Pregnant again, Out on the East Coast and A Rash

Okay, so I haven't blogged in a while.  Three crazy kids, and a hubby who changes his mind about work a lot have recently thrown me out into the incredible little town of Lancaster, PA.  So here I am now.

Long story short, Alex is out doing sales again.  Who knows if I'll ever catch up on posting Christmas photos and other videos.  Maybe I will.  Eventually.  But I guess I'm giving up on trying to catch up.  I get this crazy sense of not being able to blog unless I catch up.  Anyone else ever experience that?  It's the same way when I journal.  It's silly though.  I'm missing out on writing current thoughts because I have to wait to catch up?!  So, here's to overcoming the OCD freak inside of me.

Lately, I believe many view me as the health freak on top of it all.  Okay, perhaps sometimes I do become freaky.  But my post tonight is about expressing to all that I'm not perfect.  Sometimes I feel like I say that and people don't believe me.  Maybe it's because when others say that to me about something I genuinely compliment them on, I DON'T believe them.  I have a tendency to think of others as so perfect.  But what woman hasn't done this at some point, right?  Who hasn't had thoughts of how perfect the neighbor next door is with her 5 kids and then thought, "Why can't I be more like her with my one?"

Anyways, I'm getting off subject.  I guess the point I wanted to make in this post is simply that just because I'm a huge advocate of good health, green juices, natural remedies and essential oils, doesn't mean I'm the perfect example of using them.  Do I give in to temptation?  Of course I do.  Do I fall off the health bandwagon?  Absolutely!  I can't begin to describe how guilty I feel sometimes about the things I do that are not in line with my latest ideals of good health.  Did I eat a huge bag of cinnamon bears on our road trip out here?  Yes!  I admit it.  Wow, it feels good to be honest.

I'm not about to ever go back to over-indulging in the lifestyle I once had.  When I fall off, I get up and say to myself, "Oh well, I'll start over again."  The truth is, I'm not really starting over again.  Perfecting any one habit, whether it's health related or not, can take an entire lifetime to achieve.  It's an ongoing process.  But it's one I'm passionate about enough to truly want to share with others so that they too can benefit.  Which is why sometimes I get overly excited and share too much and freak people out.  If I've ever done this to you, please forgive me for my weaknesses.

I guess my main reason for writing this post today is to share my weaknesses.  Someday perhaps my daughter or sons may have a similar predicament and I want them to KNOW, their mother was never perfect.  She only did the very best she knew.  Whether it's the junk I ate on the road out here, or pregnancy hormones, or different allergens/toxins in the environment, I seem to have developed an interesting rash on my arms, ankles and cheeks.  And yes, I am pregnant again.  I guess this post will serve as the official blog announcement.  Poor baby gets such little blog time.  But we're excited to enjoy our third little boy come Sept 2nd, or earlier.  You never know.

So why am I talking about my rash?  Well, one reason is possibly to just vent about how frustrating it feels to itch all over and not know exactly how to treat it.  I know, you're probably thinking, "But wait, you're the green juice and smoothies gal!  You're the essential oils gal!  You're the all natural, home birthing weirdo who picks wild edibles and eats them!  Surely you already have the answer and solution to your ailment!"  Well, sometimes I'd like to think I have all the answers.  But Heavenly Father has definitely humbled me in the past couple of days as I've diligently searched for remedies with little to no avail.

It's true I believe that good nutrition can support the immune system enough for people to avoid and ward off most common ailments.  It's true that since I started on this health journey three years ago that I rarely get sick the way I used to.  But even the best health gurus sometimes experience nutritional deficiencies and have to use outside help and testing to analyze what is going on inside the body.  My most recent blood tests recently showed a slight anemia.  It makes sense.  I don't eat much meat or dairy.  So it's difficult for my body to get sufficient iron and protein if I don't have enough variety in my plant foods.  Especially if lately, I've indulged in some donuts and croissants and not really focused on creating healthy meals.  ;)  I mean C'mon, a pregnant lady has some room for a donut or two, or sometimes three in one 5 minute sitting.  Right?  Okay, seriously now, on one occasion I did have six.  But who's counting?

Reason number two I post this:  Perhaps to just get a little sympathy and maybe some good advice from anyone who may have already experienced this particular frustration.

Reason number three:  Since I plan to take action on trying a few different things to cure and heal my body, I want to later document what it was that did and did not work for me.  Maybe some poor soul somewhere out there in blog land will be searching for an answer to pregnancy rash in the future and happen to stumble across my account.  And if by any chance it will be useful to her, I will rest happy, knowing I could be of some help to the poor gal who had to endure the same trial I did.

Anyways, sorry this is so long.  I just needed an outlet for my latest frustration on this night as I desperately try not to scratch my itchy and inflamed skin, that for now, I will blame on the beautiful trees that are covered in the most colorful blossoms I've ever seen out here in Lancaster.