All posts by Megan

May you be happy. My you be healthy. May you be free from suffering. (Me too!)

Weigh In Wednesday #8 & Luke’s Birthday

tri finish 1Ahh, another week has past and here we are again. This last week was full of events and hurdles to eating right and exercising, but I’m happy to report it went pretty well.

Visitors

My mother in law came to visit and that reset the Porter-Mama switch and we’re all getting along better. A little time apart and we can remember how much we love each other and how much good sleep will do us all.

Birthday

My beloved turned 33 this week and we celebrated by going to the trampoline joint and getting our jump on. That’s a calorie burner for sure. For dinner I made macaroni and cheese and we finished with chocolate cake.

That’s right, homemade (thanks Anna!) chocolate cake with chocolate frosting. It was light and fluffy and, if you didn’t know, my absolute favorite kind of cake in the world. You better believe I had a piece. I split a piece with my friend and had a dollop of ice cream. My dinner had been a nice salad with a side of gumbo. After my meal I felt nice and balanced and treated.

The Attack

Not as innocent as it looks.
Not as innocent as it looks.

Then everyone left and the cake remained behind. You know where this is going. For about 30 minutes I avoided it. But then, like a beast, another slice jumped off the cake stand and into a bowl. It pushed me down in the chair and FORCED me to consume a second full slice of cake. I resisted, turned my head, sealed my lips.

But to no avail…it found its way down my gullet and into my belly. It only took a few moments before my jaw got tight and my tummy began to get queezy and achey. Boo. Turns out too much chocolate is (still) no bueno.

Lesson Learned? I hope so.

Not only did have to fight the guilt I now felt, but I felt sick too. I think the first time I learned this lesson I was probably 5. It’s a mistake I’ve made countless times through my life. When will I learn??

Alas, I’m moving forward today without guilt and having learned that lesson, again. This morning I threatened to throw the rest of the cake away, and Luke gladly took it to work to share.  All in all this week was actually a success and I made such healthy choices otherwise. That’s what I’m going to focus on.

 

#8 2/20/13 Last Week This Week Difference
Weight (lbs) 247.5 246 -1.5
Left Leg (in) 31.5 31 -0.5
Hip (in) 52 51.5 -0.5
Waist (in) 43.5 43.5 0
Chest (in) 45 45 0
Left Arm (in) 16 16 0
Neck (in) 15 15 0

Total lost: 15 pounds & 15.5 inches

To read the first post in this series click here.

Happy Birthday Luke!! We love you!!

Danny said he wasn't going to jump. Clearly he only came to flip!
Danny said he wasn’t going to jump. Clearly he only came to flip!
We had a great time and Porter got his fill of non-real food. He would have licked off the icing from every cupcake and got his fill of cheese pizza. The whole thing got a thumbs up.
We had a great time and Porter got his fill of non-real food. He could have licked off the icing from every cupcake and got his fill of cheese pizza. The whole thing got a thumbs up.

 

Real Food Rice Pudding

rice pudding 1

As luck would have it, my soon to be brother in-law makes awesome Indian food. More luck, my visiting mother in-law requested an Indian food feast. Hurray! It was all delicious and wonderful and satisfying. My 2 year old ate it up, YES!

curry condiments
Photo credit

Besides the incredible main dishes, what I think absolutely makes the meal are the various chutneys, dips, spiced rice and homemade naan. Considering the spice, and I mean actual spice not heat, of Indian cooking, the condiments present an opportunity to bring even more depth to the meal. Sweet, pungent, tart, and mellowing flavors made our feast that much more enjoyable.

Have you ever made an authentic Indian dish? Let alone multiple dishes in the same day? It’s a painstaking amount of prep work, followed by a spicy and intense flurry of cooking over rippling hot oils. The foundation of the dish has to be taken to the cusp of burnt and then spices added in the right order before adding the protein or vegetable. And only then will the cook be able to turn the heat down and sigh in relief that they are (hopefully) still breathing.

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photo credit

I was told to bring dessert (and I offered up green bean curry, look for that upcoming post) and considering the theme I decided upon rice pudding. It’s made with gobs of milk and cream to sooth any residual burn and bonus, it’s easy. Thing is…I’ve never had rice pudding that I particularly enjoyed, and too often I find it’s ruined by cardamom (better suited to green bean curry in my opinion).

I’m not one to back down from a food just because I haven’t found the right recipe, so I hopped on the web and studied a variety of rice puddings. The two that I focused on, before finally coming up with my own, were Alton Brown’s recipe and this one from Single Dad Laughing. My goal was to make a sweet, creamy real food version of this classic dish that still held the texture of soft rice. What came out of my experiment was creamy (not mushy) flavorful and sweet, and no cardamom.

rice
photo credit

Maybe because my palate is cleaner due to my better diet of late. Or maybe it’s the lack of sugar I’m taking in, but this pudding was good. Like, REAL good. Sweetened with maple syrup and coconut milk (which wasn’t as overpowering as it could easily have been), it was simply lovely. This made a great dessert, but would also make a nice addition to breakfast, or as a snack, or straight from the fridge on a spoon. However you eat it though, I’m sure you’ll enjoy it.

Real Food Rice Pudding

Ingredients

2 tbsp butter, organic/pastured
1.5c cooked white rice
1.5c whole organic/pastured milk
1/2c half & half OR cream
3/4c coconut milk (not coconut water)
1/4c maple syrup
1/2c soaked raisins

Make It

Place raisins in a bath of hot water to plump.

In a saucepan over medium heat melt butter and add rice. Mix until rice is covered in melted yummy goodness.

Turn heat to med/high and add milk. Stir to mix. Bring to a boil (stirring) and then turn down to a simmer. Stir regularly for 5-8 minutes until mixture thickens.

Add cream, coconut milk, maple syrup and mix. Make sure it’s still simmering. Stir until even thicker and bubbly, 10-12 minutes.

Remove from heat.

Drain raisins and add to pudding. I think a handful of sliced almonds would be a nice addition too.

Pour into a dish and cover surface of pudding with plastic wrap/wax paper. Allow to sit on the counter for 2.5 hours or refrigerate and it will firm up but maintain that beloved creaminess.

We ate ours at room temperature and that was perfect, but (again) if you absolutely MUST indulge before the allotted cooling time – no one would blame you!

This post featured in Party Wave Wednesday, Thank Your Body Thursday, Tasty Traditions, Fight Back Friday, Weekend Gourmet, Real Food Wednesday, Family Table Tuesday

Weekly Link Love

link loveIn The Kitchen

Are you still using Crisco? I don’t know anyone who does, I don’t think, but if you are you should read this article.

Yearning for the warm breezes of spring and summer and tired of waiting for the Farmer’s Market? Trying to eat at home more? Check this.

Trying to save $$$ in the kitchen budget? Me too. Get some thrifty ideas here.

Mind AND Body

If you’ve been following along with my weight loss journey, you know I’ve fallen off the wagon in a few ways. Trying to stay positive certainly helps me, and so do these ideas from Frisky Lemon.

Get dirty

I learned about lasagna gardening last year and while it’s too late for me this year, I just might look into doing it next year.

There’s a fungus among us! Mushrooms aren’t cheap and I don’t have the forest or fungus finding pig to help me forage for them. But now I don’t need either of these things because we can all grow our own. YES!

Politically Speaking

Porter is 2 now and he still gets breastfed, lucky little guy. It’s amazing to me when trusted sources don’t always give good or healthy advice, hmm?

Need more info on why you should avoid genetically modified organisms (GMO) in your food? Maybe you need the scientific stuff to really persuade you? Ok, here you go.

Because It Feels Good

I first met Honest Toddler on Twitter and was instantly engaged. I don’t even like Twitter and I would login just to see HT posts. Now HT has a blog and it’s hilarious. HILARIOUS. Having recently hosted a toddler party, I found this post especially funny.

Sometimes you just want to rest your eyes on interesting and beautiful photos. Twisted Sifter will do just that for you, and then lead you down the rabbit hole.

 

Knowing Birth Series: Megan Alton (1)

knowing birthGuess what? I think pregnancy and birth are so cool. Right now I deal in human birth, but any animal birth thrills me too. My fascination started when I was 4 years old and my brother was born. My mom was always very happy to share her own pregnancy and birth experiences with me and I really feel that her honesty helped pave my road to becoming a doula and birth advocate.

In The Beginning

The first birth I ever saw in live and living color (as opposed to the NOVA: Miracle of Life on TV which I watched countless times as a kid) was when I was in college. My roommate and I had illegal hamsters in our dorm room, Beefcake and Cheesecake, and as hamsters are prone to do, Cheesecake made babies.

One day I noticed she was nested up in a small alcove of their cage, and then birthing of 5 baby hamsters commenced. I was her hamster doula, although I’m sure she wanted me to just go away. It was riveting, and that was just a hamster birth. Eventually I became a doula, I’m in the process of becoming a childbirth educator and since this post, I’ve also become an advocate for out of hospital midwife assisted birth.

It’s Time For The World To Know

Now I have a son and am even more enthralled with other families stories of birth and what they think of birth in general. As something of an anthropological study I decided that I need to interview as many people, who have a relationship with birth, as possible.

There are so many books and studies claiming to know the truth about birth, but what I’ve found in my conversations with mothers and birth professionals is that there are so many unique experiences surrounding each birth. A book or study can’t possibly take into account the actual voices of individuals. So what better way to find out than to simply ask.

Finding Our Voices

That leads me what I’m calling “Knowing Birth” interviews. I have come up with a handful of questions that, hopefully, moms, dads and care providers will answer. I’ll then take their answers and put them directly on this blog.

It’s time to give voice to anyone who has one regarding birth. There are no requirements about the when, type and location of the birth(s) and I also plan on interviewing birth attendants, midwives and doctors to get their unique perspectives.

You know you wanna do it too!

The only requirement is honesty and openness in your answers, and maybe a few pictures too. To set a good example, I’m going first. If you would like to share your experience and answers to the following questions, please email me at doulamegan@gmail.com and I will get the questionnaire to you directly. Anyone can participate and there’s no judgment from me about your answers. I promise to keep a close eye on the comments and keep ’em clean. Now, let’s get started!

Knowing Birth: Megan Alton (that’s me!)

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Where did you choose to have your birth and why? What are your feelings about that choice now?

I chose to have my birth at The Baby Place (now New Beginnings), a birth center in Meridian, Idaho that is run by Certified Midwives. I opted for this location for a few reasons:

  • As a doula I had been to other births there and they were always gentle and beautiful
  • I knew the midwives and that made me very comfortable
  • I’ve always known I was going to have an out of hospital birth, always

My experience was phenomenal. Everything I wanted, caring prenatal visits, gentle guidance, education, personal freedoms and the peace of giving birth there was provided. I had my ideal birth and everything went according to plan (love when that happens). The safety, security and trust that I felt was paramount to having a satisfying birth experience.

How did you prepare for your birth?

I’m a doula and so I had a keen insight into birth long before I got pregnant. My husband and I planned for our child and were thrilled to become pregnant. We took the Hypno Babies childbirth education course and I found the affirmations to be particularly helpful through my pregnancy. I also received acupuncture and chiropractic adjustments on a weekly basis through my pregnancy. I worked as a kindergarten teacher until my 8th month and then took the last 2 months to be pregnant and take it easy. All prenatal exams were provided by my midwives. As for my diet, eh, we ate out a lot and I had a major addiction to Oreos. Next time around I’ll do it Real Food style.

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Who was invited and present at your birth?

My husband and good friend Sarah (my doula). Holly was my primary midwife through my birth however, there were 3 other midwives present for the delivery of my son.

 

If it was not your first birth, please compare/contrast your experiences.

I’ve only had one birth, but compared to the hospital births I’ve attended as a doula, my perception is that my out of hospital birth was calmer and less directed.

What qualifications do you look for in a midwife/OB/primary care provider?

I expect my care provider to have an understanding of (completely) natural pregnancy and birth. Any midwives/doctors that I see are expected to have appropriate credentials from legitimate certifying agencies. I expect my care providers to be active and passionate in their practice.

IMG_0226What is your ideal relationship with a birth attendant?

I’m the consumer. I expect the same of my birth attendants as any customer service provider. What I want for my experience should be central to their care for me and my family. I expect them to treat me with respect and to be open and honest about EVERY SINGLE PROCEDURE and expectation that have of me. In return I promise to educate myself, ask questions and have a respectful open dialogue with them.

If you have received maternity care from both the medical and midwifery models of care, what are the biggest differences? Pros/cons of each?

Personally, I have only ever received maternity care from midwives.

IMG_1820Did you feel adequately informed of your options?

It helped that I knew a ton about birth before I even got pregnant, but yes I felt very informed of my options. When it came time to make choices, they were left to me and my husband. Any question I had were directed to my midwives and we openly discussed pros and cons. It was so nice to be treated as an equal in my healthcare.

Describe your ideal birth environment at this point in time.

Any location out of the hospital. Low lights, warmth, access to water (tub preferably), no access to pain mediation or other birth altering drugs, privacy, soft place to land in between contractions, food/drink on demand, singing/moaning and the ability to vocalize, no separation from baby or family, quiet voices and the confidence of those surrounding me in the process of natural childbirth.

How do you feel about the safety of birth in a hospital vs outside of a hospital?

Obviously, I feel that out of hospital birth is safer than in hospital birth for all normal and healthy pregnancies and births. Due to the lack of pervasive technology, which I believe is a good thing in this case, and the confidence of out of hospital attendants, I believe that in the case of birth less is more. I also know that trained midwives know when problems arise and when pregnancy/birth becomes outside the scope of normal that they will correctly advise mothers when to take their care to a doctor/hospital. I know they always have the best interest of the mother/baby at hand.

Is there anything you would change about public policy relating to birth/maternity care? Why/how?

Midwifery and out of hospital birth should be legal in every state. It should be entirely up to the mother/family how and where they give birth to their babies. This is an issue of reproductive choice. Health insurance should cover ALL costs of ALL births, especially since natural midwife attended birth costs way less than hospital birth. In my opinion, Certified Nurse Midwives should take the place of gynecologists for all (normal) well woman care.

photo (25)What do you feel were the most influential factors surrounding your birth? Why?

Knowing my mom’s birth stories and being very comfortable with birth initially, shaped my view of normal natural birth. Having a supportive husband, who himself was born at home, and a super supportive extended family made it easy to make my maternity care choices. Certainly being a doula and having witnessed out of hospital midwife attended births GREATLY affected my view of how normal and non-interventive birth can be.

Who owns birth?

First and foremost, as sentient beings and keepers of their own bodies, mothers own their individual births. Obviously this comes with the input of the father/partner (assuming they are playing a primary role in care giving). The medical and midwife communities don’t own any woman’s birth experience. Their sole purpose is to provide necessary expert care for the wellbeing of the mother and child.IMG_3036

There you have it! It took me about half an hour to answer the questions honestly and without going into great detail. If you’re interested in being interviewed (anyone is welcome) please email me at doulamegan@gmail.com and I’ll send you the questionnaire and all pertinent information.

Thanks for following and be well!

*Photo credit for all pregnant, newborn and family photos goes to Ashley Romero.

This post featured in Party Wave Wednesday, Thank Your Body Thursday

Weigh In Wednesday #7

tri finish 12 Year Old + Flu = Mama’s Weight Loss Kryptonite

Lucky for the world, this post is being written today, and not last night. I was in no sort of good mood last night, or the few nights before either. Since Christmas Porter’s been battling any number of ailments, which obviously hasn’t stopped me from pursuing my health goals. Starting last Friday he was finally taken down by the beast that has been making its way around Boise for the last few weeks. Normally it ain’t no thing, but this was my last straw. As a parent human, something had to give. For me it was exercise, then sleep, then the strict eating habits. This all makes mama a very sad, and really grumpy, lady. Thankfully, health appears to be on its way to being restored and I got to go to dance last night and yoga this morning.

I haven’t strayed from my real food mantra, but I gave into the cereal, graham crackers and pasta that Porter refused to eat. There’s also an admission that I have to make, and it’s been in the works for a few weeks. In my bathroom there is a scale, duh, and I am developing an unhealthy relationship with it. Every time I find my self in the bathroom, I step on the scale. Somedays I weigh the same, at other times I gain and lose pounds at a time. Seeing the fluctuation, while I know is normal, wreaks havoc on my outlook. It’s time to put the scale away and only bring it out on Wednesday mornings. Breaking up is hard to do.

In order to get back on track I need a goal. Next month Porter and I are taking an extended trip to Maui with my parents. I know, now you feel really terrible for me. My goal is to be at or below 240 by the time I leave for that trip at the beginning of March. It’s a perfectly good amount and I know I’m capable of doing it. While on that trip I fully intend to continue my weight loss plan and only hope I don’t overdo it on macadamia nuts (something I’ve already done in the last month).

This Weeks Numbers

 

Week 6, Feb. 6 Last Week This Week Difference
Weight (lbs) 246 247.5 +1.5
Left Leg (in.) 31.5 31 -0.5
Hips (in.) 51.5 52 +0.5
Waist (in.) 43.5 43.5 0
Chest (in.) 45 45 0
Left Arm (in.) 16 16 0
Neck (in.) 15 15 0

Totals: 13.5 pounds lost, 14.5″ lost

You can read my initial post about my New Year’s Resolution here.

Homage To Zero Waste

zero waste quote
This quote is from Max, Bea’s oldest son.

It all began with this simple Sunset Magazine article a few years back.  I wrote a little about it in this post, and it’s time to lay out more about how I’d like to reduce the waste we put out. The Zero Waste Home method: Refuse, Reduce, Reuse, Recycle, Rot.

Refuse

I’m notoriously bad a refusing just about anything. Sales people, food, goodie bags, free pens… maybe I’m not so good at saying no.

Here are a list of items that I could easily say no to:

  • All receipts
  • Samples
  • Taking business cards
  • Free samples at the dentist, like I need 4 mini flosses when I have plenty at home

What I have started to refuse:

  • Appointment reminder cards – instead everything goes right into my phone calendar
  • Junk mail – easy! Using the Paper Karma app on my phone I just take a picture and send it in and the junk mail magically stops coming. This does take some persistence though.
  • Candy and treats often offered to my son. Not too hard since he doesn’t eat a lot of sugar.
  • Paper/plastic bags at the store. In the rare event that I forget my reusable bags I try to put as much in my purse and arms that I can fit. 

 Reduce

This is a category that I’m good at. As a shopaholic with an Amazon addiction who has a hard time refusing, I’ve obviously got a lot of stuff. Plus we’ve lived in our home for 8 years now and after that much time things start to get hidden behind other things and stuck in the dark corners of closets and tall shelves. We’ve been working on this for the last year or so, and it’s especially hard with a toddler who is constantly growing out of items and simultaneously getting new ones.

zero wasteAreas to work on:

  • Getting rid of old baby toys. It’s easy to hold on to them with the knowledge of a second baby in the future, but my mind knows that I can always find items at thrift stores and that a baby doesn’t truly need stuff. Especially if there will be a big brother in the picture.
  • Clothes. Since I’ve started losing weight I already notice my clothes actually fit. Soon I’ll be growing out of them and when that happens I’m quickly donating or consigning them. I’m desperate to have a functional mini-wardrobe.
  • In the kitchen I need to get rid of tools/appliances that only get used once a year. I know how to do most everything in the kitchen with my staple tools and I’m beginning to think we don’t need our microwave. I know I’ll get grief for it though so it’s harder than it seems.
  • In the bathroom I have a date with the space under the sink. There’s a plethora of items that go untouched, i.e. old makeup, nail polish, lotions/potions, tampons (I use a Diva Cup), hair cutting machines and assorted items with cords. Haven’t touched them in ages and I’d really like to store my TP down there.
  • Closets hold a lot of chotchka. Having been a teacher there’s any assortment of fairy wings, witch hats, swathes of fabric and who knows what. I know plenty of teachers who could put it all to better use than my closet.
  • Office space. Find a home for everything and get rid of the rest.
  • Filing paperwork, that’s a chore that I’m not looking forward to, bleck.
  • Laundry/catch-all room. Since we don’t have a garage and our shed is for outdoor item this room is in dire need of organization.
  • It would be nice to get down to one car, but that’s not happening for the forseeable future. The bike will definitely be brought out in the spring.

What we’ve done already:

  • Donated a huge bookshelf worth of books and the remainder are now in the same area. Truthfully I think I’d be ok getting rid of all my books, except the birthing ones, but my husband is an avid book collector and I feel like there needs to be a little balance. It sounds silly, even to me.
  • Clothes. Last year I turned all my clothes hangers in the closet backwards and when I wore an item I put it back correctly. Anything that was still backwards in June got the boot.
  • Shoes. I got rid of anything that wasn’t comfortable and I don’t miss a single pair.
  • By composting our kitchen scraps I’ve downsized our garbage output by HALF. I now put out my bin weekly, but half full.
  • Pared down outdoor tools and machinery to the basics.

 Reuse

This one seems easy enough, but I’ve come across some surprising difficulties.

  • The most obvious to me is getting rid of paper towels and handkerchiefs and using reusable cloths. During my experiment, even with a plethora of hand towels/rags, we were constantly running out of clean ones. With the amount of laundry I have right now it’s just too much of a burden, but I’m hoping in the next year to widdle down our wardrobes enough to keep the laundry levels down.
  • I’m also trying to find an acceptable solution to zip lock bags especially for home-baked loaves of sandwich bread.
  • Since there aren’t very good selections of non-dry goods in bulk I still purchase a bunch of items in glass jars, which kinda sucks and drives my husband crazy when I save so many for reuse. I don’t have storage or time to can goods in the summer, so this is an issue that is need of a solution too.
  • Diapers, I’ll admit that we didn’t do cloth for the same reason as we still use paper towels.

What we’re doing already:

  • Reusable cloth bags for groceries, produce and bulk
  • Glass jars for bulk food storage, i.e. cereal, nuts, crackers
  • Lunch bags for toting food
  • I started buying Porter’s clothes from the thrift store and hope to do that for myself when I get into reasonable sizes
  • Reusable jars for water/beverages although I’m guilty of the occasional water bottle purchase
  • I use a Diva Cup for my moon cycle
  • Soaps and liquids are easy enough to get in bulk and I’ve started doing that, but still have to find laundry detergent that doesn’t make my boys break out
  • The Library!

Recycle

Anything that can be recycled we do. That includes:

  • Plastics, paper, glass
  • Donating/purchasing from thrift stores

Rot

As talked about in this post, we love our red wigglers and they’re loving us back.

It should be said that I know we’ll never get to absolute zero, or even as close as the Johnsons, but I certainly hope to make serious changes in the way we consume.

Are you interested in getting closer to zero waste living? If so, how are you working towards that goal? Leave your answers in the comments below.

This post featured on Homestead Barn HopParty Wave Wednesday, Thank Your Body Thursday, Tasty Traditions, Small Footprint Friday

Weekly Link Love

link loveAnd now, from the inter-webs!

In The Kitchen

There are many ways to cut an onion, but I haven’t found a better one than this.

Have you ever wanted to be in the kitchen at Downton Abbey? Or maybe you just have a thing for copper pots? Either way, this tour of a legit Victorian kitchen is pretty neat.

I have to share one of my all time favorite blogs, The Tipsy Baker. Luke bought me her book, Make The Bread, Buy The Butter and I’ve been hooked ever since. I also started baking our bread.

In Good Health

As you know, I’ve gone off the white powdery stuff…sugar. When I read this post about the signs of being a sugar addicts, it hit pretty close to home. Do you have a sugar problem? I did.

Kobe Bryant vs Ashton Kutcher and Steve Jobs? Guess who wins?

Get Dirty

If you’re starting your garden from seed this year, make sure they aren’t contaminated by Monsanto and that they’re GMO free.

In case you need a refresher on how to start your seeds, Garden Girl has you covered. She’s an urban gardener extraordinaire and I easily get sucked into watching her how to videos.

Because If Feels Good

Two posts on fashion caught my eye this week:

1. This gals testament to not being confined by fashion made me feel good.

2: One of the reasons I want to lose weight is to have a minimal wardrobe, and Bea at Zero Waste Home is my guru. This link is one of many posts she’s doing about her mini-wardrobe.

And in anticipation of Valentine’s Day, you might try this.

 

Beautiful Babies Book & A Free E-Course = Awesome!

beautiful babies picAs you know I’m a doula and birth advocate, so when I was asked to read and review an amazing new book about nutrition for fertility, pregnancy, breastfeeding and babies first foods how could I resist? I just read the very insightful and read-able book, Beautiful Babies: Nutrition For Fertility, Pregnancy, Breast-Feeding and Baby’s First Food, by Kristen Michaelis aka Food Renegade. This book is no hocus pocus. It’s been thoroughly researched, referenced and is backed with science. But really, after reading this book (and living it’s philosophy for the last little bit) it intuitively feels right. What I’m saying is, no matter which philosophy you prescribe to, Beautiful Babies makes sense.

Like Kristen, my own experience with a commitment to organic and traditional real foods began in earnest when Porter started eating his first solids. Somehow, it took 30 years for me to finally get on board that train towards eating right. They say children are great teachers, and my small baby gave me the perfect opportunity to make serious changes to the way our family eats, something I’d been wanting to do years before my son was born. I only wish I had access to this book before I got pregnant so that I could have ensured all the positive outcomes for my son that eating a traditional real food diet offers. You can be certain that with my next pregnancy (in the future) I will be following the tenets offered in this book.

Moreover, Beautiful Babies explains the ins and outs of what it means for anyone to eat a healthy diet of traditional real foods. This book may be geared for moms, but everyone will benefit from the knowledge and research that Kristen has done about nutrition and health. Beautiful Babies would make a great gift for anyone you know that’s considering getting pregnant, is pregnant or has a new baby. I already know who I’m getting this book for.

The Breakdown

Part One: Nutrition For Fertility, Pregnancy, Breastfeeding and Baby’s First Foods

Understand the nutrient-rich foods that healthy baby making people around the world have eaten when preparing their bodies to conceive and give birth.

Guess what? Nutrition matters when it comes to birthing babies! The right diet when pregnant can reduce your chance of a C-section, help keep baby inside for the entire 38-42 weeks of pregnancy and get this…decrease the pain of childbirth.

Did you know that you can prevent or reduce morning sickness, unhealthy cravings, stretch marks and varicose veins just by eating the right diet? It’s true!

Having trouble conceiving? There are ways to increase fertility without the use of modern medicine’s costly and invasive fertility treatments.

Your children can avoid glasses, ear infections and braces, and you can help that by the diet you eat while pregnant. Hint: Read the book!

The how-to’s of breast-feeding are covered as well. For those parents who aren’t able to breastfeed, Kristen teaches you the in’s and out’s of how to make homemade, natural and nutrient dense baby formulas. So much better than the store-bought. This part blew my mind!

Part Two: Recipes For Sacred Foods

The recipes provided are all safe and healthy for babies, but in no way are you expected to become a short order cook. The snacks, meals, condiments and beverages are tasty treats for the whole family to enjoy.

The Experts

Joel Salatin of Polyface Farms (a real hero to me, he’s right up there with Ina May Gaskin) says:

“I find Kristen’s feisty spirit and mischievous humor both empowering and liberating. As a dad of two, husband of one, and grandfather of three, I covet these historically proven and normal principles for every family on earth. I wish this book had been around when my wife, Teresa, and I were starting our family.”

 

Dr. Jill Tieman, a doctor of chiropractic care and a clinical nutritionist:

“Before civilization, humans once had an innate intelligence about what was edible in their environment and how to prepare it in order to extract the most nutrition from it. Kristen Michaelis walks you through the minefield of conventional nutrition babble to the safety of what thousands of years of cultural traditions have shown: that vibrant health comes from eating what our ancestors ate—unprocessed foods from animals raised as they are supposed to live. This is correct nutrition that needs to be taught in every household and school and handed down from parents to children. This book should be required reading for all parents and those contemplating parenthood.”

 

Dr. Cate Shanahan, author of Deep Nutrition: Why Your Genes Need Traditional Food, said this about it:

“Kristen Michaelis can help rescue your child from the quagmire of unhealthy baby formulas, cereals, and jarred foods and teach you how to implement a nourishing lifestyle that is your child’s best immunization against illness. I see many happy babies growing up on these kinds of real foods, and I would like to see more.”

About The Author

Taken straight from her blog Food Renegade:

I am a rebel. I like to eat red meat. I think butter is good for me. I drink my milk raw. I avoid pre-packaged foods like the plague. I don’t believe the health claims on food labels. And, I like my food to be fresh, wholesome, and traditional.

I’m a wife, a homeschooling mother, a nutrition & wellness coach, and a passionate advocate for what I call “real food” — as opposed to the edible food-like substances which dominate America’s food industry today.

Influenced by the research of Sally Fallon and Mary Enig, the work of Weston A. Price, the voice of Michael Pollan, and the heart of the agrarian poet Wendell Berry, I am an empowered woman. And I’m determined.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pre-order Special

Guess what? You can pre-order you copy of Beautiful Babies: Nutrition for Fertility, Pregnancy, Breast-feeding, and Baby’s First Foods before March 18th and get FREE enrollment in the Beautiful Babies online nutrition class — a $199 value! Order now, then email your Amazon receipt to booklaunch@foodrenegade.com to receive your coupon for FREE enrollment. Now that’s cool.

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