This week’s allergen friendly meal plan and activities will focus on fresh produce and enjoying summer. It’s finally time to relax…and clean!

I kind of feel like summer is just starting this week. Vacation is over. Camps are over. Procedures are over. I think we just might get to fully relax!

We actually don’t even have a single thing scheduled. Maybe I could take the kids to the park for the first time this summer!

My baby girl finally had a whole week that was good!  A few episodes of a gassy tummy. But no allergy run-ins. It’s a miracle. She even nursed every hour yesterday, playing catch up.

I’m hoping we can keep things calm so I can try introducing a probiotic soon. We both really need it.

Going a new direction.

Through this whole process of figuring out my baby’s allergies I’m learning a lot about my own body as well. I won’t go into details here, but I think I am adding gluten back to my diet (properly prepared…not junk food). I have already been eating traditional sourdough for a while. But now I will do some soaked wheat as well.

I really need to be able to rotate my starches. And there aren’t very many I can have. My four day rotation (once I get to the store to get more flour!!) will be: rye/spelt (sourdough), wheat (soaked), rice/teff/sorghum (soaked), corn.

I am planning to let my kids try some soaked wheat as well and see how it goes. If they show any reactions I will keep them gluten free. If not then I will let them have it rotationally as well.

I also learned that I really need to stick to my slow oxidizer diet – no raw veggies. It’s tough since I LOVE salads. But I really feel so much better when I avoid them. I feel good with lots of well cooked vegetables in broth. I’m also making sure I get liver a few times a week.

Good news!

Through elimination/avoiding and working on healing I can now eat eggs, corn and avocado! Three things I used to have a really hard time with and avoided for a long time. They don’t bother my little one either. That is very exciting!!

I also got my thyroid levels checked yesterday. In spite of everything my body has been through lately my levels are stable.

Finally, I’m making it a priority to give my big kids probiotics, vitamins and cod liver oil daily. We all need a vitamin and mineral boost!

It’s blueberry time!

Yesterday we stocked up on over thirty pounds of blueberries. This is my favorite time of year…because blueberries are my absolute favorite fruit.

Of course that means there will be blueberry goodness in my kitchen. My baby’s first birthday is also very quickly approaching (ahhhh!!). So I need to start experimenting with cake that she could eat. Here are my potential projects:

• blueberry pie
• freeze blueberries
• freeze beans
• freeze zucchini
• render lard
• make broth
• vanilla ice cream
• sourdough bread
• salsa
• rice yogurt (experiment)
• crunchy crumble
• cupcakes (experiment)
• block cheese (experiment)

I do want to catch up on some thorough cleaning around the house as well. Gotta keep the dust away!

Last week I posted some delicious cherry recipes – sourdough cherry granola, teff and sorghum cherry bars and blender to oven maple cherry baked oatmeal. Grab the last few cherries and give one of these a try!

Let’s get cooking!

I am really trying to cut food costs a bit these days. I need to stretch our meat more since that is one of the most expensive things we buy. The simple solution is casseroles and soups…but that is almost impossible with all of our different allergies. There is so little that the whole family can eat. So I’m doing my best to get creative.

I’ve got lots of tasty food on the menu this week. I’m also changing the format a bit so you can see what I eat too. My meals (if they are different than the rest of the family’s) are second/in italics. This will also help me stick to my rotational eating.

Here is our allergen friendly meal plan. Lots of fresh produce. Lots of blueberries. Lots of summer flavors. What are you eating this week?

One final thing.

I can’t forget to mention one more thing…Happy 12th Anniversary to the love of my life! I can’t wait to see what God has planned for this coming year.

Sunday
B – zucchini muffins, yogurt, | broth w/ steak, squash, mustard greens; zucchini muffin
L – at a baseball game (boys) | tuna salad, peas, zucchini muffins (girls)
D – pepperoni, ham and olive pizza, salad | pea and tuna risotto
*freeze blueberries, make sd pizza crust, render lard

Monday
B – granola bars, yogurt | salted caramel custard w/ blueberries, broth w/peas
D – tacos, peaches, broccoli
*make salsa, make soaked pie crust, skim cream, make vanilla ice cream, make sd bread

Tuesday
B – sourdough toast w/ sun butter, fruit | sourdough bread w/ avocado, ground beef
D – roast chicken, potatoes, carrots | roast chicken, avocado, kale, sourdough bread
*make broth, boil eggs, make blueberry pie, make rice yogurt?

Wednesday
B – hard boiled egg, toast, fruit | broth w/ chicken, spinach and pumpkin
D – pork chops, rice, beans
*soak oats, soak teff

Thursday
B – cinnamon raisin oatmeal, crispy almonds | teff porridge w/ blueberries and gelatin, broth with mustard greens
D – zucchini chicken pie w/ soaked crust, blueberry applesauce
*make cheese

Friday
B – yogurt, granola, fruit | broth w/ chicken, squash and kale
D – sd pancakes w/ blueberry topping, scrambled eggs, roasted cauliflower
*make crunchy crumble, feed sd

Saturday
B – pancakes, fruit, crispy almonds | salted caramel custard w/ blueberries and crunchy crumble
D – pan seared salmon, seasoned rice, peas
*make practice cupcakes

This week’s allergen friendly meal plan is focused on using fresh produce and keeping up with preservation! Our garden is really growing right now.

I always look forward to Sunday morning.

It’s a time to start over with a new week. It’s a time to look forward to the joys and challenges of the coming days.

Last week we certainly had our challenges. But we also had our joys. My oldest had a wonderful week at camp.

I am so grateful that my baby’s lip and tongue tie clipping went smoothly. It was night and day difference from last time since we didn’t have all of the allergy stuff on top of it.

I continue to learn every week new things to avoid for her. We had a good week with food until Friday when I ate some of our locally made bacon. So Friday and Saturday were not so great. She is also teething like crazy. So sleep has not been very good.

Health Comes First

All of this made me realize that the rest of our summer needs to be spent at home. No big outings.  No being gone for hours where she will hardly eat/nurse and let her tummy get upset again. Her health is the priority right now.

I also know I need to make sleep a priority for myself. My body has really been struggling again. I did manage to squeeze in a nap yesterday!

We tried to introduce rice for my son again…and again it did not go well. I guess that one will have to be on hold for a while yet.

So on to this new week…hopefully with full health for everyone!! My oldest has soccer camp all week. It is also grocery week plus farmers market, library and orthodontist.

Bring on the Veggies!

Our garden is growing like crazy right now!  We’ve got lots of beans and zucchini. So we are feasting on them both!

I realized yesterday that my sorghum flour is moldy (gross!). So I’m down to just two types of gluten free flour…which means I won’t be doing a whole lot of baking. I would like to do some. So we’ll see if I can find more flour at our regular store or if I just make do with what I’ve got.

On my to-do kitchen list for this week:

• freeze beans
• make sourdough bread
• make zucchini bread and/or muffins
• make popsicles?
• make baked oatmeal
• roast squash

Need some seasonal recipes?

Last week I posted recipes for sourdough hamburger buns and cherry mustard vinaigrette. If I can find the time to write I’ve got three cherry recipes I want to share with you this week!

Next up is blueberry season. If you’re anxious to get started using them here are some great recipes to try:

• soaked gluten free blueberry pie
• soaked gluten free blueberry buckle
• gluten free blueberry cake
• blueberry pie ice cream
• soaked gluten free blueberry pie bars
• gluten free blueberry scones
• gluten free blueberry zucchini muffins
• blueberry chocolate bread pudding
• blueberry cheesecake ice cream

Let’s get cooking!

My allergen friendly meal plan was quite a challenge this week since we are running low on meat. Plus I can’t eat the bacon or ham we have in the freezer now. That makes it very difficult to rotate foods! Thankfully we have our co-op pick up this week. I may have to break down and look at the meat at our grocery store for the first time in YEARS.

Here is what we’re eating this week. How about you?

Sunday
B – yogurt, granola bars
L – crockpot meatloaf, roasted potatoes, carrots
D – green bean casserole w/ bacon, peaches, rice
*freeze beans

Monday
B – muffins, fruit
D (prep ahead) – crockpot 7 layer dinner, applesauce
*soak quinoa, boil eggs

Tuesday
B – hard boiled eggs, toast
D – chicken nuggets, broccoflower, quinoa
*soak oats

Wednesday
B – blueberry baked oatmeal
D – pan fried cod, roasted cabbage, chips
*soak flour for bread/muffins, freeze beans

Thursday
B – yogurt, granola, blueberries
D – pea soup w/ ham, zucchini bread or muffins
*roast squash, make sd bread

Friday
B – blueberry baked oatmeal
D – sd pancakes w/ blueberry topping, sausage, beans
*feed sd starter

Saturday
B – kids’ choice
D – grilled steak, baked potatoes, sqaush
*freeze beans

This week’s allergen friendly meal plan is all about fresh produce, simplicity and meals that can be made ahead…I will most likely be taking care of my little one round the clock.

I feel like life has been a bit of whirlwind lately. We went on vacation and dealt with major allergy stuff for my little one. Last week I was trying to play catch up on everything.

This week will be another big one. My husband starts his new job tomorrow! My oldest starts her first week of day camp tomorrow. Then on Tuesday my little one will be having her tongue and lip ties clipped again.

On top of the tongue tie my baby is cutting her one year molars right now and hasn’t been sleeping well. Thankfully she’s been doing well with nursing all week (aside from one day of bad reflux…my only guess is that it was caused by oats).  I think we have finally gotten most of the food stuff under control. Praise the Lord!

Now that it is mid-summer the fresh produce is really coming in. Yesterday we picked almost thirty pounds of cherries.  I’m in the process of freezing and cooking/baking with those. We are starting to get beans from our garden.  That means I’ll be freezing those soon. We are also starting to get zucchini. I still have a little bit of lettuce from our garden to use up as well. This time of year is so delicious.

I have a lot of things I would like to get done this week. But I’m not really planning anything from Tuesday on. I’m praying that the procedure will go smoothly for my baby and that recovery will be much faster this time since we don’t have the allergy stuff on top of it. I’m keeping my schedule open just in case.

That means packing all of my to-dos into two days. Some potentials are:

• sourdough bread
• freeze cherries
• cherry cobbler
• cherry fruit leather
• cherry gummies
• ice cream
• pickles
• freeze beans

Meals this week will be a bit tricky. I have to pick my daughter up from camp right at dinner time every night. So I’ll have to do a lot of advance preparation – either crockpot food or make ahead and just warm when we get home.

I’m also trying to incorporate our fresh produce. I’m already excited for our first taste of fresh beans!!

Did you miss last week’s posts? If so go check out my ice cream flavored yogurt gummies and my pear lime jello salad.  Be on the lookout for more delicious recipes this week.

Here is my allergen friendly meal plan for this week. What are you eating? What produce is popping up by you?

Sunday
B – cereal, fresh fruit
L – pumpkin pasta, garlic toast, broccoli
D – grilled hot dogs, grilled zucchini, chips, fruit salad
*veggie prep, make sd bread, freeze cherries, dry cherries, make cherry fruit leather?, make pickles?, make cherry cobbler?

Monday
B – yogurt, granola, fruit
D – sloppy joes, beans, french fries
*skim cream, make ice cream, soak oats

Tuesday
B – oatmeal
D (prep ahead) – roast chicken, roasted potatoes, roasted purple cabbage
*make broth

Wednesday
B – granola bars, fruit
D – TBD soup, lettuce salad, crackers w/ cheese
*

Thursday
B – yogurt, donuts
D – taco bowls, fruit
*

Friday
B – cereal
D – sd pancakes, bacon, peas, cherries
*feed sd

Saturday
B (kid’s choice) – TBD
D – rustic zucchini pie, beans, peaches
*

This week’s allergen friendly meal plan and updates include our return from vacation, getting back to normal routine and relaxing.

I hope you enjoyed your holiday weekend! We are excited to be coming home today from a week of vacation.  It was fun, but I always like being home best.

With all of the preparation, packing, travel and stress (mostly due to my little one’s health) my body is not doing well. I’ve had two weeks straight of anxiety and being tense.

My little one has had multiple run-ins with allergens and has not been eating well again.

We are both ready for rest and relaxation this week!!!

I hope she nurses round the clock all week to get back on track.

I did learn that tapioca is a root…and she can’t handle roots. I use it in all of my gluten free baking. I guess it’s back to the drawing board.

Thankfully we don’t have too much going on this week – orthodontist, grocery shopping, farmer’s market and library. Now that cherries are in season we need to go picking. We’ll see if that happens this week or next week.

I’m sure excited to be back in my own kitchen!!  I have quite a few things I’d like to make…as long as I’m getting enough rest. My to-dos include:

• cherry breakfast bars (new recipe)
• cinnamon sourdough bread (new recipe)
• salsa (we’re out!!!)
• rice milk (trying a new method)
• cocoa puffs (my son’s request for cereal)
• cookies (for my husband to bring to work…it’s his last week at his current job!)

Last week I posted recipes for pizza crackers and black forest popsicles.  You don’t want to miss either of those!!

My first contributor post for Kitchen Stewardship also went live.  You HAVE to try this custard. I eat the salted caramel version for breakfast once a week.

My allergen friendly meal plan includes lots of broth and a variety of meats and vegetables.  We all need some nourishment after vacation. What is on your menu this week? What fun, fresh foods are you cooking in July?

Sunday
B – banana bread, yogurt
L – pork sandwiches, chips, olives, pears
D – scrambled eggs, toast, peas
*

Monday
B – yogurt, granola
D – roast chicken legs, mashed potatoes, broccoli
*unpack/clean

Tuesday
B – cereal, fruit
D – beef stroganoff over noodles, beans, cherries
*make cocoa puffs

Wednesday
B – smoothies, granola bars
D – chicken noodle soup, cinnamon sourdough bread
*feed sd starter/make bread, soak oats

Thursday
B -cherry maple oatmeal
D – pork chops and apples over rice, roasted cauliflower
*soak flour for breakfast bars, roast squash, bake cookies

Friday
B – yogurt, fruit, granola
D – cherry breakfast bars, sausage, squash, fruit salad
*bake bars, soak flour for granola

Saturday
B – breakfast bars, cheese
D -pan fried cod, scalloped potatoes, peas
* make cherry granola

This week’s allergen friendly meal plan is all about family favorites and enjoying fresh summer produce. Plus we’re focusing on much needed rest and splurging with one meal out!

Happy 4th of July week!  It’s crazy that we’re heading into July already. Father’s Day was just a week ago and now we’re thinking about the holiday. It seems like summer break just started.

Last week was chaotically busy and stressful with allergy issues, doctor’s appointments, errands and a to-do list a mile long of things that really had to be done.

So this week I’m giving myself a break.

It is inevitable that I will come up with plenty of stuff to do throughout the week. But I’m not scheduling anything to start off. Maybe I can even squeeze in a few naps.

I’ve known for a very long time how important sleep is.  I even explain to my kids that they need lots of sleep so their bodies can heal/repair while they rest. And it’s the area I struggle with the most.  But lately I’ve been reading more and more and more about the importance of sleep. Maybe I should really take it to heart. So I’m hoping to play catch up this week.

Since my mineral analysis I’ve been getting some supplements to try to replenish my body.

But my healing protocol has not been going well.

I started a new multi-vitamin (made specifically for slow oxidizers like me). After a few days of taking it…and a very fussy baby…I realized the vitamin A in it is from PALMitate.  No good with a palm allergy.

I had to cancel my order for a vitamin A supplement because that too is from palmitate.

Then I started a new probiotic and a different brand of HCL. I was left with a screaming baby that wouldn’t nurse.  I have yet to figure out which one caused the problem. But I’m giving it a week or so to try either of them again.

Then I bought a box of cereal for my oldest as a special treat. We only eat boxed cereal about once a year. It only has four ingredients and is made with rice. So I figured she and I could both eat. After munching on it during the day I re-read the label…and realized it too contains vitamin A from palmitate.  And we’re back to fussy baby that is in pain, has a swollen tongue, can’t eat and doesn’t sleep well. Three times in one week! My poor baby girl. I had to take a lot of activated charcoal this week to help ease things.

So I’m pretty much back where I started…taking nothing.

In a week or two I’ll try the probiotic again at a very very low dose and see what happens. And I’m going to try adding more liver to my diet to get vitamin A. Then after a bit I’ll try the HCL again.

As you can see we all need some rest, stress reduction and healing foods in our allergen friendly meal plan for this week.

I’m planning on lots of broth and vegetables.

Last week I posted recipes for strawberry lemon jello salad (if you haven’t made it yet you should!!) and strawberry apple salad.  Plus I shared my latest ecocentric mom box review. Check it out!

If you are looking for 4th of July recipes look under my holiday recipes. I’ve got some fun ones like red, white and blue swirl ice cream and red, white and blue parfaits.  Plus cherry season is starting. Check out the cherry recipes like cherry pie, cherry cobbler and double cherry ice cream.

Finally on to the menu. Here is the allergen friendly meal plan for this week. Lots of family favorites (very kid friendly!) and in-season produce are on the menu.  What are you eating this week? Is it a busy week or do you have time to catch up on sleep? Happy 4th of July!
Sunday
B – ham and cheese egg bake, toast w/ strawberry jam
L – pumpkin, hot dog and white bean soup, blueberry muffins
D – grilled cheese, french fries, applesauce, cauliflower

Monday
B – smoothies, muffins
L – chicken sandwiches, carrot sticks, grapes
D – stuffed peppers and stuffed zucchini, seasoned rice, broccoli, squash

Tuesday
B – cherry yogurt, granola
L – salmon salad, crackers, avocado, pears
D – pork meatballs, baked potatoes, peas

Wednesday
B – cereal, fruit
L – homemade Lunchables®, strawberry cherry jello, olives
D – out to eat

Thursday
B – breakfast cake, cheese, fruit
D – grilled burgers, cheesy potatoes, broccoli

Friday
B – pancakes
D – chicken nuggets with honey mustard, squash, lettuce salad

Saturday
B – apple pie breakfast parfait
D – pork roast, rice, beans

This week’s allergen friendly meal plans and updates include Father’s Day celebration, pantry stocking and doctor appointments.

Happy Father’s Day! I am blessed to have great God-fearing men in my life (husband, father, father-in-law, grandfather, brothers, brothers-in-law). I appreciate each one of them. It’s good to be able to celebrate them all today.

Last week my husband returned from a week in Romania. It’s good to have life back to normal now.

I kept things quite simple while he was gone so I could keep up. But that means now I have twice as much to do this week!  I have to catch up on everything, restock cupboards and clean.

Unfortunately this week also turns out to be very busy with dentist, doctor, grocery shopping and sports.

We tried rice with my son last week.  He’s had a couple rough days behavior-wise. So I think we’ll keep that out for now. Maybe in a week or two we’ll try avocado. We’re actually getting to the end of his allergy list. There are only a few things left that he has to avoid.

My little one has had quite a few rough days in a row now. I’m hoping she gets back on track this week. She and I could both use better sleep.

Yesterday my husband and the big kids went strawberry picking.  We’ve already frozen half of them, and I made eleven half pints of pectin-free easy strawberry freezer jam.  We still have to freeze a few more.

So far on my kitchen to-do list I’ve got:

• soaked crackers
• soaked graham crackers
• muffins
• sourdough bread
• broth
• Miracle Whip®
• pureed soups (for myself for easy breakfasts)
• freeze strawberries
• breakfast cake
• fruit snacks
• golden grahams (maybe)

Last week I shared recipes for apple pie breakfast parfait and gluten free inside out Oreos®. I’ve got some fun recipes coming this week!

My allergen friendly meal plans for this week include simple meals, rotated foods and hopefully stuff everyone can eat. That is always the goal. What is on your menu?

Sunday
B – muffins and breakfast cookies, yogurt
L – grilled burgers, asparagus, french fries, peaches
D – tuna salad sandwiches, sweet potato fries, lettuce salad
*soak flour for graham crackers, make veggie purees, freeze strawberries, make Miracle Whip®

Monday
B – yogurt, granola bars
D (prep ahead) – macaroni and cheese, roasted cabbage, pears
*make graham crackers, boil eggs

Tuesday
B – hard boiled egg, toast
D – cp roast chicken, baked potatoes, glazed carrots
*make broth, soak flour for muffins, soak oats

Wednesday
B – oatmeal
D – split pea soup w/ ham, muffins
*bake muffins

Thursday
B – cereal, fruit
D (early) – taco salad, fruit salad
*make golden grahams? make french dressing

Friday
B – yogurt, granola, fruit
D – ham and cheddar quiche, broccoli, sd breakfast cake
*feed sd starter, soak flour for crackers, bake breakfast cake

Saturday
B – smoothies, granola bars
D – chicken pot pie, hot dogs, lettuce salad, strawberry jello, french fries
*bake crackers, feed sd starter, make sd bread, make fruit snacks

This week’s allergen friendly meal plans and kitchen projects are all about easy summer food, getting ready for Father’s Day and vacation prep work.

June is kind of crazy busy for us.  We didn’t really plan it that way. But it happened. My husband has been traveling, my daughter had a week of cheer camp and we’re taking a little vacation.

I’m so happy that my husband comes home this week!  We’ve been keeping up without him. But it sure is a lot nicer to have him around. And just in time for Father’s Day!

We’ve all been adjusting to school being out for the summer. I think my son is very happy to have big sister around to play with.

This week shouldn’t be too busy. We’ll make our weekly trip to the library and farmer’s market. My little one also has a check up.

I did more experimenting last week to confirm that all root veggies are out for my little one.  Even small amounts cause her major digestive issues (whether she eats them or I do…this time it was beets). So we’ll take those off the menu for now. I’m hoping this is the last thing we have to remove and we’ll have a very happy girl now.

I am still sticking with a rotational diet to help prevent any further food issues and to work on healing.

My son has been doing lots of healing lately as well.  We’re slowly able to try more foods again. Recently we tried peas. So far so good. I think we’ll try rice this week. If he could have rice that would open a whole new world of possibilities for us! I’ll be updating this allergy post soon with his progress. 

I am ready to get started with my healing protocol after my hair analysis. I just ordered a couple of my supplements. I’ll order the rest soon and start adding them one at a time. I must admit – I’m quite excited to try a new probiotic. I hope this one works for me.

I’ve also been checking my BBT recently just to see how I’m doing. It’s been interesting to watch the patterns. But I have been amazed at how many days of normal temps I have!

My kitchen projects this week include:

• fruit snacks
• soaked crackers
• sourdough bread
• gluten free bread
• breakfast cookies
• cupcakes (my son’s request for Father’s Day treats…I’m still trying to decide which recipe to use)
• yogurt (if we have extra milk today)

I still have to plan our Father’s Day menu and any other possible treats. Then it’s time to start thinking about vacation prep and what food/snacks I’ll need with us.

Last week I posted recipes for fruit on the bottom yogurt and rhubarb applesauce. I’ve got a couple more fun recipes coming this week that you don’t want to miss!

Here are my allergen friendly meal plans for the week.

I tried my best to rotate our meats, grains and vegetables.  I’m starting to add lunch menus to some of the days. I have to be sure there is enough my little one can eat too now. She sure loves to eat!!  What is on your menu this week?

Sunday
B – sd breakfast cake, yogurt, plums
L – squash and sausage soup, cinnamon raisin sourdough bread
D – sweet and sour sloppy joes, chips, peas
*bake sd bread, make fruit snacks, soak flour for crackers, make yogurt

Monday
B – fruit on the bottom yogurt, granola
D – salmon cakes, sweet potato fries, beans
*make crackers

Tuesday
B – granola bars, raw cheese
D – spaghetti squash mac ‘n’ cheese
*soak flour for gf bread

Wednesday
B – smoothies
L – split pea soup, grilled cheese
D – short ribs, mashed potatoes, carrots
*make gf bread

Thursday
B – granola, yogurt, fruit
D – pesto chicken, rice, peas
*

Friday
B – cereal, fruit
D – waffles, bacon, roasted cauliflower and brussels sprouts
*soak flour for cupcakes, soak flour for breakfast cookies

Saturday
B – breakfast cookies, yogurt
D – fish sticks, chips, broccoli, applesauce
*bake cupcakes

This week’s allergen friendly meal plans and updates are all about kicking off summer break and keeping things simple.

School is out for summer!  It’s time to kick off a new season. You’d think we’d take a week to just lounge and have fun. Instead cheerleading camp starts Monday morning for my oldest. In fact we have a pretty busy week with orthodontist, farmer’s market, library, groceries and my mom visiting. I don’t have any intentions to keep our whole summer this busy.

Last week our big event was trying dairy.  I tried about a teaspoon of ghee one day. Then I gave about a half teaspoon of ghee to my little one the next day. Unfortunately it did not go well. It seems she is still extremely sensitive to even tiny amounts of any kind of dairy.  So we’ll stick to dairy free for now. Maybe in a few months we’ll try again.

In other health news I had my hair tissue mineral analysis consult.  It was so fascinating to read through all of the information and talk about what everything means. Now I need to re-read everything and get a few supplements to get started building up my mineral stores and improving digestion. I will be doing a post on HTMA once I get a little farther along in my healing. I have a lot to share already!

The other thing we’ve been experimenting with lately is sugar intake for my son. He tends to get hyper very easily. So I’ve been really limiting his sweets. The last couple days I have noticed a decrease in his meltdowns and hyperactivity. So I’m planning to keep this up.

In the kitchen this week I have a few projects – homemade Mircale Whip, crackers, sourdough bread, muffins and breakfast cookies.  I’m also trying to figure out non-sweet snacks for my son. Fruit is such an easy option, but even too much of that isn’t good.

I have a LOT of writing to catch up on this week. My little one has been getting up at 5 am every day lately. So I may have to start doing some evening writing. I’ve got so many great recipes to share with you!!

I’m also plugging along with some deep cleaning in the house to get rid of some of the dust. I’ll keep at it this week.

Did you miss last week’s posts? I shared a recipe for cherry rhubarb jello and a cow spotted birthday cake. I also shared a recipe for pizza crackers at Super Healthy Kids. I’ve got a few more great recipes coming this week!

Since we have a busy week I’m keeping meals simple. I also have to work on making larger quantities…my little one sure can eat already!

One of our meals will be used as my big girl’s start to reaching one of her goals this summer – learning how to make pancakes by herself.  We’ll start with me demonstrating/her watching. Then the next time she gets to help out. Then she starts to try it on her own.

What’s on your menu this week? Any fun summer plans starting?  Sunday
B – yogurt, granola
L – grilled hamburgers, grilled asparagus, pear jello
D – leftover pizza, leftover roasted cabbage
*grind flour, soak flour for crackers

Monday
B – oat cups
D – pan seared salmon, roasted cauliflower, french fries
*soak flour for muffins, make crackers, make mayo

Tuesday
B – Russian custard, blueberries
D (prep ahead) – cp roast chicken legs, potatoes, carrots
*bake muffins, soak flour for pancakes

Wednesday
B – muffins, yogurt
D – pancakes, sausage, beans, fruit
*make sd bread

Thursday
B – granola w/ milk, fruit
D – chicken nuggets w/ honey mustard, peas, sweet potato fries
*

Friday
B – yogurt, fruit
D – hot dogs, broccoli, sweet potato fries
*feed sd for breakfast cookies

Saturday
B – sd breakfast cookies, cheese
D – scrambled eggs, toast, squash
*

Wow, tomorrow is the start of June already! This is also the last week of school.  Last night my oldest had her dance recital. Everything is coming to a close as we prepare for summer.

That certainly doesn’t mean life will be boring around here. Last week my little one had allergy testing done. Just two allergies…that are causing major lifestyle changes.  She is very allergic to dust mites. That means I need to start cleaning better! I already did an overhaul on her room. But I will also be setting a new cleaning schedule for myself to make sure dusting and washing get done much more frequently.

The other allergy is coconut/palm. No big deal, right? Actually palm products are in just about every health and beauty and cleaning product you can find.  Even recipes to make your own contain palm. So I’ve been doing a lot of research already to try to overhaul our cleaning supplies. So far I’ve got a bar soap that is safe and have made hand soap. Today I’m hoping to make laundry detergent. I just need to figure out what to do for dish soap.

Being that my little one is in my arms/leaning on my all day I need to be sure palm is not on my skin. So I’m finally going to start trying the “no poo” (no shampoo) method of hair washing.  But since my hair gets so oily so quickly I’m going to start very gradually with every other day and see how it goes.

Adjusting to these new allergies will definitely keep me busy!! I am also trying to start a rotational diet again to prevent more allergies. It’s not about strict rotation, but just focusing on variety. I will do my best to plan our meals rotationally.

I’m still working on trial and error with foods. It seems that sweet potatoes bother my little one. So we’ll avoid those for now. I tried eggs on Friday. She seemed to do ok. I’m very excited about that (I LOVE eggs)!. I’m also excited that she enjoyed eating scrambled egg yolks.

The other big thing is that we get to try dairy!!  I’m waiting until her body is settled (she’s had a cold and had sweet potatoes that she’s working through) before I try it. I will start with a small amount of ghee and go from there.

The other unknown is whether or not she has asthma. She’s been doing a lot of wheezing with her cold. So that is something we’ll have to keep an eye on.

That’s the latest update. I’m sure I’ll be doing some separate posts on it when we get some things figured out. For now I’m back to more experimenting.

Thankfully there isn’t too much going on this week. Our local farmer’s market starts!!!  Hopefully the weather will be nice enough for us to walk. My son is so excited. I think he’s mostly excited because that means we can also go to the library.

We are also gearing up for some other big changes that I’ll share more about in the future. For now we’re in the decision making process. The next couple months will be kind of crazy.

Now on to the stuff you came for…the food! So far my kitchen agenda includes ghee, pudding or yogurt (we have some extra milk), crackers, sourdough bread, ice cream, noodles and laundry detergent.

Last week I shared a recipe for sticky toffee pudding. This week I have a bunch of great recipes for you! You don’t want to miss them. Be sure to check back here and on my facebook page.

Our garden is well under way…and our spinach is just about ready! I’m so excited for salads. Hopefully we have enough spinach later this week so I can have it on the menu. Other than that it’s simple, rotational, palm free meals. What’s on your menu this week?

Sunday
B – breakfast cookies, bananas and grapes
L – Italian sausage, broccoli, chips w/ dip
D – sloppy joes, squash, pear slices
*make laundry detergent, make sd bread, make pudding/yogurt?

Monday
B – yogurt, granola, fruit
D – cp roast chicken, roasted potatoes, onions and carrots
*make noodles, make ghee, skim cream

Tuesday
B – cereal, banana
D – spaghetti, sd garlic toast, peas
*boil eggs, make ice cream

Wednesday
B – hard boiled egg, toast
D – chicken noodle soup, crackers with cheese
*make crackers

Thursday
B – yogurt, granola, fruit
D (prep ahead) – cp pork chops, rice, beans
*

Friday (LAST day of school!)
B – cereal, fruit
D – sd pizza, spinach salad, jello
*make jello, make sd crust

Saturday
B – banana custard, granola bars
D – pan seared salmon, roasted cabbage, french fries
*clean

Good morning! I hope you are enjoying your holiday weekend.  We enjoyed a nice day at home yesterday. My husband got the garden planted, I was busy in the kitchen and we visited with my parents for a bit.

This is an important week. On Tuesday my baby is getting tested for allergies.  Although I’m not looking forward to the actual test I am looking forward to having answers! Then I’ll know for sure what things have to be out of our diet and what things I can try adding in.

This week my oldest has her dance recital. Then one more activity is done. I just can’t believe school will be done next week!

Yesterday I sent in my hair tissue mineral analysis. I can’t wait for the results!!!  Then I’ll know where my body is lacking and how to supplement. I’ll be sure to fill you in once I get it all figured out. I also rendered both lard and tallow last week. Now I’m set with healthy fats for a while.

On the blogging front I’m thinking about renaming my site. I’d LOVE your input!!! What comes to mind when you read my posts?

I was very busy in the kitchen all weekend creating lots of new recipes. And I’ve got more coming this week. So far on my kitchen to do list: sourdough hamburger buns (creating new recipe), cookies (creating new recipe), pesto, fruit salad (creating new recipe), jello (creating new recipe), gluten free bagels, cream cheese, ice cream, possibly rice milk and possibly rice milk ice cream (creating new recipe).

Last week I posted a recipe for dairy free grilled “cheese.”  Have you tried it? I could go for one right now!

Meals this week are simple and nourishing as always. My newest challenge is making sure there are foods in our meal that my little one can eat. She is loving solids these days!  Hopefully allergy test results don’t require me to make any adjustments to our meals. But if so, we’ll figure it out. What are you up to this week? What’s on your menu?

Sunday
B – sd pancakes with strawberry topping, yogurt
L – pan seared cod, broccoli, cinnamon sugar rice
D – balogna sandwiches, carrots w/ hummus, rhubarb jello
*make cookies, make sd hamburger buns

Monday
B – yogurt, scones
D – pesto topped sweet potato salmon burgers on sd buns, roasted potato wedges and carrots, fruit salad out to eat
*make pesto, make rice milk

Tuesday
B – granola bars, yogurt
D – cp ham, scalloped potatoes, beans
*allergy test day…keeping my work to a minimum in case little one doesn’t feel good

Wednesday
B – oat cups
D – pesto topped sweet potato salmon burgers on sd buns, french fries, applesauce
*soak/sprout beans, skim cream, make ice cream, make ghee

Thursday
B – cereal, fruit
D – cp pork and beans over rice, jello
*make jello, soak flour for bagels, make rm ice cream

Friday
B – muffins, fruit
D – gf bagels with cream cheese, broth scrambled eggs, roasted asparagus
*make bagels, make cream cheese, soak flour for breakfast cookies

Saturday
B – kids’ choice – breakfast cookies, cheese
D (prep ahead/late meal) – salmon salad sandwiches, chips and veggies with dip
*make breakfast cookies, prepare salad, prepare dip