Priorities in my Life...

It's been so long since I've blogged.  And while I have been away from posting, I've spent time reflecting on why I have not been here.

Truth is, I love blogging.  I love to sit here and write out my thoughts.  I love to talk about food, and life, and God,  and family.  I love that I can come here and just be "me".  My own little place on the internet.  But, the other side of the coin is that I am a busy mom with three children.  And they are growing up so fast.  They demand a lot out of me right now, but soon enough they won't want to be with their mom all the time. So I want to enjoy this time as much as I can.  I don't think when I get older I will ever say "I wish I spent more time on the internet" but I may say "I wish I spent more time with my family."

What I've noticed since having three kids is that I am SO much busier than before. Trying to homeschool, and nurse, and create memories, but alongside that it's also a balance of trying to make sure I focus on my marriage, and try and bond with friends somewhere in there.  Oh, and don't forget to squeeze in some sleep every once in a while! ;)

So, the bottom line is,I won't be here that often.  Not because it's not great, but right now there is something greater requiring my attention.  I will be writing here whenever it works.  No schedule, no plan, just a fun place to type up my ramblings whenever I feel like it.  Which I guess is the reason I started blogging anyways!

31 Day FAIL

So, if by chance you are still hanging around this blog, you would have noticed that I stopped blogging for the 31 days a bunch of days ago.

Yep.  There's a reason this post is titled "31 Day FAIL."

However, even though I failed at blogging for 31 days, I don't see it as failure.  When I started out attempting to take part in the 31 days, I was still shuffling back and forth in my mind into whether I wanted to run full force with a blog or not.  I didn't know if I wanted it to be a "job" for me.  I thought maybe I did.

Well, I discovered, I don't.  I prefer to blog for recreation.  I don't like the pressure on me to be blogging every day.

So, I will continue to blog.  But on my schedule.  Because frankly, I'm tired.  I'm busy with three beautiful munchkins, homeschooling, keeping up the house, being part of a church, crafting, and dreaming up some other future career ideas.  I will be here sharing as often as I am able, because let's be honest, I still have a lot to say. ;)

And for some very committed 31 Dayers, check out The Nester.

How to Make Healthy Earth Balls

A few years ago I followed a blog called Green and Crunchy.  Sheri was the author, and she shared many delicious high raw vegan food posts with her large following.  It has been years since her blog has closed, but I have yet to find a blog I love just as much.  It was just so unique.  I still miss it.  Sheri, please come back! ;)  Anyways, the point I am trying to make is that she had a great recipe for "earth balls" that I am going to share with you, but if she was still online I would definitely direct you to her.

Earth balls...healthy, yummy goodness.  This is the health snack I pull out when I want to convince people eating healthy is yummy!  Many people have asked me for the recipe after coming to my house.

Earth Balls

1 cup almonds
1 cup dates

whatever else you want in there... coconut, peanut butter, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, cacao nibs, goji berries, chocolate chips (hey, a little chocolate never hurt anyone...)....etc!

Through the almonds and dates in the food processor until nice and processed!  Then, add whatever else you want in there and process a little longer.  Form into balls and put them in the freezer.  Eat the whole tray a few straight from the freezer!

These will fall apart at room temperature, so make sure you don't leave them out!

This is day 11 of my 31 day series, "31 Days to Healthier Grub". Thanks for coming by!

Getting Kids to Eat Healthy

Getting kids to eat healthy can be a challenge, but there are ways to make it easier.  Here are a few things that I've learned to get some good foods into the little ones.

1. Start early: If you can, start as soon as they are on solids.  My kids have had green smoothies from a very early age.  People are often amazed at what they drink, but it's only because they are used to it.  And hey, if your kids are older, tell them it's a "Green Monster Smoothie."

2.  Section Plates:  You'd be amazed how excited kids could get over having their food divided into little sections.  Here are a few we've had at our house:

Homemade mango salsa, some leftover sausage (okay, maybe not the healthiest option, but everything else looks good!), tomato salsa, cucumbers, rice crackers, tortilla chips, and eggplant bacon!

Grapes, rasperries, blueberries, raw vegan strawberry cheezecake, peaches, and a date stuffed with natural peanut butter with an almond tucked inside!

Rice cake crackers, pretzels, plantain chips, oranges, grapes, raisins, bananas, carrots, cucumbers!

3.  Take your kids berry picking, or to a farm where they can see how the food is grown.  When kids are involved in the process, they are more likely to eat the food.

4.  Let them get messy!  Eating can be messy, especially some fruits, like peaches! ;)  But to me, the mess is worth it if they are learning to love food that is good for them.

These are just a few of the ways I've managed to get my kids to eat things that are good for their bodies. :)  What about you? Do you have any tips?

How to Make Kefir

Today I want to share with you how to make kefir.  Kefir is similar to yogurt, except that it is even better for your digestive system because it contains even more of that good bacteria than yogurt.  It's simple to make.

Heat one liter of milk on the stove to 180°F.  I used goat milk but use whatever milk you want. I know people have made kefir from almond milk as well, but I'm not sure if the technique was different.

You'll want to stir it a lot, because milk burns really easily.

After it reaches 180°F, you'll wanna remove it from the heat.  Let it cool down to 73-77°F.  Once it does, pour some of the milk in a small cup and add your kefir starter.

Mix it until it's dissolved, and then pour it back into the pot with the other milk.  After you stir up the pot really well, put it in a jar to sit on the counter for about 24 hours, until curd starts to form.  Yes, that's right, this time it's okay if you leave milk on the counter. ;)  

Keep refrigerated after the 24 hours.  You can use this in smoothies, or add some fruit or homemade healthy jam to it!

You may have heard of kefir grains as well.  These are little grains that you put in the kefir instead of starter.  Over time they multiply, and if you are successful and don't kill them, they can last a lifetime!  I, however, wasn't so lucky in the past.  I have used milk and water kefir grains, and plan to do so soon, but they regular a bit of TLC so I'm waiting until I'm not holding a baby most of the day!  So far I haven't seen kefir grains in the store....I think you can only buy them online.

(This is day 9 of my 31 day series:  31 Days of Healthier Grub).

Healthy AND Frugal Possible?

This is an area I've struggled with for many years.  How can you eat healthy, AND live frugally?  Well, it can be done. Keep in mind that many healthy foods are very frugal, it might just be time to learn how to cook with said items.

In our house, some very frugal healthy items we use are:

-Brown rice

-Lentils

-Black Beans
-Chickpeas

-Oatmeal

-Eggs

I previously talked about getting rid of boxed cereal.  Not only is this a great option for eating a more healthy breakfast, but cereal can be expensive!!  If your kids are like mine who LOVE cereal, a box can last only 2-3 days.

When we buy beans, we buy them by the bag instead of the can.  We throw the whole bag in the crockpot, and then we divide them up into ziploc bags and freeze them for when we need some already cooked beans!

When shopping for produce I try to for the most part purchase what is in season.  Right now, for Autumn my fridge is full of winter vegetables - squash, pumpkin, potatoes, carrots, onions...etc.  In the Summer I love to eat all the types of berries that are in season.  

I think that many times, when we need to stock our cupboards with healthy foods, there may be a few things we decide are worth the money.  I think it's best to decide what you will spend the money on, and work on keeping the rest of the grocery bill down.    I am willing to spend more money on natural sweeteners such as maple syrup or honey, but I don't buy prepackaged gluten-free products (which, many are processed anyways.)

You can be healthy, and it won't burn a hole in your wallet!

Cheating...

Okay, you had to know I was going to do a post about this.

I mean, really, who goes 31 days without cheating, at least a little?  Well...okay, you can go 31 days without cheating, but I want to tell you, it's okay if you give yourself a break sometime.

As you know, I started off this series by saying I would avoid sugar for 31 days.  And so far, I have.  It has not been too difficult as I've been filling myself with delicious pumpkin and green smoothies, doing some juicing, and staying at home instead of stopping into the local bakery. ;)  But, today is Thanksgiving.  We get together with family.  And we eat.

So, I know what you are thinking, that I over-indulged on that pumpkin pie??  Nope.  I decided to be strong and skip dessert. However, given that it was the holiday, I decided to allow myself a little wiggle room.  I ate many appetizers without asking what was in them, but let me tell you, there was one creamy artichoke jalapeno dip that was so amazing, and I am sure it had a nice chunk of sugar and who knows what else in there.  I stayed away from the buns (wheat causes migraines for me) but I allowed myself gravy all over my turkey.  I kept to drinking water instead of the many other beverages offered.

So, a few tips on what to do when deciding to "cheat"...

1.  Decide beforehand that you are going to "cheat", and decide what that looks like.  Are you going to have that slice of pumpkin pie but no sugary beverage?  Or will you decide on no dessert and enjoy thirds seconds on that delicious turkey dinner?

2.  Don't announce what you are doing.  I tried really hard to not share that I was avoiding sugar, but it did come out by the end of the night.  Why do I say keep it to yourself?  Often at holiday get-togethers people can start to question you, making you feel guilty for wanting to eat healthy.  I think it's a cultural thing- we get together and when we do we love to eat!  And when someone isn't partaking the way everyone else may be, it seems to stir up feelings in people. If you can eat what you want and avoid what you want without too many people noticing, it's easier to accomplish staying away from all the treats everyone else is eating.

3.  Remind yourself why you are doing what you are doing.  When I was having a low moment earlier in the day, feeling like I could reach for something I knew I shouldn't, I asked myself "in 30 minutes, if I don't eat this, will I regret it?"  Chances are the answer is often no.  But if I do eat it, in 30 minutes I may regret it once my tummy isn't feeling so well.

4.  Go for a walk.  It's a tradition for our family at Thanksgiving to take a walk.  We like to do it after we've filled up on too many appetizers because we need something to get us away from all that delicious food!  By the time we get back we are usually a little more distracted with other things to fill up on too much more.

5.  Don't bring leftovers home.  I feel much better about giving myself a bit of a break today knowing that my fridge wasn't full of all those yummy treats!  We did bring a pie home, but will be giving it away.  If you are the host, try sending leftovers home with others.  College kids especially love turkey leftovers!

Do you have any tips you use to help you get through the sugary holidays? ;)

This is day 7 in my 31 day series:  31 days to Healthier Grub.