Long Time, No Sea

We have had our whole house in the same color the contractors originally painted it for the past four years. So I figured it was about time to choose a different color for at least my livingroom. I drove over to Sherwin WIlliams who provided the original pallet of our house colors to pick out a nice slate for the living room walls.

I originally chose the ‘Aloof Gray’. But once I started painting my walls… it was crazy. It looked BABY BLUE!!! And it wasnt even being painted on white… it was on an offwhite eggshell already! So yeah, definitely too cold for our house. It seemed nice on the swatch!

I went back in as I was panicking over my baby blue livingroom and they gave me another gallon of another color for free and I bought the original mis-matched color I brought back from them for $2.50! The color I picked was called Intellectual Grey . Its much darker and it a nice grey-toupe. After I come off my painting high Ill let you know how it turned out!

Nothing like having your brain oozing out your ears to remind you how ADHD you are. Im sitting here about to write and all I can think about is how much I wish that Joomla! was more like Wordpress. You have to still manually update everything, plugins, etc on Joomla still and even the SEO functions are not working well. Backing up is tough, at least RECOUPERATING a Joomla! site can be a feat, in itself- and all the while, Wordpress has figured that all out, already.

Last night, Jay and I watched the 35 minute feature film of ‘Lemonade‘ last night- it was quite inspiring! I want my own coffee roaster in my home now. My ideal home would be such a circus, people. I would have a personal coffee roaster I would roast my own beans with, drive-thru espresso window to serve people ‘Jyn’s Juice’. My art studio where I would paint and edit my photography in, inbetween photoshoots. Downstairs I would have a family room with cabinets for storing kid projects and assignments, a corner area for studying with vaulted ceilings and lots of light coming in through windows. Floor-to-ceiling bookcases filled with all sorts of books- old and new. I would have my own pantry filled with supplies to cook with, shelves with cases of cake decorating supplies and recipes…. the list is endless.

Just this morning I was thinking about how neat it would be to have a website called ‘The Village Traders’ that sold bulk items for storage and use for large families/ organizations. How nice it would be to have a 3 sectional cereal dispencer that fit on the bottom shelf of our pantry that could be refilled when pulled out. But it really would have to be a 3 section, deep- not tall. Im always coming up with ideas like that.

But, I’m already the Jyn-of-all-trades. I do the mom thing, the wife thing, the web design and photography thing, the blog thing, the cooking thing, the Youtube thing, the writing thing… I do the coffee thing the making-stuff thing…. I really would make a bad employee, ADHD makes for a bad career.

Sometimes I feel like one of those one-man-bands, walking down the hall with a drum, cymbals, harmonica, horn, guitar and accordian all strapped to my body…and a baby on my hip.

-Jyn

I have so much to do today! First of all, the sun is shining through the window. This is a HUGE booster because Oregon is so dull, rainy and dreary… I live in a den for weeks out of the year, it seems.

I have a shelf we got and some organizers that I have to find a home for. We really don’t have much wall space, it seems. Lots of odd angles and low windows and molding that makes it tough to really have many organizational units. I really need to find a way to build UP and less out.

I also need to call on this middle school for my daughter. I have never had to apply to a school before for my kids- so this is all new. We are looking at a magnet school which would be perfect for her. Lots to do…

So, good and bad things are happening. We got a letter the other day from DHS…

For those who don’t know, we had a not-so-anonymous neighbor call CPS on us for ridiculous reasons (they said our house was a bio hazard and that we leave our kids unattended on multiple occasions) and have been battling them for 6 months almost, just waiting for it all to be over. It’s taken over my life and raped me of my security in this neighborhood.

The letter stated that they closed our case due to lack of evidence of child neglect and abuse.

In the meantime, the people who called CPS on us are outside of our house congregating with other neighbors with their yearly neighborhood BBQ.

We weren’t technically invited… we arent on the email list since were not homeowners. I’m sure we’re welcome but have no desire to go, either way. We havent talked to the neighbor’s in question for 6 months along with their bosom buddies next door who drew chalk-falic images in front of our house a month or so ago and both families randomly walk on our front lawn, teeing off golf balls drinking wine and letting their dogs poop there.  They ignore us as we pass by and we ignore them. That’s the extent of our relationship other than when the kids are out. They like to ask them questions and that makes me nervous.

I still battle with issues I have with them mentally. I don’t want them talking to my kids or asking them questions…  I struggle many times with the urge to go out there and tell them to stay away from my family. We live in a  small, closed cul-de-sac so there isnt a lot of congregating space. But I know that it wouldnt be productive or accompolish what I would like.

Our house just happens to be in the middle of everything here, so with everyone out there drinking – I feel surrounded not only with people I dont care for, but even their voices assault me. There are other neighbors who chose not to go because they dont care to be part of the circle also- but I just cant help but feel anxiety. As if I can just feel the sneering at our house and family. Im sure they have their own ideas on how we should live out life, on our new baby and how we raise our kids. One of them had their dad go tell Danny the other day hes too little to be out in the bushes looking for bugs. They don’t know how old he is, who are they to tell him what he can do? He’s tiny for his age so people assume hes years younger than he is.

I really just want to be somewhere else right now. I dont feel like I can go outside and enjoy my yard with all the action going on outside the fence, so Im a prisoner in my own home. Kill them with kindness, I say.

I dont wish any ill on them but after everything that has happened, sometimes I struggle the most having feelings of bitterness towards them. I just try to concentrate on the long run and where the world is going. Jay mentioned today, “You have to wonder how Noah felt when he was building his ark. I’m sure he had neighbors.”

I’m sure he did. But they’re all gone now, not as if the good ole ‘I-told-you-so‘ ever really gives you satisfaction.

Trying to work on it! It’s taking everything in me not to start shoveling that dirt myself… but Im refraining due to the fact I have a seperated pubic bone.

Jyn Pregnant 33 weeks

Im missing my black hair but Im not missing the grey ones coming in… I am also happy the sun is staying out this week, it’s been so busy!

I have prenatal appointments starting week to week soon at OHSU as the 14th of August comes closer… She is a bundle of jello right now!

But I cant wait to have this patio in…

Also here are some links to the ultrasound pictures from last week- some are 3D

-Jyn

So I had written in my old accidently deleted blog, about my no poo diet. I started it almost 2 weeks ago and so far everything is going beautifully! I havent used ANY shampoo on my hair in 2 weeks (I need to take an after shot).

But here is the before picture.
I have been having issues with not only oily hair but also dry hair and itchy scalp and hair loss. I know that hormones play a huge part in this, as does stress- but I can also attribute my SHAMPOOS to it.
Im an aromaholic- so if it smells good, Ill get it and use it. I loved the salon shampoos that make my hair smell like a billion bucks, but Ive been finding that it dries my hair out and gives me an itchy scalp. Abigail who is 10 today, also suffers from an unballanced hair situation. Her hair gets stringy and greasy really easily- but then after using shampoo alone, she gets dandruff and her scalp is itchy. So I have been using it on her also.

So I started this no-poo (no shampoo) diet where we use more natural minimal items. They say to use baking soda, vinegar, water and lemon juice… and then there are other natural herbs to use also.

So I took some white vinegar and water and put it in this old tanquerey bottle with 1/2 a squeezed lemon. Then I sprinkled some baking soda in making sure it didnt bubble over. I then added some lavender water in and it smelled so good. This mixture only barely lasts a week if not refrigerated. One of the wonderful things about not using preservatives. You have to be careful about how much lemon you use also, because it can lighten your hair if you dont wash it all out.

Thayers Witch Hazel Rose Thayer 11.5 oz

But I would use this tonic on our hair once every other day if need to to every 3 days. My hair smelled wonderful, felt light and soft and wonderful. Over the past week though, I have been using this alcohol free Thayers Witch Hazel Rose Thayer. It containins witch hazel, aloe vera, rose water, vitamin E, and grapefruit seed extract which, is especially beneficial for sensitive skin. It has been very refreshing for my scalp and also, I havent been able to find anywhere that it hurts your hair in any way as long as it doesnt have alcohol.

One of the reasons I am avoiding shampoo is because of the overuse of the sulfates in them and other preservatives and additives. These dry out your hair and scalp and are gnereally not good for you, yet were taught to just trust the shampoo companies because everyone else uses them right? The following are some clinical studies on the shampoo ingredients and toxicology.

In its final report on the safety of sodium lauryl sulfate, the Journal of the American College of Toxicology notes that the ingredient sodium lauyl sulfate has a “degenerative effect on the cell membranes because of its protein denaturing properties.” What’s more, the journal adds, “high levels of skin penetration may occur at even low use concentration.”
The publication expressed additional concerns:

Carcinogenic nitrosamines can form in the manufacturing of sodium lauryl sulfate or by its inter-reaction with other nitrogen-bearing ingredients within a formulation utilizing this ingredient.

• Other studies have indicated that sodium lauryl sulfate enters and maintains residual levels in the heart, liver, lungs and brain from skin contact. This poses the question whether it could be a serious potential health threat from its use in shampoos, cleansers, and toothpastes.
• Still other research has indicated sodium lauryl sulfate may be damaging to the immune system, especially within the skin. Skin layers may separate and inflame due to its protein denaturing properties.
• Although sodium lauryl sulfate is not carcinogenic in experimental studies, it has been shown that it causes severe epidermal changes in the area it is applied, indicating a need for tumor-enhancing assays.
• Additional studies have found that sodium lauryl sulfate is heavily deposited on the skin surface and in the hair follicles. Damage to

the hair follicle could result from such deposition.

Substitution of Gentler Detergents Poses Additional Risks Unfortunately, many of the gentler detergents that may be substituted for sodium lauryl sulfate pose their own health hazards. For example, many companies have begun to use ethoxylated detergents such as sodium laureth sulfate, cocamide DEA or lauramide DEA because they tend to be less irritating.

Consumers can recognize shampoo ingredients containing ethoxylated detergents and related ingredients by looking for the prefix, word, or syllable PEG, polyethylene, polyethylene glycol, polyoxyethylene, eth (as in sodium laureth sulfate), or oxynol.

Both our own commissioned independent laboratory testing and that of the federal government have documented ethoxylated alcohol compounds are frequently contaminated with 1,4-dioxane, which is carcinogenic and is listed by the federal government as a probable human carcinogen.

Also, according to a 1998 report from the federal National Toxicology Program, two DEA-based compounds‹cocamide DEA and lauramide DEA‹have been demonstrated to be cancer-causing in at least in one species of animal.

The Doctors’ Prescription for Healthy Living/ Safe Shopper’s Bible Recommendation

According experts on the Cosmetic Ingredient Review (CIR) panel (established by the Cosmetic Toiletry, and Fragrance Association, a cosmetic industry trade association), both sodium lauryl sulfate and its close chemical cousin ammonium lauryl sulfate “appear to be safe in formulations designed for discontinuous, brief use followed by thorough rinsing from the surface of the skin.”

It should be recognized that shampoos represent such brief, discontinuous use products that are thoroughly rinsed, thus clearly minimizing the risk from sodium lauryl sulfate. It should also be recognized that many people shampoo daily, and we really do not know whether a lot of little exposures to sodium lauryl sulfate are dangerous or not.

Given the lack of adequate research and suggestive evidence, however, we believe it might be wise for health-conscious consumers to seek products without sodium lauryl sulfate, especially with regard to young children. Indeed, consumers have the power to choose safe and perhaps even better products without sodium lauryl sulfate.

This may be a very wise choice for another reason. We have found very often the presence of sodium lauryl sulfate in a shampoo formulation is a “marker” for the use of other undesirable ingredients, including formaldehyde-containing preservatives (e.g., imidazolidinyl urea); possible cancer-causing wetting agents (e.g., cocamide DEA); and nitrosamine-forming agents (e.g., triethanolamine). Also, it should be mentioned that in Germany, where there is a concerted effort underway now to label cosmetics and personal care products as certified natural, formulations containing sodium lauryl sulfate, ammonium lauryl sulfate or sodium laureth sulfate cannot be so certified, reports Michael Wrightson, president of Logona Kosmetik.

References “Bioassay of 1,4-Dioxane for possible carcinogenicity (CAS No. 123-91-1).” National Toxicology Program, TR-80.

Bouillon, C. “Shampoos and hair conditioners.” Clinics in Dermatology, 1988; 6(3): 83-92.

Conry, T. Consumer’s Guide to Cosmetics. Garden City, NY: Ancor Press / Doubleday, 1980, p. 74.

“Final report on the safety assessment of sodium lauryl sulfate.” Journal of the American College of Toxicology; 1983; 2(7).

Sixth Annual Report on Carcinogens, 1991. Summary. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Public Health Service. National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, Research Triangle Park, NC, 1991, pp. 192-195.

“Sodium lauryl sulfate ammonium lauryl sulfate.”1996 CIR Compendium. Washington, D.C.: Cosmetic Ingredient Review, 1996, pp. 134-135.

“Toxicology and carcinogenesis studies of coconut oil acid diethanolamine condensate (CAS NO. 68603-42-9) in F344/N rats and B6C3F1 mice (dermal studies).” National Toxicology Program, TR-479.

“Toxicology and carcinogenesis studies of lauric acid diethanolamine condensate (CAS NO. 120-40-1) in F344/N rats and B6C3F1 mice (dermal studies).” National Toxicology Program, TR-480.