GAPS is broken up into four parts. The first part explains how all diseases begin in the gut. Dealing with many psychological issues, such as, schizophrenia and depression, she explains how these patients are often malnourished and suffer from vitamin deficiencies.

In the late 1970s it was discovered that gluten from grains and casein from milk can be turned into opiates in the digestive system which absorb into the blood, cross the blood-brain barrier and affect the brain. These opiates were found in the urine of schizophrenic patients and those with depression and autoimmune conditions. Later on Dr. Reichelt … found the same compounds in the urine of autistic children.                                      - GAPS  pg. 72

Simply put, our digestion begins in the stomach with stomach acids, continues with pancreatic juices and is completed as the food moves through the intestines. The gut is lined with a bacterial layer which provides a barrier of protection. This layer contains the beneficial bacteria necessary for proper and timely digestion of food.

In the gut, the absorptive surface of the intestines has finger-like protrusions called villi and deep crypts between them (like hills and valleys) The villi are coated with specialized cells called enterocytes. These cells complete digestion and absorb the nutrients from ingested food. They are continually born in the depths of the crypts and slowly travel to the top of the villi. They digest and absorb becoming more mature as they move upward. At the top of the villi they are shed off. So, the lining of the intestines is constantly being renewed.

When beneficial bacteria of the gut are removed the renewal process is disrupted – there are fewer enterocytes (absorptive cells) and the existing cells no longer function properly. The villi degenerate and are not able to digest and absorb food properly. This leads to mal-absorbption and nutritional deficiencies.

An example is given on page 21 of the GAPS book using the digestion of milk and wheat proteins. In the first stage of digestion, the digestive juices of the stomach split the proteins into less complex amino acid chains (peptides), some of which include casomorphines and gluteomorphines. These peptides move to the small intestines where the second stage of digestion occurs. At the intestinal walls, assisted by the pancreatic juices, they are broken down by enzymes. In people with abnormal gut flora (and resulting poorly functioning enterocytes), the undigested complex proteins (casomorphines and glutemorpines) are absorbed into the bloodstream unchanged and cause problems.

These problems include interference with brain function and immune system function. According to Dr. Campbell-McBride’s experience, when the gut flora is restored, many GAPS patients can digest casein and gluten, at least, in moderate amounts without a return of symptoms. So, the treatment focuses on returning the good gut flora and allowing the digestive tract time to heal.

Part two of the GAPS book focuses on treatment which is an Introduction Diet consisting of six stages. Moving through the stages, food is added in an orderly way from what is easily digested to what is more difficult to digest. After the Introduction Diet, the Full GAPS Diet is followed for a period of time to be determined by the patient’s symptoms. Instructions are given for coming off the GAPS Diet along with recipes and supplementation recommendations.

Part three covers different issues including ear infections, influences which boost and those which damage immunity, constipation and genetics.

Part four deals with having a baby in the GAPS family.

GAPS –  Gut and Psychology Syndrome – has for many been life changing – from parents of children with learning disabilities to those (like me) with autoimmune diseases. Having already benefited from dietary changes made as a result of this book, I admit that I have a biased opinion. However, if you or anyone you know suffers from any of  the mentioned illnesses (and I did not cover them all!) I would recommend purchasing this book or check with your local library.

What made this year’s expansion even more exciting for us was the fact that we are using our own tractor! John had tried to arrange to use a neighbor’s big John Deere = speed and GPS accuracy. Since our ’54 Ford tractor is not equipped with a GPS system, the rows were first marked off at the 8 foot spacing. (This tractor was generously gifted to us by a friend who got out of farming.) The dry, hard ground was then ripped to a depth of about a foot (broken up with a blade) to make it easier for the tape to go in the ground. The vine rows are 8 feet apart and drip tape will be laid down the center of the rows. The picture below shows the ripped lines where the drip tape will be. The rye stubble protected our land from blowing away in the wind storms. The small green plants are the self-seeded rye that will provide the next year’s protection.

As with most things, getting the tractor set up right seems to be the most time consuming part. The taping rig, courtesy of our grape consultant, is essentially a blade that cuts into the dirt and allows the irrigation tape to be placed at an even depth in the ground. It is first attached to the tractor, then the depth of the plow can be set and finally the roll of tape put in place. The irrigation tape will spin off the roll in the arms above head clearance and feed down through a tube at the back of the knife blade into the ground.

At the start of a new row, the tape must be held in place by a lucky volunteer until the tractor is far enough ahead so that the weight of the dirt prevents it from being pulled out by the tractor.

I know our tractor is old, but I really do not think it needs to be pushed along! Then again, a little help never hurt anyone

Normally, someone sits in the seat or walks beside the rig to prevent the tape from twisting. (Did they put sunblock on?)

At the end of the row, the tape is cut. These cut ends will be connected later to the vineyard irrigation system.

The tape at this point is flat with emitters, or holes, every 2 feet. When it is all hooked up, water will fill the tape and evenly come out the holes for the grapevines. Each of these holes drip at ~0.24 gal/hr. Every now and then, a gopher will make an extra hole in the tape, but their holes leak quite a bit faster!

Once all the rows are finished, the boys will go back over each one with the tractor packing the dirt down. Gophers are very prevalent here in west Texas and they love to dig in fresh dirt. Packing the dirt down will hopefully keep them from digging and chewing through the drip tape.

Soon, we will be going through the vineyard with a pre-pruner. The pre-pruner will cut off and shred last years growth from the vines. The amount cut off is adjustable and we will leave 2 buds per spur. Our vines are trained up to 4 ft and then 2 arms are tied down horizontally in opposite directions on a wire forming a cordon.

Each arm is allowed to grow 2 ft along the wire. From these arms, upward growing spurs have the buds for the new growth.

Each bud should produce two bunches of grapes. Optimally, we want 20 buds per plant – 10 evenly spaced over each 2 ft arm. These will yield 5 to 15 lbs. of grapes per vine. You can see the fuzzy white bulges in the picture below.

With the pre-pruner we will cut the vines back so that each spur has 2 buds. We will then come through and hand prune, cleaning up each vine to achieve the 20 buds per plant.

Before pre-pruning, it is important to replace any dead or weak arms. This is done by pulling down a healthy looking arm from last years growth to replace the compromised one. The Pellenc AP25 is used to tie down the arm to the cordon wire.

You can see from the picture below, the bulk of the Pellenc AP25 is worn at the back of the waist. (The jeans are designer, by yours truly – call for pricing!) This back part holds the battery pack and the roll of ties. For tying down mature arms, we are using a standard tie designed to last 12 – 14 mths. They look much like bread bag ties. When training our new planting, we will be using paper ties designed to degrade in 8 – 10 mths so that they do not girdle the fast growing young plants.

The handheld part of the Pellenc AP25 looks like a space age gun. You can hopefully see the line of brown ties coming from the back pack and feeding into the rear of the gun.

The open tip of the gun is positioned over the vine and cordon wire (in this case) and the trigger is pulled.

The Pellenc AP25 does the rest. The tie is extruded, twisted and voile!

Until now, we have all had our own hand tapers and done our own pruning (or training, as the case may be) and taping as we go. The old tapers, pictured below, just didn’t last even the season – we went through 19 of them!

To date, we are finding the Pellenc AP25 to be very fast and feel that while 6 or 7 of us are pruning, 1 person using the Pellenc AP25 will be able to keep up with the rest. Pellenc proports one person can do 12,000 ties per day. We will see!

I chose to refinish a dresser and two nightstands that had been in storage. They are part of a bedroom suite which belonged to my parents. The furniture itself is very good quality but the finish was worn and cracked.

While there are many chemicals on the market to dissolve and remove the finish, I have had good results with scraping the finish off. I use a stiff putty knife held perpendicular to the surface.

With even pressure, I pull ithe putty knife toward me scraping the finish off.

Even pressure is very important. Without it, ripples can be made in the wood. Normally, the ripples can be sanded out, but it is much easier if they are avoided.

Once the finish is removed, sand the surface using fine sandpaper. Fine steel wool may also be used. Once the surface is smooth, clean and dust it to remove any residual dust.

You are now ready to apply stain, if desired. I am using Early American stain by Minwax. Dipping a small rag into the stain, cover the raw wood evenly. According to the can directions, leave the stain on the desired amount of time. The longer the excess stain is left on, the more is absorbed into the wood and the darker the finished piece will be. I left the stain on about 10 minutes and then wiped off the excess. You may reapply to darken if you desire. Allow to dry for 24 hours before applying a protective finish.

I use polyurethane in a satin finish as my topcoat. It is durable and adds a richness to the appearance of the piece. The method of application is similar to staining. Using a small rag that can be thrown away, dip into the polyurethane and apply a very thin coat evenly to the surface. One coat is usually sufficient but if you desire another coat, allow it to dry 24 hours. Once dry, use a piece of steel wool and very lightly rub over the entire surface. This is to knock off any bumps that may occur due to dust or other foreign debris. Once smooth, brush off and vacuum to remove the residual steel wool. You may now reapply polyurethane as desired. Since these pieces will be in the girls’ room, I only applied one coat.

Both stain and polyurethane must be cleaned up with mineral spirits.