It's time to cleanse, a practice my chiropractor insists upon once of year or so, when I am not pregnant or nursing a newborn, which really limits the time frame for someone in my advanced condition of motherhood! Five babies in ten years and two babies that weren't, poor little angels...that has not given me a wide window for cleansing. Add to that the fact that in the past I have been a whiner and felt miserable (like everyone else) when on a cleanse, and it all adds up to something I have not often indulged in.
So here we go. I am posting to oblige myself to some measure of accountability. If all million regular readers of my blog ask me how my cleanse is going, I will be more likely to stick to it during day two and three when I am longing for a doughnut, a slice of leftover foie gras, or just a bowl of dry Cheerios.
Why cleanse? My chiropractor takes one look at my eczema that is driving me mad and pronounces "yeast." She always says "yeast" to me. What reassures me is that she always says "dehydrated" to one of my friends, so at least this is not a "one-size-fits-all" solution. Then comes the dreaded word: "cleanse." And she walks out of the room.
Now, dear reader, if you are also a mother of five or four, three, two , one, or even just living with a room mate who loves to eat, you will understand the particular pressure and temptation of preparing meals three times a day and snacks in-between while conscientiously drinking your lemon-juice or water or whatever you have chosen as a weapon. We really like to eat in our family. It is more than a hobby, it is an obsession. We spend hours dreaming up menus, looking up recipes and cooking. Last night was our 15 year wedding anniversary. We created a feast, a lovely feast, with foie gras from France, a salmon terrine from fresh salmon, fresh cream, a mushroom/egg/cream tartelette, and a green salad tossed with balsamic wine vinegrette and garlic croutons made from homemade bread, all in delicate portions, served beautifully (by my husband), and accompanied by a light rose wine. Dessert was a new cream cheese brownie recipe from Joy of Baking.com, that I have perfected my making it three times in the last week, a true delight to behold, even better to taste. Despite this, it is fairly easy to be disciplined in this respect, once I have made up my mind to do it.
What is harder is the lack of energy and lethargy that kicks in on days two and three. I have not attempted this for years, so my body has forgotten how awful I will feel tomorrow...I will give you an update then. For now, I am a happy day one, hour one cleanser, drinking my happy water.