The DIY Pantry

Once in a while I come across a great cookbook that I think is worth taking up space on my bookshelf and that I'm super excited to try lots of the recipes from.

Honestly I love browsing and looking through recipe books but I don't very often like following recipes. Nine times out of 10 I think of something I would like to try or make then I search through 6 or 8 recipes that are similar to what I want to make and then I write down my own recipe that is similar to the ones I have researched but I've added my own tastes to it.

There are very few recipe books that I have that I will just take the recipe and make it as is and I know that the recipes will be healthy and tasty just how I like them. One of those books I talk about HERE.

And just recently I came across this book and knew it needed to have a place on my book shelf. The DIY Pantry was written by Kresha Faber from Nourishing Joy. Although it's a recipe book it's unlike any recipe book I have ever seen.

You won't find meals to make in this book, no.....it's full of pantry staple items. Kresha has taken things that most people would just buy from the store and stock their pantry with.....like seasoning mixes, boxed items, preserves and all sorts of other packaged goods and she has created homemade recipes that you can make to fill your pantry with.

The thing I of course love most about it is that I am all about making as many things as possible from scratch that way you know what is in them. I was so excited to get my hands on this book and start trying out the recipes.

The only thing I didn't like was that there wasn't pictures of the recipes....but then as I thought about it.....since they aren't meals they aren't really as exciting to have a picture of. So even though I love having pictures of what I'm making, it probably isn't as important for this type of recipe book.

I have been following Kresha's blog for a while now and the recipes of hers that I have tried have always been excellent! I don't have to tweak them they always turn out good....tried and true. I like recipes like that!....It's exactly what I'm picky about with the recipes that I share.

I made the Chocolate Hazelnut Spread the other day and it was a big hit at our house. My kids have never experienced Nutella, I didn't have blanched and peeled hazelnuts and wasn't about to peel each one so it was a bit grainy because of that but we didn't care. Next time I'll be sure to get hazelnuts without the skins on.

Another thing that I really like is that all the recipes in her book take about 30 minutes or less to make. They are simple, comprehensive and tasty pantry items that aren't complicated and time consuming. I highly recommend this book for anyone who loves to have a healthy whole foods pantry and loves the simplicity of making things from scratch.

The DIY Pantry: 30 Minutes to Healthy, Homemade Food

The DIY Pantry features 165+ recipes for delicious homemade versions of your favorite store-bought foods. The recipes are crafted to mimic your favorite foods and each recipe can be made with less than 30 minutes of hands-on time.

With The DIY Pantry, you can break free from processed foods and learn to make healthy, delicious meals without spending hours in the kitchen or breaking the bank. From artisan breads and aromatic seasonings to irresistible treats like Black-and-White Sandwich Cookies and Peppermint Patties, this book shows you how to stock your pantry with all the ingredients you need to make all your favorite meals.

Buy now at your local bookstore or buy it at Amazon.

Homeschooling from the Perspective of a Girl at 17

So before I start this post written by my 17 year old daughter, Missy.....I want all you Moms to know that even though our family loves homeschooling (especially the HOME part) we know that it isn't for everyone. Please take our excitement of it for what it's worth and just know that we encourage you to choose what works best for you and your family and leave the guilt behind. ;)


Alright, so many of you guys know that my mom homeschools us kids. She absolutely loves it, but I always think it’s nice to have the products opinion too. So what does yours truly think about this whole weird homeschooling thing? *Big grin* Gosh, you’re in for a treat!

Before I was old enough to be put in public school, my mom felt like she should homeschool. I guess my dad wasn’t as excited about it. Let’s just say she got him on her side. And so it began. I didn’t really know what was going on. I’d always been at home, I didn’t know anything was supposed to change. My mom started to teach me how to read. We got involved in a co-op group, where I made friends there that are still some of my besties to this day. That’s all I really remember about the beginning.

Eventually I realized that I was weird just because I didn’t go to “Normal School.” But as I recall, everyone was more envious than anything else. And darn, they ought to have been! ;) My mom eventually learned about TJed and not a bit too soon. She learned about the Keys of learning:

1. Classics, not text books.
2. Mentors, not professors.
3. Inspire, not require.
4. Structure time, not content.
5. Quality, not conformity.
6. Simple, not complex.
7. You, not them.

            - Oliver DeMille

Kinda different from public school.  Mom decided to give it a go. Much to my thanks! I guess she was a little nervous, though I’m not sure why. She began to fill our home with the best learning resource ever. Books! Not just any books, good books. The best books. Classics. She inspires us by doing what she loves and encouraging us to do the same. It’s so simple! She mentors us even if it’s not really her doing the lessons. She provides wisdom, help and support.

I lived off of Little House, Dr. Suess, The Boxcar Children and Louis L'amour for the first few elementary years of my life. Soon adding in other things as I got older. Like Little Women and anything having to do with history. Now I read a little bit of everything. Scratch that. A LOT of everything.

Books are my primary sustenance. Have been for as long as I can remember. Give me a few good books, a stack of notebooks and an endless supply of pencils and you’ll never hear from me again. Books, isn’t all of it though. I’ve taken lots of online and live classes where I can speak with other mentors associate with like minded people, where I can learn outside of the pages of a book.

I don’t know what I would do without any of them. As I’ve gotten older I’ve wanted less play and more study time. My parents actually have to tell me to quit studying. By leaving me mostly alone I’ve learned more than I ever would have with a super stiff and structured schedule at home or at school.

My mom loves homeschooling. She loves it not just because it’s so easy for her, it’s so easy for all of us. We are getting the quality education each of us kids need individually. We can focus on what makes us great. I’ve always wondered why we cram a bunch of kids in one place all day long teaching them all the same thing and then say we are all different and no two people are alike. Home educating individualizes it for the mother, father and each child.

Homeschooling allows me to be myself without having to be afraid of anything. It’s so adaptable that it works for any family. Words can’t accurately describe how much I love homeschool, and hey, words are my thing. When my public school friends say their school is fun and I ask why the only answer I get is the social aspect of it. Yeah...I’m not going to go into that one. ;) I have friends. Pinky swear. 

Life rocks guys! Live it to the fullest.

- Missy, The Happy Friend

(Just in case you were curious, here is my top ten favorite books list.)

1. Elantris by Brandon Sanderson
2. Les Miserables by Victor Hugo
3. Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury
4. The 5000 Year Leap by Cleon Skousen.
5. Rich Dad, Poor Dad by Robert T Kiyosaki
6. The Lord Of the Rings by J.R.R Tolken
7. The Last Battle/Narnia C.S Lewis
8. Leadershift Oliver DeMille and Orrin Woodward
9. The Real Thomas Jefferson by Andrew Allison
10. The Count of Monte Cristo

(I could go on much longer than that….) :D

Missy's other post: The Simple Healthy Life of a 17 Year Old Girl

Five things that Help when I'm Feeling Overwhelmed

You may not know this about me but I tend to be very easily overwhelmed. Sometimes to the point of near paralysis. I know this can be frustrating for Ryan but I have learned to manage. Being a Mom for over 17 years now has taught me a few things.

When I start to go into that perfectionist mommy mode, thinking I need to do it all and be everything for everybody....When the guilt tries to creep in and the overwhelm sometimes feels crushing, I have found it really helps to do these 5 things:

1. First thing I STOP and take a few deep breaths. Ryan will know I'm feeling particularly overwhelmed because I will taking big deep sighs. But you know what it really can help. Although it doesn't usually solve it so that's when I go on to the next step.
   
2. I ask myself: Will this matter 10 years from now? Pretty much every time not only will it not matter ten years from now it will likely not even matter next week and sometimes not even the next day. I find this perspective really helps to keep me grounded and focused on what really matters. It's almost funny how uptight I can get over things that really are of little or no consequence. It really isn't worth stressing over things that don't matter long term. When I realize that, I am able to chill out just a bit and it lifts a large majority of the burden I may be feeling at the time.
   
3. I eat something! If it can be high in healthy fats, minerals and protein, like a green smoothie with added hemp seed and coconut oil all the better but if that's too overwhelming to make, try to just grab something. A nut mix, celery sticks with peanut butter......just try to make it healthy! (sorry friends chocolate isn't the answer here save that for the big emergencies ;) Nine times out of 10 having a full stomach helps me to calm down and think more clearly.
   
4. Check the Calendar! No don't look at all the things your not getting done or places you need to be. Look and see where you are in your cycle.....more often then not my biggest overwhelm times come at that time of the month. If that's the case I repeat steps 1, 2 and 3. Then I grab a good book, leave all the "to-dos" undone and take as long of a reading break as I can. (obviously if your kids are really little it won't be for very long but I found even just little "check-out" times are helpful) This usually helps calm me down a lot. I also keep aware that the next few days I may not be myself but remember that it's just PMS and it will soon be over. I also have worked on things that help alleviate PMS.....But that is a post for another time.
   
5. And last of all and most important I make sure to lay on the GRACE not the guilt! This isn't easy I get caught in the mommy guilt trap like we all do. I have those blasted broken records that try to play that tell me I'm not good enough, that I'm ruining the kids, that the husband works so much because he hates to be home, that one that says so and so can do it all why can't you.............and on and on and on.....I'm guessing you - know the one. Well through leaning on my Savior and relying on His grace I have been creating new records that speak truth.....that I am good enough, that I'm a daughter of God, that he loves me, that he is forgiving, that he knows we learn from our mistakes, that I am doing His work! Oh and the husband tells me his favorite place to be is here and I believe him because....... .......well he's terrible at lying ;)

And since we are speaking of overwhelm have you seen how many books are in The Ultimate Homemaking Bundle? Honestly there is so much to it that it's easy for me to get overwhelmed.....but the overload of info that we have these days doesn't need to overwhelm us it's okay to pick and choose and at such a great price you only need to get like 2 or 3 read and it pays for itself and you certainly shouldn't feel guilty if you can't get them all read.

Right now I have only been working on getting two books read. I finished The Undivided Mom last night. And I'm almost through Steady Days! These would be excellent books to read when feeling overwhelmed. Both Kayse and Jamie talk right from the heart and share examples from real life. So inspiring and motivating yet comforting....I think every young Mom should read these books! So helpful.

I know there are other gems in the bundle just waiting for me to uncover them in my hour of need. But in the meantime  here's a video that shows how you can make use of the bundle all year long! Remember don't be overwhelmed....  
Just love much, do the best you can and be sure to give yourself plenty of grace!









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Healthify it Tammie.....Pinterest Board!

So a lot of times when I'm on Pinterest or looking for a recipe I come across some amazing looking food that I would love to try. My little sister likes to call this "food porn" you have to know my sister. ;)






Many times the ingredients in the recipe don't exactly fit our Simple Healthy Lifestyle. So I bookmark it and think, "Hey I'll come back to it and healthify it one of these first days." Well if you saw how cluttered and disorganized my bookmarks are (not too mention the shear number of them ;) you would know that I have a better chance of happening across it again and remembering to work on it then I do ever finding it among my bookmarks.

Why I bother to bookmark anything is beyond me. I haven't wanted to use pinterest to pin these recipes onto a pinterest board because 1) I didn't want you to think I was pinning these recipes to make for my family.....I live by the mantra example is the best teacher and although I'm far from perfect I didn't want to come across as a poor example, especially when we weren't even eating that stuff. ;) and 2) I didn't want to add to the much temptation that you see on your pinterest feeds.

I have debated about a secret board but then I came up with this really fun solution! I have created a Healthify it Tammie pinterest board. When I come across something that I think would be so fun to healthify I'll pin it there where it will be safe and where I will easily be reminded about the things I wanted to make healthy.





The Healthify it Tammie Pinterest Board

Also.....and here's the fun part: When you come across something that you would like to make but wish it was healthier you can tag me just by adding a comment to the pin with @SimpleHealthy Tammie and then I'll pin it to the board.

All the recipes that I want to try to healthify will be easy for me to find and then if I am able to perfect them I will post about it and then either pin the post on that same board or maybe create another one I haven't decided yet. We'll see how it goes.

In the mean time be sure to follow The Healthify it Tammie board and/or all my boards at http://www.pinterest.com/simplehealthy/

In other fun announcements:

There is another ultimate bundle ready to launch in 2 weeks that my newest ebook My Simple Health Life will be in along with more than 80 others. It will be a homemaking bundle this time and it is AWESOME so get ready for that......there will be more details soon.

Also one of my favorite books from the healthy living bundle is on sale now through the 13th. Get 25% off by using coupon code CRUMBS25!

And last of all even if you missed the first 2 days of the Mom Conference be sure to catch today. It looks like there are lots of healthy type presentations that I'm going to be sure to catch.




I hope you are having a fabulous week!

Food Photography

Just a quick reminder that the Mom Conference starts in 3 days! Have you seen the line-up of speakers and presentations? I think it will be a lot of fun I love learning from other Mothers!



For some time now I have been trying to be a little better with the photography of my food. I'll be the first to admit that a photographer I am not! It's not really something I enjoy doing. But I do love and appreciate a good quality photo and I don't think a good recipe is complete without a good photo of the finished product.

A few years ago I saved up money and got me a nicer camera. Notice it's still a point and shoot I needed it to be simple or I would really hate using it. It does have some manual settings and has been a camera I am very happy with!

I still felt like most of my food pictures didn't do justice to how good the food was. So a while back when I came across the Tasty Food Photography book at Pinch of Yum, I knew it was something I should read. I didn't expect miracles but I was hoping to at least improve.




I still don't love taking pictures but I do think putting some of the advice from the book into practice has helped......A LOT!  My biggest problem has been getting enough natural light. (Which I didn't really understand until reading this ebook) Since this blog is a hobby that pretty much pays for itself I don't make dinners in the middle of the day just so I can have good lighting.

I don't cook for my blog I cook for my family and most of the things I make and quickly take a picture of are just before we eat dinner and usually light is not the best at that time. I realized lighting was the biggest factor in the quality of my pictures.

So I started looking for something that would help me bring more natural looking light to my pictures. Like a mini studio or something but it had to be compact and affordable. Hobby remember. ;) That's when I found and ordered this.

So to try it out I thought I would do a retake a couple of  couple least photogenic foods that I have posted. (You know those ones that are just really hard to make look good especially if you are a total amateur like me.) Be sure to click on over to the recipes to see how the other pictures came out.

The first one was my Creamy Vegetable Soup:

Here is the before picture:

And here is the after:

The other was Mac and Cheese:

Before:

After:

Now remember least photogenic. It would probably help more if I got some props or garnish or something. I'm still working on what props might help non-photogenic foods look good. But I still think there is quite a bit of improvement and I'm excited to be able to at least get decent lighting no matter what's going on outside my window. I'll keep practicing. I don't see me ever becoming a pro but I hope at least that when you see one of my recipe pictures you will think, "Yummy I want to make that!"

Chores, My Favorite Method

So I finally found a moment to sit down and share my very most favorite chore system I have ever used. I had tried many different little systems. We had a "chore store" once, that lasted maybe two weeks, I have tried a bean jar, many different types of charts and I even had Ryan make up this awesome wood board with lots of little hooks to move chore tags I had made around.

The last one lasted the longest at about a month (then we tried to make it work for quite a few months after that but it was really hit and miss when we would use it) but only because we had worked so hard to make it I didn't want to see it fail. But oh it failed. I think I tried about every program out there. Until one day it dawned on me that it wasn't that they weren't all good programs it was just that none of them fit my personality.

I'm not a hovering type of Mom.....I believe that freedom and responsibility brings more freedom and responsibility and that natural consequences seem to bring the most learning and growth. Don't we all remember things better and grow more when we learn from our mistakes.

Just yesterday it was a beautiful day and the kids were all excited to go to the park. When it was time to go there were a number of chores that had not been finished so they missed out on the opportunity to go to the park on a nice wind free day (those are few and far between around here this time of year). Kids are fast learners and they catch on pretty quickly when it comes to learning what it takes to get what you want.

So I started to think long and hard about what type of system would fit my personality as a Mom and teach my children responsibility. It took my quite a while of thinking and planning but I eventually figured out a system that has worked and we have maintained it for over 7 years now.

Every six months to a year I update it and change things around but this only takes about 30-40 minutes. Once the initial time commitment and planning are taken care of it takes very little of my time to maintain. My favorite part is that we don't count up points or keep track of silly little motivational gimmicks.

I'm not the kind of Mother that follows through with such things. I like natural consequences. Like if you don't do your dishes well on your dish day you get to do dishes again the next day on someone elses day. Or things like the park example above. They seem more natural to me and there is no bribery or allowances involved.

Alright here it is my favorite method:

Years ago I sat down and listed all the household duties that needed to be done to maintain order and cleanliness in our home. Then I divided them up into Daily and Weekly items. It went something like this:

Daily Items

These first few are fairly self explanatory they all do them every day.

Make Bed
Get Dressed
Comb Hair
Brush Teeth
Read Scriptures
Say Prayers

Clean Room – I used to be more of a stickler about this being a daily thing. But now that they are older and their bedrooms are in the basement so I kind of let them be in charge of how they want to keep it picked up. They don’t keep toys in their rooms so usually it doesn’t usually get too bad. They are required to clean their rooms up really good at least once a week before we vacuum.

Dishes – Each child has one or two dish days a week, depending on age and ability. On their day they are responsible for keeping up with the dishes and keeping the kitchen in order. Of course everyone helps but it is mainly that child’s responsibility.

Sweeping and Mopping – This also needs to be done frequently so each child who is able is assigned one or two days a week. We sweep more often then we mop. We mopped a lot more often when the kids were younger.

Garbage taken out – Again this is done often I have assigned this to the boys and they basically take turns taking it out.

Basic Picking up – This can’t be done often enough. I used to assign different rooms out to each child and rotated it every time I changed up the chore chart. Now that the kids are older I don’t have this assigned they just know it is up to them to keep stuff picked up. Sometimes they are better at it than others. If it gets bad I can usually just ask one or two of them to pick up a certain room that needs it and they can pickup really quickly.

Weekly Items

Laundry – Yep I’m one of those who has a weekly laundry day and we dig in, do it once a week and get it over with until the next week. It works for me! Each bedroom has a laundry basket that they put their dirty clothes in. They are each assigned a bedroom to get the laundry basket from and take it to the laundry room and sort it. On their chore list they are each assigned specific loads of laundry they are in charge of. They take care of that loads washing, drying and folding. Then they all put their own clothes away.

Dusting – I change this up sometimes I have one child in charge of it all the time. Right now each child has a week that they are in charge.

Vacuuming and Bathrooms– This happens every Friday. One Child does the upstairs one does the basement. Then the other one with the help of the youngest (who can’t quite use a vacuum yet) cleans the bathrooms and vacuums the stairs with the little vacuum. This just rotates every week.

Less often items are part of Thursday Rotation. Which I will explain below. Thursday Rotation is a concept that I came up with that I love! It takes the pressure off spring cleaning and the like.

I just take this list and divide everything up and make a list for each child that looks something like these:

Some of the seasonal type chores are included in the Thursday Rotation. But there are others that are so unpredictable that I just assign as needed. Like mowing the lawn or snow shoveling, weeding, garden chores etc.

Thursday Rotation

This is my favorite part of my system. I know if the kids are following their chore charts and then we take a little time once a week (obviously we chose Thursday) to do what I affectionately call Thursday Rotation....then I know that our home is staying pretty well maintained, cleaned and even for the most part deep cleaned without much time or effort on our part. 

Here is a link to my list in Word or click on Icon Below. I will take and assign (by putting their name in bold in front of each item) each job. Even Dad has his name by a few items on this list. I have deleted our names but this is the current list we are using. At the bottom of the page you will see our family motto and this years scripture.

That pretty much covers it. As you can see it's nothing fancy and very practical but I have found it works really well for me. I hope I explained it well but if you have any questions please feel free to ask in the comments below!

   

Environment is Key

Today I'm taking off my food blogging hat and blogging with my Homeschool Mom hat on. (Not something I do very often.) But with almost 15 years of homeschooling under my belt. I hope maybe I have a few things to offer.

Many of my thoughts and ideas have and still do come from Leadership Education, The Phases of Learning. I can't recommend it highly enough to ALL parents homeschooling or not.

Check my post out over at The Laundry Moms!
Please feel free to show your support by sharing, liking and commenting. Thanks a bunch.

The Simple Healthy Life of a 17 year old girl

Hi there! I’m Missy. I’m 17 years old and crazy about life. Today I want to tell you a little bit about my life growing up in the Simple, Healthy Home.

   

As a little girl I really didn’t think much about it. It was just life. I had really never known anything else and what I had was good. Why change? I knew I was a little different, but I didn’t care. I just wanted food to fill my stomach, books to read, something to write in where no one would be able to see my handwriting and spelling. But mostly I needed time to pretend I was Laura Ingalls and my little brother to play with me. 

I knew my family and I could eat some things and didn’t eat others. I didn’t know why, other than the fact that my mom said so. When I started getting older I began to wonder more. Why was I so different? Why did we homeschool? Why did we believe what we did? Why did we eat weirder than anyone else I knew? I caught on to the homeschooling thing pretty fast, and all my best friends have very similar beliefs so that’s never been an issue either. But being a teenager and the food thing…. :P

As I got older I went more places on my own. And food is everywhere! You can’t go to a social gathering anyplace without at least some cookies, or pizza, or soda, and chocolate, and…. You know what I mean. Lets just say that I get hungry like everybody else and give in to the call for food, healthy or not.

I realized pretty fast that some things don’t have a very pleasant effect on me. And other things I just don’t have a taste for, at all. (Bacon and Soda. *gag*) The thing is I didn’t know why some food wasn’t good for me, and I probably never will understand it all like my mom. But I do know that the world has some really bad habits when it comes to food. Especially at social gatherings.

People ask me what it’s like being a teenager with the Simple, Healthy Lifestyle, because we all know teens aren’t exactly what you call healthy. Late nights, early mornings, and lots of Junk Food. Let me just say that it isn’t easy, and I don’t always make the best choices. But it really isn’t that complicated either. What is it exactly that I do? Here are 8 things I do in teenage social food situations.

1. If you can, bring something to share.

2. Don’t go completely starving or it will be harder to resist the temptations.

3. Eat what you know you can have.

4. Have like-minded friends that are a little weird themselves. That way you can probably eat more of what is there. ;)

5. Invite everyone to your house! (Homemade Waffles, Kettle popcorn, Quesadillas and Limeade, Mmmmm. Everybody loves it!)

6. If you know you aren’t going to gorge yourself you can eat a little of whatever you want.

7. Homemade stuff is better than processed nastiness. (It taste better too.)

8. Just listen to your body!

I’ve changed a lot since I was a little girl. I know there is a very clear reason why I do what I do and what my family does. Even if I don’t quite understand all of it yet. All I really need is good food to eat, books about everything to read, a huge variety of music to listen to, weird family and friends to spend my time with, something to write with so one day people can read it. And most importantly, time to learn, study, and dream. 

If you’re scared of being “weird,” don’t be. It really isn’t that hard, and it’s actually a lot of fun! You just have to know the reason why you’re doing it all. :D

Missy, The Happy Friend

High Protein, No Powder

I just had to let you know about this giveaway! Many of you know how much I love my Blendtec Blender and that it is my most used plug-in kitchen tool EVER. I use it by far more than the rest.......at LEAST once a day usually more. I can't recommend it enough.

And since I know everyone can't win and a Blendtec can be a pretty big investment I thought some of you might like looking into getting  $100 Off + Free Shipping On Blendtec Refurbished Blenders I own 2 Blendtec Total Blender, multiple blender jars including the twister jar . Blendtec for sure makes my time in the kitchen faster and easier!



As part of the launch of her new book, Tiffany is giving away a Blendtec over at her blog Don't Waste the Crumbs. While your there be sure to grab her new ebook High Protein, No Powder! I was able to review a copy as part of the Ultimate Healthy Living Bundle and it was one of my very favorites. Full of excellent recipes with great ingredients and lots of good information too! Get your copy now while they are on sale.

Some of the Books I'm Anxious to Read

This book....

looks very interesting to me.  Depression especially during pregnancy and postpartum seems to be so rampant and unpredictable.  It can be chronic or sometimes just hit out of the blue. (no pun intended)  I have known people who were always positive and optimistic, all of a sudden......or at least it seems........have it hit.  Nothing is wrong but nothing is right and that makes it even harder.  I want to learn more.   

In fact all the books in the Natural Health and Healing section look interesting to read.  But it is of course one of my favorite subjects.  I actually already own The Curative Kitchen which focuses on a whole foods plant based diet and talks specifically about 21 of individual super healing foods. (Very informative if your a nutrition geek like me you will love it!)  And I have had Herbal Nurturing since it first came out.  It's a great little book full of wonderful herbal remedies.  Speaking of herbal remedies.....

I have a number of Rosalee's books but not this one.  She knows her stuff and if your like me you can't have too many herbal remedy books!

Click here for all the details.

And of course I think these look fun too.  Again I already have Healthy Homemaking and Restocking the Pantry but I still save! The $29.97 price is less then the price of the first two books I want.  It's kind of a no brainer.  Plus I can use any book I end up owning two of as a gift. 

 









And I sure wish I had had resources like these 17 years ago when I started having babies.

 

But it's never too late for a book like this. I have one of Nony's other books and I really like her style.  She's practical, down to earth, honest and very funny.  She gets rid of the fluff and down to the point in a very humorous way.  My kids don't want me to have this book but I'm looking forward to reading it.

Those are just a few that caught my eye.  What ones interest you?

Affiliate links within. I make a portion of the sale of each bundle. 
Thanks for your support! Read my full disclosure here. 

A Simple Healthy Pregnancy - My Thoughts

I get a lot of questions on how I kept nutrition up when I was pregnant and nursing while still following a Simple, Healthy, Tasty Lifestyle.  I have been thinking about it a lot and it's high time I posted my thoughts about it.  I think to make it easier I will just make a list of what I did and/or would do if I had it to do again.  Quite honestly I have learned a lot since my last baby and would do a few things different.  I also asked both of my Sister's (since they have both had had a baby within the past year) and my good friend (who has 6 kids including twins who are almost 2) about it just in case I had forgotten something.  Also please don't forget that this is just what works for me and my own opinion.  Obviously keeping nutrition up as much as possible is just good common sense for building a healthy baby.  But it may look a little different for each person. 

Drink Your Nutrition

		Green Smoothies (at least a quart 3x's a week 4 or 5 times a week would be better)
		Calc Punch  DRINK LOTS!
		Raspberry Leaf Tea with Peppermint-DRINK LOTS! (or Women's Balancing)
		Ormus Greens w/ Liquid Light - Drink on the days you don't have a smoothie
		Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Juices- Drink when craving....so good for you & baby
		Nettle Infusion- (or more Women's Balancing herbal tea)
		Chia Drink- make a quart a week, drink as needed

Whole Food Supplements

		B-Complex, I like Megafood Brand, 1 a day
		Zinc, again Megafood Brand, 1 a day
		Capsulated Alfalfa, Yellow Dock and Kelp-High in Minerals-can prevent anemia*
		B-12 Spray, 3-6 sprays a day under tongue
		Wheat Germ Oil Capsules, 1 morning and night
		Cod Liver Oil Capsules, 2 a day

		Bee Pollen- add up to one tsp. to smoothie-be sure no allergies by starting small
		Maca, I buy the powder and add 1 teaspoon to my Green Smoothie
		Rosehips- again I add to Smoothie - High in Vitamin C
		Flax seed oil and flax seeds, add to smoothie or mix with Organic Cottage Cheese

Get Plenty of Protein

		Hemp Seed is a complete protein, has all essential amino and fatty acids
		Wild Alaska Salmon-great source of Omega 3's and Protein
		Free Range Organic Eggs
		Chia seed contains 18 of the 22 amino acids-another complete protein
		Quinoa, Millet, Buckwheat-All complete proteins
		Loved this smoothie when I was pregnant-full of protein

Don't Forget the Fat

		Eat Plenty of good fats - you and your baby need it!
		Extra-Virgin Coconut oil
		Extra-Virgin Olive oil
		Avocados
		Grass Fed Butter
		Coconut Milk

Natural Helps for Common Complaints

		Nausea-Raspberry leaf and peppermint tea, Ginger Chews, Ginger Capsules
		I also like the Panda Licorice w/herbs to help with Nausea
		Anemia-Liquid Chlorophyll, Black Strap Molasses, also see*above
		Constipation-Plenty of water and fiber-whole foods are full of fiber ;)
		Blood Sugar issues-whole foods-Stevia over other sweeteners
		Heartburn- Apple Cider Vinegar
		Insomnia- Cayenne and Lobelia

EXERCISE

		Walking is really the best, low impact, fresh air, sunshine
		Yoga
		Pilates
		Swimming
		Remember to start slow if you are new to any type of exercise use common sense

A little note from me:
I got looking at this list and thought that everyone will think that it is some sort of hugeish commercial. Please know that I have used or use everything here and just linked it to the brands and places that I like and have found most affordable.  Also a healthy pregnancy can obviously happen without doing everything on the list.  You won't do it anyway if it is too complicated and doesn't work for you so make it work for you.

It looks complicated but I still follow similar nutrition and habits.  I drink a green smoothie more often then not, I take whole food supplements, herbs, and teas that I feel help nourish me.  I use natural means for illness or complaints and I exercise regularly.  It's really just principles of good nutrition.  I think the whole food method is a lot more healthy then the synthetic vitamin way.  But I also think that someone can be very healthy eat just whole food without any supplements at all they just have to be very diligent in this day and age.

Also I have to tell you that I went through 2 pregnancies without any animal products.  It can be done but by the end of the second one I felt.....well mostly really, really, tired!  I'm sure I got fairly depleted although my baby was super healthy....biggest one yet....and had no issues.  I was just learning about green smoothies though.  Anyway my point is it can be done but you have to be even more diligent with nutrition.  Again be wise and listen to your body.

If you have some of your own thoughts about having a Simple Healthy Pregnancy please feel free to share in the comments.  My most useful information has come from other Mother's sharing their experiences with me.  Or if you have questions and need help sorting all this out ask away I'll do best to answer them.

In Health,

Tammie