This is my oldest son, "The Wild One." True to his nickname he came out screaming and has not really
quieted down since. He was a pretty intense baby and my mind was a
whirlwind thinking that this motherhood thing was a lot different than I
had imagined! Right around the time that he turned eighteen months,
things really escalated. He did some pretty odd things behavior-wise,
was not talking much, and was a very sensitive and difficult little
toddler. Enourmous meltdowns would errupt at the tiniest things - like
someone saying hello to him or a sudden movement someone made. I feel
like I had tried everything to help him be happy and meet his needs, but
felt I was failing, and was very worried. At routine checkups doctors
started casually throwing around the term "autism" which scares any
mother, let alone a brand new mother. I was at a loss for what to do,
and felt helpless. At times I couldn't even get him to focus on my face
as his attention was all over the place. Feeling I had exhausted all
my efforts, I turned to my last resort - nutrition.
I had always been very interested in exercise,
nutrition, and health in general. I am an avid runner, and studied
exercise science in college. Our church teaches nutritional guidelines,
which I tried to follow. As a result I thought I was feeding our
family pretty healthy. Until I really started researching more and
more. Turns out there was SO MUCH more I could be doing, and so many
things that I could cut out that were a routine staple in our house
(like goldfish). I slowly started making changes in what we ate, with
my main focus being: Whole foods, foods that exist in nature, and very
little artificial ingredients or chemicals (if any). If it came in a
box, I tried not to buy it. If I had to, I made sure it had only a
couple ingredients. Something amazing happened. The Wild One slowly
started showing signs of change. He was suddenly content to sit on my
lap while I read a few pages in a book with him. He started looking me
in the eyes. He acted happy and even sweet. Yes, he was still wild
(still is), but he was a very different little boy.
This small progress was very exciting to my husband
and me, and we hit a turning point in the way our family eats. I
started gobbling up as much information that I could, and started a blog
about the progress we were making in becoming as healthy as we could as
a family.
The choices I make for what our family eats are
based on this question: "Would my Great Grandmother recognize what I am
about to put in my mouth?" If the answer is yes, I go for it. So much
of the food out there today is marketed so that we think we are buying a
product that is good for us. When you turn it over and look at the
ingredients, it is filled with 52 unpronounceable items. What is it we
are putting in our bodies? I make many things from scratch, and we eat
lots of fruits, vegetables, and whole grains.
The results? We are more in tune with our bodies. I can easily detect when I am satisfied, and rarely overeat. My husband comments to me all the time that he feels so good. He says he never really recognized he felt bad until he started feeling good, because he had been used to eating poorly. The children eat a wide variety of fruits and vegetables and have energy to play, without acting completely kamakazi. But I mean let's face it- kids are (and boys in particular) wild. But there is less strange behavior. And way less meltdowns (mom included). :)
The results? We are more in tune with our bodies. I can easily detect when I am satisfied, and rarely overeat. My husband comments to me all the time that he feels so good. He says he never really recognized he felt bad until he started feeling good, because he had been used to eating poorly. The children eat a wide variety of fruits and vegetables and have energy to play, without acting completely kamakazi. But I mean let's face it- kids are (and boys in particular) wild. But there is less strange behavior. And way less meltdowns (mom included). :)
Of course, as with anything in life, the hard part
is balancing it. I try not to be that wack-o mom that only lets her
child bust into berries and homemade whipping cream for their first
brithday instead of a big slice of cake. Cake? Yes please!! Nothing
is forced and I try to make food very much a non-issue in the house. I
provide healthy, yummy things to eat, and they are for the most part
eaten. But we do indulge in some serious desserts in moderation.
As women, we always tend to feel guilty about
something (staying home with kids vs. working outside the home, losing
our tempers, not getting enough exercise, owning/wearing one too many
pair of mom jeans, never making any of the items we pin on pinterest.
The bottom line is: If you are doing your best, it is enough! We need
to give ourselves a break. Do what you can, and don't feel guilty
about the rest. Place priorites about what you think is important, and
try to stick with it and be patient when it's not perfect. For me at
this stage in life, my priorities are my family, feeding them right, and
teaching my children how to be good people.
We've since added another little boy, and the nutrition thing is a work in progress. I sometimes make a heavy, rock hard bread wad instead of real bread, and on occassion I do purposely feed my kids goldfish. But we are still alive. And thriving! And for me, that is enough.
Isn't she great? Thank you again Austyn for sharing your story on my blog!
Do you know someone (they don't have to be a blogger) that is an amazing Mormon Woman like Austyn? If you do than have them contact me because we all have something to share and this just may be the perfect place to do that. :)
