We aren’t doctors, we aren’t sharing clinical research (funded by??)
We are parents and we are sharing our experiences, our practices, and our observations of what works for our families.
Here is a little more about each of us individually:
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ERIN PROVOST
I’m Erin, married to the most incredible man I have ever imagined and have been falling more in love with him everyday for the last 19 years and I’m still smitten. I better say that now because possible snarky comments might make it appear otherwise.
We have made (in our humble opinion) the three most amazing children to ever walk the earth. (Please don’t tell them I said that, we are trying to conceal our total adoration of them, keep them grounded and all that.) They are presently 9, 8 and 5 but don’t blink because they are ridiculously quick at growing up!
Yes, my children enjoy sweets and carbs (I have no idea where they get it from ;) BUT, being children, they aren’t given cart blanch on their diets.
They eat what we serve and provide we are trying our damnedest (the word made it to Urban Dictionary; I get to use it) to teach them how food works, how it makes your body feel and operate and to try to combat the toxic world we are raising them in through the healing powers of food.
My greatest hope is they go out in the world with the wherewithal to make the best choices available to them.
In all areas of their life, not just food.
It is a journey and we are on it just like you. We learn new things everyday and we are faced with new challenges as soon as we think we have it down.
So here is our little guide to help you on your journey through this adventure of feeding your family.
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BRETTA PROVOST
I'm Bretta Provost (sister-in-law to Erin Provost. Same name, go figure!), a slight control freak and somewhat of an overachiever that has been tamed by two young boys and a husband!
Having a happy, balanced home life is everything to me these days. Eating and providing healthy foods for my family makes me very happy (not sure everyone would agree with me, especially my three year old). I first started the household healthy eating revolution when I started my at home business! Then moved on to my husband and he promptly lost 10 pounds after we moved in together (not me of course, I have just been adding 10 pounds extra after each kid).
I'm a closet foodie and want everyone to eat right (with reason) and better yet, not know that it is healthy. I have two of the hardest critics (that three year old and my husband). Don't get me wrong, I love my husband to death (we have been together off and on for 20 years and I still really like him!!) but he can be a very tough food critic, especially when it comes to veggies. I hope this site will inspire healthful eating, choices that will tingle your palate, and the inspiration to keep learning about wonderful food choices!
Happy cooking, eating and family!!!
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JESSICA LEVY
I'm Jessica Levy, happily married for 11 years to Lex, and mother to two kind, beautiful, and hilarious children: 10 year old Hayden and 6 year old Ben. The four of us are a tight little clan who love finding our own adventures together.
I'm ridiculously thankful that I have the opportunity to make or plan nearly each and every meal my kids eat. That is not to say, however, that I make the most out of all of these opportunities, but I continue to try! I must confess, I am not a foodie at all. I like things that taste good. Period. But I have enough of a biological knowledge base to know that food is no joke. Our bodies weren't meant to process the genetically modified, synthetically fortified, chemically preserved, hormone-laced food that haunts nearly every grocery aisle. Just as it is my job to make sure my kids always wear their seatbelts in the car and helmets when on their bikes, so too it is my job to keep as much of the toxic yuck out of their bodies. And just as my hope is to raise kids that will not chase a ball into a street without looking, or later, run a red light in their car, so too is my hope that I will have raised my kids to make mindful, conscious decisions about what they use to fuel their bodies.
But like I said, I am a work in progress. Before sitting down to write this I ate probably ten Tootsie Roll candies. But hey, I'm washing them down with green tea. It is my hope that by chronicling the successes I have had in my quest to feed my family healthy meals, I can contribute in a positive way to a challenge we all face: Hacking our way through the jungle of overwhelmingly abundant food choices, staying on that elusive path of mindful, healthy eating.
So happy to have found your blog, Ladies! Thank you very much for sharing! I'm a grandma now and have proudly survived those oh-so-challenging years of finding delicious AND healthy foods for my youngsters. But what is this?!! These new little offspring have quickly learned that Nonna's snack cupboard is way more interesting than the refrigerator! Can you help?
ReplyDeleteThanks for your comment Reflective Writer! We appreciate the feedback =)
ReplyDeleteSOME THOUGHTS:
1) Hide the snack in high places!! Ha, ha =)
2) "Sorry kids we are out of bunny crackers and juice. How about a carrot?"
Keep trying with the healthy stuff and let us know how things are going!! More great recipes to come!!!
Stock the snack cupboard with things like trail mix (Check back here on Feb. 2 for a fun recipe), cuties, dried seaweed, popcorn, canned smoked fish.
ReplyDeleteAnd I agree, hiding the treaty things isn't wrong; you're done growing and developing, they are not.
I think part of the allure of the snack cupboard, for both grown-ups and children, is that the foods in them are so immediate: a handful of cereal or crackers, a granola bar, a box of raisins, etc. There is no fuss, no "I'll get it for you in a minute after I wash my hands", no waiting for things to be sliced, poured, or otherwise prepared. Try having mini-bowls of fruit covered and ready for little hands to pull out of the refrigerator the moment the tummy growls. Dice up some cheese and have this at the ready too. Keep portions small, as another gratifying thing about snack-cupboard stock is the grazing aspect. Very little commitment.
ReplyDeleteLastly: Bake, bake, bake! Yummy baked goods are often the most sought-after snack cupboard item, so bake homemade treats that you can feel great about giving them! Use healthy substitutions and add-ins whenever you can. Stay tuned for many recipes to come that are as full of nutrition as they are yumminess!
Thanks for reading!