I called a friend . . . and nearly sobbed like a baby.  Cried like my sons do when scratched by Ruth. 

Change is hard.  Especially when it involves food. 

And when said certain food creates a beneficial environment in which a body can properly detox, it ain’t purty. 

But it is good for you.

I don’t want to scare you off from pursuing the GAPS Intro Protocol diet that really clenches the healing and sealing of the walls of your gut . . . but I will be honest with you.

It can get ugly.  It has gotten ugly in our house.

I have read that it doesn’t have to get ugly.  However, I don’t know how to do that, because, as usual, I started something before I had finished reading the entire set of instructions and book. 

It said to read the book and wait a month. 

As a result, we are stepping back a little bit.  We will remain a grain-free family (for a season).  However, the Engineer and I are reintroducing some fruit, raw veggies, eggs, and raw milk to our diet instead of serving ourselves bone broth with boiled meat and super cooked vegetables.

Let me back up a little bit, the Engineer and I have “detoxed” together without problems.  We typically take a very gentle approach using a product called Perfect Cleanse, put out by Garden of Life. 

This time we dove headfirst into the GAPS diet –- we all did, sans Ruthie.  (Although she has been acting officially off-the-wall.)

I don’t know that I would recommend detox-ing as a family to anyone.  I suppose it was nice to get all of the grumpiness  (anger, lethargy, and achiness) over together at the same time.  But it has been intense. 

It has been rocky.  I have thought to myself.  Health?  Who needs it.  I don’t want to be grumpy and uncomfortable . . . even if it is just for a few days.

However,  to do it over again, I would opt for the adults going through the GAPS Intro Protocol  diet in the fall or winter first, so that our heads are on straight when we guide our children through.

And I probably would gradually eliminate grains . . . instead of going cold turkey. 

On a positive note, Gabe now likes cheese eggs!

And I have lost 6 pounds.

So, I tell you the truth because sometimes it is nice to know someone who has walked in your shoes — ahead of you.  Someone who understands and won’t think that you are weird, or diagnose you, or laugh at you.

Like I said, I called my friend, Sarah.  Her family just experienced the same transformation and has lived to tell about it.  She walked through a detox before me with her entire family.  Sarah has been my taxi driver through the city of detox.  She knows the short cuts, road blocks, and alleys. 

She told me I was normal.  We were normal.  She told me to love on my kids even though I didn’t want to.  She especially encouraged me to bathe my children in prayer and speak Scripture over them . . . because they can’t identify why they feel yucky.

My children don’t realize that the reason they are all discombobulated is because of what I have been feeding them.   Or rather . . . haven’t been feeding them.

 (French Onion Soup from the Grain Free Menu Plan)

My point in all of this besides being honest, is to encourage you to take a taxi ride with someone who has been down the road you are about to take. 

For several years it felt like our family was in the middle of Kansas with no car in sight.  I didn’t know many who were eating like us, cloth diapering, visiting Farmer’s Markets, making laundry detergent . . . or whatever else I have listed on my Frugal Organic pull down menu.

It was a lonely place filled with trial and error.  Some U-turns. 

That is why I started this blog.  (Well, one of the reasons.)

I didn’t want you to travel alone.  I wanted to to be your backseat driver . . . point out some tips along your whole foods journey.

But I realize that to utilize my blog as a map for your journey . . . is actually very difficult.  I think you have to know what to look for.  

There is a search button . . . but sometimes it doesn’t even give me the blog post that I am looking for . . . and I wrote it!!!

So . . . if you want to begin your whole foods journey, let me introduce you to Kelly, the Kitchen Kop.   She is offering a class to teach you. . . to walk you through the steps towards Real Food. . . she will give you some tips so that you can learn how to change.  It’s titled the Real Food for Rookies Class.

The cost of the class is $145 . . . but will jump up to $190 starting May 7th. 

I know . . . it seems pricy.  However, I bet it will save you from buying countless recipe books, self-healing books, and well . . . time.  (This works out to $12 a class . . . so skip Starbucks once a month, assuming you go 3 times a week . . . not that I ever have.)

(Ahem. Cough.  Sputter.)

Or you can pick which class you want to take for $20.

I will be honest with you . . . I am not going to take the class at this time.  I am currently enrolled in the Reversing Food Allergies course and Get Fermented. 

And I’ve taken the journey you are about to engage in.  I don’t admit to know it all . . . but I am up to my eyeballs in learning right now. 

But if you are JUST STARTING OUT or are CURIOUS as to how to bring real food into your home . . . then I would imagine that Kelly has some priceless information to pass on to you.

Some perks:

• 12 weeks of online classes with videos, downloadable audios, and written materials.
• LIFETIME access! Read/listen/watch at your leisure.
• Expert interviews with Sally Fallon Morell (President of the Weston Price Foundation), Dr. Kaayla Daniel (author of The Whole Soy Story), Jane Hersey (Director of the Feingold Association), Tom Naughton (Fathead filmmaker), and Jimmy Moore (Livin LaVida Low-Carb blog!)
• BONUS: the price of this class will include so many generous members-only coupons and discounts that you’ll be able to recoup over half of the enrollment fee! Discounts on Green Pasture cod liver oil, U.S. Wellness Meats, Biokult probiotics, stainless steel pans, fermented food starters & supplies, and organic ghee.
• Free copy of the Kitchen Kop Real Food Ingredient Guide.
• Members-only discussion forum (Chat about Real Food all you want and no one will think you’re a weirdo!)

You’ll Learn How To:

• Save time and money while serving Real Food
• Read labels and avoid dangerous ingredients
• Make nourishing “fast food” meals to avoid last-minute trips to the drive-thru
• Find healthier alternatives for soda pop, refined sugars, heart-killer oils, sugar-bomb breakfast cereals, factory farmed meat and more
• Serve nutrient-dense foods that are necessary for good health
• Take control of your health and change your family’s future!
• click here to see a detailed class description

And so ends a long-winded post from Jodi. . . . that is what happens when you don’t have the internet for a week . . . so all your work goes into one post. 

In short, if you need a hand understanding how to navigate whole foods or real foods, allow Kelly to be your GPS.  Sign up, here!  (And please let me know if you do so that I can encourage you in your journey!)

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HJSxMMGGbKI]

And why else do I like Kelly . . . she has another cool blog, Christianity 101.

Use coupon code REALFOOD to receive $25 off! Valid until Monday night!

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