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Mind Reading

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Words of Wisdom I received lately:

“What other people think is none of your business.”

I have a problem with trying to read people’s minds, even when I know I can’t. I think it comes from my desire to please the people I admire and love. I also believe that I have good discernment of others; I don’t know if that is really true, but I believe it nonetheless.  I think I have a good motivations, but mind reading is a revealing and bad habit. 
My therapist asked me what I thought a certain person was thinking. It was easy for me to spout off thoughts I guessed the person had of me–it was not very nice. Then she said, “Do you think that about other people? (I tilted my head at the question.) She went on, “Many times the thoughts we project on people are thoughts that we have of others.”
Figurative jaw drop for me. What? Me…judgmental and impatient of others? Never! 
Like I said, mind reading is a bad habit that does no one any good and usually reveals more about yourself than about others. 
My new goal is to mind my own business and be the best version of myself without worrying what others are thinking. I have decided that if someone likes me, their actions will be louder than their words or silent thoughts, anyways. 
Say no to mind reading my friends! 
Cheers to healthy minds and hearts! 
Am I the only one that does this? How do you steer clear of mind reading?
Best, 
Lucy Jo

The Martian and Antibiotics

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We have been very sick at our house. Cody missed two days of work and ended up with antibiotics for strep throat. I was not feeling well, but being 36 weeks pregnant, I wanted to see if I could beat it without prescriptions. Nope. I went to the doctor and was diagnosed with a sinus infection and strep. I am on antibiotics now and I am finally feeling a bit better. Jane has battled flu symptoms on and off for weeks and Maurie has fared pretty well, other than some sleepless nights.

One of the days that it snowed all day, we were all at home hibernating and feeling miserable. We decided to watch a movie. We watched The Martian with Matt Damon in it. I wanted to read the book because it came highly recommended, but I wanted to see the film too. Anyways, as we watched the movie, I remembered wanting to be an astronaut at about eight years old. The NASA program was still very strong and I desperately wanted to go to the Kennedy Space Camp in Florida. I remember looking at the pamphlet my teacher gave me over and over. I dreamed of experiencing zero gravity and being admired for being smart enough to be an astronaut. I discussed going to the camp with my mom, but I knew that we couldn’t afford it. Later, I thought about space again when I got invited to a science conference for girls who excelled in math and science in middle school. The STEM careers lack women and still does. I felt like it would be really cool to pave the way for other girls. As most of you know, I took a different path, but I have a special place in my heart for those who have been smart enough and brave enough to enter the STEM careers.

The Martian movie was awesome and it confirmed to me that I would not have enjoyed being an astronaut despite my earlier interest. Space is far too vast…scary, and I have to admit that over time I lost confidence in my math skills and this would have expedited to my early death if I were left on Mars by myself =) You don’t have to have had a childhood dream of flying into space to enjoy the film though. It was a great watch with humor, triumph and intensity. We watched it on VidAngel, which is an awesome site for streaming new movies from home. Check it out here.

Also, we enjoyed watching The War Room and Akeelah and the Bee while we were sick.

What careers did you fantasize about through your life? What good movies have you watched lately?

I hope you are enjoying good health and surviving, even enjoying winter.

Best,
Lucy Bowman

Allergies and Epi-pens

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I have not written for so long because so much has happened that has been out of my control. My sweet at-the-time 7 month old had a severe allergic reaction to peanut butter. I was dipping an apple in peanut butter and she got a small amount on her finger and brought it to her mouth. The results were scary. Her lip grew about 3 inches, her face broke out in hives and I thought she was actually wheezing. She could barely see because her eyes had swollen so much. She was not okay and neither was I. We rushed to the ER and when they saw her, they admitted her immmediately. Thankfully she was breathing fine and we just had to get the swelling down. The ER doctor said in the 30+ years of practicing he had not seen a baby so young have such a bad allergic reaction.  Since then I have done a lot of research and yes, crying. We have gone through one doctor/allergist and we are on to another. I am frantically searching for answers. She still suffers from terrible excema on her cheek and chin and I have been pinpointing foods she reacts to. Her reactions range from hives, itchy face/ears, runny nose to terrible stomach pain. Since I am still breastfeeding, I have eliminated sugar, legumes, gluten, and dairy. We also cannot have strawberries and apples so far. It has been a challenging journey and it is not over. To all those moms out there that have children with allergies and diet issues, I am beginning to understand just how hard it can be. Outside of losing weight, nothing about this experience has been fun. I so desperately want my daughter to heal and I want to find the cause of the allergies, not just a new cream or medicine. Right now gut health is where I am going to focus my energies and she will get an allergy test tomorrow. She is still such a happy baby and I am so grateful she is mine. Now to keep fighting for her health and well-being. 

I hope you are all well.

Best,
Lucy

Yoga

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As much energy as she takes, she gives. Maurie Lu, I love you!

I have a new love…YOGA. I feel like someone has been hiding yoga from me all these years. All the ladies 18 and up at my church get together monthly for an activity and this time a certified yoga instructor came to teach us healthy living and yoga. The instruction on healthy eating was a great reminder and I have been doing really well eating whole foods, but the yoga is what changed me. Somewhere between the downward dog and the guided meditation I forgot I had two children and a husband at home. I felt like someone had handed me a free bag of positive energy. I felt renewed and relaxed. For the first time in a long time I was breathing in the moment. My mind was calm and I didn’t think about anything in particular. I was very disappointed when another woman there tapped me and told me Cody was out in the hall with a crying baby waiting to speak to me. I felt like someone had interrupted something very important and I was anxious to get back. I wanted yoga to last a lot longer! I should have hugged the yoga instructor (she was awesome) for giving me this new gift.

So, yesterday, after eating a nutritious breakfast, I went to Walmart in search of a way to get that feeling back and loose the pregnancy flab. Walmart kindly had all that I needed in a center aisle on sale. At first I was a little bothered that they anticipated me and the masses making New Year’s resolutions to start exercising, but then I decided to just be happy it was on sale. =) I bought yoga-ish pants and shirt, yoga mat and three yoga DVDs. I would much rather join a live class, but for now while my baby is so young, this will work. My name is Lucy Bowman and I have a goal of being healthy. My definition of health goes far beyond loosing weight; I want to be whole in mind, body and spirit. I will be doing a post on my favorite healthy foods, supplements and exercises soon.

What do you do to stay healthy?

Eat your greens and move around!

Lucy