The Peanut Butter Paradigm

My food processor came today. Thanks, Amazon!

First on the agenda? Peanut butter.

I bought a 3 pound bag of salted peanuts. My first mistake. The peanut butter is way too salty, but I can deal with that.

My second mistake was buying un-shucked peanuts. Shucking half the bag took an hour and now my fingers are dry and sore.

In to the processor went the peanuts. As well as some canola oil and honey. You don't have to use honey, but I prefer my peanut butter to be a little less au naturale.

After processing for 20 seconds I add the oil and honey. If it's too gritty, process for more time, if it's not spreadable enough, add more oil.

And there you are. Organic peanut butter you can make yourself for about $2 per 8oz jar.

Goes great on toasted blueberry bagels.

Another great thing about making the peanut butter today was 1. I got to do something I've never done before and I'll learn from my mistakes mentioned above and 2. Micah now knows you can make your own peanut butter with peanuts and oil. He finds it fascinating. I don't think we'll ever go back to store bought.

Keeping Your Child Healthy

Micah is the healthiest and happiest child I know. He doesn't get ear infections, colds, fevers, coughs, etc. I think the last time he was sick it was because he got food poisoning a year ago.

Want to know the secret? There isn't one.

But here are some tips for a healthy child:

• Eat well while you are pregnant, exercise and get sun. You may also want to take some suppliments if you feel your diet is lacking.
• Breastfeed. Even if you work, PUMP. Breastmilk is the only real nutrition for babies. You are giving your child your antibodies to protect them from infections and disease. (You'll also burn an extra 500 colories or so a day producing the stuff.) If you can't breastfeed you can purchase (or get donated to you) another woman's healthy breast milk. Suppliers can (and do) blood tests on the woman so you know your baby is getting quality nutrition.
• Do not start your baby on white rice cereal. It has almost zero real nutrition. Get a baby food mill ($10) and grind veggies, fruit, meat (or not, if you have a vegitarian family) or whatever you and your family are having for dinner that night. Start off with veggies. NOT white rice cereal. It's like feeding your child a spoonful of sugar and can lead to childhood obesity. If you must give them some sort of mush, give them unsweetened oatmeal.
• Set an example with your food choices.
• Let your child cook with you. Teach them about nutrition and where food comes from.
• Let your child explore and get dirty. Too little germ exposure inhibits healthy immune development and promotes disease. Don't slather on the antibacterial soap. Antibacterial soaps, as well as vaccinations and antibiotics, may inhibit healthy immune development. For example, children who contract diseases such as chicken pox or measles develop lifetime immunity to those diseases, whereas children who receive vaccinations require booster shots for continued immunity.
• Worry less about what your child shouldn’t be eating and more about what they should be eating.The foods with the highest micronutrient density as follows: Greens to be highest! (Mustard greens, collard greens, turnip greens, kale, watercress, brussels sprouts, spinach, etc.) Berries and fruits to be the second highest in nutrients. Beans and nuts to be third.
• Take them food shopping with you, sticking to the outer walls of the supermarket and avoiding the center. (Or better yet, visit your local Farmer's Market and get to know a farmer.) The sections of the supermarket around the outer walls hold the nutrient-rich foods such as fruits, vegetables, lean meats, fish, and low-fat dairy. The inner aisles contain processed and snack foods.
• Remember that you CAN eat healthier on a small budget. A bag of snack chips may cost a dollar, but so does a pound of broccoli.
• If your child attends public school, make them a nutritious breakfast in the morning and send them with a bagged lunch to school. A healthy breakfast would include fat/protien (such as eggs/meat), then fruits or veggies, with side notes of grains. (One reason protein and fat are so essential for breakfast is that they are critical for overall brain chemistry balance.) Avoid processed/packadged foods loaded with flour and sugar.For packed lunches, try dinner leftovers, meat and veg rolled in pita, tortillas or multi-grain bread. Avoid starchy, heavy flour breads. Add in some fruit/veg and some water or a juice box with no added sugar. 
• Provide vitamins and suppliments if needed. I give Micah a vitamin C daily. Sometimes he also needs extra iron or vitamin B12 or D as well. It all depends on if he's been outside and has been eating right. Children need a daily intake of Vitamin C because it is important for maintaining a healthy immune system. Among the many benefits of Vitamin C for children is that it acts as a powerful anti-oxidant as well as an anti-inflammatory agent that prevents oxygen-based damage to the cells.
• Get outside. Sunlight and exercise is essential. Avoid dousing your child in sunscreen laden with chemicals which can cause irritation/rashes/acne and some scientists beleive it can cause skin cancer or at least enable it. Sunscreen blocks the creation of all-essential vitamin D your child desperately needs to prevent as many as 25 chronic diseases. Notably: prostatecancer, breast cancer, osteoporosis, schizophrenia and heartdisease. Try a homemade sunscreen instead.(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i2rZRYG1vYM)
• Read to your child(ren) daily. Reading to your child is one of the most effective ways of building the “language” neural connections in their growing brain. Reading to your child makes you bond with them and this gives your child a sense of intimacy and well-being. It calms your child, especially when they are fretful and restless. It promotes increased communication between you and your child. It promotes longer attention span, which is an important skill for your child to be able to concentrate. It builds listening skills and imagination.
• Assisted streching and massage techniques. Do streching excersises with your child. If you aren't that flexible, have your child lay flat and move their limbs to get some good streches. Good flexibility helps kids perform better in some activities, helps balance, concentration, circulation and helps them avoid injuries. With massage, start when your baby is newborn. Premature infants who were massaged, particularly with kinesthetic stimulation (body stroking and passive movement of the limbs), gained more weight than premature infants without massage. Massage helps manage stress, axiety, asthma, helps enhance the immune system, stimulates motor development and bonding, and even increases IQ. You don't have to take classed to massage your child. Touch is as important to infants and children as eating and sleeping.
• Avoid using harsh cleaning chemicals. Not only would you have to call poison control if your child got into your cleaning closet, but they could develop rashes, chemical burns or permanent neural damage. Most household cleaning can be done with simple, cheap vinegar and baking soda (Not at the same time, except in your toilet. Remember making volcanoes in middle school?). Avoid antibacterial cleaners. Antibacterial products target good bacteria as well as bad, but our bodies need those good bacteria. Labels lie. Companies do not have to disclose all their ingredients. Vinegar naturally cleans like an all-purpose cleaner and the smell dissapates when it dries. Mix a solution of 1 part water to 1 part vinegar in a new store bought spray bottle and you have a solution that will clean most areas of your home. Vinegar is a great natural cleaning product as well as a disinfectant and deodorizer.Baking soda can be used to scrub surfaces in much the same way as commercial abrasive cleansers.
• Make time for your child's health and wellbeing. Your child's physical and mental health comes before anyone elses (and your schedule). Don't find the time. Make the time. Listen to your children. Look at them when they talk to you. They need to feel they are the most important part of your life. If your child is acting out, there is a reason. Find it. But remember that children also thrive on stability and dicipline (not on neglect).
  

If you're a parent then you know your child better than anyone else and know how to care for them. Please feel free to leave comments or your own tips in the comments!


(Reading material: http://www.westonaprice.org/childrens-health )

Is Eating Healthy on a Budget Possible?

With the health food craze, I've been hearing people say that the poor are the majority of obese people. Well, the poor are the majority of EVERYTHING. Because we are so many! It just doesn't stick when people say you can't eat healthy on a budget. My family and I are NOT rich by ANY means and we still eat healthy. We don't eat out, I make all the lunches for when we might be tempted. We don't eat meat unless we can afford grass-fed organic, but I do put a ham hock in a crock pot of beans every week.

We eat a lot of salads, fruit, veggies and potatoes. I can get very creative in my dinner plans. My parents grow some food in the yard, even my four year old helps out. Strawberries fresh off the stem can brighten even the dreariest of days.

The "trick" is, to NOT spend $2 every day on a burger (even when you're at work!) and instead, save that money for the grocery store! We only go out to eat once or twice a month (more, if someone else offers to pay...) As a country, we all need to start cooking more. With a little creativity, you can make healthy meals for $.50 - $2 per person.

Limit your intake of junk food and alcohol, you don't need to be spending $100 a month on booze that ruins your liver. Give up smoking; your body and wallet will thank you. Drink lots of water (at least 8 cups a day), you'll feel fuller, it helps you detox and you may even lose some weight; your stomach, bladder and teeth will thank you for drinking water instead of sugary juices, sodas and energy drinks. Limit salty and sugary foods like processed and pre-packaged foods and opt on simple ingredients; making your own meals and lunches is not only economical, it's healthier! Avoid eating many foods that are high in saturated fats like fast food. Make a shopping list, stick it to your fridge so you can update it when you run out of certain things, then stick to it at the grocery store; self-control FTW!

Plan out your daily meals weekly. Recruit the kids to think of new meal ideas. It takes practice, perseverance and dedication to stick to it.

True, a lot of people are lazy... But adults today have forgotten how to cook, sit down and eat with their families. They've even forgotten how to SAVE money for necessities and rainy days. No, you don't need that new Margaritaville 3000.

If needed, some areas offer free financial and culinary classes. Bring the kids, too!

I am always open to questions, tactful comments and constructive criticism.