Snow!

I'm sorry I haven't updated the blog. We had 9 inches of snow fall yesterday, and we have enjoyed putting on layers, going out to play, coming back in, taking off layers, getting warm, putting layers back on, going out to play...I think you get the idea.

I do have a thought I want share though. If Americans spend billions of dollars more than any other country on health care, fitness, weight loss strategies, etc., why are we so unhealthy?

I believe it is because we spend billions of dollars on health care, fitness, weight loss strategies, etc., instead of on actual food. Food was meant to sustain, protect, defend us from harmful environmental stressors. An apple, for example, contains more than 20 different identifiable compounds that relate to different biological activities in the body--one apple affects our body in more than 20 different ways. How can the medical field or pharmaceutical companies or the weight loss industry compete with that?

Food was also intended for us to enjoy. I don't mean sitting at the Sonic enjoying a cheeseburger, fries, and Coke. I mean taking the time to prepare a well-balanced, nutrient rich meal with friends and family. Talking and laughing in between bites of colorful, tasty morsels of food. This should be one of the best parts of our days. Instead we have turned meal time into an agonizing attempt at getting food on the table or at least in our families' stomachs fast. We eat in the car, in front of the T.V., or between extra-curricular activities.

Our American lifestyle is what is making us fat, sick, and stressed out. This is a call to all of you moms and dads out there to start making a change. Make the effort to sit around the table with your kids and talk. Talk about their days, your days, their hopes and dreams. And laugh, laugh a lot. And make food that is nutritious and delicious. Please don't break it down into fat grams, calories, and number of carbs (with the exception of a metabolic disorder or your doctor's advice). I am not saying not to be aware of what you are putting into your body, but it is much simpler than we make it out to be.