How do I juggle my life as an entrepreneur and full-time mom and still find time to feed my kids a healthy diet? The truth is that it is almost impossible to build a business, raise two small babies, feed them well and dress them right 100% of the time. But, there are a few tricks to do your best and do it right 90% of the time.

First, ask yourself: do you have to work, or do you just want to work? These are two very different things.

I started a business and decided that I wanted to see it through (kids or no kids), but I didn’t want to use daycare or even a full-time nanny. I wanted to hold onto my company and work toward my goals slowly (a lot more slowly than I had originally planned!). Typically, I am okay with this decision. But every so often, usually when a stressful event arises, I break down like the best of us. I either (a) threaten that I am throwing in the towel or (b) get mad that my company is not growing quickly enough. Then, I decide to work even harder.

However, having the “I can do it all” mentality often means that somebody is going to suffer. Whether it is your business, your free time, your relationship, or your kids—it is going to happen. And if it hasn’t yet, it will!

Establish daily goals and spend quality time with your kids!

My main daily goal is to be with my kids as much as possible when they aren’t napping. That means NO television, no internet, no texting (okay, maybe just a little texting) and so on when we’re together. I give them 100% of my attention and we play, we learn, we go to the park, we walk and we talk. I do not half-ass it. But, come naptime at 11am, it’s on! I’m all over the internet, making calls, multi-tasking, emailing, writing, designing, etc. I get as much done as I possibly can.

Do you want a nanny or babysitter? How does daycare sound?

Two days a week, I have a babysitter come and help out. She helps clean the house, get the babies up and change them, and maybe even feed them the food I’ve made. I can then use that time to prepare meals, do some extra work, have a green drink, go grocery shopping, and so on. One of those two days is spent driving to my “real” office and accomplishing, again, massive amounts of work in a short amount of time.

Evenings can be spent by going out as a family to a cool restaurant, Mom and Dad going out on a date, or heading to Grandma’s house for a meal (this is very helpful—somebody to help play with the kids and allow me time to relax).

I typically stop working at 5pm, no matter what, to just chill and eat and play with the boys. I rarely work at night, but when there are deadlines to meet or blog posts to finish, I put the babies to bed and work until around 10pm before hitting the sack. I’m an early bird.

Making time for Healthy Meals.

As far as healthy food goes, my job revolves around food. So it’s easier for me to make food than it might be for somebody else. I’ve become very fast and very good at it. It also helps that I am working on recipes for my blog and a cookbook in the works. This keeps me creative and cutting-edge. I have two little boys to practice on; what could be better?

I must say, though, that making dinner is NOT usually a fun thing for me to do. It’s not like the old days when cooking was my daily “meditation,” escape, and creative outlet. Now, it’s often a hurried process with screaming babies in the background demanding “apple juice, mama” or “hold me, mama” or just yelling nonsense like “dada baba, mama, dada” over and over again! I throw in a smile and a laugh here and there, but I am typically racing around the kitchen while pulling my hair out, trying to buy myself some “quiet” time by feeding babies bananas or giving in and pouring a tall glass of apple juice.

Still, it is important that you do give your children healthy meals, both to calm them and give them sustained energy. Healthy meals help them avoid the crashes that can cause temper tantrums. A friend of mine recently wrote this on her Facebook page:

“My kids amaze me. I made Juli Novotny’s Green Juice today and Zoe (2 years old) drank an entire cup! And when it was done, she declared “There’s a party in my tummy! So yummy! So yummy”. Srsly…I just didn’t think either of my kids would touch it with a 10 ft pole. Esp since it didn’t come in a box with Dora or a Princess on it. I was shocked. I thought she was going to throw it at me…”

My midwife once gave me a great piece of advice: “Just because you don’t like it, doesn’t mean your kid won’t.” (e.g., I hate when my ears get wet, so I always plug my son’s ears when I wash his hair). Our children ARE NOT US! They are their own individual beings. So give them what’s best for them—they will eat it! And they just might thank you for it, too.

Time for Yourself!

This is a must, and right now, in my life, it is lacking. I need it more than anything. Luckily, my “work” is my passion. I’m blessed in that way. I love doing it; so in a sense, it is my time away as well as my “day job!”

But I do hit walls. And when I do, my body/gut is very good at telling me what it needs. I get these little voices in my head that say “you’re thirsty” or “you’re tired” or “you need to relax and get a massage.” It sounds weird, but I am pretty tuned in to those voices. And if I ignore them, I become sick, over-tired, or rundown.

When I do hit this wall, I get a hot stone massage, an awesome pedicure, or I splurge on a great facial here in town. This hour forces me to sit down, read magazines, and forget about the work and baby world. It also serves to balance my workaholic personality with grounding greens and omegas. I drink tons of coconut water and green drinks. I enjoy an occasional glass of red wine and sometimes a good movie, too!

Try to exercise. I haven’t done this in awhile, but it’s a major piece of advice that I will give everybody—and what I mean by exercise is a good sweat. So whatever that means to you, do it. Hopefully it includes some fresh air (as opposed to a yoga studio or a gym). Get outside.
That’s my life! One big juggling match. Even if it’s not 100% perfect, I love it.

I love gummy bears! And, quite honestly, over the years, I have become a self-proclaimed gummy bear connoisseur. A family friend introduced my brother and me to Haribo gummy bears when we were kids. And ever since, I have had a love affair with those colorful, chewy (but not stick to your teeth chewy), sweet yet tangy little loveable bears.

What’s wrong with this picture? Right, a culinary nutritionist who has devoted her life’s work to teaching people about health supportive food lifestyle is talking about her love of candy. Well, maybe that’s not such a bad thing?

I just wrote an article for my holiday newsletter entitled You and Your Kids: How Much Health Food is Too Much? An excerpt:

I picked my older son Jack up from school the other day to find him wearing a necklace made of Frootloops (artificially colored “cereal” that is literally the bane of my existence). OK, I will openly admit that I took a slightly not-so-silent gasp as he ran over to me filled with pride over his creation. I pulled it together just in time to meet his enthusiasm with a smile at the same time thinking, “OMG, my kid is wearing a necklace made of “food” with carcinogenic dyes.”

So, that evening Jack’s  culinary nutritionist-mom (me, that is) decided to email his teacher to “just throw out there” that in the event that she has food related activities in the class, I am happy to make suggestions for the healthiest products on the market to use (ie. New Morning Fruit-e-O’s versus Frootloops). I received a very nice e mail back from her stating in not so many words that to teach kids about what is healthy, they also need to experience what is not healthy. Point taken.

This whole experience triggered a very important thought process for me: How much “health food” is too much? A weird question posed by a person who devotes her life to teaching people about eating healthfully. But, at the same time a very important question to ask and address. And one I deal with every day in my work and personal life.

First, back to the gummy bears. Yes, Haribo does have those carcinogenic dyes* in them, the same ones that Frootloops have, but I have come to the conclusion, after wearing many different food lifestyle hats, that a little junk can’t hurt. In fact, it is actually healthy. OMG! What a weird thought! Even so, I must add that I do have a little Jewish guilt when I eat those dyes (which comprise less than .1% of my diet).

Second, I will have you all know that I love kale! It is an acquired taste for some but raw and if cooked just right, it’s delicious (and filled with all that good stuff our bodies need). I love it raw in salads (finely chopped); sautéed in olive oil and garlic with a little lemon; and roughly chopped with onions and cooked in a little olive oil, broth and white vinegar with a touch of salt.

So, I guess the big question is (and appropriately so post-Holidays): How do you balance junk food with healthy food?

Firstly and most importantly, I want to point out that it differs for everyone. To some, junk foods are chips, candy, cookie, cakes, beverages and more that are made with “fake” ingredients (dyes, flavors, sweeteners, preservatives) and to others junk foods are the same foods with natural ingredients. To me, the first is SUPER JUNK and the latter is JUST JUNK. My choice: SUPER JUNK is for once in a while and JUST JUNK is OK in small doses everyday.

I am big on Conscious Eating. And the way I encourage my clients to become conscious eaters is to keep a food diary. They eat, write down what they are eating then look at what they have eaten. After about two days, they don’t like what they see. Thus, they start thinking about what they are putting in those precious bodies of theirs. So, just a little suggestion for all of you who want to assess the “candy” (junk food) and “kale” (healthy food) in your food lifestyle:

• Keep a food diary for one week

• When complete, highlight “candy” in one color and “kale” in another

• Assess the results, determine what you want to change and write it down

• Then ask yourself, can I replace any of the “candy” with the “kale” or can I replace the SUPER JUNK with JUST JUNK (the healthier JUNK choice)

Life is about balance. Moderation is my mantra!

I can’t end this article without adding that I have finally found the perfect natural and organic gummy bear thanks to Yummy Earth! It is even better than Haribo. My SUPER JUNK is now JUST JUNK. I can have my candy and eat it too, all guilt-free!!!

Finally, for those of you who love “candy” (literally), check out www.naturalcandystore.com. An amazing resource!

*The FDA will argue that food dyes are GRAS—Generally Recognized as Safe. Don’t know about you, but I want to eat (99.9% of the time) things that are safe versus generally recognized as safe?

Debbie Young

After being diagnosed with Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia in April of 2007, I did tons of research on healing my body. I was told there was no cure and that my prognosis was “good” at ten years max. Not sure what’s so good about that at 48 years old. Then I found Ms. Kris Carr, and watched her life saving ass-kicking documentary Crazy Sexy Cancer. I devoured her Crazy Sexy Cancer Tips book in a few hours, crying and laughing all the way. My life changed forever, for the better.

I traded in my frying pan for a juicer, and used a dehydrator instead of an oven. Enjoying greens, seeds, all sorts of veggies, sprouts, nuts, nut milks and nut butters, fruit, smoothies and the occasional superfood treat, my body sang with health. Within five months, my blood work was the best it’s ever been and has remained steady since. You may be thinking, “She must be making her family eat all raw food, surrounded by raw loving people, eating at tons of living cuisine gourmet restaurants, and hey, it’s EASY to do raw in Sunny Southern California!” And you would be incorrect on most counts.

My stepdaughter Jazmine is 18 and will eat anything, she is what I would call an adventurous food lover. Sam, my 8-year-old daughter, adores the following items: Steak, coffee (!) and ice cream. Warner, my dear husband, used to crave Korean BBQ and has been known to knock back a few Negro Modelos at dinner. My in-laws live in Hawaii, where plate lunches (Spam!) and buffets are common fare. My brother-in-law is a sushi chef. Most of my close friends are omnivores, with a few vegheads thrown in the mix. My sister loves the spice of life and is a wonderful cook. With a few exceptions, like Bueller of Bueller’s Kitchen and Revell of Let’s Talk Raw, most of my raw/wellness crew are spread all over the USA.

When I made the choice to use the Crazy Sexy Lifestyle for healing, I knew that it would be ten times as hard to try to change my family’s diet too. Did some things disappear from our kitchen? You betcha! Did they like the raw food I made? Some things became staples, other dishes, not so much. I do cook everyday for my family, mostly vegan fare and as much whole food as I can get in their bellies! Trust me when I tell you that going to a raw food restaurant is a rare and expensive treat, not a common occurrence!

The funny thing is, my friends have started following my lead and taking up raw foods too. My best friend, who used to eat pretty standard American diet, juices daily and has dropped about ten pounds, due to maintaining a 75% raw diet. My husband read Mad Cowboy by Howard Lyman and he has been a vegan ever since. He feels and looks great, drinks smoothies daily and strives to eat raw whenever he can. Sam, my omnivore girl, eats a variety of things, but fruit and smoothies are a hit with her too. She loves to tell her friends about my salad eating ways and for her 8th birthday requested a raw strawberry cheesecake! Jazmine is juicing and working out regularly now. My brother-in-law has experimented with making veggie only sushi and it’s pretty tasty! My in-laws are juicing, eating chia seeds instead of oatmeal and cutting down on their meat consumption. Hawaii is full of great fresh fruit too.

The things that help me most are having a dynamic group of farmers at my weekly market, a rocking Whole Foods nearby and a small whole foods co-op. Fresh, whole foods are a must for my raw lifestyle. I learn so much at the Crazy Sexy Life blog and forum. Raw food blogs give me so much inspiration and information. I own a few living foods ‘uncookbooks’ too.

If you have been diagnosed with an illness or just want to feel better, Kris’s Crazy Sexy lifestyle is the way to go. Adding raw foods, juicing, green smoothies, meditation, exercise and stress reduction works! Don’t try to drag your family kicking and screaming, just do what you need to do for you. Keep it simple and don’t make a big drama out of your food or theirs.

The most important thing I have learned from all this is what I call the Oxygen Mask Principle. If you have a child with you on an airplane, and the mask drops down, you put it on yourself first, then help the child. In other words, heal yourself, and then you will be able to share the love of life with everyone else.

I am forever grateful to Kris for my crazy sexy life!

Debbie Young is a 50 year old work at home mom to 3 kids: a 2 year old whippet fur person, a 8 year old and an 18 year old stepkid. Debbie was diagnosed with CLL aka Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia in April 07 and is following a raw food diet and the Crazy Sexy Lifestyle since Oct 07 to “make it all better, or at least not let it kill me!”

Lisa Borden

Dining out is one of life’s absolute pleasures and privileges, especially in Toronto where more and more local, organic cuisine is peppering the culinary scene. Restaurants are a key part of our culture – think celebrations, business meetings and first dates and it’s crucial for us and our world to eat off of greener menus (and we are not simply referring to a leafy salad).

I find my own palate has changed as I stick to my own set of eating-values. I now want slow food (but sometimes when I’m out with all 3 kids, not too slow) and organic menus supporting local food providers. In fact, I’ll drive across the city for it (because there are but a few gems). I try to counteract the un-eco-ness of the travel in as many ways possible and hope that as we all demand more, there won’t be a “green restaurant” category, and it’ll be the standard because it just makes sense for all of us.

Sample and savour the following ways that you can easily dine al-eco and continue to adapt as many that are right for your unique palate.

1. Check Please! Before you make a reservation or choose where to dine, check out what the restaurant offers in terms of ingredients, menu items and eco-aspects – www.ourfaves.com is a great resource for Toronto. Ask if they use reusables, including cloth napkins and tablecloths. If you currently frequent establishments that use disposables (plastic cups for condiments and coleslaw?), suggest that they switch. Also, when you are seated, take a good look around and see if anything jumps out at you…do the kids have Styrofoam cups? Are they giving out paper, throwaway menus (in which case, share one)? Taking a moment or two to think ahead will most likely save some trash (and cash) in the long run and don’t think it’s unreasonable to ask – those raised eyebrows may get others to think your way also.

2. W(h)et Your Appetite. We are fortunate in Toronto to be able to drink “free” tap water. It used to be that one would be considered cheap when saying “just tap, please” rather than ordering a fancy (read: rip off) bottle of H20. Now, you’ll simply proclaim yourself an eco-hero. There are many restaurants that now offer their own filtered water i.e. Pizzeria Libretto. But, don’t let your glass be filled if you are not going to drink it…no sense wasting our precious resource. For every glass of water not served, you save even more, since it takes water to make water drinkable. When you refuse a glass (and explain why if you can), it might just get the restaurant and those sharing your table thinking about conserving also.

3. Don’t Suck. How many times have you seen drinks get served where the swizzle sticks and straws immediately get removed and put down on a plate or table? I’m disappointed if I forgot to remind the server to NOT use a straw. Even those compostable ones are a waste and take our precious resources to manufacture. If you really need a straw, buy reusable ones from the lifetime guaranteed, Glass Dharma straw collection.

4. Confucius Says: Re-Fuse. Did your dessert come in a little plastic wrapper? How about those wood sticks? Bring your own chopsticks (To-Go ware makes great sets in carrying cases) or refuse them and stick to eating with your fork (also an easy way to avoid sloppy chopstick technique from being noticed). Pass on the fortune cookie knowing that we’re all more fortunate that you did.

5. Skip that Joint. Jump the fast food line altogether, but if you must (why, oh why?) don’t take the ketchup and mustard packets, the disposable napkin (now you have to eat neatly), the straws and the outer bag that gets trashed immediately. Health concerns aside, eating at a fast food joint is one of the quickest ways to create unnecessary waste.

6. ‘Tis the Season - If you see fresh strawberries or asparagus on the menu in December, you can be sure they weren’t just picked in Ontario. Locally grown, organic foods are better for you and the planet, and arguably taste better. Everything has an impact, but give into your cravings – you are out after all, just choose the most sustainable option you can – lots of veggies trump red meat!

7. Kids are People Too. Why treat your kids differently? We all tell our kids that life isn’t fair, but a restaurant is one place your children should be treated as adults. Avoid those kids’ menus (read: crap). If they are too young to drink from a glass, bring your own from home and don’t take those plastic cups with lids! And then there are the crayons, why are they considered disposable? 12 Million Crayons are made each day in the USA which equals about 120,000 pounds of petroleum based product. Applause goes to Crazy Crayons in the USA who has been recycling unwanted crayons into new ones for over 16 years!

8. Stay out of the doghouse! Those doggie bags aren’t really a way to be thrifty…if you plan on taking something home, take your own reusable containers along with you. You’ll start a trend – trust me. Don’t over order food and your waistline and wallet will thank you because whether the packaging is Styrofoam (arghhh!) or is compostable, it’s still waste.

Now that you are full from these ideas, your new table manners should make you a little lighter and a lot healthier. I hope you’ll enjoy sitting down for your own “trash” talk with your friends and family. Bon Appetit.

Lisa Borden is an eco-advocate and mother of three, whose full-service marketing firm, Borden Communications + Design Inc., is a direct reflection of her commitment to better, more responsible living. She is a dedicated workaholic, admitting that it takes a lot of time and effort to change the world, especially in her non-preachy, fun, engaging and inspiring ways.

This Meatless Monday, Will Tuttle, Ph.D. discusses his thoughts on a question many vegans (or Meatless Monday warriors!) receive all the time: “What would happen if everyone stopped eating animals?” After reading today’s blog, you’ll have more knowledge to ponder as your develop your own perspective…

Those of us eating a plant-based diet often find our food choices causing more questions and consternation during the Holidays than during the rest of the year. One of the perennial concerns I’ve found people have is that if everyone went vegan, what would happen to all the animals—chickens, turkeys, pigs, cows, and fish? If we stopped eating them, wouldn’t they just take over the Earth, threatening our survival?

For years this question irked me because it seemed patently ridiculous, and worse, would be used to justify the cruelty of eating animal foods. Now, though, whenever I hear this question, I am delighted to respond to it because it’s an opportunity to deliver a brief meditation on how our world can be healed.

Imagining the world gradually going vegan is imagining the most positive possible future for our species, for the Earth, and for all living beings. First of all, as we reduce the number of animals we are eating, that will send a message to agribusiness to forcefully inseminate fewer female pigs, turkeys, cows, and other animals, so fewer animals will be hyper-confined, and there will be less mutilation, killing, violence, terror, and suffering. It also means there will be lower demand for corn, soy, and other feed grains, and thus less deforestation, monocropping, and pollution. As this continues, there will be more food to feed starving people, and also monocropped land can be returned to being critically-needed habitat for wildlife, whose populations are being decimated by the habitat loss caused by grazing livestock and growing feed grains. As the vegan trend continues, streams will come back and run cleaner, more birds, fish, and other animals will be able to thrive, there will be far less toxic pesticides and fertilizers needed, and the oceans will begin to heal. As recent studies have shown, livestock production is the main driving force behind global warming, and this also will decrease. In addition, by eating less animal-based foods, people will be healthier physically as they eliminate the toxic fat, cholesterol, and animal protein that drive obesity, osteoporosis, diabetes, arthritis, cancer, kidney disease, heart disease, and drug use. People will become healthier emotionally and spiritually, also, as they cause and eat less misery, and our culture, as its level of violence decreases, will become healthier also.

As forest, rainforest, and prairie communities come back to life, along with riparian and ocean communities, the devastating mass extinction of species that is going on right now will slow down. To raise and slaughter hundreds of millions animals daily for food on this planet, we are forcing many hundreds of species of animals and plants into extinction every week. Because of our appetites for a few species of birds, mammals, and fish, we are destroying the Earth’s genetic diversity, and it seems absurd to be unconcerned about these tens of thousands of species, but to care only about the few that we’re eating. In any event, the animals we imprison today for food lived freely in nature for millions of years and could do so again. The animals that we most intensely factory-farm, such as turkeys, ducks, geese, chickens, and fish, are all doing just fine in the wild (aside from being hunted and having their habitat destroyed). They would continue to do so, and this is also true for pigs, sheep, and goats, which even today have substantial wild populations. There is no reason to think that the animals we are eating and using wouldn’t be able to return to their natural lives living freely in nature—they already are!

Cows are the only possible question—their progenitors, the aurochs, were forced into extinction in the 1600s, but it is very conceivable that cows could be reintroduced into central Asia and Africa where they lived for millions of years, and with time would return to the ecological niche they inhabited before cruel human enslavement tore them from their ancestral homelands.

So, it’s a refreshing question to ponder—uplifting and heartening—to think of “what will happen to cows, chickens, and pigs if we all stop eating meat, dairy products, and eggs?” I hope we all can discuss this question a few times during the holidays, and by doing so, pull back the curtain to reveal the positive future we can create together. There is no action more powerful that anyone can take to subvert the dominant paradigm of exploitation and inequality than to shift to a plant-based diet for ethical reasons. By going vegan, and spreading the vegan message creatively, we take the most effective action to create a world where peace, abundance, sustainability, freedom, and universal joy are not just possible but natural.