kelly and her boys

yep, it’s the end of march and i’m back in school. just one class right now. psychology. it’s an 8 week class and one week is already done. the weird thing was driving on to campus and finding a plethora of parking spaces available. how is that possible? did all the students quit after spring break? are there really that many fewer classes? whatever the reason, i’m glad i don’t have to show up 30-45 minutes early to get a parking space. 9 a.m. is early enough for me.

i really wasn’t planning to go back to school just now but the opportunity presented itself and i took advantage. i also wanted to take this particular class while clayton was home to help me with it. he loved his psychology class last year in high school. at least i have someone to talk to about what i am learning. maybe he can even help me write an awesome paper. i only have to write one, but it is a big chunk of my grade. any help i get will be great!

so, wish me luck. i’ll report back in 7 weeks with my grade…

here’s a random picure since my last few posts have been photo-free.this is one of the many sunset pictures nick took in montana. this one happened on may 10, 2008.

i made a last-minute trip to utah to see nick. delta offered me a great deal and i took it. i left saturday from orange county and flew into salt lake. i rented a car, drove to nick’s apartment and went right to dinner with nick, his friend joel, and joel’s girlfriend tarah. we had a great time and a lovely dinner at the olive garden. afterwards, we went bak to nick’s apartment, he changed and got ready for his concert, and joel and tarah went on to the second half of their date.

when nick was ready, we walked to campus together to the harris fine arts center. he gave me a mini tour of campus along the way. then i had the amazing opportunity to see nick perform again with the byu men’s chorus. the women’s chorus went first, then the men’s chorus. it was the best! i loved every minute of it, especially watching my son perform and use his talent. the songs were inspiring, moving, funny, and fun. they received a standing ovation and it was very well deserved!

after the totally amazing concert, we viewed our friend kati ellis’ photography exhibit. it was beautiful, and very fun to know the people in all of the pictures. then we took  the long way home and i got another mini tour of another part of campus. we went into the eyring science building to see the giant pendulum. what is it about those things that makes you want to watch them for so long? we had a nice chat and i left nick at his apartment so he could go to work at 11:00. (poor guy) i drove on to denise’s in orem and it was fun to see her and chat for a bit before heading off to bed. i was exhausted.

sunday morning i met a wonderful girl. corrin is the girl that has stolen kenneth’s heart. she’s a great girl and i was so impressed at the wonderful young lady kenneth has chosen to spend his life with. she even loves him, too! we only had about an hour to visit, but i knew in that short time that she was the right girl for kenneth. i’m excited to get to know her better.

after that was church with denise and bruce. it was a great meeting. when we got home from church, denise and i (mostly denise) worked on getting dinner ready while bruce worked on moving his photos to the new iphoto, and kept the lovely church music going. then, i went to pick up nick for dinner. kelly (my nephew) came to dinner, too and he barbecued the ham steaks while i was out getting nick. we has a lovely dinner (as always at denise’s house-she’s a great cook).

we spent some time with the family talking and such, then nick and i took off to the basement and had a nice long chat together. that was the best. i just love that one-on-one time. i took him home around 11:30, and of course got weepy when he had to leave. our weekend together was over. it was the best, though.

more later…

now it’s wednesday the 18th. i’ll finish my post;

monday morning i got to sleep in a bit, but my body is so used to getting up early that i really didn’t sleep, just rested. denise had a meeting to go to at 9, so she was off pretty early. i didn’t have to leave fro the airport till 11:30 so i called colby to see if i could stop by and say hi. i missed him on saturday because he had a date. so, lucky for me he was free. so, i packed up, said goodbye to bruce and went over to colby’s apartment.

when i arrived i soon discovered that bryce (his brother) was there, too. so i got to visit with both of them for about and hour. what fun! they kept me laughing! it was great to see them. then i was off to the airport. i was a bit nervous about returning my car and getting to my plane on time. but, it all went very well and i arrived in plenty of time. (you can tell i’m not a frequent flyer or car renter.)

while on my flight i was thinking about how amazing airplanes are and i was so grateful for all the past scientists and “smart people” that made it possible for me to spend two days so far away, and not have to spend so much time traveling there. airplanes are truly a modern miracle. i was even thinking about how they try to seat you comfortably, bring you food and drinks, play movies or tv shows to entertain you, and there’s even a little light above your head and air to blow on you if you’re warm. i am very grateful. i wish i could afford to do it more often!

and, no, i didn’t take any pictures. i took two cameras but never used them. i so wish i had!

i have been undergoing a “lifestyle” change for the past year and a half. so many people don’t understand my choices, so here is my opportunity to explain.

in may of 2007 i took a nutrition class at saddleback. at the time, the sole purpose of taking the class was to fill a requirement for my degree. it was an 8 week class, condensed from the normal semester-long course. (i like the shorter, speedier way of going to school.) well, this class changed my life. i learned so much about diet , nutrition, and health that it sent me searching for more. once i understood how foods react in our bodies, i took a closer look at what i was eating and why i was eating it.

then, around the beginning of 2008 i talked with a friend who has been living a (mostly) vegetarian lifestyle for some time. i asked her what made her choose that and she told me about her husband’s struggle with high blood pressure and how he didn’t want to take medication to fix it. they found a couple of books that they shared with me to show me what they had learned.

the first book is called “original fast foods” and the second one is “the china study” (there’s more to the title, but a search will bring up the right book title for you.) i read the first one and was impressed by this man’s story and realized that there was some truth there. it also talked about many things i had been thinking about since my nutrition class. then i read the china study and was equally impressed. it was like that doctor was in my head. the actual research aside, his findings and personal views seemed to hit home to me.

then, i not only became interested in a vegetarian diet, but i started moving toward a vegan diet. i lost 30 lbs almost without trying. i have never lost that much weight at once, ever! i also noticed how my face has cleared up and how i don’t seem to get sick anymore, even when my family is sick. i feel better, i sleep better, and i love finding new fun recipes that are absolutely delicious!

my family hasn’t made the change with me. they, along with most of my friends, think i’m crazy. one friend even said, “i don’t understand why you’re making yourself miserable.” i, however, am not miserable and i feel so much better than i have in a long time!

i did give up junk food-sweets, fast food, etc. i don’t miss it. seriously. when i think about how completely useless, and mostly harmful it is to me, i don’t even want it! try looking up the nutrition facts for your favorite fast foods. you will be shocked at how very incredibly unhealthy it is! for example, an in-n-out vanilla shake is 900 calories. that’s half the day’s calories in one drink! and, what benefit do you get? nothing. maybe a bit of calcium, but is it worth all the fat and calories?

i don’t consider myself a true vegan or vegetarian. i’m somewhat of a mix of the two. i do, however, have meat on occasion. i try to make it a healthier choice like salmon or chicken. but i will admit, an occasional burger is good, too. it is a very rare occasion now, though.

i have recently discovered the most amazing thing. non-hydrogentaed butter and shortening. yippee! it is rather pricey, but so much better for you. no trans fat! the world could definitely do without trans fat. whoever came up with that horrible stuff definitely did us all a great injustice. the non-hydrogenated stuff works exactly like it’s unhealthy counterpart. you will not notice a difference. it is so amazing! ok, it is still butter and shortening, both fats, but anything in moderation is ok, right? to me, moderation is too liberal a word, the word should be “sparingly.” i don’t use much shortening, but since my family still eats the old way, i do have to try and add some healthier alternatives. hence the non-hydrogenated butter.

i have enjoyed finding vegan substitues for my “regular” family meals. i purchased a fun cookbook called “vegan with a vengeance”. i love her corn chowder! chowder that is milk-free and cheese-free is soooo amazing! and you thought it couldn’t be done. you’d be surprised at how much better the vegan stuff tastes. and, you will be doing yourself a huge, healthy favor.

i also look for recipes that are naturally meat and dairy-free. i made pasta last night and replaced the meat with bell peppers. yum!!! i used red, green, and yellow, sliced them up and sauteed them in a bit of olive oil until they were crisp-tender, tossed the pasta sauce on top and ladled it over some penne pasta (whole wheat pasta, of course). it was so good! i found the recipe online. i also found other equally amazing recipes online. i have a tortilla soup recipe (vegan, of course) that is the best tortilla soup i have ever had. and, yes, i’ve tried a lot of them.

well, i guess that’s enough for now. i hope this helps you understand my new choices a little better. i am totally happy with my new “lifestyle”. it has made all the difference to me.