Choosing Health, Wealth and Happiness
2018 is long gone and it is past time that I took a peek at the goals I set for myself at the beginning of the year to see how I fared. Overall, I am pleased with how I did and have started the process of writing my 2019 goals. I wonder what it is like to be one of those people who have annual goals written by the beginning of the year. I wonder, but I don’t stress about or even bother to dream about it!
Quite a while ago, I made a shocking confession here at My Little Blue Kayak. I confessed to the world that I was having a love affair with someone incredibly important to me. She was laid back, easy-going and nice to look at; I am talking about my crock pot of course. I had started using it several times per month and really enjoyed coming home to a piping hot dinner that smelled awesome. Well, I have had my slow cooker for probably 20 years and she still works great. But it is time for a new confession; I haven’t used it in forever.
I have given my heart to another and don’t anticipate needing my crock pot, well ever. In October, we went on vacation with Number 9 and his wife and they brought their Instant Pot. When Mother Fran and Number 7 returned to Florida, I borrowed their Instant Pot from the cottage and began experimenting. In December my honey and I took the plunge and bought our own Instant Pot and I fell in love! I have officially joined the Instant Pot Fan Club. This pot has a bunch of different setting including saute, pressure cook, steam and can even make yogurt. Oh, it also has a slow cook function so goodbye crock pot!
If you read this blog at all, you have a pretty good idea that my Mom is super important to me. I affectionately call her Mother Fran and have learned so much from her as it relates to health, wealth and happiness. She is 91 years young and still enjoys playing bridge, cards, doing puzzles and reading on her kindle. Playing Canasta is her favorite past time and she is always ready for a match. I have inherited her love of games!
Mom has always been ahead of her time when it came to healthy eating. She only allowed the healthiest breakfast cereals in the house. I remember Product 19, Shredded Wheat (plain), and Grape Nuts. I used to try to sneak sugar into my cereal bowl to give it some taste! I don’t recall her cooking breakfast but Papa Jack would routinely cook eggs, pancakes, and French toast. Two vegetables were always on the dinner menu and fruit was always in the fridge when we were hungry. We had huge gardens and Mom used to send me out to pick the veggies right before dinner. I have inherited her interest in nutrition and healthy eating.
I remember she had a subscription to Prevention Magazine, always took vitamin supplements and tried to pass carob powder off as chocolate. We only ate whole grains, rarely had soda and the only time we had candy was on Halloween. I remember her swallowing a tablespoon of olive oil in the morning because she knew it was good for her.
Through her 80’s she used her arm weights, ankle weights and did seated yoga. She used to engage in exercise every day but over the last few years, her love of games has gotten in the way. Now, Child #7 makes her stretch her neck and do shoulder shrugs in between rounds of Canasta! She also used to listen to relaxation tapes daily and take long afternoon naps. I am kind of a nap failure but I do love my daily quiet time. Guess I inherited a need to take time to myself every day in order to recharge my batteries.
I have learned a lot about optimizing health from my Health Coach Training, reading a ton of books, listening to podcasts and modifying my own diet. I focus on making one good decision after another to reach my health goals. Recently, I have begun to track healthy habits in an App on my cell phone which has really helped me stay on top of my game! I have definitely inherited Mother Fran’s interest in living a healthy lifestyle.
Mother Fran is wonderful but she is not known for her patience. If she wants you to do something, she wants it NOW. I remember several years ago, I was resting on the deck after driving 6.5 hours to visit her. She asked if during my visit I could move a bunch of rocks that had fallen off a rock wall. I said sure and closed my eyes. About 30 minutes later, I see her carrying a large rock out of the corner of my eye. When I asked her why she was moving it, she said well you weren’t getting around to it! I am afraid I have inherited her lack of patience too!
As my honey and I gear up for a long visit with Mother Fran and Child #7, I look forward to sharing some of my favorite meals and newfound healthy living knowledge with her. I want to get her talking about her own interest in health living to see what she can teach me as well. I am 100% positive we will play hours upon hours of Canasta. We will hit the beach and some favorite restaurants. Who knows, maybe can brainstorm ways to improve our patience too!
I wonder what else I have inherited from Mother Fran???
Lake Girl!
Check out these articles to see how Mother Fran can influence you to choose health too!
Good health is incredibly important to me and it is my dream for all of us to grow old gracefully and with boundless energy. The way I see it, the daily decisions we make now will help to determine how healthy we will be as we age. In addition to writing about my own health journey, here at My Little Blue Kayak, I work as a health care professional, read books, blogs and listen to a variety of relevant podcasts. Last year, I became certified as a Health Coach through the National Society of Health Coaches and am exploring the possibilities of how I will use this certification to support others to improve their health thru lifestyle changes.
I work with a lot of people who suffer from one or more chronic diseases and by the time I meet them, their health is a major issue and will likely get worse, if they do not make lifestyle changes. It is not just my patients though, that live with chronic illness. I have family members and close friends that I love who deal with the pressures of obesity, diabetes, arthritis, heart disease and stroke. I am willing to bet that you know and love people who also live with a chronic illness. What are they one step away from?
