Are you sick?

I have noticed a lot of my friends and family are sick right now. I also notice, it seems like the same people are sick again and again. If this applies to you, can you take an honest assessment of your diet (I really mean honest) and determine if you are consuming too much sugar? Sugar is the number one culprit to lower your immune system. You can load up on all the vitamins in the world, but if you are eating loads of sugar all day long, the vitamins are virtually not assimilated. Sugar makes your blood thicker, less slippery and messes with a whole host of hormones (insulin, cortisol, serotonin, adrenalin to name a few).

Sugar comes in many forms, and some of them, in small quantities, are okay. But if you are eating white sugar, white bread and bottled fruit juices, you are basically just eating sugar. Bottled fruit juices are pure sugar. They have been pasteurized to the point of being nutritionally void, thus rendering them to be sugar syrup. Fresh squeezed or pressed juice still has vitamins, some pulp and the sugar is not quite as concentrated. If you can't do fresh juice, then just ditch the bottled stuff. Water is what is best for your body, anyway.

Ditch the white bread, even the junk that says "white wheat"; what a joke. It is garbage. It has no fiber, cheaply enriched vitamins and probably corn syrup as the sweetener. Your family may buck a little, but in time, they will grow to hate the white stuff. My guys HATE white pasta and white bread.

Just making this small change in your lifestyle, will greatly improve your immune system. There are many other things you can do to improve your defenses, but, in my opinion, this over consumption of sugar is often overlooked by do gooders who suggest garlic and vitamin C. Yes, garlic and Vit C will help your immunity, but not if your blood is the consistency of Karo.

Here's to a healthy 2011!!

Oh no, not another rant...

Here I go again, I just can't leave well enough alone. But enough is enough! I am so sick of the unprovoked war on Christians. I would venture to say that most Christians are rather peaceful, and really don't want to engage in warfare, but select groups who are so darn offended by us, are launching an all out war, especially on Christmas. Granted, I don't believe Christmas is a scriptural holiday, because there is not one mention of it in the Bible. Oh, the blessed birth of our savior is mentioned, but you will not find the word Christmas. Christmas is a man created holiday that happens to celebrate the birth of Christ. With that said, I find it to be an enjoyable holiday, especially for children.

But why, oh why, are we allowing this tiny percentage of people to bully us into putting away our nativity scene, Christmas tree, and not saying Merry Christmas? I would speculate these same people still gladly receive their Christmas bonus, turkey and day off. If they really wanted to be a believable group, they should go to work on Christmas day, donate their Christmas bonus to charity and give the holiday turkey to a needy family. Oh, wait, I think these same people also don't believe in charity - that is what the government is for....

Remember, Honor, Teach

That is the motto for Wreaths Across America. WAA raises funds for our national cemeteries and lays Christmas wreaths every December. All across our nation today at the national cemeteries, thousands of wreaths were laid by the Civil Air Patrol. A ceremony is then held where veterans, active duty and survivors gather to remember our fallen and honor them. We are supposed to teach our children about the people who have lost their lives for our country. It is always a very touching experience and I often have to choke back a few tears. It was so lovely this year to not be in the 20's!!! We also managed to stay dry!

Andrew was honored to serve in the color guard, along with our longtime friend, Journee. They did an excellent job and I was so proud of them. Michael had the honor of handing wreaths to some distinguished military members that will lay in honor of each branch of our military. Chris guarded the colors during the ceremony.

Several speeches were made, and one of them in particular really stood out. It was made by an active duty army soldier, who will be redeployed to Afghanistan after Christmas. His words really resonated with me, especially when he spoke so boldly about our freedom and how our nation was founded not only on Christian principles, but also founded on prayer. His speech was powerful and compelling and made me feel a little more hopeful.

Enjoy the pictures!