Featured Blogger: Tina w/Oil of Joy
Our Featured Blogger this edition is Tina with Oil of Joy. Tina has been a wife and home school mom for 20 years. Amongst all the other fun things a full-time mom does, she is a Bible study and Messianic dance teacher, THM product distributor, allergy-friendly blogger, and encouraging admin for the Allergen Free and Beginner Trim Healthy Mama Facebook groups.
You can find delicious, allergen-friendly THM’d recipes on Tina’s blog, Oil of Joy. Be sure not to miss out on Taco Tuesday!
http://www.anointedwithoilofjoy.com/
I’m going to be what? The “Featured Blogger”? *insert laughter and looks over my shoulder to be sure they are talking to ME!*
I never had a goal to become a food blogger… or any other kind of blogger honestly. Yes, I did keep a family blog of photos for family that lived far away and a journal of some of our adventures so they could enjoy our journeys with us. So I had a little teeny bit of blogging knowledge before I became a “real” blogger. (haha… it still makes me laugh… Hi, I’m a blogger… giggle)
Anyway… when I started Trim Healthy Mama, I had just come from another diet plan that succeeded in helping me lose the weight over a very long time period. Sadly I had gained all of that weight back shortly after quitting that plan. THM was becoming popular among my friends group, so I reluctantly looked into it. The book seemed so expensive (haha, not compared to what I was paying for weekly meetings, it’s truly a BARGAIN!)! I made a plan, I would buy the book, then when I decided it’s not going to work for me like everything else, I could sell it on eBay and make back most of what I paid. Oh, I was truly so cynical. I came from a background of dieting, losing then gaining. So pessimism was easy to allow into my thoughts at the idea of another diet.
I couldn’t have been more wrong! I am so thankful to admit that! I had spent several years studying nutrition and natural health, had many of my own ideas and I was so happily surprised to see how the information in the THM book “clicked” and brought everything together for me in a way I had not seen before. I truly had an “A-HA” moment! This was for me!
In my family we have had issues with both seasonal and food allergies/intolerances. Going on the Trim Healthy Mama plan would require some work. I could not have eggs, dairy, wheat, sunflower seeds, peanuts, almonds, turkey and we don’t eat pork or shellfish.
Whew, could I do this? Would I be deprived? One of the things that drew me to the plan was I could eat my beloved treats everyday, guilt free!
There had to be a way! This is how my blog was born! Let’s call it cake desperation! I would work hard re-creating many recipes to fit my allergy needs. I would share my success with ladies in the THM Allergen Free group and soon it became apparent there was a much larger need. Instead of constantly copying and pasting my recipes and re-creations into single posts I created a simple little blog to house them all so anyone could come by and find them whenever they were requested.
Now, just so you know, I am still not a ProBlogger by any means. I feel quite inadequate much of the time and have a hard time making my blog look all shiny and fancy like some of my awesome bloggy friends. But it’s pretty and can be navigated and I am so happy to share yummy treats with other ladies experiencing food issues like me.
Before I go I would also like to extend some hope to you, for food allergy ladies, we often have a harder time losing than others. That’s okay if we are slower, we are working hard on the “healthy” part of the Trim Healthy Mama plan. You will get there, be diligent. I did! I got to goal weight!… then I gained my weight back and then some.
We had a seriously rough year and a half and I found myself in need of weight loss once again. This time though was different. I no longer felt hopeless, I have the keys to unlock this mystery of weight loss and healing… I just needed to invest the time into me again when the crises’ had passed. In addition, I found that through eating so well on THM I have made some wonderful progress in gut healing! I am now able to enjoy cheese and even some Greek yogurt! However, my blog will not change because of that, I love to continue to bring you allergen-friendly recipes that are easy to make and will feed most needs.
Thank you for stopping by, please say hello when you do! I love to interact with my readers!
Blessings and Shalom!
– Tina with Oil of Joy
http://www.anointedwithoilofjoy.com/
Be sure to check out the new Allergen-Friendly Free-Styling Menu that Tina has built for us over on the Trim Healthy Membership site!