Followers

Wednesday, November 14, 2018

Back on Track

Welcome to the farm!

Do you ever have a time when you feel like life has gotten totally off track? We are there right now! Getting back on the road seems like it may never happen...Let's eat!! (Yes, I do turn to junk food in times of stress, more about that later.)

So here we go...keto! This week we are cooking up some special foods from our friends at Keto Connect, thanks Matt and Megha! Their blog is full of recipes that you will love and that will make you forget that you are in the middle of a life change. Supper tomorrow night will be The original zero carb pizza crust recipe here with some of our tastiest toppings! Your own taste dictates the toppings you use, we will try some mushrooms and hamburger with a sprinkling of mozzarella cheese. Those are our favorite toppings for pizza. For sauce I will use tomato sauce with tomato chunks and a bit of Italiano seasoning mixed in.  On Friday daughter #2 and her kiddos are coming over for supper so I have to cook something that looks like real food, or they will not eat it. So, in steps the meatloaf at Keto Perfect recipe here with a few tweaks.  I like meatloaf that is smothered in something! so I found this barbeque sauce that is only 2 carbs per serving....Tada
Slather your meatloaf with this before baking...YUM! (available at Target)

The stresses in life seem insurmountable at times, and this seems like one of those times. When and HOW did we get so sidetracked? The more I fight to get "normal" back the further away it seems. Normal, to me is just what you are used to and comfortable in. I am not comfortable when I get home at 5:30 and am not even sure what I planned to have for supper so we eat junk; when the house is such a mess we cannot even find the remote control (although this could be a good thing); when the laundry has not been done in so long the farmer has no socks to wear to work, if he could only find his shoes! When normal has slipped away I do not know how to get it back! The harder I try the further behind I slide. What am I doing wrong?? The Bible says "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me!" Why am I not seeing this happen? Why do I feel so out of control? I am using all of the strength I can muster and still things are a mess.

The air is crisp as I sit on the patio ready to read my morning devotion. I do love to sit outside in the cool morning air and let God speak to me. Lately, though, I have not heard Him much...but life has been so hectic! As I pick up my phone to open my Bible app I notice how bright my screen seems. There is nothing to see as I look beyond my phone, everything is pitch black! As I ponder this, how dark it is, something else seems out of the ordinary, there is no sound. There is no sound of the birds waking up, no farm animal noises, no owls "talking" to each other, no rustling of leaves as the wind is calm. As I am in awe of this moment in time, God speaks..."When you are still, you will hear Me."

WOW! When was the last time I was still? When was the last time I was quiet? When was the last time I was listening? How can God speak to me if I am not listening? NOW I know why it is not working, my struggle get things back to normal...my fingers take me to Philippians 4:13; the scripture that reads "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me", NOT I can do all things myself! But "through Christ". What words of truth will God speak to me when I listen?  I will hear how order can return when I let my Creator be in control once more. Who knows me better than He? He moves as I listen and trust. When I first became a Christian, God did not change me overnight. Over the years he has molded and refined me into what He wants me to be, and I am still a work in progress. There have been ALOT of ups and downs, this is one of many, but the thing is that on my own I am a mess, I am a sinner. We all are, and we are all in need of a savior. FAITH in Christ as my Savior is all I have ever needed! And now, FAITH will get me back on track. FAITH that God will lead me where He wants me to go. FAITH in where He will take me. Sometimes it takes life getting into a complete shambles before I am thankful for all that God gives me through FAITH. "Be still and know that I am God!"

Thank you for visiting the farm today! Come back often, we'll be waiting for you.

The Juhl's @
Sixth Day Farms






Wednesday, October 24, 2018

Welcome to the farm! 
John Denver had a song called "Thank God I'm a Country Boy." Did I just show my age by referencing John Denver, yes I am sure I did! If you are as young as I am you will remember that one of the lines from the song said that life on the farm was kinda laid back...WRONG! This has been one crazy month! First, I was gone for a couple of days the first week of October, then the farmer was gone for a week the second week of October, last week was parent teacher conference week, and this week was suppose to be a "normal" week. It has not been anything close to what I would call normal at all! 

My point in reviewing our schedule is this, the first thing to fly out the window when we have a "not normal" week is eating healthy. Any lifestyle change takes time to get used to and especially one that takes more planning and prep time than running to the drive thru at Wendy's for a couple of singles, fries, and a frosty. Is that food delicious? Absolutely! Is it good for me? Absolutely not! I thought we were used to the changes in our life, probably because there were no  challenges to our new found eating habits. Now that summer is long gone and the demands of two careers off the farm and a shared job on the farm are rearing their ugly heads, we need help. Enter, the calendar! Yes, yes I know that the calendar is not a new invention or even a revelation to most however, it is to me. It has come to my attention that along with the hundreds of lists I feel I need to make in order to get things done from one day to the next (does anyone relate?), I now need to make out a calendar of what meals to eat when, a list of foods to buy for that week, and a day to cook all of said food. 

I feel so much better just having a plan!! So, in honor of my plan I decided to visit some of my favorite keto cooking sites and write down a working list of meals that I feel will appeal to the farmer...I will eat most anything, he is the finicky one. I have placed links to a couple of these sites so you can check them out for yourself. One of the first things we did when deciding to go keto was to take one of those surveys to determine how much protein, fat, and carbs we should be ingesting every day. If you checked out the fasting book by Dr. Fung then you have a bit of an idea how often you are going to eat and how long you will fast. Both of these sites have all of the nutrition figured for you, no need to stress!! Check out the sites and try a couple of the recipes (don't forget dessert, it is important to keeping you satisfied and on track).



I think the hardest thing to come to terms with in this life is the fact that we are not in charge. I can plan and plan but unless I have consulted with God about His plan, my plan is nothing. Pray about the changes you are about to make in your life and ask for God to reveal the things He would like for you to change. Ask for help in discerning the vast amount of information on the WorldWideWeb. We cannot take everything at face value, in fact there are things out there that have absolutely NO value! I believe it is all about prayer and being intentional. God intends for us to be intentional in our relationship with Him, in caring for others, and in caring for ourselves. Finally, ask God to strengthen you in your walk with Him and in this new lifestyle. Let's do it all together, we can walk through this life the way God intended, supporting and celebrating one another!!

If you are enjoying your visit to the farm please follow us!

Thank you for visiting the farm today! Come back often, we'll be waiting for you.

The Juhl's @
Sixth Day Farms

Wednesday, October 17, 2018

Autumn Fun on the Farm

Welcome to the farm! 
The month of October is always SUPER busy on the farm. We open our home to men's groups, women's groups, youth groups, connection groups (another name for Sunday School classes), and literally anyone else who wants to come out and experience some fun farm fellowship. Every weekend in October is booked. We are so excited that God is using our home to reach out to others. We do cookouts, hay rides (if it's not raining), sheep shearing, hot chocolate, marshmallow roasting, and s'mores!! We have also been led to use this opportunity to share our new lifestyle with our friends (and a few strangers). 

Since June 23, 2018 we have been following the ketogenic diet. Not just changing our food but also incorporating a fast, which has really helped us to see results very quickly. The farmer is off all of his meds, no diabetes or high blood pressure meds. This really has been a God send for us to have found out about this and for us to have been able to be successful with it. We have found a few websites and books that have helped us navigate through the overwhelming sea of information out there. Several of our friends have asked us to share our experience with them, guiding as others have done for us. So, here we are!

The book that started this whole journey was written by Dr. Jason Fung. 


He has written this book and two others that totally captivated me but this one changed our lives. I can guarantee that this book will change your life too. I would suggest that you check out Dr. Fung's website to get started. There are many videos that will give you the science behind this lifestyle and why it works. Not only can you be drug free but you will feel better than you have in years and will have more energy than you know what to do with! 

Here is the link https://www.dietdoctor.com/intermittent-fasting to get you started on learning things that you probably have never been told and the beginning of a new life! I won't lie, it was hard in the beginning. My greatest advice for you in starting out is drink LOTS of water and think that you can, cause you are worth it!! God knew you before He formed you in the womb. He knows the plans He has for you, plans for good and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. Jeremiah 29:11 This was our hope and is our future, it is our prayer that it is hope and future for you too!

Thanks for visiting the farm today. Come back often, we'll be waiting for you.

The Juhl's @
Sixth Day Farms


Saturday, September 29, 2018

Celebrations

Welcome to the farm!
This week we are celebrating success and blessings. In June daughter #2 called and told me about a book she was reading that had to do with fasting and was written for diabetics. Since the farmer is a diabetic she thought it might be good for him. So I bought the book and our life has not been the same. This has been a total life changing experience for us and we have nothing but good things to say about our new lifestyle...now that is. For the first month the farmer told everyone that I was trying to starve him to death! Thankfully no one REALLY believed him. He has me to thank for that 30 pound drop in weight and he complains no more! But seriously this has been a God send. On June 23rd we began our first fast, 42 hours without food. That was the last time the farmer took his diabetic medications or his blood pressure meds. He has been totally medication free for 3 months!! His blood sugars are that of a non-diabetic person! If you want to talk about a reason for celebration, this is it! We are excited to be able to share another piece of our story and to be able to walk along side anyone who wants to come along. Are we perfect, no! Is it easy, no! Are the rewards worth it, totally! 
God never gives us the easy way for anything, easy does not shape us into what He wants us to be. We are God's chosen people, chosen at creation, did you get that? CHOSEN AT CREATION, let that sink in a minute...before you were born He knew you. God created you for a specific purpose. God is our Potter, he is moulding and making us into what He wants each of us to be. No it is not an easy path, but the rewards are well worth it. I struggle daily with the things of the world, I am so thankful for a Father who meets me where I am and gently guides me on His path, when I stumble He picks me up and says "Try that again, let Me lead this time!" 

We are excited for this new path that God has set before us in being able to share our lives with you. We have been asked many times about our diet and have even been asked if we would share our tips and recipes on our blog (when we had one!) More on that next time! 

Thanks for visiting the farm today. Come back often, we'll be waiting for you.

The Juhl's @
Sixth Day Farms

Wednesday, September 26, 2018

Welcome to the farm!
This week has been super busy preparing for the new season, yes Autumn is  officially here. This is my favorite season with beautiful colors that only God can create. Try as we may we cannot create such beauty with our man made attempts. But that does not keep us from trying with our "faux" flowers and perfectly shaped autumn colored leaves, gourds, pumpkins, and myriad of other "real" items we place all over our homes. Just yesterday I finished creating this lovely fall scape on our farm table. (Two items on the table are real!!)







KISS method applied here! Using a few random jars to display flowers, leaves, and scarecrow heads (yes just the head, sounds creepy I know but they are cute) was all this table needed to scream "Fall is here!" A couple more random photos of the outdoors...not finished with this canvas but here is what we have so far.


Fall is the time of year when all of nature sheds the old preparing for the sleep of the winter and the renewal of all things in Spring. We all need time to shed what has been bogging us down, slow down for rest, and prepare for the renewal of our minds and spirits. God never intended for us to shoulder all that we do, we sometimes have to let everything "fall" in order to let God bloom in us! Fall is one of the busiest times of year on the farm so we have learned that you have to be purposeful about going slow, it does not happen naturally. "Be still and know that I am God." Psalm 46:10

Thanks for visiting the farm today. Come back often, we'll be waiting for you.

The Juhls' @
Sixth Day Farms