7 days in...

and it's already time to be real. With myself. With you.

My January goal of Whole30 has fallen through, even after several attempts to restart. Yes, in 7 days (technically, 5 not counting today and because I was planning to start on the 2nd), I have failed miserably. And you know what? I am okay with that. That is the truth.

Saturday was Jackson's birthday, and we were visiting Jason's family for the afternoon and evening, while also picking up Ethan and Alex. We ordered pizza for the birthday boy's dinner and of course there was cake and ice cream. I overindulged, eating several slices of pizza - obviously not Whole30 - and a small piece of cake and ice cream. That's fine. It was a birthday with my family!

Fresh start on Sunday! I did okay Sunday and Monday following Whole30, but my patience has been thin, and cravings high. It's hard being a girl sometimes :( (sorry if that's TMI, it is what it is). Yesterday, Jack and I had to stop at the store for a few little things, including an immersion or hand blender, and he asked if we could get a small bag of mini donuts. Sure. I won't have any, I'm having eggs when we get home. 10 mini chocolate-frosted donuts, and an empty bag later, I started rethinking what to do. Dinner last night was good though. We had slow-cooker beef roast, and garlic mashed cauliflower, with fruit for the boys also.

This morning, I went in to my January goals and reevaluated my personal goals. After reading posts the last few days on the FB group I'm a member of, and realizing that maybe a super-strict Whole30 right now isn't the best choice for me - it's also a bit more expensive trying to feed 5 of us that way - I have decided that we are still going to try and eat paleo at most meals, especially dinner as a family. I am going to make a conscious effort to make healthy choices at other meal times, while probably not strict Whole30, most likely leaning toward paleo. Meaning meats, veggies, fruits, and healthy fats still, but maybe some dairy like butter or a little cheese. Still going to avoid as much added sweeteners outside of honey or 100% maple syrup as I can, and if I have a pop during a dinner out, that's okay too.

My healthy has to start with my attitude towards food. My biggest enemy is myself. I let myself overeat. I let myself choose junk food because I am tired, or stressed, or bored, or whatever.

Still, I'm going to continue reading It Starts with Food, because there is some wonderful information in it. A lot to take away and introduce to our life. Even in the book, if I remember right, it says somewhere about Whole30 not be something you do ALL the time, you have to eat what's right for you. And we all know junk food in general isn't good for anybody.

Besides all this, some things have had positive gains already!

Menu planning happened for the first full week of January and I linked up to MPM at I'm an organizing junkie. I also have 3 scheduled posts for the rest of the months menu plans, although I do need to go in and fill in most of the actual recipes. Ha! But it's a start, and having them scheduled will keep me on track to do them.

We have tried 3 new recipes already.

1. Easy slow cooker chicken verde - which we had on Monday night - turned out awesome! I put the chicken thighs and salsa verde in around 1:30, and after choi, we came home and were able to eat a delicious dinner together. I had mine in a bowl with guacomole, shredded lettuce, diced white onion, tomato, and black olives, while everybody else had it with refried beans, cheese, lettuce and whichever toppings they chose on tortillas. Jason even made some tortilla bowls for the boys and himself with these little pans we have just for that purpose. We will definitely make this meal again.
2. The Easiest and Most Delicious Crock Pot Beef Ever from last night was pretty good. I think it was a little overcooked. The recipe says 8-10 hours on low, and it was in the crockpot for just over 8 on low, and then on the warm setting for an additional 30 minutes or so while I made the side dish. It was a little on the dry side, but the flavor was good. We skipped the Worcestershire sauce because we were out of it, and it's not Whole30, but I think next time I will be sure to have some. The reviews were good enough to try it again, maybe cooked for slightly less time.
3. Garlic mashed cauliflower from Nom Nom Paleo. They were ok. The texture is definitely different than mashed potatoes. The flavor was good, especially with the garlic, salt and pepper. Also I used coconut oil for the added fat, instead of ghee, because none of my guys like the flavor of ghee. I had to use my rice/veggie steamer instead of a pot with a steam insert like she says to use, and so it took quite a bit longer to get to the right tenderness. I used my new immersion/hand blender to mash them, which worked alright. Once they start getting cold, they aren't as good as mashed potatoes, in my opinion, and we didn't have any type of gravy. Our oldest, who doesn't like mashed potatoes, didn't like these any better but ate them out of love for mom ;) Not sure I will try making these again. 

Yoga! One of my Christmas presents this year was a set of yoga DVDs. My loving husband bought them for me because it was on my (very short) list of wants. The only problem is, as I was trying to do the one DVD, he and I both quickly realized it doesn't seem ideal for a beginner. Some of the moves need much more upper and lower body strength than I have, such as balancing on one arm/hand and the side of one foot with the other foot/leg lying on top of it, and other arm pointing straight up. Think of laying like a T, but then get on your side and do  it with just your hand and side of your foot touching the ground. Um, this mama is definitely not ready for that. I tried, mind you, I tried. I even did some of the easier moves, and stretches and got in about 20 minutes on Monday. Today is day 2 of three this week and I will try the other tonight.

31 days of Declutter: Slight edit on this as well. We (I) missed a few days, but will be thrilled as long as we still get 31 "bags" of trash/donate/storage taken care of. Even if we have to double up. So far, my tally is at 2. One was a desk, and the other a bunch of junk from the fridge and one cupboard. Time to hit it hard, and I'm thinking our closet and bedroom may be the place to begin.

I will have a separate 365 Happy Days Growing post with the last two weeks of pictures on Sunday, but if you are following @growingintome on Instagram then you may have seen our recent additions to this. This has been by far the easiest goal to reach.

No updates for the boys or family goals yet, but it's early still. Getting back into the swing of things with school and extracurricular activities has been all-consuming. Homework two days in a row, choi once this week, and some down-time reading, watching cartoons or playing a little MineCraft after has been our evening routine the last couple of nights. Jackson and I did make it to the library yesterday morning to return some books, and check out some preschool books for him and I to read. We also got 3 kids' craft books to look for some fun ideas to do for our family crafts. Tonight all 3 boys have choi, and after a dinner of leftovers, we will sit down and scour the books together, each picking out something we want to do, Jack choosing with a little help from me or Jason, of course.

Enjoy your Wednesday, everyone!

School lunches

It's that time of year again. Well, almost. We actually have 3 full weeks till the first day!

I'm grateful for the time left for summer, and just a tad bit ready for it to start at the same time. After so much unstructured time, my boys are bored all the time. Even after they do a few chores, read books, play with toys, ride their bikes, watch cartoons and play video games. This can make for some very loud, unhappy children and a cranky mama by the time dad gets home... Poor Jason ;)

This year, I want to plan a little better when it comes to lunches. We typically do a combo plan: Wednesday is pizza day at school and they usually ask to buy it. Since we have to pay for the month in advance, it makes it easy to say ok to that and no to the rest.

They (and I) can't change our minds in the morning about buying vs. packing before school if it's a different day. Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays, the boys always pack their lunches. Last year they packed A LOT of sandwiches. I want something different for them this year.

Also, I really, really DON'T want to buy pizza every week for the both of them. Now September is different, because we have a small balance in each of their accounts. Of course, one has 3 meals' worth of money and the other just 1 meal's worth. To make it fair, I am sending money for both to have pizza all 4 Wednesday's in September. What they don't know yet is from there on out, we probably won't be doing that.

I'm currently making a list of what foods to make (and freeze) ahead of time for lunches - as well as some breakfasts! - that are wholesome, real foods with little sugar, and processed crud in them, and some that are paleo, so I can indulge too! Some things we won't be freezing, of course.

Here's what I have so far: *Anything with grains, dairy or sugar IN the recipe will be adapted if possible or is just for the boys and Jason as I'm following Whole30 for the next 90 days. Well, 89, now. Through November 8th. Besides the fact that I'm planning to go mostly, if not completely, grain-free and dairy free from now on anyway.*

1. Paleo Pizza Bites   
2. Whole-wheat waffles (or pancakes)  
3. Spaghetti and Meatballs - possibly minus the noodles, so just meatballs and sauce. Also planning to adapt the recipe slightly, using coconut flour in place of whole wheat breadcrumbs, and leaving out the parmesan and maybe the soy sauce.
4. Homemade whole wheat pizza - or I may use her suggestion of pita bread, sauce, cheese and whatever cold toppings for a "lunchable" style pizza
5. Whole wheat blueberry muffins - I love that she offers suggestions for other add-ins.
   
6. Whole grain pumpkin muffins - we might just use whole wheat flour instead of spelt...
7. Homemade Pop Tarts - we've made these before and they were tasty. 
8. Refried beans (with leftover taco meat)- so good, and so easy. They won't eat the beans plain, but if I have a ton made up, they can take leftover taco meat and beans mixed in their thermos, with a tortilla and some cheese and lettuce on the side to make a quick taco!
9. Cinnamon and coconut pancakes - these were a hit when we made them and although I'm not sure how they will fare being frozen, it's worth a try.
10. Bacon, egg and cheese muffins - We made them once, and they were overly salty, but I want to try again using coconut oil in place of the bacon drippings, and a little less bacon.
11. Spicy Tuna Cakes - I'm not sure about freezing these, but I figure they could just take some leftover ones the next day.
12. Whole wheat zucchini bread
13. Strawberry Jam - to use on sandwiches or on waffles!
14. Cool Ranch Chicken Nuggets 
15. Egg-salad made with homemade mayonnaise
16. Tuna-salad made with homemade mayonnaise
17. Oatmeal with raisins, or cinnamon/sugar
18. Fruit and yogurt parfait - just a little 100% maple syrup and/or vanilla extract in plain whole milk yogurt, with a quality granola (homemade if possible!) and fresh/frozen blueberries, strawberries, etc.
19. Fresh veggies with homemade mayo ranch
20. Salad w/ homemade mayo ranch
21. Fresh fruit

What are your typical school lunches? Any ideas that I haven't thought of here? I love comments and ideas, so feel free to share!

Menu Plan Monday - Whole30 and Paleo: 7/21-7/27

What?! Two posts in two days? Holy crap! That's a record for me as of recent. This is just a quick one though with our menu plan for the week.

I do need to write an update on our yearly goals soon... Let's see if I can go for 3 days in a row!

I put Whole30 AND Paleo in the title because my Whole30 is over on Thursday and then we will be eating (mostly) paleo meals. There are few things I'm eager to eat again, though it's not what I anticipated wanting! *Hint: It's not pop, deep-fried foods, ice cream or even chocolate! Shocked? Yeah, me too!

Anyway, enjoy. I hope somebody finds something in here they like or want to give a try :)

MONDAY: Spicy tuna cakes and roasted broccoli (tossed with coconut oil, minced garlic, sea salt and pepper, then roasted at 350 for 20-25 mins - "recipe" from It Starts with Food.)

TUESDAY: Breakfast for dinner - homemade pork sausage patties, fried/scrambled eggs, roasted carrots (same as broccoli above) and toast for the husband and boys

WEDNESDAY: Cracklin' chicken, baked sweet potatoes (fries for the boys), salad, applesauce

THURSDAY: Coconut crusted chicken tenders, salad, roasted zucchini and summer squash

FRIDAY: Overnight oven-braised shredded pork tacos - although I may cook this in the crockpot - with guacamole (I still need to find shallots and don't have aleppo pepper), diced onions, tomatoes, lettuce and salsa, plus cheese and tortillas for Jason and the boys. I may decide to have a bit of cheese on mine, but we'll see.

SATURDAY: Cheese/hamburgers, oven-baked sweet potato fries, fresh cauliflower

SUNDAY: Leftovers OR dinner out somewhere


I can't wait to try a couple of other recipes: Bacon, egg & cheese muffins and cinnamon & coconut pancakes as well as Paleo sausage egg "mcmuffin" and Porkitos.

Linking up over on I'm an Organizing Junkie who is the awesome blogger that hosts this each week!

Learning to listen to my gut, figuratively and literally

If you've been following me on Facebook or Instagram - here or here - (or both!), then you know I started a new "journey" almost a month ago. What you may not know is the background and what the outcome is so far.

I had heard of Whole30 in passing on social media before but had never really done any research. One day, I was just sitting here and clicked over to read some more about it. I posed a question on my private FB page as well as the blog page, asking if anyone had done it, or was interested in doing it. I got some great feedback and decided it was worth a try. I ordered the book It Starts With Food: Discover the Whole30 and change your life in unexpected ways. We went on vacation and I read about half of it on the road trip. I was convinced that it was worth trying.

30 days of real fresh food.
No (added) sugar or artificial sweeteners, including honey and maple syrup - added fruit juice is the exception.
No alcohol.
No soy.
No legumes (beans/peanuts/peas/lentils).
No grains (wheat/rice/corn/oats, gluten-free or otherwise, no quinoa, etc).
No dairy.
No "vegetable" or seed oils.

What's left to eat? Meat, including chicken, beef and pork among many others, seafood, and of course eggs. Vegetables and fruits. Healthy saturated fats (read the book and you will understand HOW that is possible!!) like clarified butter/ghee, duck or goat fat, tarrow or lard (!), coconut oil/milk/butter/"meat", olive oil and some nuts and nut butters.

Not so bad!

For nearly 25 full days, I ate really good - minus day 1 when I had soy from my canned tuna, and one day last week when I made the mistake of ordering sweet potato fries at a restaurant. I say mistake because I had made sweet potato fries at home, baked in the oven, with coconut oil and didn't think about it. Of course they were fried at the restaurant, and my brain didn't catch up to my eyes seeing how yummy they looked. Oh well, I only ate a small portion.

I've had some amazing results so far. My digestion has been better, my skin is clearing up on my upper arms where I've had a rash-like acne for years, my shorts are fitting looser, my brain/thinking has been clearer and my sleep has been amazing! I went from having very bad gas as well as weekly issues with *ahem* diarrhea (sorry, TMI) to having little to no gas and not having to use any anti-diarrheal medicine! I've even been told by a couple people - including my awesome MIL - that they see a difference in my size. I honestly can't wait to see my weight at the end of this on the 25th.

I am eating more often, 3 meals a day, and in reality, bigger meals most times, but also so many more veggies and fruit. I feel full and stay full. No real snacking and my cravings are virtually non-existent.

When we started, and I use the word "we" loosely, as my husband and sons are eating most of the same stuff as me for dinner, but are also still eating dairy and grains (mostly at breakfast and lunch) and a little sugar, I thought it would be hard to give all of that up. Especially pop. I was drinking one to two 20-oz Pepsi's a day. Giving it up cold turkey normally gives me a gigantic headache by about day 3 and I give in. This time I did not experience any headaches! I can only attribute that to the fact that I was also feeding my body real food, good-for-me food and my body finally had something to work with. And no, I'm not drinking coffee or tea, either! No caffeine at all for the last 25 days.

As I said above, for nearly 25 full days, I ate this way.

Yesterday, we drove to our hometown in Ohio, and went to a benefit for a friend's mom who is battling cancer. Knowing there may or may not be Whole30 compliant food there, I chose to eat a Larabar before going, and then made the determination to just do the best I could.

At first, it was easy. Pulled pork and shredded beef were available (with bbq sauce on the side, so that was easier, too) and carrots, celery and olives. I had some of the pork w/o sauce, some carrots and a couple of green and black olives. On that note, I realized I do not like whole olives, they are far too salty for me, and I'd much rather have them in a dish or on a salad.

After watching my older two sons and the rest of our family eating the mac and cheese, baked beans, and of course dessert, I thought to myself "What harm could come from having just a little?" I went back for some more food, this time choosing some beef w/o sauce, a small scoop of macaroni and cheese as well as the baked beans, and a small slice of cheesecake. I ate all of it but half of the piece of cheesecake. I felt just fine and figured one meal is okay.

We drove home and I felt very sleepy, which isn't unusual during a car ride for me, and by the time we got home, I was ready for bed. After getting our youngest son changed into pajamas and in bed, and giving hugs and kisses to the older boys, I literally fell into bed.

Fast forward a few hours to the middle of the night, around 3:15. I wake up from a sound sleep in the middle of dream, thinking I heard someone crying. Nope, nobody else is awake. I was wide awake for about 45 mins, just before 4 and then fell asleep until 8:30 when little J actually was calling for us.

This morning, I am feeling the after-effects of eating those things I've abstained from for the past 3 weeks. I could barely open my eyes, don't feel rested at all, and am quite groggy. My brain feels cloudy, if that makes sense. Almost like I was drinking last night. My stomach is a mess, just not feeling 100% and definitely gassy and bloated. :(

While I don't like the way I feel, I am glad I have a little confirmation that certain foods do affect me negatively. It gives me incentive and a renewed drive to continue eating Whole30 or at least paleo.

MPM - Week of 2/23 - 3/1/14

Sunday: Sandwiches for dinner. Blue and Gold Banquet for Cub Scouts today so we are eating our "big meal" of the day there at lunchtime

Monday: Breakfast (bacon/sausage, eggs, and toast)

Tuesday: Whole Chicken in crockpot (making two to have plenty left over for freezer AND tacos), mashed red potatoes, corn

Wednesday: Chicken tacos - using yesterday's leftover chicken, refried beans in slow cooker

Thursday: Meat and veggie foil packets *new to us recipe*

Friday: Tuna noodle casserole - finally going to make it as we've had the ingredients in the house for weeks

Saturday: Cheeseburgers, macaroni and cheese, carrots and applesauce

There are so, so many recipes I want to try from 100 Days of Real Food, and 3 of the four above we've made many times before with great success. I have tried others that we didn't like, as well as many we have liked and want to make again. I hope to eventually make it all the way through all of their recipes, and I can NOT wait till August when her cookbook is set to come out. I already informed Jason that I want it badly!! I would also love Pioneer Woman's cookbooks. All of them. I've made several of her recipes over the last couple of years with rave reviews. Birthday's coming up in 6 1/2 weeks. Maybe I will get lucky and get a new cookbook ;)

Linking up at I'm an Organizing Junkie.

Menu Plan Monday

We always have a menu planned out around here, and follow it pretty good for the most part. I always forget to link up though over at I'm an Organizing Junkie for MPM, which I used to do on my "old" blog over the years. Maybe sharing it on here will keep me accountable to following the plan even better as well as continuing to find and try 2-3 new recipes a month as per our health-related goals for 2014. After choosing this week's menu, we may be able to adjust that goal to one new recipe weekly!

I'm including Sunday's meal plan too, as I generally plan from Sunday-Saturday. Lots of crockpot meals this week - actually 5 of 7!

Sunday: *Cheeseburger soup (c)
Monday: Leftovers
Tuesday: *Honey sesame chicken with rice (maybe serve on rolls for the boys) (c)
Wednesday: Roast, red potatoes, baby carrots (c)
Thursday: *Taco chili with multi-grain tortilla chips (c)
Friday: Tuna noodle casserole - my mom's recipe, slightly modified: 1 box of rotini, cooked; 3-4 cans chunk light tuna in water, drained; 2 boxes organic cream of mushroom soup; 1 can sweet peas, drained. Mix together in casserole dish and bake at 350 for 30 minutes, I think? I'm just going to kind of wing it, as it's been a long time since I made this and I can't find my recipe card :(
Saturday: *White chicken chili (c)

*these recipes are found at graciously saved
(c) means it's a crockpot meal

Change of plans

Meal plans that is!

If you've been following us for a while, you'll know that about a month ago, we decided to give the paleo diet a trial, including using the emeals paleo meal plan.

We've tried many a new recipe during the last month, some we liked, some we didn't. Technically, we only followed the paleo guidelines for one meal a day, as the breakfast and lunch menus we were using had more classic-style meals with grains included.

About 3 weeks in, Jackson started to eat less and less of the dinners, and while I know many will say, oh he won't starve himself, etc, it became a struggle to get him to eat even one bite some nights. No veggies and very little meat. He has also cut back a lot on nursing, some days not even nursing at all. Needless to say, he would need to eat something, and would usually have a small snack an hour or so after dinner. By the beginning of the fourth week, I was resorting to something I did not want to do - making a separate meal for him.

Jason and I decided to switch the emeals plan to classic and also throw some of our old stand-by's in there (tacos, spaghetti, burgers).

We do have some new favorites and a lot of different types of veggies we will be eating more often so at least our diets are more varied than ever before.

The older boys were quite adventurous when it came to eating the meals, trying at least on bite of everything served to them. Even if they didn't like something, they were very polite about it and honest about what they didn't like - too sour, too spicy, etc.

While we only gave it a few weeks, we did learn it just isn't right for us at this stage of our lives. Sometimes you just have to know when enough is enough.  The toddler has hit that stage where he wants familiarity. And there's nothing wrong with that. I just have to make sure it's healthy and decent variety.

I am still glad we decided to try the menu planning site though, as there have been many, many recipes that I would never have found or tried otherwise.

On that note, we had Italian bread pizzas tonight made with freshly shredded mozzarella and turkey pepperoni (I didn't like the pepperoni very much...). Ethan, Alex and Jackson all had cranberry-cream cheese coffee cake for breakfast. It wasn't really a huge hit, although Alex seemed to really like it. Jason took some broccoli, ham and cheese corn muffins to work. Alex took some of the muffins, yogurt in a thermos, sliced pears and water, E had a turkey and cheese on whole wheat, yogurt in a thermos, sliced pears and water, and Jackson had a pb&j on whole wheat - cut into the shape of Elmo's head! - and orange juice. Oh and I stuck a kit-kat in each of the boys' lunch bags.

We still have some candy sorting and trading to do and then they can decide if they'd like a gift card or a toy for the candy they can't have. I also picked up some dye-free (organic!) suckers and gummy bears that they like, as well as some yogurt-covered pretzels that they can trade some of the candy for. I've been thinking we will keep the m&m's, skittles, and sweet tarts to use for a gingerbread house in December. Maybe we can send some of the rest of their candy to soldiers overseas? I wouldn't even know where to start with that, though.

What we are eating

*Just a note: This is not a sponsored post, in any way. I just want to share something that we are trying out in case it may help someone else. I don't get anything for sharing and I am paying for my membership. I just joined on Saturday, so it's still very new to us. :) *

I've been struggling with meal planning and going grocery shopping lately. I want to make some new or different meals - at least sometimes - but we seem to fall back on old favorites way too often.

Obviously they are old favorites for a reason, but it gets boring after a while and nobody wants to eat it. We are still trying to eat real, homemade meals - in other words, not from a box or mix - for most of our lunches and dinners, although we still tend to rely on cereal way too much in the mornings.

Jason and I watched a documentary the other night, The Perfect Human Diet. While I don't necessarily agree with it entirely, we did learn some interesting things, and Jason suggested trying a paleo diet/lifestyle. We aren't going completely "paleo" though, but limiting our grains quite a bit more. Having only started this yesterday in full force, it's been a definite change.

I usually plan two weeks of meals and go grocery shopping for 90% of what we need every other Friday or Saturday and get perishables as needed the next week - milk and dairy, veggies, fruit -  which can be challenging in itself due to 14 dinners planned plus figuring out staples for breakfasts and lunches. The boys tend to take the same thing day after day, or at least week after week, which again can get boring.

On Saturday, after deciding to start planning for just a week, I attempted to find some new meals and while I found a few, I just couldn't concentrate. I remembered a site I'd heard about, eMeals, and decided to check into it. After a brief discussion with Jason, we signed up for a 3 month 7-day dinner meal plan - the paleo one - as well as adding on the 5-day lunch and 5-day breakfast menus. They give you a full week of dinners including recipes and grocery list, and for 5 days for the lunch and breakfast ones each.

There were 2 breakfast recipes we decided to skip (a smoothie and a pineapple cashew bar), but the other 3 look perfect for us to try. We are filling in cereal, scrambled eggs and toast or pancakes on the other 4 days this week. The lunches all look yummy and do-able. Today's was a parfait and pears with nut butter. I tweeked it a bit to fit our tastes, using regular french vanilla yogurt instead of french vanilla greek yogurt, granola cereal instead of pearl barley, and just strawberries rather than strawberries AND blueberries, and replacing nut butter with wowbutter, due to nut allergies at school. (I worry a lot, and even though there aren't allergies in either of the boys' classrooms, they aren't always diligent with the hand washing, etc and I'd hate for a friend in any other class that they see in the hall/lunch/recess that has an allergy to have a reaction. Better safe than sorry and they don't really mind :) )

Dinner last night was all new. Even though we've had ribs before, it was a new recipe. We baked baby-back pork ribs with a dry-rub for about 3 hours, till they were falling off the bone. For the side dishes, the boys had simply cheetos cheese puffs - no food coloring, although still processed, it's a compromise - and we all had spicy turnip greens. Having never cooked OR eaten turnip greens, I wasn't sure what to expect. With Jason's help in the kitchen, dinner turned out good! The turnip greens were sauteed/boiled with onions, garlic, olive oil, apple cider vinegar and dill pickle juice and then seasoned with sea salt and red pepper. They were sour, but not horrible. E and Alex really liked the ribs, with a bit of bbq sauce added, as did I. Jason ate them with and with out bbq sauce. Jack didn't want anything to do with the ribs. Jas, E, Alex and I ate the turnip greens - although the boys only had to try a small amount and weren't too enthusiastic, they did eat all of it! Jackson was leary about the whole meal to be honest, but did end up eating cheese puffs, a banana, and the ONIONS from the greens!! LOL. He kept saying "grapes, grapes" and pointing to the little diced onions, so Jason kept giving them to him.

Tonight, we are having fish and roasted veggies, and some baked fries for the boys. I have back-up stuff in the house just in case - fish sticks for the boys as the fish recipe sound a bit spicy. Although, they will probably at least eat some of it. I'm just glad they are willing to indulge me by trying this stuff ;) I won't be a short-order cook, but I'm willing to add something that I know they will eat to an all-new or mostly-new meal so they won't go hungry if they truly don't like it, and they are willing to eat at least a bite or two of most everything we offer them. Well except the toddler. He used to eat anything, but he's at a pickier stage now. That's ok. Just got to keep offering. Right?

One thing I'm not sure about with this new menu-plan thing is that I went way over budget for the week. I bought a week's worth of groceries, but spent almost all of our 2 weeks worth of grocery money...

Though I'm sure quite a few things are more than a week's supply - staples for the pantry. Plus we have 3 meals worth of meat that we had "extra" in the freezer from 2 weeks ago: a whole chicken and 2 lbs of ground beef. As well as adding an second roast since I bought 2 this week for a good price. We also usually have leftovers once a week, so we will do that, and move one of this week's meals to next week, as well as add one to next week, so that will only leave one dinner and then some breakfast/lunch items to buy. I will have to readjust our budget some though I think. It's a work in progress, but it will work out. I don't know when I've bought so much fresh produce!

I hope that nothing in the fridge freezes prior to tomorrow. We get our new one delivered tomorrow after 9am. I seriously can not wait!!! I've been watching the lettuce, kale and baby spinach, especially, like a hawk. They seem to freeze the easiest and then it's ruined. 24 hours!

I'm glad we decided to try this menu plan though. It's pleasing to all of us - Jason gets meat or seafood at every dinner (his favorite) and I get to serve more veggies and we get to try new things, while cutting down on the one thing I'm seriously addicted to: grains and starches. Plus it saves me time and energy. That makes me especially happy!

It's also October and we are trying - unbeknownst to Jason and the boys - eat less processed foods. Not completely unprocessed but much, much less.

We ordered pizza and cheesebread Friday night and all I could think about after and the next day was how much my stomach hurt. I mentioned it to Jason, and he said the same thing! It wasn't even that good tasting! Totally decided it's going to be quite awhile before we order pizza or even eat out anywhere.

How do you plan your meals? Do you cook a lot at home? Are you adventurous or at least willing to try new recipes or are you more conservative, sticking to your "old favorites"?

Julie says... ;)

I'm going to continue where Crystal left off, school fundraisers. I'm all for them, if they are being done correctly. They are a great way to raise money for our schools and teams, but I think we lose sight of why we do them and how we do them. Some places seem to be taking things a little too far. Our school used to do your usual bake sales during concerts and parent teacher nights. No longer is the day of after school bake sales, it's an everyday thing. The administration realized that they could generate more funds by targeting our children during school hours, when parents aren't there monitoring what is being bought. They started doing "Terrific Tuesdays", where the kiddos could buy an ice cream sandwich during lunch. After learning that technically they weren't suppose to be selling unhealthy treats in the cafeteria due to Michelle Obama's Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act (HHFK), so they moved the sales to into the hallway. Seeing how successful the treats during lunch were they started adding more days "Wonderful Wednesdays", "Fantastic Fridays". We now have treats for purchase 5 days a week during lunch hours. Ranging in price from a quarter to $2, your child can buy (depending on the day) cheese filled bread sticks, nachos/pretzels and cheese, cookies, ice cream, freezer pops, chocolate covered pretzels, cupcakes ,or brownies. Approximately 75% of students are buying these treats EVERYDAY. The students (as young as kindergarten) are throwing away their healthy lunches for the chance to be first in line to get the "good stuff" before it's sold out. There is the still the order form fundraisers, chocolate candies, pizza kits, cookie dough, candy bars, and pies.
I remember when I was kid doing maybe one candy sale a year. There were wrapping paper, cards, and holiday themed novelties to be sold also. Whatever happened to hosting a car wash to raise funds for new uniforms?! When did everything start revolving around food?
There are so many non-food related fundraisers. Why not sell a school cookbook (I still have a much used one from when I was in elementary school). Parents/grandparents (or the kids) pay a small fee to have their recipe featured in the cookbook and then the school sells completed cookbooks. They could even have the journalism class do this. School store are great, they shut ours down because they sold candy and chips. What about selling pencils, pens, cool folders, fancy erasers, and notebooks. I know my boys are always losing theirs. Kids are competitive, hold penny wars between classes; whichever class gets the most change earns extra recess. Post pictures 2-4 good spirited teachers (whom have agreed to this) and whichever teacher has the most change in their jar gets pied by the teacher with least amount. You don't have to even have them pied the "winner" could have to wear goofy glasses, hula skirt, fake mustache, or purple hair for a day. Who wouldn't have loved to see their principal wearing a neon pink wig?! My favorite is doing a 5k or Fun Run, this can be done on the school grounds. It gets the family out doing something together and it gets people moving. Top runners get their picture on the cover of the school paper. How about silent auctions? These can be done along side concerts, sport events, conferences.
Some healthier food related fundraisers, holding a school wide spaghetti dinner twice a year (and do a silent auction the same night). The kids get to enjoy a meal with both their family and with their friends. Set up a fruit stand to sell healthy snacks before school or during lunch. At most schools there is usually leftover hot lunch meals, why not sell them a la carte.
I really bothers me how food seems to be the center of everything. That if you sell enough cookie dough, you're class will win a pizza party. Food used as a reward, whatever happened to extra recess or class outside. That's a topic for another day.
~Julie

What fundraisers does your child/ren's school do? Do you support these fundraisers?

Rawr!

I do NOT like being told what I can and can't do. Watch me!! This mama bear is awake and won't be going back into hibernation. This isn't just about my boys either, it's about ALL of them, starting at our school!! How can we change things, or expect to make a difference if we don't even try?!? It's us against the world sometimes, but that doesn't mean we shouldn't fight for what's right! It doesn't mean we should just give in, even if it's something simple like cupcakes in the classroom, or bake sales during lunch, or reading/writing during gym class instead of physical education! We have to take a stand, we have to TEACH our kids how to make good choices, so even when they don't always eat the best, they aren't ALWAYS eating junk!


It's not (just) about food dye. It's not (just) about too much junk food in the classroom and in the school(s). It's also about teaching the kids why certain food is better for you. It's about showing them where the food comes from and where we personally get it. It's about teaching them to appreciate the goodness that having enough to eat is and helping them put themselves in others' shoes, whether here in America or other, poorer countries. It's teaching them about local foods and farmers and sustainable living (to an extent) as well. Why not have a garden and greenhouse at the school? The students could learn so much. Science, as well as math (measurement for planting, counting for the youngest when collecting foods) and even reading and writing could be used and taught with a garden. The food grown could be served in the cafeteria. Home economics (if they still even teach that?) to show the kids some easy cooking skills. A gardening club for anything above and beyond what each class does. So many things to help learn and eat healthy all at the same time.

It drives me absolutely nuts.

The school "fundraisers"... don't even get me started on these.

I'd write more, but I have to pick up E and Alex up from school and take them to their doctor appointments. Nothing serious, just a yearly check-up and some questions concerning E's behaviors. We are looking for some suggestions and maybe therapies and/or medicine to help him cope better with certain situations. So I'll end here with a final thought from something I shared on my personal FB the other day: Don't give up on changing the world. If we all keep going, and pushing, and moving forward, we can and will make a difference. Even if we are only one person. Even if nobody hears or cares right away, just keep trying, keep reaching for your goals.

Julie's testimonial about artificial food-dye

Anybody who knows me pretty well knows that I am always ranting (HA!) about food dye and why it's not good for us, etc. Today, I want to share a guest post from my friend Julie. This is her family's story and just one more reason I know I'm doing the right thing for my boys. :) If you follow us on FB, then I'm sure you have already read it, but I wanted to share it on here, too.

*Guest post, by Julie*

Before this past January I really never gave much thought to artificial food dyes or the effect they had on our bodies. I had heard tid bits about red 40 and yellow 5 & 6. The brighter and more colors, the more likely my kids would eat it, and they did.
I chose to try dye free for a week to see if it would help with some behavioral problems I was having with my son. He had been having an increasing hard time focusing in school, almost no impulse control, extreme mood swings, and was only getting 3-5 hours of restless sleep a night (which probably contributed to his mood swings). Many of his problems were possible side effects to his ADHD medication. He was diagnosed in kindergarten (4 years ago) with ADHD and promptly put on medication. The medication worked wonders, and when it didn't then his dosage or medication was switched. However it seemed the meds have stopped working and his doctor had started talking about my son having more than ADHD going on, because he was out of ideas of what other meds to try.
I had shared with Crystal some of what was going on and how I was at a lose for what to try next. I really didn't want my child diagnosed with a life altering label. She challenged me to try removing artificial food dyes for a week and to look into how food dyes effect behavior. Over the weekend, I looked into it and was first shocked then angry. There was so much research about the link between ADHD and dyes and hundreds of testimonies from parents. How could I never heard about this?! I couldn't believe there was a alternative to medication, and how could our doctor never offer this as alternative before he had me give my 6 year old pills. I decided it was worth a try, at this point I felt I had nothing to lose.
That Monday school was closed due to extremely cold temperatures. I told me kids we were doing an experiment and that we weren't going to have anything that had a number in the ingredients for one week. I didn't tell them what results I was hoping to see. They helped me box up all the foods that had dyes. We went shopping to restock our cupboards and they actually had fun reading labels and finding new foods to try. We were all surprised my how much stuff has dyes.
I was nervous about how they would do at school when I wasn't there to monitor what they were eating and about them feeling left out at snack time. The teachers were very supportive and had dye free alterative that I sent in.
Three days into the challenge I saw the first sign of improvement! My insomniac child fell asleep only after and hour of being sent to bed and slept all the way to morning!! I was so excited, but still cautious that it may have been a fluke. The following days he continued to fall asleep easier and slept through the night. His teacher told me that he was more on track than he had been in a long time. At home little things that would have sent him into a tailspin didn't seem to phase him. The other boys had also calmed down, had more impulse control, and better ability to handle their emotions resulting in less arguing amongst them. My son's eczema had started clearing up. The changes weren't only with the kids; my migraines were gone, I had more energy. When I slipped up and had a Mt. Dew, I would get a killer headache and would be more irritable and short with the kids.
Seeing the results removing dyes has made for us, we have chosen to stick with it. It didn't turn me boys into perfect little gentlemen. They still bicker and argue, the still run through my house and are loud; but they aren't completely out of control anymore. We have been dye free for just over 3 months. I know there are other reasons to avoid artificial dyes, but Crystal will have to elaborate on them she is more knowledgeable than I am on the topic.

I also commented with the following challenge in my comment to her FB post: Thank you so much for sharing, Julie!! I'd love to hear from any of our readers, too. 1.) Would anyone be willing to take up the challenge for a week (or longer?!) and go dye-free? or 2.) Are you already dye-free and can you share your testimonial here in the comments? ~ Crystal

Six Ingredient Challenge, #6

Join the Six Ingredient Challenge hosted by Hobo Mama and Anktangle!
We're on a six-week path to eat more whole foods, guided by one simple rule: Buy foods with six ingredients or fewer. And we're blogging about our journey on the way.
This week we're answering the question: What are you learning about your body through this challenge? Your family's rhythms and routines? Your feelings about food?
You can see all the responses to this question on March 14 at the link-up post.
To join in the Six Ingredient Challenge anytime during the six weeks, visit the sign-up page for a list of posts and to link up!

***

So I'm whipping this post out really quickly this morning. Honestly I forgot! 

I would have to say that I've learned a lot of what I crave when it comes to food. I already knew I am a carb-aholic and can't seem to make it more than a day without a Pepsi. :( I feel better physically when I eat better.  This is probably TMI, but I have digestive issues when I eat things that are not good for me, and since eating better, especially over the last few weeks, those instances have been almost non-existent! The only times I did have a problem was the few times we either ordered pizza or had fast food (I know, I know, but sometimes it really is just easier! I am trying to learn not to beat myself up for making these bad choices and to try and make less of them :) ) I've also realized - duh! - I have more energy and am less irritable when I eat better foods! Less processed is really better for me physically and emotionally. Just need to remember that when I want to reach for the "easy" choice, whether at the store, or passing the drive-thru. 

Our routines and rhythms really do ebb and flow! We like to eat a lot of the same things, and most of the time, they are easy meals, but can be made healthy. Spaghetti, for example - whole wheat pasta with 1 ingredient, covered with a very good (preferably organic) spaghetti sauce full of veggies, topped with parmesan and maybe some ground beef, can be made even better by adding some fresh chopped veggies into the sauce and having a salad on the side, and maybe leaving out the garlic bread ;) We aren't an extraordinarily busy family, but Tuesdays, our middle son, Alex and Jason go to cub scouts, Saturday mornings the older 2 have Catechism class most weeks, and they have homework most nights - especially right now with "March is reading month" calendars and "play 60" books to do - so after we get home from school, we have to fit homework, dinner, and play time into just a few short hours and sometimes I am trying to cook while taking care of a crabby toddler who may or may not have napped! So trying to find a good rhythm while also making sure there are healthy meals on the table has been a challenge and seems to be getting easier as time goes on.

I have realized lately that all I think about is food! Well maybe not all, but it feels like I'm constantly thinking about what's for breakfast, lunch, dinner, what's healthy, what's not, food dyes, grocery shopping, the budget, etc. I am having a hard time NOT thinking about food in some way, shape or form. I've also realized I have a food addiction. I'm overweight, but not hugely obese, I'm 185(ish? LOL) and only 5'6-7" - not 100% sure how tall I am - and I know I need to lose weight, about 50lbs or so. My weight fluctuates a little but has sat about here for the last 8 years or so, except when I was pregnant this last time, when my weight reached it's highest at around 205lbs. Obviously, at that point I wasn't worried about it, since I was pregnant. But now, over a year later, I am back at my pre-pregnancy weight, and even though we are still breastfeeding on demand, I have not lost any additional weight. I know that it's because I overeat, I drink pop way too much (too much sugar!) and choose to eat sugary, carb-loaded, processed foods... because that's what I'm addicted to. I keep telling myself moderation. However, I think it's finally hit me. I can't DO moderation with these things. It's all or nothing. Not to minimize an alcoholic's or drug addict's struggle, but in it's own way, I feel like that is what I'm dealing with. It's hard to put that out there, especially considering I know family and friends will read this. It's very hard to admit you have a problem. I also realize that without help, I may never be able to stop eating the crap food that I "love"...

Six Ingredient Challenge: Week 5

Join the Six Ingredient Challenge hosted by Hobo Mama and Anktangle!
We're on a six-week path to eat more whole foods, guided by one simple rule: Buy foods with six ingredients or fewer. And we're blogging about our journey on the way.
This week we're answering the question: How's your budget? What money-saving strategies have you been employing?
You can see all the responses to this question on March 7 at the link-up post.
To join in the Six Ingredient Challenge anytime during the six weeks, visit the sign-up page for a list of posts and to link up!

***

I can't believe we are already in week 5 of this six-week challenge! No, you didn't miss a post for week 4, I actually forgot to write one. Oops! Oh well. 

The budget. I've actually been trying to bring down our weekly/biweekly grocery budget some. Jason thinks we spend too much for groceries ;) but the price of organics alone are crazy-high. However, they are so worth it, in my opinion. I can't drink non-organic milk any more without stomach issues and that means I'm spending $6.29/gallon for milk (store brand!). We have cut back our milk drinking some though so I'm usually buying 1 1/2- 2 gallons for a two-week period. This week I budgeted and spent $80 less than I typically do for the next 2 weeks. I will of course have to buy bread and milk next weekend as well as possibly some more fruit. We also didn't need a whole lot of other stuff (dog food, diapers, toilet paper, cleaning supplies, etc) so that saved us a lot this week. 

Eating from the pantry as well as finding recipes that use some of things we have and only needing one or two things for the meals has definitely helped lower the budget some. For example, we are having "spaghetti surprise" - we have rice, cream cheese and cheddar so I just bought sour cream, spaghetti sauce (which was on sale!) and ground beef. Since I always buy the organic ground beef from Costco and it comes in a three-pack, I was able to figure out 3 more meals with ground beef for the week from that! We also have lentils so I looked for a recipe that I could use them in and I found an awesome sounding one. It doesn't need meat, we have frozen homemade chicken stock and all we needed was some kale! $3 and there's a quick dinner! I'm going to also finally use some of the chia seeds we have in the cupboard as well as use up some more of our quinoa in a crockpot breakfast cereal. I hope it turns out good. 

I try to use coupons when I can and our local grocery stores - Kroger and Meijer - have e-coupons that you can "clip". I especially love Meijer's mPerks program because you can use both e-coupons and paper coupons on the same product and they double any paper coupons up to 0.50! Sometimes they even have specials for loyal customers and tailored-to-you coupons for items you buy often. I actually set up separate accounts for my husband and myself.

I'm not always good at buying things on sale, but this week I just planned to buy "fruit" and ran across strawberries for 10/$10 and bought 2 packs of them, and some others that were on sale. That way we have fresh fruits for snacks and to go with lunches. It's funny, I didn't buy granola bars again this week and the boys didn't even ask about them, as well as the gogurt! They are really doing well with this new change. I'm so proud of all of us!

Menu for 3/1/13 - 3/15/13

So here's what I have planned for dinners for the next two weeks. These are not in any particular order. It will just depend on time, what sound good, and who's cooking ;)

(crossed out meals we've already eaten)

1. Homemade fish sticks/nuggets, fries, veggie (Friday meal)
2. Leftovers 
3. Italian subs, chips and fruit 
4. Breakfast sausage, scrambled eggs and toast 
5. Homemade whole wheat pizza pockets
6. Tacos
7. Spaghetti surprise (recipe on my personal facebook and I will share on the blog's facebook page too)
8. Homemade chicken nuggets, mac and cheese, green beans
9. Meatless spaghetti (Friday meal)
10. Leftovers
11. Cheese quesadillas (most likely a Friday meal), veggie
12. Amazing lentils and kale (could also be a meatless Friday meal, but I'm using homemade chicken stock from the freezer)
13. Cheeseburger baked potatoes, green beans
14. "Let's call them swedish meatballs", pasta, corn
15. Spinach, bacon and provolone stuffed chicken breasts, pasta

14 and 15 are from a cookbook called "Bulk cooking" and 13 is my mom's recipe.

I'm also planning to make blueberry and chia quinoa for breakfast one day, except I'm using vanilla coconut milk instead of soy milk and maple syrup in place of the honey. I'll let you know how it turns out :)

What we tried this week...

Join the Six Ingredient Challenge hosted by Hobo Mama and Anktangle!
We're on a six-week path to eat more whole foods, guided by one simple rule: Buy foods with six ingredients or fewer. And we're blogging about our journey on the way.
This week we're answering the question: What new foods or recipes have you tried or discovered?
You can see all the responses to this question on February 21 at the link-up post.
To join in the Six Ingredient Challenge anytime during the six weeks, visit the sign-up page for a list of posts and to link up!

***

Since I already had the menu planned with mostly easy and all well-known recipes, I really didn't expect to have any new food or recipes. But I've never had much luck making good pork chops and knew I needed to find a recipe to try, so this was good inspiration to look for something different instead of doing the same old thing. 

I found this recipe and since I still have bread crumbs left from before the start of the challenge, I didn't buy anything outside of the rules! I did change 3 things - I left out the parsley, I browned them using coconut oil instead of olive oil and I "double-dipped" the pork chops, first in the egg mix, then the breadcrumbs, then the eggs and finally the breadcrumbs again.

Outcome...

AMAZING! They were flavorful, moist and tender! Alex finished his whole plate in less than 10 minutes (never happens!) and Ethan followed close behind. Jack even liked the meat. Definitely making these again.

What else did I buy that was new to us? Hmm. Honestly not much. I did buy a fresh mango for Jack to try and some fresh sugar-snap pea "packs" with ranch for Alex to take in his lunch, as well as some pears, which I have bought before and made puree for Jack several months ago but these are for E and Alex to take for snack or with lunch. Alex tried the snap peas today but said he didn't really like them "raw".

OH, I forgot! I also made "pop". I found the recipe in one of my cookbooks, The Kid-Friendly ADHD & Autism Cookbook, that we bought back when we were trying a gluten-free diet to see if E had any digestive problems from gluten and if it would help with his frustrations, anxiety, etc. We saw some change but after going back to a "typical" diet, honestly we haven't seen a big difference. Although he has allergic shiners (dark circles under his eyes) that did seem to go away, as well as his skin cleared up on his cheeks, and those came back at some point in the last 2 years. I've been considering having him retested for gluten intolerance, because at the time he was tested the first time, he was already off of gluten for several weeks and I'm not sure we got an accurate reading. But that's a whole other topic...
So back to the pop I made. All you need is 1 liter of seltzer water and frozen juice concentrate and possible some fresh lemon and lime juice. I could only find a 2 liter seltzer water so I used that.

Recipe:
1 liter seltzer water
4-6 Tablespoons frozen juice concentrate, thawed
(they recommend using white grape juice and a splash of lemon and lime juice)

After dumping a small amount of seltzer water out, carefully and slowly pour juice concentrate into bottle, taking care not to cause too much fizz. It WILL cause a mess if you go to fast. Trust me!

I used a 2 liter seltzer water and 12 T white grape juice concentrate. Alex loves it, E somewhat liked it but doesn't really guzzle many drinks ;) and Jas thought it tasted to much like plain seltzer and said maybe to add a little more juice next time. I personally can't stand flavored water, or flavored seltzer, not sure why, so to be honest, I didn't even try it. Plus I'm big on cola-type pops, especially Pepsi (throwback is my fave) so yeah.

Oh yeah, and I flavored some more yogurt at home. Not really a new recipe, or even a recipe at all, but I just take organic, whole milk, plain yogurt and add an organic jelly (one that is preferably just fruit and maybe a touch of sugar) until flavored to taste. All the boys and Jas liked it, and this time I used the Cascadian Farm blueberry fruit spread. I can't get over the "sourness" of yogurt so again I won't eat it, but it's nice to find a healthier alternative to the gogurts and pre-flavored, ultra-sweetened store bought yogurts that everybody else will eat.

By the way, even though it's not really new food for me, I have eaten more fruits and veggies in the last couple of weeks! I even stepped on the scale for the first time in several weeks and was pleasantly surprised to see I've dropped 6 1/2lbs! 181, down from 187.5, since the beginning of the year. That's even with not exercising! I needed to share ;)

Menu for Feb 16 - Mar 2

There is some overlap with the old menu but some of the meals are carrying over. I'm changing up my planning a bit too. Instead of being so strict with the daily meals, I'm going to just list breakfast and lunch options for the 2+ weeks and the actual menu for dinners which will be planned out mostly, since we have meatless Fridays during Lent and leftovers every Monday.

I'm dropping the chicken salad even though we didn't eat it. We are carrying over tacos, nachos, homemade fish sticks, and pork chops and fried potatoes. I'm also going to give myself a break from cooking a couple of times ;) So here's what I'm planning:

Breakfast options:
cereal
jelly toast with yogurt
eggs and toast
pb toast with fruit
leftover waffles
pancakes
blueberry muffins and yogurt
sausage gravy and biscuits
oatmeal
eggs and muffins

 Lunch options:

1.  muffins, cheese, pretzels, carrots w/ranch
2.  ham and cheese rollups, yogurt, pretzels
3.  egg salad/tuna sandwiches, fruit, yogurt
4.  leftover chicken chunks, cheese, grapes, yogurt, pretzels
5.  oatmeal, fruit
6.  lunchmeat and cheese sandwich, fruit, yogurt
7.  tortilla rollups (lunchmeat and cheese), fruit, yogurt
8.  egg salad/tuna sandwiches, fruit, pretzels
9.  hummus with tortilla/tuna sandwich, yogurt, fruit
10.  lunchmeat and cheese sandwich, pretzels, fruit
11.  leftover spaghetti, yogurt
12.  oatmeal, fruit
13.  leftover meatloaf sandwich, fruit, yogurt
14.  ham/salami and cheese rollups, fruit, yogurt, pretzels
15.  grilled cheese, tortilla chips, fruit
16.  peanut butter/sunflower seed butter and jelly, yogurt, fruit

 Dinners:

• Saturday, Feb 16: Tacos (ground beef seasoned with homemade taco seasoning, homemade refried beans, tomatoes, lettuce, sour cream, cheddar, taco shells and tortillas)
• Sunday, Feb 17: Eat out - possibly
• Monday, Feb 18: Pork chops, pan-fried potatoes, green beans
• Tuesday, Feb 19: Leftovers
• Wednesday, Feb 20: "Grilled" chicken (seasoned with garlic, sea salt, pepper), mac and cheese, corn
• Thursday, Feb 21: Nachos with ground beef
• Friday, Feb 22: Spaghetti and garlic bread
• Saturday, Feb 23:Meatloaf, mashed potatoes, corn
• Sunday, Feb 24: Chicken alfredo with broccoli
• Monday, Feb 25: Leftovers
• Tuesday, Feb 26: Breakfast sausage, eggs and toast
• Wednesday, Feb 27: Cheeseburgers, chips, carrots w/ranch
• Thursday, Feb 28: Pizza pockets
• Friday, Mar 1: Homemade fish sticks and fries, salad, corn
• Saturday, Mar 2: Eat out

6 Ingredient Challenge, Week 2

Join the Six Ingredient Challenge hosted by Hobo Mama and Anktangle!
We're on a six-week path to eat more whole foods, guided by one simple rule: Buy foods with six ingredients or fewer. And we're blogging about our journey on the way.
This week we're answering the question: How is the Six Ingredient Challenge going for you so far?
You can see all the responses to this question on February 14 at the link-up post.
To join in the Six Ingredient Challenge anytime during the six weeks, visit the sign-up page for a list of posts and to link up!

***

I'm doing this one a little different. I'm going to write little blurbs (hopefully each day) throughout the week and share on the 14th. 

2/8/13

 We are doing pretty good so far. I only do the main grocery shopping for the 5 of us every two weeks so it makes it a little easier. I do usually have to get a few perishables every few days, though. For us, I planned to buy as few items with more than 6 ingredients as possible. We did pretty good, but did (as I mentioned in week 1's post) buy cereal, granola bars, fruit snacks and a couple of other things that I really didn't even check. I know that the granola bars have 8 or 9 ingredients. Since we've already been buying mostly organic, avoiding food dyes, sodium nitrates/nitrites, and high fructose corn syrup, I figured those items would be our vices so to speak. In all honesty though, I have made some questionable choices. I had planned not to eat out at all, at least the first 2 weeks of the challenge. Especially after the pizza "incident". The other morning, we were running so far behind, Baby J and I didn't eat before we took the boys to school, so I treated us to breakfast at Big Boy's. Another morning, I stopped at Burger King for a quick breakfast (we are trying to cut fast food out entirely, but I'm struggling with this one). Finally, yesterday, we were out getting Baby J's birth certificate, had an hour left on our parking meter, and were across the street from numerous restaurants. I chose Subway, and while I know it's not healthy, it might have been better than the other choices. So starting fresh today. Over the next week, we will pick off the menu (mama included ;) ) and on Thursday or Friday I will start planning for the next 2 weeks. I'll probably plan it a little more flexible than before.

2/9/13
Still sticking to the challenge. I picked up some toddler smoothies for Jack today - the ones in the little pouches - for a quick snack or breakfast on days we are running late over the next week. I made sure to check the # of ingredients to and since water and fruit don't count, they had 5 ingredients each (yogurt/milk, and added vitamins).

2/10/13
I have got to learn how to make a good loaf of whole wheat bread :( We had to stop at the store after Mass today and get milk, eggs, dishwasher soap and, you guessed it, bread. I didn't even bother looking at the ingredients of the bread. I know it's more than 6 ingredients but my boys really like sandwiches for lunch and toast with eggs. I have a really nice breadmaker, but I've never had luck making a good sandwich loaf that everybody will eat. Especially, one that's whole wheat. However, I've recently started using King Arthur white whole wheat for all my baking and it seems quite a bit "lighter" so I may have to attempt again.

2/11/13
Ugh! Not doing good today. Well, actually, we had a great day in most ways. Snow day for the kids, so they played and helped out with the baby while I cleaned and re-organized the whole kitchen! Of course, I forgot to eat much of anything, and by dinnertime I had a headache. Tomorrow is trash day so we always try to do leftovers on Monday night. Jas had a parent/leader meeting for cub scouts so he was only home for a short time. Nothing sounded good to me so we fed the boys and after he was done with the meeting, he stopped and bought fast food. Blech! It wasn't even that good! Oh well. Thinking ahead to next week. Also, I talked to the boys about the gogurt they usually get for school lunches and we decided together that we aren't going to buy it anymore. It's sad when they add 3 thickening agents, plus vitamins into it to make it what it is. I explained we can use plain whole milk yogurt and add jelly/jam/applesauce/maple syrup/etc to flavor it and it will be healthier! They actually loved the idea. :)

2/12/13
Remembered that tomorrow is Ash Wednesday and we need a meatless meal. Jack and I stopped and picked up frozen shrimp (for Jas, E and A) and some boxed Annie's mac and cheese for all of us. I think the mac and cheese had 6 or 7 ingredients but it was darn close ;)

2/13/13
Yay, dinner turned out good with green beans thrown in for good measure. Since we were at an appointment, I did stop and grab some fries on the way home because I was starving. :( Not doing so good on the no fast food, no pop, no candy for Lent so far, and it's only the first day! But I am starting a new menu tomorrow and most of the stuff from the last two weeks were within the "rules" so I'm pleased. Now that I'm starting from scratch a little more so (having used up some things we already had, but may have been over 6 ingredients), I can really see where we are, and how we/I am doing. Our budget is a bit tighter this week so it should be interesting...

2/14/13
Happy Valentine's Day! We don't usually do anything special for V-day. Tonight we are just going to have chicken quesadillas for dinner. In conclusion for the week, I can say we did ok as a family, but mama, not so great. I am grateful for this though, because it is helping me see my mistakes, keeping me honest, and accountable, and at the end I hope to be able to come back and see how far we have come!!

Six Ingredient Challenge, Week 1

Join the Six Ingredient Challenge hosted by Hobo Mama and Anktangle!
We're on a six-week path to eat more whole foods, guided by one simple rule: Buy foods with six ingredients or fewer. And we're blogging about our journey on the way.
This week we're answering the question: Why do you want to participate in the Six Ingredient Challenge?
You can see all the responses to this question on February 7 at the link-up post.
To join in the Six Ingredient Challenge anytime during the six weeks, visit the sign-up page for a list of posts and to link up!

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I wanted to participate in the Six Ingredient Challenge because I'm trying to learn more about our food. We have already been making changes to our diet by eating healthier and making more informed choices. Sometimes I don't remember to read the labels and just trust (read one of my previous post about that recent mistake, HA!) and so this is a reminder to do just that. Not only am I avoiding the "foods" we are trying to stay away from, but I have a goal to look for, 6 or less ingredients in the items I buy. I bought quite a bit of fresh foods, or items with only 1 ingredient. Blueberries, strawberries, apples, tomatoes, potatoes, jalapenos, sweet peppers, bananas, lettuce, salad mix (2 types of lettuce), milk, whole wheat noodles, and who knows what else that were all 1-2 ingredients. I think I may have messed up a little by buying some cereal, granola bars and crackers (all organic and less ingredients than traditional items, but still more than 6, I'm sure) BUT I am making progress all ready. And that is why I wanted to do this challenge. To move forward. To do better. To be accountable for my actions. I'm excited to share how we fare on this - short - journey towards making better choices! I think that reading about how others are doing and sharing our own experience will make it even better. So thanks for having me :)

Tip for changing eating habits

I've joined in the 6 Ingredient Challenge and even though this isn't one of the writing prompts for it, I thought I would write some of my thoughts. Hobo Mama shares this yesterday. (I'm a day behind on my blog reading, LOL) Go check it out. There's some great tips and thoughts on changing how you and your family eat!

She asks the following questions at the end of the post.
Have you had to change your family's eating habits? How easy or hard was it to get your kids or partner on board? Do you have any tips for transitioning hesitant family members?

I have definitely had to change our family's eating habits. We used to eat a LOT of fast food, and fruit rollups and other not-so-good things. While we still eat out, I honestly don't think it's very often and we try to make better choices as to where we go.

It was easy to convince Jas that we should eat out less and cook at home more, as well as try to eat more veggies. It was more difficult to introduce the "weird" (or hippie, as he jokingly calls them) foods, like quinoa, flax seed, coconut oil, coconut milk, lentils, sunflower seed butter, and mostly organics. Just because the types of food were different to us as well as more expensive. Also the kids sometimes protest when I won't buy certain things but I've been offering more of their favorite fruits, finding healthier, whole grain versions of our favorite dinners, pancakes, breads, etc, as well as better versions of treats - like granola bars, fruit snacks, crackers, and candy. They are definitely more willing to try things and want to help make homemade versions of stuff.

Some tips I have are the following:

• Change one thing at a time if necessary.
• Offer at least one item they love at a meal, and something new/different.
• Find a better version of their favorite item. For example: we love pancakes around here, but instead of buying the boxed pancake mix (Jason's favorite) I've found a homemade WHOLE WHEAT version that is delicious! No white sugar either, it uses either honey or 100% maple syrup and bananas for sweetness. Another example: Instead of buying boxed blueberry muffin mix, I make homemade ones.
• Involve the kids (or your partner) in the making of a meal. Getting them involved, especially the kids, really does get them to want to try the food, because they helped make it!
• Have each person pick out something new to try at the grocery store, or a new meal they would like to try.
• Prepare for the occasional backslide. You will decide it's easier to just order pizza, or go to McDonald's at some point. Try to avoid it, but if you do go ahead and do it, don't feel bad. Just move past it :) Case in point: I'm so mad at myself right now :(
• Remember it's ok to have a treat once in a while.
• For us especially, I try to explain that when we eat stuff like food dyes, or certain preservatives, or eat out at - at least at certain restaurants - we have certain reactions including headaches, tummyaches/digestive problems, brain fog, anxiety/exaggerated frustration/meltdowns, irritation, harder time sleeping, hyperactivity, and just a hard time focusing the next day. Because we don't like the way we feel after eating those things, we are trying to avoid them. My kids seem to be coming around to this.

After re-reading Hobo Mama's post, I realize I have many of the same tips and ideas. LOL. That's ok, that just means they are really good ones ;)

I'm so mad at myself right now :(

I wrote a big ol' post yesterday about how we were going to have yummy homemade pizza. Then I found E's "book-it" coupon and saw it was expiring yesterday... Needless to say, Jas and I made a quick decision and ordered Pizza Hut pizza rather than make our own. I mean, E did earn that free one, right?

NEVER AGAIN! Not only do I feel bad going off-menu, especially when I have all the stuff here, but I, physically, feel like crap! Head is in a fog, stomach kind of hurts and I just feel off today, kwim? Plus E went to bed with a headache and tummy ache and woke up extra-whiny. I always know when he's had something not good for him, because of how he is in the morning. It's like he doesn't sleep good at all and also if the way I feel is any indicator, then I'm sure that is part of his problem.

I know we all make mistakes, bad choices, etc. I also know this one won't affect tomorrow (hopefully!) but it does affect today. We are the adults, we know better and should have just made the pizza rather go with the convenience of ordering it. E and A would have been happy either way! In fact, E specifically told me he didn't care if we used his coupon. Why didn't I just listen?

I guess I have two choices from here:

1.  Keep beating myself up about it.
2. Accept it and move on. Know better, Do better. (<----  seriously, that is becoming a theme, my motto for 2013, apparently!)

I choose to do 2. I think. LOL. So back to (slightly) better eating today. Organic cinnamon crunch cereal (hey at least there's no dyes or icky preservatives) with organic whole milk and a banana for breakfast. Hormel Natural Choice (still hoping to find even better stuff, but it's better than most) ham or salami with organic co-jack or havarti on whole wheat, fruit - their choice, frozen simply gogurt, pretzels and 100% juice for lunch. For snack, they are taking either an apple or a clementine and E gets an extra snack - probably an organic granola bar.

Time to go pack lunches, feed Baby J, and drive the boys to school on this cold morning. I hope everybody out there has a great day!