Real Food

I found a website through pintrest a while back and finally looked through it a couple weeks ago. 100 Days of Real Food is what it's called. Basically this mom decided she wanted to try and cut out all processed foods from her family's diet. It became so popular that she ended up posting complete meal plans and shopping lists on her site. For free! She even has the cost of each item (priced at either Whole Foods or Trader Joe's). For a family of 4, she spends around $160/week for all her food. She points out that a family of 4 on food stamps gets about the same amount! And that's buying everything organic. Everything. The menus include breakfast, lunch, one snack, and supper. Now, my kids eat more than hers do! But I also don't buy everything organic so I wind up staying pretty close to my $100/week grocery budget. My kids usually eat 2-3 snacks a day, too! Part of the cost savings also comes from my garden.
I've been really surprised that my kids have eaten every recipe I've made. And they've found some new favorites! Jacob FINALLY tried peanut butter. It's not his favorite but he'll eat it.
Anyway, it's a really great website and I would encourage you to check it out. Be adventurous and try new things! You just might find a new favorite!! :)

My, How Life Has Changed, Part 3

I've written about this before, but another way we've changed our lives this year is the way we eat. Honestly, I've seen such tremendous change in all of us. I'm still focusing on the 3 things I talked about before-fresh, natural food, grass-fed beef and chicken (and raw milk-here's a site with some info on benefits of raw milk), and little-to-no high fructose corn syrup (HFCS). I think we're doing really good with things. It's taken some getting used to-remembering to read the labels and just paying attention to what I'm buying at the grocery store. It still surprises me to see how many things have HFCS. I've seen the pro-HFCS commercials, but I just don't buy it. Mainly because our bodies do not digest HFCS the same way we digest regular sugar. It isn't exactly clear how our bodies digest it (it's basically a chemical). Again, I'm sure I sound like a wacko to some people but I'm just really convicted about what we put into our bodies. From my faith's perspective, our bodies are the Lord's temple. He gifted us with them, we are created in His image! I need to take care of this gift. And I need to teach my children to take care of this gift. I think I'm doing okay with that when I hear Anna and Jacob ask, "Is this good/healthy for me?" :) I don't want to create paranoia. But I also don't want to create ignorance! 

These are the changes I've seen in us...Jacob craves sugar far less (yes, he actually craved it). He drinks a lot of water and doesn't throw a fit about doing it. He really likes to eat veggies now! The other day, I picked some spinach from the garden. I had to tell him to wait until I washed it (because I'd sprayed a home-made rabbit repellant on the garden that included raw eggs and tabasco!)! As soon as it was washed, he munched on several pieces! He loves carrots. He still asks for dessert after almost every meal, but doesn't have a melt down when I say no and is even excited when I serve something like fruit and yogurt (made with honey and raw milk), or even just fresh fruit!

Anna has always been a very healthy eater, so the change I've seen in her is simply awareness of what she's eating, where it comes from, and if it's healthy for her.

I have lost quite a bit of weight (not sure how much exactly and still have plenty to lose!) and I attribute 99% of that to the food I eat. I limit my portions (amazing how much less it actually takes to feel full!) and just plain eat healthier. I rarely drink pop (that was a huge help in losing weight. It's ridiculous how many calories are in pop, not to mention chemicals!). I'm just more aware of what I'm putting into my body and how it will fuel my body. If I feed myself sugar and chemicals, I'm not going to feel very good! But if I feed myself natural foods, full of vitamins and minerals and protein, I will feel good and actually have some energy! What a concept. :) I drink a lot more water. The first migraine I've had in over a year was a couple weeks ago and it was solely from not getting enough sleep. Aaron and the kids sent me for a massage for Mother's Day (it was incredible. I actually fell asleep at one point!). I hadn't been in about a year and afterward, she asked if I was on a diet because I looked slimmer than last time. I told her, briefly, what we're doing and she said, "I can tell. Your skin is much healthier."

Aaron's biggest battle is actually eating regular meals. I've never been able to get him to eat breakfast and if he doesn't feel like he has time to come home and eat lunch, he won't eat lunch either. He has a sweet tooth and his office is full of ladies that have stocks of candy! So his body is fueled with either nothing most of the day or only sugar! He's trying and I try to remember to offer lunch delivery if he can't make it home. :)

These are the things I've done to make this change...I buy grass-fed beef, chicken, and milk (usually yogurt, too) from a sort-of local farm (it's about 40 min. away). I buy eggs from a farm just outside of town here. I don't worry about buying too much organic fruits and vegetables. Like I said in the other post, if I try to do it all at once, I'll go broke and fizzle out! BUT, now that I have my garden it will be organic! :) I am trying to make more meals/food from scratch (well, almost all of our meals are from scratch, but things like bread-baking stuff) to save money and be healthier. I haven't mastered yeast bread, yet. I've given up on the bread machine, though!!! The main snack the kids eat besides fresh fruits and vegetables is Goldfish. It took some getting used to, seeing my pantry fairly bare! But my extra refrigerator in the garage is usually full of fruits and vegetables, instead. I'd really like to master bread making...I just need to try doing it by hand. I also think it would be fun to try making pasta. Now, some of these things wouldn't be cost-saving. It's possible that it would cost me more to make my own pasta. But here's why I want to do it...I know exactly what is in my food when I make it myself. The USDA doesn't always require all ingredients to be listed "as is", if that makes sense (a better explanation is in that Wikipedia article I linked to earlier). And there are no preservatives. I just saw a quote tonight that I think is a great rule to go by..."If your food can go bad, it's good for you. If your food can't go bad, it's bad for you." 

I'm not perfect. Sometimes we eat greasy hamburgers and corn dogs at Sonic! My kids like strawberry limeades! But we're taking big steps in the right direction and I feel really good about where we're at and where we're going. I want to stop the cycle with me and my children. I want us to all be educated about nutrition, and be healthy, active people. I don't want to struggle with a myriad of health problems caused by unhealthy living...obesity, diabetes, high blood pressure & cholesterol, heart trouble, depression (I realize not all depression is purely caused by lifestyle, but I think it's a pretty big factor). I want to serve God wholly and I can't do that if I'm tied down by health problems and fatigue! I'm so thankful for the things He has opened my eyes to, for the things He has taught me, for the ability to CHANGE!!!  I can't make these changes without His strength. It's hard. It's more work, takes more time. But it's worth it to glorify Him by living a better life!!

So, there it is. Three major ways life has changed for us in the Wallman house! :) I'm a crunchy, hippy, weird, cloth-diapering, home-schooling, natural-food-eating Mama! (I still think it's funny that all those things actually describe me.) But I'm still the same me...all this doesn't make me a different person, it just makes me a healthier, happier person! :)

Summertime Deliciousness

In light of my last post, here is a delicious smoothie recipe from Jamie Oliver's website! It has been kid-tested and approved in my house! Even after Jacob took a taste of the plain yogurt!!

Fruit Smoothies
1 ripe banana
1 c frozen (or fresh) fruit (mango, blackberry, blueberry, strawberry)
2 heaped Tbs plain yogurt
1/4 c quick oats (NOT instant)
1 cup 1% milk, soy milk, or apple juice
5 ice cubes
Slice banana and berries (if necessary), put in blender and add yogurt. "Whiz it up" as Jamie says. Add oats and blend some more. Add milk (1% or soy) or juice and ice cubes and blend until smooth. If it's too thick, add a bit more milk or juice.

The oats help make this a bit more filling and the fruit makes it nice and sweet. Plus you can make it year round using frozen fruit, and not compromise on taste or quality since the frozen fruit is picked at its prime. My kids loved it. I did double the recipe and ended up adding 3 bananas and a whole carton of fresh strawberries. It made plenty for all 4 of us and then some!! Next up is his recipe for Yogurt Pops!

Growth and Revolution

I have a lot of picture posts to do (anniversary, birthday, 7 month update), but I haven't had time to download the pictures yet.
Some changing has been going on around our house for the last several months. With all of Mom's health issues and the research Dad has been doing and the things I've been learning, I have started really taking note of what we eat. Maybe I just haven't "gotten" it before, maybe the people I heard from weren't explaining it (more finger-shaking than teaching). I don't know. But a combination of things has caused me to look more closely at this area of our lives. Dad has been a great source of research for me...I don't know how he has time to learn all that he does with all he does, but he learns and he shares. He doesn't lecture (I can't believe I'm saying that! ha), he shares. And to me, I think that's the greatest way to educate someone. I stumbled across a show on hulu last night, "Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution" (he focuses on school food for the most part). I think the reason I like it so much is the way he teaches these kids and families about nutrition and food. He doesn't rage and rant about organic food. He's passionate about healthy eating and shares how to eat healthier. He makes the point that these kids aren't taught in school anymore about nutrition or cooking. Home Ec was a REQUIRED class when I was in high school. I don't even know if they have Home Ec anymore, let alone require it.
So, what am I doing about it? I look at my family history and I see the health problems that are trickling down through the generations...obesity, diabetes, high blood pressure, heart problems, high cholesterol. It scares me! Aaron loves salads and vegetables. He'll snack on lettuce for Pete's sake! I like them, too but if I have a choice I'd prefer chips or chocolate to snack on. I believe it's a mix of learned habits and genetics. Aaron grew up snacking on carrots and celery on road trips. I had candy bars and pop. I'm not saying my parents are bad for letting me have those (honestly, I don't remember as a little kid what we had, but I know when I was in high school that's what I had). But then I look at my kids and I see genetics playing a bigger part of it. Anna and Jacob started out eating the exact same things-when they started baby food, it was fruit and veggies, table food-same thing. They were both offered and made to eat vegetables. Jacob never liked them much. Anna always did. Good grief, she would eat a salad at 2 yrs old! I kept offering Jacob the same vegetables over and over. I always made him eat veggies. He'll eat broccoli, carrots, corn, green beans...but he doesn't usually ask for seconds and he sure won't ask for them as a snack. Anna does. He will however ask for seconds of anything sweet and he would drink pop all day, every day if I let him. They're both allowed to drink pop (not so much any more though!), but Anna will usually ask for milk or water instead. So I look at those two and I see that some of it has to be genetic. That doesn't mean I'm going to give in and let him have all the sweets he wants and none of the vegetables. It just means healthy eating is going to be harder for him, just like it is for me.
The more I learn about nutrition and the things that are allowed by the USDA, the more shocked I am. And the more it makes me want even better for my children. Did you know that some ground beef can be made with renderings from beef (that are usually used for dog food) "washed" with an ammonia solution?! And that the USDA doesn't require that to be listed on the label??
Did you know the shellac (shiny, hard shell) on candy comes from the secretions of a bug?! Seriously...

"This coating is not vegan and most likely not vegetarian either as it may, and probably does, contain crushed insects."

Is that not disturbing?

Eating organic/natural can be pretty expensive. Which is why America is having an obesity epidemic! When it's cheaper to buy a hamburger washed in ammonia than it is to buy a pound of organic apples...what do we expect? The grocery budget is usually at the top of the list for the chopping block when you try to cut back. Believe me, I know about cutting back expenses! There is literally no other area that we can cut back in besides food. I have noticed that the price of organic food has come down a little bit. And it's more available than it was a couple years ago. Our store in town has a FEW organic items. WalMart is carrying more and more. The Dillons in Hutch carries a lot of organic, especially produce. Another way I can save money is with my garden. I wish I had a bigger one, but this year I've got 12 tomato plants, 6 pepper plants, green beans, 2 cucumbers, and 4 zucchini plants (all for just $12!). I want to be able to plant potatoes, onions, carrots, cantaloupe, watermelon, and strawberries and have some blueberry and raspberry bushes along with fruit trees. That's the dream anyway! ;) There is also an organic farm (Jako, Inc.) nearby where I can get grass-fed beef, cage-free chicken, and organic produce. I was talking to a friend several months ago and she made an astute observation...if you try to go "organic" all at once, in everything, you'll go broke and you'll "fizz out". Do a little at a time until you eventually get there. For me, there are 3 main things that I want to avoid right away-high fructose corn syrup (which is HARD! It's in practically everything!!), non-organic beef and chicken, and candy/sweets. The first two will be expensive but the last one is simply a matter of not buying pop and candy. Although WalMart does carry cage-free chicken that isn't much more than the Tyson chicken. And there's a local farm that has great eggs for $1.50/dozen.
So we're on a journey to healthier eating. I'm so glad that Aaron is 100% supportive and encouraging. The more I learn, the more I want to share and the more I want to change. It doesn't make you a bad person if you don't buy organic fruit for your kids. It doesn't make you stupid if you don't know about these things. But I do think it's important to know where our food comes from and to be more aware of what we put into our bodies. We can say "Well, my parents/grandparents ate this and they're fine!" but the real problem is a generation or two away. Look at the kids in school today and you'll see the health problems that are usually prevalent in adults. I think most of that has to do with our unhealthy eating habits-at home and in schools.
Anyway, I hope this makes some sense and maybe educates someone just a little bit. I'll still be your friend if you let my kids drink a pop when they're at your house or eat plain ol' potato chips! ;) I'm not an organic snob. :)