Sunday, December 02, 2007

Life as we’ve never expected it…

Well… Guess what we had for snacks?

Yes.

You guessed it.

Lettuce leaves… With pumpkin seed paste, but lettuce nevertheless…

Oh, and take a look at this fridge:



I dare you to find something unhealthy and processed. (Hemp milk doesn't count. It's quite organic. And so hippie :-) I feel like a flower child...)

And it looks empty because all these healthy things – they run out almost as soon as they are bought. No longevity what so ever. So it’s shopping every two days or so. (Besides, I've got a pretty huge fridge...)

For those curious, I am trying to operate a diet that takes some concepts from the "Ph Miracle Diet", and some general raw food ideas, with my favorite book so far being “The Raw Food Detox Diet”.

Lot’s of great ideas there, except for the fact that some form of nuts is present in almost all the recipes… But I’m adapting. It just occurred to me that nuts can be substituted with seeds (like sunflower seeds) and almond/soy milk with hemp milk. So I’m feeling much more optimistic now.

No, we haven’t gone all raw yet. It’s way to hard. But we’ve certainly changed our diet.

And guess what this is?



Yup, it’s a very fancy-shmancy juicer. (I'd take a picture of my own, but it's all disassembled at the moment. Besides, this one looks much juicier with the whole pineapple theme they've got going...) We use it for juicing green veggies first thing in the morning, to get all those good vibes and enzymes. Cause juicing makes these enzymes go straight into the blood and do their miracle there, for there is no effort wasted on digestion. The drink is now our daily energy shot…

See, I’ve told you we’ve gone wacky…

Yes, we juice wheat grass too… No it’s not disgusting… Sort of an acquired taste by now.

What else? Let’s see, we got a spiralizer (Saladacco) for making veggie pasta. (I already tried it once, and my zucchini pasta was just fine, thank you very much.)

And we ordered a very fancy blender. It’s not here yet, but when it gets here I can just imagine my life getting better. (It better, considering how much we’ve paid…)

We’ve emptied the entire pantry and got rid of everything that had salt. Read – donated two huge boxes of cans to food bank.

We collected and are about to donate all stuffed toys in the house. Dust mites, you know. Not good for the baby. (Sniff, sniff, the cute little bears…)

We now buy sprouted bread. Spelt sprouted bread… And wraps… No more Dempster toasts…

I seem to cook endlessly. I’m making sauces from scratch, hummus from scratch, pastes from scratch, baby food from scratch…

Yah… and that’s just the tip of the iceberg.

On a positive side – did I tell you I lost 15 pounds this month? Hmmm… I actually weight less now than I did in about 8 years. Not quite my first year university shape yet (another 10 – 15 pounds to go), but way closer to that goal than in ages. And it’s not like I’m not eating. I’m eating all these healthy things till I feel like celery is growing out of my ears, and I’m still loosing weight!

And hubby lost 20 POUNDS! In a month! Doing absolutely nothing to achieve that, other than eating healthy foods instead of the garbage/junk he used to get for himself. Seriously, that’s an argument for healthy diet in itself.

You know, I do get emotional about all these changes, cause they are quite overwhelming. But they are manageable. And they definitely have positive results. And we do eat. I spend more time cooking and thinking about cooking, but I’m sure that I’ll figure my way around it eventually. It’s not like the diet is so difficult, it’s just being thrust into it so suddenly makes it challenging. No real transition. No time to plan and figure it out. Instead going from one day with a stocked pantry and fridge to being back at square one and having to start everything all over.

But it’s a challenge that is worth it. My family is worth it. Our health is worth it.

I just need to figure out a way to sit down and get my brain together, so that all the little pieces don’t run away from me. And then it’ll be a breeze.

I’ll try to keep you posted :-)

PS: don’t worry, we didn’t just eat lettuce today. We also had sandwiches, fruit and even some chocolate. And kids had completely normal dinners of chicken and grains. At grandma’s home. (How else would I get all this time for blogging?)

Posted by vasilisa @ 10:24 p.m.

Read or Post a Comment

Hi Boy I hear you loud and clear! I have not tried to convert the family yet.. you are a brave soul! I focus on my rawness for now.. although there is no dairy to be found here and lots and lots of greens! I juice daily, was doing green smoothies but too much fruit is not working for me.. kids love them and hubby too. I do eat nuts...I need a dehyradtor!! Ebay here I come..
have a good green day
debbie

Posted by Blogger Debbie Young @ 2:06 p.m. #
 

You sound like an amazing mom! I'm excited about your new blender and can't wait to hear about the things you make with it. Have a lovely week :) Cheers!

Kristen's Raw

Posted by Blogger Kristen's Raw @ 8:31 p.m. #
 

Hello, Thanks for visiting my blog. I enjoyed reading yours as well. I will put it in my google reader. We can always learn from one another and having another healthy friend is always a great thing! Good luck to you and please keep in touch.
Alma

Posted by Blogger Unknown @ 11:18 p.m. #
 

Wow! Lots of changes. It sounds like you're adapting beautifully, though. And that weight loss? That's some positive reinforcement!

Posted by Blogger Leslie @ 12:56 a.m. #
 

Congratulations on the successful life changes. I am just curious; do you use you leftovers from juicing. We have used them to make broths and soups, especially because we juice a lot of carrots and beets.

I know some people use them for compost in the garden. It is a shame to throw them away.

Dave

Posted by Anonymous Anonymous @ 2:05 p.m. #
 

Debbie: I'm approaching my family carefully. The whole thing started with having to convert my husband, who had some health scare. So he is fully on board. I never thought he'd be eating like this, but he cares enough about all of us to make these changes. As for the kids, I just started buying mostly organic for them, I cook at home, and we do as many veggies as possible. So instead of candy, my toddler gets dry apricots. Regular cookies have been substituted with organic healthy ones without additives, colours, preservatives etc. The baby is still nursing, but i make him baby food based on quinoa, chicken without antibiotics and organic veggies... No nuts though...

Kristen: I can't wait for that blender! Letting the cat out of the bag -- it's a Vita Mix! We went to a trade show and got totally sold on it. Unfortunately, by the time we decided to get it, the ones at the show were already gone, so we ordered it and now waiting... By the way -- love your blog! Very informative and sure has great ideas!

Alma: It's always good to know that you're not the only one making all the changes, isn't it! It sounds so intimidating when I feel like I'm on my own, but when I find blogs like yours with real people going through same things, it just makes the goal so much more reachable. Keep it up :-)

Leslie: The weight loss! Wow! I mean, all the time I was trying to loose weight for the sake of loosing it, I kept bouncing and plateauing, and barely getting there. But once I focused on the health part of it -- the pounds are just falling off. Pretty shocking. You know, I lost 15 pounds just this month! And really, not like I'm hungry, or counting calories or anything. I seem to be eating more often, and less paranoid about quantities, and I'm still loosing it! I mean, I do try to stop myself when I see me overdoing the grains -- but that's just cause I was a bit shocked over the whole baby-allergies and suddenly having to stop all nuts, soy and fish. But I'm finding my groove again :-)

Dave: Thanks for dropping by! I've been so far discarding leftovers, cause I don't know what to do with them. Mostly because I tend to add wheatgrass and which I don't like it in soup or pâté. We try to go easy on carrots and beets (though beets have been occasionally added) cause we were trying to control the sugars for a while. But I guess on the non-wheatgrass days I could try and do something with the pulp. It's just that the whole thing has been so new to me, I'm still feeling my way around... (And I don't have a garden -- instead it's feet of snow outside right now, I'm not kidding -- winter wonderland started early this year :-) ...)

Posted by Blogger vasilisa @ 3:43 p.m. #
 

Vasilisa,
I like your fridge. Is it a French door fridge. I have a side by side and it is so narrow. I want yours.

I like wheat grass, the benefits are far greater than alcohol and no one complains about drinking that.

Good luck with the raw food conversion.

Posted by Blogger Alexys Fairfield @ 6:31 p.m. #
 

Alexys: I love my fridge! Yes, it’s french door, with freezer on the bottom. When I think of my past puny fridges, I shiver with fear… This is my baby: http://www.epinions.com/LG_25_Cu_Ft_French_Door_Refrigerator_LRFC25750/display_~reviews (An LG French door 25 Cubic Feet). I love it and it makes life so much spacier :-)
As for raw food – I’m not really raw. I don’t think it’s possible for me just now. But I’m trying to incorporate as much raw and natural food as possible. So we still eat soups, sprouted breads and wraps, and steamed veggies… But there is tons more salads, green drink, smoothies, etc… So it’s a work in progress – the search for an optimum healthy way of life that is workable here and now.

Posted by Blogger vasilisa @ 7:22 p.m. #
 
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About

I'm a 29 year old mom of two! A toddler (kiddo one) and a new baby (kiddo junior). I am also the most horrible (as in I barely ever do it) cook that I have met in my life. This blog is a diary of my attempts to feed my hungry growing family

PS: My name is not actually Vasilisa... But I find that honest reporting comes easier when there is a shred of anonymity. (Apparently, posting pics of my sons doesn't count...)

PPS: For those of you wondering where on the planet I am: I'm cosily tacked away in the Torontonian suburbia of the Great White North (Canada).

The Beginnings

What is all this?

Listening

To music, naturally.

Reading

All kinds of books. Haven't figured out how to post links to them yet.

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Vasilia

Real Savvy Mom Blogger