If you have followed me for any length of time, you know, that I have a unique mothering environment with my two sets of twins. Yes, that is two 7-year-olds and two 3-year-olds! Before I had kids, I was always the person who said they never wanted kids! And now, I have four!! Isn’t that fantastic!!
Now I have moments that are surreal…
Are these four little people really mine?
Am I good enough to cut it as a mom of two sets of twins?
Am I doing everything I can to help them thrive, not just as kids but as adults?
Always learning: my kids are my teachers
I have always been the first one to admit my wrongs, work on improving my health and adjust what I am doing when I find a better system. I have found that motherhood is no different. My kids have been my greatest teachers. I am not the same parent today (thank goodness!) that I was when the boys were little. Not only have I changed how I “react” to different situations, but I have changed how I communicate with the kids.
Develop a system that works for you: Then learn how to maintain flexibility within your system!
Every mom has a parenting system. I have learned a lot of amazing tools from other moms! As moms, we know that there is nothing static about motherhood. In fact, the key to function is to have flexibility within your system.
Today we are talking about a system for feeding your kids!
Feeding kids is a massive job! It is not like feeding adults! Kids are often unpredictable and preferences today may not be the same as yesterday. More importantly, the lifelong health of your kids depends on what they are eating during the critical developmental years! What they are eating, or more importantly, not eating will shape their health for the rest of their lives. So, there is your purpose…lifelong health of your kids!
Let’s talk about a system: Find your ground rules and then build your plan
I use the chalkboard system within the framework of my rules for nutrition! My system, for me, is seamless! It takes the difficult part of planning and simplifies it into an easy process that works every single day!!
Learn more about my system and work with me on customizing a system for you and your family!
Identifying your nutrition rules: A framework for yourself and your children
There are SO many options and opinions about nutrition. Take an already massive job of feeding kids and add the confusion about what is actually best when it comes to nutrition then finish it off with the ups and downs of kids’ food preferences and you have a daunting job!
Let’s make it less daunting!!
My Family Nutrition Rules: What we minimize and avoid!
Avoid gluten-containing processed grains: This includes store-bought bread, pasta, baked goods, crackers, and chips.
Avoid industrial seed oils: This includes canola, safflower, sunflower, corn, peanut, soy, and cottonseed oils.
Avoid food dyes, high fructose corn syrup, and artificial sweeteners: This is 110% across the board as all three are directly correlated with chronic disease.
Minimize pasteurized conventional dairy products: This includes cheese, milk and yogurt, and ice cream. I say minimize because, one day per week the boys get the option of hanging out with Dad playing baseball, earning a new toy, or going to get homemade ice cream (which is made with conventional products, but no additives).
Minimize consumption of conventional proteins: If we are at a family event or the kids are at a friend’s house, there is also a cost to being the kid eating something different than everyone else. When it comes to exposure to conventional protein every once in a while, the risk of ill effects is minimal.
Avoid farm-raised fish: This is an absolute!
Minimize exposure to conventional produce that is on the dirty dozen list: Again, this is a minimize because if we are at an event where the choice is conventional grapes and strawberries versus pasteurized dairy cheese and crackers, I am going for the grapes and strawberries.
These rules helped me heal from two twin pregnancies! Let me tell you… for optimal function for me, there was a lot of healing required!
They also help me stay consistent when feeding four children!!
My hope for you is that it offers a system, a framework for you when meal planning for you and your family! 🙂