This may be the best Christmas yet! I can't really explain it but while my illness is keeping some of my spirits down, the rest of me wants to soar. I am a wonder at this!

So I can't eat my normal quantity of cookies or family coffee cake this year. The plus side is I am slowly moving further from the Plus sizes! Little by little and barely noticeable but you know how that is when a woman sees even a half a pound of something disappear off her body? There is great rejoicing in the bathroom by the scale or in the Dr.'s office!

I have the green light for the consumption of apple, cinnamon and mushroom. Not in the same dish, mind you but apple crisp... here I come! One of the first things I consumed was a Starbuck's Pumpkin Spice Latte. I love them. I order mine with soy milk and less pumps and it pains me to say. "no whip", but I do. Some clerks are kind and don't even charge me extra for soy since I decline some of the pricey stuff.

I will also admit right here and now that I have had a little gluten more days than I should. It started out small and innocent and now the frequency of my ingestion resembles a snowball rolling down a steep hill. The rhetorical slippery slope is playing out when I make food choices. I feel mildly guilty about this. While my Dr. identified gluten as low on my taboo list, she also said it would not be one of the first things she would add back in. I've jumped the gun a bit. I need to toughen up my resolve. Hmmm ... I think I have said that before.

I still avoid bovine by-products. This one I have kept to almost faultlessly if you don't count a little milk chocolate every couple of days. A piece or two of pizza in 3 and 1/2months deserves a bit of praise, given that it is one of my favorite foods on the planet.

Rereading some older posts I see how exhausted I felt. Here lies improvement, as well. My Dr. says by the time I see her every two weeks, she can tell I am drained but not like I was when she first started sticking needles in me. And that whole acupuncture thing... I am truly a believer now. If I doubted it before, not anymore. I feel great about an hour after each session once I get my legs and equilibrium back.

But those are just some physical things I feel good about.

Some less tangible boons: The anticipation of having all my children under one roof for a couple of days during the holidays. Hearing the distinct cry and smelling the sweet breath of a newborn. Seeing the toothy grin of a baby who is days away from taking her first steps. The adoration exchange whenever I am near the newlywed couple. Chuckles which surface as I read son number three's Face Book posts as he counts down the end of an era of his life in the Deep South. The checkbook in the black enough for giving some to others not so fortunate. A caring husband who understands my despair of this illness.

And the recognition that a loving God cares about the timing of just about every little tiny thing in my life. How fascinating it might be one day to see it all from a heavenly perspective. By then, I probably won't care.

Trying to keep my feet on the ground,

Caroline

(photo from Photobucket)

This entry was posted on Wednesday, December 14, 2011 at 6:34 PM. You can skip to the end and leave a response.