Easy Ways to Eat Healthy as a Family

Recently, a good friend asked for advice on how she could change her family's eating habits.  She wanted to start making healthier choices but didn't know where to begin.  I totally understand.    One of the great disadvantages of living in the information age is it's easy to get overwhelmed with too much information.  Who do you trust?  What type of lifestyle is healthiest?  What does clean eating, paleo, vegan, or grain-free mean?  Which is best?  

I'm a bit passionate about food.  Yes, I'm a foodie.  I'm a healthy foodie.  Mostly.  Unless I'm attacked by an apple pie or 7 layer chocolate cake.  I'd describe myself as a 90% clean / whole food eater which I would loosely define as eating (and serving my family) whole grains, proteins, fruits and veggies, and foods without mystery ingredients on the labels.   I strongly believe that as a parent, I am responsible to expose my boys to and teach them healthy habits in all areas - emotionally, spiritually, and physically.  This drives me to strive for health and balance in these areas as well.  

Food is definitely my love language.  Not only do my taste buds delight in scrumptious tasties but my heart revels in bringing others joy by cooking for them.  And who can't use a little more joy?   

photo: fancycrave

I was flattered that my friend asked me for help.  Of course I would help!  She knows that health is a big deal to me and she's spent enough time with me in the kitchen to know I'm passionate about what I plate, both in flavor and in quality.  

These are my non-professional and easy suggestions for making healthier food choices: 

Enough with this creepy clown business!

Enough creepy clowns already!

When I go to work and am informed that our school is safe because we haven't received a clown threat, I'm pissed.  Instantly.

When my son is fearful to go to the store at night because he thinks a creepy clown will chase us in the parking lot, I'm beyond irritated.

When my kids' friends are nervous discussing Halloween because clowns might be out, I'm downright stupefied.  And angry.

How the heck did we get to a place where idiots have so much control over our kids' hearts?   Over our hearts?  Why in the world would we let a few crazies in this world immobilize us and ransom our peace?

photo: pixabay

I definitely have opinions on the posed questions but I don't have solid solutions for individual situations.  I can blanket this issue with some observations though:

Children are terrified at everything nowadays.

We can blame their fear and anxiety on social media.  We can blame it on violence in our entertainment.  We can blame it on a number of things.  All that blame does is remove any ownership from ourselves.

We (society) spread pictures of freaky clowns (or other acts of horror and stupidity) all over the news and give the crazies the celebrity status they crave.

And then we normalize fear!  

We don't discuss and address solutions to scary situations because we're simply trying to shield ourselves and our children.  But the fact is that we fear what we don't understand.  And honestly we don't know the solutions to scary situations and we struggle to understand the depravity that would find humor in striking horror into the hearts of children and adults.

The Case for Not Cussing

The topic of family cussing is a blurry and heated one that tends to draw a lot of attention. Is cussing okay for adults but not kids?  Or is it okay for kids over the age of 13?  18?  After all, if our kids hear bad language in movies and at school, why don't we just allow them to use bad language at home?

Our culture is so overly-connected and inundated with media's opinions that we doubt ourselves, our standards, and our convictions on nearly every level.   We are quick to adopt personal philosophies and standards of people we respect as well as societal norms that say something is 'okay' rather than working to define within our own hearts the truths and values we personally cherish.  We're all guilty of this at one time or another.  

"Their family does it this way, and I highly respect them, 

so it's probably okay for our family."

We'd never encourage our kids to reason like this.  In fact, we encourage them to think outside the box, swim against the current, stand up for what is right, be courageous, blah, blah, blah.  So why do we as parents follow societal norms?  Why are we so easily swayed?

My guess: it's simply easier.   

And we look a little less like weirdos.

And we're tired.  

The norm gives us a hall pass to skip the hard lessons of soul-searching or truth-finding.  We can just blend in with the crowd and avoid being the brunt of parental criticism.  Easy-peasy chicken squeasy.

Driving in Circles

I hate roundabouts.  Seriously.  And I hate them more with my 15 year-old behind the wheel.  Roundabouts tend to bring out the worst in drivers.  The obnoxious, the oblivious, and the delirious.  

That last trait probably just belongs to me.  Well, maybe it would also apply to the other 50 million sleep-deprived mothers trying to get from Point A to Point B , then to C, D, and E safely while correcting the backseat behavior and requesting that fries not be thrown out the window. And just for kicks and giggles, let's throw those moms in some roundabouts.  Better yet - a couple roundabouts that are connected like pretzels.  

Now the party has started...

He Gave His Shoes

This past weekend my hubby took our two oldest sons on an annual youth group trip to Vancouver.   The event is centered around Bible teaching but inevitably the stories I hear about have more to do with pranks, late night adventures, junk food stops, and the disgusting details of Truth or Dare.  Apparently a three hour bus ride is a carnival of mischief.

Gross.

I spent the evening with friends and came home after the boys returned from their trip.  The house was dark and it was long after bedtime so needless to say, I was a tad surprised when I climbed out of the car and was greeted by Riece, my oldest son.  He has a 'puppy personality'; he's playful, even-keel, ready to laugh, warm, and friendly.  He also has huge brown eyes which he's learned to use to talk me into driving him somewhere or letting him have dessert.

Rather than lecture him about being in bed on a church night, I let him pull me into a huge hug.  For him to excitedly greet me in the front yard meant that he had something he wanted to talk about.

A Reason to Reason

My older two boys are on FaceBook which makes for great conversation fodder.  As does the news.  As does life.  The boys and I will show each other postings or share a news story which focusing on the silly and stupid.  Since I have such a huge and compassionate heart (lots of sarcasm here), I'll often respond to a posting with a snort some type of loving comment like, 

"Now there's a genius." 

"Seriously people?!?"  

"What the...?"

"Now there's a brianiac."

Obviously my hypocrisy is tremendous as I'm not the brightest bulb in the box.  Granted, there are 'green light' areas of my personality or within my skill set that allow me to shine in certain situations but more often than I care to admit, I overlook the obvious, forget the memorable, ask dumb questions, or just tune out altogether. 

 I blame these situations on being a tired mom.  

Holding our Children's Hearts

Since placing a Bible under my sons' pillows at night won't result in an instant download of understanding God's unwavering love, grace, and truth, I've had to learn to be creative in how I teach, instruct, and how I nurture the souls of my boys.   Ultimately their hearts and souls will burn with flames of their own choosing, but as a mom, I can sure place some quality kindling while I have the opportunity.

And really, our children's hearts are the most precious possessions that any parent holds knowing this possession is short lived as our children grow, mature, and make choices of their own.  We don't possess their hearts for long, especially if we don't love and tend their hearts well.  We have the power to break hearts, mend hearts, grow hearts, and shape hearts.  We must fight for hearts.