One Small Change Update and Farewell March

On this last day of March I think back through so many memories and there are a lot that come from our One Small Change.

I really focused on slowing down, planning and thinking ahead so my family may eat more whole foods in our ONE SMALL CHANGE rather than those quick fixes in flash that are so easy for this on the go Momma to grab.

Our Small change list

• We make all our own bread now. I found this Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day and am hooked...it is really that easy and I just found out that they have a new cookbook Healthy Bread in Five...on my wish list. We started with the basic recipe to get the rhythm, now we are using the Whole Wheat recipe soo good!
• The Farmer's Market opened, so we have an abundance of local produce and have plans to get there every Saturday morning. There is also a neighborhood market on Wednesdays we caught today.
• We have created a weekly meal rhythm that has helped me plan and prepare. It has also helped with stocking of the pantry and fridge...
• All veggie trimmings are saved for stock
• New rule...all left overs are to be eaten...I try and come up with creative ways to use them up...now with how much care we put into our food, we want zero to go to waste.
• Pizza night (Sat.) all from scratch. this moment

I think getting organized was the most difficult, but have made some small changes and am having fun making connections with the farmers' weekly at the market. A big change is we are eating less meat at our table. We are meat eaters and have only been consumers of grass fed beef and organic poultry for some time ...my last stage of the change will be to buy our meat from Afton Field Farm. We did buy an organic pasture chicken from a different local farm at the market week before last and I have made 4 meals from that one bird, and have two gallons of chicken stock in the freezer for more to come.

Maxx and I have been feeling under the weather and the other night after our bike ride we made chicken noodle soup and had tea. It was such a joy to both work on this project and sit down and enjoy the comfort. Maxx said very excited that he, "...L-O-V-E s peas and noodles" -the bonus of making our own...we get to add in extra :)

I am really loving living more simply and am looking forward to April's small change.

One Small Change for March

If nothing ever changed, there'd be no butterflies. ~Author Unknown

For our first One Small Change and in March, we are going to cook with whole foods and work on eating more seasonal and local produce for the month. I am so inspired by the others who have joined in and are making their small changes along with my friends and peers who teach and inspire me daily. Personally I have been making changes over time, but never dedicated a month to making that change, publicly posting it and having a follow up. (Thanks Cindy for the link!)

As a working mother, I find it easy to grab a frozen pizza and a salad kit on a hectic day...make macaroni and cheese from a box, vege bouillon cubes, and my favorite quick food is boxed (bagged) cereal for breakfast. I am not saying this may not happen, but I am aiming for it to be far less. In time with practice, the right tools and being comfortable I am aiming for "once in a blue moon", to quote Maxx.

This month will be about purging out the processed and welcoming in beautiful grains, legumes, local seasonal fruit and vegetables. This is going be about new habits and taking time to plan on my part, then working the plan.

I am reading the cookbook Feeding The Whole Family Cooking with Whole Foods (Thank you Lisa for bringing it in.)

I have a strong sense of cooking and a culinary degree, so it may seem to those who know me well... this book is very basic and simple. *smile* ...My goal. Living more simple and bringing wholeness and connection onto our table for our soul, our health, and yearly rhythm of the seasons. I also feel blessed and lucky to have a child that does not have food allergies and just follows me to the next culinary adventure. I want to lead, teach, and take advantage by nourishing him, so he, and his, may be able to enjoy the beauty in so many different foods also. My maternal instinct says cut out the processed and factory foods. We have been eating natural and organic foods for some time now, so this just seems like the natural progression and the right thing.

Another great thing about this book for me personally... is the handy dandy appendix meal planner...and recipes to help give just the jump start I need. Working through the recipes I will gain the knowledge and wisdom I need through this journey of change.

We have already incorporated and tested some of the recipes, so I have a little head start...little did I know about this blog that is inspiring so many out there to make one small change. *glass up* To March and to your One Small Change.