The Swiss Adventure...: February 2010

Sunday, February 28, 2010

Wednesday, February 24, 2010

Fasnacht Celebrates 100 Years in Basel

It is that time of year again when the streets are filled with a colorful array of confetti and the people are all jovial.

Fasnacht begins at 4:00 a.m. on Monday morning and carries on until Wednesday evening.

Prior to this year, I have to admit (sorry!) I wasn't the biggest Fasnacht fan - all of the drums, piccolos and people.

But this year, watching the spirit of the days and the joy of the children through Noah's eyes, I thoroughly enjoyed myself and Noah had a blast!

The pictures in this posting are a bit random, but then again , so is Fasnacht.

Enjoy the spirit!

Sunday, February 21, 2010

Thursday, February 18, 2010

Experiment #2 - Progress Report

Progress report - AKA - the grub we miss!

Robert yearns for bread and chocolate.

Melinda yearns for smooth, creamy drinks on cold winter days - a nice cup of chai or coffee would be delicious.

She also longs for toast - fresh bread, popped into the toaster with a dab of butter - yum!

Easiest meal of the day:

Breakfast.

Melinda has been enjoying brown rice, coconut, nuts, fresh fruit, cinnamon and a touch of maple syrup.

Robert enjoys the hard boiled egg

and fresh fruit.

Hardest meal of the day:

Lunch.

Melinda would love a peanut butter and jelly sandwich or a fresh salad (but due to my on the floor, deathly ill, wretch until you think life is over, salad enduced food poisioning, I don't do salads too often in Switzerland =) so that makes lunch fruit salad, topped with plain yogurt and nuts for me.

Robert has it a bit easier.

He walks down to the local butcher and gets a fresh salad with the one slice of egg on top.

Sweet tooth tricks:

Dates with a bit of peanut butter and shredded coconut.

Delicious!

Or...

Bengal Spice tea with oat milk and honey.

What will we miss over the weekend -

PIZZA Fridays!

Each Friday, we make our own veggie pizza and chill with a glass of wine and relax over a good movie.

This Friday, it might be a bowl of brown rice with fresh veggies and our trusty glass of H2o!

Anyway, I am rather enjoying this journey.

I like going to the grocery store and skipping most of the isles, plus it feels good to avoid "food like substances!"

When you eat whole foods, you mostly fill your basket with fruits, veggies, eggs, grains, etc. it makes shopping a heck of a lot easier.

Here's to healthy eating...because what we eat matters!

Monday, February 15, 2010

Whole Foods Week

Experiment #2 –

Whole Foods Week & We Don't Mean the Grocery Store

This week we have decided to eat roughly 90% whole foods and no sugar. That means, foods in their natural state. No processed food like substances will cross these lips. We will, however, be using some oils, seasonings and some natural sweeteners (honey, molasses and/or maple syrup) to enhance the flavor of our meals.

The only exception and I make this for my sanity and for the sake of my sweet husband, is the consumption of coffee. I will, however, be consuming green tea in lieu of the all mighty bean. We are taking on this challenge as a way to promote our health this winter, but also to get back to the “basics” of healthy eating. This isn’t to say that our diet is slathered with unhealthy options, but it is to say, that we can always strive for improved ways of eating.

To draw some inspiration, we also turned to Michael Pollan, who says,
“Eat food. Eat what you want as long as it is “real” food. Fruits, veggies, whole grains, occasional meat – less food from a jar, container or package and more food that comes from the earth. And as for that sweet tooth – enjoy your sweets, as long as you make them!”

Foods we cannot consume:
Cheese
Bread
Pasta
Wine/Alcohol
Sugar – only in Robert’s coffee
Chocolate
Milk – only in Robert’s coffee
Fruit Yogurts
Juice
Cereal/Granola
Pizza

Wish us luck!