1. We are not rich. If we were, I would throw out all of our food and start fresh, as Dr. Weil suggests. However, since we're not rich, and I paid good money for that food we will use it as we can. Also we will save some of the items for the Zombie Apocalypse. It lasts forever, right? The Bisquick, noodles, and canned food items will come in handy when it happens. Okay, that's a joke. But, for real, we are only buying all natural foods from now on. Anything that comes into our home will be all "real" food.
2. I really don't think this transition will be difficult for us. We eat a lot of "real" foods as it is. Our biggest issues would be sugary cereals, snacks, and lunches. We've used Extra Virgin Olive Oil for over a decade. We use butter only here. We have a garden where we grow our own vegetables. Also, we use only whole grain and organic flour. We eat only organic, cage free eggs. We also try to eat only all natural meats and cheeses. We eat only whole grain or all natural bread. We rarely go out to eat because my children are animals, and it's expensive. Sodas, KoolAid, and other sugary drinks are not allowed in our house, unless it's a holiday. Then we buy it for our event. If we decide to have a "special night" with special drinks, I purchase all natural sodas from our local store. So, overall, I think we're halfway there already.
3. I can't be as strict as Lisa Leake. I just can't. There are several factors for that. We live in a small city. The population is around 100,000. However, there is only one major all natural food store in our city...That I know of. It's a great store. I love it, and go there often. Lisa Leake made it her goal to only eat local foods within 100 miles. I think that's a wonderful goal. Again, I'm limited with store choices. Our family does upon occasion slaughter, hunt, or fish for meat. We process it and eat it. I don't think there is anything more fresh than that. The next exception is we live in New Mexico. We eat Mexican food. I will NEVER, EVER give that up. It won't happen. I order my food on Fridays. The people that cook it, don't shop organically. But that is my luxury in life. I get a 30 minute lunch everyday. Fridays are my splurge day. So, I will continue to order out on Fridays. I will, see how I feel after my Friday meals. If I feel overtired or not, I will let you know.
4. I'm going to allow my children to make their choices, for the most part. I made our lunches this evening. Maddie told me that he didn't want to eat the lunch I made because he wanted to eat the spaghetti tomorrow, as well as the nachos on Friday. I'm going to let him make that choice during our transition time. We will continue to discuss whole foods with our children and their benefits. I want them to make the choice because they understand the benefits of it, not because I'm making them do it. The good news about the school lunches are that the pastas and breads are whole grain.
5. All in all, the children seem very excited about making the change to all real foods. They want to help me cook. They're interested in the foods I've chosen. They are surprisingly open to trying new things. They are also enjoying the foods we're making at home. Even Wolfie seems to be embracing this real food idea.
6. I find that eating a real food diet makes it easier to be organized. We made pancakes today and froze the left overs in baggies that the kids can eat for breakfast, lunch, or snack. It seems to be a time saver for us. On the flip side of that, you HAVE to be organized. If you can't prepare lunches for school the night before, you're going to be getting up a lot earlier, or not making them at all.
Homemade tortillas
Homemade granola
Oh, and I started a Real Food Board on Pinterest. You can go here if you want to follow it.
I'm really excited to hear how this goes. I think you want to make changes, you should do what is right for your family and what you are capable of and don't sweat about following someone else's plan 100%. For us that means focusing a lot on making sure we get whole grains and lots of vegetables and trying our hardest not to eat packaged foods.
ReplyDeleteWe have "freezer days" a few times a year where my husband and I spend all day cooking for the freezer. Some of our favorites are chicken pot pies, calzones, pasta sauce, potstickers, and chicken stock. We've been experimenting with making frozen pizzas.
I recommend The Homemade Pantry by Alana Chernila. The book talks a lot about how to make things you'd normally buy, plus she goes into detail about what it looks like when something goes wrong with a particular recipe so you can troubleshoot. And she makes no secret about the fact that her family has trouble making ends meet.
Good luck and let me know if you want some recipes!
Thanks for the advice, Nat! I will look into that book.
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