Day 2 and Feeling Fine!

Today is day 2 of the no wheat, whole foods, plant based diet. I have done great so far. For breakfast I made a smoothie consisting of 1 kiwi, 4 large strawberries, 2 cups raw spinach, and a 1/4 cup of oatmeal. I added a splash of unsweetened coconut milk for a creamier consistency. Poured over ice it was delectable! This was a great breakfast-on-the-go as I had to load the kids up in the car for my youngest one's twelve month checkup. After the doctor appointment and then some fun at the library we made our way back home for lunch. Since I still have a lot of cheese I decided to make the girls a grilled cheese panini on whole wheat 12-grain bread for them to share, some tomato slices, and carrot sticks. For myself however I made a whole corn tortilla "panini" with sliced tomatoes, mushrooms, spinach, and homemade hummus (only 3 ingrediants: chickpeas, minced garlic, and fresh lemon juice) to hold it all together. It was AMAZING!!! With some carrot sticks on the side I think I made myself a pretty healthy and filling lunch. 

Now I am enjoying some time outside on the back porch with my littles and the dog. The weather is amazing; warm, with a slight breeze to make it perfect. B is exploring the backyard on her two little feet and is being amazed by everything. Her favorite thing right now is the little house under the slide on the playset. 

 She is so cute finding new things to look at:

 

And having conversations with old friends:

M is exploring as well and bringing me all her little treasures:

She was so proud of the rock with all the sea shells and the ladybug wing. She found several dandelions and got all excited because she said that meant the "fluffy ones" would be coming soon! My little girl keeps me on my toes especially with her curiosity. She is always running all over the place like a little tornado, never really knowing which way she wants to go or what she wants to do next.

    

No matter how frantic she keeps me, she will always be my lovely little girl.

After several hours out in this beautiful weather I am still contemplating what to make for dinner. I have some ground beef in the fridge that needs to be used. I know it is a meat product but at least it is 95% lean. I'm thinking of making some egg rolls using the ground beef, spinach, onion, sweet peppers, avacado, and whatever else I find in my cupboards. If they are good I'll post about them later. But for now I am watching B push a swing and M is following the dog around pretending to be a puppy herself! Until next time...

Diet change, here we come...

So I have been trying to find a diet or nutrition plan that would work for me AND that I could feed to my family. I am responsible for feeding 3 other people besides myself so starving myself or eating only diet shakes and diet foods IS NOT an option. A few months ago a mom at my daughter's preschool told me about a book she was reading and implementing into her life. It is called Wheat Belly and is a very awesome concept concerning the link between wheat products and weight/health issues. I began using some of the ideas in the book by applying them to my own diet and saw almost instant results. My weight decreased by 17 lbs in about 3 weeks, I started having more energy, and was able to focus better. I haven't been to the doctor yet to get my cholesterol levels or blood pressure checked but my sugars improved. No matter how great this diet was and how wonderful it was making me feel, I still had to separate it from what the rest of my family ate. My goal in this journey is to be able to make a diet change that benefits ALL members of my family and to hopefully show others that it is relatively easy.

I grew up eating foods that were not exceptionally healthy but they were all we could afford. Hotdogs, baked beans, Hamburger Helper, etc...typical '90s foods; not to mention the local favorites of South Jersey: hoagies, pizza, and real Philly cheese steaks. I still crave and love all of these foods but after watching the documentary Forks Over Knives I find it difficult to justify eating these foods now that I know somewhat of their effects on my body. The premise behind this documentary is to show the benefits of eating a diet consisting only of whole foods and plant based products. This plan is doable for me and my family. It is a way to incorporate healthy living into life lessons that (hopefully) my children will carry with them forever.

Even though I am wanting to better my health and lower my weight the real reasons I am choosing a better nutrition plan are my girls:

My four year old, M, is a big fruit and veggie eater anyway so this diet plan won't be too big of a shock to her. However, she is also like her Daddy, she loves bread, meat, and cheese. With this diet all animal based foods are a no-go; that includes any and all meat, eggs, yogurt, milk, cheese, and any other dairy products, and oils. I am confident that she will take to this change quite well but may throw a bit of a fit when I tell her that ice cream and candy are not part of the nutrition plan.

My one year old, B, is a sweet girl and a VERY big eater. She rarely touches veggies and fruit (except for bananas). Her favorite foods include hamburger, chicken, tilapia, and yogurt. Cheerios and Kix are also a main staple of her diet. I am hoping the transition away from all these things won't be too difficult (but I know in my head that it will be).









My main opponent in taking on this diet change may be my husband. We talked a bit about it already and he vowed to give up eggs and cheese to help lower his cholesterol but everything else stays. He is definitely a 'meat and potatoes' type of guy so I know this change will be hard for him as well. I am planning on changing the foods gradually. I still have several pounds of ground beef and chicken in the freezer that need to be used as well as some yogurt and cookie/cracker type product. I am not one to waste food so my plan is to just eat these until they are gone and not buy any more.

Planning weekly menus seems to be the key in sticking to this diet. I am currently working on a few menus and researching recipes. I am saving the recipes according to their type (i.e., breakfast, lunch, dinner, snack) on Word documents so I can reference them anytime and make my menus using these lists. My first meal (breakfast this morning) was a pretty easy one; although while I was cooking it my oldest was whining that she didn't want to eat it because it was yucky. I made oatmeal (with water, not milk) on the stovetop and added a bit of honey, some chopped hazelnuts, unsalted sunflower seed kernels, flax seed, dried cranberries, and a splash of coconut milk for flavor. I gave a small amount to M and told her to give it a try. Of course she refused but I just sat there eating mine and feeding B hers. I guess M saw how much we were enjoying it and next thing I knew her bowl was empty and she was asking for more! I think we can do this!!!

Blue Angels

Blue Angels

There was really no rhyme or reason to it. All I could see was two little children completely covered in blue ink. Thinking back I should have known something was amiss. There was silence, too much silence, even for nap time. I just assumed everything was perfectly all right and I continued my normal household chores. The dishes that were piled up in the sink after lunch time were begging to be washed and the living room looked like a disaster area. I knew it all needed to be attended to, so I went straight to work. I was so consumed in my motherly duties after putting the little ones down for a nap that I never once thought that something mischievous was taking place overhead.

The first time I heard the giggling that blustery autumn afternoon was right after I had finished the cleaning and settled into a good book. I thought nothing of it as it was normal for them to have a little fun before falling asleep. But then the giggling continued until it cascaded down the stairs like an uncontrollable waterfall. I finally decided it was time to put an end to the rambunctiousness and headed up the stairs to the bedroom. When I first opened the door, I was speechless. There were my two little angels completely covered from head to toe in blue ink. They looked like two little Smurfs just hanging out in what appeared to be a Smurf Village bed. I had to step out of the room to regain my composure because I was laughing so hard. When the laughing fit subsided I had to transform my attitude back to that of a livid mother.

At first glance all I saw was two children ensconced in blue marker. But upon further inspection of the room the blue markings did not end on the children; they continued to the sheets, the pillowcases, and even the walls. I knew that as a mother I should be completely infuriated and reign down a harsh sentence upon my two little blue toddlers. However, my first and completely baffling decision was to run and get the video camera. I knew that no matter how horrific it was to have blue children and blue décor, that it was a moment worth capturing on film.

After questioning the tiny culprits behind their reasoning of redecorating themselves and the room to look like a blueberry explosion, I sentenced them to an immediate bath in which they commenced de-blueing. Even though this experience had given me more chores to do, such as washing the walls and bed linens, I knew the lesson behind it would live on forever. Now I know that at least two things need to be done before putting the sweet youngsters down for a nap again. The first being: separate in different rooms. And second: ALWAYS put markers out of reach no matter what color they are!