Where did all the hippies go?

Sometimes it’s hard being the hippie. Sometimes you feel like the guy standing on the side of the road waving a poorly written sign proclaiming that the end is nigh.

Maybe it is, maybe it isn’t. Who knows. But I do know that often what I believe about health and wellbeing is so different from the mainstream views it sort of does make me look like a crazy person.

That because advertising claims, health ‘professionals’ and seemingly everyone we talk to believes on way it must be do.

And that thinking any different is well crazy.

Anyone who lives a so-called alternate lifestyle faces it at one point or another. That’s not what my doctor/mother/the packet/this opinion piece says so you must be wrong.

Sometimes it’s not even about wrong or right, it’s about not wanting to change. It’s easier to be ignorant to the truth or to just not care.

Attachment parents you know what I’m talking about. Homebirth, co-sleeping, extended breastfeeding, homeschooling, baby led weaning, babywearing, gentle guidance, night time parenting.

Sometimes it doesn’t even matter how much evidence you have on your side you’re wrong.

There is mounting evidence that breastfeeding your toddler is good for them but don’t because it’s creepy or weird.

Or that coconut oil is good for you during pregnancy and while lactating… But that’s hippie crap, how the hell would you even cook with that, doesn’t it make all your food taste like coconut?

Let’s not even get into choosing to be chemical free, wait, let’s go there.

Lots and lots of chemicals are legal and are readily used in a range of products from beauty products to cleaning products, and they’re doing us damage. Why would cancer rates be 1 in 2,000 at the year 1900 and are now in 2012 believed to hit 1 in 2 in generation X’s life time? What’s changed? What we eat has changed, what we use to clean ourselves and our homes has changed, how we live, how we work, it’s all changed.

Now as most of my readers are also tree hugging hippies I know that you’ll understand what I’m talking about

We’re up against it. The EU have made herbal remedies harder to obtain removing consumer choice.. There are constant calls for natural medicine to be banned or restricted here in Australia. Vaccination is being linked to payments that had nothing to do with vaccination at all.

Effectively our choices are being stripped.

And as the majority of people go along with it and follow authority with blind trust, to question and to march to the beat of a different drum is to declare yourself a crazy hippy. It’s just like standing on the side of the road warning passers that the end is nigh.

And maybe it is, because most of what we warn about will decrease your health span. Sure you’ll live to 70 or 80 but what kind of a life? Will you be happy and healthy in old age or will there be degenerative disease?

And what about our kids?

So what are the crazy hippies doing?

Eating organic

Exercise
It’s not just for weight loss. Exercise is important for everyone for long term health. The longer you stay active the longer you’ll stay healthy. Walking a bit each day can be the difference between remaining independent or not in older age. So what do you do? Walk to the shops, ride a bike, dance, take up a team sport, it doesn’t have to be weights at the gym and it doesn’t even have to cost you anything. Yoga is great for the body and the mind.

Get rid of the craptastic chemicals
And if you want help knowing what is safe and what’s not then feel free to get in contact with me. On Facebook or email me – amandareimers@live.com.au

If you’re not sure then read about it.
Seriously, google is your friend. Read a whole bunch of opinions and chose for yourself. Doctors, nurses, naturopaths, nutritionists, they all put their own personal spin and opinions on their advice, if you are not sure then do your own research. Some professionals will say that it shouldn’t be up to parents to have to read labels and studies. I don’t agree. I think taking responsibility for our own health and the health of our children is of utmost importance. Health professionals should be empowering us and giving us the tools to make those choices.

Don’t be afraid to be different

Sometimes it may feel like you are the only person in the whole world who cares about labels, organics, processed and refined food, homeopathics, chiropractic care. While others think a massage is something of a nice treat you may be the only one believing that massage and touch are important healing tools. It’s okay, truly it is. Because look hard enough and there are others too. Keep your ‘mainstream’ friends, it’s the differences that make us interesting, but join groups and meet people.

If you’re a homebirther then this group is the one for you.

Breastfeeding? Check out your local ABA group.

Feel free to shout out on my Facebook page who you are and where you’re from, I’ll repost and hook you up with some new friends.

Don’t worry hippie mums, other hippy mums are out there .

Lunch ideas and an explanation

I promised I’d write about lunch about a week ago. And I didn’t. Life got busy, no life got hectic, and it got the better of me.

So what has happened? We went to Brisbane for a few weeks and I slacked off on my blog. We came home (and back to limited Internet reception) and I got even slacker. DS has started cutting his first teeth AND went through the sequences wonder week or as I like to call it Screamfest ’11. There has been much night waking and my brain is left in the morning a huge pile of mush.

Coffee helps.

And I will admit to wishing this phase away. We’ve cried together and it’s been REALLY hard.

This morning at MoPS he cut a tooth, lately it’s been rare for him to even need me during a MoPS session but this morning he did. He then fell asleep in the car on the way home, but transferred beautifully.

But the upside to a wonder week is all the new skills he’s learning. He now crawls, sits, stands, and is so social. And even a bit cheeky. I see his babyhood flying before me, it won’t be long before he’s up and walking.

Alright, so on to what I promised.

Lunch.

The great thing about lunch is that you really can do anything with it. Big, small, hot, cold, you can graze or make platters if you really want.

I usually make lunch for myself, my toddler and my baby. There needs to be a finger food portion and as the weather is heating up I’m opting for a cold lunch.

In a pinch leftovers make a great lunch. Mince meat mixes go great on toasted sandwiches.

Salads are great and your options really are endless. You can make a simple dressing by mixing an acid and an oil together. So vinegar and olive oil, balsamic vinegar and olive oil, lemon juice and oil, and make sure you season it.

A nice simple salad is cos lettuce, cherry tomatoes, olives, red onion, and feta cheese with a dressing of balsamic vinegar, olive oil and sea salt.

Sandwiches are great. I make bread using the thermomix to mix the dough and then bake it in the oven. Egg sandwiches are a hit with my kids. Boiled eggs mashed with a fork with some mayonnaise mixed through it.

DS LOVES bean spread. One can butter beans (drained), 2 tbsp olive oil, 1 tsp crushed garlic, 1/2 cup grated cheddar cheese, 2 tsp finely chopped parsley, large pinch of paprika. Blend it all in a food processor or blender until it makes a thick paste.

I make what I call hot fish toast. Sounds gross but is super yum.
Small can of sardines (150g), 1/2 medium tomato cut in slices, pepper and 1 tsp chopped parsley. Mash the fish including the soft bones (great source of non-dairy calcium) and take care no hard pieces remain. Toast some bread in a pan so only one side is cooked. Place the slices of tomato on the uncooked side. Spoon the fish over the top covering the bread completely. Grill for 5′ minutes or until the fish is heated through. Season with pepper and sprinkle parsley on top.

French toast is great for lunch. As are pancakes.

Fruit salad or fruit skewers. Chicken nuggets or fish fingers.

Vegetables sticks with a dip.

Bento lunch boxes are a fun way to ‘spice up’ lunch for kids. You can be as creative or keep it as simple as you like. I use a round Tupperware container with silicone individual muffin moulds of different colours. The idea behind a bento is to have rice, meat, vegetable and a sweet. But really you can do whatever you want. Here are some great ideas to get you started.

Lunch boxes are great even if you aren’t actually going anywhere and especially if you have a baby and an older child.

A nice treat thats a bit different is a dry fruit dip. 1/4 cup of sugar, 3 tablespoons of ground cinnamon, 2 tablespoons of dried lemon or orange peel, 1 teaspoon ground allspice, 1 teaspoon ground cloves, 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg. Mixed together and put in an airtight container, sprinkle one teaspoon over some fruit (dried or fresh) for an unusual but tasty treat.

I love the Dora and Diego Let’s Cook book for tasty foods for tots and Wholefoods for Children by Jude Blereau.

I hope that’s given you some ideas, and I hope that I can blog more regularly now

Cooking quick, tasty meals from scratch

Cooking from scratch need not be as hard as some make it out to be. For the purpose if this blog post I’m counting using packet pasta as from scratch. Let’s face it, unless you’ve been shown how to do it, pasta from scratch is quite difficult.

When making the transition from packet to home made, I really suggest starting with the basics first. Get your kitchen set up.

You will need – blender or food processor – I use a Thermomix and love it, but considering the price any food processor that will chop/blend/crush ice will do the trick.
SHARP knives – it doesn’t matter if they’re the cheapest knives in the store, so long as they’re sharp. A sharp knife will make chopping faster, easier and is actually safer then a blunt knife as a clean cut will heal better then a cut that is also bruised, a blunt knife will cause you to use more pressure meaning you’ll do more damage if you slip.
Pots and pans – don’t worry about getting the latest crap peddled by the top chef or whoever. Just make sure you have a variety of sizes and volumes. We have a big soup pot, two small saucepans and two fry pans. That’s it.
Baking trays – we have muffins pans, a big baking tray, a roasting tray, a cake tin, a pie tin, and a loaf pan. Start small, buy a baking tray and a muffin tray. Get more as you go along.
Tongs, spatulas, carving fork, serving spoons, measuring jug, casserole dish
Slow cooker – we just have a little one from Big W, but feel free to get as big or as fancy as you like.
Kettle.
Measuring scales – I have a small electrical set.

Pantry and fridge
Flour
Sugar
Baking powder
Tinned tomatoes
Tomato paste
Salt
Pepper
Spices
Breadcrumbs
Cocoa
Milk
Eggs
Butter
Cream
Sour cream
Tomatoes
Potatoes
Mince
Chicken
Beef
Lentils
Vegetables
Fruit

I also have coconut oil, maple syrup, spelt, linseed, and tinned food in case of emergency, such as cyclones, which tend to happen where we live.

I don’t have a bread maker because my thermomix does the kneading for me, but they can be quite handy.

Let’s get cooking!
Breakfast

When cooking from scratch most people think of elaborate dinners, lunch options and snacks. Breakfast is often overlooked. But what is really in your cereal?

When switching to homemade, breakfast is a great place to start. There are plenty of healthy quick options that can replace cereals or store brought spreads on toast.

Eggs boiled, poached, fried, omelette, scrambled.
French toast mix equal part eggs and milk with some salt and pepper or cinnamon, dunk whole pieces of bread in the mixture and allow a few seconds to soak it up, fry bread in a hot pan. Serve.
Muesli no need to buy it from the store, you can make it yourself.
Porridge
Stewed fruit and yoghurt I like apple, rhubarb, and strawberries stewed in the thermomix. Stew an apple, a stick of rhubarb and the juice of an orange with some sugar (I use about two tablespoons) over a high heat until soft. Add the strawberries and stew a few minutes more.
Pancakes or pikelets
Sweet or savory muffins
Smoothies while they may not seem like a substantial breakfast, a smoothie can be quite filling and very nutritious. And you can make them with whatever you like! Fruit – strawberry, mango, banana, pear, apple, kiwi fruit, watermelon, orange. Vegetable – carrots, tomato, green leafy vegetables. Grains – quinoa, oats. Dates for sweetness. Ice or frozen fruit to keep it nice and cold. Blend it until its nice and smooth.

There are plenty of other things you can make for breakfast, what do you like to make?

Tomorrow – lunch