Raw, vegan, gluten free, veggi, organic - what about intuition?

I am in turmoil about our diets as there are so many factors to consider, energy, health, happiness etc.  I was veggi for 15 years then started eating meat again, then diagnosed celiac 8 yrs ago, now have immune disorder.  The boy has Asthma and Eczema.  I have spent months reading, researching and absorbing info on diet and how to protect your immune system and have now made a decision.

We will eat an intuitive diet!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Not one with a name or a title, just one that feels right.  Broadly speaking it is veggi / vegan but more importantly always wholseome and fresh, local and flavoursome, home grown and seasonal whenever possible.

INTUITION - meaning right for us and how we are feeling and what are we feel we need

Full of fresh flavours and textures, sometimes lightly cooked 
Freshly baked bread - for those who eat it in the family
Lots of soups and dips
Lots of salads and Fruits
No gluten or dairy for me but a little cheese for the other guys
Lots of lovely olive oil
Food made with thought and love
Very little sugar
A few rare meaty treats for the carnivores in the home 
Freezer jam (no sugar)
Lots of whole foods inc: Chestnut and Chickpea Flour
Sprouting beans and pulses

NO - limitations, just common sense, intuition, a sense of wellbeing, experimental cooking and lots of fun

Tonight - Homemade gluten free garlic mushroom pizza, avocado salad and fruit
Tomorrow - the great cereal bar experiement!

Friends and Fun

Today was meant to be a stay at home do nothing day, but as it turned out it was actually a wonderful day for the children filled with fun and the very best of friends.

AA was whisked off for the day to the mountains for some snowy play and hotdogs (-4) at Monte Amiata about 2 hours from here, this was very special as the boy has been so patient with me being unwell, the day away was just what he needed - thanks to a thoughtful friend.  To make up for this I took TT to San Giminagno for icecream, only to discover it was the start of the Carnevale festa so a huge Panda balloon had to be squeezed into Peter Panda (the car) to come home.  Lovely sunny morning, the streets were peaceful pre-festa and cafes empty (will be madness tonight).

Tried to take the dog out with TT on the bike but the kittens followed so had to backtrack and shut them in the shed then made it out for about an hour, then another friend called after returning to Italy and came to play, the girls dressed up as princesses in TT's new and unexpected present a v. girly pink long fairy outfit, we drank tea and watched the sun slip over the hills.

As you can tell from the tone of my blog I am feeling so much better today, I had soup with 'lumps' in yiipppeeeee - another present from a great friend.  Homemade pumpkin and butternut soup  - I was given a massive jug full and added some left over veg chopped up into little bits - this was a real treat for me.

This morning in the bath I could hear my neighbour playing Christmas carols on the piano and I thought maybe this was a sign to focus on things to come, Christmases of the future etc.

Managed to make some very OK things yesterday:  Banana bread, oaty bread and a rather good sticky chocoate pudding, the old fashioned kind were the sauce magically goes from the top to the bottom whilst cooking, it was great I am told (I don't eat cake). For now some pics of the last few days - playing cards in the garden, hunting for pine cones, playing with the kittens, tea parties, playing catch etc.

Focusing on the goodstuff

Feeling shattered and fuddle headed I am finding it so hard to me the mummy I want and need to be.  The pain I am in is draining me and making me forgetful.  Not being able to speak clearly is worrying for the children and frustrating for me and Gary.  I had a mashed Banana today and some veg stock but this is all I have had this week.  I hope to see a homeopath next week and start taking a alternative approach to this disease (Behcets Syndrome).

On the brighter side - The sun is shining, the washing on the line is drying, the kittens are playing, the old dog sleeping, the air is fresh and the future so promising. x

Bloody Health

Fed up.  I have so many things that need doing including proposals for work, overdue features and the house is overflowing with dog fur and dust.

Spent this afternoon at the hospital booking in for more bloody tests to determine what Immunity Disorder I have, how to live with it and how to treat it!  I will be admitted in Feb for a couple of days which is a bummer, if your immunity is low, then visiting a hospital is like entering a dangerzone.  In the meantime I am coping with over 30 mouth ulcers and a sense of humour failure!  On top of my being a grump, I feel guilty for feeling blue as there are so many people in far worse situations around the world right now and I am moaning about dust!

Any how - I spent 1 hour speaking Italian to the specialist then an 1 hour with TT's teachers so am pleased with my language progress at least, although with the poorly mouth I sound like I am pissed - I would like to be actually.  On the bright side, the kitten who yesterday risked death by falling asleep in the engine of our neighours van is totally OK but very spooked, when Gianni turned on the engine the cat shot out from inside the bonnet - Romy is now on 8 lives!

Spent last night writing a huge list of vegan and gluten free recipes for me to try once I feel like eating again, I am simply just taking honey and lemon and camomile tea at the moment as cannot chew or swallow well.  I am determined to boost my immune system with diet - I am looking into the daylight diet and going partially raw, but I do love warm food on cold days.  Food and cooking is such a big part being me, growing it, preparing it, sharing it etc...........  I hate restricting my diet but I will do ANYTHING to regain my health.

Kids in the bath and Babo watching over them whilst ironing - yes he does that too, mostly because I don't.  We share all the chores and childcare as we work together in the business and he has higher standards than I do on the housekeeping front so can't leave things long - wheras I can.   Things I am looking forward to..

Light mornings
Clear skies
Budding flowers
Cherry Blossom
The Sea
Green grass
Daffodils
Peaches on the tree
Eating outside
Open windows
Prosecco
Roasted Mushrooms
Asparagus
Balmy evenings
Long walks
Reading in the garden

xxxx

Resource on Tuscan Recipes, Life, Culture, Trips, Vacations, all about Tuscany

Resource on Tuscan Recipes, Life, Culture, Trips, Vacations, all about Tuscany

Good Day

Love this song and thanks to http://createcorner.blogspot.com/ you can enjoy the feeling to.  Thanks for sharing.  This if for my children who hate Monday mornings x

Fresh Air in Tuscany

Yesterday we had a wonderful lunch with family and friends and it left me feeling renewed and inspired to get out and do more things out of the home. Late in the night I went out and watched star filled sky and felt the urge to go to Castellina in Chianti where you can view so much of Tuscany from up on a very high hill.


So today TT and I took some food and water and drove way up into the hills through woodland, over rivers alongside vineyards and dusky greenolive groves, you could noticely feel the temperature dropping the higher we went. We saw fluffy bob tailed deer in the distance, we walked around the town and explored little alleys, country paths and watched the world go buy, cats playing, people chatting, you could hear the sounds of many families preparing lunch from apartments along the way and the aromas of garlic and roasting meats drifted through the streets. Neighbours chatted from balcony to balcony and some very smart people were enjoying aperitivos in the company of their jumper wearing small dog - very Italian.

We played in the park and looked for fairies in the holes of the castle walls, we followed the water running under the road, we studied a fallen tree and smelled its damp piney scent. Later on with energy levels waining we stopped for hot milk and a salami panino in a small cafe and Tabby bobbed around to the jazz music playing in the bar. Later we refilled our water bottles for home (essential) and slowly drove back to our old house overlooking the lake and the valley. Today was so cheery, no squabbles just us girls cruising around taking in the view and big gulps of cool crisp Tuscan air.


Now the fire is lit and the supper is in the oven - very simple Turkey Thigh (Less that 2 Euro) roast potatos, veg and mushroom gravy. The man made choc and banana muffins whilst us girls were out which will be great for pudding and for school snacks this week. I am all packed for my crazy 2 day visit to frozen London (work) and leave tomorrow pm back Wed night and hate leaving my nest and my folk, but needs must and I want to get rid of as many outgoings as possible so working hard this year will allow us to pay a few things off and buy a stufa (wood burner) for the kids room as our old house is soooo cold. The bath is running and the children are curled up under blankets by the fire with a movie slowly letting the evening fall upon us all.


Awaiting eagerly the snowdrops and crocus, daffodils and hyacith, cherry blssom and acacia buds - roll on spring. x

Settling times

Finally, we are back in some kind of rhythm all be it a soggy one. I managed to squeeze in an afternoon in the potting shed and have prepped 30 pots to bring on in readiness of the horto (veg patch) being warm and dry, but for now the rain continues. I think we have had at least 10 days of serious downpours over Christmas, a damp and dingy new year but one full of hope and cheer.


The last few days have been so hectic, we have had TT's 5th birthday celebrations yesterday - big lump in my throat to know that my darling daughter is growing so fast. We went to the cinema and watched the Princess and the Frog - a good adaptation of an old classic. We have stomped in puddles, skidded in sludge and enjoyed a day of snow again, but mostly big black skies filled with water.

Fuzzy warm good things


2 fruit loaves rising by the open fire
The homemade fishcakes browning in the oven
2 young souls playing on the stairs
The candlelight flickering on the mantle
The homebaked bread made by the man
The twitchy kittens eager for the rain to vanish
The old boy hound frowning at the gloomy sky
The long delayed presents still dueto arrive
The lovely wise people we will see on Saturday
The endless possibilities tomorrow may bring
Befana - the good witch came and left goodies
The bulbs peeking through the grass

For now a few pics of the children taken with Granny and Grandad at the weekend. x

Birdsong

Finally the rain has stopped and I can see the sky mottled blue in the distance.  I am so glad to say farewell to 2009 as it was a trying year on so many levels.  Health and financial issues made every week a battle to keep going, but we have, we did and we are still here and still enjoying the views.

This morning the birdsong is really loud, lots of chattering and chirping, I guess the birds hate the rain too, or maybe they are all warning each other that the naughty kittens are now loose in the garden.

A relaxed but busy day today after a long day cleaning the house and doing timesheets and invoices for my PR work yesterday.  We have friends coming for lunch - new friends so it will be nice to get to know them more.  I am cooking meatballs and mashed potatos with 3 cheeses mixed in for the normal people and potatos, passata and greens for me as am not 100% today and need to keep my immune system bouncing along.  I think the occasional chocolate and bits of dairy over Christmas may have triggered a bit of a problem so there will be no more dithering for me, vegan it is for the next couple of months to see how I feel then.

The boys are at a football match where the younger is playing in a tournement - this is a big thing here in Italy, football is close to religon, not my thing at all but all the families are really friendly and helpful and Archie seems pretty damn good at it when he wants to.

The children are off to the Nono's later for a sleepover as I really, really wanted to take G out for a belated birthday celebration, not sure whether to do the cinema or a train to Florence for a drink and a walk around the old town? Iceskating was a huge hit on New Year's eve so we hope to book a season ticket next winter and take the children several times so we can all get the hang of it better.  For now though I must crack on with food prep as loafing in my PJ's won't get lunch on the table. xx  Auguri

Things I am loving right now - earthships and ecodomes, one day!