🍩Freeschoolin': Food Freedom
Part of body autonomy is choosing what goes in it.
We all want to start our kids off right with a healthy diet but what if restricting less nutrient dense foods causes an obsession? In my 44 years of life I have observed much. One thing I noticed is that once kids hit the teen years after being ruled without choice, they explore all the things that they couldn't while under the strict supervision of the parental unit. Once the freedom of choice is tasted, there is often overindulgence that can lead to danger. What if instead of rules about what kids eat, we offer those choices NOW?
Hope has full food freedom. She chooses what she wants to eat, when she wants to eat it. If we have cake and she wants that for breakfast, no problem. If we made a chicken dinner and she instead wants a carrot and raw milk, it's hers. If it's 4am and she's needing a PB & J? She chooses. Some might find it surprising that she has learned about nutrition, not only from eating healthy food, but also from indulging in the kind of food that many would consider junk. By feeling what the food she eats does to her, she learns fully which food fuels her and which drags her body down. Hope doesn't eat carrots because she has to, she eats them because she knows they make her body strong and capable. She doesn't stay away from dyes because of a rule; she's learned along side us how they affect the body negatively. Hope, at 10, is learning the foundation of what will make her body do it's very best, and what will hinder it. Without shame, she freely explores the world of food and makes her own choices. Just like we can trust kids to learn to talk and walk organically, so can we trust them to learn about healthy food choices without restricting them from what is often referred to as junk food.
How We Do It Jaze and I, before Hope was born, started on a path of organic eating. Throughout the years we've been around many other families who did not eat the way we did, but we didn't force Hope to adhere to our choice. She'd eat the cake icing with dye in it. She'd eat the non-organic chips and indulge in non-organic candy bars. And she experienced exactly how that made her body operate. Sometimes she would actually be sick but mostly, she felt sluggish, mentally drained and overall just plain yucky. Because of this experience, Hope chooses food that will enrich her body and mind. We offer nutrient rich alternatives to her favourite non-organic treats and she is very satisfied with that. Yesterday we went to the beach and there was an ice cream truck parked. Instead of a chorus of "please can we have some", Hope took one look at the truck, saw the pictures on the side and said,"That's full of cancer." With the dyes, the corn syrup, and the preservatives in those treats, she was totally right. So we went home and got into our organic fudgesicles from Costco. (They also have popsicles for those interested!)
This Week
Hope is budding artist. She spends a lot of her days drawing. Every trip we go out on, she brings her "drawing stuff" for the drive. She'll draw while watching youtube, movies and alone in silence. I can't deny that I love knowing she has the freedom to dive into her passions without restriction. I recall my passion for drawing and wonder where I'd be if I was permitted to follow my drive unhindered. I attended an amazing seminar at Earth Valley Organics on plant medicine the day our besties left (they were staying with us, miss you guys!), so our week was busy but magical. I learned so much thanks to the wonderful experts at Mother's Earth's Natural Design. The family car was acting up so we took it to the best garage ever, Craft Auto! They always take care of us and are so affordable. Can't thank them enough! Afterwards we finally were able to hit up a park. We don't have playground equipment at our home so it's been a big void in our lives having the parks closed. So grateful they are open! We set up our tent in June and leave it up till October so we can easily camp out. It was very hot this week so we were grateful for a cool place to listen to Jaze read The Hobbit aloud as Hope and I fell asleep. The bugs are even starting to die down!
Video
🍒 💻 UNSCHOOL SCIENCE, ORGANIC Homestead Grocery Haul& More! Ep40 Freeschoolin'
Much Love, Wendy Books, Clothing & More About the Author Wendy Elizabeth Hart is an unschooling, homesteading Mom of 2 amazing kids and wife of more than 10 years to her bff, Jaze. Together with their daughter Hope, 10, they live a life of daily discovery in rural Ontario, Canada and share it with the world to connect with other families in the unschooling community.
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