Brown Bag lunches

Sometimes I get questions on what I feed Reece. Ever since he was little he's always had the same foods, or similar foods to what I eat. One of his first "whole" foods was actually sauerkraut. As my diet evolves, so does his.  I don't believe in feeding your children "special" foods. I do think that you allow your kid to become a picky eater. He isn't allowed to tell me that he doesn't like something before he tries it. You may have to introduce your kid to a food seven times before they like it. Yes, seven times. Sometimes that means reheating the same food at least twice. Reece is not a picky eater at all. In fact, he can be easily described as a "hearty" eater.

My personal philosophy on kid-rearing is that you need to treat them with respect like you would any other human being. This can be tough; I would like to elaborate on this more in another post.  This does mean that Reece is allowed his own opinion when it comes to food. I respect his opinions. Reece does not care for spicy foods. I love spicy foods. Usually I only cook anything spicy when I'm home alone. However, on occasion I cook something I want that is spicy but it's usually a compromise (and there are some spicy foods he likes).

I ask him if he thinks a dish needs something (Spice perhaps? More meat? Less broth? Cheese? A sauce? Butter?). My mom gets a kick out of his descriptions of food because he is so opinionated about it. He has told me that at certain restaurants he's "disappointed" in the food. I work to make his food experience better and I actively explain why certain foods are better for him. He is not to be rude when I cook something he doesn't like. After a meal if he doesn't care for it he simply says, "Mommy, that was ok for tonight but I would prefer if you didn't make it again." That's code for "I ate it, but I wasn't happy about it." I do also hear "I would love if you made that again, Mommy. That was awesome!" (i.e. Alfredo is is fav. right now.)

I don't always have time to make his lunch. I'm getting better about it, though. I like to put little notes in his lunch box to let him know I'm thinking about him too. The lunch and the note combined make for a nourishing meal for his body and his mind. I make a few different lunches for him. I like to rotate them because I don't want him eating the same thing every day. (How boring!) I do ask for feedback. (What did you eat first? What didn't you eat? Were you full? Is there something you would have liked to have?) I always want to know "why" for his answers. I hate the idea of him throwing away something or trading food. 

Ideas for his main course for lunch are:

Awesome Chili

Nacho salad (meat + cheese + sour cream + vegetable chips + lettuce and salsa mixed up)

Tuna salad (mayo + tuna + sardines) <- I would put spices but he doesn't want them

Crab salad (mayo + crab + spices)

Chicken salad – usually with a sliced fruit and crumbled nuts + mayo or dressing

Cheese + Meat, no crackers

Leftover soup

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Here’s Reece’s favorite lunch:

Grassfed polish sausage (cooked and cut into little disks)

Homemade honey mustard -> really raw honey + deli style grey poupon stirred until mixed thoroughly (in a 1:2 ratio)

The raw honey gives him extra enzymes to boost his immune system and help digestion. Because the grassfed polish sausage is higher in fat + protein he does not have the wild blood sugar swings he would if he only ate honey on it’s own… Plus he’s just dipping it so he’s not eating a ton of honey. He really doesn’t care about the sides as much. Once he sees the polish sausage, he knows he’s in business.

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The sides change too. But here’s some examples:

I give him at least 1 savory item in his lunch also. Examples of this are:

Cheese (usually raw from the farmer)

Vegetables and dip (not celery though… he dislikes celery)

Vegetable chips (usually with homemade dip)

Spiced nuts

Deviled eggs (although sometimes these are the actual meal if I put enough in there)

A small side salad + dressing (He loves this)

Savory mini doughnuts (I'll write a post about these later)

I've sent him bacon strips too. He likes that. (I do too.)

A few times a week I will give him 1 sweet treat (which is usually not really that sweet). Examples of this are:

Plain yogurt (organic always) + berries and nuts

Sweet almonds

Chocolate milk (from the farmer)

Homemade cookie

Grapes or another (low sugar) fruit

Apple + almond butter

A couple squares of dark chocolate

To drink usually I'll send him water, kefir smoothie, or  raw milk (which he loves). Over the next couple weeks I'm going to try fermenting more foods and sending him those too. He's been battling a more illnesses this year than in past years. It'd be good to boost his immunity now while he's overcoming some illnesses.

You get the idea, hopefully. It's pretty much what we have in the house. I usually make him his favorite lunch on Wednesdays... when I can. I try to make his lunches higher in carbs than I would eat (more vegetables, some fruit, and more dairy), because he doesn’t need to lose weight. He’s not using hormones to grow wide, his hormones are making him grow taller.** I feel he does better if it’s pretty balanced as far as leaning toward a lot of fat and more protein. He tells me he does better in class if he can think clearly. It's hard to concentrate in school (or life) if you're starving.

** I've noticed when he eats more home-cooked foods, gets CLO, and no gluten he grows. He's now up to my clavicle. I'm growing a giant. :D

Herbal Mommy – Cuts and scrapes

I’ve noticed there isn’t a whole lot of talk about home remedies for children/adults as far as paleo/primal goes. I’m not exactly sure why. It seems to me that herbal remedies would be appropriate to talk about for primal/paleo living.  Maybe I just haven’t searched hard enough for them…? I know a lot of people in the LC community like natural health. I’m someone who doesn’t even like taking aspirin unless I must. I’m hoping these posts can fill the void that I’ve noticed.

(Warning: I am not a doctor; I don’t play one on TV or the internet. I’m just a mom who blogs. Any of my suggested remedies you do at your own risk and you take full responsibility for your health and healing and those you treat. Please be smart about this stuff. If you have a negative reaction, go to your doctor or your local ER.)

Cuts and scrapes

Funny thing about having autoimmune problems… You always end up allergic to the weirdest things if you don’t take care of yourself. I have an interesting list. One of the items I’m allergic to? Neosporin. Yep. Actually the problem is more the active ingredient bacitracin. When I was a baby it produced a severe reaction in me and I ended up in the hospital. Because of this I refuse to touch the stuff, still. I’ve probably outgrown the allergy, but why chance it?

What do I do with cuts, nicks, scrapes and other skin issues? Well, a combination of things. I’m going to go over two of them. You should be able to get these things with relative ease either through your local natural foods store or online. I’m going to talk about one item you can use in cooking and for health, and the second item I’m going to explain how to make.

Your largest organ is your skin. Anything you put on your skin is going to be absorbed and brought into your body. It seems smart to me to use natural healing.

Coconut oil – I’ve used extra virgin coconut oil on our skin and in cooking. My dad says my love for coconut oil is like the father in My Big Fat Greek Wedding and his love of Windex.

Extra virgin coconut oil has a high saturated fat content. It’s a solid if it’s colder than 70 degrees and then once you put it on your skin (because you’re warmer than 70 degrees unless you’re a zombie) it will melt. Coconut oil has vitamin E (important for skin health – and other body parts too) and antimicrobial lipids as well as antibacterial, antifungal, and antiviral properties.

As a side note, saturated fats and cholesterol are important for all of your body. They help make the cells in our body firm. If you have a cut or a scrape your body is going to need a little bit of a boost to help rebuild/repair your skin. If you supply your body with extra cholesterol through food or say, bodily application (of coconut oil) then it won’t have to work so hard to make its own. Your body will use cholesterol to fight off infections that can be introduced through an open wound. Scar tissue (if the wound is bad enough) contains a lot of cholesterol. 

All of this means that in my observation that coconut oil works faster at healing cuts than Neosporin. I even have photographed evidence (seen below) since Derek fell off his bike while training for a triathlon and was badly injured. This is just one picture of one of his injuries.

This is 3 days. The scrapes were gone.

Bottom line: It works.

Calendula oil – Calendula is actually pot marigold. I purchase organic dried marigold leaves (no pesticides). You can find this online, but I purchase it in person at a store I trust. I know there are some stores that sell herbal items too that sell Calendula oil in case you don’t want to take the time to make this. However, I feel that if you’re going to use something, you should know what goes into making it. (Same with owning a car and knowing how to change your own oil/headlights/etc.)

You’ll need:

a mason jar (probably a smaller one)

olive oil

a bag of marigold leaves, dried

6 weeks

1 amber glass bottle with a top

cheesecloth

In a sterilized mason jar, fill it half way with marigolds leaves. Pour olive oil over the leaves until they are covered. The amount of leaves you use in proportion to your olive oil will make it either very strong or very weak. It seems to me that you should use a 1:3 ratio (marigold, oil respectively). Anyway, leave the oil in a warm spot where you will see it every day. You’ll want to shake the bottle at least 1 time a day for 6 weeks.

At the end of six weeks you can heat the oil and then strain it. It can be heated through boiling water on the stove and placing a heat-safe bowl over the pot. You don’t really want to boil your herbal remedy and I’m not quite sure how it reacts with metal.

Placed the strained liquid in an amber bottle. It’s good for about 3 – 6 months… which is why it’s nice to share with others around you. That way your work doesn’t go to waste.

Calendula oil can be used on cuts, scrapes, burns, dry skin, irritated or inflamed skin, diaper rash, and is also good for acne. Calendula reduces inflammation and soothes irritated tissue.

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Housekeeping

I’ve taken classes in person with someone who is a certified herbalist. I am not. I would like to be eventually. That’s just not in the cards right now. My schedule doesn’t permit a lot of anything extra.

Poultices, salves, and other homemade remedies- I’d like to write more about these in later posts. I know there are books out there that can help you if you’re really interested in this stuff. Also, there are classes you can take. I’m only going to write about herbs that I’ve personally used and the remedies I’ve used as well.

On the 2^nd I’ll be posting schedules for me – exercise, food related, and lowcarbshrink schedules… I’m open to suggestions about what everyone likes to read and what people are interested in me focusing more on.

Cod Liver Oil Kid

When Reece was 4 and I started learning about WAPF, I started giving Reece Cod Liver Oil  (CLO) in a shot glass. We would top it with a little juice and we would “belly up to the bar” and have our oil every morning.* I’ve been slacking lately and he reminded me that he misses it. I’ll be purchasing some juice this weekend.

Up until he was 5 and going into kindergarten Reece was in speech therapy. He doesn’t remember it very well, which is nice. I don’t want him to remember struggling to communicate with others. When he was 6 months old he said his first word. Amazing!  I thought. Then at 7 or so months he would say a full sentence and crack me up. After a year and a few months he said another word. Then he just stopped talking. I had him evaluated. At this point he made up his own language and only I could decode it. Part of it was that he just didn’t see the point in learning to talk. I understood him.

A lot of the people that evaluated him hinted that he might be autistic or have ADD/ADHD in addition to having the speech problems. I did not push the issue and have him tested for either. It can be debated another time whether that action was stupid, careless, or ingenious. My numerous reasons are too lengthy and personal to explain in this blog.

Prior to eating more WAPF style I was trying to be a low-fat vegetarian. I had gained weight (going low-fat vegetarian really helped me pack on the pounds) and I was trying to be healthy. This way of living did not suit me or my child.

I was actually scared to pick up that Nourishing Traditions book. I was afraid to change because I was tired of being wrong and getting sick because of it. The book's cover hinted that what I thought I thought was good was wrong. I already had an inkling that was the case. I looked around me to see if anyone was watching and I snatched that book up. How could something like that be in plain view?! I thought. Who else knows about this?! I read that book cover to cover at least twice. Now it looks... um, loved. It has splatters, stains, and folded edges. I guess loved is pretty accurate at this point.

When we started eating more fat, Reece’s development rapidly improved (and so did my health). The farm food we both loved for several reasons. The taste and quality were wonderful, but we both stopped getting so sick and our digestion improved a lot. The CLO really clinched it. I sold him hard on it too.  I told him he would develop powers similar to the guys in the Incredibles (run fast, see far, become super smart, etc.) because that’s what he was into at the time. I wasn’t lying when I told him these things would happen. CLO does some pretty awesome things.  

Originally I was really afraid he wouldn’t drink it. I didn’t have a lot of money to spare at the time for things we wouldn't use (which was another reason I was hesitant about the book). We were always sick and I had to take off work to take both of us to the doctor. I was very stressed out. I am really thankful that I didn’t second guess myself and put that book down. I am much more laid back than I used to be and Reece is healthier from all the changes.

Most people don’t even know that he ever had developmental delays. In first grade he missed testing into 5^th grade reading level by one word: meteorologist. He’s also the tallest in his class. In Kindergarden he told me he was angry because everyone else was able to stay home sick and he wasn't because he didn't get sick. He told me he wanted to spend time with me. (aw!) I don’t know where we would be if we continued down the same road we were going before WAPF and CLO.

He doesn’t really care about super powers anymore. That stage of development is complete. He tells me that he feels a difference when he takes CLO and when he doesn’t. That’s pretty big. He told me he misses it. He may not care if it gives him superpowers, but to me it’s amazing stuff.

Cheers!

*Once he got older I started taking pills because it really was hard for me to swallow the oil sans pill. I would have to gag when he wasn’t looking. I figured that face was going to turn him off the oil which I wanted him to take. He complains when the juice masks the taste of the oil. I think that's a little... odd.

Simple Lobster "Risotto"

I know in the past I wrote I enjoy making over recipes from magazines. Perhaps I didn’t explain it enough. I actually love magazines, probably too much. I cut out and collect recipes. Then I end up finding them in odd places throughout the house.

So, at the beginning of the year I saw lobster was on sale – WHAT?! I was all over it. The beginning of the year everyone is trying to cut the fat after indulgent holidays. Their attempted loss is my huge freezer gain. I normally don’t buy decadent cuts of meat, unless they’re on sale. I have extra freezer space specifically for sale items. I've only purchased lobster tail and made it at home twice that I can think of... and this counts as number 2. I think I will remember to do this more often!!

Earlier this month I saw Simple Lobster Risotto in the Cooking Light magazine and thought – "phsht! I could make that." So I did. This wouldn’t be a bad Valentine’s Day dinner or an anniversary night dinner, in case anyone needs hints on what to make. My 8 year old calls this “crab butt” because he saw the tails when I bought them and then when I cooked them. He tried it and gave it two enthusiastic thumbs up. I don’t blame him – it was pretty tasty.

The key to good risotto seems to be to keep adding liquid (in small amounts) until the "rice" (in this case, cauliflower) can't hold anymore liquid. So here's my low-carb recipe:

1 head of cauliflower, ran through a food processor to make faux-rice.

1 carton (or 4 cups homemade) chicken broth/stock

3 lobster tails

4 TBSP butter (or more)

1 package of frozen Asparagus tips (not on sale until spring, but you could use chopped broccoli instead)

I cooked the cauliflower on the stove with a big heap of butter to soften it. Then I ran it through the food processor. At the same time I put a carton of broth and 1 1/2 cups of water on the stove to boil. When it started boiling I added the lobster to cook for 4 minutes. (It says to cover it, which I did for about 3 minutes. The last minute when the pot was over boiling I tilted the lid a bit to let some steam out.) 

I fiddled with the cauliflower for at least 5 more minutes before removing the meat from the tails. The tails weren't cooperative as I pulled the meat out so I broke them up as I went and put them back in the pot of broth. You're actually adding the shells to the broth to give the broth a light seafood taste, and I believe the shells give the broth more nutrients too. However, the instructions said to smash them with a mallet after putting them in a plastic bag. I skipped that step. I let the broth simmer for 20 minutes with the shells.

At this time I did some dishes. I also cut up the lobster into bite size pieces and set it aside. I also lightly sauteed some broccoli with butter to add at the end. You could use asparagus but Reece isn't fond of asparagus.

Once the timer is done you need to strain the broth and reserve the broth. Discard the solid matter. Then you put the buttered cauliflower "rice" in the pan with 1 cup of broth and cook for 5 minutes while stirring. You'll notice that the "rice" will soak up the broth. Repeat this step again. The liquid needs to be completely absorbed before you add more. The recipe says it will take 22 minutes. I think it took about 10 because I could only add so much liquid before the "rice" couldn't take anymore. 

Once you get to that point, remove the rice from the heat and add in lobster and the other vegetable. Serve in bowls with a nice size spoon. Now that you've mastered simple "risotto," let's find that complicated one!

Food porn:

 

 

Original recipe:  http://www.cookinglight.com/food/recipe-finder/cooking-light-january-february-2011-recipes-00412000069886/

Holiday weight gain... and the reverse. (and a bit of a rant)

Thanksgiving! Christmas! Holidays! I can’t wait! I made an entire meal plan last year and I kept the recipes just for these occasions. The kids were at the house this year. Up until last Thursday, my son has been begging for Thanksgiving to come sooner; all of his favorite foods at the same time in one spot! He even loves the leftovers and the meals that go with them. Of course the menu is low-carb and decadent. Pumpkin cheesecake, Sausage stuffing, Maple-brined turkey with gravy, green beans with portabella mushrooms, roasted sweet potatoes, and the list goes on… And yes, I ate until I was full. I didn't feel the urge to overeat. And I actually lost about 3 lbs this past weekend.

One thing is missing from my holiday menu: Guilt. I no longer know the meaning when it comes to my weight or food. This is especially true after the holidays. I promise to not worry about the scale, not even a little bit. My holiday wish is the same for you. In fact, like last year, I expect to lose weight during the holidays. You see, there is a swimsuit related event planned around Christmas. My biggest issue right now is - Do I order a swim suit in a smaller size than I am in now or do I buy one in the size I'm at now? Tough choices. I've lost so much weight the swimsuit I had no longer fits. Wearing it puts me in danger of flashing the entire world - and this is a family friendly event! (Either way I need a new swimsuit.)

I changed my lifestyle almost 2 years ago (March 2009), and last year the holiday season was no different than the rest of the year. I ate what I liked, left out the carbs that made me feel horrible, and lost more weight. One of my New Year’s resolutions was to buy new clothes because I had lost so much weight I couldn’t fit into my old ones. My resolutions have had nothing to do with losing weight, or adding exercise. I have planned another large shopping trip for January of 2011.

There really is nothing psychological about weight loss, except for deciding it’s a lifestyle change. After that, it’s a cakewalk. For me it was a low-carb cheesecake-walk. If it’s true most people regain the weight, perhaps it’s because biologically they are on the wrong path. I feel like the extra energy, the better quality sleep, the satiety hours after eating, the lifted brain fog are all enough reason to stay with your low-carb life style.

When I eat, I don’t get hungry for at least another 6 hours, sometimes more. I don’t obsess about food and I am not OCD about meal plans anymore. (Although, I still love to cook and make menus, now I don't worry if plans change.) I have the flexibility to eat where and when I want. I eat until I’m full and stop when I get there. I cannot think of one time in the past year where I’ve had so much that I felt uncomfortably stuffed. I do not feel like I’m starving or food is scarce. Biologically, it’s ok for me to shed fat because times are good. Food and I are friends now, accomplices if you will, not frenemies. Unless I’m talking to someone else who is low-carb, or naturally thin, I rarely hear the same thing when it comes to food.

Why can’t we just stop focusing on the fat? Why are we so obsessed? Is it the carb-crazies that makes us OCD about anything surrounding food? Why in one of the countries with the larges amount of surplus of food do we constantly worry about where our next meal is going to be coming from? Do you think everyone in the world is obsessed about counting calories? Does your skinny friend do that? Then why should you? I certainly don’t. Another thing I don’t do is eat a dessert and end up on the treadmill or elliptical for hours. I do not understand punishing yourself for being human.

What I am saying is find a lifestyle that you can live with so that you’re not constantly berating yourself for your choices. If you want to lose weight, I’m with you. (And if you don’t want to lose weight, I respect that choice too.) I have yet to figure out exactly why people think losing weight is difficult and is supposed to be so hard. From what I can gather, it’s because of that puritanical view to criticize yourself for anything slightly hedonistic, to include food. “If it’s good for you, it must be bad.” I just don’t believe it’s supposed to be like that. Ask the French… and while you’re at it, check their waistlines.

I’ve heard a tall tale that children hate vegetables and are picky eaters. My son hates celery, mushrooms, some peppers (depends on how they are cooked and how visible they are) and olives. That’s pretty much it. He loves broccoli, carrots, peas, spinach, squash, sweet potatoes, dill pickles, spinach, asparagus if it's cooked right (and many, many other vegetables). He also loves macadamia nuts, eggs, coconut oil, full fat yogurt, cheese and milk, steak, bacon, turkey, fish… you get the point. I’m not going to make him feel tortured when it’s time to eat. I eat what I like, and so does he. There are no fights at the kitchen table over food. He always tells me I'm the best cook. I assume that's partially because Derek likes my cooking and always tells me that too. I do hear the occasional grumble prior to an initial taste if it “looks weird.” After that first bite my kid is usually on board with me – taste trumps looks always. Good smells increase the happiness. I don’t deprive his body of nutrition or make him feel bad about his choices… now there is a way to mess him up psychologically!

Please, please; do yourself a favor this holiday season - practice the same kindness towards yourself as you do your loved ones. For some people this will be a stretch... for those of you with less than kind relationships with your loved ones, um... How about we all try to treat ourselves like we are deserving of love? That's really where it all starts. If you slip up and you don't eat right, look yourself in the eye, say some kind words and start over again. Don't give yourself an excuse to fail - this is your life!

It's almost December, and I will still make cookies from the leftover mashed sweet potatoes for the boys. I really don't care about sweets; I'm a savory/salty gal. This past weekend I made myself some stuffed mushrooms as my treat. Although I think Derek likes them more than I do. I'll also make some jalapeno poppers for me, since I'm the only person who likes them. I will spend time cooking with my son and Derek making something for the entire family that is delicious. (Dinners made together and watching a Netflicks movie are actually my favorite date nights right now.)

And for my present? Serve yourself something special just for you - minus the guilt - too.

Sweet treat - Yogurt Cream

One of my other favorite blogs would be The Pioneer Woman. I like reading about her country-life. I am definitely a city gal, but I think a little bit of country flows through my veins. Michigan was farm land long before it was infested with car manufactures (or lack of now). Most of the people I know like having backyard gardens, hunting/fishing, and love arts and crafts. Her blog reminds me a little bit of home in some ways. The difference is location but the hospitality and general friendliness is there. (Never mind the fact that no one I knew lived on a ranch... they had ranch houses maybe)... I guess I dream of simpler times, complete with indoor plumbing and central air. :)

Oh, and her recipes are to die for! Seriously, I have only made one thing that I didn't like, and it was my fault. (All made LC btw.)

I cannot take credit for this recipe - only the LC version... And that didn't take much conversion. After completing this recipe, I gave it to my son for a taste-test. He loved it. He told me he wanted to bathe in it. I think that might be the nicest and weirdest complement I've ever received from him concerning food. He's pretty honest about when it comes to taste-testing. I make this now on a somewhat regular basis. We like to get our culture from museums and yogurt.

A note on carbs - this is not extremely low in carbs. I would consider this something I can eat once a week when I'm maintaining weight. I do give this to my son a couple times a week because he can handle the carbs. (Derek is not a fan. He just likes the berries, so I cut him the berries and serve them plain.) Because of the higher fat though, it allows my son to feel full longer. His blood sugar isn't doing a crazy dance after this snack too. It makes a lovely snack, or dessert.

Yogurt Cream

1 1/2 cup Plain, Unflavored Yogurt (full fat - we use stoneyfields)
1 1/4 cup heavy cream (sometimes I use raw cream)
1/2 cups (to 3/4 cup) brown sugar substitute (Splenda)
Berries - your choice (I use a mixture of raspberries, strawberries and blueberries mostly)

First, pour the yogurt into a casserole dish. Then add the cream. With a whisk carefully stir until combined. Sprinkle the brown sugar substitute evenly over the top of the yogurt mixture. Do not stir. Tightly cover the dish with foil or plastic wrap. Place in the refrigerator for at least three or four hours.

When you are ready to serve, place berries into a bowl or cup. Whisk the mixture until smooth. Spoon the yogurt mixture over the berries or fruit.

Enjoy!

P.S. This wouldn't make a bad parfait either... with macadamia nuts and almonds on top. Yum!

Normal day of eating...

First post... here we go.

I had a lot of questions concerning what I eat in a normal day. The problem with that is the definition of "normal" and what that means in my life. I don't have normal days. I am super busy and I consider myself somewhat of a modern forager. I look through my kitchen and my environment for food. When I said I eat up to 70 - 80% fat it was after looking through my fitday journal (which I'm not very consistent with entering things).

My breakfasts usually consists of 3 eggs scrambled with shredded cheese and some spices. Oh and at least a tbsp of butter. Sometimes I put leftover meat and veggies in there to change it up. (I've also put leftover meat dip in there too. yum!) I like that because I can take it to work in a container and heat it in the microwave. I also like leftovers for breakfast. For a while I would take hard boiled eggs to work with (cold) bacon. After seeing me do that for a week straight, my co-worker commented that I was going to die. That made me laugh.

If we're going out to eat for lunch (which happens way more than I would like) I always check the menu online and decide before we go what I'll have. For fast food I'll usually have a bacon cheeseburger minus the bun. In the cafeteria I just have meat (like roasted chicken) and something like broccoli with butter or a side salad with ranch. I've also made a huge chef salad. If I bring lunch it's simple like leftovers, or a tuna salad (with added sardines and extra mayo) with veggies to scoop it out (no need for utensils!).

I really like to cook so it's different every time with dinner. One of my favorite dinners that I can think of would be the one I made in honor of the swine flu "epidemic." We had pork chops that were rolled in crushed pork rinds and pan fried in lard. That had a side of either green beans, garlic and mushrooms or broccoli. Usually I cook vegetables (and sometimes meat) in a 1:1 ratio of butter and coconut oil. Anytime something calls for breadcrumbs or crushed crackers I use pork rinds. I like stirfry, one dish meals, and I like to makeover recipes that I see in magazines. When we eat at home for dinner everyone eats low-carb - including Derek and my son.

Everyone drinks tons of water. We have a pitcher out on the counter of filtered water. I used to drink 1 diet pop a week as a treat, but I've given that up. It was making me crave sweets.


Standard snacks in our house are pepperoni and string cheese, deviled eggs, olives, or dip and vegetables. I also like macadamia nuts. I've made some jalapeno poppers I really love. If I want dessert I go for warmed up cream cheese mixed with some flavoring (like white chocolate). I also really like to make no-bake cheesecake. (I am guilty of having a piece of that for breakfast once in a while! Shhh! I know that's not the best behavior for someone on a "diet!") :)

I don't know if that all equals out to 70 - 80% (I didn't run it through fitday). I usually don't need a snack and I don't always eat dessert (once or twice a week maybe?). My biggest meal is dinner. On the days I'm ravenous I load up on the fat as much as I can. I try to make 1 casserole a week, and at least one snack. That usually allows for leftovers and snacks. I love my slow-cooker and all of my recipe books. This really is an easy way to live, because it fits even with busy schedules.