Michael Schulson's story & a real good dip

check out this must.read.article.i.just.found on yet another successful ADHD diet change story about

celeb-chef Michael Schulson's experience with his 6 year old son.  it made my heart skip a beat:)  

WOW! there are more of us telling our stories!!!!

after spreading seeds on saturday, i was short on time, feeling creative and late getting to a festive family friendly party celebrating two momentous occasions:

#1 it's halfway to healthy for my beautiful, fierce friend melissa who is kicking cancer in the tailpipe!

#2 it's her 3 year old daughter's birthday!

a giardiniera hummus 

2 cans rinsed chickpeas (i had a can of butter beans and mixed beans that worked perfectly)

1 jar mild giardiniera drained

1/2 c tahini

1/2 tsp salt (or more to taste)

2-3 T evoo

dump the first 4 ingredients in your food processor or blender.  while blending, pour in the evoo slowly until you like the consistency.  scrape as needed and blend again.  serve it up with chopped veggies and/or a 100% whole grain cracker snack of choice. 

today, go take a gander at the ingredients on your chips & snacks.  don't recognize something and need a switch?  is there a whole looooooong list of foreign words?  here is our favorite new chip brand!!  i found them at mariano's and let me tell you, these chips are way better.  move over doritos, their "sweet chili" kicks YOU in the tailpipe.

GO TEAM MELISSA!!!!!  i love you girl!!!!

xoxo

links to love & bento boxing

a nice quickie post for hump day.

i could not pass this link up.

i love finding other families whose food change stories run parallel with mine.

enjoy!  this one gave me the tinglies:)

against all grain - Cannon's story

in other news...

here is this morning's lunchie munchie bento boxing:

ps

i have easy breakfasts on the brain.

and i want to make these zucchini coconut cookies soon, today maybe? with some gf flour of course:)

omg, zucchini nachos... yes please.

do you like pasta?  we sure do and here's a post to help you find the best.

i'm hungry.


pps

oh and just in case you haven't seen... my entry to become Jamie Oliver's next food tube star:)

yea baby yea!!!!

a link to love - junk food and our brains

and they just keep comin...

junk food linked to mental health disorders in children

sunday night list of to-do's:

1.  make dinner.  i still haven't yet.
2.  put the kids to sleep.
3.  make some cocktails.
4.  watch the season finale of game of thrones.  omg, it's over... noooooooooooooooooo.
5.  start book 4 and wait patiently for the next season.  sob.

be a food patriot this memorial day

i'm singing this video and today's chicago tribune article to the mullies on food revolution mundelein's facebook & twitter pages, my facebook page... it's that important.  finally, the gmo conversation has some more research and a little doctor clout to boot.  take some time out this weekend and watch it.  yes please.  this is it my friends, IT IT IT IT... and don't forget to share these babies far and wide.  

jeffery smith interviews dr stephanie seneff about glyphosate (monsanto's roundup) and GMO's  

here is the link to the actual published research paper - pocket protector needed: 

Glyphosate’s Suppression of Cytochrome P450 Enzymes and Amino Acid Biosynthesis by the Gut Microbiome: Pathways to Modern Diseases

let's become food patriots.  doesn't that have a nice ring to it for memorial day?  start making small changes or big changes, whatever you can handle.  we all can make a 10% change with our grocery store dollar.  if we build it, they will come.  the spitz family almost lost their son to a raging bacterial infection that wouldn't quit.  they started the food patriot movement and have a fabulous documentary that i'm hoping to bring to our school district next year.  here is the spitz family's story in today's chicago tribune: antibiotics in livestock raising concern up the food chain.  

might this be all connected? gmo's - sick food - sick animals - sick humans - superbugs - superweeds = super bad (i do so love that movie).  oh boy oh boy.  i love it when the dots start to connect.  i just hope we haven't woken up to late.  pry the fingers out of your ears - no more la la la nappy time allowed.  

here we go baby, here.we.go.  

day 240 - abbie update - our food and ADHD

abbie stalled a little and she's back on track.  it's funny how i get complacent and let things "slide" because everything is going so well.  then i begin to notice that abbie's irritable, arguing with me all of the time and just not herself again.  this time around there were two things i needed to adjust.  i started buying strawberries again and giving them to her in every lunch and for dessert at night.  they are very high in salicylates which is the culprit i think.  i am not eliminating them from her diet, i'm just not going to go bonkers on them like i did for awhile.  i also figured out her breakfasts were not hearty enough.  i added back in some protein here and there (turkey bacon, protein powder in smoothies, chicken & apple sausage links) and she responded immediately.

abbie went through her final reading testing for the year.  she has finished her 1st grade year at independent reading level I and level K instructional.  it was a crazy celebration the other night.  she got the special plate for dinner.  we could not be more proud of her and more thankful for the support of her teachers and administrators.

never in my wildest dreams did i think my little abbie would start out 1st grade at level A and get to level I sitting in those intervention meetings and hearing about her struggle at the beginning of the year.  it was like pulling teeth to get her to sit still, not moan and read with me.  torture.  that sure was the best thunderstorm of our life.  this sun feels so good.  summer is almost here!!

found some goodies for you today!

i didn't realize that my favorite morning radio talk show host has a similar story to mine!

kathy hart on how she investigated environmental links to her son's ADHD

thanks cathleen and lucas for sending this article clipping to me!

here are some great tuesday links on how a food change can help with ADHD, irritability and sensory processing:

the role of diet and behaviour in childhood

alternative ADHD treatment: can diet ease symptoms?

can diet changes really improve ADHD? another mom's story

happy reading my little nerds

xoxo

clean food = clean brains and bodies

mark hyman on the food link to ADHD

this is a short clip from a dr mark hyman.  he is talking about a little boy in this clip, but he might as well have been talking about abbie.  warning: it's a tad cheesy and very infomercial-ish.  i have not read his book,  the ultramind solution yet, but i certainly believe that food is medicine after our experience with abbie.  our family food change resulted in success i never could have imagined her experiencing at school this year.  

i seems like i meet a mom or dad everyday who made a food change to help their kids with great success.  there are a lot of us out there!  some of us are vocal, some of us keep it close to the vest.  it's still seen as a "radical" or unrealistic way to approach ADHD and sensory processing issues and i am hoping to help change that perception.  

here is a little spring break update from my hot mama shelley that is so telling of the power of clean, un-processed food:

***

During vacation Ana was on a free for all eating frenzy … holy cow!  The girl was a nut job, ADHD to the ceiling & back, crabby & arguing with me about everything – four days back home – eating the right foods, no gluten, regular vitamins & minerals, balanced meals  and Ana’s back! Thank goodness because I thought about leaving her on the roadside somewhere between here and Florida. 

***

nuff said, right?  i love it!

sharing some goodies with you today - i recently bought two books that i'm currently devouring.  

first of all, gwyneth's book it's all good is e.x.a.c.t.l.y what i have been looking for - it is how i cook today:

gluten free
dairy free (sheep's and goat milk included though, YES!)
processed sugar free

i also own her previous cookbook, my father's daughter and love it...i just make my gf flour & non-dairy substitutions when needed.  i am so happy to have them both in my kitchen.

secondly, can i just tell you how bummed to be out of the diaper stage - ONLY because i never got the opportunity to try jessica's honest brand diapers.  i finally checked out her honest.com website and i'm super impressed...definitely going to buy her sunscreen for the family!!!  so far, the honest life is light hearted, real and very informative.  (i think i read every book review before i purchased it)  i'm so happy it's mine to mark up, highlight and quote.  it's girly, it's enthusiastic... i find myself saying, "yes, yes YES" to myself and out loud as her journey down the rabbit hole has been so parallel to mine.  it makes my smile and feel like i have a friend who has already paved the way for me.  i can stop googling the sh*$ out myself trying to find good, quality information and just sit with a wonderfully researched book.  heaven.

who has the time to read books?  well, i do, cuz i'm not cleaning up this mess just yet.  the worst of it?  my laundry room is out of control...

something's gotta give and you know what?  it's all good.

3 everyday easter dishes & the *magical* gluten free flour link is HERE

easter dinner always included this whipped cream fruit salad at my grandma "on the farm's" house.

nobody could tell i tweaked the cream for the mullies.

coconut whipped cream & organic fruit salad
find the coconut whipped cream tutorial & recipe here.
1 mango
1 pint strawberries
1 pint blueberries
1 pint green grapes
3 mandarine oranges
3 apples
1 banana

dice up all fruit and pour the whipped cream over the top.  mix and serve.  if you are wanting to prepare ahead of time like i did, do not slice up the banana until the end (so they don't brown) and chill the whipped cream in the fridge until you're ready to go.  use whatever fruit you want!

mac and abs got the leftovers in their school lunch yesterday...the bananas needed to be taken out, but the rest was still perfectamondo.

ah maaaaaan, sorry the brussels are fuzzy.   hummina hummina.  never in my wildest dreams would the brussel sprouts have gone first at a family gathering...that's how good they are...and crazy EASY too.

goop carmelized brussel sprouts

the one and only gluten free flour blend
notes: i sub 1 3/4 cup arrowroot for the corn starch

yup, it's live on noglutennoproblem.blogspot.com so now there's no excuse...go and get yourself some flour!!  i don't have any idea why i couldn't find it before...  i certainly wasn't going to post it here if peter and kelli didn't have it accessible on their blog.  so i am freaking out that i can sing it to the mullies.  i go through this flour so fast that i'm now buying it all on subscription from amazon.  it's the cheapest by far for me vs any grocery store and i'm so excited about not having to pick it up from the store anymore!!  i'm on my 14th quadruple batch and counting...

baguettes to die for

yums.  these super fab dinner dishes will be on repeat foh shoh.

i hope you likey.

the ice is almost gone - the diamond is sparkling again.



ps

some good readin on the connection between sensory processing and the fake food in our life.
knock yourself out:  ADHD and food additives

&

i'm totally trying this cauliflower action this week...can't wait to share.  thanks bunny love.

to all the teachers in our life...

did you know?

that almost my entire family are teachers?

my mom, sister, 2 brother-in-laws, sister-in-law...it's kinda crazy...

and then when you figure how many friends of ours are teachers and administrators...it really adds up to a ton of teachers in our life.

for the past 1.5 years, the staff at abbie's school have been working like crazy to help her catch up...help us figure out how to help her.  reading resource, social work, occupational/sensory interventions...in fact, without the comment one of the staff members regarding a gluten free/dairy free diet and its potential to help abbie...would i have even decided to take that next step?  one can never know...

what if there are more abbie's out there?  what if she is not the only one?  and a change in diet could help unlock more little brains and make all of these heroic (and often unnoticed) efforts of teachers and schools amount to a substantial increase of academic achievement?

i wanted to beat myself over the head when working with abbie before the food change...she just wasn't with me.  and when your brain can't be there...no change in curriculum, staff or school could have made a difference with our abbie.  she never would have caught up.  she might have always been on a caseload...

thank you fairhaven school.  thank you for never giving up on abbie.  a diet change + the academic assistance you gave her = crazy success.  you all are making a difference.  never ever doubt it.

man oh man oh man.

can you just imagine...

i think some hope just might be out there... for realz.

xoxo

data snap shots - kindergarten to present day

adele

oh adele.  i hear you.

yesterday was a big day - we had parent teacher conferences for both abbie and mac and we were walking on sunshine-snowflakes when we left the buildings together.

chris and i have never felt like more of team.

so without further ado, here are the data snapshots of abbie's progress from kindergarten thru today, beginning with the school's kindergarten screening report from a year ago.


Kindergarten Report of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, Anxiety and Behavior Screening 

this report was alarming to both of us.  especially to me with a background in speech and language pathology.  however, it was this phrase that kept me from panicking too much at that point:

"For abbie, these scores may be slightly elevated because the youngest age on which this instrument (CTRS-3 or CPRS-3) has been normed is six years old.  Abbie is currently five years, seven months old.  However, even thought T-scores are slightly elevated, they still reflect an at-rist or clinically significan level of concern."

ehhhh, perhaps she'll grow out of this...i kept telling myself.

soon after this report, we decided to have her independently screened.  i knew that she had some sensory processing issues and i wanted to see if we could tease out any specific issues and get her some tutoring to catch her up.

Kindergarten Discovery Learning Institute General Assessment results:

well then, something was definitely amiss...i knew for sure she had auditory processing issues and was very alarmed to know she couldn't even finish some of the tests with a one on one teacher.  i began to work with her as much as i could at home (which was a h.u.g.e. struggle).  we put her in summer school.  she ended 6 weeks of summer school with no improvement.  

oye oye oye.

and now....ready for some tinglies?

fast forward to today, por favor.  

here is abbie's current data, compiled (with huge thanks!!!) by her classroom teacher and reading resource teachers.  

Report card: Abbie now meets or exceeds standards in all areas except for handwriting...we'll be on that!!!

well there you have it.  

pretty fun what a food change did for miss abbie.

and in case you missed it, here is the link to my recap of days 1-95: adhd eat my dust.

i'll never forget in a million years.

in the mullies we are.

what is the mullies you ask?

my bro-in-law kevin sent me this oh so perfect mullies description:

***

Just thinking out loud....what if you asked people to write in about what they think the mullies looks like to them?  Cause I believe its a place sort of like Neverland meets The Goonies meets Bed Knobs and Broomsticks....Maybe thats crazy and is a better conversation over some wine with friends?  But I remember as kids pretending by the swing set vividly. you know what would be weird.... going over to that spot in your old yard....maybe that would be a cool picture to send to Katie!  ok i have to teach now...

***

he's right.  it's whatever you want it to be.  and i think we need to go on a field trip to my old yard:)

here's to making it up as we go...to the ends of the earth for food love.

you and me.

ps

couldn't resist taking pics of this morning's success:

for the first time, i successfully snuck kale into the morning smoothie...boooo-yaaaaaaaaa!!!

i think the colored cup helped things a bit:)

bread babe's new pans

aren't they pretty!?!  i love that they are made of natural stone.  and as i use them, the stone's patina will evolve to look even more lovely.  i want stains!!!  i want usage...i want history...i want to hand these puppies down to my kids... thank heavens i won't have to deal with pealing, non-stick surfaces anymore - that was just disgusting.

i've been trying to wrap my head around this question:  why gluten?  why of all the things we removed from abbie's diet, was gluten the clincher?  i've linked to many articles (just search "gluten and adhd" on the right side bar and you'll get a bunch) that discuss the gluten link between ADHD & sensory processing disorders and i just came across this expansive post over the weekend:

what's wrong with wheat?

well that certainly got my foodie-nerd juices flowing.  here are some more that i found and read after my brain exploded:

is wheat genetically modified?

wikipedia on genetically modified wheat


no wonder my belly feels better after i took it out.  here's my real deal:  we cheat a little from time to time...even abbie had a slice of gluten pizza recently (oops), and a few meatballs with gluten on another night with no lasting effects.  i have some too on rare occasion - that is good news (i mean hello, a girl's gots to have her guinness).  but certainly, this revelation will not have me going:  whoo hoo, we can have gluten 100% again!  naahh & eehh.  just not a fan anymore.  we feel better without it as our whole grains staple.  i found something better.  as abbie gets older and more independent, i'm sure she'll experiment with eating differently.  my goal:  to give my kids (and hubby) the awareness and education to become clean & confident foodies who know how to cook and who won't go crazy when they leave my nest.  (and chris, don't you go calling it a nagging nest now mister...)  you love it.  hahahaha.

food perfection is unattainable (if imposed by another) and breeds rebellion=note to mommy dearests.  so instead, we just focus on eating as much real food as we can, and that is that.

i have found something better.

i'm still amazed i can make a gluten free loaf of bread all by myself.  i never ever thought i'd have the gumption to do this.  i'm going to make some more today and see how long it will last me for school lunch sandwiches and breakfast toast.  depending how thick i slice it, two loaves should get me through a full week foh shoh...i'll let you know how it goes. 

so sorry charlies, but i won't be divulging this perfect flour mix creation, it's just not mine to give out on this blog.  however, you can find it in their book here if you want to join in on the fuss.   i originally found them through a glowing, online gluten free cookbook review and the rest is history...

some more seats are filling in:

my hot mama girlfriend/neighbor laura has decided to give gluten free a whirl to see if it will help her family too (oh boy oh boy) - she has already taken out artificial color, preservative and additives...so here we go!!!

...she came over last friday with all of her new flours and we put her first quadruple batch together! 

no need to make the same mistakes that i did, so i explained all the tricks.  the most important tip? 

#1  how to measure flour correctly:  i spoon it in, do not tap or pack and use the back edge of my knife to level it off.  easy peasy.

#2  use a paper towel under the cups as i measure.  i shake and bake the access back into the bag or measuring cup (cuz this flour is like gold).  do i get some cross contamination?...probably...but who cares cuz i'm just gonna make another batch!!  it also helps with the mess:  the first few times i mixed up a batch, it was like a flour bomb went off.  kapoowwww!  cough cough.

wrong side laura!  flip the knife!!!!!  hahahahahaha...

finito!  

she and her hot hubby oliver made crepes this weekend with the new flour.  and of course, with spectacular results:)  hubba hubba.

you and me, let's fly laura!!!

day 150 - seats are starting to fill in

oh happy happy joy joy.  boing boing boing.

i don't think today could get any better.  

singing to the mullies news #1:

as of today, abbie has gone from level a to level i in 150 days.  she is now performing above average as 1st graders in our district are expected be at level j by the end of the year.  i can't thank our classroom teacher enough for holding abbie to such high expectations...wowzers...so so appreciative of what you do for our little girl and every kiddo in your class.  you are truly making a difference L.

where o where will my little girl fly to next...

you go girl.

AND...

singing to the mullies news #2:  chances are you're gonna love this...hit play:)  this is so fun.

i just got this tinkle-in-my-pants email from my friend shelly, another hot mama in the mullies.

***

Okay, so I have to tell you….  We are truly 99.5% gluten free in our house – it has taken some time but we are really making head way with no gluten, preservative free, no GMO’s or color additives and clean healthy foods.  Still working on getting the finishing touches on the gf flour blend – ordering items on amazon tonight.  But this is what has me delighted – Ana’s teacher emailed me and informed me that Ana sat and wrote an ENTIRE page to her pen pal for 35 minutes!!  That is MASSIVE!!!  Ana could not sit for 5 minutes let alone write more than 3 sentences.  I am tickled pink and to some parents this isn’t much - but for me – it’s HUGE…  Banana was stretching to read at a level D and in the past 2 weeks she is reading D books with ease.  I am so excited  - but you know what this is all about!

It has been just about 3 weeks – two weekends of shopping all natural/clean – Mike and I haven’t spent this much time together since our honeymoon:) Oh man!  I have also added Fish oil & flax seed (smoothies are a great cover) to our daily intake.  Plus, I tell the girls everything I have added and explain why & what it does for them.  Lilly is loving this and is so interested in nutrition – “knowledge is my power” my girls have been hearing it day after day for the past 3 or so weeks.

By the way – LOVE the celery soup!  My Dad was so funny, I barely sat down on the bleachers and he was asking if I had any more – laughing at him – I told him I would bring some over the next day.  First thing in the door last Fri – he took the container with a big smile!  I made his day.

***

dancing in my kitchen...dancing for all the chances being taken.  this song is for all of you.

"chances are, we're making our own equation.

chances are all we need, chances are this could be the combination, chances come and carry me...

chances are waiting to be taken."

you go girls.

ps

singing to the mullies news #3: 

i met with our school district's board of education last night on behalf of my ambassadorship to the jamie oliver food revolution.  it was a great "hello" and the conversation ball is in play...stay tuned:)  

we're gearing up for the global food revolution day on may 17th.  it's gonna be a hoot!

friday lunch with t-bone & a must read book

this is the start of my favorite lunch: chard & tomatoes.  it got a makeover thanks to the recipe ideas the wonderful ladies over at the food tube gave me and all of the peeps on our interweb.  here is the question they answered for me in one of their episodes and i couldn't wait to try out adding the stalks to my salad!  

first of all, what a hoot to be on there with them and second of all, i am seriously so excited to have some more ideas for one of the lover-veggies in my life.  it's a tough sell to those who aren't so into the green stuff:)  

...and i will be making that chard pie for an upcoming dinner party:)  you bettah believe it!

the mullies chard and tomatoes

1 bunch of chard (stalks trimmed and chopped, greens roughly chopped to your liking)

1/2 red onion

1/2 cherry tomato carton 

evoo

s&p

pistachios (but use whatever you like)

sautée the onion and chopped stalks (they looked like chopped celery but so much more colorful!!) in evoo and add some s&p.  halve the tomatoes and add them next...let it cook for a bit to soften the tomatoes and release the juices.  add half of the leaves, let it cook down and then add the rest.  and done...i love nuts (hee hee) so i found some pistachios and threw some on top.

oh baby that's good eatin.  me and tommy.  (that little dish above is an upcoming post from din din last night:)

that is tommy's bite...my one bite rule!!!

here is how it went:  chewed, a little surprised, gagged at the texture...oh please don't puke!...and down the hatch.  he didn't want another, but he said he liked it.  

...one bite at a time...

so the plan was to wait and post this lunch later, but then i got a new email notification from one of my favorite blogs and just had to whip this puppy up pronto.  i literally just took the last bite of my chard!

100 days of real food interview with robyn o'brien, author of the unhealthy truth

THIS IS WHAT I HAPPENED TO US!!!!  OMG, MAN DOWN, my stomach is in knots....another mom out there...more research, more info....humina humina humina... i can't wait to get this book and read it. 

this is BIG people.

i can't wait for part 2 tomorrow.  

lisa...you rock this hizouse.