I have spent years trying to get my boys and I to eat healthier. I have bought fat-free foods, I have tried to get us to not eat out at restaurants as much, etc. It has been a struggle for all three of us.
Recently, I came across some blogs of homemakers that are truly being "homemakers". The stereotype of homemaker to me is staying at home, cooking, cleaning, taking care of the house, the children, baking cookies and making the home run smoothly. Some have differing ideas, which is fine, that is mine. These homemakers are living exactly like I picture homemakers should. So I click on some of their posts and find myself immersed in recipes for foods I have cooked before, but I am reading words like "whole" "organic" and "homemade". I was in love at first sight!! I usually cook homemade meals, but with help. And by help, I mean instead of peeling potatoes, I buy instant. Instead of making my own pasta, I buy it at the store.
These women are posting about the hidden additives and preservatives in almost every single food at the grocery store. I went to the store and read the labels and there it was. Staring me in the face. Literally every single thing I buy at the grocery has some kind of additive in it to preserve it or add flavor. And the preservatives in these foods are just as bad! So I decided to do some research and "detox" my family of these awful chemicals that are in our food. I printed off recipes, I printed off tips and secrets of organic families. I have never been so serious about how I prepare our food before. This is serious. the side effects of the foods we are putting into our bodies is astounding! Just switching the sweetener you use can make a world of difference, especially if you have diabetes, or hypoglycemia. It was amazing to me how much we put into our bodies without even thinking about it!
I had all of my research ready and waiting when we left last week for vacation to Florida. We ate all the food we wanted while we were gone (mostly unhealthy and fatty food) and we all knew when we got home, it was time to purge the bad foods from our pantry and start making the switchover! Luckily, my boys are very excited about this adventure and even asked to help! I went to the Whole Foods Market yesterday to find alternative peanut butter for me. (I have been diagnosed with a nut allergy and cannot eat PB anymore, which is one of my favorite foods) I found soybutter, which ended up tasting exactly like peanut butter! Yay! But while I was there, I scoped out every aisle and everything they had at my disposal to buy for preparing whole, organic foods. It is wonderful! I won't have to be practically Amish with my days making everything scratch, there are some "convenience" foods I can buy if I am strapped for time, but for the most part, my days will be spent in the kitchen making healthy meals from scratch, without the use of chemicals and additives. It is time for us to live a healthy existence. I have failed my boys up to this point with the meals I have prepared them. I have failed them in the way I have fed them unhealthy foods from McDonald's or Wendy's or Pizza Hut. The time has come to make a change, and this is a change I can live with. No more whining about how fat we feel or how we hate the way we look, or whining because our stomachs are upset from the fatty, grease laden foods we have eaten. It is time to move on from that mentality and move to a healthy and happy food experience.
Last night, we all went to the Whole Foods Market to get some semolina to make pasta with, and my boys were in awe of the wonderful foods they had there! They thought they would never be able to eat a hamburger again! Or that they would never get to eat chips! I can make anything they want to eat, and if it is a last minute thing, Whole Foods Market has it all for me. So they were excited by all of it! They took the store in as we walked down the aisles together and ended up coming home, and all three of us working together to make pasta, homemade, organic pasta. It was awesome the teamwork! And on Saturdays, we decided would be "bread day" where we will all be working on baking bread, rolls, buns, etc. They are eager to help and I am eager to teach them. Whole Foods Market is going to be my new go to grocery store! Yay for health!
So while some people won't understand and think I am being a weird new age hippie, I assure you that I am just looking out for the health of my family. Nothing new age about it. If you think about your great grandparents, this is how they were cooking. Out of the garden, and wholesomely. My garden is going to be getting a lot bigger next year!! :)
Stay tuned for the results of our "chemical detox"! :)
