http://www.isitlupus.com/ en danikastokes@gmail.com Copyright 2010 2010-06-19T00:09:35+00:00 http://isitlupus.com/lupus/supplement-foundation/ http://isitlupus.com/lupus/supplement-foundation/#When:00:09:35Z After 17 years of dealing with illness, I’ve always had my hands in some sort of supplement regiment.  When choosing my supplements, I wanted to focus on creating the healthiest balance in my gut, as that is where 80% of disease starts, as well as do as much as I can to keep my immune system up, fighting and functioning at its best.  Last week I visited my naturopathic endocrinologist whom I hadn’t seen in a few years and she asked what I was taking.  When I told her what I had come up with she was extremely pleased and had nothing to add. When choosing the supplements, I wanted to focus on creating the healthiest balance in my gut, as that is where 80% of disease starts, as well as do as much as I can to keep my immune system up, fighting and functioning at its best.  She is the third doctor to concur with my regiment so I thought I’d share… After 17 years of dealing with illness, I’ve always had my hands in some sort of supplement regiment.  When choosing my supplements, I wanted to focus on creating the healthiest balance in my gut, as that is where 80% of disease starts, as well as do as much as I can to keep my immune system up, fighting and functioning at its best.  Last week I visited my naturopathic endocrinologist whom I hadn’t seen in a few years and she asked what I was taking.  When I told her what I had come up with she was extremely pleased and had nothing to add. When choosing the supplements, I wanted to focus on creating the healthiest balance in my gut, as that is where 80% of disease starts, as well as do as much as I can to keep my immune system up, fighting and functioning at its best.  She is the third doctor to concur with my regiment so I thought I’d share… Multivitamin Probiotic - reinforces the intestinal flora balance and boosts the immune system DHA Purity (vegan omega 3) - beneficial omega–3 fatty acids, plays a crucial role in brain function,                               reduces risk of heart disease, reduces inflammation and risk of chronic diseases Vitamin D3 - promotes the absorption of calcium, boosts immune system, builds bone Calcium with magnesium + Vit. D3 - all need to be taken together in order to absorb the calcuim,                               promotes bone health and growth Alpha Lipoic Acid - antioxidant, converts glucose to energy, boosts immune system This past year has been my healthiest since my diagnosis.  I have been very consistent with my supplements and have had my D3 monitored regularly, maintaining it at a level of around 60.  I had one cold this past winter that was my mildest one I’ve had.  Hope this helps. Journal 2010-06-19T00:09:35+00:00 http://isitlupus.com/lupus/what-is-humility/ http://isitlupus.com/lupus/what-is-humility/#When:14:19:22Z Humility is Christ… “Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped.” Phil. 2:6 Humility is Christ… “Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped.” Phil. 2:6 Today this verse stood out to me more than ever before.  Can you imagine?  Jesus was by nature God but He didn’t even consider being equal to Him when he lived on earth?  When he came to walk with man He denied all rights, privileges and benefits of being God.  He chose to spend his life serving others rather than being served himself.  He wasn’t prideful of his heritage, didn’t walk around bragging about the benefits of being of God…but rather took on man’s identity and all that encompasses it…He submitted to God the Father. What is my attitude to look like as a follower of Christ?  It is to look like His.  This means surrendering my rights.  I can’t serve others if my rights take precedence in any part of my life.  If Christ can deny the pride of who he was, (being equal with God) while on earth, then I can surely deny my rights as a sinner saved by grace.  But why is this so hard?  I was convicted of this because I find myself feeling like I have a lot of rights concerning my health especially.  “I deserve to live a long life, feeling well and active…I deserve to watch my kids grow up and marry…I deserve to find the best doctors and treatments…”  Of course I’d love to have these things but Christ would probably have loved to use His “rights as God” while on earth…But out of humility he chose to relate to man, to serve others and surrender to God’s will over his own.  “...in humility, consider others better than yourselves.”  Phil. 2:3 Journal 2010-06-12T14:19:22+00:00 http://isitlupus.com/lupus/what-does-fear-look-like/ http://isitlupus.com/lupus/what-does-fear-look-like/#When:13:32:18Z For me, fear is a sin I am familiar with. I have to choose to deny myself the “pleasure” of camping in it.  If I don’t, it consumes me and swallows me whole at times. What is it?  According to the dictionary, fear is to be afraid or feel anxious or apprehensive about a possible or probable situation or event.  Basically living in a mental state of “what if”.  This is what my mental state had become. For me, fear is a sin I am familiar with. I have to choose to deny myself the “pleasure” of camping in it.  If I don’t, it consumes me and swallows me whole at times. What is it?  According to the dictionary, fear is to be afraid or feel anxious or apprehensive about a possible or probable situation or event.  Basically living in a mental state of “what if”.  This is what my mental state had become.  And where did it leave me?  In a place of self focus, self centeredness and distant from the very creator of my being.  Fear is the opposite of faith.  When I was reading through some of the definitions I came across one mans description of fear and it was, “The whole secret of existence is to have no fear.”  At first I thought, “No it’s not, the secret is to know and love Jesus.”  But then as I thought about it, really, it’s true.  Knowing and loving Jesus requires faith and fear is the opposite of faith.  So existing without fear is existing in faith…the secret to existing for HIm… believing in Jesus, who He is and believing in what He can and will do to bring Himself glory.  Over the past year I’ve come to the realization that those that have not walked through chronic pain and illness cannot empathize with those that have.  Accepting this has allowed me to let go of my expectations of others…I say this because those that have not sat through a few months of medical appointments like I just have wouldn’t have the experience of understanding where this fear comes from. Over the past few months I’ve been told I need to take my poisonous medication (which causes heart attacks and cancer), I’m heading into premature ovarian failure, my bones are becoming brittle and I need to think about osteoporosis medication, I need to have a mammogram and skin exam to get a baseline because of my risk of cancer (from the meds), I need to start seeing a cardiologist in case I begin to experience signs of a heart attack…I’m 33!  As I write this I am laughing, it has become quite humorous!  It is so over the top to me that all I can do is laugh at this point.  All this is falling on the ears of someone who feels great, experiencing no symptoms of anything!  So from the worlds stand point, I have a good excuse for camping out in fear all day long.  And there are times when I do and the immediate result of this is distance from my God and that makes me sad.  At these moments I plead to experience His presence again but fear and faith cannot co-exist. For me, walking in faith at times is a choice regardless of how I feel.  I know circumstances don’t define who we are or determine if or when God will use us.  But fear of these circumstances will keep us from experiencing life with Christ and the freedom we can have in Him.  Doctors can instill a tremendous amount of fear in a sick person.  But they are man.  The do not know what my God knows.  Nor can they do what my God can do.  They are physicians but my God is the Great Physician. “Thou they slay me, yet will I trust Him.”  Job 1:4-5 Journal 2010-06-09T13:32:18+00:00 http://isitlupus.com/lupus/transparent/ http://isitlupus.com/lupus/transparent/#When:17:08:05Z Hi to everyone…it’s been a while.  I’ve been in a different season over the past 6 months or so and decided to take some time away from writing as I let the Lord sift me.  For the past month or so, the Lord has continued to put writing on my heart but with one condition…only if I’m transparent.  Lives can’t be changed, including my own, if we can’t be transparent with the Lord and with those around us.  I’m not saying everyone needs to know every detail of your life but there’s something about being the same person, being authentic, regardless of who you’re around (Jesus, family, friends, readers…).  Hi to everyone…it’s been a while.  I’ve been in a different season over the past 6 months or so and decided to take some time away from writing as I let the Lord sift me.  For the past month or so, the Lord has continued to put writing on my heart but with one condition…only if I’m transparent.  Lives can’t be changed, including my own, if we can’t be transparent with the Lord and with those around us.  I’m not saying everyone needs to know every detail of your life but there’s something about being the same person, being authentic, regardless of who you’re around (Jesus, family, friends, readers…).  Transparency scares me.  There’s a real vulnerability that comes with it.  It’s a hard trait to expose if you’re a people pleaser or struggle with being concerned with what others think of or about you.  However, as I was reading the definition of the word, it took away the hesitation inside me.  Transparent - allowing light to pass through, transmitting light, able to be seen through with clarity. My desire is to surrender my life and my desires everyday so that I can be a vessel for Christ to use.  Christ is light. If I’m always being translucent (can’t be seen through clearly), Christ can’t be seen, given glory or recognized for all that He is.  Transparency is part of being a follower of Jesus.  When I die to the fear of what I may look like,  His light can be seen.  My job…be real…and Christ is seen!!!  It takes my efforts out of it…and the result…He gets the glory! Over the past month or so, despite my lack of writing on my site, I’ve continued to receive emails from people desperate to be released from the idol of what their disease has/can become so that they can live for Christ.  Paul was given a thorn in his side that God chose not to remove and that didn’t stop him from being the vessel God needed.  He learned to be content with the life God had chosen for him. But how do you do that, how do you get to that place?  I wish I had the answers.  But I don’t.  But I do know that His word says that we are to “deny ourselves, take up our cross and follow Him.”  In order to follow Him, the first step each day has to be to deny ourselves.  So, all that to say, my site will be making a few changes.  My desire is to come along side others hurting and wanting to be freed from the mental anguish that a chronic illness can have on you.  If God chooses not to take illness from our earthly bodies, He hasn’t forgotten us or found us unfit for His use.  Sometimes I find it a privilege to have a daily reminder (my illness) that I’m not my own, that I was bought with a price and that my purpose in life is to join God’s work, not have Him meet me in mine.  So, as often as I can, my site will be dedicated to sharing with you my journey, day to day, with Jesus.  As He speaks to me, I want to share with you.  As my hard days come, I will share those too.  God has work to do through us.  My life has been filtered through loving hands that are aware of everything that is going on.  I know that He didn’t allow all this for me to sit here and wait for the day to come when I’m healed. So this is me.  I’m learning and still being refined everyday.  I’m praying for you. Journal 2010-06-06T17:08:05+00:00 http://isitlupus.com/lupus/part-two-lunch/ http://isitlupus.com/lupus/part-two-lunch/#When:05:29:54Z How are your kids holding up with feeding them more healthy foods?  Here’s some ideas, pretty basic, for lunches.  Kids Lunch Ideas - 1. 100% Whole Wheat/Grain bread with raw almond butter and agave nectar or low sugar jelly. 2.  Raw Organic Firm Tofu (on occasion) 3.  Left overs from the day before. 4.  Homemade soup 5.  Organic Chicken Dogs (on occasion) 6.  Brown rice pasta noodles with homemade marinara sauce 7.  Black bean and cheese quesadilla (on occasion because we’re not big dairy people) 8.  Plain black or pinto beans 9.  Nitrate & Nitrite free lunch meat (rare occasion) 10. Whole Wheat Pita filled with tuna or other protein plus grated veges and hummus (still trying to get him to eat this one..some day) I serve every lunch with one of the above proteins, along with tons of raw veggies such as bell peppers, carrots, tomatoes, avocados, celery, snap peas.  I usually offer a fruit option towards the end as well.  Again, I try to make sure there’s protein, healthy fat and vegetables with all my lunches. Crackers or carb stuff is offered if all the other parts have been eaten and they’re still hunger. Hang in there and keep at it. My son never liked to drink water but I persisted enough and withheld diluting it with juice and now he drinks it no problem… it just took a while and it took me sticking to it. They eventually come around:)  Kids 2009-11-13T05:29:54+00:00 http://isitlupus.com/lupus/kreativ-blogger-award/ http://isitlupus.com/lupus/kreativ-blogger-award/#When:04:30:11Z I got this blogger award recently. Whoo Hoo!! Maybe this could be a little motivation for me to stay more on top of my postings... nice thought but probably not... not with two small children, one being under the age of 2 months and the other, well he talks, he loves to talk. So when I ask for a few minutes of quiet time a day where my ears hear silence, that's just not enough time to get a post up. Anyway, I guess the way this award thing works is you have to follow a list of rules so here goes... I got this blogger award recently. Whoo Hoo!!  Maybe this could be a little motivation for me to stay more on top of my postings… nice thought but probably not… not with two small children, one being under the age of 2 months and the other, well he talks, he loves to talk.  So when I ask for a few minutes of quiet time a day where my ears hear silence, that’s just not enough time to get a post up.  Anyway, I guess the way this award thing works is you have to follow a list of rules so here goes… 1. Thank the person who nominated you for this award. (Thank you Wendy for being my reader, probably one of the few, hence the nomination.) 2. Copy the logo and place it on your blog. 3. Link to the person who nominated you for this award. (Hagen Hoopla) 4. Name 7 things about yourself that people may not know. (see below) 5. Nominate Kreativ Bloggers. * I hereby nominate Andrea Haddon at Healthy and Easy Recipes.  She does an amazing job of not only sharing recipes but gives step by step instructions for the things that most recipes leave out because they always assume that everyone is a Martha Stewart.  She meal plans and lists her grocery list for you for the weeks where you just don’t feel like thinking about planning…check out her website. * I also herby nominate Lindsay Edmonds at Passionate Homemaking. Her website provides encouragement to young moms through her sharing on life, health, homemaking and her love for the Lord, serving her husband and children. 6. Post links to the blogs you nominate. 7. Leave a comment on each of the blogs letting them know they’ve been nominated. Seven Things You May Not Know About Me: 1.  My husband and I just adopted our second son! 2.  I played competitive soccer when I was younger and traveled with a US team to Europe. 3.  I took my parents Jaguar out when they weren’t home before I turned 16 (my rebellious years). 4.  I had 14 teeth pulled at once, 6 which were permanent (pathetically small mouth). 5.  At age 20, Jesus promised me my disease would not take my life. 6.  I studied abroad in collage, living in Madrid Spain. 7.  My husband and I bought the house that I grew up in, so I’ve lived in this home since I was 2 years old (30 years total and counting). Journal 2009-11-03T04:30:11+00:00 http://isitlupus.com/lupus/part-one-breakfast/ http://isitlupus.com/lupus/part-one-breakfast/#When:04:42:05Z As promised, my next few posts will be targeting each meal and ideas for your children as you start to get their little diets turned around.  I don’t know about you, but I’m always on the hunt for new ideas for food choices because after a while, if feels so mundane in our household with the foods I’ve exposed my son to.  So hopefully these ideas will help you out. Start slow, it can be overwhelming to make changes in little one’s lives, especially ones that are intended for lifelong lifestyle changes.  As promised, my next few posts will be targeting each meal and ideas for your children as you start to get their little diets turned around.  I don’t know about you, but I’m always on the hunt for new ideas for food choices because after a while, if feels so mundane in our household with the foods I’ve exposed my son to.  So hopefully these ideas will help you out. Start slow, it can be overwhelming to make changes in little one’s lives, especially ones that are intended for lifelong lifestyle changes.  Adding one new food option a week might be enough to start with it… I’ve had plenty of experience in going cold turkey or trying to make the changes all at once in their entirety but this approach almost always fails… Kids Breakfast Ideas- (I tend to just alternate through them on a weekly basis) 1.  Irish Oatmeal (Trader Joes) - Cook with almond milk or water, drizzle of aguave nectar, dash of     vanilla and cinnamon, chunk of apple cut up real small and a small handful of raisins     Bowl of fresh fruit and a few raw nuts 2.  Eggs (usually scrambled or poached) - Cooked with coconut oil     Half piece whole grain toast     Bowl of fresh fruit 3.  French Toast - Cooked with coconut oil,  100% organic maple syrup.  (Check recipe in recipe     section.)     Eggs     Bowl of fresh fruit 4.  Cereal (usually some whole grain, low sugar one).  We allow a sugar cereal on Sat. or Sun.     but when I say sugar cereal, I’m meaning a healthy cereal that just may have a little higher sugar     content, like the Gorilla Munch or Honey Nut Cheerios from Trader Joes.     Bowl of fresh fruit 5.  Hardboiled egg     Bowl of fresh fruit 6.  Waffles or Pancakes (Made from scratch with Buckwheat flour or sometimes I get the brown rice     frozen ones from Trader Joes for a rare “in a pinch” breakfast)     Eggs     Bowl of fresh fruit 7.  Trail Mix - raw almonds, cashews, walnuts and macadamia nuts, raisins or cranberries     Bowl of fresh fruit 8.  Toast with raw almond butter and a low sugar jam or aguave nectar with cinnamon     Bowl of fresh fruit * Bowl of fresh fruit is substituted with a green smoothie as well. Breakfast supplements: Favorite Flora Calcium with vitamin D (I break open an adult capsule and mix it in with a tablespoon of applesauce).  Our family eats very little dairy which is why I choose to supplement this vitamin. Bottle line, as I’m making a meal for the kids I quickly look for protein, fat (complex carbs too but they are almost always present without trying) and fresh fruits or veggies at each meal.  Kids 2009-11-02T04:42:05+00:00 http://isitlupus.com/lupus/childrens-eating-habits/ http://isitlupus.com/lupus/childrens-eating-habits/#When:12:09:20Z So I got an email from one of my doctors the other day, Dr. Fuhrman, whom I very much respect and value the opinion of.  He is a very compassionate doctor who cares very much about the needs and wellbeing of his patients… you’re not just a number or science experiment.  Anyway, he wrote this article about the responsibilities we have as parents to feed our children healthy and how it is our responsibility to offer healthy choices.  So many diet related diseases are on the rise in our young children and I agree with him from the standpoint that it’s what we offer them that they learn to like and dislike healthy vs. junk food.  So I got an email from one of my doctors the other day, Dr. Fuhrman, whom I very much respect and value the opinion of.  He is a very compassionate doctor who cares very much about the needs and wellbeing of his patients… you’re not just a number or science experiment.  Anyway, he wrote this article in regards to the responsibilities we have as parents to feed our children healthy and how it is our responsibility to offer healthy choices.  So many diet related diseases are on the rise in our young children and I agree with him from the standpoint that it’s what we offer them that they learn to like and dislike healthy vs. junk food.  Dr. Fuhrman is radical in his approach to diet with children which I can respect and understand, however, for my family I am working on finding a balance between eating nutritionally packed foods and still allowing the occasional sweet or treat.  I try to educate my kids in funs ways by involving them in shopping, helping make grocery lists, letting them pick a meal to have during the week and coming up with the items we will need to buy, and cooking with me.  I also find much better success when they get to have choices.  And we’re the ones in control of what things they have to choose from.  I mentioned in an earlier post my “snack pack” idea where I bought a flat plastic tool box with compartments in it and I fill it up a few times a week with fresh veggies, fruit, nuts, seeds and dried fruit and that in itself has been a huge success… they have free access to it, it’s at a level they can reach and I know that everything in it is nutrient packed so no matter what they pick to eat it’s healthy.  Don’t get me wrong, they get treats and heck, Owen is in preschool where they serve ice cream at 9 am for birthdays! But hopefully you can be encouraged to make healthy and wise choices for your little ones too because ultimately, while they are little, we are responsible for what goes in their little bodies. All that being said, many of you might think, “Eating like this takes so much more time”  or “My kid just won’t eat like this.”  And in response to the first thought, my next few posts will consist of simple ideas for each meal and snacks.  In response to the second thought, this is where I dish out tough love. It’s like any other habit you have to break with little ones.  They will eventually eat, they will not starve.  First remove from your home (or at least your kitchen… my husband secretly hides a pack of Oreo’s in a high cupboard) any foods you don’t want to be a food choice for your kids.  And then simply start offering things that you want them to eat.  Yes, they may throw a fit, yes they may stay at the table for hours, but it won’t last.  It takes a few days and with some it might take a week or so depending on how stubborn they are.  Remember, most kids coming off the American Standard Diet have taste buds that crave things like salt and sugar so it will take a bit for their little taste buds to adjust to the flavors of real food.  But it’s worth it.  Hang in there and join me in starting to make changes to the diets of our little ones. Kids 2009-10-31T12:09:20+00:00 http://isitlupus.com/lupus/i-asked-to-hear-his-voice/ http://isitlupus.com/lupus/i-asked-to-hear-his-voice/#When:04:57:34Z It’s not uncommon for me to hear God speak to me.  Sometimes it’s been a still small voice, sometimes loud and audible, sometimes through others.  But for months now, I’ve felt more silence from the Lord yet I have some major circumstances whirling around me right now that I desperately would like to hear from Him on. I sat in church tonight and after an awesome time of worship I began to pray that the Lord would speak, that I would hear His voice, that if there was something I had been disobedient to in the past that is hindering me from hearing Him, show me so I can repent and obey. And the Lord began to speak. At first I had my typical thought, “Lord, is that you or me?”  but he said, It’s not uncommon for me to hear God speak to me.  Sometimes it’s been a still small voice, sometimes loud and audible, sometimes through others.  But for months now, I’ve felt more silence from the Lord yet I have some major circumstances whirling around me right now that I desperately would like to hear from Him on. I sat in church tonight and after an awesome time of worship I began to pray that the Lord would speak, that I would hear His voice, that if there was something I had been disobedient to in the past that is hindering me from hearing Him, show me so I can repent and obey. “Fast and pray, and I mean pray.  Meet with me morning, noon and night.”And the Lord began to speak. At first I had my typical thought, “Lord, is that you or me?”  but he said, “Fast and pray, and I mean pray.  Meet with me morning, noon and night.” I didn’t think much of it and the teaching went on.  The pastor spoke out of Acts 10.  We talked about Simon Peter and Cornelius…. he was the first Gentile to receive the Holy Spirit, he was a man committed to giving to the poor and he spent regular time with God.  And as a result, Cornelius was able to discern when God was speaking.  Anyway, at the end of the service, our pastor says something to the affect, “Some of you may need to go back to a life of prayer like Daniel had, meeting with the Lord three times a day.”  God had my attention.  He confirmed to my sweet doubting spirit that, yes, He was speaking to me and yes, He was asking me to commit to an intimate season of prayer.  So then, it doesn’t stop there… I come home, (husband is at the movies).  The Lord brings to mind “The Secret of the Secret Place”, a book my mother-in-law gave me years ago. I found it on my book shelf, opened it up and by page three I was reading about Cornelius, right out of Acts 10, the very sermon I had just heard three hours ago.  Confirmation again of what He’s asking of me! God always wants the chance to speak and be heard by his childrens but sometimes I think I miss His voice.  I think I set expectations up for the Lord to meet and when He doesn’t speak or act as I was expecting, I think He’s still or silent.  I want to hear Him speak to me daily, I want to be serving and being a part of His work daily but I can’t if I don’t hear Him.  We serve an awesome God who desires to speak to His children all day long.  And this same God has given us incredible power to do His work but we can’t be a part of this if we can’t hear Him.  We can’t obey if we aren’t able to recognize His voice.  It’s easy to do things for God but it’s so much harder to do the things that God wants/needs us to be doing because that requires us to stop, be still and be consistently spending time with Him so that we can discern His voice and know what He’s calling us to do.  So my prayer was answered. He spoke and praise Him I heard!  I need to be obedient. I’m expecting Him to speak to me as I spend my morning, noon and nights with Him.  Journal 2009-09-13T04:57:34+00:00 http://isitlupus.com/lupus/random-kitchen-secrets/ http://isitlupus.com/lupus/random-kitchen-secrets/#When:19:50:03Z You know those tips that you learn along the way from your great grandmother or in my case, my own mom who happens to be great in the kitchen… well I thought I’d compile them and share them, who knows maybe they’ll help out in some small way… You know those tips that you learn along the way from your great grandmother or in my case, my own mom who happens to be great in the kitchen… well I thought I’d compile them and share them, who knows maybe they’ll help out in some small way… 1. To keep strawberries fresh for a long time keep them in a sealed container in the frig with a paper towel in it. 2. To keep leafy greens fresh, store a paper towel in the bag they are kept in (absorbs the moisture). 3. Leave a small bowl of distilled vinegar on the counter to get rid of bad odors. 4. Keep onions in the frig and you won’t have much of a problem with tearing or burning eyes. 5. Distilled vinegar diluted in water makes a great cleaning agent for hardwood floors. 6. Freeze liquids or soups (we eat a lot of them) in freezer bags and flatten them, once frozen they stack nicely and it saves tons of room. 7. Anytime you’re roasting vegetables, potatoes, ect. lay parchment paper down on the baking sheet and it makes clean up a breeze and there’s no sticking. 8. When making cookies, use a 1 inch scooper and scoop all the cookies onto a plate and freeze (I’m talking the raw dough).  Once hardened, about an hour, transfer to a zip lock or container and you always have cookies available.  Just take out however many you need and bake, just add an additional 2-3 min because they are frozen.  This is my favorite tip because it allows us to only cook what we should eat, not what we want to eat which is the entire batch! 8. Dawn dish soap does wonders on hard to clean shower glass doors. 9. Seran wrap is a hard supply to find that actually sticks but the Kirkland brand at Costco is awesome!!! 10. When using fresh ginger root, if you have some left, freeze it.  When you need if for later use, it’s actually easier to use frozen because it grates really easy (just don’t forget to peel it as you use it). 11. Put a penny in the bottom of a vase of tulips and they stand right up. 12. Store mushrooms in a brown paper bag in the frig and they stay fresh much longer.  That’s all I can think of for now…   Journal 2009-09-08T19:50:03+00:00