Why I tried the Whole 30, with 4 four kids, a full time job, and a ten hour road trip....

Because, sometimes you just need a hard reset. Sometimes you just need to stop the madness, get off the crazy train and take a moment to figure out where you've been and where you are going.  Sometimes you need a pause.  The Whole 30 for me, gives my family a chance to do this nutritionally.  To strip our diets of so many of the "offending" type foods, starve our sugar addictions, and reprogram our brain and our relationship with food.

Members of our family have been dealing with the following health issues:
Fatigue
Lethargy
Difficulty focusing
Anxiety
Restlessness
Sinus/Allergy issues
Digestive Issues
Inflammation
Night Waking

We're going to take an inventory.  I'm going to chronicle our results... Pay attention to each family member, their particular issue(s) and how they respond to clean eating.  Then I'll pay attention to how we all respond to re-introducing foods strategically into our diet.

I've been researching the Whole 30 since August.  I wanted to do it then, but realized that in that particular season I didn't have the time/focus available to actually pull it off. So, we waited until we did.  We are driving to TN for a wedding this month.  We're super duper stoked about it. And, I'm a little terrified of keeping this up. But, in 5 months there hasn't been a convenient time. So, here goes.

Couple of things that seem notable:

We are all on board. Brian and I are united in our effort to hard reset.  Our kids get it to the degree that they are able.  We are currently binging on potato chips, pop tarts and wine (only some of us) in preparation.  We've each voted on our last meals, and our menu is a compilation of all of our favorite guilty pleasures.

I'm not taking milk away from my toddler.  My 15 month old will still enjoy her bottles.  (Take off your judgy face, she's the 4th, the last, and she still nurses a couple of times a day. Once she's done nursing I'll put her milk in a cup.) She'll eat what we eat when I cook.  If her Grandma's want to make her oat meal, I'm okay with that.  She's a baby.  It's alright.

I went to three stores to find pork products that didn't have added sugar.  Way to go Costco and Kirkland brand bacon for making the cut.  I gave up on finding ham and salami that were Whole 30 approved.  I think I cheated on the breakfast sausage from Whole Foods that had honey powder (what the what?) in it.  Whatevs.

I didn't realize that January was like a super trendy time to do this, but I'm really glad for all the other people crazy enough to do it at the same time!

I bought too much produce.  As a result, I've learned you can freeze a TON of fruits and veggies.

The prep session required going to three stores (Costco, Trader Joes and Whole Foods) and 5 hours of prepping.  (I'm not quite done, I have a few things left to do.) In total it was an 11 hour day.  Glory.

Whole 30, ready or not, here we come!