Last month, I had the opportunity to sample the Fresh Express Salad Kits, as a promotion of their “30 Day Salad Swap.” I shared a few coupons with friends and tried out two kits for myself.

My first challenge was finding the kits. Since I don’t shop at Safeway or Albertsons, and only very rarely make a Target run, I had to go out of my way to find them. When I did find them at Target, I was disappointed to find that they stocked only one organic option. Leafy greens are some things I always try to buy organic, but I made the concession because of the coupons I’d been given.

I chose the American Mix (iceberg, romaine, carrots, red cabbage, and radishes), and the 50/50 Mix (spring mix and...

Ever since I’ve started talking more about our eldest daughter’s neuro-psych assessment, I’ve had many conversations with other parents about their kids and whether or not they should spring for the same type of evaluation.

Often, the hesitation is about the child being labeled; about the stigma of a diagnosis. Perhaps there is fear that the school will be uncooperative. And there’s that underlying and very human dread which says, “If you ignore it, maybe it will go away.” We all know this is a lie, but sometimes it causes us to second guess our best wisdom.

So here was my most recent response to someone wondering about Executive Function Disorder (EFD), which is the deficit part of...

I’ve been seeing various food bloggers talking about the delicious health benefits of Turmeric Tea for a few weeks, but it didn’t really appeal to me. I don’t keep turmeric in my spice cabinet, so I didn’t even have the opportunity to try it out. However, my massage therapist offered me a sip of hers at my appointment a couple weeks ago, and I was smitten. The very next day, I went to the spice shop and bought some turmeric powder. I’ve been tinkering with my recipe ever since!

Just look at that orangey-yellow goodness. ;)

If you want to read more about the power of turmeric, please go check out this great article by Wellness Mama. She is an amazingly resourceful and prolific blogger;...

I don’t have a picture for this one, yet. I keep eating it too fast! (It’s also not that photogenic.)

Comfort foods are hard to come by when you’re on an elimination diet, and while this stuff should never be referred to as “cheese,” it scratches a certain itch for something savory, hot, and gooey. It’s delicious spooned into the mouth with homemade sweet potato crisps.

This recipe is from the dim recollection of what I did last time I made the queso. Following this recipe is going to get you 95% there, but please follow your heart and your tastebuds to get it just the way you like it. :)

Cashew “Queso”
1 cup raw cashews (I always soak for a few hours, then rinse and drain)
2 cups water...Continue reading →

As we were entering week 4 of the Whole Life Challenge, Leslie and I decided to call it off.

It wasn’t doing anything for us. No amazing energy boosts, no weight loss, no change in body composition, nada. Nothing as promised.

It’s possible that because we already eat so similarly to the WLC dietary restrictions, that our bodies didn’t even notice a difference. (I also am so strung out on sleep deprivation and nursing, that the hormones aren’t letting my body let go of anything.) I certainly didn’t experience any of the “withdrawal” symptoms that the WLC literature warns about. Leslie had a couple days of cravings, but nothing huge. He said he actually just felt hungry and unfulfilled...

Week two of the Whole Life Challenge! Week one was interesting. The first half of the week, I felt like I was barely treading water, getting food prepared for my hungry people. My kiddos were eating full meals almost every 90 minutes! And since Leslie was still learning the ropes of all the dietary restrictions, I was prepping a lot more meals for him as well; he didn’t have much to scrounge from since peanut butter and honey sandwiches are not allowed!

I feel like I hit my stride by Wednesday, and things will be easier this week.

I’m not going to even try to put these recipes into a daily order; that didn’t happen at all last week. Rather, I’m going to list out the ones I’m going to try...

My husband is embarking on a Whole Life Challenge for the next 8 weeks, that involves a rather strict dietary component. Crazy dietary restrictions are nothing new to me, but I’ve never cooked for the whole household with the rules. This time, the whole family is going to go along. I will bend the rules for the kids - allowing some gluten free grains and honey - but for the next 8 weeks, we are all going to be eating super duper clean!

Here’s what the rules look like:

No Grains or Starchy Carbohydrates. Only sweet potatoes are allowed. No wheat, rice, corn, barley, quinoa, even white potatoes and soy. And of course the more obvious… no bread, pasta, bagels, cereal, pastry, baked...