When did vegetable start with a Mmm?

We get a fruit and vegetable box delivered to our house a couple of times a month. This was one of the weeks. As I was pulling all the vegetables out of the box I realized I always feel like a kid on Christmas or at least a parent since I already knew what was in the box.

I started to do a little self reflecting - I mean as much as you can, as a mom of four, in the 2 minutes I had.

How the heck did I go from the seventeen year old Hollywood Video girl who would rather eat Sour Patch Watermelons and drink soda on her dinner break...

Yep, me. 10+ years ago! Hi!

or the new wife that thought a good dinner was having boxed hamburger helper(sans meat, we were broke) with asparagus on the side...

to the gal who is pulling snow pea out of the veggie box and moaning. Yes I literally was making "Mmmm" sounds. I mean look at those babies! So much beauty and color. None of it made in a lab. Not-a-thing!

...Back to my reflecting...

I tried to pin point the exact moment I thought to myself "Um, self, what in the world are you doing?! Shouldn't things be, oh I don't know, a little more natural?!"

I'm not just talking food now. 

I've realized there have been many smaller moments(some big ones too) in my life that have led me to this place. Maybe I will talk about them more in a future post. Once it's not our "first date". I wouldn't want to scare you off or anything!

One of the more recent events was coming to the realization that my body, all imperfections and extra lbs included, is the best gift I have ever received. So why in the world was I treating it so badly? Did the things I do, use or eat help me beautify this gift? Nope.

-I don't mean the Hollywood version of beauty-

I want to use this gift to it's full potential. Be the best me. Feel strong and in control of it! I sometimes found my self wanting to scream "Food! You are not the boss of me!" 

But guess what? Food kind of is the boss. Of my body at least. As far as helping me function! But I get to say what, how much and when. 

So take that food! 

What was I putting in my body though? I mean food companies would make sure things were safe...right?....right?!

About 5 years ago we started researching more about High Fructose Corn Syrup.  We decided to take that completely out of our diet. -We thought that was hard to do!-

Flash forward 4 years, several food documentaries and some researching later we decided to try our hand at a vegan diet. I will say those first 2 weeks were the hardest! We weren't big meat eaters anyway. We usually ate chicken and only had red meat a handful of times a year. We did consume a lot of dairy. Our bodies had to detox all of that out of their systems. They also had to get used to all the fiber and nutrients. 

-Did you know most American's diets are deficient in calcium and fiber(among other things)?-

I was seriously thinking what in the world have we gotten ourselves into. But you can't unsee and forget the things you've learned. So we continued moving forward. I'm so grateful that we did! There are so many benefits to this lifestyle. Not only the health benefits but also the impact we have on the environment. After those 2 weeks I started feeling lighter. Not weight-wise, but something more. My whole body felt better. My skin cleared up. My husband lost around 10 lbs.

My kiddos do still eat vegetarian sometimes when we go out to dinner. They also still have their free cookie from Fred Meyers. Why? Because I'm okay with it. You have to make individual choices for yourself and your family.

Becoming vegan wasn't the only thing we changed. 

 I started looking at packages, boxes, and bags(in my best Grinch voice). What are these things I can't pronounce? Why does my toothpaste need dyes? Food created in a lab? You can put the words "100% natural" on anything?! 

-Did you know the food labeling term "natural" is not regulated by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA)?! Meaning anyone can put it on anything! *Insert Tommy Boy guarantee joke here* But let's not get started on the FDA-

Now I've started thinking...This ingredient is made out of what animal part?! Ew.

-can we say Castoreum? Nuff said-

Out came the Genetically Modified Organisms(GMOs) and the dyes.

I love the quote from Hungry For Change:

 "we are not eating food anymore; we are eating food-like products."

I had a friend ask if our grocery bills have gone up. They have increased, but not from eating vegan. It's more from the other choices we have made with food.

I leave you with this:

Know where your food comes from. Know how it got from point A to your taBle. Know what is in and on it.