Well, where to start...I've been wanted to blog about this for some time now but I knew I wanted to be organized and informative about it and have been mulling things over in my head for several months now. But I think I'm ready and have learned enough to share.
Our family has made some big lifestyle changes lately (its nothing weird or scary, keep reading). It started well over a year ago when I was pregnant with Ben and knew that I wanted to have a medication free, natural childbirth. Why did I want this? Well, you can check out my birth story here. Things really got started from there. But since Sarahvieve first joined us back in 2007 I've been really careful and choosy about the products I'd use and the foods we'd consume. Fast forward to to now...
We eat no processed food
We eat only organic fruits and veggies locally produced, in season
We eat only pastured, grass fed meat and dairy products
We use healthy fats
We use natural sugars
First of all, you're probably thinking, why? Well let me tell you!
First and foremost, something about this resonates with Owen and I. Like, its wisdom our bodies know but brains forgot in the aspartame, vegetable oil fog.
-We REALLY like the way REAL FOOD tastes. Fresh, flavorful, crisp, juicy, the way food is supposed to taste, not the way its manufactured to taste. Here's my alma mater's definition of *real food*
-It makes us feel good inside to know that we are supporting small organic farms (and using our own garden!!), not Monsanto.
-Our bellies feel full and happy with less food, because its good food, rich food. Eating this way, eating Real Food or Traditional Eating, allows our bodies to get the maximum nutrients, vitamins and all good things out of the food we eat.
-Preparing food using traditional methods provides easier digestion thus maximum availability of the foods "good for you stuff". Sarahvieve can eat wheat, she is NOT gluten intolerant like we thought! She has digestion difficulties but does not when eating this way. I am lactose intolerant, but am drinking cow milk more than I ever have in my life...because of the traditional way I'm preparing our dairy products...yogurt, cheese, all things cultured, and LOW TEMP pasteurized...we don't drink dead milk, ultra pasteurized (regular grocery store milk) has absolutely no redeeming value and makes me horribly sick.
Am I a nutritionist, NO, but I am a mom on a mission to grow strong, healthy, vibrant children that are prepared for the world around them. Able to take on and do whatever it is they want, free from illness, disease or conditions that would limit their aims. One of the many ways I'm doing this is through providing the best nutrition possible.
So what don't we eat...and why.
No veggie oils/margarine...have you ever thought about it, how little fat there is in vegetables and what has to be done and how many veggies used to create it? Not good. If you can't feasibly make your fat in the kitchen, you shouldn't eat it.
No refined grains (flour) or sugars or 'fake' sweeteners (eg. white, brown, powdered, Splenda or aspartame)
No soy... endocrine disruptor, aka soy is messing up our hormones
No processed food...that means fast food, store bought bread, cereal, chips, frozen prepared food, anything processed, nope, we avoid it. Because of preservatives, soy, coloring, chemicals. Not only do these things have little to no nutritional value but are actually doing damage to our guts creating auto-immune diseases.
OK, no processed food...so what the heck do you eat? Only the best tasting and most nutritional organic food ever!!
-Healthy fats...butter, coconut oil, EVOO, and animal fats, learn more here
-Healthy sugars...maple syrup, honey, unrefined cane sugar, date sugar, learn more here
-Properly prepared whole grains and flours through souring, soaking and fermenting (yes, I do this stuff in my kitchen!) My dad will tell you, I make a killer sourdough bread, I think just as good as him San Francisco stuff! learn more here
-Fruits and veggies
-Pastured eggs
-Grass fed beef and fresh dairy, I culture my own yogurt, so easy and cheap!
-Organic free range chicken and turkeys
-Sustainable, wild caught fish
-Probiotics in cultured foods and beverages
Wow, sounds expensive. Well, its not! Processed food is expensive, eating out is expensive. Going to the doctor is expensive. Food can be medicine, you just have to learn how to use it. Our ancestors had it right! Well, not everything. Science has answered a lot of questions for us but we are using science to make Franken-food, GMOs, products pumped with preservatives to extend shelf life. YUCK!
We're getting back to basics and loving it. Preparing food the way our grandparents and great-grandparents did. We have a beautiful garden in and are even part of a gardening group at church. We have in kale, peas, rhubarb, onions, garlic, broccoli, spinach, carrots, beets, cilantro, thyme, oregano, basil, and lavender, with more come. We are truly enjoying the fruits of our labors and get excited every time we have a teaching moment with the kids in the garden.
Does it take a lot of time and effort to do all this? Baby steps. Do what you can when you can, is my motto. I started out buy this instead of that and from there slowly started making changes over the last year. I'm happy how far we've come. We can't go back, we know too much! I will never in my life eat fast food again. That being said, when Owen grabs a Subway sandwich because he's been caught up at school without home brought food, no biggie. If they give Cecily goldfish in nursery, no problem. Can SG have a Costco hotdog, yes! Because we're eat 90% traditionally prepared, real food at home, that 10% doesn't cause us problems. Hallelujah!
Well, I just wanted to get this out there. I've been feeling like I've been keeping a secret. I'm not ashamed, I'm super proud of the changes we've made, but don't want my friends to think I'm a dirty hippie...I shower, I promise! (with natural olive oil soap from Kiss My Face, haha)
Lainey starts a new semester
6 months ago
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