It's been a bright three years since I made the decision to stop eating animals. Sweet, snuggly animals. We started eating mostly organic but certainly made practical choices on what we bought organic versus conventional. No need to be living on the streets so we could have the million dollar bottle of organic truffle oil. We began checking the ingredients on EVERYTHING. Pushed aside processed foods, said good-bye to chemical cleaning supplies and began a plant based diet. It was not a coincidence that our first born was about to indulge in more than breast milk. Geez, those babies make you rearrange so much, and thankfully so. Our household was meat free, except for BLT's and the occasional burger in the summer for the Hubby. Oh, and that empty spot on our plate where the meat used to be, we filled up with more fruit, vegetables, nuts, seed, whole grains and legumes. Super tasty and the health benefits can't lie.
I felt like I had to learn to cook all over again. Meat had always been the "main course" and focus. Its been a really fun time learning to make Veggies be the "star" of dinner time. The first site I started using on a regular basis was Vegetarian Times, which is good. But Isa Chandra Moskowitz from Post Punk Kitchen has gotten me thinking about food on whole other level. Her recipes "please the meat eaters" and are drool worthy. I mean, she makes Queso out of Cashews! Who knew?! Burgers out of Beets! Whaaa! She has a few cookbooks out there, and they are superb. By the way she's a fellow Nebraskan. So, why not support a local and healthy food at the same time?
I think this whole change in my mindset about food and creating a healthy relationship with food has had a very positive effect on the way I feel about myself and my body.
This quote by Kate Winslet really got me inspired, just maybe I discovered it on Pinterest but hey, who's keeping track:
“As a child, I never heard one woman say to me, ‘I love my body.’ Not my mother, my elder sister, my best friend. Not one woman has ever said, ‘I am so proud of my body.’ So I make sure to say it to Mia, because a positive physical outlook has to start at an early age.”
- Tarah NelsonWow. How eye opening for me. I needed to start focusing on all the good things my body has done for me and quit being so hard on myself. I've made a point to say "I feel beautiful today" (and really believe it) in front of my 3 year old daughter. Its not always when I've spent an hour getting ready sometimes I say it when I'm wearing yesterdays smeared makeup, haven't touched my hair and I'm wearing my jammies at two in the afternoon. I realized how important my self-image of myself was to my daughter's own self-image. I don't ever want her or my son to be confused about what "beautiful" is. Disney princesses and Barbies make it hard enough. We are all beautiful, so lets start believing it.
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