January- Hunger Awareness

Every year in January, I like to set a few goals for the month, mainly centered around healthier eating/Daniel Fast related for my own personal self. This year was no exception, but I really wanted it to be a family project. Leon was reading a book called Ten Days Without  by Daniel Ryan Day and he was really challenged by the concept of doing without to raise awareness and make us more grateful people. So all this to say- we came up with Hunger Awareness for the month of January. It was pretty simple and nothing too drastic, but it has been a very good experience for all of us, and one the children won't soon forget.

The end of December I stocked up on some basic grocery items. Aside from milk and eggs, we would not be buying any groceries the month of January. So far I only bought bananas and lettuce.....so I mostly stuck to that plan.

We went 3 days without any sugar. That was really, really good for us and something we could do more often.

We also went 3 days without meat. That was a bit more challenging, but we still ate very well. The chicken pot pie got made without chicken, we enjoyed the rice and beans and eggs and grilled cheese, but the black bean burgers were kind of a stretch. They actually looked and tasted good, but the texture was kind of like mashed potatoes, and it just did funny things to your brain.

We are nearing the end of the month, and yes, I do need to go grocery shopping again. The pantry and fridge are emptier than usual, but we ate very well this month in spite of it. I thought outside of the box and we did without. We saved a lot of money on groceries and all you need to say is 'black bean burgers' and most grumbling ends.:)

I asked the children for their opinions on the month. This is what they came up with:

Brooklyn- "It's hard to go without sugar." (Can you tell she's got a major sweet tooth?)
Annika- "It showed us how some children feel when they don't have some kinds of foods."
Jamison- "It made us aware of how much {we} have. It was a good experience."
Logan- "It made me more grateful. It was all good except for the black bean burgers, and going without sweet tea."

We are still talking of an electronics fast sometime. I really wanted everyone to go to bed hungry at least once this month but that never happened.  The comment was made by one of the children, " But why do that to ourselves if we actually have enough to eat?" Hmm. Still pondering that one.