Motherhood Monday: The Gianni's have a baby!

I've enjoyed the work done by Kevin and Annmarie Gianni for several years now.  They are the folks at Renegade Health.

Awhile back they were big all-raw-food enthusiasts, but eventually found that their health was not being entirely well-served by an all-raw diet.  One of the things that I love about Kevin and Annmarie is that they are very honest and won't stick with dogma just for the sake of it.  If they are eating an all-raw diet and they are not healthy, they tell you, and then they tell you what they did to change or fix it.  They use a lot of blood tests to determine how their health is really doing, and they are open to continual learning.  While they do still enjoy a lot of raw foods in their diet, they have expanded as well to meet the needs of their particular bodies and health goals....including pregnancy!

About a week ago they announced the birth of their first child, and adorable little boy named Hudson.  Recently they shared this post about why Hudson is not a "raw baby" and sharing what worked for them and seemed the wisest path for them to take for nutrition during pregnancy.  I really enjoyed their honesty, and thought that others would benefit from learning about how they approached this important topic.  Read their post here.  Notice that you can get a FREE digital copy of their book High Raw on their site.  It's a very good book that I have appreciated very much.

I had the pleasure of interviewing Kevin back in 2009. It's still good information! You can listen to it here:
 

Our children are always with us, and we are always with them

So often scientific discovery echoes what we already know instinctively and in our hearts.  This article is awesome, and so is this video.

 

Moms: Keep on building

"I'm starting to kinda freak out, Mom."

It was my oldest.  He's nearly 20, and in a short while he'll be moving across the country for a great adventure.  Some of the realities of his plans were starting to seem a little scary to him this morning.

So we grabbed our morning smoothies and sat on the couches in the living room early today and talked about it.

It was going well until he said, "So how do you really feel about all of this, Mom?  You don't really ever say anything about how you really feel."

Yeah.  That.

Well, what can I say?


When I think of you going all the way to Texas, I know you can do it. 

I know you are going to be fine, that you can get a job and manage your life and eat decent food and make decent choices.

I'm happy that you are having a grand adventure because I know life will tend to funnel out those opportunities more and more as the years go by.

I know you will make some mistakes, too, but you'll be ok.

You've got everything you need to spread your wings and fly, which is exactly where you should be as a 20 year old young man.

But when I think of you going all the way to Texas, I know that

-I will miss being able to talk to you and work on projects together in person

-you might end up staying longer than expected, or putting down roots and living far away from us for a long time or forever.  This could be a bigger goodbye than just a few months.

-and I think about my little boy that I adored to a level that I didn't even know was possible before he was placed in my arms.  He is the one who brought out the warrior mother in me and changed me forever.  He is the one I never slept without touching for years when he was little.


I won't tell you that the years go by quickly.  If anything, having my oldest being a little tyke seems a million miles away from today.  It's like a distant, beautiful dream that makes me cry just because of the overwhelming amount of pure love and joy that is contained in all of it.

Childhood memories often make me cry.  I think it's because it seems like something has been lost.  There once was a beautiful, curly-haired, spunky little boy who disappeared because he grew up.  It's bittersweet.  Yes, he's still in there, and I love it when I see glimpses of that same fun little character that was my close buddy for so many years.  We have built upon an amazing storehouse of unconditional love, adoring companionship, laughter, memories, great conversations, and much more.  I don't regret a minute of the time I spent lavishing love on any of my kids, and as I am now moving into this stage where they are starting to leave the nest at greater distances and for longer periods of time, I can see even more clearly the value of all the investments I have made as a mother.

You won't regret it, moms.  Your generous, wholehearted love toward your children is what you are building on.  It is a strong foundation.  Build it up.  You can do this.