I have people ask me all the time, "So, what do your kids eat?". Well, let's just say they have had to learn to eat in a different way just like I have. They resisted at first but I have taught them along the way everything that I have learned about food and how it affects the body.
When they are not on Phase One, I try to use the "least offensive" rule with them. I find things with the least amount of ingredients. It's amazing the variations of something as simple as potato chips! I do buy things that are already prepared sometimes but I have gotten more picky about what I buy as the time goes by.
A typical day (not on phase one):
Breakfast: eggs- and lots of them!
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| Omelets with fruit |
Lunch: Chicken stir fry, Organic deli meats, cheese sticks, fruit and veggies or left over supper.
Some days a fresh take and bake Pizza from Whole Foods or Annie's mac and cheese. The days of frozen pizzas, Bagel Bites, Kraft "anything" are long gone. If it is not made by me, it must meet my "least offensive" rule. Fresh pizza from Whole Foods is far less offensive than any frozen pizza(even organic) out there.
Supper: organic meat, veggies and maybe a grain a few nights a week. (Like spaghetti made with grass fed beef, Rao's organic marinara sauce and noodles) Most suppers do not include a grain or starch. This is something they have come to just accept.
For breakfast I buy a organic sausage that is processed but meets my "least offensive" rule. It's already cooked and easy to add to the eggs. Karianne likes it with spinach!
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| I can only find this at Harris Teeter |
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| Ready in 3 minutes! |
Sometimes on Saturdays we will cook up some nitrate free bacon. Hormel Naturals, Earth Fare and Whole Foods all have "least offensive" brands. I know....bacon is pretty offensive...but at least these brands are not as bad as some and it's not an everyday thing.
On occasion, the kids will eat cereal. (We can go for months without even having any in the house!) The only brand I will buy is Cascadian Farms Raisin Bran. It is not ok for phase one as it has grains but as far as cereals are concerned, this is one that has the least amount of ingredients and I can pronounce them all!
Can I just tell you how many hours I have spent in the grocery stores just in the cereal isle reading labels?
No longer do we stock up on Cheerios, of every flavor, like we used to. No Lucky Charms, Frosted Flakes or even regular raisin bran. Cereal is nothing more than a processed food loaded with sugar, artificial ingredients, genetically modified corn and soy and filled with mycotoxins from the grains. I know....I am a party pooper on this one and many of you will not like my stance on cereals. I have had such a change of "thinking" on cereal. It used to be a staple in our house. Now I realize it is really not healthy at all. Yes, they are all fortified with vitamins but that's because they are so processed they have to put them back in AND it's a marketing ploy to make you buy them and think you are doing eating something healthy. If you can get a coupon for it...that's your clue that you shouldn't buy it! Cereal is cheap, easy, and convenient.....but it is NOT good for you or your kids.
**Many of the organic brands are even still loaded with unnecessary ingredients. Don't assume that just because it's organic that it's ok. Read the labels.**
If you have a box in your pantry, read the first ingredient. It most likely will say corn as well as plenty of other ingredients you can't pronounce. The cereal on the shelves these days are just atrocious.
They are really nothing more than a pop tart in a bowl.
Great way to start out your kid's day?
I urge you to rethink your cereal consumption.
Pancakes and waffles used to always be frozen. I would buy boxes and boxes of them to have in the freezer. Could not wait for them to go on sale or get a coupon for them. I have not bought them now for two years. Once I really read the ingredients in Eggo Waffles...I was grossed out that I fed these to my kids almost every day for years. I tried all the organic ones but honestly, they tasted horrible! And they were still filled with too many ingredients. My kids still love pancakes and so I searched high and low for something that would be in my "least offensive" category. This is the only brand that I have been able to find that has the least amount of ingredients. I don't make them often but they are nice for a special treat like Christmas morning or when on vacation at the beach.
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| Almond meal makes for a great waffle |
I also make egg waffles for them and almond meal waffles. (Look on side tab under recipes) We use real maple syrup now instead of the big bottles full of high fructose corn syrup and tons of other stuff I can't pronounce!
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| Just eggs poured in a waffle maker! |
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| Still better than Kraft... |
Lunch is a challenge. I will not lie! I usually want something fast and I don't want to cook. I have usually just finished cleaning up from cooking breakfast! Applegate, Hormel Naturals, Wellshire Farms are all brands of organic deli meats that I use.
They are organic with no use of antibiotics, nitrates, or preservatives. I keep Annie's mac and cheese on hand for a quick meal. It has way to many ingredients but at least it's better than Kraft!
Since we don't typically have bread in the house- when I do they can have an almond butter and jelly sandwich. We use Barney Butter which is just almond butter with a bit of organic sugar and oil. (They just won't eat the plain almond butter, so this is my compromise since we don't eat peanut butter). We buy the Cascadian Farms jelly since it doesn't have all the added stuff in it. They think it's a real "treat" when we have bread in the house and they know that means they get their version of a "PBJ"!
My oldest son has a new favorite meal consisting of stir fry chicken using Coconut Aminos. (I don't typically buy meat that is not fresh, but this brand of chicken again, meets my "least offensive" rule.) It's convenient but pricey. I have only found it at Whole Foods.
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| Our new "staple" in the house! |
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| Only organic chicken, water and salt |
Recipe for stir fry chicken
1 pound organic chicken(fresh cut up into cubes or Bell &Evan's grilled)
Olive oil
Garlic stir fry oil
Toasted Sesame oil
Coconut Aminos
Put chicken in pan with oils on medium heat. Cook until chicken is done.
**If using Bell & Evan already cooked chicken, put frozen chicken in pan with oils. When it softens enough cut into cubes while cooking.
*Add any vegetables you want!
*I will serve plain or with rice or noodles if the kids are not on phase one.
Other lunch ideas:
Applegate hotdogs with no bun
Grassfed hamburgers with no bun
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| We love our hamburger cooker thingy! |
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| Parker cooking the burgers |
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They don't even miss the bun anymore! Organic ketchup with no HFCS.
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So, my kids have gotten used to having very little cereal, bread or other grains in the house. The rules in my house are:
1. No corn, peanuts or soy products
2. If it comes from an animal it MUST be organic
3. "Least offensive" meaning it has the fewest ingredients possible and I must be able to pronounce them
4. Snack foods such as chips or fruit bars must be organic and be the "least offensive" brand
Here is one example. I searched the isles for a chip that was not riddled with junk.
Chips with corn starch? Soy? Why?
I found these and they are wonderful!
Not even in the organic section.
It's a pleasant surprise to see.
Why can't all the chips have just 3 ingredients?!!
I mean, really?!
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| Only brand of chips I will buy for them |
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| Like this list! |
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| Amazing that there are only 3 ingredients! |
5. I keep organic apples and fruit around all the time so they can grab those. Boxes of organic raisins and bags of almonds and cashews are great for a quick snack or "take on the road". I make a "trail mix" using these things and sometimes add some chocolate chunks.
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| Fall in my "least offensive" catagory. |
6. No soda. Ever.
Even if we have homeschool socials at my house, I refuse to have soda brought in. Water is served only. Amazing....kids who are so used to soda...when they come here expecting it and all they have is water to drink. Guess what? They drink water!
I am trying to teach my kids balance. I didn't start this whole process myself until 2 years ago. They have slowly adjusted to eating "different" foods and not having the grains, breads, and junk in the house. The days of Cheetos and Doritos are gone! But some days it's just plain hard.
Some days convenience wins over due to just not having the time to prepare something.
It's about balance.
If they eat out, they know how to choose the "least offensive" thing on the menu. They might not make the best choice if I am not around to enforce it, but they know they will need to take extra Olive Leaf Extract and psyllium husks to rid their bodies of what they just put in. They know that what they put into their bodies is important and when they eat donuts or pizza....they have to counteract it with something else. They also know there will be a few weeks throughout the year when I put the whole family on phase one. It's our life now.
I allow them to eat what ever is offered when at someone else's house as to not be rude. If it was processed, had corn, peanuts, soy, artificial anything.....they know they will have a few days of "detox" coming. They don't even question it anymore. I think they actually look forward to it. They realize how bad they feel now after eating junk that they long to get the toxins out so they can feel better.
It's all about balance.
If I don't make it myself...it's all about finding the "least offensive."
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| Jackson and Parker |
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| Karianne- my Wolfpack girl! |
