One of the biggest hurdles I had to jump with The Workaholic when we went Paleo, was what to do with all of our “non-neolithic” food. I had JUST purchased flour, sugar, this delicious looking soup mix from World Market, and gosh, every darned thing you can think of at the grocery store that is grain-, sugar-, and preservative-laden.
We ended up donating everything that wasn’t previously opened, and even gave some of the open stuff to friends. This soup mix, however; I just couldn’t get rid of. I had literally purchased it the day before. (No joke, see how and why we went Paleo). I don’t know what my attachment to this soup mix was, or why I couldn’t throw it away. I knew for sure that we wouldn’t ever eat it, but I thought perhaps I could gift it to someone in a gift basket or something. I don’t know, a housewarming or something? Anyways, it found its way to Raleigh with us, and it suffered some discoloration and battering on the way here. I saw it chillin’ in the back of my pantry last week and realized that I could use this soup mix to help The Muffin learn her ABCs and work on her fine motor skills.
I took a paper plate and cut some wavy “arms” out from a workbook that we have. I then “drew” a happy face on the plate with some Elmer’s glue and told her to get to work. She had so much fun putting the little peas and lentils on the glue and LOVED her little happy face when she was done.
She wanted to do more with the glue and soup mix so I figured I could help her learn her alphabet this way too! She hasn’t quite figured tracing out yet and I’m not forcing it because she’s an ace where it comes to imaginative play. But I do want to find ways for her to work on her fine motors, so I wanted to keep this going as long as she would sit here. I drew an “M” on some construction paper, and when she had completed the “M”, she decided she also wanted a 3, because that’s how old she is.
THEN she wanted her name in soup mix, so we did that too. We hardly touched the soup mix, so I’m going to keep this little ritual going until it’s all gone. In which case, I’ll have to go to buy some dried beans from Walmart or something. For now? We’re eating Paleo and learning our alphabet with the stuff we don’t eat but never wanted to let go.
How are you going to use your non-Paleo foods when you make the switch?
About Summer
Super cute idea. Whenever I’m trying to be healthy I feel like I have to purge by eating through the pantry.
Meanwhile…just how serious is the whole dairy think in Paleo. I swear I’m almost there already except for the darn dairy.
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The Primal Diet allows for some dairy, though raw is preferred. I’m a MOUSE, or was, so cheese was my middle name. I looooove me some cheese. OH, and yogurt too. I still eat plain Greek Yogurt with a sprinkle of cinnamon and a drizzle of maple syrup in it. We occasionally have cheese in our meals (tacos, cheeseburgers), etc . . . , but we don’t make it a daily habit.
About the dairy, if you have not tried a month dairy free then you may be cheating yourself of the full benefits of this lifestyle. I considered myself Paleo for over 2 years totally giving up the dairy. I was still using heavy cream in my coffee and eating small amounts of cheese and some full fat greek yogurt.
I have autoimmune thyroid disease (Hashimoto’s) and I finally decided to quit all dairy for a month. I lost 10 lbs without even trying. And it wasn’t hard. I found out when I tried to add some back that it hurts my stomach. But I don’t miss it.
You’re absolutely right, Stephanie. When I Started Paleo, I went FULL OUT for 6 months, no dairy (after the first 2 weeks of needing that greek fro yo). I lost a crap ton of weight during that first few months. I also used to put coconut oil and cinnamon in my coffee but have been using half and half more recently. I think with any diet, you have to find what works best for you, your body, and your ailments. I really do need to try to eliminate dairy completely again, just like you. Help hold me accountable?
I’m glad I’m not the only one that has the eat through what is left mentality! I think I am going to have to do a gradual Paleo thing because pizza is my treat for working my tail off each week. :/
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You can have Pizza! With a different kind of crust! Come over and I’ll show you!
Great idea!
Did you just donate all the rest if the non-Paleo foods you had just purchased (flour, sugar, etc.)? I find the temptation of having gluten-ridden foods is too much for my husband and I to bear. I have to get rid of them by either tossing them or giving them away!
Christine Ybarra recently posted..Christine’s Paleo Egg Cupcakes
Hi, Christine! Yes, I donated EVERYTHING else. I couldn’t bear throwing it away. I lie . . . everything that was open that none of my friends wanted, I reluctantly threw away. Unfortunately, I’m the kind of person who will just make a cookie if she wants a cookie, so having anything non-Paleo in the house just wasn’t an option.
Fantastic! I also got rid of all Paleo food or anything with milk, gluten or sugar, after doing the 21day sugar detox (http://timreviews.com/21daysugardetox) This kind of frees you from the temptations that can come over you when discovering food in your kitchen.
Was it hard for you to make the change?
Jennice
It wasn’t hard to make the change because I purged the house, and because for me, it was all about health and not losing weight. Weight loss is not a motivating factor for me because I’ve never been overweight until I got pregnant with my daughter 4 years ago. So when my migraines went away and my knees stopped hurting within a week, I was SOLD!
Congrats on your successful 21DSD!