That's organic!

My toddler loves this video! It's a potatoe singing about organic produce. It's a great video defining what organic means for kids (and adults too). Plus it's a catchy tune. "Mother Natures got a brand. It's called organic!" http://youtu.be/YtwZ8t5NS6c

Some of my favorite brands

Here's something new: I'm finally on Twitter! Follow me @thepickytoddler 

I've recently tweeted about my favorite brand of pre-made foods. Of course it's always best to make your own food at home, but of there is no time here's who I turn to: Applegate's gluten-free chicken nuggets, and organic peas or whatever other veggie kids will tolerate. I have to say the Little Duck Organics is awesome! They make organic, all-natural, recognizable ingredients! My little one likes their Quinoa baby cereal! Because I try to avoid dairy I like to use Daiya cheese for my oldest's Mac & Cheese. I love them because they don't contain soy, casein and carrageenan.

This post has a little bit of everything

Hello dear Friends!
Once again I was M.I.A. I barely have time, as you know (your a parent yourself). And the time I do have to go online, is not the time to sit, think, and type. But I have been keeping myself informed and educated! Its  really amazing the things that we have yet to learn.
So today I want to talk a little bit about my recent discoveries: strange ingredients. What do you mean, Deb? Well have you ever looked at the ingredients on packaged food? At first I just thought, "Ok, so what? They need to add this stuff to make this stuff." Now looking at that I don't really know how I wasn't alarmed at the fact that all I was consuming or giving my kid was chemicals! No wonder people are getting sick! Really think about. Our bodies are still the same bodies people had from years and years ago. Yet our food is not the same from years ago. All the chemical stuff is forcing our livers to work overtime! People don't need to take vitamins, I believe, if they are feeding themselves properly. Nor do I believe people need to see doctors because food, yes WHOLE FOOD, can cure. But of course don't take my advice because I'm no one to lead your life. I just believe this for myself. For example, cancer is on the rise and seems like something that you're bound to get in the future. No! Cancer is formed because these chemicals, harmful man-made things, and stress are forcing our organs to fight. Eventually these poisons win because our bodies were not meant to take so much crap! Sugars feed this cancer, and whole foods such as organic veggies kill it.
We live in a society/culture where we are taught or brought up to be lazy. Yep, I said it! "Oh, I have a headache." Take a Tylenol. "Oh, I have diarrhea." Take Pepto. Listen to your body. Its not just feeling terrible to screw you over. Its screaming for your help. "Oh, I'm to tried to cook." Microwave some fake food. "Oh, I've worked all day. I don't have time to play with my kid(s)." Sit them in front of the TV. When in fact, we seem to always have time to walk our dogs at 6am, but wouldn't take our kids to the park for an hour. Then we wonder why kids are so violent or so passive. That's what we teach them; how to hate (because some parents don't care to show love). Its not that we hate them, but we aren't showing love either. I'm not saying let your kid do what he wants. But disciple with love (you may be firm when needed) and give them some of your time, because sometimes that's what we need as adults too; someone to give us time to just care or listen to us (hence why so many pay a great deal for a therapist).
Back to food. My toddler hates soup. The good thing is that last week when my husband made chicken soup she ate it! How did I do it? You guessed it. I just took out the broth. Even though that's the most nutritious part. So she ate the carrots, pasta, and chicken. Later she had some dessert: almond milk cookies and cream ice cream. Make sure it doesn't have carrageenan; its carcinogenic.
Here's something important I've learned. Sodium benzoate is of course bad, especially worse when mixed with ascorbic acid (synthetic vitamin C) and/or vitamin D. So read labels! I really hate that most kids juice boxes contain synthetic vitamin C. I found one that is organic and has no blah blah acids. It's called R.W. Knudsen Sensible Sippers http://www.rwknudsenfamily.com/products/sensible-sippers

  It does contain "natural flavors" so you're going to have to do a little research or call them up and ask what "natural flavors" means. Sometimes it could be an issue if you're kid has a gluten intolerance.

Eating tip

Hey guys!
I had written a post on what worked for me and my child in regards to her feeding. I do believe though that many kids just aren't hungry or get full fast. Please don't let that discourage you. Maybe yesterday he ate a lot and it makes up for the little he's eating today. Nonetheless, if you feel like you need to keep feeding your kid give him or her healthy options. Now what do I mean by healthy options? Do I mean that dumb food pyramid we memorized in grade school? Absolutely not! See, what people don't realize is that somethings that were taught to us, were simply incorrect. Seriously? You think that a main part of anyone's diet should be "grains"? Ummm no. We all know that fruits and veggies are the most nutritious foods for us (preferably organic). I am not saying go vegan or vegetarian. I'm saying make fruits, veggies, seeds, nuts, and some organic oils should be a bigger part of your life than breads and meats. I didn't even mention sugars because that's just a whole other topic. There are many out there that are poisonous for our bodies (us and the kids).

I love the idea of adding more fruits and veggies to your lifestyle through pureeing. "But my kid thinks that's baby food!" Woe there buddy, hold your horses (lol haven't said that in a while). I mean put the puree in your cooking and baking! I've made muffins with sweet potato purée or butternut squash purée and it was good. Adding puréed veggies to pasta sauces, fruit or veggies smoothies, are great ideas too! Fruit as a snack throughout the day is refreshing and healthy. Sometimes my kid prefers to eat a big bowl of fruit instead of what I made for lunch and that's okay. Actually it's even better because if she's full on fruit then she's gotten more vitamins and nutrients then eating a sandwich or pasta.

Healthier lifestyle

My last post about eating is not intended to tell you what to do with your child. The point is to tell you that you know what works best for your child so follow your instincts. Some advice should be taken for grandma if you trust that what she says is right. What I mean by this is that my mom had suggested that if my daughter didn't want to eat then just let her be. When she's hungry she'll eat. Now of course I thought that my daughter was too skinny and she can't decide what she wants because mom and dad are the parents. Well my daughter after Thanksgiving began having some stomach issues (which to this day we aren't sure what it was/is) Because of the suffering she went through I had compassion for her and didn't force her to eat and totally changed her diet. I made sure that at least for one meal she would have veggies. If she wanted the fruit that came in a pouch, I would just cut some fresh fruit. And instead of snacking on bread, I gave her healthier options such as: organic raisins and organic cashews or an organic soy yogurt mixed with raw honey. If she wanted Mac n' Cheese, I'd added chopped up carrots or chopped up kale. At first she refused to eat it, so I would just hide in under the pasta or behind it when it was on the fork and fed it to her while she played or watched a cartoon. Then she got used to the mixed veggies now she doesn't mind (most of the time). If she won't eat it then, it'll stay until she's hungry. Eventually she'll get hungry enough to eat it.
Yes, I am a firm believer that organic is the best and should really be the only way to go, unless you really don't have another option. I do believe that many diseases out there are caused because of what we put in our bodies. Our bodies soak up the nutrients and chemicals in our foods. I also don't believe that its necessary to have so many chemicals in vaccines, but that's a different story for a different blog.
Now with my daughter's stomach problems, I started to do a lot of research and began to believe that maybe she had celiac disease or a gluten sensitivity. I wanted to put her on a gluten-free and casein-free diet. I did, but now the G.I. doctor suggested to do some blood work to see if she really has that problem. So presently she's on a "regular" diet because the blood work needs to have gluten in the blood to see the reactions.
There is so many natural/homeopathic remedies that truly work, but we aren't educated because the pharmas want to make money and make you and your kids costumers for life. That's why if you hear, for example, a commercial for an anti-depressant the side effects are suicidal thoughts. Really? Who in their right mind would want to take that pill then? If the medicine that is suppose to cure or help you with an issue, is actually causing another issue that will lead you back to the same problem why would you take it? No one tells these people that magnesium and vitamin D fight depression. Well they do and if you have depression you should eat  whole foods rich in these nutrients. With this flu "epidemic" pharmas must've been so happy. So many people buying over-the-counter medicine that truly doesn't cure anything and people getting the flu vaccine. I got the flu vaccine when my second child was born because I didn't do my "homework" and I was scared in getting my baby sick. Well it just goes to show that people were still getting the flu and elders were dying regards of the vaccine. So how effective is this injection? I'll let you answer that one. I wanted to say though that I cured my cold and my oldest daughter's cold naturally. In the morning, with our toast, I made a honey jam. Mix raw honey and cinnamon and spread it on toast. Delicious! For me, instead of coffee I boiled some water squeezed half a lemon added some ginger and a tiny dash of cayenne pepper and drank it! Boom two days I was cured!