Friday, August 27, 2010

Raw Foods for Kids Provides Optimal Energy and Balance!!



what an amazing day!! today was an action packed day with the boys- as usual!! one of the keys to having fun all day with the boys is keeping them balanced in regards to food, fluids, energy, emotions etc. I need to plan ahead for myself and for them and have everything ready before its truly needed. our daily food intake today is a great example of what you can fuel yourself and your kids with and maintain an extremely nutrient-dense and delicious diet.

i woke early to make my green juice and do my morning yoga practice. i love my quiet time in the morning before the kids wake. i set an intention every morning for the day and repeat it throughout the day. my daily yoga helps me commit to my intention. after my yoga practice i sipped on a GT kombucha tea.

i started the kids with watermelon. they love watermelon during this season. it is sooo messy but i can't say no to anything nutritious and delicious that they want. owen also had some papaya.

owen had some of his green drink from last night: blended mango, spinach and a few shakes of blue manna.

next i made them strawberry milk. they have been loving strawberry, carob/chocolate or vanilla milk lately. these are made up of: home-made almond milk (i always have some kind of nut milk in the frig- almond, cashew, pumpkin seed etc), vanilla or chocolate sun warrior protein, dates, either strawberries, carob powder or vanilla powder, sometimes i add bee pollen or acai powder or some other super food.

as i was preparing the food for the day i drank my Green Juice.

we visited the National Air and Space Museum in Virginia today. I finished my green juice on the way to the museum. They LOVED the museum!!!! Mason was so excited to see all the airplanes and space shuttles. i LOVED it too!!!


In the car on the way to the park we all ate honeydew. Mason and owen also had a few apple slices and raisens. The honeydew melon was so ripe and yummy!!

At the park we had a picnic and they enjoyed apple slices with almond butter and cinnamon, sprouted grain bread, raw almond butter and blended raspberry/date spread sandwiches. owen had more watermelon and a few lydias organic luna nori crackers. mason had some pumpkin seeds, cashews and pecans. I enjoyed lots and lots of watermelon.

they played hard at the park and were ready for some quiet time at home. At home mason had more strawberry milk and owen had some green shake made of: green juice, water, mango, chard, spinach, green powder and ground flaxseed.

we played in the playroom and listened and danced to music. then mason helped me prepare dinner while owen continued to play. i munched on cucumbers while preparing our meal. in the morning mason and i made "greenies" which we dehydrated all day for dinner. Greenies are: the leftovers from my juice in the morning in addition to carrots, sprouted sunflower seeds, ground flaxseeds, nutritional yeast and sea salt all processed together and then dehydrated into brownie-like squares. i love these and they digest so well. we made a sundried tomato pate: 1/2 cup soaked sunflower seeds, 1/4 cup soaked sundried tomatoes, 2 handfuls spinach, celery, italian seasonings, sea salt and nutritional yeast. i love taking one of the greenies and putting the pate on top and sprinkling more nutritional yeast on each. for the boys i serve a few squares of greenies, lots of pate with "cheese" or nutritional yeast on top and chopped up carrots and cucumbers. mason always wants more nutritional yeast or he says "cheese". pate is very messy with owen but he gets most of it in his mouth- so i'm happy.

we cleaned up while listening to music (the boys played trucks and legos too), took baths and then worked on masons activity books. they snacked on some fruit and nut sprouted manna bread and drank their strawberry milk and green juice. later they had "fruit" ice cream which was blended frozen banana, mango and strawberries with bee pollen as their yellow "sprinkles" on top!!! finally, we ended the night with "Curious George does the Alphabet". i love bedtime and cuddling with them right before bed!!

so you can see by this example that my kids are not deprived of fabulous tasting foods!! they love it!! and i love when they ask for more. what i truly love right now is mason helping me in the kitchen. he knows so much already about preparing foods and i feel so proud. it makes me feel good to introduce mason and owen to healthy foods now. just a note regarding the sprouted breads. i do make my own raw sprouted breads at home but if i do not have them made i will give my kids a sprouted grain bread and or manna bread that is store-bought. these are not 100% raw but are more nutrient-dense and easier to digest compared to other grains and breads. so i'm comfortable giving them to mason and owen. however, i always prefer what i make over anything store-bought!!
here's a family pic...

Monday, August 16, 2010

Be Present


Mason and Owen enjoying their organic grapes!!!


Owen and I at a restaurant at the beach.

One of the most important things, if not the most important, you can do to live the life you want is to BE PRESENT every moment!!! Being Present is what helps me be a good mother. i try to identify what my kids need every moment of everyday. what will make them thrive? what are they needing emotionally? how can i help them help themselves? what are their hearts needing at that moment? and of course what nutrients are their cells needing at that time??? this is one of my favorite needs to satisfy.
we were away for a long weekend this past weekend and i always love returning to my cozy home. i can now say that we are making our house truly ours and i love it. when we are away i don't stress if the kids eat different foods. i'm always prepared and travel with loads of raw vegan options for the whole family- fresh organic fruits and veggies, food bars, dehydrated crackers and cereals, avocados, green salads/sprouts, sea veggies and more- i even bring my own sea salt and nutritional yeast. when we stay with friends or family they always know to clear a few shelves in the frig. when the kids do eat mainstream foods such as pizza, mac and cheese or ice cream i know they are not thriving. i want them to experience everything and make the right choices in the future. yes- it drives me a little crazy but i don't make a big deal about it. what does bother me is knowing that they don't feel optimal when they eat this stuff. i know this because as a mom i also see their poops and i know digestion is not optimal. i also see it in their behavior. when they are off their typical nutrient-dense vegan, mostly raw, diet they just are not the same. mason gets very hyperactive and even owen now is not as mellow. so i'm always excited to get them home and eating well again- a Kids Cleanse!!

so what are some of the foods and snacks they will be eating the next few days:

-lots of GREEN SMOOTHIES. here is one that is always a winner:

2 frozen bananas
handful of goji berries
handful of mixed berries
2 tbsp of flaxseeds
1 large handful of greens: spinach, chard, kale etc.
1 scoop sun warrior brown rice protein
kids probiotics
or i keep it simple with just the greens and fruit.

-green juice with lots and lots of apple!!!
-raw cereals with home-made almond milk
-coconut kefir in juice
-celery and carrots with almond butter or other nut butter
-sprouted grain bread with almond butter and blended raspberries
-home made energy bars made of dates, nuts/seeds, green powder
-blended raw veggie soups with avocado
-blended avocado with banana pudding
-they love quinoa nori rolls with avocado and veggies. we dip it in a honey (or datges) tahini dressing!!! quinoa is one of the cooked foods i give them regularly and they love it. i also give them sprouted quinoa but they don't like the texture as much.
-sweet potato chips
-kale chips- cheesy (loaded with nutritional yeast) and sweet
-banana and frozen fruit ice cream sundaes!!!!
and so much more!!!


Owen enjoying his not-tuna pate.

they are both sleeping now and i truly miss them. while they are young and i have control over what they eat most of the time i will feed them the best i possibly can. i cherish every moment with them. tonight after bath we did yoga and sang songs. then it was time for "ice cream" night. i made banana mango avocado ice cream sprinkled with bee pollen. soooo yummy and they both loved it. next we read a few curious george books before listening to music and going to bed. i love being a raw yoga mommy!!!!

be well and live present!!!! kelly- the raw yoga mom!!!