt, commercial or homemade?) to it (along with the egg yolks, salt, lemon juice and whatever you like in your mayo) and leave it on the counter top for 7 hours, then refrigerate? This is one of the best kept secret of Nourishing Traditions!

Faire de la mayo : accompli

Saviez-vous que pour conserver votre mayo maison jusqu'à deux mois, vous n'avez qu'à ajouter 1 cuillère à soupe de petit lait (vous savez, le liquide clair qui remonte à la surface de votre yogourt, commercial ou maison?) à cette dernière (avec les jaunes d'oeuf, le sel, le jus de citron et autres) et à la laisser sur le comptoir pendant 7 heures, puis à réfrigérer? C'est un des secrets les mieux gardés de Nourishing Traditions!



Preparing a snack for the week with mama: done

Préparer une collation pour la semaine avec maman : accompli


Everybody loved that simple treat (from Le mal du sucre, Danièle Starenkyj) :

Peanut butter balls
3/4 cup natural peanut butter
3/4 cup chopped dates
2 cups unsweetened shredded coconut

Put in the food processor and pulse until you get a sticky texture (you might need to add some peanut butter or dates), roll into balls and refrigerate. You can roll those in carob powder if you'd like.

So, there has been some amendments to the original eating locally plan. In my quest to find some answers to my health problems (severe hypoglycemia as a child, migraines, allergic reactions to many things, sinus congestion, thyroid problems, anxiety and depression...), I have found out that my pancreas is suffering quite a bit and am eliminating all sugars from my diet (including honey and maple syrup) as well as cow's milk (yep!) because of the lactose (sugar) content of it. I can have fruits and dried fruits, whole grains (it is especially healing to eat some cooked whole grain before going to bed with only some salt to help the pancreas and avoid a migraine in the morning). Considering that new piece of information, the GAPS diet was quite unhealthy for me... So, with this change in mind, I will allow myself dates, bananas and some olive oil, as well as some shredded coconut.


Everybody got (well) fed

Tout le monde a (bien) mangé


This is inspired from Elke's quinoa risotto



Tomato millet

1 1/2 cup of millet
3 cups of turkey broth (any homemade broth will do)
2 finely chopped onions
Sea salt to taste
1/4 cup nutritionnal yeast
2 tablespoon fresh basil
Garlic powder
Thyme
3 large chopped tomatoes (or diced canned tomatoes)
Roasted pumpkin seeds

Cook millet in broth for 25 minutes approximately. In a large saucepan, cook onions (I use duck fat) for 10 minutes, add salt, nutritionnal yeast, basil, thym and garlic powder. Cook 5 more minutes. Add to the cooked millet and add the tomatoes. Pour in a 9 X 13 baking dish, sprinkle with pumpkin seeds and cook at 350 F for 20 minutes.

Dites-moi si vous aimeriez avoir l'une de ces recettes traduites!


The clothes got washed

Le lavage a été fait



The plants got watered

Les plantes ont été arrosées



I even had time to write down my order for the seeds I will need for our garden this year! I found a biodynamic source 10 km away from where we live! It is so exciting to think about gardening in the dark of winter!

J'ai même eu le temps d'écrire ma commande pour les graines dont j'aurai besoin pour notre jardin cette année. J'ai trouvé une source biodynamique à 10 km de chez nous! C'est tellement excitant de penser au jardin en plein milieu de l'hiver!



I finished the winter gnome

J'ai terminé le lutin de l'hiver



And while Aïsha was gone skiing with papa, Mara and Mathilde made her a beautiful hair pin and necklace! There is so much love around here!

Et pendant qu'Aïsha était partie skier avec papa, Mara et Mathilde lui ont confectionné une jolie barrette et un collier! Il y a tellement d'amour chez nous!



7 comments:

Nadine said...

Merci Catherine,

I was inspired by you to find our rhythm again after falling off track...
and after wondering about fairies...and seeing your beautiful blog and how magical it is...I decided to keep it...just putting a little twist to it for my little boys comfort...the tooth fairy will still come...just not in his room...

Thanks for your inspiration

Bon soir

Nadine

Nadine said...

oops I pressed on some button that said comments would go to some address I have...no...that is not where I want them to go as I will not be able to find the...I am not too computer savvy...comments are welcomed on my blog site..
ooops

indigomumma said...

glad you liked the risotto recipe! I like what you have done with it - it looks yummo! The pepitas and sprouts are great. Thanks so much for the mayo tip and the recipe for the millet - looking forward to making the millet dish soon on millet day.

Maripol said...

Je ne connaissais cette astuce concernant la mayo...
Dommage que le livre n'existe pas en français! Et je ne suis pas sûre d'être assez bien calée en anglais.
Quelle jolie petite barrette :-)

csil said...

oh oui oui oui, comme j'aimerais que tu traduises tes recettes ... je comprends que ça te demande beaucoup de travail et de temps, mais c'est un peu triste pour ceux qui ne lisent pas l'anglais de ne pas tout avoir !!

heather said...

is it too nosy to ask how you learned this about your pancreas? blood test? diet is so powerful. funny, that the kids just asked me today what diet means, cause we were reading 'walter the farting dog'. have you read that book?

Catherine said...

Heather, I went to see a biochemist here near Montreal, quite a special man. He is 80 years old and looks like he's 65. He sees through the body... I know, it sounds really weird, but I had lots of great references and many doctors refer him their desperate cases. What he told me makes so much sense, I am confident it's the way to go. Only one week in, my allergic symptoms have stopped and I didn't have any migraine...