What a surprise I got tonight when my Holistic Moms co-leaders and members presented me with flowers and a (gluten-free, dairy-free, soy-free, refined-sugar-free) cake at our monthly meeting! We decided not to do a huge anniversary party again this year after last year’s blow out, and I wasn’t really missing all the stress! But they…
Healthy Eating
Spreading the gluten-free gospel
I’m so excited for tonight’s Holistic Moms meeting on Special Diets! Going GF (and also dairy-free, soy-free, and corn-free) has made such a difference in my physical and mental health! Cheryl Harris of Harris Whole Health will be speaking on the reasoning behind gluten-free diets, dairy-free diets, the GAPS diet, the Specific Carbohydrate Diet, and…
“Lunch Line” documentary tells important story of school lunch
When I learned from the DC Urban Moms calendar that the documentary Lunch Line was going to be screened downtown at Busboys & Poets last Sunday night, I could hardly contain my excitement. School lunch is an issue I’ve been getting very interested in, especially with the passage of the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act in…
Real Food Wednesday – School Lunch Reform?
View more posts about Real Food at Kelly the Kitchen Kop’s Real Food Wednesdays blog carnival! The new “Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids” Act signed on December 13 is getting a lot of positive feedback for the changes it will make to the federal school lunch program, but there are some reasons to hold back praise. I’m…
Study says kids don’t want sweet cereals
I just learned from Nancy Piho’s My Two-Year-Old Eats Octopus blog about the results of a new study on children and cereal. In a study published in Pediatrics, Yale researchers found that children will eat low-sugar options if they are offered. The gist is “If you serve it, they will eat it,” suggesting that offering…
Gluten-free, dairy-free black bean brownies
On December 13, President Obama signed the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010 to “improve” the school lunch program. Some “Real Food” enthusiasts raise questions about the fact that the school lunch program is even tied to the Agriculture Department, a point Sally Fallon made in her address, “The Politics of School Lunch” at the…
Gluten-free, Dairy-free Pumpkin Quick Bread
“Gluten-free food at Waldorf school” is something of an oxymoron; those places love their wheat! My son brings his own bread and muffins for snack to replace the homemade, whole wheat organic snacks the students and teachers make in the classroom. Last night my husband said to some friends of the boy’s school and his…
More on healthy food in schools!
My visit to Barcroft Elementary school’s Farm to Table celebration (referenced here last week) is now described in more detail on my column at the Washington Times Communities Family Today. Read “Authors, chefs encourage local, healthy food in schools” and tell me what your school is doing — or not doing — to promote healthy…
(Good?) Food in schools
I was so disappointed to miss last weekend’s Wise Traditions conference sponsored by the Weston A. Price Foundation. The topic was “The Politics of Food;” I looked forward to hearing about “The Politics of School Lunches” and in participating in the food activism panel with WAPF publicist and food blogger extraordinaire, Kimberly Harkte of Hartke…
Farm to School Week underway!
As I wrote about last week, November 8-12 is Virginia Farm to School week, as made official by the Virginia General Assembly. Today I share more about the efforts in Alexandria and Arlington public schools in my column at the Washington Times Communities Family Today. Click here for my previous post about Alexandria’s George Mason…
Virginia celebrates Farm to School Week — spotlight on Alexandria’s George Mason Elementary
With my son in currently attending a Waldorf preschool that makes all its own food from scratch (from organic ingredients), it’s been too easy for me to ignore what’s going on in public school cafeterias. Next week, November 8-12, 2010 Virginia will celebrate its second Virginia Farm to School Week, part of the greater Farm…
Blog Action Day: Water!
This Blog Action Day post addresses flouride, plastic bottles, and other issues of safety and environmental awareness related to water.
CNN report on high fructose corn syrup
The CNN report for which I was interviewed about high fructose corn syrup is now online. View it here! Thanks to reporters Brianna Keilar and Lesa Jansen for taking on this issue! Read more about my opinions on HFCS here.
Wellness events in October
October is a crazy-busy month for natural-minded health and wellness junkies in and around Washington, DC. Pathways, the free magazine you see at massage therapy centers, health food stores, and the offices of alternative medicine practitioners is having its Natural Living Expo on Sunday, October 3 in Adelphi, Maryland. Folks who like to teach their…
“So what do you think about high fructose corn syrup?”
I am not sure how well I recently answered this question about my concerns about high fructose corn syrup (HFCS). I don’t want to imply that I’m knocking anyone else’s choices, but I also feel pretty strongly that our bodies and our planet would both be healthier and happier if we gave this substance the…
“It has gluten.” Escape route from junk food?
Not so long ago, my husband took our son with him to get a haircut, where the boy was offered a lollipop, something he previously didn’t know existed. In my world, we would just say no thank you. It’s just Not. Something. We. Eat. End of story. If he asked, I would have just said…
Last hurrah: farm trip
Despite the fact that a drive to Michigan resulted (I think) in the first swelling I’ve seen this pregnancy, I am headed with my little boy now to Polyface Farms, some three hours away. I’ve been looking forward to having him see a real sustainable farm in action for months, especially now that he’s watched…
Silver Diner supports local food in schools
Who knew diner food could be health food? I had no idea that the Silver Diner – a chain of restaurants in Maryland, Virginia, and New Jersey – was on a mission to serve local food and offer healthier choices. When I attended a special evening recently for food bloggers, I got a true taste…
Business as usual on Earth Day
This post originally appeared on DC Metro Moms on April 22, 2010 Business as usual on Earth Day I felt a little guilty when a friend said she was turning off her computer for Earth Day; I had no plans to commemorate the day on my own or “celebrate” the day with my son. I’ve…
Navigating the birthday present conundrum
This post originally appeared on DC Metro Moms on April 1, 2010 Navigating the birthday present conundrum I was pretty comfortable with my “No gifts, please”/Birthdays Without Pressure approach until last week when my newly-four-year-old son said of the friends coming to his playdate, “But I want them to bring presents!” Am I an evil…