Kids say and do the Darndest things

I've been listening in on my kids' play whilst cleaning or making meals. Other than the usual squabbles, there has been some really interesting vocabulary coming out of their mouths.

They were playing with some of the play food and they were arguing about what this brown pattie like item was. In the cooked food world we'd know it as a hamburger pattie. Well, these two were arguing about whether it was raw fudge or raw chocolate cookie dough. They had this argument for a few minutes and finally decided that it was raw fudge. I love it!

I always lay with my kids in each of their beds, for a few minutes after we've read our evening books and given thanks for our day and we talk about our favourite moments of the day and those which we found challenging. The other night my daughter commented how she has trouble getting to sleep sometimes...maybe because we've put her to bed earlier than her normal time (as was the case that particular evening). I taught her what I do each night when I lay down and upon waking. I do a breathing exercise that I learned in David Wolfe's book The Sunfood Diet Success System. It goes like this:

Deep breath in (to the count of six)
Hold that breath (to the count of six)
Exhale all the breath out (to the count of six again)
Hold all breath out (for the count of six)

Repeat.

I do this pattern 20 times.

I taught her how to breath like this and she did it with me that evening as a practice.

Well, I had completely forgotten about this little teachable moment and today in the van she said to me, "Mommy, I did your breathing exercises last night and I hardly did any and I was asleep." My heart was so full of love when I heard that statement!

My son used to love green smoothies but more recently has not taken to them. I haven't had one for over a week (YIKES!) and made one last night. He got all excited and clapped his hands and begged for a sip. It was only bananas, hemp seed and spinach...but he liked it and kept asking for more. They also love the raw strawberry shortcake from Storm Talifero's site. He has a Youtube video for it, click here if you'd like to see it. It is delicious, especially with local, ripe, organic strawberries!

My daughter commented the other day that I'm like the leaf eating dinosaurs. Well, she's not wrong in that thought...

She says that she wants to be a raw foodist when she gets older, like eating this way is a profession or something. It's so cute. She also says that she wants to eat like me, more often.

They both go to the grocery store and ask for me to get dinosaur kale (black kale) and my son did a happy dance when I put it in his mini cart. They know more fruits and veggies than most my 7th grade students for that matter. They talk about durian and love to watch me open one and then look repulsed by the smell and go running from the room. Speaking of running from the room, this has become a new game whenever I am preparing food in the processor or in the blender. They scream, run into the family room and shut the door. The blender can be especially loud when it gets going.

They really are watching and taking it all in. If that isn't motivation to eat well and to feed my family well, I don't know what is.

There are challenges though, being raw in a cooked food family. My husband is concerned that I will want the whole family to go raw. I am learning that people need to find their own way to this way of eating. I just have to keep being the good example! I will always offer and make raw items that my family enjoys.

In the meantime I have cauliflower ears, listening in on my kids' play as raw food words are incorporated into their every day vocabulary.

In playful fun,

Melinda

My Most Amazing Day

I've been thinking a lot about what the most amazing day in my world would include. David Wolfe's book, The Sunfood Diet Success System talks about this in a way and he has a website called "The Best Day Ever". I also hear Kevin Gianni talking about the "Perfect Day" and "Perfect Weekend" recently and have written down some thoughts on this for myself.

I am sure these things change over time but as of the last three months when jotting things down, this is what I have come up with so far. This is in no particular order either. Just a stream of consciousness.

Sunshine
Fresh air
Lots of outdoor time
Clean, organic, raw food
Playing and learning with my kids
Seeing the wonders of the world through the kids' eyes. They are amazing!
Talking and spending time with my husband
Yoga
Roubounding
Reading
Running
Other forms of exercise
writing my book
Decluttering my space
Business planning
Journal writing
Breathing exercises
Imagry
Dry brushing
Sauna
Swimming
Juicing
Green Smoothies
Monomealing
Computer time (limited to neccessary items)
Salads
Bath time
Gratitude
Time and conversation with friends
Having a positive impact on the people I meet
Teaching kids to have the best day ever, and to become lifelong learners
Of course I'll try to squeeze in some sleep in there too!!

We all have 24 hours a day, it's just how we decide to spend them.

What would your perfect day look like?

I'll add to this from time to time as things come to mind. In the meantime I'll strive for an amazing day. It may not include all things on my list but it would come close!

Write down a few things you'd really like to spend time doing in your day. Are you doing any of them? If not, why? If so, what things can you add to make it even better?

Have the Most Amazing Day tomorrow and for all the tomorrows after that!

Melinda

Paul Nison's Visit to Vancouver

Wow, how can you tell that reports are done, the sun is shining and Melinda's never at home enough to blog...but finally I'm going to talk a little bit about the talk that Paul Nison gave in Vancouver at the end of June.

In a few words...inspiring, amazing, incredible! I am always buzzing after a raw food talk but never like I was that night. Filled with new information and ideas I actually ended up driving another attendee home and we talked the whole way about how we'd incorporate some of Paul's ideas into our lifestyle.

I had an number of favourite moments...like the one where he just "happened" to move to West Palm Beach Florida so that he could get healthier. He talked about a van with a word he didn't know how to pronounce and I knew immediately he'd moved near to the Hippocrates Institute. No coincidence there, me thinks! The universe was obviously working towards getting Paul close to the institute so that he could heal and then help spread the Raw Food Word!

I also appreciated the "knowledge without action means very little" comment. It has been ringing true even before this lecture, but especially since I heard him say it. It's one thing to think it but a whole other thing when someone puts it directly to you. Acting on new knowledge is so important. Making sure our values and beliefs are in line with our actions helps to bring balance to our lives. I've been noticing this in all areas of my life in the past year, not just in eating but in relationships, and much more.

He also hit on a couple of other pieces of information that I have been thinking a lot about:

Overeating
Undersleeping

Even eating a mostly raw food diet I still tend to eat too much and too late in the day. I have more energy so tend to go to bed later. I also have trouble sleeping if I eat nuts or seeds late at night due to the energy they give me, but pay for it the next morning when I have more of a "roll over day in stead of a roll out (of bed) day". I wasn't listening to my body really well in this area until this information was brought to light for me, again, by Paul that night.

So here are some things I have tried to incorporate into my life since that night.

I now subscribe to Paul's Blog. You can too...click here. There's a subscription box on the top right.

I am eating less than I did before, and trying to be more consistent in this area.

I am not eating late at night and will try to bring the time back from 9pm, to 8pm to 7pm each month. Paul actually only eats two meals a day. One around 9am and one around 3pm or a bit earlier each day. He calls it the NDD or No Dinner Diet. It gives the body's digestive system a break and allows the body to do the cleansing it really needs to do. I tried it for two days and noticed a HUGE exit of toxic buildup from my body and decided that it was too fast for me, plus emotionally I was not ready for such a drastic change so I have gone back to eating dinner and a light snack around 8 or 9pm. 9pm is still too late for me. When I first made this change, I saw a difference and now, a few weeks later I have to be careful about what I eat at that time or it keeps me awake. So I may try 8:30pm for a while and see how that goes.

I'm also eating slower, chewing well and trying to eat in a calm state. This is challenging with a 5 and 3 year old at the table but doing my best. It is also good for them to see slow eating. They tend to inhale their food and not chew well but with practice we're making some headway!

The fact that it is summer means that I am eating simpler meals as well. I am blending, not juicing as much as I would like but am working towards one or two juices a day as I feel best doing that...especially after the 30 day juice fast I did in last fall.

I am cutting back my sugar intake. I used to think that eating six bananas a day was fine...and I could get away with that when I first went raw as I was no longer eating the processed sugars...but I have found some health issues creeping up this last six months and I believe it's because I got so clean with juicing for a month that all the natural sugars I was intaking has been a burden to my body, so I am again listening to what it's saying and also to Paul's suggestions and realizing that this must happen for me to live a long and healthy life. I am addicted to sugar and I just substituted refined sugar with dates, bananas (and other high sugar fruits), honey, and agave syrup. So I do indulge in these occasionally but not for every meal as before!

I am also going 100% raw again as I have not been as rigid with this in the last six months and also feel the effects. I am about 80 to 100% raw depending on the day and really feel much better after a few days at 100% so I there is the knowledge that I have to act upon!!

In health and happiness,

Melinda

Paul Nison and Durian

What a day! Coming down from the high of juice feasting (even if it was only three days!) is difficult, it is very emotional and my digestion is playing catch up today. I know it will be easier than when I did it for 30 days last September, but there is still an emotional and physical side to it all.

My moods were back and forth all day depending on the circumstance. Left my purse behind at a music class, thinking I'd left it at the soccer field I went looking there and then back to the music class where it was found safe and sound.

While shopping at Superstore today I met Melissa, an up and comer in jewelry design I believe. She mentioned that her business is called M3. She designs jewelry with inspirational words/sayings on them. Sounds great to me. I saw durian at the store for the first time in months (probably 8 months!) and almost hit a few people to get over to the produce area where I could pick one out. A nice lady asked me what it was and I told her it was durian. She then asked how I knew about durian and what to do with it. I told her about my interest in raw foods and she was with Melissa who is also a raw foodie! Wow, first one I've come across just by chance. We talked raw foods and bumped into each other a number of times, including the check out stand.

While reflecting upon this chance meeting (of course there is no coincidence!) I figured it was the universe's way of telling me not to eat the organic tortilla chips I had in the cart for the kids' Mexican dinner feast. Hmmm...I also realized that it wasn't just raw food that brought me to durian, but Paul Nison. His The Raw Life: Becoming Natural in an Unnatural World was the first I read on raw and living foods. I believe he is the self proclaimed Durian King! He talked so highly of durian that when I saw one in the market all those months ago I had to try it.

Durian is an acquired taste, but once you've had it a few times, there's no looking back.
I found this on Youtube, and it's got a lot of great info as well as a demo on how to open and eat a durian. Click here to see it. David Wolfe has a video about durian (mangosteen and jackfruit) as well. It's informative and interesting to listen to. Click here for his video. Can you believe it's banned in some motels in SE Asia because of it's smell!

If I could go back to my trip in 1998 when I travelled Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos I would eat durian there! I can't believe I never even tried it when I was there. Can you imagine?!

Anyhow, curious that durian has arrived in the stores and Paul Nison will be arriving in Vancouver next week. He has a few public dates. He'll be on CBC radio 102.7 FM from 1-2pm on Wednesday the 25th. He will be speaking in Vancouver also. Here's the info from Raw BC:

June 26: Paul Nison - Raw Food Health Lecture, "The Formula for Health"

We are excited to announce that Raw Foods Chef and Educator Paul Nison will be coming to town for a special lecture sponsored by RawBC at the Holy Trinity Church on Thursday, June 26th.

Paul's lecture will be focused on the contents of his newest book, "the Formula for Health", and can help you discover how to improve your health and live a disease-free life.

The more you understand the nutritional role in preventing disease and curing it, the easier it will be for you to eat healthfully, emphasizing vibrant, live foods.

This 3-hour lecture will provide you with sensible health information that can easily be applied to your life right away, resources to support you on your journey and help keep you on track, and a simple formula for health, along with a four-step program to enable you to achieve your goals.

Doors open from 6:00 p.m.

Date: Thursday, June 26th

Time: 6:30-9:30 p.m.

Location: Holy Trinity Anglican Church (main hall, upstairs), 1440 West 12th Avenue (corner of 12th Ave & Hemlock Street), Vancouver.

Cost: General Public $17

RawBC members* $12

*RawBC membership available at the event

RSVP: to reserve a ticket, contact RawBC. email: info@rawbc.org or phone: 778-737-8852

He will also be preparing a recipe on Breakfast Television (Ch. 13) sometime between 8:20am and 9:45am. I'm told it is going to be short but hey, it's on television and it's local, that's great!

I am not sure if I mentioned this before but Aaron Ash's sit down restaurant is now open! I'll be there July 7th for my anniversary dinner and can't wait. I don't believe he's had any time to update his website, but the info is there at www.gorillafoods.com. It may not be a current menu but it gives you a good idea of what they are about and some idea as to the kind of raw foods they are able to prepare for you. They do catering as well.

I'm off to take care of my sick husband. I took the kids out for the day so he could rest and now it's time to give him some TLC. In the meantime...

Eat Raw, Live Well!

Melinda

Juicy Goodness and The Boulder

So, after a few months of back and forth I am again juicing for a few days to see how the body feels.  I need to make juicing a regular thing and to branch out and try some new juices.  This "mini" juice feast will be the start of that.  Ultimately I'd like to be juicing each morning (between 10:30am and noon) with some type of green juice to start off my day with.  Green juice is like coffee for me and it completely energizes me for the day.

Yesterday I had this green juice:

1 head of romaine lettuce

1 cucumber

2 apples (Golden Delicious)

1 lemon (I do take the skin off although others do not...I find it hurts the back of my throat if I leave it on but you can try it both ways and see what works for you.  Lots of goodness in the pith!

Yesterday I also had LOTS of water and LOTS of sunshine.  Finally we had a hot, sunny day in June.  This June has actually been the coldest (and wettest, in my opinion) June in recorded history here in the lower mainland!

The sunshine, juicing and good feelings were flowing yesterday!

Today the rain is pouring (again) and the juice is still flowing and my energy is lower than I would have thought but my body is in detox mode and with the things I've experienced since my last mini juicing episode, it is a wonder.

This is the last week we have all of our students.  We're writing report cards, finalizing stuff for next year and doing some clean up in the classrooms.  We're also writing a report and reference for our student teacher so things are extremely busy.  I'm looking forward to the beginning of summer when I can focus on the kids, the house, the yard and my new business ventures!

I actually spent about 80% of the day yesterday, outside.  A large portion of that was getting the front garden looking great...a little curb appeal.  We have lived here five years and I haven't done anything to get the yard looking great.  Well, with my mom's help we got all the new plants in the ground.  

I was digging the whole for the hydrangea and came across one huge boulder!  We weren't sure how big it was and my mom said just to give up and we'd plant the bush further back.  That wasn't what I was thinking though.  Dig, Dig, Dig.  Dig, Dig, Dig.  Now it was a matter of principle!  I wanted to see how big this boulder was.  Well, it budged and that's all I needed to keep going and then I wedged it until I could get my hands in there and pull it out!

It was a beautiful, huge boulder!  I loved it's shape and now it sits between the hydrangea and another plant in the garden.  A reminder that when moving towards a goal to never give up because the end result can be amazingly beautiful!  In fact, my husband said that when he arrived home this rock was one of the first things that caught his eye and he thought it was perfect.

In green goodness, Eat Raw and Live Well!

Melinda

Food Poisoning Scares

Seems that there's one scare after another regarding raw foods and salmonella and E. coli. I got an article in my inbox today that really spoke to me regarding this issue. I am printing it with permission and also will include a link to their blog at the end. I don't think I could have said it better so here it is:

First it was the spinach. Raw, conventional spinach.

This year it is tomatoes. Raw, conventional tomatoes.

Right now there is an outbreak of salmonella in certain types of raw tomatoes.

Since a similar situation like this happened two years ago with raw conventional spinach, and now with something as innocent as tomatoes, here are some tips on how to keep you and your family safe.

10 Ways to Cope When Salmonella and E.Coli Outbreaks Happen

1. Get all the facts first. We have received worried emails from individuals who were frightened that they had tomatoes recently. When reports like this happen, try to get a basic handle on the situation. Read news reports from major media sources. Avoid reading reports from places that tend to over-exaggerate these situations. Get the facts first.
   
   
2. Avoid buying the produce in question for a short time until facts are found. At the time of this article, even the FDA doesn't know exactly what types of tomatoes are causing the problem, but they believe it is only roma and large round tomatoes. When there is so little information out there, you might want to stay away from that one type of produce for a week or so until things are taken care of. This doesn't mean you need to avoid spinach or tomatoes forever...just focus your attention on the hundreds of varieties of greens and fruits and vegetables out there. Take a few weeks to discover the wide variety of foods to choose from.
   
   
3. Buy local, preferably organic. Despite the media frenzy of Earthbound Farm having the E.Coli outbreak of organic spinach, it turns out it was conventional Dole Farm spinach instead. As far as we know, there has not been any salmonella or E.Coli contamination coming from organic produce. Organic and biodynamic is usually safer.
   
   And don't forget to buy local. When you buy from local farmers, you tend to avoid the situations where these crises can occur. Salmonella and e.coli outbreaks usually happen due to large animal farms being near where the produce is grown. When you buy from smaller farms, you can know where your produce is coming from. You may even be able to visit the farm where you buy your food, or at least be able to meet the farmer that grows your food. For more information on buying local, check out localharvest.org.
   
   
4. The more raw food you eat, the healthier you tend to be. Although this has not been scientifically proven, it seems that long term raw foodists tend to be healthier when it comes to food poisoning. Raw foodists may be healthier due to the amount of hydrochloric acid in their digestive systems.
   
   Raw foodists also tend to avoid food poisoning from salmonella and E.Coli because the foods they eat rarely come in contact with foods that cause salmonella and E.Coli. Food poisoning is usually related to meat, and occasionally dairy products. By not consuming these products raw foodists have a low chance of encountering food-borne illness.
   
   Note: This is not a suggestion to go out and blindly eat food that is considered contaminated with salmonella or e.coli. This is just pointing out the fact that raw foodists tend to be less affected by food poisoning.
   
   
5. Grow your own food. This is a very do-it-yourself kind of tip. If you have a balcony to grow some herbs in pots, or a small plot of land in your back yard to grow greens and vegetables, go for it. This option is not for everyone, but if you have the time and the resources, growing your own food is a great way to know exactly where your food is coming from.
   
   
6. Eat at home. Whenever possible, eat at home. Food poisoning in the form of salmonella, e.coli or other contaminants tends to happen at restaurants. This is usually not an issue for raw foodists who eat at home most of the time. For those people that do eat out, perhaps non-raw family members, they can take precautions by avoiding dishes with the produce involved and follow the other steps outlined in this article.
   
   
7. The media tends to exaggerate things. Keep in mind that the media tends to go overboard with the news coverage of these sorts of events. There have been outbreaks of e.coli and salmonella in other types of produce in the past, but they are usually smaller isolated events in one state. Sometimes the media reports that these outbreaks are nationwide, when in reality they affect a small geographic area. That is why it is important to get the facts first.
   
   Right now the FDA is reporting that tomatoes grown in 18 states and 7 countries have not been associated with the outbreak. To look at the list of unaffected growing locations and types of tomatoes that appear to be safe, click here.
   
   
8. Don't panic. Fear creates more fear. We have talked with people and received emails from others that they will never eat raw spinach again after the E.coli outbreak from 2006. Raw spinach no longer seems to be a problem, yet for some people, they will never eat these foods again because of fear. If you buy into the fear you may never be able to eat anything again. The list of "contaminated foods" will just keep growing and growing. Try to remain calm and continue with the rest of your life. Eat foods that you feel are safe, like ones grown from your garden or that you bought from the local farmers market. Do the best you can, and try to not overreact to these situations as they happen.
   
   
9. If you have food poisoning symptoms, get medical attention immediately.
   
   "Not everyone who ingests salmonella bacteria will become ill." - KidsHealth.org
   
   Food poisoning from salmonella and E.Coli tend to affect very young children, the elderly, and those with a lowered immune system due to cancer or HIV/AIDS. If you or someone you love becomes ill from salmonella, e.coli or other food contaminants, get help. Determine if your symptoms match the descriptions of food-borne illness. Food poisoning can be dangerous but can be treated if caught early. Here are links to how to diagnose Salmonella and E.Coli:
   
   Symptoms and Treatment of Salmonella
   Symptoms and Treatment of E.Coli
   
   
10. Keep Eating Raw Food. After all is said and done, we are all going to keep eating raw food. Even those who don't consider themselves to be raw foodists (aka "cooked foodists"). These outbreaks are not going to make the entire American public eat only food that comes out of a can. These outbreaks are a symptom of a larger issue of the growing and handling of produce, both here in the U.S. and around the world. These outbreaks will not last forever. Changes will be made. Improvements will be made. And we will all continue to eat raw food.
    

- Heidi Ohlander
Raw Food Right Now

Want to reprint this article on your website or blog?
You Can...as long as you link to this website:

http://www.rawfoodrightnow.com

Ann Wigmore Home Study Course

Well, it's arrived! The much coveted Ann Wigmore Home Study Course arrived at my doorstep (well, post office as I wasn't home to receive it the day the delivery was to be made) this week. I am so excited to dive into all the information it has to share, and I'll be posting info here as to what I've learned and how it's all put together. As well, the Raw Divas have asked me to share this learning journey with them and their clients. The details have yet to be worked out but I'll keep it posted here also. Info on how you can order the Home Study Course is here. You'll have to hurry as I believe he's taking the course off the market in a couple of days.

Hopefully I can also share this information through Raw BC with talks or info sessions. I spoke to Clive about it when we were on the wild edibles walk last week.

Let the fun begin!