Kale chips

I have been on a small mission the past couple months to change my eating habits, to eat more natural foods.  That means less processed and attempting to base some of what we eat on the  "Nourishing Traditions" way of eating.  I find it somewhat time consuming, particularly since I am a working mom with two very busy, on the go boys.  We are also a family who needs to include more veggies into our diet, as I'm sure many people do.  The trouble is, we are pretty picky about veggies.  I prefer raw, but i know they are much harder to digest, and we don't necessarily get all the nutrients as when they are cooked.  Many cooked veggies gag me- usually the texture, sometimes the taste.  In my pursuit of healthiness, an acquaintence mentionedIi really should be eating more leafy greens- cooked!  That's worse than most cooked vegetables!  The thoughht of that is just disgusting.  She also mentioned kale. Oh, i eat kale on my lunch wraps- I said.  Her reply, raw greens are really difficult to digest, so you should cook them.  Yeah, I know, just can't bring myself to do it!  So she mentioned kale chips.  Hmmm... Interesting idea.  How do I do that? You just mix them in olive oil and salt and bake them.  Even my 7 year old eats them, she says.  OK, if a 7 year old can do it, so can I.  I figured out how to do it, and guess what?? They are my new salty snack of choice!  In fact, I can't seem to keep them around for leftovers for lunches.

I have been trying to find a salty snack made without processed oils and sugars.  Not so easy to find. Who knew kale chips would satisfy that craving?!?  But, it got me thinking that someone must have been really desperate to think, hmmm let's bake some kale!  Here is the simple recipe for an addicting, yet healthy snack!

1 bunch kale
Approximately 1/4 c olive oil
Approximately 1 tsp sea salt, johnny's seasoning salt, etc

Step 1. Clean and dry kale.  Peel leafy part off the center stem on each side and tear leaves into 1 inch pieces, or so, and place in mixing bowl.

Step 2.  Pour olive oil over kale and mix until coated.

Step 3.  Sprinkle salt over kale and mix.  Add more or less to taste. (If they aren't quite salty enough, i lightly dust as soon as I take them out of the oven)

Step 4. Spread onto baking sheet so that the pieces do not overlap.

Step 5. Bake for 18-20 minutes in a 300 degree oven.

Potty training time?

I was recently talking with a co-worker, and somehow we got onto the subject of potty training.  She was sharing how easy it was to potty train her boys, but her grandson took forever to learn.  She said that when he was around 5 it had dawned on her to find some training pants that were more like what she used when her boys were little, because then they could feel wet, unlike diapers today that wick away moisture.

I hadn't thought too much about trying to potty train yet, as my 2 1/2 year old doesn't show much interest, and doesn't really understand when he pees- unless he happens to watch himself doing it when his diaper is off.  So, i decided to try and find some cotten training pants and start trying.

At first my son was excited, just from the thought that he could earn stickers and cars (his absolute favorite).  I thought this might work, as he hates to have wet clothes, he loves cars, this could be great.  Well, it's not starting off so well, not that i thought it would be easy!  He's peed through 5 pairs of training pants so far, and the more he doesn't earn a car, the less he wants to sit on the potty.  The problem is, that i don't think he completely understands what it is to pee in his potty.  So, he will sit on it and make a "pssssssss" noise with his mouth, and in his mind he has gone potty! Hmmm... Good effort buddy, but that's not peeing in your potty. So now to get him to understand...  No, no, you need to get water in you potty, from your weenie!  Of, course he tries, but he's already peed, so nothing comes.  Hmmm...  This could take a while!

Healthy Mission

During the past week, I was on a bit of a mission.  It started trying to look for ways to help our 2 year old sleep better.  The past few weeks his nose has been getting quite stuffy in the middle of the night , which is waking him  up 3-6 times a night.  He also has little red bumps all over his upper arms and thighs, and on his cheeks.  Exzema??  So I was trying to figure out if allergies could be the cause.  I had been doing some random reading on the internet a few weeks ago, and one site had recommended a book, " Gut and Psychology Syndrome" (or something with a title similar to that).  I had decided to try and get in on Kindle, but it is not available in that version.  Recommendations list associated with that book had a cookbook that followed the principles discussed.  But that too, was no available on Kindle.  I came across another book that seemed to discuss similar things.

I read this book in about 2-3 days (which I don't typically do).  It has inspired me to attempt to make our foods more natural and free from so many toxins, get back to the way people and cultures ate even as short a time ago as my grandparents, but even prior to that.  I want to get raw milk, have gotten raw honey, have already gotten the healthy chicken and made my own chicken stock, and have plans to make more chicken stock, beef stock, cream, butter, cream cheese, and possibly yoguurt.  The book was so interesting, and such a simple thought to step back and prepare things as they once were before processed foods and before our lives became so hurried.

I know it will take me awhile to get quicker at preparing these foods, and I will have to make the effort to really prepare these foods as we should.  I am lucky to have a husband who is game for trying my new ventures, but I am truly hoping to keep my family healthy and full of energy.  Here is to our healthy journey!