My last cup

As I type this tonight I am enjoying my last cup of coffee......for a month.  And I have to say, I am a little sad about it!  I might have been seen kissing my coffee machine and dancing around with my Ethiopian Harrar coffee.....but no one is confessing.  It will be a sad day tomorrow....and the headache will come.  I feel it now in fact.  But that is what this journey for us is all about.  Sometimes in order to make room for things in your life....some things need to go.  So for this month, food is the focus.  Food.  Excess?  Really?  Yes...really!  I have tried to fast in the past and I will say.....I had a very hard time even making it one day....so this month will be interesting.  And as we learned last month about my boundary pushing....it could get ugly!  

Did you know that not everyone in this world has a whole aisle full of cereal alone?  Produce of any kind at any time of year no matter where you live.  Who knows where it all comes from!  Food is even instant now!  Below is a picture I took while the kids were playing at the Johnson County Museum (a fave of ours).  It really struck me--right at the cusp of food month:

"American society is often called a "throw away" society.  The 1955 Life magazine article in which the phrase was coined actually celebrated the convenience of disposable goods---from Styrofoam cups to McDonald's Happy Meal toys.  The downside?  Since 1950, Americans have consumed more resources than every previous generation combined"


Well that sort of makes you think!  I don't want to be a throw away society!  I don't want to be wasteful due to convenience.  (note:  This will also come in handy when Waste month arrives!  Already starting our plans there.)  But I digress.....food......it is convenient.  It is wonderful.  It is at our fingertips.  It is all over our TV.  And let me tell you.  Dave and I have no issue not eating fast food.  Neither one of us really likes it.  But we are definitely guilty of being a "foody".  We love food.  Let me restate, we love great food!  We love a great meal.  A great recipe.  A great dinner with friends.  We love the whole process:  picking a recipe, shopping for the amazing ingredients, preparing the meal, lighting the candles, wine pairing, setting the table, eating it all....the whole thing!  And I would say that our excess comes in the amount of money we spend on our food.  I am a meal planner.  But if there is a game on, or if we want to have some friends over....we won't stick with what is in the pantry or fridge.....we will get a recipe and get the food we need.  I am also not a fan of leftovers.  I blame this on my Mom who had us eating Spagetti 3 nights in a row when I was growing up.  Her Spagetti sauce is arguably the best....just not night after night.  (Love you, Mom)  I have a feeling leftovers is something I will be eating this month.  

In Ethiopia 47% of children under 5 our malnourished
24% of households have access to safe drinking water
In 2010 1 in 7 households of America are considered "food insecure"
In 2011 50 million Americans live in "food insecure" households

If you go to www.feedingamerica.org  you will see that $45 can feed a family of 4 FOR A MONTH!  This is crazy to me!  It is crazy to me that people live this way.  But that is probably because I am too consumed with my convenient food SECURITY!   Well, it's about to get a little insecure up in here!

So this month we are going to eat 7 foods and 7 foods alone.  We are doing the same 7 that Jen chose in her book:
Chicken
Apples (Suz)  Banana (Dave)
Avocado
Whole Wheat Bread
Sweet Potato
Spinach
Eggs

All of it will be washed down with water or milk.  Dave is going to be travelling to New York a few times this month and has dinner out with clients so he is "exempt" these nights! The girls of course will not be joining us this month, although this is right up Maren's alley as far as food goes!  We are allowing a little bit of Olive Oil and Salt and Pepper in moderate amounts.  My friend Tori who is on this journey with us is going to be eating only foods that contain 7 ingredients.....pretty hard to find these days!

So here we are.  I have sipped my final sip of coffee and it is time to embark on this month!  I am nervous and excited!  Please be prepared for rants tomorrow of a headache :)