Clementine Betrayal

So following the last post, I feel inclined to disclose the Clementine incident.

So, background....if I buy 1 bag of Clementines they all get eaten the first and second day. If I buy two bags of them, then they all get eat the first and second day. Now, I love Clementines, so I understand. So this last time I squirreled away about 10 for myself. I thought I would stealthily indulge on afternoon.....

and I was caught. The look was one of shock. Followed by silence. Then...

"Mom, what is that?"

me: "A Clementine."

"MOM HAS AN ORANGE!!!!!!!"

me: "Hey. Yes. I do."

"YOU SAID WE WERE OUT BECAUSE WE ATE THEM ALL!"

me: "Yes, you ate yours. These are mine."

"YOU LIED!"

me: "No?"

"WE ARE SUPPOSED TO SHARE THE FRUIT."

me: "Yes. And you didn't share with me. So I set these aside."

"BETRAYER!"

Silence.

More silence.

Ever since I have not gone alone into the kitchen. They are quick footed. When we replenished supply, the new pattern is that they get out 3 at a time, one for each of them and one for me, which is nice.

Snacks

Someone recently asked me what we do for snacks around here. We do snacks at will, as in the kids have full access to have them at any time they feel hungry, even 10 minutes right before dinner (though I discourage that by getting them busy helping me with dinner preparations.)

Why? I regulate my own hunger and eat at will. Most adults do, so in raising them to be adults I want to create healthy habits. If healthy snacks are available and they learn to regulate their own hunger, they form good habits. They also take pride in creating pretty presentations and preparing the food for each other. They know they can ask for help at any time too. I also encourage them to drink water, because sometimes thirst pretends it is hunger.

Dried fruit
popcorn (in lard or coconut oil)
crackers
cookies (rare)
frozen fruit
juice
yogurt (Greek)
beef jerky
nuts
peanut or sunflower seed butter sandwiches
hard boiled eggs
fresh fruit
carrots and celery
Popsicles
cheese
chips and salsa
eggrolls

In the summer, full access means they might eat 10 peaches each in a day. You know what? It's peaches, not soda pop, chips, and candy. In the winter, I keep a bucket of apples in the kitchen and they eat at those. Again, it's fruit not junk.

They recently realized that many breakfast foods are included in the snacks so they make their own breakfast too. Later they often ask for a second breakfast (the little Hobbits). Sometimes elevensies. ;)

For car trips, apples and crackers. Easy to pass out and eat and clean up. We will stop and get food while out too. Smoothies are a favourite.

We don't do dessert except for holidays or special occasions. We have blood sugar issues and there tends to be less problems at night if we avoid the idea of dessert after dinner. It also eliminates the child urge to "save room" and not eat dinner. Ha!

Here's the thing. We ALWAYS have ice cream in the freezer. I love ice cream. There is no limit on that treat either. They girls still choose yogurt and fruit and cheese. They also don't feel pressured to "finish" what is on their plate, even dessert items. I wish I could get that kind of control for myself!

Also, I found that if I buy fruit snacks....that's what gets eaten. So I buy the healthy foods. I don't buy the junk if I can help it. I only go to the store every other week so when they run out of something, like clementines, they are gone until next time. At the end, snack time gets creative- that's a good thing!

Winter Fun

Green Things I Don't Do

I had an insightful conversation the other day with a friend. The topic was shame really, about not being or doing things "green". This got me thinking that if we wrap ourselves up in the shame of not doing, or do certain things because of what others may think of us, then that is not maintainable. The action will not stick. Nor should we be ashamed of our progress, if we are not quite green homemaker of the year. You know? I make a lot of food from scratch and do a lot of intentionally good for the earth kind of things, so I think sometimes that might intimidate others? But I am not perfect, not a special green mama. So here is my confessional....not perfect indeed!

I don't hang out my laundry. I don't even have a clothes line. If I did, it would be a pain to walk heavy baskets of wet clothes form my second floor laundry room all the way outside. Then there is road dust, bird poop, and all sorts of other factors that just don't appeal to me. For this reason I have opted not to push the issue with my dearest.

I don't enjoy doing dishes by hand. I wish that I did, but I don't. I love <3 love my dishwasher.

I buy the good light bulbs that produce decent light. I hate florescent lights. Not to mention the toxicity of those florescent bulbs once they are done and off to the landfill and our watershed. I won't even pretend that people bother to take them to their stores to be recycled. It just does not happen.

I want to be a responsible person, but the reality of being "green" does not always fit every one's life. Maybe those things will come to me (likely not the light bulbs though) and years from now I will be happily hanging up wet undies with my dishpan hands, just like years ago when I thought I had to microwave food to make it safe to eat and now I don't and will never own one. I'm just not there yet.

It is because of this constantly changing mindset that I have come to understand more and judge less. I am not a lesser person or care less for the earth just because I have decided to opt for an HE dryer so conveniently placed in the room next to where all the clothes get shed and next to the other rooms they get put away. I do a lot more than most people because I can and have opportunity to. I have animals I am raising to eat in open air, I have a body of water in my care, I have children I am raising to care about these things too, and I have access to a life that those children can continue, inherit the earth in real terms.

What does matter is the actual, thoughtful living. I know that I should recycle soda cans even though there is no easy way to do so out here on the farm. I know that hanging laundry is a helpful task, and that doing dishes by hand can save water and money, I choose not to but I know the pros and cons in making that decision. That is different than just ignoring it, being ignorant of it, or just doing what is normal and easy. The choice needs to be mine and mine intrinsically.