So...10:56 PM on New Year's Eve. Gotta stay awake to pick up the 14-yr. old at 12:30 AM. What better time to blog? We did not do a Christmas card or letter this year--just too much going on and couldn't keep up. Maybe you'll pick up a couple of 2012 facts from this post.

Today was a big day. We began the GAPS Introduction Diet. I've been reading Nastasha Campbell-McBride's book. A friend told me about the diet, and within the same week God brought the very same diet across my path in 3 other ways. Crazy, because I haven't heard much about it since then unless I go looking for it. Bing-lightbulb. So, I ordered the book (Ok, Tru ordered it for me) and read it. Boy, it is like a textbook in some regards. Some of it is so basic and easy to understand and other parts felt like I was in a medical school course. As I was reading the book and understanding the concept, it just seemed like a culmination of all the reading I've done on health and digestion the past few years. Also, personal experiences were continually validated throughout this book. It made me hopeful.

Today, after the first full day on the diet, I just miss my chocolate, caffeine and sugar. I'm not quite as nice right now as usual. I'm wondering how long this will last!! I'm also already feeling panicked about where I will get my next source of chicken, beef or fish. I cooked for a day ahead, but need to shop tomorrow for the following day's stock and soup.

Today, we had sauerkraut juice, two of us had Biokult probiotic supplements, two of us had Blue Ice fermented cod liver oil, we had homemade chicken stock. Throughout the rest of the day, we had chicken soup with carrots, onion and garlic made from the homemade stock. We also had ginger tea, grated fresh from the root. Finally, we had some organic coconut oil with a bit of unprocessed honey. That, I believe, was my saving grace today. I'm not 100% sure we are supposed to have coconut oil during the introduction phase. Gotta look into it some more. Tomorrow we will add fish oil supplements also. Tomorrow we will also have beef stock that I made overnight and a soup I will make from it.