Picky, picky

I once made a list of foods that my children, as individuals, will or will not eat.
I would like to post that here, now. It helps me to plan meals and grocery lists.
Also, I would like to post a list containing edibles that are gluten and casein free to make it easier to cross reference what everyone can, cannot or will not eat. I'll make a separate entry for it.

Filler

I have written  a lot but haven't posted any of it.
I'm having a hard time not letting my posts center around me crying about how hard this is and how ridiculously expensive it is. Don't forget to mention how utterly time consuming.
Only to wind up serving the same food over and over.

I'm concerned about how I can't just feed one person in the family a certain way. About how I'm going to reach a point where keeping foods of a certain type in the house isn't going to work.
I think about how this might get easier as he gets older and starts to accept more foods. But for now there isn't much he will eat; and it's amazing how many things are to be cut out.

I worry about how many vegetables I can really hide in everything.

Baby steps.


I have to embrace how much effort this is going to take. Look at the positives.
I LOVE FOOD! This is going to be a great opportunity to really get in touch with what is going into our bodies. Also, I'll be pleased to be trying new recipes.
Ducky loves trying new foods, and it is really important to me for her to have a really healthy foundation for her food choices later in life. Blue needs more excitement in his diet as well. I want him to want to eat more than just pasta, bread, milk and meat. Same goes for Dman, to tell the truth.
And Lucky, who knows? Maybe the only thing he'll get out of this is a more healthy diet foundation. And that alone is worth it to me. But, maybe. . . just maybe this will help clear out his body and brain and make him feel more connected. Maybe.



I splurged on custom cereal, today. I would love to do that again! It was fun! Probably won't happen, though! I also bought Bob's Red Mill Mighty Tasty Hot Cereal.

I'm also going to Whole Foods tomorrow to check out flours. I found some recipes for flatbread that seem easy and versatile.

Blueberries are buy one get two free! Going to put them in everything this week!



Lucky starts his new school tomorrow. Hello, nerves!
I bought a super adorable bento box for his lunches. It's beautiful green lacquer on the outside with two giraffes, plain black inside. There's a curious saying printed on the top "Around the year when we would wish to stand on tiptoe". It's microwavable and dishwasher safe. Bonus!
I thought it was probably the most suitable option, considering how much rice he eats. Plus, how nice to be able to microwave only one tier, leaving the other cold or room temp.
Besides, aren't all first lunchboxes supposed to be extra special?

There's graham crackers, oranges and V-8 fusion strawberry juice for snack. Cheesy rice bake, egg crepes and apple for lunch. All in all, quite easy.
Yes, I know cheese isn't casein-free. Nor is milk. I'm trying to not explode before the end of the week.



Note: I didn't make the rice bake according to directions. I added italian seasoning, thyme, and pepper to the rice (which was made in veggie broth) and put the tomato paste directly in half of the rice mix. I didn't put cheese on top. They were bake in cast iron skillets in the oven.
They turned out nice. The tomato one would have been better if I had spread it thinner and used less paste.

I'm hungry. . .

There's no way I can afford to start feeding a family of five the way I would ideally like to.
How nice it would be, to only buy organic foods. How proud I would be to serve my children only free-range chicken and eggs.
But that isn't realistic for me right now. So, I have to start with little changes.

Truthfully, I don't really know where to start.

The two younger bebes don't really drink milk or eat cheese; or really even consume dairy, for that matter. Blue does, but if I don't keep it in the house it doesn't seem to bother him. But, Dman (the little guys' daddy) could easily go through a gallon of milk a day. He isn't so big on raw cheese, so that's something.
I used to buy only Rice Dream or Almond Breeze for cereals and cooking, but it became a huge drain on us. We simply cannot afford to supply to amount we would need.

And then there's the issue of gluten.
Oh, sweet heavens. I feel doomed.

On the bright side, Lucky tends to naturally gravitate towards foods that are gluten-free. He favors rice noodles, plain steamed rice (white or brown) and potatoes over other carbs.
However, he still loves crackers, oatmeal, flour breading.

And of course, there's the matter of protein.
Lucky doesn't eat meat, with the occasional exception for white fish. And eggs, which isn't a 'meat' but in my family we say it is. He likes to eat nuts and some seeds, but these aren't allowed at his school as there is another child with a severe nut allergy. And, again, the cost issue with buying large amounts of nuts is a major factor.
The other two children eat meat without any inhibitions. Personally, I could live as a vegetarian and be happy. But, Dman is very much a meat and potatoes kind of person. I could have a very hearty mushroom pasta thing on the table and he would still worry that he wasn't getting enough food. It's really a mental thing with him, but pointing that out doesn't do any good.


So, I am going to wind this post down by saying this is what I'm working with. Finding a balance that nourishes and satisfies everyone isn't going to be easy.
I'm always open for suggestions and advice!

Does not come standard with model

"Gluten is found in wheat, rye, barley, oats, spelt, and any derivatives of these grains, including, but not limited to malt grain-starches, malt wash, hydrolyzed vegetable/plant proteins, grain vinegar, soy sauce, and natural flavorings. Casein is found in milk and milk products from mammals....Gluten is in even in Play-Doh, adhesive on stamps and stickers, and many hygiene products. Soy, another common food allergen, is in many foods and hand lotions, make-up, etc." - Nutritionist, Carol Ann Brannon


This simple statement is so overwhelming. 
This is probably the most impractical way of living I can think of. It's like a recipe for neuroticism.
But I'm not trying to build Rome. Not today, at least.