I have a lot to say about food.
I was raised eating great food. My dad loved to cook experimentally and my mom was pro at baking! As they grew up, several of my sisters found a love for cooking/baking too and can now make just about anything. After getting married, I was exposed to a whole different world of foods than I'd ever tried or thought I'd liked. While in the hospital after having Farrah, my dad bought me a cookbook (which was quite the treat coming from him!) and I can't wait to try every single recipe in it! Recently, David and I have been watching shows like "Master Chef" on Hulu Plus and it's helped to spark my interest in cooking as well. So I'm recording a new goal: to cook/bake more frequently (from scratch).
David and I have also been fed up with our weight gain and feeling disgusting, due to sitting on the couch for hours watching TV after putting the girls to sleep. David suggested we try being vegetarian for a month (which has now turned into 2 weeks). I'm a carnivore so it seems quite daunting but I'm willing to put in the effort.
Lately, Farrah has been acting colicky and the culprit seems to be dairy.. For anyone who knows me, you'd know that I can go through AT LEAST 2 gallons of whole milk a week single-handedly. I also dump any and all cheese into or onto nearly everything I eat and I'd be a crazy person not to love icecream.. and I do!! So here is a question for anyone who'd like to keep me from starving. What in the world does a lactose intolerant vegetarian eat?! Is this basically what vegans eat?
Sometimes David and I like to pretend like we're rich people so we occasionally take ourselves out to eat. Last night we ate at the "Tortilla Bar" on State Street here in Orem. David's work is a few buildings over and he said he sees their line get longer and longer everyday, which made him curious. He ordered the hanger taco and pork taco and I ordered the pork taco and avacado taco. They were both excellent, but a little pricey for the small portion you get. However, everything (as much as possible) is organic and locally grown/provided which guaranteed us really fresh food! I wouldn't eat there everyday, but as my husband said, it's a place you'd want to take someone you are trying to impress!
Afterward, we stopped by Taco Bell to get Lilly her own soft taco. David and I couldn't help but sneak a few bites.. sometimes you just really need some greasy garbage food too!
I. LOVE. FOOD.
What cookbook did you get? Can't help but be curious. :) I read 'em like novels. Love MasterChef, too!
ReplyDeleteI imagine it will be difficult going dairy-free from the amount you intake now, but it's not impossible. Oh, who am I kidding. I put Chase on formula instead of cutting dairy out of my diet when I suspected my dairy intake affected his nursing. :P Turns out he has milk allergy, so it's good of you to give Farrah a chance to be dairy-free. (I wouldn't say she's allergic, sounds like just intolerant. Chase had tummy trouble and major eczema.) If you need a little help in the dairy-free category, give me a call. I have no experience in vegetarian eating. ;) I do have a few good, easy veggie side dish recipes, though, if you'd like them.
Thanks Jenna! While I was still having dairy, Farrah's face broke out into a bright red dry rash that later spread to her chest, hair and back of her neck. Her tummy always sounded grumbly and she was pretty gassy. As you can imagine, she also cried a lot.. Is that similar to your experience with Chase? Since I've quit, her face has cleared up and she sleeps a lot more now. At first, I told David I couldn't give up dairy for a year and that she was going to have to be formula fed. But then he gave me this guilt trip that made me feel like a bad mom for not "sacrificing" for my child... haha so I'm going to try, but I don't know how long it'll last. I'd love some snack replacement suggestions! (We eat a lot of string cheese, cheese and crackers, yogurt and cottage cheese 'round these parts). And the recipe book dad got me was Taste of Home : Simple & Delicious. I love it so far!
DeleteSorry, I just realized I hadn't checked back here for your reply!
ReplyDeleteThe rash makes me wonder if it IS an allergy... both my kiddos had cracked/bleeding eczema until I removed their triggers (eggs or milk) from their diets. I'd talk to her ped. about getting tested for an allergy around her 1st birthday (they're not likely to test before then).
Don't you dare feel guilty about changing HER diet; moms already sacrifice SO much for their kids. However, I will say that there were plenty of times I wished that I had continued nursing instead of switching to formula with Chase. I loved the '"freedom" bottles gave me but hated making/washing bottles... and being worried about running out of formula, and especially having to pay for it. It was insanely expensive to formula-feed exclusively. It cost me a little over $100/month for formula (I paid $1,300 to formula-feed him for a year, I just checked my Quicken records!). If you can get really hefty coupons or WIC/etc programs to pay for it, more power to you.
Otherwise, you could try the soy replacements for some of the dairy products you like (like soy yogurt or coconut yogurt)... when Afton eats yogurt I give Chase applesauce or even a jar of fruity babyfood to dip graham crackers in. Not sure about milk sub. products for straight eating/drinking (Chase likes ricemilk b/c that's all he's ever had, but I can't drink it, yuck!) Silk's chocolate soy milk is yummy, though... If you're trying to cook/bake from scratch, rice milk or soy milk can usually be used interchangably w/ dairy (trial & error). Check margarine labels for whey/milk ingred for butter subs (I use Nucoa or Saffola for Chase) or use oil (I use olive, extra virgin for cooking/sauteeing and light for baking). I'll email you some recipes; this is getting too long! ;)
Just kidding about the email; see my one and only blog post at http://jennaconover.blogspot.com/ :)
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