Healthy Children

Question #2 - What do I use to healthify my children?

I do use oils and vitamins. I started taking classes from Dr. Christopher -  He's local here so it's easy to find his products. I'm not sure how easy it is to find his products elsewhere but they are available online.
  I've started reading a really good book called "Disease Proof Your Child" - basically the first line of defense is feeding them right. It's filled in a lot of holes where I had questions before (plus it has some tasty looking recipes I'm excited to try). Dr. Christopher says similarly that we create an environment in our bodies where disease can thrive by what we eat/don't eat.
  
  Everything that I go on as a "foundation" is found in the LDS Scriptures - particularly The Word of Wisdom - Daniel's story in the bible has been really helpful for me as well.The others are just "programs" I guess that help me to know how to apply truth. That being said, as a general rule I shy away from things that seem "fad-ish". Lots of essential oils (though I'm just starting to learn about it) are VERY strong and many people use them as a replacement for eating healthy. Not that I'm against oils, I just like learning about all the methods and applications from a non-biased standpoint so I own the knowledge more and know better how to use it. (plus, honestly, I'm cheap and I hate paying for multi-level marketing mark-ups). If you're interested oils I've HEARD (still getting into it) that Butterfly Express is a quality company, but much less expensive than other brands...

  Last - there are a MILLION things I've found in studying about different illnesses you can do to help remedy them.  Usually, in the middle of it, I don't have time to do them all and I sometimes feel overwhelmed trying to decide what is best. God knows everything. When I pray to him about my children, who can't really pray themselves (esp. babies), I am amazed at how fast answers come! He really loves them and wants what's best for them and us. They are His, and I love how he works through me to to care for them!
  Everyone is different, which is the best thing about going to God. He works through the same basic doctrines and principles (which don't change from person to person), but he knows us each individually and what we need (what level we're on and what our specific body needs are). I recommend continued prayer through the process of know what is best for you and your children.

 Oh - some other recipes sites I love -
www.passionatehomemaking.com,
www.superhealthykids.com,
www.momessentials.net

Good luck!!

Love is In the Air

My mind keeps coming back to Valentine's Day - funny because I don't usually give it a forethought until a day or two prior. It's just not a big holiday around this house. Well, maybe this year it will be. We've decided to cut back even more and my mind is spinning with crafty ideas to show my family and friends how much I care. Here's what's in the idea bank, just so I don't litter my bookmarks (we know they are trashed enough right now....)

For Adults
Homemade Fudge
Chocolate Peanut Butter Delights
DIY Bags, Boxes, & Candy Wrappers
Love You More Bags
Pie Boxes

For the Kiddos and Family
Heart Shaped Pancakes (these are just pink, but I'm considering making them into heart on my own. Amy has a TON of good ideas for mixing up different pancakes and healthifying them!
Scratch-N-Sniff Bags (Do I want to attempt this with toddlers?)
Valentine's Crafts for Kids

Morning Glory Muffins

We usually eat our "bread" breakfasts w/ fresh fruit - YUM!

 My fabulous, foodie sister introduced me to the site, EatingWell.com. I really like it! It has some great tips about eating well. While not everything is what I'd consider eating well, I'm grateful it gives some awesome substitutions for foods everyone loves that just aren't healthy. At least if I HAVE to make a certain dish, I now have a resource to make it more healthy. Plus, I feel most of their recipes are easily adaptable. It's an especially great resource if you're trying to lose weight and has some great meal plans. Here is one of my favorite recipes: Morning Glory Muffins

18 muffins

Active Time: 40 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour

Ingredients

• 1 cup whole-wheat flour
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 2 cups grated carrots, (4 medium)
• 1 apple, peeled and finely chopped
• 1/2 cup raisins
• 1 large egg
• 2 large egg whites, or 4 teaspoons dried egg whites (see Ingredient Note), reconstituted according to package directions
• 1/2 cup apple butter
• 1/4 cup canola oil
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 2 tablespoons finely chopped walnuts, or pecans
• 2 tablespoons toasted wheat germ

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 375°F. Coat 18 muffin cups with cooking spray.
2. Whisk whole-wheat flour, all-purpose flour, sugar, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a large bowl. Stir in carrots, apple and raisins. Whisk egg, egg whites, apple butter, oil and vanilla in a medium bowl.
3. Make a well in the dry ingredients and stir in the wet ingredients with a rubber spatula until just combined. Spoon the batter into the prepared muffin cups, filling them about three-fourths full. Combine walnuts and wheat germ in a small bowl; sprinkle over the muffin tops.
4. Bake the muffins until the tops are golden brown and spring back when touched lightly, 15 to 25 minutes. Let cool in the pans for 5 minutes. Loosen edges and turn muffins out onto a wire rack to cool.

Tips & Notes

• Make Ahead Tip: Get a head start on your morning muffins the night before by mixing up the dry and liquid ingredients separately (refrigerate liquids). In the morning, combine the two, scoop and bake.

• Ingredient note: Dried egg whites are pasteurized—a wise choice when making meringue toppings that may not reach 160°F (the temperature at which eggs are considered "safe"). You'll find them in the baking or natural-foods section of most supermarkets. Reconstitute according to package directions.

Nutrition

Per muffin: 163 calories; 4 g fat ( 0 g sat , 2 g mono ); 12 mg cholesterol; 29 g carbohydrates; 3 g protein; 2 g fiber; 154 mg sodium; 149 mg potassium.
Carbohydrate Servings: 2
Exchanges: 1 starch, 1/2 fruit, 1/2 other carbohydrate, 1 fat

Whole, Foods, the Whole Truth

Whole Foods, the Whole Truth - a short little show about how to begin making your diet more healthy, including ways to help your children eat more healthy and the the benefits of raw versus cooked foods. Check it out!

Recipes II

Here are more healthy recipes that we have recently tried in our family:

Asian Black Bean-Asparagus Salad
Avacado Dip
Grilled Teriyaki Chicken Sandwhich
Homemade Granola Bars
Crustless Apple Pie

These are on the waiting list:
Lentil Cookies
Lentil Soup,
Tuscan Bean Soup,
Quinoa & Beans,
Hummus,
Vegan Cheese Ball (made with cashews actually),
Zuppa Tuscana,
Chicken Divan.

Enjoy!

What is Processed Food?

When I try to explain to people that we have been giving our diet a healthy makeover, one of the first things I mention is that we've cut out most processed food (we're still working on it too). I often hear the question "What is processed food?".
I have also noticed that when I talk about something that is "homemade" or "I made from scratch", many people will claim they do the same, when in fact, many of the ingredients in their "homemade food" are not from scratch.
I thought I might answer some of those questions from our perspective, after about 6 months of changing our diet and lots of research too!

Cravings

Craving: an intense, urgent, or abnormal desire or longing
(Merriam Webster Online Dictionary)

I've been thinking on and off again about "cravings". Reading that definition really makes you want to call it something different, does it? Many pregnant women typically have cravings. During my first pregnancy I escaped with very few (though I had some intense aversions to certain food). This pregnancy I seem to have more cravings. Interestingly, my husband seems to have them much more often than I do! Recently I've noticed, everyone has some kind of craving (which may in fact not even be food... but that's another post). Here are some observations and ideas about "taking care" of pesky food cravings.

Halloween Grinch

I have affectionately named myself the "Halloween Grinch". Here are all small things that bug me about this "holiday":

1. I don't want to spend money on a costume my child will wear once.
2. I'm not very creative or even comfortable dressing up (nor can I make a costume creatively for cheap...I've tried).
3. I REALLY don't want my child eating a whole bunch of candy and getting sick with all of the other trick-or-treaters (who put halloween at the beginning of flu season anyway..or is that what STARTS flu season...?).
4. I don't like being scared, scary movies, being afraid, etc.
5. Honestly, what are we "celebrating" anyway? Nothing! Though it's not longer really considered a "pagan" holiday, it still has it's origins in one (which is why some religions don't celebrate it at all).
6. It's a really UNSAFE holiday. Ever since I was small I always feel scared on Halloween night, even if I'm not going outside. Who knows what crazy person will show up at your door, or even at your church party (seriously...I've heard stories).

That being said, I somehow feel "sad" I'm missing out on all the excitement of this time of year. Who's not getting a pumpkin and picking a cute costume, right? Yet, "missing out" is not a real reason for me to want to "celebrate" Halloween (just like the excitement of the first day of school with all of the pictures and cute new outfits alone can't justify me sending my children to public school).

While I still decide what to do here are some ideas I've recently read/heard (please comment with any ideas you may have):

Quality Time in My Kitchen

It's almost finished! My kitchen, which we started remodeling at the beginning of the year, is almost done. In fact, it's hard not to put everything else off and just work on the kitchen because I CAN SEE THE END!
With everything from painting and sanding to cooking (or experimenting), I've spent a lot of quality time in the kitchen lately. It was a big goal of mine to improve the health of the food we eat this year. While I'm still not where I want to be (baby steps...baby steps...), I ran across a menu of ours from the very beginning of this year and laughed! I don't think we eat ANYTHING on that list anymore. It's been a crazy adventure and one I consider a worthwhile life-long pursuit.
I thought I'd take a minute to list some of the new recipes we've tried and what we thought about them (5 stars being the highest). I'm not the kind of person to go out and buy every little detail for a recipe, so I've added what we have experimented/tried/changed in the recipes too. ENJOY!

Whole Wheat Waffles

Since we have been switching over to a healthier lifestyle, this has been one of our favorite breakfasts. The batch makes about 3 breakfasts for our family, so I usually make the whole thing and freeze the rest for quicker mornings.

Whole Wheat Waffle Recipe

Some recipe notes -We like the use almond milk, but it makes the batter too thick so we do 1 c. water, 3 c. almond milk. It does make them a bit sweeter too. I find them more filling the regular waffles and they aren't a huge jump for people who don't usually use wheat flour. We also use whole white wheat.

The other thing that makes waffle eating less healthy is the syrup - wow! Even if you make your own "from scratch" at home, it is A LOT of sugar/sweetner. The pure, organic maple syrup at the store gets pricey if we use it every time we make waffles. Here are some fun additions we like to put on our waffles as a syrup replacement: peanut butter (Adam's is a favorite brand - no added sugar), fruit syrup (homemade strawberry, blueberry, mixed berry, peach, etc.), a drizzle of honey (usually we do this for a snack). These make the waffles even more healthy and provide variety.

Mexican Bean Salad

This is one of my favorite healthy recipes! I usually keep a bowl in the fridge on snack on it during the day. I love it in fresh tortillas or with tortilla chips too. The recipe - Healthfied Mexican Bean Salad. I don't usually add the salt and often substitute the green onions for whatever onions I have on hand. I also like to use fresh beans (I make this with the leftover pot of black beans) and corn.

Peach BBQ Talapia

I'm not really a big seafood person, but lately I have become a "grown-up" about the situation, broke down and bought some Tilapia (a mild fish) on a great sale, and tried it. Surprisingly, it was delicious. We used one of Paula Dean's recipes for Peach BBQ sauce. I'm not a huge fan of her recipes (pretty unhealthy), but this one is not too bad if you cut down the oil by about 1/2. You could also add some mango (we had some on the side, but I think next time I will throw it in).
A lot of people commented that the BBQ was way too much for the recipe, and they were right! So I froze the leftovers in a muffin tin ("ice cubes"), then put them in a ziploc bag in the freezer. I wouldn't exactly say I'm a seafood lover now, but I feel so much better about my food choices when I choose things that are healthy and not always because I "feel like it" or "it tastes good". Plus it is an adventure that provides for some fun discoveries in the world of taste!

I have found...

...another reason the Lord tells us to multiply & replenish the earth! Thanks Erin!! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6-3X5hIFXYU

I made...

...friendship bread. Ever hear of it? Sometimes called Amish bread, you spends 10 days doing something to the recipe each day (usually mushing the bag) and then at the end, you have enough dough to create 2 loaves of bread and 4 starters which you give to friends who can then start the process. I have been keeping one starter so we can have perpetual bread each day. Last weekend we went on vacation and I thought "I need a babysitter for my bread"...weird.