Enter the terrifying world of whole food lunchbox lunches

Now, I whole heartedly approve of the new school lunch regulations in the US. I think is brilliant that our nation's kiddos are being fed food that is better for their little bodies and little brains. I have seen the menu at our children's school. It has improved a great deal from when I was a kid. They even have fresh, local fruits and veggies!

However, school lunches still definitely don't meet my food guidelines. Plus, I hate to push it when it comes to my kid's weird food allergies. They have something on the menu almost every day that my son is allergic to, and at five years old, sometimes he chooses what looks good without considering the potential for an anaphylactic reaction.

And now to reiterate the title of this post: enter the terrifying world of whole food lunchbox lunches. If you think trying to scrape together a nice lunch for the office without using processed food is difficult, try making one for a picky kid without the ability to heat up their lunch and about 15 minutes to actually eat it. All without being wasteful, as I hate the packaging waste involved in most lunches from home.

My first step was to invest in some more containers. Reusable baggies, little sandwich boxes, itty bitty plastic containers, thermoses, nice sturdy water bottles, BPA-free plastic silverware that I intend to reuse but won't cry if it doesn't make it home, and good quality lunch boxes were the first things I rounded up to make sure I'd be able to pack my kiddos lunches without wasting 16 plastic bags a day. Seriously, having handy places to stick all the fresh, good stuff makes for much easier lunch packing.

Next, I had to come up with some ideas that are portable and easy enough to pack for lunch every day. I knew that making their lunch prep as quick and painless as possible was going to be necessary if I was ever going to actually accomplish it. My grand plan? Fill up their lunches with fresh, raw fruits and veggies, a little protein, and a very small, but yummy dessert to keep up morale during the long school day.

And now some ideas for each of these things-

Veggies: Celery, baby carrots, broccoli, snap peas, baked sweet potato chips, bell pepper strips, cucumber slices, side salad

Fruits: grapes, apple slices misted with lemon juice so they don't brown, orange sections, fresh peaches and other stone fruit, bananas, bing cherries, pomegranate

Protein: yogurt, cheese slices, chicken or turkey salad, peanut butter for dipping, almond butter and honey sandwiches (on homemade bread, of course), mixed nuts, hummus, chicken and vegetable soup, lettuce wraps filled with shredded turkey and dilly Greek yogurt

Dessert: no bake chocolate peanut butter bars , zucchini or pumpkin bread, oatmeal pumpkin cookies , a square of dark chocolate, homemade trail mix with chocolate, or your family's favorite homemade dessert in a little bitty portion (I would feel awful for my kiddo's teachers if I pumped them full of sugar at lunch, since now that we eat a lot less of it, they get really nutty while under it's sticky influence.)

Water makes for a perfectly acceptable drink at lunch, and since my kiddos take a water bottle to school anyhow, they just grab it for lunch, too. If your school allows water bottles from home, I highly suggest taking them up on the offer. Remember how many kids put their mouth on the water fountain when you were little?? Yuck..just yuck.

Hold the white sugar, please!

Cutting back on our white sugar intake has been one of the most rewarding aspects of our new, whole food, diet. There are so many reasons to lay off the processed sweeteners: it greatly reduces overall calorie intake, it lowers the risk of developing type 2 diabetes, it improves dental health, and simply because they ARE processed. Aside from the tangible health benefits, we feel better. One beverage made with an average amount of white sugar and I'm ready to ralph.

I'll start by sharing a few facts about sugar. Did you know that much of the sugar found in processed foods is actually beet sugar? Along that vein, most beets are genetically modified to be 'Round-Up ready'. If you're working to eliminate GMOs in your diet, processed sugar is one ingredient that you must avoid. Even cane sugar is highly processed and doesn't meet nutritional needs other than calories from carbohydrates. High fructose corn syrup, despite really not being quite as evil as it's been made out to be in recent years, it is HIGHLY processed and corn is a highly genetically modified crop. Ergo, we don't use it.

You don't have to cut out sweets all together when you stop eating the sugar we all grew up with. There are many alternatives to sweeten your food and beverage without using cane or beet sugar.

• Raw honey
• Maple syrup (but only the real stuff)
• Molasses
• Stevia (though you've got to watch stevia based sweeteners for 'icky' ingredients)
• Fruit

Raw honey, though calorie rich, provides many health benefits as well as a sweet treat. Molasses is rich in iron. Stevia, though more processed than I care to use regularly, is a great alternative to more questionable low-calorie sweeteners for diabetics or people looking to cut calories from sugars. Fruit is an obvious choice, as it's obviously naturally made and provides more nutrients than you're average sweetener.

There are so many ways to use less processed sweeteners if you're willing to get just a little creative. Honey and molasses are great for baking, but stevia is not very effective in that department. Maple syrup is wonderful for far more than pancakes and waffles. You can use it to sweeten yogurt or oatmeal. Use fruit frozen in ice cubes to sweeten cold drinks, or even pureed fruit in baked goods or yogurt.

You can even grow and process the stevia plant at home, which is very appealing to do-it-yourselfers like me. Maple syrup, in the right climate and with the presence of sugar maples, can also be tapped and processed by relative beginners without much expense or effort. If you cared to keep bees, you could have your very own buzzy honey-makers right there in your back yard. Knowing precisely how your food is processed because you've processed it yourself is a great way to make sure that you know exactly what is going into what you eat, and in my most humble of opinions, it feels good to be able to provide my own food.

P.S., Sorry I haven't posted in so long. Sometimes, life really gets in the way, you know?

Pick your poison-a strategy to succeed as a whole food household

If you're making the transition to whole foods, I'm sure there is some food you have been unable to find a satisfactory replacement for. I'm here today to tell you that that's okay. Go buy one thing you really miss. Seriously! It isn't going to hurt you or your family too badly to have an occasional junky, processed food.

It's tough to convince kids (and sometimes husbands) that the whole food lifestyle is really worth it. Sometimes stress may drive you to madness in the absence of your favorite chocolates. I get it. I really, really do (I'll be honest and tell you that my favorite Russell Stover's S'more Big Bite is sitting in my lap as I write this). I propose that by giving just a little, you can make eating whole foods less stressful for you and help your family feel like they aren't giving up so much.

I accomplish this by allowing each member of my family to 'pick their poison' on our bi-weekly trip to the grocery store. They are given no guidelines as to what to pick. It doesn't have to be an organic whole food. It doesn't even have to have any nutritional value at all. They get to choose one thing they've really, really missed and we buy it (but only a small amount). My poisons have been everything from less-than-whole-food chocolate to that zippy mayonnaise-like substance. My husband typically picks white bread (though the white bread I buy him nearly meets our normal guidelines), some of my kids' favorite cheats are store-bought macaroni and cheese, toaster pastries, and juice boxes that contain little to no real juice.

These foods were not part of my original plan. They certainly don't fit in with the healthier diet that I want to be feeding my family. That's okay, though. We, as in..well..everyone, aren't perfect. That's okay. Embrace it. Be practical. Take a deep breath and let it go.

Eating whole foods can be a lot of work. It can be a very big adjustment. It doesn't have to be miserable, exhausting, or boring, though. If you're working to come up with clever ideas to feed your family food that they love that is actually good for them, you deserve a whole heap of credit. Credit yourself by letting your family eat cake. Cake with white sugar in it. White sugar and white flour if you're really a wild one.

Tell me, what's your poison??

A little late..but think of Earth Day every day!

I realize it comes a few days late, but I've had this post brewing for a while. April 22 was Earth Day. People all over pick up trash, are more conscious of recycling habits, and many go out and plant a tree. That's wonderful! Don't you think we should all be more conscious of the way the things we do and the products we use affect our planet every day, though?
One of the biggest things we do for our planet's sake in our house is avoiding disposable stuff, and also finding uses for stuff that would normally be disposed of. Using something once and then throwing it away is very common in our society today. It makes a lot of trash and burns through a lot of resources. Here are some tips you can implement in your household to stop some of the waste.

1. Use REAL plates. I know that dishes stink. I, for one, hate doing dishes (we've never had a dish washer). However, our family of 5 would throw away a minimum of 15 paper plates every day if we used them all the time. That's a lot of wasted paper. I am alright with the occasional paperware for barbecues or birthday parties, but I can't stomach the waste of using paper (or styrofoam, which is even worse) for every meal. Buy dishes that you love and you'll find yourself using them more often.

2. Buy some cloth napkins. They aren't all that expensive, and they are honestly much nicer to use than paper napkins. Plus, they come in fabulous colors and patterns, and they make your family feel fancy.

3. Keep a stash of refillable water bottles on hand. If you don't like your tap water (I don't), purchase a filtering system or buy refillable jugs at the grocery store.

4. You can make reusable sandwich-type baggies by sewing laminated cotton fabric into a bunch of handy sizes, or there are products out there that serve the same, use it again and again, purpose. You can even throw them in the dishwasher.

5. There are lots of folks out there that would LOVE to have your old tattered denim for sewing projects. Place an ad on Craigslist or on a local buy and sell site on Facebook. Chances are someone would love to come pick them up. The same goes for most fabrics. If they are too tattered to donate or resell, you can probably still find someone who can use them for something.

6. Buy in bulk. Buying in bulk reduces the amount of packaging used and you make less trips to the store. Plus, you're always prepared! No ice storm or hurricane is going to find you out of food or toliet paper if you buy in bulk. The bulk area at our local food co-op is also MUCH cheaper than buying the same food boxed in the aisles.

7. Use glass food storage containers or heavy duty plastic containers rather than the 'use it again..or don't' variety. I found the temptation to throw those ones out when they got gross almost irresistable.

8. Opt out of using facial tissues. Buy a couple hankies for each family member instead. My nose doesn't get so red and sore during allergy season and there is not a very tempting box of tissues for my small children to empty all over the floor.

9. Use real rags to clean. They work better, and you won't burn through a whole roll of paper towels every time you clean the house. I'm certain there are some old, holey t-shirts around that can be cut into handy, light-weight rags that you can use over and over again.

10. Start asking yourself every time you buy something, "How much of this will be thrown away?" A lot of packaging is nothing but waste. Nothing lasts forever. The product itself will someday have to find a home in the big trash-heap in the sky. Before you puchase something, think about what you would have to do to responsibly dispose of it, which will inevitably happen. Can you repurpose the item if and when it quits having the ability to perform it's original purpose?

11. Make your own cleaners whenever possible. It will keep you from throwing out the empty spray bottles full of residual chemicals. Find some easy, all natural ways in my post about natural cleaning here: http://therealfoodhouseholdresolution.blogspot.com/

Mostly, I'm asking everyone to be more conscious of their actions and how they impact the planet. Our kids, grandkids, and great grandkids have to live here long after we're gone. Take a small step to help preserve our world. Walk your kids the two blocks to school when it's nice out. Recycle and reuse what you can. Turn off the lights when you leave. Turn off the water if you aren't using it right then. If everyone would take part in small scale conservation, it could help to ensure future generations a healthy place to live. Another bonus? In the long run, these tips will actually save you money.

Do you have any great tips to keep the waste to a minimum at your house? Please share!

P.S., the picture is a fabulous Earth picture that my wonderful son made for me at preschool.

Meal planning makes the whole food household world go round

I am, at heart, a flaky mom. Before we started this real food adventure, I rarely knew what we were having for dinner until I started making it. I knew that would have to change since it's 30 miles to our local natural food grocer. It pained me to do so, but I had to start a meal plan.

I know, I know. Having some super detailed, ultra-restrictive meal plan sounds like a drag. Maybe that's just me? However, it can actually free up a lot of time and money. Plus, I've actually got all the things I need before I start cooking. Plus plus, it doesn't have to be extremely restrictive. For example, I had planned on roasting a chicken for dinner last night (the leftover meat and bones would star in the next two night's dinners). My husband wanted breakfast burritos instead and I ended up at work too late to get the chicken cooking, so I just moved Friday's tomato zucchini fritata up, moved everything else back a day, and rolled that fritata up in locally made whole wheat tortillas that we always have on hand.

Here are some of my best tips so far for making meal planning easier on me and our bank account:

1. Cook a large cut of meat one evening. Only serve a portion of it that night. Put the rest away to use for the next two nights. Make dishes that require only a little meat, like whole wheat pasta dishes or soups. Add lentils or beans to add a little extra super cheap protein.

2. Buy whole cuts of meat or a whole chicken. You can use the bones to make stock for soup or gravy.

3. Plan to use those leftovers! Make a little extra oatmeal for breakfast to
use in muffins the next morning. If you're having trouble figuring out how to use leftovers, you might run a search for a recipe using a few ingredients you will have leftover. Not only do you avoid wasting good food this way, it also cuts down on your work load.

4. If you're trying to work with vegetables that are in season, remember that soups and stirfrys are your best friend. You can throw anything in them. Use some homemade stock (just a little for a stirfry, a lot for a soup), toss in whatever veggies you can find in season, fresh or dried complimentary herbs and spices, maybe a little leftover meat or beans for protein and let it simmer.

5. Put a couple meals in the plan that someone other than the usual head chef can pull off. This keeps us on track even if I wind up having to work during the evening or I don't feel well.

6. Make sure you have some quick lunch and breakfast foods on hand. It's very tempting to grab some junk food when you're in a rush. For example, I bought a turkey breast to roast for sandwiches, plus we over did the hard boiled eggs for Easter intentionally so we'd have some for quick, peel and eat breakfasts and egg salad for lunch (chop eggs, add a little organic cream cheese, chopped pickles, and paprika).

7. Keep your pantry well stocked with the basics. Keeping plenty of whole wheat flour, quinoa, steel cut oats, whole grain pasta, brown rice, dried beans and lentils, yeast, organic sugar, real chocolate chips (yes, these are a basic in our house), local honey and other dry ingredients you love to use makes shopping much easier. Then I only have to pick up the meat, produce, dairy, eggs, and the few premade organic ingredients we purchase. Plus, it's cheaper to buy in bulk.

8. Don't be intimidated to try something new, even if you have a picky family. I'm sure you've heard that it can take a bajillion (okay, maybe that is a bit of an exaggeration) times of trying a new food to actually gain a taste for it. Your family won't starve if they don't like the meal you've prepared. Just keep at it. They'll get hungry enough to give it a go eventually.

9. Your favorite search engine can be your best friend while meal planning. Use it to find new recipes, how to properly cook ingredients you've never used before, and find healthier alternatives to the foods your family already loves. You can also get connected with like-minded locals and get the skinny on local real food sources (a lot of real food must be local since it isn't held in stasis by preservatives).

Do you have any meal planning tips you'd care to share? Leave a comment! By pooling knowledge and resources, we can work together to make eating real food more practical for every family.

Gardening with kids: the impact I never imagined I'd make by starting an organic garden

It's become a ritual in our house to look at the tray of just-started seeds every time we come home. The kids go check on them every time they wake up, when they get home from school, when they are finished getting ready for school in the morning, before bed time.

When we were choosing our seeds, the kids helped pick out their favorite veggies and new ones they wanted to try. They helped work up the existing beds around the house and actually enjoyed doing a chore for the first time ever. They have been adamantly watching the weather forecasts just waiting for the day they can help move all the plants outside.

The kids have gotten very involved in making our organic gardening dreams come true. They are learning what it means to grow organically and why it is important to our health and the environment. More than that, they've been eating more healthfully with no complaints. The produce section at the supermarket is a place of wonder all of the sudden. They search the racks for the veggies they picked out as seeds and are happy to eat them knowing that, in a few short months, the seeds they are diligently watching for signs of growth will create that very same produce.

Those tiny plants have made the transition to eating whole, organic foods so much more exciting, and therefore less painful, for our family. The kids (and my husband) have been happily eating raw spinach, even!

It's astounding to me what a few seeds and dirt under our finger nails has done for our family's well being. A little common ground (pun intended) has worked wonders for our relationships. We cooperate better, truly listen to one another, and talk more all due to a few seedlings and a plan.

P.S., The pictures are our seedlings today (3/27), my son (age 4) checking on his snow peas, my daughter L (age 7) showing off her summer squash, and daughter K (age 3) displaying the carrots she picked out.

Simple natural cleaning solutions

I know that highly scented cleaning fluids smell good to some people, but to me, they wreak of chemicals. I have a hard time breathing around them, plus I can taste them for hours after using them.

Since I have small children and pets in the house, it makes me extremely nervous to clean any surface with chemicals. All those store-bought cleaning solutions have warning labels stating that you should call poison control if ingested. Yikes!

Instead, I use the cleaning tricks our grandparents used. I can clean my whole house with items from the pantry and fridge. Here are some of my extremely simple solutions to our toughest cleaning challenges.

1. White vinegar makes a much better all purpose cleaner than bleach, simply because my skin will come to no harm in it's use and I don't have to run out of the house like I just set off a bug bomb after mopping. Mix a half cup of vinegar into a bucket of warm water and get to scrubbing! If you're working on a surface that doesn't streak easily, you can add a couple tablespoons of baking soda for extra cleaning power (think elementary science fair volcano). However, make sure you don't cover that mixture. You can add a few drops of dish washing liquid for especially greasy messes.

2. Half a grapefruit sprinkled with table salt sounds like breakfast to some, but it equals cleaning the shower and bath tub at my house. You simply cut a grapefruit in half (avoid pink because it can stain some surfaces), sprinkle the fruit side with salt, and scrub away and rinse. My bathroom smells delicious afterwards! You can also use a large lemon or lime, but oranges have too much sugar in them. The exposed peel makes an fabulously gentle scrubber, a little like a Magic Eraser but with out the potentially skin-damaging chemicals. Plus, I just toss it in the compost pile when I'm done. Lemon is also great for polishing up water fixtures and stainless steel sinks, and cleaning the garbage disposal (simply stick half a lemon in, turn it on, and eliminate unpleasant smells and build-up).

3. Microfiber towels are amazing. You can dust with them, chemical free. You can wash windows with two of them (one wet, one dry). Just scrub the window down with the wet one, then dry with the other. I attach washcloth-sized microfiber towels to my name brand dust mop instead of their disposable cloths. They are a little more expensive than cheap-o dish rags, but not by much. Microfiber is also great for cleaning stainless steel and electronics. Make sure you don't use fabric softener when washing microfiber towels, though. They loose their absorbency if you do.

4. To polish wood and clean cabinets, use a cup of lemon juice, a tablespoon of both olive oil and warm water mixed together. Wipe it on, wait a few minutes, then buff the surface. How easy is that? Your coffee table doesn't even care if the lemon juice isn't organic or if the olive oil isn't top notch.

5. If you're concerned about mold and bacteria, you might consider investing in some tea tree oil. Tea tree oil is a natural disinfectant and a cure-all in our family (great for acne, owwies, canker sores, and thrush in infants). Add a few drops to some warm water and wipe down surfaces to assure they are germ free. It is fairly accessible (we buy ours at Wal-Mart), and you use so little at a time that it is still very affordable. I'll warn you that it smells VERY strong. I find the scent energizing and invigorating, though, which is great for cleaning. Eucalyptus is another great essential oil for household disinfecting, though it's a little harder to find.

Aside from keeping dangerous chemicals out of your house, these tactics eliminate a TON of packaging waste. They also don't require much more effort than traditional cleaning products, which is great for busy families.

Do you use any other all-natural cleaning solutions in your house? Please share!