My top 5 tips for taking road trips with kids

 
We just got home from visiting my brother and his girlfriend in Seattle and while I was driving back today I started to make a list in my head of the top 5 tips I've learned while taking long road trips.

1. Kids should be dressed in cotton pajamas.  Why you ask?  Because they're comfy, thin, and breathable.  While traveling you'll likely run into several weather patterns.  For instance we started out today in rain, then lots of snow, then sun.  The kids had their blankets on or off depending on how warm they wanted to be.  I don't care for fleece because it's not very breathable, it's staticky (sp?), and they usually have feet attached.  I like to be able to throw on a pair of shoes easily.

2. Keep them eating.  I made these and these (keep refrigerated if possible), bought beef jerky, had lots of bottled water and fruit.  Now that I've learned my lesson about carbs, I realized that eating animal crackers or goldfish crackers makes me hungrier.  This costs me more money when I have to keep buying more food + I have to buy bigger pants ;)  If there is an open bag of goldfish while I'm driving, I'll eat the whole thing.  However, today I had an open bag of jerky and only ate until I was full.  Carbs, for me anyways, just don't fill me up and the same goes for my kids.

3. Take along some favorites and some new things.  Bring your kids' favorite toys, books and stuffed animals and bring a few new things.  This will keep them occupied longer.

4. Buy or borrow some portable DVD players.  My FIL got us 2 for the kids as Christmas presents this year and this weekend was our first chance to use them.  They are life savers and I hope we never have to take a long road trip without them.  I don't personally agree with having projectiles in the car that can cause injury in the case of a crash, but these ones were velcroed on in two places, so the risk was less in my opinion.  They have already been removed from the headrests and we'll only be using them on long trips.

5. Be prepared.  Be prepared that if you're visiting family or friends that they won't have enough food to feed your troop.  Be prepared when traveling in bad weather; carry chains if needed, extra blankets, a first aid kit and possible snow boots for yourself.

What are your top tips for road trips with kids?

Primal week is over...a wrap-up

So, let me get this off my chest right now.  I had a little honey and chocolate today, and a homemade donut hole from my mom.  I made this recipe for The Hubbs because he was being crabby; he's been complaining about this since Monday, even though he agreed to it.  I was planning to make it tomorrow, but I'm unpredictable like that, haha.  He didn't like it, so I tasted it and really liked it.  Like the recipe says, it's not a sugar candy cake.  Within 15 minutes of eating it I felt like dog doo, my energy was zapped and I just felt blah.  So, that's what 7 days with out will do!

Overall I'm thrilled with the results of this experiment and I may have changed my some people's minds about all the sugar we consume with out really knowing it.  When we went to my parent's house today (where I ate aforementioned donut hole) my mom had gotten The Primal Blueprint from the library!  We talked about the meals I made and how she could maybe modify what they're eating.  I'm now making a much more concise meal plan to include only 1x a day where we eat flour and sugar (like a piece of toast for breakfast to go with our eggs, or a sandwich with lots of meat, etc).  Protein is my golden key to staying level, no more roller coaster sugar spikes for me, thanks.

While The Hubbs really did complain a lot all week, I know it opened his eyes.  His mom was just recently diagnosed as borderline Type 2 Diabetic.  She is a wonderful woman and we all would hate to lose her.  She has since lost 20lbs by curbing her carbs and eating healthy protein.  The Hubbs has been quizzing her each time we see her about what she can and can't eat.  He's soaking it up from her, which I'm happy about.

The cherry on top of this week is my weight loss, I lost 5lbs!  I hope to continue this weight loss, especially as we're entering Spring and I can get out more.  I want to thank all of you for following me along this week and for all of our comments and encouragement, it has meant a lot :)

What are you final thoughts about a Primal Diet?  Are you interested in trying it?  If you're a seasoned Primalist (I like to make up words) what words of advice can you share?

Recipe: Salty soaked raisins

Salty soaked raisins

1 cup organic raisins
1/4 cup of organic salted butter

Melt the butter in a pan over medium-low heat.  Add the raisins and stir occasionally, they'll turn amber in color.  Once 90% of them have puffed up a little, you're ready to eat.  BEWARE: The Hubbs and I may have been fighting over them, they're so good!

Linked to Far Above Rubies: Domestically Divine Homemaking Link-up

Linked to Fight Back Friday @

5 days in...

 We've been eating no flour and no sugar for 5 days and I'm really starting to get used to it.  We're eating lots of veggies, fruit, cheese, yogurt and of course meat.  My energy levels are up, and no afternoon lag has been present.  I've also noticed my moodiness has all but dissapeared.  If you know me in real life, than you know I'm an emotional roller coaster sometimes ;)  I'm also in the middle of my PMDD "bad spell" and haven't cried or flipped out on anyone this week, woot!  So, for me, this diet is kicking butt!  I've also lost 3lbs this week with only minimal working out, like going for a walk with the kids.  I plan to do my cardio (30 day shred) this afternoon after the kids wake up from nap.

As far as dessert, yesterday I purchased 3 bars of Lindt 85% dark chocolate for us to snack on after dinner, after Monday of course.  I found a recipe for grain/gluten free chocolate cake too, which The Hubbs is in love with.  I won't be going back to my old ways, so don't think we're going to binge on sugar come Monday.

I love me some Sally Fallon!

http://blip.tv/file/4770667

She's not talking about primal, but it's certainly pretty close.  She's also written quite a few books, my favorite being Nourishing Traditions, again not primal, but so informative.

I love the part where she talks about "Soda in drag" aka flavored milk, hehe!

Thoughts?

Primal carb graph

One more post today that I couldn't leave out.  I just found this on MDA's site...which I love more and more.  As you can see, the graph above breaks down the amount of carbs, into weight loss or weight gain.  It's no wonder I've never been able to get this weight off.  I was easily consuming at least 300 grams per day when I was eating healthy.  Whole grain bread, natural ketchup and organic jam are just a few of the foods that come to mind.  I haven't eaten any of those foods for 3 days and my carbs for today are 139.  I log what I eat over at MyPlate which is great for figuring out how much fat, carbs and protein I'm eating.  I'm 16 points above the Weight Loss Sweet Spot, but I'm so happy to have found this graph.  It's giving me something to strive for, something to visualize.

I'd love to know how many carbs you've eaten today and I'm going to log my food again tomorrow and see what the difference is :)

Primal menu for Feb 14th - 20th

Monday
Bkfst - Banana pancakes w/ butter
Lunch - Cheese and apples
Dinner - Snowy volcanoes w/ green beans and salad
To do - Grocery shop: Costco

Tuesday
Bkfst - Eggs and sausage
Lunch - Bologna and apples
Dinner - Shepherd's Pie
To do - Cloth diapering playgroup

Wednesday
Bkfst - Fruit smoothies w/ apples and pb
Lunch - Bologna and bananas
Dinner - Leftovers
To do - Go to a jumpy place and take Frosty to the vet

Thursday
Bkfst - Eggs and sausage
Lunch - Ricotta cheese w/ pineapple
Dinner - Bun-less bacon cheeseburgers with french fries
To do - Veg out

Friday
Bkfst - Yogurt w/ homemade granola
Lunch - Bologna and bananas
Dinner - Chili with beef and sausage (no beans)
To do -  Homeschooling playgroup at our house

Saturday

Bkfst - Smoothies w/ apples and pb
Lunch - Cheese and apples
Dinner - Chicken Parmesan w/ garlicky green beans
To do - Nothing on the docket...yet

Sunday
Bkfst - Banana pancakes and sausage
Lunch - Cheese, carrots and homemade ranch
Dinner - Leftovers

To do - Enjoy the Sabbath