Baby steps to healthy eating

I honestly can't believe that I'm getting serious about being healthy.  You'd think that after having children, thyroid cancer, and being overweight for many years I would've gotten serious a long time ago.  And I have done diets...oh so many diets.  I've lost weight...I can't even begin to calculate my weight loss totals.  It's great that I know I'm capable of losing weight, since I have so much that I need to lose...AGAIN.  But that was really all I was going for in the past.  Yes, I wanted to be healthy, but the most urgent thing in my mind was to lose the weight.  This time is different, though.  Maybe the cancer has changed me.  Maybe it's just God who is changing me and doing a work in my heart and mind that I haven't experienced before.  All a part of the baby step process.  In my own life I've found that God gives me what I need when I need it...and often when I'm most able to handle it.  I have to contribute this journey to Him and trust in His guidance because there is no way I can do it myself.  I honestly don't believe in coincidence, either.  God has done too many amazing things in my life at just the right time for me not to credit Him. 

A few weeks ago I was scanning my facebook home page, just reading what everyone was up to.  I ran across a friend's post about soy.  I didn't know much about soy or really anything that had soy in it..except soy sauce : ).  I knew I had heard of people having soy allergies, but since no one in my immediate family had an allergy to it, I didn't bother with learning about it.  One thing she said caught my eye, though.  She mentioned that her doctor told her that if you have thyroid issues, cancer, or a family history of cancer, he recommended that you not eat foods with soy.  My red flags flew high at that moment.  Me=thyroid cancer, family history of cancer, and family history of thyroid problems.  I jumped right in on the conversation and got some info.  I also read other comments that affirmed what my friend said.  In my opinion, this was from the Lord.  I don't think I could've handled a big lifestyle change last year...or the beginning of this year.  I believe God has prepared me and has helped me to feel less overwhelmed physically so that I could take this information and start making changes...one baby step at a time.

Where to start.  I had no clue.  So I started looking at food labels.  Soy was in almost every processed, pre-packaged food item I looked at.  Yikes!  Because let's be real...I like making easy stuff for us to eat.  I pretty much depended on it in past months.  I couldn't see myself spending hours in the kitchen making my own bread and homemade this and thats.  But...I could see myself taking some small steps to START making some things myself.  I like to cook, so that's good.  The kids are starting to be able to entertain themselves even more...even the little guy...so that gives me a little more free time.  I put out a plea on facebook for some recommendations.  That led me to this blog: 100 Days of Real Food.  This is a REAL mom...making REAL food.  One night I was up until almost 2 am reading all I could.  One thing I LOVE about her blog is that she is realistic about eating healthy and has two little kids, so her recipes are kid and mom friendly.  Here are a few of her recipes that I plan to try out...

whole wheat pop tarts



Picture from 100 Days of Real Food blog...
whole wheat pot tarts



homemade spaghetti sauce

Fruit, nut, or berry whole wheat muffins

whole wheat tortillas

These are all things that my family likes...and the ingredients are doable!  Yay!  After printing some of these off I looked over at my hubby and said, "I think I could really do this."  And I really want to. 

Other blogs that I want to check out are:
Beyond Diet

Good Cheap Eats

Pinterest has also been a good source of recipes and ideas.

I also decided to try and read some articles/info on this whole soy thing and also get some ideas about healthy living.  I found this article when I googled "soy lecithin", which is found in so many products.  There are lots of differing opinions on it, so I would suggest getting all the info...not just from this article.  But my first baby step is to cut soy.  I just believe it's the right place for us to start given my medical history. 

I also found a collection of articles that my friend Amy (the friend who helped me get going on this journey with her soy facebook post) has been doing on the Southern Savers blog called Organic Living Journey.  I read through some of her articles yesterday before I went grocery shopping.  It was extremely helpful and practical.  I would definitely recommend them.

As we were riding home from the grocery store last night, I was encouraged...and happy.  My hubby and I were both getting excited about these changes in our eating and we even started getting ideas about having our own garden this year.  Us?  A garden?  Yes, God is definitely doing something!  Today I was printing out some of the recipes I mentioned and I started talking with the hubby again about my desire to lose weight.  It's weird how your perspective can just flip around.  All these years I would get almost desperate to lose weight..and that was my sole focus.  Lose the weight.  I also added "get healthy" in there, too, but I would still find ways to eat something unhealthy and lose the weight.  Now my focus is...eat healthy.  I'm not as focused on the weight loss, just on the eating.  But I know that when I'm eating right, I'll lose the weight.  It's one of those "duh" kind of things, but for me this is a real epiphany.  I know I might slip up sometimes, and I also know that I'm not going to throw out everything that's bad in my pantry and fridge.  We're just going to start where we are right now and each time I buy food it's going to get better and better.  God has even provided a way for me to get fresh eggs and possibly fresh bread with no soy.  Baby steps.  Filled with grace.