Resurfacing

Things are starting to calm down a bit and I found myself with the urge to blog today, so here I am!

The good news is that since I've been taking my hiatus, I've really been sticking to the principles of healthy eating that I've learned in the last six months. It's really just become part of who I am and how I cook. I'm enjoying eating this way and I definitely feel better!

Several things I've learned in the last few months:

1. That, for all intents and purposes, I'm a pescetarian at heart. I'm barely eating any meat these days and when I do, it's fish nine times out of ten. Part of it is just not desiring meat, part of it is just not being clear on where it comes from.

2. That buying all organic fruits and veggies really isn't any more expensive than buying traditionally grown. I think the main thing is that we're not buying meat, which has shrunk the grocery bill.

3. That I can make a mean stirfry combining pretty much whatever I have on hand.

4. That I don't get tired of eating stirfy.

I haven't lost any weight with this new way of eating, but I always find the summer months difficult with all the barbecues and other events. Plus, even though I've been eating healthier foods, that portion control is still and issue and I have a huge sweet tooth. This is something I'm going to be focusing on in the next few weeks. Just in time for the holidays.

Speaking of which, we're coming up on Halloween and I'm trying to decide what to do about all the candy I know will be around. I'm of two minds about it:

1) It's only once a year, right?
2) Yeah, but only once a year still contains quite a bit of sugar, HFCS, and other things we don't need. Especially my three year old, who has energy in spades.

And not only am I conflicted in this way, but then I have to decide not only what to do for Lauren, but for the candy we hand out to trick-or-treaters. I have to do some thinking on this, but found one convincing article on the Spoonfed blog last week. More on this later.

Veggie Week suits me...

... and so it's turning into Veggie Two-Weeks! Jeremy is out of town again this week, which means that I don't have to worry about making things that he will eat. So, more veggies and whole grains it is!

This week has actually been a breeze. During the week, I just ate the stir-fry and eggplant parmesan leftovers that I had, and I had A LOT! This weekend was a bit of a test, with going out to restaurants twice. I was nervous I wouldn't find something to eat, or that I'd have to settle for something really lame. At the first place, I ate nachos that I had ordered without the chili, which aren't the healthiest, but boy, were they delicious. Today I ordered the Caprese sandwich and had them leave off the chicken and proscuitto. Again, delicious. Actually, both were way more delicious without the meat, I think.

I felt really great this week too, which adds to my enthusiasm about all of it. I just felt clear-headed and clear-stomached, if there is such a thing. I just find meat heavy. The only blockade I ran into was when I way overdid eating the peanut butter cookies Lauren and I made together: I suffered the most epic sugar crash. It really does affect your body badly, especially when you're not used to it! So, no sugar for me this week. As soon as I finish this cookie...

I ran across an article that makes me angry, one about a family farm that's being sold after 378 years. Essentially, the 11th generation of this family can no longer support themselves with this farm due to the proliferation of large factory farms and U-pick-type businesses, and so they are selling their farm that their ancestors have lived on since the 1600s. Instead of subsidizing the large farms that keep pumping out more and more corn (and therefore HFCS), why not support the little guys just trying to make a living? Sadly, the small family farm seems to be a dying art form.