Who am I? I am a mom to two little boys, ages 15 month and 3 years. My weekdays are split between taking care of them and going to work/school. I am currently in the dissertation phase of my schooling and I anticipate graduating with my PhD in Nursing next spring. You may be asking yourself “what does one do with a PhD in Nursing ?” It is a good good question and one I get a lot. I wish I had an answer, at least for what I will do with a PhD in Nursing, but that is a whole different topic. While I am nurse, I have always tried to find a balance between traditional medicine and complementary/natural options but really never focused on a more natural, green way of life until my sons were born.
When my first son was born, I made the venture into cloth diapering, making my own baby food, co-sleeping, breastfeeding, etc. I am sure you are starting to get the picture. The majority of my focus was on them and I really wasn’t focused on me. I ate processed food and fast food like so many moms out there. I was active and exercised so I maintained a fairly “healthy” weight. I was tired but everyone kept telling me that is normal because I am a mom with young kids. As my older son started getting older, I realized he watched me, he wants to do what I do, he says what I say, and guess what? If I am eating a big thing of French fries, you got it, he want them too. I started to phase out fast food and tried to pick better options including organic food. I shop less in the middle of the grocery store. I started to read labels but things really changed when I took the Real Food Pledge/Challenge. It was eye-opening. I won’t lie, I am not always perfect but overall I have made a huge change in what I buy and feed my kids AND myself (oh and hubby too!).
Evaluating and changing what we eat on a daily basis has also shifted my attention to other areas of our life. I have started to focus more on what products we use around the house and on our bodies. It is a slow process for me. I think everyone needs to find a balance. Hmm is a balance even possible? I think so. You need to look at your options and figure out what you think is best. Does it feel like a sacrifice or burden? I don’t know. I think once you start it is pretty easy and you just need to remember it really isn’t a competition. I am not out to win “Crunchiest Mom of the Year”. You probably won’t catch me chugging raw milk or using elimination communication with my youngest. I still drink 2-3 cups of coffee a day and chances are, you will probably catch me chowing down on Chipotle once or twice a month. In the end, I am just out to figure out what is best for my family and myself.
yeah, I love my coffee. But we get it from our farmer's market. his family grows it in Argentina and then he brings it here to roast it (apparently it's cheaper tax wise if they roast it here versus there). This year, we're hoping he'll sell us some unroasted, so we can do the roasting ourselves!
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