I get a lot of email requests to post my family’s weekly menu. Truth is, I’m not much of a meal planner. My approach to healthy eating is to keep the junk out of the refrigerator and the pantry (I’m pretty vigilant about this) and keep us fairly loaded up with many healthy food options at all times. I learned this from my Mom whose side of the family has some pretty significant weight issues. She taught me that if it’s not in the house, you’re not gonna be eating it. It really works!
With the fridge and freezer full of healthy options, whipping up a nutritious meal is the only option and I can be flexible and open to whatever my family is hungry for at any given meal. I tend not to cook very gourmet most of the time as two of my kids are still at the age where they prefer simple foods.
This is not to say that I don’t plan out leftovers. I do this quite a bit and will have a post primarily dedicated to this coming out in the next few weeks.
I’ve also shied away from posting my personal food log as I don’t want people who read it to think this is how you have to eat if you’re eating traditionally. There are many ways to successfully implement a traditional diet as discovered and written about by Dr. Weston A. Price in his epic work Nutrition and Physical Degeneration.
I actually did post 4 days of my menu when I was on the GAPS Diet. Those of you eating that way right now might find this helpful.
But what about meals for kids?
My Child’s Food Diary for One Week
My first grader had a school project assigned last week to log everything she ate for a solid week. This project will be turned in tomorrow, so I thought it might be helpful to post this food diary for others who are new to traditional eating and basically struggling to figure out how to feed their children.
I am a little tentative to post this for the same reason I’ve avoided posting my own food diary … I don’t want folks getting hung up on the details.
The basic premise is to feed your children whole, locally produced, unprocessed foods as much as possible with liberal amounts of nutrient dense animal fats which are loaded with the fat soluble activators A, D, and K2.
Remember that the Eskimos ate very differently from the South Sea Islanders as well as the other cultures identified in Dr. Price’s book, but the common denominator is that they ate what was available locally in unprocessed form and greatly revered the nutrient dense animal fats available to them. These fats were considered of particular importance to growing children.
Thursday, September 1, 2011
Breakfast
Grassfed sausage, raw grassfed milk, homemade ginger ale
1/4 tsp butter oil, 1/2 tsp high vitamin cod liver oil, 1/2 tsp high vitamin skate liver oil
Lunch (at school)
Antibiotic free turkey slices, organic fruit roll, veggie stix, organic grapes
Dinner
Homemade chicken nuggets (cooked in expeller pressed coconut oil), organic green beans cooked in butter, raw grassfed milk
Friday, September 2, 2011
Breakfast
Sprouted toast with sunflower butter, raw grassfed milk
1/4 tsp butter oil, 1/2 tsp high vitamin cod liver oil, 1/2 tsp high vitamin skate liver oil
Lunch (at school)
Boiled egg, organic fruit roll, homemade macaroons, veggie stix
Dinner
Rice mac & cheese, grassfed beef with juices, organic cucumber and carrots, raw grassfed milk
Saturday, September 3, 2011
Breakfast
Sprouted toast with sunflower butter and raw honey, kombucha
1/4 tsp butter oil, 1/2 tsp high vitamin cod liver oil, 1/2 tsp high vitamin skate liver oil
Lunch
Homemade chicken soup (soup had rice and veggies in it), raw grassfed milk
Snack
Carob chips and organic lollipop at a movie
Dinner
Soaked waffles, bacon, peas cooked in butter, raw grassfed milk
Sunday, September 3, 2011
Breakfast
Soaked waffles, raw grassfed milk, kombucha
1/4 tsp butter oil, 1/2 tsp high vitamin cod liver oil, 1/2 tsp high vitamin skate liver oil
Snack
Organic peanut butter and raw honey on a spoon
Lunch
Grassfed burger, carrot stix, fresh orange juice
Dinner
Homemade chicken soup (with veggies and rice in it), raw grassfed milk
Monday, September 5, 2011
Breakfast
Soaked waffles, raw grassfed milk, kombucha
1/4 tsp butter oil, 1/2 tsp high vitamin cod liver oil, 1/2 tsp high vitamin skate liver oil
Lunch
Grilled cheese with bacon, broccoli cooked in butter
Snack
Milkshake (made with raw homemade vanilla ice cream)
Dinner
Pastured chicken with chicken broth, asparagus cooked in butter, raw grassfed milk
Tuesday, September 6, 2011
Breakfast
Sprouted toast with sunflower butter, raw grassfed milk, kombucha
1/4 tsp butter oil, 1/2 tsp high vitamin cod liver oil, 1/2 tsp high vitamin skate liver oil
Lunch (at school)
Roast beef, sprouted pretzels, organic fruit roll, organic raspberry pop tart
Snacks
Organic lollipop, milkshake (made with raw ice cream)
Dinner
Grassfed burger, broccoli cooked in butter, cucumbers, raw grassfed milk
Wednesday, September 7, 2011
Breakfast
Organic peanut butter and raw honey on sprouted toast, raw grassfed milk, kombucha
1/4 tsp butter oil, 1/2 tsp high vitamin cod liver oil, 1/2 tsp high vitamin skate liver oil
Lunch (at school)
Boiled egg, organic fruit roll, sprouted pretzels, carob chips
Snack
Organic lollipop, sunflower butter toast
Dinner
Pastured chicken, broccoli cooked in butter, raw grassfed milk
I know one of the very first questions I will get about this food diary is where to get the high vitamin cod liver oil and butter oil. If you check out my Shopping Guide, vetted brands of quality fish liver oil companies are provided.
Was this food diary helpful to you? Did you get any ideas for your own kids’ meals and school lunches?
Sarah, The Healthy Home Economist
Hi Sarah,
Thanks for this post. I wanted to know if the veggie stix you mentioned were the fermented type? And if not what is the easiest way to get fermented foods into their diet?
Thank you, Melissa.
Hi Sarah,
I know it’s been some time since you wrote this entry, but I am rereading it as I am looking for back to school lunchbox inspiration. I do not allow my children to eat the school’s lunch, so pack them one everyday. My question for you (if you have the time to answer) is, what containers do (or ,did, rather as I read you now homeschool) you use as I am looking for some that are BPA, phalates, PVC free. I have some in mind to purchase, but thought I’d check in with some of my favourite bloggers (you being at the top of the list!) for ideas. Also, do you think it’d be okay to freeze glass babyfood jars? I am just starting to look after an under-one year old and off course will be making him my own food, but am reluctant to keep using the same old plastic containers I’ve jused before. I was thinking of buying some and reusing them if I sterise them in the dishwasher. What do you think? Thank you ever so much!!!
Hi, Sarah!! Thank you for all of your hard work! I am looking to start giving my daughter the fermented skate liver oil. Do you buy the spicy orange flavor? This is the only available type I see. Thank you.
Hi Sarah. My son is 12 months old, and has been receiving drops of unflavored FCLO in his bottles since he was 4 mths. Would it be ok for him to receive drops of the Skate Liver Oil as well? If yes, Green Pastures is only offering the liquid form in the spicy orange flavor. In your opinion, do you think babies react well/ok with spicy orange? Thank you.
Hi Alicia, if your son was younger than 12 months I would say no as the spicy orange is a little tangy. But, at his age he should be able to handle it ok. My daughter has been taking it since a very young age.
thank you Sarah for the reply . I guess I mean 2 things. Firstly if you get enough Vit d from the sun and then take cod liver oil can you overdose? I have also read that too much Vit A can be very toxic. With a good diet and supplementing with CLO how do I ensure my kids dont get too much Vit a?
Hi Sarah
My kids eat very well and get lots of sun and so i am concerned they might get an overdose of vit a . What would be the signs of this. How do you make sure your kids dont get too much vit A
thanks once again
You mean vitamin D? You don’t get vitamin A from the sun. I am not concerned as the body has a shut off mechanism when vitamin D is obtained from the sun.
I really enjoyed this post and got some ideas for meals and snacks! We like simple but sometimes the kids look for something new.
It makes me sad, though, your daughter should be able to say milk, burger, chicken while modern convenience eaters should say – pasteurized homogenized rBST pesticide antibiotic milk, GMO corn and soy fed confined growth hormone burger, cage enclosed antibiotic never sees the light of day chicken.
Hi Sarah.
Do please address this issue about handling the mainstream particularly in schools. I am in the neck of things now having just ‘successfully’ replaced the chick-fil-a biscuit at our school’s fundraiser. It made the news! Because of all the counterproductive allergy-focused policies (NO homemade food) all I could aim for is ‘raising the bar’ which isn’t tough from chick-fil-a. But at least the convesation about why butter is ‘healthy’ will start to be adressed in the community and among administration. They have been accommodating the ‘ignorant’ mom while violating the rights of the ‘informed’ mom. We should speak up (get into school roles like with the PTA, that influence decisions) and not just ‘work’ the system. Then we’re only helping ourselves and nothing will change, and things will only get worse for the informed moms that come after us.
Hi Karla, it will just frustrate you to try and take on the mainstream and particularly school authorities. Just pack your child’s lunch and protect them from the garbage as best you can. Spend your energy where you can make a difference .. with folks who are open to listening and contemplating the poor choices they are making.
HI Sarah,
This was such a great post. It actually made me feel better about what my six-year-old is eating. He is not a huge fruit/veggie lover, but he does eat meat and (too many) carbs. I am trying to get more protein into our breakfasts and was wondering about the sausage. I am trying to buy all of our meat from local farmers and they do offer pastured pork shares, but I have to choose between bacon cured with nitrates or uncured “fresh side,” which tastes different than bacon. I have not ordered more of the fresh side because it is so different. I’m just trying to balance supporting local farmers with just going to Whole Foods because I can get it nitrate-free. Any ideas/advice?
P.S. I find this issue at our Farmers’ Market a lot. There are not a lot of organic options, but I feel better eating an apple from the guy down the street than from an orchard in China.
To avoid the nasties in sausage, I buy ground pork from my farmer and season it using Sarah’s recipe on the site. Delicious!