Well, grab a cup of joe or some chai tea....or chamomile....whatever floats your boat, and I'll tell you how it's going.
I had a light bulb moment a few days ago. I realized that I no longer think twice about making something from scratch. It's starting to become a natural habit . It's not a big deal to get up in the morning and fry up eggs and bacon or pancakes or whatever. I make lunch and McDonalds does not even occur to me. I start dinner sometimes as early as 3:30 and can be in the kitchen for 2-1/2 hours preparing a meal like I've been doing it my whole life. What I'm saying is I'm getting used to "real food" living. Cleaning up is another story and I'm not sure I'm going to get used to that one. I wish I could wiggle my nose like Sabrina and have a sparkling kitchen.
I've also relaxed about not being able to give my family the absolute best. I would love to prepare grass fed beef and poultry all the time, raw milk, organic fruits and veges, and pastured eggs, but we simply can't afford it. I do buy these items from time to time, but for now it's not doable on a regular basis. It's easy for me to get caught up in what I can't do rather than seeing how much I have changed. We've come so far and we are still miles ahead of the average American family. We've cut back considerably on restaurant food, we use natural sweeteners, we have virtually eliminated processed foods, we are eating lots of fresh produce, and we eat animal products without hormones and/or antibiotics.
I have noticed (I feel like I'm going to jinx myself for saying this) the kids have not been sick. One or two have had a runny nose that lasted a couple of days and Holden had a weird day where he threw up once and that was it, but other than that no one has been ill. The twins had terrible ear infections right after I started our new diet, which was really discouraging, but they haven't had any problems since. I'd like to think it is because of how we are eating now. I will say if we continue to stay healthy than I will attribute it to our diet. WebMD states, "Statistics show that preschool-aged children have around nine colds per year, kindergartners can have 12 colds per year, and adolescents and adults have about seven colds per year. Cold season runs from September until March or April, so children usually catch most cold viruses during these months". There's not really anyway to tell for sure. I haven't counted how many colds each of us has had in the past, but I know the number of illnesses has run close to average so if we only see one or two colds (or no colds. Wouldn't that be wonderful.) than I can say, "yes, this diet thing is working."
Another encouragement is the kids have started eating more of what's on their plates. It's amazing what a little competition can do. I announce a "star eater" at the end of each meal. It's not the "clean your plate club," but whoever had the best attitude and ate a good portion of everything on his plate is awarded the title. I don't hand out a prize and they don't get a special treat. They only get a title and it lasts until the next meal. I never would have thought they would respond the way they have. They've eaten it up, pardon the pun. Everyone wants to be star eater! Just when I think I have my children figured out they throw me for a loop.
My biggest news and you'll think I'm silly for it, but it really is a big deal, is Holden ate peas without me having to tell him. Holden HATES vegetables. My rule is that everyone must eat at least one bite of everything on his plate. Several times Holden has stubbornly sat at the table for hours refusing to eat whatever vegetable I had served that night. For him to not only eat peas, but to do so willingly and without anyone asking is a major breakthrough for us.
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| This is Holden refusing his food |
There you have it. I am stoked and hope I can write many more progress reports like this one! Did I just say "stoked?" Do people even say that anymore?
