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Easy Homemade Granola

February 15, 2012 by Laura 50 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links which won’t change your price but will share some commission.

I didn’t really plan it this way, but what better way to follow up a post about not soaking grains than by giving you a recipe which includes unsoaked grains. Do with this what you wish. :)

This recipe works great as a snack or for a quick breakfast, especially if you’ve made it ahead of time. We like to put it in a bowl and add dried fruit and milk or cream. A friend of mine even adds applesauce to this granola for a sort of “apple crisp” taste. Her kids love it that way!

Easy Homemade GranolaYum

4 cups rolled oats
1 cup shredded, unsweetened coconut
1 cup slivered almonds
1 cup sunflower nuts
1/2 cup sesame seeds
3/4 cup honey
1 cup coconut oil

In a small sauce pan, melt together coconut oil and honey. Stir all remaining ingredients together in a large bowl. Drizzle on the honey/coconut oil mixture and stir well. Pour mixture onto a large, parchment paper lined baking sheet. Bake at 300° for 35 minutes, stirring after the first 20 minutes. Store granola in an air tight container.

granola_2

Are you granola eaters at your house?

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Real Food – Low Cost Challenge: Warm Vanilla Soother and Homemade Poptarts

February 7, 2012 by Laura 35 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links which won’t change your price but will share some commission.

Beware – while reading this post, you will notice that I jump all over the place without making my paragraphs flow together and really without pausing to take a breath in between thoughts. All this exercise I’m doing is either giving me a crazy amount of extra energy, or perhaps it is just simply making me crazy. Or maybe it’s a little bit of both.

While breaking down the cost of my real food recipes, I have definitely learned that our breakfast time meals tend to be very, very inexpensive. We can often eat for around $0.50 per person at breakfast, making it easier to spend a little more for our lunches and dinners.

It is kind of funny to me that I break the food cost down per person in my household, when clearly, we don’t actually all eat the same amount of food. I would have to say that Malachi (our youngest at age seven) and I (the oldest at age 38) eat the smallest portions of food these days. Therefore, maybe Malachi and I can eat breakfast for $0.20 and everyone else eats for $0.70? Eh, never mind. I don’t feel like getting that technical. We’ll just keep it at an average $0.50/person for breakfast. I’m pretty sure I don’t want to know how much it costs to feed my soccer playing, basketball playing teenager right now. ;)

So check it out – my Homemade Poptarts cost $3.13 for one batch. I figured that if one batch of homemade poptarts makes about 20 poptarts, that means the cost is around $0.16 per poptart. I haven’t purchased poptarts at the store for a long time, but I’m pretty sure I’m not only feeding my family a much healthier poptart, but I’m saving money too. Sixteen cents for a poptart made with real food ingredients? How about that?

Who is it that said that eating healthy food is expensive??? (Oh yes, that was me a few years ago.)

I should have become a real food calculating geek years ago. This is fun!!

(Pausing for breath. Does reading this post make anyone else tired, or is it just me? And here we go again…)

My Warm Vanilla Soother recipe breaks down to $2.87 per batch. This really only makes about four servings though, so the cost per person is $0.72. Not bad at all for a mug of hot, steamy, delicious, nourishing comfort. I mean really, can you put a price on comfort? No I don’t think so. But just think about the cost of a hot drink of non-nourishment at your local coffee shop. Pretty sure you can’t get that for $0.72, am I right?

And speaking of coffee – because it does appear that all the exercise I’m getting these days is indeed giving me extra energy – I believe it is wise for me to stay away from drinking coffee very often, even if I did enjoy my one cup of coffee with real Chocolate Caramel Cream. I don’t think giving me additional energy from caffeine is really a good idea right now? What do you think?!

Make plans to join us tomorrow for a Real Food – Low Cost Link-Up! Get ready to share your real food, low cost recipes. Cant’ wait to learn about your tried and true family favorites that are easy on the budget!

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Real Food – Low Cost Challenge: Easy Noodle Stir Fry, Chicken Noodle Soup, And My Heart-Felt Free Range Chicken Speech

February 5, 2012 by Laura 49 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links which won’t change your price but will share some commission.

It is high time someone stood up and said a word on behalf of the free range chickens. I mean, if I don’t say something, who will? The birds can’t speak for themselves, you know? Bless their little chicken hearts.

Ok, real quick – I’ll interrupt this crazy chicken rant to let you know that it would seem that the Real Food – Low Cost Challenge has sent me over the edge to the land of insanity. You know me well enough to have guessed that this was likely to happen some day soon, and probably saw that the end was near when I was struggling so much last week in my effort to figure out the cost of a (stinkin’) cup of whole wheat flour.

But back to the speechless chickens, and my determination to see that they are no longer misunderstood.

I currently pay $12.50 for one free range chicken. Twelve dollars and 50 cents. Many people think that’s a crazy amount to spend on a chicken when I could instead go the store and grab a whole chicken for $3-$5.

But, I hold firm to the belief that my chickens are not expensive. The chickens I buy are very large – usually around five or six pounds each. In fact, I always, without skimping, get at least four meals out of my chickens, if not six. Read here about how I can stretch a chicken to get six meals. Therefore, my one $12.50 investment in chicken costs me, at the most, only $3.13 for a nice amount of meat/broth per meal.

Based on this figure, and on the fact that making homemade whole wheat noodles is also very low in cost, I was thrilled to learn today that I can make a big pot of Chicken Noodle Soup for only $4.03. Four dollars and three cents!!!!! This, for one of the most nutritious meals on the face of the earth. That is $0.67 per family member at my house. Doesn’t that just make you want to stand up and do the chicken dance?

Well, doesn’t it?!

Okay, me neither. But still, I’m pretty excited. In addition, I learned that a batch of Easy Noodle Stir Fry costs about $8.53, which breaks down to $1.42 per person.

I’m thinking that I need to make chicken meals more often since I’m able to pull them together for such a low cost. It is amazing what all I’ve been learning as I’ve broken down the cost of our favorite, real food meals.

So, tell me about the chickens where you’re from. Have you found a good price for a good chicken? Are you able to find free range chickens where you live? How big are your chickens?

I tell you what, nothing beats a good discussion about poultry. ;)

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Menu Plan for the Week

February 5, 2012 by Laura 14 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links which won’t change your price but will share some commission.

We got a bunch of snow dumped on us this weekend. I see lots of snow forts in our future. We’ll definitely be making Snow Ice Cream this week as well.

I’ve been doing more figuring and calculating for our Real Food – Low Cost Challenge over the weekend, the results of which I will share in the next few days. I have really enjoyed learning how much our meals cost! I wanted to let you know that Kacie at Sense to Save has a handy Recipe Cost Calculator that may help you as you calculate the costs of your real food recipes.

Here’s what our menu looks like for this week:

Sunday, February 5
Oatmeal, fruit
Hamburgers, spicy avocado dip, fruit salad, green beans
Healthier cheese dip, corn chips, apples

Monday, February 6
Simple soaked pancakes, applesauce
Salmon patties, creamy mac and cheese, peas
Lasagna, tossed salad, corn, honey whole wheat bread

Tuesday, February 7
Fried eggs on toast, oranges
Homemade beef balogna, crispy cheese crackers, cheddar cheese, apples
Crunchy ranch chicken, rice and veggie stir fry

Wednesday, February 8
Honey whole wheat bagels, clementines
Cheesy rice, steamed carrots and broccoli
Roasted chicken, potatoes, carrots, gravy

Thursday, February 9
Easy breakfast casserole, creamy orange cooler
Veggie soup, homemade soft pretzels
Italian pasta bake, green beans

Friday, February 10
Peanut butter honey toast, bananas
Beef and cheese burritos, applesauce, carrot sticks
Popcorn chicken, ranch potato wedges, peas

Saturday, February 11
Whole wheat donuts
Leftovers
Lamb chops, baked potatoes, fried okra, green beans

Did you get any snow at your house this weekend?

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Join the Real Food – Low Cost Challenge!

January 29, 2012 by Laura 20 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links which won’t change your price but will share some commission.

I’ve decided to do things just a little bit differently during the next few days, just for kicks. :)  Since most of last week’s posts were discussing the expense of eating healthy, whole foods – let’s do a little experimenting, putting some healthy recipes to the test. An “expense test”.

Instead of planning a full menu for this week, I have instead made a list of a few of our family’s favorite recipes – recipes that you’ll find regularly on our weekly menu plans. Throughout the next several days, I will be making each of these recipes. Then, I’ll pull out the calculator and do a price break-down to determine just how much it costs to make these healthy foods. I will post frequent updates, sharing the results I’ve found. I’m excited to see which of my recipes might be most costly to make, and which ones might be less expensive. This is not something I’ve ever done before, so I’m pretty excited about this experiment!

Now of course, I can’t help but want to challenge you to get involved in this experiment too. You knew that was coming, right? :)

I’d love for you to also take some of your family’s favorite healthy, real food recipes and do a little cost break-down on them. You might just be surprised at what you discover! Keep on the look-out, because throughout this challenge, I have a few fun surprises in store as we put these recipes to the test. Then mark your calendar, because on Thursday, February 9, we’ll all come together with a special Real Food – Low Cost Link-Up, so that you can also share with us some of your family’s favorite real food, low cost recipes.

Here are the recipes I plan to do a price break-down on during this experiment:

~ Applesauce Bread

~ Simple Soaked Pancakes

~ Homemade Poptarts

~ Warm Vanilla Soother

~ Chicken And Noodles

~ Homemade Pizza

~ Italian Pasta Bake

~ Cheddar Ranch Burgers

~ Taco Potatoes

~ Easy Noodle Stir Fry

Be watching for lots of fun updates detailing what I’ve discovered about the specific costs of our food. You can, at any time during those posts, share some of your discoveries too.

Sound like fun? Let the challenge begin!

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Keeping Expenses Low While Eating a Healthy Diet

January 26, 2012 by Laura 34 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links which won’t change your price but will share some commission.

Be sure to read Is It Expensive to Eat Healthy Food, Part One and Is It Expensive to Eat Healthy Food, Part Two if you missed them!

The choices our family has made, in our effort to eat as healthy as possible, have definitely caused an increase in our grocery budget – not to mention the fact that our boys are now eating a lot more food than they used to eat. I don’t feel like our eating habits can necessarily be called “expensive” to maintain, because we are making what we feel is a wise investment in our health. But yes, it does cost more to eat healthy, whole foods than it costs to eat lower quality foods.

I do what I can to keep our expenses as low as possible. Some of the following ideas may work for you. Some of them may not. I’ll just share the tricks I’ve tried that have worked for us with the hope that you’ll find some new ideas that may work for you too! I will likely go into more detail on each of these as we continue on with our No More Excuses series. So hang with me!

How I Keep Our Expenses Low While Feeding My Family a Healthy Diet…

1. We eat basic, simple meals.

Scroll through all of the Bread and Breakfast, Main Dishes, Side Dishes, and Condiments recipe ideas listed all over my site. None of those recipes are expensive to prepare. Or, if it is a little pricier, I balance it with a meal that is super inexpensive. Remember how I sometimes stretch a chicken to last give us six meals?

Whole Grain Cinnamon Swirl Bread – just over $1.00/loaf!

2. I cook from scratch if at all possible.

As far as I could figure, it costs me just over $1.00 to bake one loaf of Honey Whole Wheat Bread, which is 100% Whole Grain, no corn syrup, organic ingredient filled, top knotch bread. I’m sure if I broke down other recipes I would find that making food from scratch saves us all kinds of money. Every once in a while I splurge on store-bought packaged food, because my sanity appreciates the sacrifice. But overall, I try to make as much as I can so that I keep our expenses much lower.

3. We rarely eat out.

Eating out as a family is not an option that we ever fall back on, except for the very occasional splurge while traveling or rare special occasion or treat. This saves us so much money, making it possible for us to put our hard earned dollars toward healthy ingredients for eating well at home. For more information and inspiration, read this post titled:  Eating Out Less.

pickingstrawberries4sm2.JPG

4. We try to think outside the box.

We have researched, asked around, and figured out that there are many ways to save money on healthy groceries by shopping online, through health food co-ops, through local farmers and just by asking the right questions. Many people now call us and offer us their leftover fruit from trees and bushes because they know we’ll love it. Bartering and trading have been a wonderful way to gain access to healthy food for free or cheap. And remember how I shared that talking to a local grocer proved to be a great way to get organic produce for a much lower price? Try this idea – it never hurts to ask!

5. We found a food co-op that provides great prices on great foods.

Our healthy food co-op, Azure Standard, saves us loads of money on healthy foods. Check out the following post to help you find local co-ops that might be of service for you where you live:  What Health Food Co-op Is Near You?

In addition to those ideas, we buy food in bulk, stock up when food is in season or on sale, can and preserve foods from our own garden, grind our own flour, and otherwise work as hard as we can to find ways to feed our family for as little as possible. Look over Our Whole Foods Pantry, Freezers, and Refrigerators Resources page to see a huge list detailing where we find most of our food.

As you work to eat a healthy diet and keep your expenses low, always remember that God is in control, and he knows your heart!

Coming up next in the No More Excuses series:  With All the Conflicting Information Out There, What Does “Healthy” Even Mean?!

I know you are also working as hard as you can and doing the best you can to keep your expenses low. Share what works best for you as you work to stay within your grocery budget. I love that we can all learn from each other!

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Is It Expensive to Eat Healthy Food? Part Two

January 24, 2012 by Laura 37 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links which won’t change your price but will share some commission.

Be sure to read Is It Expensive to Eat Healthy Food, Part One if you missed it!

As you consider your grocery budget, and try to make changes in your diet so that you can eat healthier without breaking the bank, here are three important things to consider:

1. Transitioning to Healthy Eating is a Process

If you’re looking to replace every single not so good ingredient in your kitchen with all of the best, healthiest, organic, free range, grass fed, yada yada ingredients, all at the same time – yep, you’re looking at a hefty price tag right from the get-go. Why not take a step back, make a list of changes you’d like to make, then prioritize them and start making small changes – one at a time? What changes can you make that will help you feel better about feeding your family, but that might not hit so hard on the pocket book? Read through this Simple Steps to Healthy Eating Series for some ideas to get you started. But don’t feel like you need to take all the steps at once. Any small step you take puts you on the road toward healthier eating. Some of those steps might just not cost much at all.  And some might actually save you money. How ’bout that?

2. There’s Not a “One Size Fits All” Plan for Eating Healthy

What works for our family may not work for your family. My food resources are likely to be much different from your food resources. The cost of food where I live may be much different from the cost where you live. I’ve heard of free range eggs costing people all the way from $1.00 per dozen to $8.00 per dozen. I’ve gotta say, if free range eggs cost me $8.00 per dozen, I’m pretty sure we’d eat very few eggs and I’d simply buy the regular, cheap ones from the store to use when I bake. Thankfully, I’m blessed to get free range eggs for just $2.50/dozen – a great price if you ask me!

Each family has a different amount to spend on groceries each month. Every family has different dietary needs. Every family has different circumstances. There is no “perfect dollar amount” standard for how much any of us should be spending on healthy food.

I shared more on this subject in this post:  “No Grocery Budget Comparing Allowed”.

3. God is in Control and He Knows Your Heart

No matter what you buy, how much you spend, what you eat, or how you eat it – your choices can honor the One who provides for our every need. If you aren’t blessed to find free range chicken that doesn’t cost the same as your mortgage, you will still honor God and your family by eating a regular ol’ chicken. At the risk of sounding goofy and sacrilegious – God can bless your chicken whether it’s free range or not. God wants us to be wise stewards of our resources and to simply do the best we can with what we have. He knows our individual circumstances and He knows our heart. He understands our desire to do what is right for our family and He will provide what we need to do just that.

Don’t leave God out of the picture and think that you must be the one doing a perfect job selecting, purchasing, and preparing food. God’s gotcha covered. Do not be so focused on trying to make healthy food choices that you lose sight of the One who matters most.

No matter where you are on your healthy eating journey – no matter where you land on specific dietary choices for yourself and for your family, God can and will be glorified.

And that, my friends, is what it’s all about.

What would you consider your biggest struggle in regard to the expense of eating a healthy diet?

Heavenly Homemaker's Club Members: Access your homepage and all your fantastic resources here! Not a member yet? Please join us!

Menu Plan for the Week

January 15, 2012 by Laura 5 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links which won’t change your price but will share some commission.

I really appreciated hearing from so many of you last week in regard to menu planning. Sounds like many of you have great methods of organizing your meal plans for your family. If you find my menu plan somewhat overwhelming, please read through this post to learn the method behind my madness. :)

I love using this Creamy Mac and Cheese recipe to make Tuna Casserole.
I just add two cans of tuna and it’s done. One of the easiest meals ever to put together!

Here are the meals we’re looking to have this week:

Sunday, January 15
Oatmeal, pears
Tuna casserole, peas
High School Huddle – Chili with fritos, cheese, and sour cream; carrot sticks, olives, chocolate chip cookies

Monday, January 16
Simple soaked pancakes, blueberries
Taco corn fritters, applesauce
Italian cream cheese chicken, tossed salad

Tuesday, January 17
Fried eggs on toast, clementines
Sloppy cornbread muffins, fruit salad
Roasted chicken, carrots, potatoes, gravy

Wednesday, January 18
Elias’ birthday – still waiting to hear his bday meal choices! :)

Thursday, January 19
Mini breakfast pizza, oranges
Chicken tortilla soup, carrots
Beefy enchilada bake, tossed salad

Friday, January 20
Peanut butter honey toast, applesauce
Quesadillas, apples
Homemade pizza

Saturday, January 21
Mini apple pies
Grilled cheese sandwiches, tomato soup
Roast, mashed potatoes, gravy, green beans

What’s on your menu this week?

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8 Tips for Feeding Your Family Whole Foods on a Budget (Plus a Giveaway for “The Money Saving Mom’s Budget”!)

January 11, 2012 by Laura 1,064 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links which won’t change your price but will share some commission.

This is a guest post written by Crystal Paine, from Money Saving Mom. Be sure not to miss our giveaway below this post for Crystal’s new book The Money Saving Mom®‘s Budget.

Many people have this misguided idea that it is impossible to feed your family a whole foods on a budget. If you live in Alaska or some remote part of the country, this may be the case, but in most areas, you can feed your family natural, unprocessed foods without spending hundreds of dollars each week to do so.

Sure, you might spend a little bit more than someone who is eating a diet composed mostly of processed foods, but it really doesn’t have to cost you an arm and a leg as some people will make you
think–especially if you’re willing to get creative and think outside the box.

Now, let me be upfront and tell you that our weekly meal plans probably wouldn’t win us the Healthiest Family of the Year award. We eat some processed foods (though we do make the majority of our food from scratch), we like sweets and we certainly do not eat 100% organic.

I know some people are really bothered by this, but we strive to have a balance of serving lots of fresh fruits, veggies and whole grains while still enjoying the occasional brownies and ice cream or even letting our children have a Happy Meal every now and then (gasp! Can you believe it?!)

So, despite the fact that I’m not the most knowledgeable and experienced person to be tackling this issue, here are some suggestions:

1. Plan a Menu Based Upon What is In Season and On Sale

If you want to feed your family on a budget, you need to have a plan for what you’ll be eating. If you can make your menu plan mostly based upon what is on sale at the natural foods store, what is in season at the Farmer’s Market and/or what you’re reaping in abundance from your garden, you’re going to significantly reduce your grocery bill.

2. Practice the “Buy Ahead” Principle

If you happen to come upon an incredible sale on tomatoes at the Farmer’s Market, or the health food store has organic frozen vegetables on a great sale, stock up. Buying items you routinely use when
they are at their lowest price is another surefire way to savings.

3. Plant a Garden (Or Barter With Someone Who Does!)

If you can pull it off, plant a garden. Produce is typically only pennies per item from your own backyard, it’s tremendously fresh and you know exactly what you did or didn’t spray on it. Plus, you can can or freeze your extras–or bless your friends and neighbors with them!

Have a brown thumb? Find a friend who loves gardening and trade services (babysitting, breadbaking, car maintenance?) in exchange for their garden excess.

4. Stick With Simple Meals Using Inexpensive Ingredients

When you’re planning your menu, think about how much your recipes will cost you to make. It doesn’t have to be a scientific to-the-penny figure, but just having a good idea that there is a $10 difference between the price of making one meal as opposed to another meal can help you decide whether you can afford to make something or perhaps should save it for a special occasion.

5. Serve Meat as a Condiment

I shamelessly stole this idea from Family Feasts for $75 Per Week because it’s so brilliant. Serving meat in soup or on pizza is going to be a lot less expensive than serving roast and sirloin,
especially if you’re buying high-quality meat.

Need ideas? Laura shows you how to make six meals out of one chicken.

6. Buy in Bulk

It is usually much more cost-effective to purchase meat and staple ingredients in bulk. Call around to local farmers and see what they would charge you for purchasing half a cow. In many cases, it’s at
least $1 cheaper per pound to purchase in bulk. Buying grains, beans, as well as many other basic ingredients with long storage lives in large quantities will almost always save you at least 20%, if not more.

Costco, as well as many bulk foods stores and local co-ops, offer great pricing. You can also check with your local health food store to see if they’d offer you a discount for bulk purchases.

7. Consider Joining a CSA or Co-Op

If there is a co-op or CSA in your area, check into pricing and details for joining. You might find that it is an affordable and money-saving option for your family. If you can’t find an affordable co-op in your area, you could consider starting your own co-op.

8. Use Coupons on Non-Food Items

I know a number of my readers don’t eat processed foods, but they use coupons to save money on toilet paper, toothbrushes and other non-food items which they purchase. Your savings might not be so exciting as others who use dozens of coupons each shopping trip, but even saving $5 each week by using coupons can start to add up over time.

Crystal Paine is a wife, homeschool mom to three, self-proclaimed minimalist, lover of dark chocolate and good coffee (those can be “healthful” in moderation, right?) and wannabe runner. For practical help and inspiration to get your life and finances in order, check out her blog, MoneySavingMom or purchase a copy of her brand-new book, The Money Saving Mom®‘s Budget.

Interested in winning a copy of Crystal’s new book, The Money Saving Mom®‘s Budget? They’ve offered to give away five copies! Leave a comment on this post for a chance to win. I’ll draw five random winners on Monday, January 16. Please watch for a post stating the winner as you will be responsible for contacting me if your name is chosen!

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Some Encouragement Before We Start the “No More Excuses” Series

January 8, 2012 by Laura 47 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links which won’t change your price but will share some commission.

I really appreciated that so many of you left comments sharing your thoughts, struggles, and insights as to why eating a healthy diet may be difficult for you or for others. I have experienced all of these same feelings and shucks, I still do sometimes.

I have definitely not “arrived” when it comes to this healthy eating journey we’re all on. My family does not eat a completely healthy diet at all times. There are many times that I compromise on what would be the best choice to feed my family. There are times I pull out cereal because I can’t make myself get out of bed in the morning to cook the breakfast I have planned. There are times when, while I totally know better than to buy the chips with hydrogenated oils in them, doggonnit, I want them anyway and I don’t care what’s in them, so there. (Which is why you should never dangle a Nacho Cheese flavored Dorito in front of me. I will eat it. I love those awful things.)

Doritos aside, there are many areas of healthy eating I haven’t mastered yet. And guess what? I don’t even know if I want to master them. How’s that for a bad attitude that sort of flies in the face of my “No More Excuses” intro post? I don’t love eating completely raw foods. Fermented foods, while they are great for digestion, aren’t my favorites. And soaking grains? I’m beginning to find that practice very annoying and am therefore becoming a bit rebellious about it. There, I said it.

I’ve run the gamut of emotion on this healthy eating journey I’ve been on for the past several years. The biggest feeling:  Guilt. Now that’s a fun one.

Guilt when I don’t feed my family perfectly. Guilt when I don’t feel like cooking. Guilt when I know I could be doing better. Guilt when it feels like other moms are feeding their children a healthier diet than I’m feeding mine. Guilt when I read about what someone else is doing, but I just don’t feel like I want to go there yet.

Which is what leads me to the point of this post:  Please do not let anything I share on my blog, and specifically in this new No More Excuses series, overwhelm, frustrate, annoy, or otherwise make you want to throw Doritos at me. (On second thought…)  :)

I want to share my thoughts in the No More Excuses series to encourage you to consider how you might be able to feed your family a healthy diet and help you know that it is possible for you. But let’s also subtitle it the “No More Guilt” series, because we women have to stick together. We may all be in different places in our healthy eating journey, but we’re all on the same team. No comparisions allowed. No guilt. No pressure. Just encouragement and ideas, sharing and inspiring.

And maybe, the occasional Dorito. Someone stop me.

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