Grain Free Thanksgiving 2013

So I know that Thanksgiving is over and I'm just now posting pics of my menu, but these are also recipes you could serve for Christmas if you so desire!  Better late than never I say!  My sister and her family were gracious enough to host my entire family this year for Thanksgiving.  My family (husband & kids), my parents, and my aunt, her kids, and their families.  All together we had 21 people.  My sister is so understanding of our dietary needs and concerns, that she graciously agreed to let me plan most of the menu.  Together we shopped, prepped, cooked, ate, and cleaned up.  Thanks also to our parents who watched all the kids while we prepared the feast, and then gave us a date night too as a reward for our hard work.  I have an AWESOME family!

My sister & Me

So I just want to state up front that none of the recipes I cooked were originals, I found them all on line.  I will give credit to where I found them so that you may find and use them if you so desire.
Here is the line up:
Turkey, which my hubby deep fried in peanut oil.  He brined it in salt water for 24 hours, then dried it completely, then rubbed the whole thing down with spicy brown mustard, and then cooked it at 350 degrees oil temp for 4-5 min per pound.
Pork Tenderloin, was bought at Publix and it was pre-wrapped in bacon and seasoned Cajun.  We smoked it in an electric smoker.  Can't remember the times, but you can look it up on line if you are interested. That's what we did.

Dressing: Recipe from www.againstallgrain.com

Green Bean Casserole: Recipe from (Don't hate me but I cannot find the recipe!)

It was homemade cream of mushroom and mixed it with green beans, then battered in coconut flour and arrowroot powder and fried in coconut oil, onion rings.  Assemble as normal and bake at 350 for 30 min.  We used home canned green beans and drained the liquid.

 

Deviled Eggs: Recipe from deliciouspaleo.wordpress.com

 

Sweet Potato Casserole: Recipe from cupcakesomg.blogspot.com

Brussels Sprouts with Bacon: I just quartered them, tossed in bacon fat, and roasted in a 400 degree oven for 30 min.  Then topped with crumbled cooked bacon.

Dinner Rolls: Recipe from paleospirit.com (mine didn't rise like they usually do, because I kept opening the oven too much while they were baking.)

Apple Tartlets: Recipe from paleOMG.com (I also added dairy free caramel to the tops of mine.  Simply melt 1/2 can of coconut cream concentrate from Trader Joes and add 1/2 cup honey and a 1/2 tsp salt.  Then whip it until creamy and formed.  Store in Fridge!

Fruit Salad : Made by my sister.  Fresh fruit of your choice, covered in fresh pressed orange juice and topped with chopped pecans.

We also had some other items that were not grain free or Paleo friendly, so I did not include them here.  If you are looking for a good pumpkin pie recipe, I recommend everydaypaleo.com
Hope you had a blessed Thanksgiving with your family and loved ones as well!  ENJOY!

Italian breakfast

this morning I decided that I was in the mood for something a little different, so I looked in my fridge to see what I needed to get rid of and this is what I came up with:

ITALIAN BREAKFAST

1 can stewed tomatoes drained

1/2 small yellow onion chopped

3 garlic cloves minced

1/2 small zucchini diced

1/2 cup sliced fresh mushrooms chopped

1 tsp oregano dried

1tsp thyme dried

1/2 tsp rosemary dried

1/2 tsp salt

Fresh cracked pepper to taste

2 eggs

1 Tbsp fat (I used ghee, bacon fat or coconut oil would be fine too)

In a oven safe skillet, melt the fat and sautée the onions and garlic till translucent.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Then add in the zucchini and mushrooms. Continue cooking till zucchini is tender, not mushy. Add tomatoes and seasonings. Stir to combine. Then make 2 holes in the veggies for the eggs. Crack your eggs into the holes. Place the entire skillet I'm the oven and bake about 5-8 min until the egg whites are set. Longer cook time will also cook the yolks if you prefer that. 

Serves 2

I also served mine with 2 slices of bacon. 

Challenge results

Today is day 22 and my results from the challenge are in.  

Before.                      After

117.5 lbs.                  112.5 lbs 

25% BF.                      18.7% BF

Goal was 10 inches.       8 3/4 inches

Inches lost were measured at chest, stomach, waist, hips, quads, and calves. I ate very strict but was never hungry. I worked out minimally and mainly did yoga. All of my meals are photograph posted on Instagram if you're curious. I am willing to help anyone who also wants to give their weight loss a jump start. I am currently helping 3 followers and would love to help more. This is not a diet, it is a lifestyle change for better health and better you! 

Many thanks to all who follow and read along! Blessings to you and yours this thankful season! 

Winter Soup & the challenge is coming to and end!

I promised those following my IG account this recipe last week.  So sorry I am a week late getting it up.  Better late than never I guess, so here it is...
WINTER SOUP:
1 pkg of butternut squash or 1 squash peeled and diced
1/2 a bag of prechopped kale, or 1/2 a bunch, torn into bite sized pieces
1 can of kidney beans, rinsed and drained (could also use great northern or chick peas)
qt of broth, homemade or organic free range chicken stock
1 onion, diced
4 garlic cloves minced
1/2 package of sliced mushrooms, chopped
1 Tbsp thyme
1/2 Tbsp salt
1/2 Tbsp Spanish paprika
Fresh cracked pepper to taste

In a stock pot, melt some ghee or grass fed butter, or coconut oil and sautee onion and garlic until translucent.  Add spices and stir to combine.  Add broth and remaining ingredients.  Bring to a boil, and reduce heat to med cooking until the squash is fork tender. 
I served this with pork tenderloin sliced and baked.  You could cube up some pork and cook with the soup if you wish. 

This is the soup and also pictured is "Paleo Dinner Rolls" from paleospirit.com.  They are divine and so simple to make!

Today is day 19 of my 21 day jump start challenge.  I haven't lost any more weight on the scales, a few inches were regained, and I haven't check Body Fat % yet.  I plan to do that on day 22.  My ultimate goal from this was for BF loss.  Since I pretty much eat this way 80-90% of the time anyways, I did not expect weight loss.  Since I haven't been able to hit the workouts super hard, I may be disappointed with my end results.  However I do have to say that I do feel through all of this, I have finally stabilized by blood sugar which always ran low.  I have learned how to fuel my body with the right amount of calories, I always ate too few.  I feel like overall, I have much better health than I did this time last year.  I feel like the Adrenal Fatigue is a thing of the past!  I feel like ME again and that feels GREAT!  I want to give a shout out to Kim, Julie, and Janna.  They have reached out to me for help in getting their lives back on track.  I am here for ya for moral support and also for any other support you may need along this journey!  This blog was started to hopefully bring better health to those who are interested through my transparent journey in obtaining my own health.

Week one of the challenge results...

For those of you following, you will know that I have been on a food challenge to hopefully help my fatigued adrenals and body switch from fat storing to fat burning.  The challenge is for 21 days and is basically no grains, no sugars, limited fruit, and mainly protein, carbs from veggies, and healthy fats.  Beverages are only water, unsweetened almond or coconut milk, and herbal teas.  Sweeteners allowed are stevia, the real stuff,(not Truvia or Stevia in the Raw), and xylitol.  Fruit allowed is green apples and berries.  Try and pair the fruit with a healthy fat, like an apple and almond butter or berries and coconut milk.  You can take canned coconut milk, put it in the fridge for 24 hours, scrape off the top solid layer and mix with vanilla and cinnamon and have a fabulous dip for berries.  (or apples too!)
I have been posting all of my food pics and recipes or where I got the recipe on my Instagram account.  If you don't already, follow me on Instagram.  @alicia_trotter  If you don't have Instagram and are interested in what I have been eating, PM me and I can email you the screen shots of my posts.
So...beginning of week one I weighed, measured and had body fat % determined.  Then I began  a workout routine.  M-W-F I do heavy lifting and High Intensity Interval Training which only takes me about 30 min.  I subscribe to eplifefit.com which gives me my workout routines.  It's only $20 a month, so try it out!  On Tuesday and Thursday I do Yoga.  Then Saturday and Sunday I play with the family, what I call Active Rest days. After week one, my results were...lost 3.5 lbs, and 5.5 inches overall. Slow going so it seems, but I am already at my ideal weight so all I am really trying to do is lower BF%.  My goal is to lower it 5-7% of what it currently is.  I did not check this at the end of week one, I will check it at then end of the 21 days.  There are several people I know who are doing the challenge as well, and they are seeing amazing results with weight loss and inches lost!  This is a great thing to get you on the right path to weight loss kickstart if that is what you are after.  If you want more details, PM me!  aliciajtrotter@gmail.com
TaTa for now!

Crockpot Paleo Beef Stew

I kind of adapted my recipe from one on Civilized caveman.  Also my family had "grainfree" cornbread with this meal.  Recipe found at www.unrefinedkitchen.com  It was definitely a crowd pleaser and  even "Tiny Trotter" wanted it again for breakfast.  LOL

Crockpot Paleo Beef Stew
1 lb -1.5 lbs of stew meat
28 oz stew tomatoes (no sugar added)
1 pint of water
2 cups frozen french style green beans
1 cup sliced carrots (raw)
1 onion sliced
1 8 oz can tomato paste
salt and pepper to taste
1 Tbsp dried oregano
1 package of sliced mushrooms (not canned)
I layered the onions on the bottom of the crockpot first, then the stew meat (mine was frozen), tomatoes, green beans, water, paste, fresh veggies, lid
Cook on low 8 hours
The meat was very tender and the flavor was amazing!
ENJOY!
Also I am on day 5 of my personal 21 day jump start challenge.  This is to help my body switch over from fat storing to fat burning.  I am posting pics of my food on Instagram if you would like to follow.  @alicia_trotter
I am also a member of EPlifefit which I use for my workouts.  I do their workouts M-W-F and do HOT yoga T-Th and Vinyasa Flow Level 2/3 yoga Sat.  Saturday and Sunday are also ACTIVE rest days.  This means I get out and play with my family.  Ride bikes, go hiking, play tennis or softball, swing on the swings at the playground or hang upside down on the monkey bars.  If you have no time or money for working out at the gym or attending a yoga class, get out and walk, at least 10 minutes a day.  Also there are plenty of FREE yoga videos on YouTube.  No excuses!  Get active!  Eat to live don't live to eat!  Feed you body what Fuels it not what makes it want to curl up and take a nap!  IF you do you will notice a HUGE boost in energy and even may like what you start to see in the mirror!  What are you waiting for?  Join me today! 

21 day jump start challenge

If you follow me on Instagram you will be seeing a LOT of food pictures coming up.  I am starting a 21 day challenge to help switch my body over from fat storing to fat burning mode.  At least that's the hope!  I am a member of EPlifefit and the jumpstart is what they suggest to get your body into fat burning mode so that your workouts are optimized.  I'd love it if any of you want to join me in this challenge. I will post recipes if it is an original creation and if not, then I'll post where I found the recipe.  Most of you with kids will want to know what will my kids eat during this time?  They will eat the dinners that I prepare for myself, but their breakfast, lunch and snacks will be the normal stuff for them.  They do Paleo about 80/20, so they still eat things like rice, corn and Paleo treat foods.  My Sunday Food prep post shows the typical breakfast foods they like.  They just snack the rest of the day usually till dinner.  Rolled up pieces of lunch meat, goats cheese and nut crackers, apples and natural peanut butter, chips and homemade salsa, raw veggies and hummus.
So today is day1 of my challenge.  I did a intense 30 minute heated yoga session yesterday to detox my body.  Started today out with a mug of hot lemon water.  Then around 8:30 I had 2 poached eggs, 2 pieces of nitrate/nitrite free uncured bacon, and sauteed spinach.  I also had a cup of pumpkin chai tea with no sweetener and 1 Tbsp of plain unsweetened almond milk.

That held me over for 5 hours.  When I decided to eat lunch, I actually was not really all that hungry.  I ate anyways because I am trying not to let myself get to a starving point for better blood sugar control.  Lunch was left over ribeye steak that had been grilled, about 5 oz and french style green beans that were sauteed in bacon fat.  Very filling and satisfying!

My plans for the rest of the day are to have a cup of Harvest Blend herbal tea (from Trader Joes) and for dinner have "spaghetti" in creamy tomato sauce from www.everydaypaleo.com
I will have it with the zucchini noodles but my kids will have GF rice noodles.  Although they would probably eat the zucchini.
I will be posting pics on Instagram if you want to follow me.  It's never too late to join me in this challenge either, so come on.  Even if you're a few days behind me, start it today!  Email me if you need a food list of approved foods and such.  It's a great way to get the whole family transformed into eating healthier and on your way to a better you!  

Stuffed Acorn Squash

The finished product

 

 

If you have never ventured outside your comfort zone on trying new and different foods, this recipe might get you out side the box.  It is super easy and delicious.  Go ahead...give it a try.  I think you'll be glad you did.
Roasting the squash:
2 Acorn squash, cut in half, placed flesh side down in a glass casserole dish with about 1/4 of the pan full of water.
place in a preheated 350 degree oven and cook for approximately 40 min or until a fork easily pierces the outside sin.
Preparing the filling:
1 pound ground pork sausage
2 boneless/skinless chicken thighs (precooked, I boiled mine)
2 carrots chopped
1/2 onion diced
1/2 green bell pepper chopped
cook the sausage, remove with a slotted spoon saving the hot fat in the pan to cook the veggies in.  Once the veggies are cooked, add back the sausage and season.
Seasoning:
1 Tbsp garlic powder
1 Tbsp Cumin
1 Tbsp Smoked Paprika
1/2 Tbsp chipolte powder (or black pepper if don't like it too hot)
1/2 Tbsp cinnamon
Pull the chicken apart into pieces and add to the filling mixture
I also had some leftover rice that I stirred into  my filling as well.  (yes I know it's not Paleo)
Once the squash is done, scoop out the seeds and discard, then carefully scoop out the cooked squash leaving a small amount for the "bowl" in the shell.
mash up the squash really good and stir it into the filling mixture as well.
Stuff the acorn shells with the filling and put back in the 350 degree oven for 20 minutes.

If you have leftover filling, you can have a really filling breakfast the next morning.  Just add a couple poached eggs.

I also threw in a sprinkle of parm. cheese as well.  (again, not Paleo)
ENJOY!

Quick Healthy Dinner

                                        CHICKEN NOODLE SOUP
*Sorry no pic, it was a quick throw together meal that was eaten so fast, there was no time for a snapshot.

2 cartons of organic Free Range chicken broth (or homemade if you have some)
1 cup uncooked GF Rice noodles of your choice
1-2 cans of chicken (I used one of the bigger cans)
1 bag of frozen mixed veggies (mine had green beans, carrots and corn in it)
2 bay leaves
1 Tbsp oregano
a few rounds of freshly cracked black pepper
Bring all of this to a boil and simmer till noodles are done.

This was our dinner Halloween night.  The girls had gymnastics and are always starving when we get home, so I need this done fast!
We also had some "Candy Bar Cupcakes" to make up for no candy.  The recipe for those can be found at www.chocolatecoveredkatie.com  To me they tasted just like snickers.  I used the GF all-purpose flour and xylitol, and unsweetened vanilla almond milk.

I posted the link on Facebook that I used from Pinterest.  Be sure to follow me on pinterest and also I post pics of foods I make and eat on Instagram too.
Hope everyone had a wonderful Halloween.  In TN we had storms and most all Halloween events were cancelled.  The leaves around here are so beautiful I was really hoping the 300 mile an hour winds (yes I am exaggerating) wouldn't blow all the color off.  I was able to find one beautiful tree this morning when I went to pick up my bushel of apples.

We went to Cheekwood on Tuesday and the girls got to dress up and have some Goblin fun.  They were witches this year and thankfully all I had to buy were tights for their costumes because these dresses were in our dress up closet!  YAY!

 

Elderberry Syrup

I just realized that I spoke of an elderberry recipe and then never posted it.  Well now is definitely the time for having this on hand!  It is an immune booster, and also amazing how it can fight off flu.  Whether you get the flu shot or not, it doesn't always cover the strain that you may come in contact with and you could still be infected.  During the flu season, I give my kids a "shot" of this syrup daily to help boost their immune system.  Then if they do get sick, I give them a "shot" every two hours.  Being diligent and giving this often and for as long as the illness is lingering is the key with Natural Remedies!  They will take longer to work, but a chance of relapse is almost none!  Also remember to keep hydrated too!  I found a great "Natural Gatorade" recipe on Pinterest.  By the way, if you are on pinterest and don't follow me, please go and do that!  I have a lot of boards, but you may just be interested in my natural health, no harsh chemicals please, nourishing our bodies one bite at a time, paleo, and our life on GAPS boards. 
Now for the recipe:
1/2 cup dried elderberries, or 1 cup fresh (Frozen) berries
3 cups water
1 cup honey
bring berries and water to a boil, reduce heat and simmer 30 min
mash berries to release all the juices
strain off the berries, add honey and mix to combine well.
store in fridge for a few months

I buy dried berries from www.bulkherbstore.com or I harvest them myself in the wild.  Just be sure they are the black elderberries not the red ones.  The red ones are poisonous.  Also do not confuse elderberries with polk berries or sumac.  Be sure to look it up on line.  Making sure the  leaf and the blooms/berries look like what you see online.  This is the time of year to find them ready to harvest.

The bottom picture is frozen elderberries that I harvested last fall.  I am making the syrup using those berries today!  ENJOY, and may you and your family all have a healthy winter!
 

Taco Chilli

It's beginning to feel like Fall here in the mid-south.  Today was a busy day for us as we started the day on a field trip to our local pumpkin patch.  I packed our lunch for us to eat in the car.  After the patch, we headed to the library to get our books on hold and a movie.  Then headed to Sam's Club.  This adventure did not go well because of 2 reasons.  #1 when I got out my membership card, I realized it was expired.  No problem, I will just renew it inside.  So I proceed through the store filling my cart only to realize at the check out that my debit card has expired.  Oh yes I do remember they sent me a new one, but its on my counter at home waiting on me to activate it from a month ago.  GRRRR, I have no reason to get upset with my children when they pull these kind of forgetful stunts...they learned it from me!  So I leave the store empty handed.  Let me also mention here that my local Sam's Club is an hour from my house.  So you can imagine my frustration with myself! 
After that incident, we headed to Trader Joes's and got our groceries.  (They take a credit card, where Sam's does not)  Then we still had 40 minutes to kill before the chiropractor opened, so we stopped by the park to play for a few.  Then I got adjusted and we were homeward bound by 4:30. 
After I unloaded all the groceries and put them all away, I realized I had nothing planned for dinner.  It's now 5:45 and the girls are hungry.  What can I throw together quick that is also filling and healthy?  I invented a Taco Chilli recipe, and I wanted to share it with you all since it is kid and husband approved! 

TACO CHILLI
1 pound grass fed beef
1 pound pastured pork sausage
1/2 cup of bell peppers (I used red, green & yellow) diced
1/2 yellow onion  diced
2 tsp crushed garlic
1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
1Qt tomato juice (home canned is super yummy)
1 can Rotel (tomatoes and chillis)
2 Tbsp cumin
2 Tbsp Chilli powder
salt to taste
shredded cheese (optional topping, we use kerrygold)
avacado (topping)
Sour cream (we use plain greek yogurt)
Organic blue corn chips (optional)
Since I am the only one in my family who is 95%  Paleo, I do not include all the optional toppings, I do use avocado. (yes I do realize that beans are not Paleo! Thanks for the good observation)

Brown the sausage and beef together in a skillet.  Remove the meat, leaving the fat behind in the skillet.  Saute the veggies in the fat.  After they are cooked, drain the fat and add the meat, veggie, beans, tomato juice, Rotel, crushed garlic and seasonings to a big pot and stir to combine.  Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer 30 min.
(If you want this to be thicker, more like chilli, add an 8oz can of tomato paste)
Serve with the optional toppings.
ENJOY, and HAPPY FALL YA'LL!!!

Pictured is a bowl with cheese as a topping.

Fresh homemade salsa

This is a video of me making my fresh salsa.  Tomatoes have been good this year!  This was the first gallon I made.  We ate all of that and I have since made a second gallon.  It lasts in the fridge for 6 months!
Recipe:
1 gallon of tomatoes, chopped, drained and press (excess liquid through mesh strainer)
1 small bunch cilantro (optional)
1 large red onion, diced
1 fresh cayenne pepper, seeded and diced
5-6 fresh banana peppers, seeded and diced
2 medium bell peppers, seeded and diced
1/2 cup white vinegar
1/8 cup sea salt
1 Tbsp garlic powder (or more to taste)
1 Tbsp ground cumin

Dice all veggies or use food processor to do it for you!
Add vinegar and spices
stir well and refrigerate
ENJOY!


Oh and I forgot, add the juice of 1 freshly squeezed lime!

Fresh homemade tomato sauce

If you are like me, you have a LOT of tomatoes in your fridge.  Either you grew them or you have friends giving them to you.  So many tomatoes and you can not eat them all before they go bad.  You have made BLTs and salsa, and eaten them in salads, had tomato and cheese sandwiches and still have TONS of tomatoes.  What to do with them all?
Can them!  I know this may be a new thing to some or scary to think about, but I have an easy way that you can do this!  Not special equipment needed!
You can use cherry tomatoes, or the big ones, either is fine!
Take about one big stock pot 1/2 full of tomatoes.  If you are using the big ones, core them and cut off any bad spots.
Add them to the pot and turn heat to med high.  Add chopped bell peppers (approx. 3) and chopped onion (1 large yellow), about 5-6 garlic cloves, 1 Tbsp sea salt, 1/4 cup EVOO, and fresh herbs (basil, oregano, thyme, and rosemary) about 1/4 cup of these slightly chopped, stems removed.
cook all of this till veggies are tender.
Let cool a little, then pour into blender or use immersion blender to puree into a sauce.
put sauce back into pot and bring to a boil, then simmer while you get the jars ready.
Fill clean QT or Pint jars with HOT water to get the jar HOT.  The ladle hot sauce into clean empty HOT jars.  Leave a 1" head space, wipe rim clean, screw on a new lid and ringer to hand tight.  Set on a towel on the counter and repeat till you are out of sauce.
Let the jars set until the lids POP and seal.  Then let them continue to set undisturbed 24 hours. Label and date the jars.  If any do not seal, put in the fridge and eat within a week!
ENJOY!!! 


NOTE: if your sauce is watery before you add to the jars, stir in a small can of tomato paste!  Make sure its organic!

Our newest addition

                        Meet Sallie Ann, our 3 week old puppy that is a Shepherd/Lab mix.

                        She loves sitting by the chicken tractor and watching the chickens!

As if we don't have enough animals already!  The neighbors across the street, their Lab had puppies.  My girls caught wind of their cries and wandered over there to find 5 adorable puppies.  So naturally when they finally talked my husband & me into walking over one evening after dinner, we came home with one.  Incase you don't already know, we have 2 full grown labs, a cat, 2 guinea pigs, 6 chickens, and now...a puppy.  At first they had her in the house and we crate her at night and while we are gone.  But yesterday I decided that I could NOT take the hair anymore!  So I vacuumed the whole house and banished her to be an outside dog.  She has taken up friends with the chickens!  We still crate her while we are gone and at night because she is so young.  Last night was a LONG night.  She was up at 2:30 crying so loud I could hear her from in my room which is NO where near the garage.  Not to mention she was awake again at 5:30 crying even LOUDER!  Just a little window into our lives that seem like we live on a farm, but in reality we live in a neighborhood!  #lovemykids #theycantalkusintoanything

Getting rid of a stuborn virus

This is my sweet Tiny Trotter, age 5 who came home sick from the beach with a fever virus and some GI upset.

This is colloidal silver, it fights against 650 different kinds of bacteria and viruses.

Remember the phrase I used a while back when talking about things I do for myself and my family?  "Not wrong, just different!"  Keep that in mind when reading this post!  I'm not against western medicine, I am a nurse myself!  I just find that sometimes in todays medical world that some natural remedies that work well, are not mentioned because they do not make anyone money! 
So I am going to share a story with you:
5 kids are at the beach, Gulf of Mexico waters, and 3 of the 5 end up sick.  Main symptom, fever, with a little GI upset, some mild vomiting and a few cases of diarrhea.  No energy in the kids and no appetite!  Complaint of headache and excessive thirst.  Fever will not break and ranges from 99.8-104.6  These kids are sick!  I started off with my child that was sick treating the fever with Epsom salt baths, and chamomile tincture.  This worked for the first 24-36 hours.  Then she would not eat or drink much at all and the fever would not respond to the tincture.  So I gave the ibuprofen every 12 hours or as far apart as I could.  As long as her fever was 101.5 or less, I did nothing!  On day 3 of my Tiny Trotter being sick, it was also day 5 of one of the other children.  My best friend decided to take hers to the doctor.  I was curious what this virus was myself, so asked her to let me know what the Dr said.  The answer was, "not sure, but here is a prescription."  I am married to a self employed man and our insurance...well, lets just say we pay for it ALL out of pocket.  So I thought I would give my child the colloidal silver as her "antibiotic" just as my friends Dr had prescribed for her sick children who had the same thing.  Thanks to her for saving me some money and letting me have her diagnosis without having to pay way too much!  LOL
The difference between antibiotics and this colloidal silver is that the silver also fights against viruses!    Antibiotics are only good against bacteria.  So we had a little test for ourselves going on...is this a virus they have or bacteria?  Today is 3 days of Tiny Trotter on the silver and she is fever free and appetite back, along with playing like her usual self.  This also would have been her 5th day of the symptoms had she awoken with fever again.  So I feel like 2 full days of the silver in her system did the trick.  I am going to continue to give it for about a total of 10 days just to boost her immune system.  My friend?  Her kids are on the up side of this as well.  She did not feel that the antibiotic did anything to help!  One of her kids had fever for 5-6 days, and the other one I saw today and she still said she felt bad.  Today for her is 6 days being sick.  Poor kids!  What was it they had?  How did they get it?  Why didn't the other 2 get it?  All I know is our other 2 kids are healthy eaters and a healthy weight!  The other 3 are more picky and under weight! 
What I have learned that I wanted to share...just because its not prescribed, doesn't mean it can't work.  I did a LOT of research online before I gave it to her.  Some sites said it was dangerous, others said it was fine.  There was a lot of medical research that had been done all over the world for years on this mineral and nothing was found negative.  But just like with all things...a little is all you need!  Too much of a good thing, is still TOO much!  And for those interested?  I bought it on amazon.com for under $30.  Should last us a LONG time!  It was an 8 oz bottle, you only use 1/2-1 dropper full and the shipping was even FREE!  I am a PRIME member, but this was not a PRIME item.  Still is was FREE shipping and I got it in 2 business days.  (What I used on Tiny Trotter was some my chiropractor has given me another time she was sick)

GI testing results are in...

So this is a diagram of what the human anatomy of our digestive track looks like.  Just in case anyone is curious about that!
My test results were as follows:
NO fungus or yeast
NO parasites (Yippie!!!)
3 strains of bacteria that all people have normally in the gut:
1. e.coli
2. strep
3. lactococcus
All of these were in serious overgrowth in my gut!  Not a good thing, especially since all the other markers were negative and I did NOT have a bacterial infection in the gut.  Luckily Anti-microbials can cure this!
(SIgA) which is a marker that tests for intestinal immunity was LOW!  Normal is 400-880, and mine was 44.
This is the immunity of the mucosal tissue, not what determines if you catch a cold or not!
This could be low due to food sensitivities which I have not tested for yet, but will be doing next!
I had no inflammation in the gut!  Thats good!
Chymotrypsin (pancreas enzymes) were low.  Normal is around 15, mine was 4.  What does this mean?  My food is not being properly broken down because my pancreatic enzymes are low.
I did have a little blood in the stool, once I begin gut healing treatment, I will retest for this to see if it is still there, worse or the same.
The recommendation was to start gut healing treatment to see if symptoms of bloating and discomfort after eating go away, or test for Food Sensitivities.  When I say bloating, let me be clear here that this is extreme bloating!  I have a flat stomach, eat anything at all and then I look 5 months pregnant.  No matter how much I work out my ABS, I cannot hold in my ABS to where I don't look preggers.  FRUSTRATION, and PAIN!  So,  I chose to go ahead and test for the food issues first because I felt it would be a lost cause to heal the gut if the food is the problem!  This test is being mailed to me now and once I have my blood drawn, I will have results in 2 days!  Much faster on this test!
So, when people ask me why I am doing this testing through a Nutritional Therapist and not my doctor, the answer is this...
Sadly enough in our Western Medical community, testing is not super thorough.  As long as they can find one thing out of the norm that there is a pill for, then they stop there and prescribe the pill.  The problem I have with this is that more times than not, this doesn't really get to the bottom of what is really going on.  Then the pill masks the symptoms so the real problem still exists.  I am taking my health into my own hands and seeking out help from a more holistic approach.  I want all the tests run and then collaboratively with my N.T. we will come up with as natural of a plan as we can to get my body back in balance the way GOD designed it to be.  We live in such a toxic world that no matter how hard we try to eliminate the toxins from our environment, we are still exposed to some degree.
I hope this hasn't totally overwhelmed or confused you all!  It's a lot to take in and understand!  Thanks for reading and following along!  I welcome any comments and questions if you are struggling to get some answers about your own health!  I will try my best to guide you in the right direction!       

Yoga for stress!

 Flamingo in "Tree Pose" at the Nashville Zoo, April 30, 2013

Yellow Lab in "Downward Facing Dog" at my house, April 19, 2013

I read a blog post on one of the many blogs I follow yesterday describing how even in our young children, they can get stressed and depressed.  Many times these conditions either go undiagnosed or the children end up medicated for them.  The blog was talking about how "YOGA" can help with stress and depression simply from the fact that it starts with our breath.  Deep breathing and relaxation.  This is what we are told to do to help with child birth, so it does make since when we thing about the science behind "Yoga".  The pictures I posted above are of animals in their own environment doing "yoga" poses all the time, everyday!  The point of the post I read was that before we let our children become stressed or depressed we should start at a very early age teaching them techniques of relaxation and deep breathing.  The blogger had given some suggestions on reading a story and having the children act out the story through flowing from one yoga pose to another.  I thought it was a very clever and cute idea.  Also keeps the body flexible and thus preventing injury in our day to day activities.  
I also was at the chiropractor yesterday and they has a documentary playing on how much our young children are prescribed anti-depressants.  That these types of medications along with ADD and ADHD meds have such horrific side affects that children as young as 7 are hanging themselves.  I know this subject may hit a chord with some people and I do not mean that I judge you if you have your child on any of these meds.  Each person is entitled to their own choice of how to handle situations in their childs life.  My main point here is to educated anyone who is looking for an alternative to the medications.  If your doctor has suggested your child be medicated and you want to try something else first, then I encourage you to look into some yoga for kids.  There are many DVDs, Youtube videos, books, etc out there.  Also removing red-40 dye from their foods and supplementing with extra magnesium (either in powder form mixed with water or topical form that is absorbed through the skin, ie epsom salt baths).  Personally being someone who suffers the stress syndrome "Adrenal Fatigue" and how it wreaks havoc on the body, I would love to see my children learn techniques as a child that could help them through out life learn not to get stressed!
Just my thoughts to share with you today, and remember, each person's opinion is their own, and it's "not wrong, just different"!  Thanks for reading!  Leave me a comment on your opinion!

Homemade non-toxic cleaning

Homemade Dry Laundry Detergent Recipe:
1 4lb box Borax
1 4lb box Arm & Hammer Baking Soda
1 box Arm & Hammer Super Washing Soda
3 bars of Felps-naptha soap
2 small containers of oxy clean (this is probably not considered non toxic, but for those who really have trouble with stains or yellowing, you may have to add this)

*You should be able to find all of these items at your grocery store in the laundry isle.

This detergent is fairly mild smelling, so if you love a strong scent, you may want to add a few drops of an essential oil like lavender to each load on the rinse cycle.

Start out by grating the bars of soap just like you would cheese. Don't worry it will dissolve, even if you wash with COLD water!
Toss all the ingredients into a large trash bag and carefully incorporate them all by gently flipping the bag.  Or you could line a 5 gal bucket with the trash bag and then stir all the ingredients.
Once it is all mixed, store however you like.  This is a picture, above, of mine.  I bought this tall glass container at TJ Maxx.  I keep a 2 Tbsp scoop in the container, and that is all it takes per load. 
Homemade Floor Cleaner:  (great for hardwoods!)
1 cup water
1 cup vinegar
1 cup isopropyl alcohol
2-3 drops natural dish soap (I use Dr. Bronners)
10-15 drops essential oil (optional)
24 oz fine mist spray bottle

Add all ingredients to spray bottle and shake to combine.  Sweep/vacuum the floors, spray cleaner, wipe with a microfiber cloth with the grain of the wood.
Furniture Polish:
 1 cup olive oil
1/3 cup lemon juice
mix into a spray bottle, spray wood and wipe clean with a cloth.  For wooden surfaces only!

Bathroom cleaner:
1 cup Borax
1/2 cup white vinegar
mix ingredients, scrub on bathroom surfaces, rinse away.

Kitchen cleaner:
1-2 drops Grapefruit Seed Extract
per ounce of water
Mix in a spray bottle, spray on surface, and wipe clean.

Dishwasher soap:
1 cup borax
1 cup baking soda
rinse dishes well, add distilled white vinegar to rinse agent spot, use heat cycle to disinfect.

For all other cleaning needs on surfaces, microfiber cloths and water do a wonderful job!  I found microfiber cloths in a 3 pack at the dollar tree for $1.

Anyone can grow a garden!

I live in a neighborhood outside city limits and on a street that dead ends.  So I kind of feel like I am out in the country a little, yet am close enough to town for all those trips I make in a day!  My neighbor usually grows a pretty big garden, so the 5 years I have lived here, I have just taken what he gives me.  This year I decided that we eat such a variety of vegetables that he does not grow, so maybe I should try and grow those.  Thank goodness for pinterest and all of the great ideas that are out there!
This pin was what I started with: planting my seed in egg shell halves and sprouting them inside first.   http://www.17apart.com/2012/01/how-to-plant-seeds-using-eggshells.html

Then today, I decided to move those seedling that have sprouted on out into my "palette" garden.  This idea came from here:http://www.hometalk.com/146502/our-palette-garden
even though they suggest standing it upright, I am going to keep mine flat on the ground! 

So what have I planted this spring?  Butternut squash, sugar snap peas, broccoli, carrots, bell peppers, Brussels sprouts, kale, lettuce, and spinach.  Those are all in the palette garden.  Then in pots going up my front porch steps are my herbs for cooking.  Basil, oregano, thyme, rosemary,& parsley.  I also have mint that grows around my flag pole and dill that is in the flower bed.  In another flower bed I planted chamomile and in the bed with my blueberry bushes, I planted asparagus.  My strawberries are doing well!  They have so many white buds on them already. 

So how does your garden grow?  I think even if you live in an apartment you could do the palette garden and plants in containers!    Leave me a comment with what all you're growing this year!  For more ideas, follow me on pinterest!  http://pinterest.com/liciajoy/

Last day of GI testing

Although not the most glamorous thing to do, today is the last day of my GI testing.  As I am writing this post I am spitting in my last vial and then off to UPS to send it off for analysis.  Last time it took over a week to get my results, so I am not expecting this time to be any faster.  Have I mentioned I DO NOT like to wait! 
On Sunday we had some friends over for a cookout and one of my good friends Birthday celebrations.  There was of course an ice cream cake and then another friend brought chess squares. I was really good and avoided the cake, however chess squares...oh how I love the!  It has been SOOOO long since I have had a chess square!  So I thought to myself, I can surely have one tiny bite and it will be fine.  WRONG!!! I did have two tiny bites, but the next day I was BLOATED and crampy, and felt tired and just gross.  All in all, it was so good at the time I was chewing the dessert, but so NOT worth it the WHOLE next day!  Lesson learned!
I sure hope this GI panel will give me some answers!  Feeling like this for a whole day over  2 little bites of wheat/gluten is just crazy!  If the answers are not found in this test, I will have to do another test for food sensitivities.  That one will require blood work, which I am NOT a fan of! Anyone else feel like this after you eat wheat/gluten?  If so, leave me a comment of how you deal with the bloat the next day!  Peppermint tea used to help, but not anymore!

Healthy birthday cake

My oldest daughter turned 8 last week. She is the one who seems to be super sensitive to gluten and processed sugar. So for her "cake" this year she chose a fruit cake. Basically we just used a seedless watermelon as the cake part and then using tooth picks we attached other fruits like other melons, strawberries, grapes and pineapple. I used wooden skewer sticks and made fruit kabobs sticking out the top. It turned out cute and was delicious. Just goes to show that even kids will grow to desire to be good to their bodies if you help them understand and teach them.

Time for more labs!

Today I received another test kit in the mail.  This one is for GI testing.  (Gastrointestinal)  This will be to screen the GI tract and its function.  Since I have frequent bloating, gas and cramping, along with the occasional constipation, travel outside the US once a year, prepare food at home, and have pets...this puts me at possible risk of contracting a parasite.  The risk of being infected or infested by a pathogenic organism through food and water is on the rise.  The reason being because of immigration and importation of fruits and vegetables.  Anyone, regardless of economic status can become infected.  The WHO (World Health Organization) currently states that about half a billion individuals are infected annually by different forms of parasites.  This really freaks me out and seems disgusting!  However, if this is whats wrong with my GUT, I definitely  want to know!  The CDC (center for disease control) also states that you don't have to travel to another country to get a parasite.  They are all around us, both in big cities and small towns.
The test kit will also test for bacteria, fungi, and yeast as well.  Digestion-related screens for enzyme levels and immunochemical markers for intolerance to offending foods.  And also, intestinal function markers to evaluate irritation and inflammation.  The overall status of gut immunity and integrity. 
So...let the fun begin.  3-4 days before I begin the test, I have to avoid vitamins and all kinds of other things.  Then I test one day, skip and day, test again on day 3 and ship the samples off.  In case you are wondering, the tests will be of both stool and saliva. 
My previous blood work from back in the fall indicated that I may be suffering from malabsorption of some kind since my calcium, magnesium, amylase and a few other levels were low.  This seemed odd because I eat lots of fresh fruits and veggies and shouldn't be low in these labs.  I am really hoping to get some answers from this test!  And at the same time praying it's NOT a parasite.  YUCK!  I mean if that was the case, shouldn't I be SUPER SKINNY?  haha, you know how we have all heard that.  If these tests do not reveal anything in the way of answers, then we will do the food sensitivities blood test!  I'll keep you posted.

A recap from my phone consultation today

As those of you who have been following know, today at 12:30 was my phone consultation with my Nutritional Therapist.  It lasted an hour and a half and was enlightening.  Although we still don't know enough info to get to the root of the problem, here is a recap of what I did find out today...
My main issue is digestion.  Even though I eat the rights kinds of foods and take good care of my self, there is still some indication in the blood work that I had drawn in September 2012 that my G.I. track has some issues.  My 4 hour GTT (glucose tolerance test) went something like this, fasting:94, 1 hour:158, 2 hour:76, 3 hour: 111, 4 hour: 105.  This indicated something is not quite right considering the way I eat, protein, fiber, fat, LOW starches.  So this could mean that I have some hidden food sensitivities. 
Other labs indicated that the gallbladder isn't functioning correctly.  Although I had an ultrasound of this to check for disease and stones, the blood work shows the opposite.  Could be fine sand like sludge causing problems that wouldn't show on U.S. 
My potassium was low, hyper adrenal function; my carbon dioxide was low, B1 & thiamine; magnesium and calcium were low,  malabsorption and my amylase was low, I need enzymes.  All of these indicate LOTS of digestion markers.  She even mentioned I could possibly have a parasite. 
So the results from the spit test looked something like this:
My cortisol level in the morning was 29.  This was taken between 6-8 am and normal is 18-19, so I was definitely off the chart.  This could indicate an immune response or be a result of low blood sugar.  The second sample was normal, taken between 11-1pm.  The sample taken between 4-5 pm was 3 and normal is 5-6, so although a little low, this would be why I am so tired around 3 pm daily.  Then the 11-12 midnight sample was again normal.  My total score was 41 and norrmal is between 32-33.  So I have hyper adrenal function.  She also had the lab check my DHEA which is the anti-aging hormone, muscle building hormone, and other things, but mine was a 7 and that is GREAT!  So yay me on that one!
Since the gut is my biggest issue, we are now going to go forward with digestive testing.  My test kit is in the mail and I will have to test for 3 days and then mail it in and wait again for results.  The culprit of all this mess could be physical stress, sleep issues, mental/emotional/spiritual, infection, or food sensitivities.  Once we have the results from this next test, we will be able to determine if I will need to have the food sensitivities test done as well.
So for now... more waiting and testing.  You know how much I love that!  It could be much worse!  She said that many of her patients end up with G.I. issues and never had the first symptom.  I think about my good friend who has stage 4 colon cancer and she never really had but one symptom before she was diagnosed.  It took a horse kicking her in the head for her to be air lifted to a trauma center and once scanned full body, that's when it was discovered.  So the point here is, we don't always have symptoms, but staying on top of our health is so important!  Know your body, pay attention and listen!  Then follow through and do something!
All diseases begin in the GUT.

Spring...what we do around here!

These are pictures of our baby chicks, and butterflies.  Spring is new life, and is always a great time to teach this to children.  For Christmas my girls received a butterfly garden kit.  We sent off for our caterpillars in the mail and received a container with 5 and all the food they needed.  It was a great experiment to watch how fast those little suckers grew.  The miracle of forming the cocoon and how quickly the transformation of change takes place.  We fed them and observed for several days.  Then this week the weather was finally warm enough, so we released them!
The baby chicks are Buff orpingtons.  They are the friendliest breed of chickens, meaning they will come right to you.   I am totally stoked to raise these sweet little girls and enjoy some fresh farm eggs from our own backyard chickens.  Since we eat gluten free around here, recipes call for 3 or more eggs and that means we go through a LOT of eggs!  Hoping this will help me out in cost savings!
Yesterday we also started our seedling garden.  I saw a cool idea on pinterest of starting seeds in half egg shells and then you just plant the whole thing in the ground when ready.  We planted broccoli, Brussels sprouts, carrots, bell peppers, butternut squash, sugar snap peas, lettuce, kale and spinach.  We also planted herbs, dill, oregano, basil, rosemary, parsley, thyme and chamomile.  We also planted asparagus in our flower bed, although we won't have a harvest the first year, maybe next.  I have a strawberry patch so I got in there and pulled all the weeds and noticed I have several blooms already!  The girls will be excited for fresh strawberries soon.
All that being said, how does your garden grow?  I am going to try growing some things in a pallet garden, also seen on pinterest.
I am also looking for plans to build a chicken tractor.  Any ideas are welcomed!  I need to get to building soon.  The weather here is getting warm and the chicks are growing fast!

Fat burning is hard to do when your adrenals are fatigued!

I have always been on the smaller side of average for my height.  Never really had trouble with weight gain, until these stinking little adrenal glands became so fatigued.  For the past year I have been eating a Paleo diet for about 85-90% of the time and working out moderately as well as practicing yoga.  Nothing too extreme on the exercise end for sure.  I'm not one to just sit around, so I am pretty active even if I'm not in the gym working out. 
All that aside, when I have been reading and studying about adrenal fatigue, I have found that the HIIT (high intensity interval training) workout types are the best.  What does this mean exactly?  Well for those of you out there who hate cardio like I do, this means that you can get in a good burn and sculpt all in about 12-15 min.  One that will turn on your body's fat burning ability and it will even keep burning through out the day!  Now that's the kind of workout I am interested in!  The question for me was, where do I find such a plan?  I am not an exercise science person who knows all about muscles and whats best for the body in terms of exercise, so I need a preplanned program to follow.  Here is a link to the one I have found that I will be following.  http://www.bodyrock.tv/category/daily-workouts/all-workouts/ 
I have decided to follow the May conditioning & fat loss 30 day program from 2012.  The reason I chose to follow this one was because it also incorporated "flow" which is their version of yoga.  I am not doing their version of yoga, I will go to my yoga studio and continue to practice there, but for those of of you who don't know a thing about  yoga but want to try, this is perfect!  Please note that this website does have a girl who is coaching you through the workouts, and she is dressed really skimpy.  This is not appropriate for young viewers in my opinion.  I basically only recommend this site mainly for the exercise program and the way that she demonstrates and gives modifications.  Not sure why the titles of the workouts and her attire are so sexual and not modest at all, but if you can overlook that... this is a great tool!
Post comments if you like the workouts, or if you know of  another tool or program out there that is free and gives the same great information!  Only 2 more days till I have my phone consultation and get my plan!  Can't wait!

The results are in...

I received an email yesterday from my holistic health care professional.  She said that my spit test results are back and as soon as she received a copy of my most recent labs and my paperwork she needed me to fill out that she could determine a plan for me.  I faxed everything over yesterday and I am scheduled to call her next Thursday at 12:30 to discuss my health.  Although I am very excited to have the results, as I posted before, I am NOT good at waiting! 
I do have to say that the blood sugar drops, staying bottomed out, have improved greatly!  I attribute this mainly to the fact that I have cut out the coffee in my morning routine. I actually don't even drink coffee at all anymore except one small cup on Sunday's during my Sunday school class.  I am so thankful that I am not having so many spells of feeling like I am going to pass out!  I actually feel pretty normal most days!  One thing I am trying to do better about is sleeping.  I find that by 9pm I am exhausted and ready for bed.  It is easy for me to fall asleep, just not easy for me to stay asleep.  I think this is why I still have the total fatigue that hits me daily around 3pm. 
I read the other day that when you have adrenal fatigue that weight training and short interval bursts of cardio are way to go when working out.  So I am trying to come up with the right exercise program for me.  I love yoga and will definitely keep that as part of the plan.  I just need to add in some HIIT.  (High Intensity Interval Training)  Now to find that program and incorporate it into  my weekly schedule.  Any one reading this post have any suggestions on that one for me?  I'm open to suggestions!

Is it possible to De-stress?

Adrenal Fatigue is in fact considered a stress syndrome.  I never thought I was stressed.  I did feel stressed some times, but not really all that much.  How is it that one can become so sick from stress when they don't really feel stressed?  Well it's actually simple.  The body responds to all things we put it through in different ways.  From the food we eat, the drinks we drink, the lack of sleep we get, the strenuous exercise we make the body endure, to situations we put ourselves in, the list goes on and on.  So the fact that we may enjoy the food, drink, exercise, and situations, doesn't always mean that our bodies can handle it well. 
Ways that I am trying to learn to De-stress my life, remember that I didn't feel stressed, are by changing some of my habits one at a time and seeing which change gives me the best results.  My symptoms had become so great that they were disrupting my life in such a way that I could not function day to day.  It took me getting to this point of desperation to decide I needed a change. The first change I decided to make was one in which I have to say "NO" to all of the extra things I was doing.  I now have to evaluate each thing and see if it had to be done right away, does it have to be done by me, and is it going to put a strain on me and push me for time in other aspects of life.  That has been a huge weight lifted of  my shoulders that I didn't even know I was carrying.  So many times when you are a stay at home mom, people assume you do nothing and that you are always available to help them out. This couldn't be further from the truth actually. 
The next thing I am trying to do is really make sure I keep my blood sugar stable through out the day.  Most people with A.F. are hypoglycemic, so eating well balanced meals often is key.  I am a snacker, so I always thought I was eating the right foods, but the problem was I was not pairing the right things together and eating them at the right times.  This is a process and one I am still learning.  Mainly, eat within 30 min. of waking and consume a balance of protein, whole grain carbs, and a healthy fat! 
On the exercise topic, I felt like I was doing great.  I was doing a version of Crossfit with a partner in our gym, and really pushing myself to the limits.  For some reason though, I felt awful, and still I kept gaining this excess fat around my middle and upper thighs.  That's so frustrating!  Well, I have now learned that with A.F. you cannot do a lot of long periods of cardio.  Strength training is good because it encourages your hormones to fire and start working.  The long periods of cardio actually fatigue the adrenals more and make your body think that it needs to hold on to all fat for reserve.  So eating some carbs for fuel around exercise time is key also.  This helps the body start burning for fuel and then it will go into the fat reserves for more fuel.  So eating just a little bit of carbs to jump start that process helps.  Too many carbs would not help.
I know I have mentioned several times that Yoga is something I practice regularly.  Truth is that I fell in love with it in the Spring/Summer 2012, and practiced very regularly.  Then school started and I felt guilty for doing something for myself when I should be homeschooling my daughter.  After I began feeling so bad, I quit doing anything that involved exercise at all.  Then after the first of the year, I decided to give myself permission to get back into my practice full time again.  My plan now is to do yoga 4-5 times a week and strength training with weights 2 times a week.   If you are in or around the Dickson area like me, I recommend Yoga of Dickson.  This is a fabulous studio to practice with some wonderful people.  If you are not in the area, look for a studio near you and try a class.  If you cannot afford to spend the money on classes, www.yogaofdickson.com has a free podcast you can download and experience the relaxation yoga can offer.  If you are not familiar with the poses, you may want to familiarize yourself with those first before trying the pod cast.
I welcome any comments on other ways that you may have found to De-stress your life.  Somethings cannot be avoided or changed, such as kids and the demands of family.  Those things we will just have to learn to deal with, breathe deep and "don't sweat the small stuff".

My top 10 snack foods for kidos

Recently I have had a request to blog about what kind of snack foods I feed my kids.  This is always a challenge, especially because most growing kids eat every 2-3 hours.  It always seems like my kids are hungry every time I turn around.  I have mentioned before that we have some food allergies and major food intolerance, so this poses an even bigger challenge.  Again, Trader Joes is my favorite for finding gluten free foods at a very reasonable price.  I know that the one in Nashville is not located close to everyone, but go there once a month and stock up!  It seriously does save you money! 
My oldest daughter is highly sensitive to processed sugar, like High Fructose Corn Syrup, and just plain ole white sugar, so I really try to buy things organic or make them myself with honey.  The organic products still will have sugar in them, however it is usually most often evaporated can juice.  This form of sugar actually still contains the natural minerals found in sugar in nature. 
1.Amazon sells some suckers that I buy a huge bag of, its about 2 gallons worth for $30.  These last me a LONG time and are a special treat! http://www.amazon.com/YummyEarth-Organic-Lollipops-Assorted-Flavors/dp/B000HDK0DC/ref=pd_ybh_19
2.Cheese sticks by Sargento are also a good source of protein, if no one is allergic to milk.  My youngest daughter was allergic for 3 years, but now just seems to be sensitive to certain dairy products.  The colby jack form of cheese she can handle much better than the mozzarella.  Also if you want cheese from grass fed cows, Kerrygold makes a fabulous cheese.  I have found it at the best price point at Sams.  I have also seen it at Aldi recently as well.
3.Fruit, of all kinds!  A good pair in my house is apples dipped in natural peanut butter.  Almond butter is best for me as I am super sensitive to legumes.  Make sure that you buy natural peanut butter where peanuts is the only ingredients.  Organic is best, but often contains added sugar.  Krema, is non-organic, but tastes amazing and I have found it at Kroger.
Cuties are great for kids, they have no seeds and are basically mandarin oranges in their natural form.  I do buy canned mandarin oranges in the off season but only if they are in their own juice.  No syrup!
4. Popcorn, I buy the organic kernels at Trader Joes (this is also non-GMO) and pop it on the stove top in coconut oil.  I even pop this ahead of time and keep it in a zip lock bag for easy access.  We do also have an air popper that my 7 year old can pop some corn for herself if she wants to.  This version is even healthier!
5. Applesauce squeezers- again I buy these at Trader Joes.  They have a carrot/apple one that the girls really like.  I also get the strawberry /apple and plain apple too.  Be sure to read labels, because not all squeezers are "clean".
6. Raw veggies- I make a ranch dip using plain greek yogurt and they enjoy dipping baby carrots and sugar snap peas.  They also like cherry tomatoes and the seedless crispy baby cucumbers with a sprinkle of sea salt.
7. greek yogurt- chiobanni, makes a kid yougurt, called Champion.  All of the flavors are good.  My kids like the chocolate chip kind best and I let them eat it sometimes in place of icecream!  I have only found this at Publix.
8. Keifer ice cream- Lifeway makes a delicious strawberry flavor.  It seems expensive at first, but I think of it this way...its a special treat.  We only eat it on occasion, so its the same as if you were taking your kids out for an ice cream treat.  You would pay the same if not more.
9.Other ice cream treats- So Delicious makes some dairy free treats, and now they also have no sugar added treats as well.  Again, the price seems steep, but these are special treats!  If you took advantage of the Freebie I posted last week.  That ebook listed many websites you could print off coupons for healthier and organic foods.  Also if you shop at Kroger, using your plus card, they will send you custom coupons in the mail for items you buy most often. 
10.Trail mix- I buy the raw nuts trek mix at Trader Joes because it is convenient.  Otherwise you could mix some raw nuts, and dried fruit along with some unsweetened coconut chips and there you have a nice trail mix!
Read the post on my favorite things to link you up to some of my favorite blogs I get other kid friendly recipes from for breakfast items especially!