Emily Cook's Blog, page 44

for the kids, and their parents.

I am going to print this one out and read it to my children.

From a father to his sons: Why go to church?

...the empty will be filled.

Amen.

at me.

My son found something that was lost, and declared, “Now daddy will be happy at me!”Happy at me.As opposed to mad at me.
I know what he means. Anger can feel like an attack.
How interesting to think of happiness as having the opposite effect. If to be angry at someone can injure them, to be “happy at” someone can heal?Reconcile?Redeem?

In Christ, we can be comforted. 
Our God is happy at us.

Nutrition-love

It's a new week!Is it time to re-re-re-re start that healthy eating plan?
I admit, I had a "planned cheat" this weekend during our superbowl party.  And it probably went a little overboard, but today is a new day.  I'm starting this week motivated, but not because I have to.
Last week, I finally got a taste of what it's like to live in a body that is treated kindly. And I'm hooked.
Let me tell you how it went.First, I cut out sugar completely. This is something my body has been begging me to do for a long time, but I have been ignoring it. The first  three four five days were rough, but after that I honestly lost the cravings for the sweet stuff. It was wonderful. (Please note, I do not think sugar is evil, or that a diet of organic kale and spinach is the diet of the saints.  I'm just trying to listen to my own body.)
More importantly, however, I focused on getting my fruits and veggies. Lots of them, every single day. In all the reading and researching I've been doing, this one thing seems non-controversial: We need more fruits and veggies. I've heard it before, and I'm sick of hearing it, but I thought I'd try following that advice to see what happened.
An aside:I have a very supportive husband. He consented to watch one documentary with me ("I'd really like to see what you think of this whole foods/natural eating stuff and how much better it is for us than processed foods. It seems plausible to me. Do you think I'm nuts?")  He watched it with me, did an hour or so of research, then went out and bought me a juicer.
We don't do things small in this house.
While we don't necessarily believe everything we heard in the documentary, much of it makes sense, and if something motivates my husband to eat more fruits and veggies, I'm all for it! So this week I was on a mission to make good use of our juicer, and to find things that we not only could choke down, but actually like. The short story: After a few epic fails, I did. (See my juice and smoothie recipes on pinterest)
I even put some of my best blends to the ultimate test (2 yr olds don't lie!)
[image error]photo credit:  Dr CynthiaRead her post on the benefits of blending and juicing
The bottom line:After a week of eating enough fruits and vegetables, I feel amazing.I have crazy amounts of energy.  But for me, the most exciting thing is this: My body is satisfied.
Satisfied.

Normal me is almost always thinking about food, whether what I'm eating, what I want to eat, or what I shouldn't be eating.  Cravings and resisting and caving and repenting and starting it all over- this is the story of my life. And I am weary, and just plain sick of it.

But after this experiment that seemed so crazy to me (eliminating sugar and giving my body what it needs instead), I have found new hope and motivation. I could go on and on about the high energy and better mood and so forth, but I won't.

Instead, I will just say this.I feel like a recovering addict, or a laundry-detergent craving pregnant lady, who has just tasted her first bite of food sanity.
Food sanity.
Honestly, I didn't think there was such a thing, not for me. But, maybe my body just needed me to treat it with kindness. With a little nutrition-love, it is satisfied.
Yes, there is still temptation in my life, and yes I still must struggle and pray and receive grace. However, I am pleasantly surprised by the blessings mixed in with the battle. God is kind, and good, and His plans for me are better than I imagined.
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Do you battle seemingly constant cravings?
Do you feel satisfied after you eat?


(Want to watch the first documentaries that inspired me? Check them out here.)

Healthy Viewing

If you're like me, and you are sitting in front of the TV trying to eat your veggies, and trying to like them, and trying not to crave that delicious pizza or burger you just saw on a commercial...

Watch something inspirational.

I have seen these 2 documentaries recently, and I know you will enjoy them.

There are still some things in both films that I am skeptical about, but I AM 100 % convinced that fruits and veggies are extremely good for me. And I like learning about what they actually do. I think it even helps them taste better.

I am also pretty sure that processed food is not so good.

Watch, enjoy, and let me know what you think!




Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead (on Netflix, Itunes, and also free on HULU)
Is it weird that this one made me tear up? Well, it did. Inspirational.



Hungry for Change
This one really opened my eyes and gave my motivation a jump start.

Have you seen either of these?What do you think?Do you recommend any other food documentaries?

Let's see what happens if we actually do this.

This is a basic one.  We've heard it a million times. "Eat more fruits and veggies." Blah Blah.

We all know we should, but why is it so hard to do?Well, because junk tastes better.
But we all know we should. So let's try a little experiment. Let's do it, and see what happens.What's the best way to make sure you get it done? Accountability. 
Even better, little people accountability.  If this is an option for you, I strongly encourage you to enlist your children to help you stay on track. No children? Borrow someone else's if you can. Children are excellent behavior police!
photo creditHere's how it worked in this house.
First, I found a great link on Pinterest.(How many awesome mommy moments start that way these days?)
I printed off a chart for each child, and one for me. I talked to them about serving size and why it's good to eat "colorfully."  Some of the kids were already sulking, while others were jumping-out-of-their-chairs excited. (A CHART! I LOVE filling in charts! Pass the carrots!)
Then, I told them about their incentive.
First, I thought about making it a competition- whoever eats most will win the grand prize. But as soon as that idea came up, two of my children had already quit trying. "I'll never beat Aggie, I never get to win, it's no fair."  So, I decided not to do a competition, but instead reward any child who got their 5 a day.
The reward? Anyone who meets the challenge will get have a friend over after school.
Week 1Each child eagerly ate and checked off their 5 a day. They even tried a few new things, for the sake of adding color to the chart.  Each of the four older children met the challenge.  Playdates were scheduled, and there was much rejoicing all around.
Week 2Mommy got sidetracked. I printed out charts on Monday, but didn't "help" them remember. One child, the one who loves the charts and checklist, faithfully filled hers out anyways. The others looked upon her with envy at the end of the week when she got her special prize: A little gift bag with a new book and a notepad.
Week 3This week. New charts, and new motivation all  around. The incentive will be a "prize" instead of an activity, because we haven't quite finished the other play dates yet!
girls and charts!TipsThe chart has room for 7 a day. I drew a line at 5 to show them their goal, then said they were free to go above and beyond. Some did.It's important to make clear what counts as a serving and stick to it. The circles have lines down the middle so that they can also track their half-servings.Non food incentives: Playdates, sleepovers, extra technology time, surprise gifts (trinkets, used books, etc! They don't have to be expensive!)Shop smart! Don't you dare run out of healthy food for them when they are motivated! I admit I had to shop twice this week- but it's worth it to see my family filing itself on good stuff!When someone was feeling ill, I flexed on the rules. "When we're sick, we need to listen to our bodies. So it's ok if you don't get your 5 today, but if you do eat, you need to eat healthy food, because that's what helps your body fight the illness." Then, I let that child "make up" for the missed food later in the week. No problem.


Your challenge this week: Get your 5 a day, and if you have children, encourage them to do it, too.  KEEP TRACK! Don't just estimate!
And while you do this, pay attention to how you feel. More or less satisfied? Craving less junk? More or less energy?




Suggested linksGet your kids to eat 5 a day easilyno excuses (Web Md)
Weak and Lovely- Read the series here
Join our facebook group for extra support!

Come back tomorrow for more, including, where's my husband in all of this?

I'd love to hear from you! Did you abandon your healthy eating plan this weekend?Will you be accepting my challenge?

The rhythm of His dealings with us: In the Rocking Chair

My little boy, fearfully and wonderfully made, crawls into my lap and asks me to rock him. (He’s five. This never happens.) I have time, for once, so I open hands and lap and heart to him. As I have done so many times since he was a baby, I thanked God for him as we rocked, for making me his mommy, and for his wonderfully made little body.
This time, I did it out loud. We rocked, and grace covered his entire body, as my words just acknowledged what I knew to be there: God’s blessing on him, God’s work in Him, God’s love for him.
The rhythm of the prayer follows the rhythm of God’s dealings with us.
“We love Him because He first loved us.”
He gives, we receive.He loves, we become lovely.He blesses, we overflow in blessings to others.
With this rhythm in mind, I prayed my way from his head to his toes.
The prayer went something like this:
Thank you God, for making this boy, and for making me his mother.Thank you for giving him these nice brown eyes— eyes for seeing the beauty of Your creation.Thank you for giving him a brain for learning and for storing Your Word. Fill his mind with wisdom as he grows, that he may know of Your love for him,  that he may bless others with what he knows.Thank you for giving him a wonderful smile that makes my heart happy, and a mouth to taste the good things you give. Fill his mouth with grace, that He may speak kind and loving things to others.Thank you for giving him ears, that he may hear music, and laughter, and the noise of tractors, and the song of birds. Keep his ears ever open to Your Word.Thank you for giving this child sweet cheeks for kissing!Thank you for giving this boy a straight back, strong shoulders and strong arms. May those arms receive much love and hugs from others, from mommy and daddy and his brothers and sisters. As his muscles grow, may his desire to serve grow, that he may use his muscles to be a helper to those you send him.Thank you, Father, for these perfect hands. Teach them to always be open towards You, that they may receive Your blessings with a grateful heart. Fill them with what they need for this day and as he grows. Take his hands, Father, and help them to be strong, willing to serve, and kind. May they often fold in prayer and rise in praise.Thank you for his tummy, too, where he can keep all the good things you give him to eat. Thank you for filling his body with good food today. May he use the blessings that you give him to love you and serve others, today and always.Thank you, Father, for his legs that help him run so fast, and his feet that help him stand up tall. May He always run into your arms when he needs forgiveness, comfort, or help of any kind. Direct his paths that he may walk in your ways. I do not know where these feet will travel in this life, Lord, but I ask that wherever he goes, you will keep him safe in Your grace.
Thank you, Father, for making every part of this child just as you planned.
In the name of the One who gives his body for us, who covers us in His righteousness, and who has redeemed us with His blood, Jesus Christ, Your Son, Our Lord. Amen.
 In other places and with other children, this prayer sounds a little different, but it always imitates the dance between God and men.
Jesus loves, we are loved, and we become lovely.
That night in the rocking chair, my little superhero melted in my arms. As I put him to bed, he asked, “If I had a bad dream tonight, will you do that for me again? What you just did?”“You mean rock you?”“No, say that thing, what you just said.”I smiled. “Sure, son.”  And may God, through the Holy Spirit, say it to you often and always.

You are wonderfully made. You are loved.



photo credit

Sing it to the children!

Fearfully and wonderfully made, we are, and so are our children. Here are a few of our favorite songs on the topic. Yes, they are cheesy, and the videos are hilarious, but the words are beautiful: sing them to your children, let them soak deep down into their little hearts!
You knit me together


 I'm so wonderfully made

Coloring page: I'm so Wonderfully Made by the Donut Man
What a miracle


What are your favorite songs for kiddos?

How to stop a fit in 3 seconds

Get out the camera.

Sweat reflections

photo credit
















”Sweat runs down my forehead, and little boys run around my basement. I am exercising with heart, soul, and body.  I am angry, determined, resolved to win this battle with my flesh.
A little boy runs past me with a sword, and another boy screams. “Marcus, behave yourself!” I half yell, half pant.
“Oh, don’t worry, mom, I’m a good guy now."“Oh, you are?” I smile through sweat.
“Yeah. I just changed myself into a good guy, and so now I’m a good guy."
I punch, kick, squat, and jump with the perky lady on my video. And his words echo in my ears, “I’m a good guy now.”
How cute, that he thinks it is so easy. How sweet and childlike, that he thinks sin is something you can just slough off, just drop like a dirty sock on the floor, walk away, and be free of it.
He doesn’t know the extent of the sickness yet, does he? He doesn’t know how deep the selfishness runs, like poison in our veins.  He doesn’t know how it clings, oh how it clings, dragging a soul down to earth by weight of the flesh and the heart.
And I work. And I sweat. 
And when the workout is over, even still, I have not changed myself into a good, self-controlled girl. Not a choice, not effort, not even vigorous effort, can make such a change.
And I find myself exhausted, humbled, and sitting quietly with open hands. And again, I am comforted by the basics, by the Solidness of Christ, of God’s love for me, and of the certainty of the Holy Spirit’s work in me.
 (From the Small Catechism by Martin Luther)The Third Article.Of Sanctification.I believe in the Holy Ghost; one holy Christian Church, the communion of saints; the forgiveness of sins; the resurrection of the body; and the life everlasting. Amen.
What does this mean?--Answer.I believe that I cannot by my own reason or strength believe in Jesus Christ, my Lord, or come to Him; but the Holy Ghost has called me by the Gospel, enlightened me with His gifts, sanctified and kept me in the true faith; even as He calls, gathers, enlightens, and sanctifies the whole Christian Church on earth, and keeps it with Jesus Christ in the one true faith; in which Christian Church He forgives daily and richly all sins to me and all believers, and at the last day will raise up me and all the dead, and will give to me and to all believers in Christ everlasting life. 
This is most certainly true.
[image error]

Father, thank you for the certain hope we have in Christ. You are a God who seeks and saves the lost, who helps the weak, who forgives the sinners.  As we struggle on our way, broken people traveling through a broken place, we look to You- Call, Gather, Enlighten, and Sanctify us, Father.  Keep our heads up, and our eyes fixed  on You, as we look forward to our certain eternal rest in You.  Amen.

Are you trying, by healthy living or any other way, to make yourself into a good person before God?We can't bear this burden, nor do we have to, thanks be to Jesus.

There must be one thing you can do right. [Monday's Challenge]

 I’ve been having this conversation with myself lately. I invite you to listen in.

Me: This healthy eating stuff is just too complicated.There is no way to do it 100% right all the time. It’s just not possible.I might as well just eat what I crave and stop worrying about it.
The other me: What do you crave?
Junk food.
Did you know that eating junk food is likely to make you crave more junk food?
Uh, yes, I know that very well. I’ve been living it.
And also, to put it mildly, that’s not so good for your body?
Yes. You’ve told me this, and you’ve given me plenty of guilt about it, you goody-goody you. But it’s just too complicated! I have no idea where to start!
Well, let’s start where we are. It’s almost dinner time.
Ok…
Can you think of ONE healthy dinner that you could have today?
One. Um… Yes.
Ok then. Start there.
One thing at a time. This is so important for us to remember as we try to make healthy changes. So often I find myself getting overwhelmed, and I want to give up, to crawl into bed and pull a large Pizza Hut pizza over my head, and pretend this conversation never happened.
I could do that.Or, I could ditch the perfectionism, and simplify. familiar food is good food
I have 104 new recipes I’d like to try on Pinterest, but I'm not making any of them today. Trying new things takes planning, and energy, and brain cells, and all that while taking the risk that your entire family will hate it. I just can’t do that every day.
And really, I don’t have to.
A friend said to me, “This shouldn’t really be that hard. You’d think we could come up with 14 meals, just 14 meals, that are reasonably healthy, that our family already likes. If we can find fourteen, then we have accounted for two weeks of meals, and we can rotate through those.” And then of course, we can try new things as we go, when we are able.
Genius! I thought.So I spent a few more days eating junk food, and then finally, I sat down and made my list.
What’s healthy?In this house, I am trying to move us away from processed foods and toward real foods. So, for me, healthy doesn't necessarily mean low calorie, but rather, natural, simple, or whole. Your health needs may be different, but that’s where we’re starting.
And guess what? I came up with fourteen. Not fourteen perfect meals, but fourteen meals I can work with. Fourteen familiar meals that can be tweaked, gradually, as we go along. (Not ruined, dear husband, do not worry! I’ll just be adding whole wheat flour, brown rice, homemade chicken stock, fruits and veggies, etc) [image error]  Your challenge this weekThink of something that is good for your family, that you know they already like.How many of these things can you come up with?Write them all down.
You might be surprised at the choices you already have, before you even try to do anything new.
Remember, that little voice in your head, telling you that you might as well give up if you can’t do this perfectly 100 % of the time- that voice is not the boss of you. You do not have to scour the internet for something every time you eat. Start with what you know, and like, and maybe even have in your cupboard already.
Start with this list: Meals I can make that are good for us.And then we’ll go from there.

Do you feel like giving up when you have too many choices?What’s on your familiar, reasonably healthy list?

(My list is in the comments)

Weak and Lovely- Read the series here
Join our facebook group for extra support!