Learning to Live and Parent Cage Free

I'm a parent. I'm a mom. I'm a stay at home mom who has four boys. 

When I was handed my first tiny over 7 years ago, I was clueless. I had done some babysitting and coaching and teaching and camp counseling of children, but that was nothing compared to this 7 pound bundle. So I survived the first 6 months through many tears and melt downs and times I told my husband I was sure I was failing this baby in some way or really all the ways. Then we came up onto the 6 month mark where you are traditionally told to start feeding your baby solids.

I knew nothing about nutrition or what to feed my baby, at all. So I did what I always do when faced with a problem, I research. When I am faced with a problem, I just go into 'research mode'. I have 50 tabs on the subject at hand open on my laptop and I buy used books off various websites and put all the books I can on hold from my library and I pour myself into them. My husband has to listen to me talk about this subject and only this subject for the next few weeks. I'm a little obsessive. It's how I roll. And it hasn't stopped in the last 7 years. 

One of the things I stumbled upon was researching when to feed your baby eggs. And what are the healthiest type of eggs? Omega 3? Brown? What did Cage Free or Free Range or organic really mean? One of the things I found really interesting, was that if you compare the color of egg yolks, store bought compared to a free range chicken, the free range chicken yolk is significantly darker, more vibrant in color because it is more dense in nutrients. And if I took a store bought organic free range egg and compared it to a yolk of a chicken my friend raised and allowed to free range on their property the yolk was even darker and more vibrant. Diet and movement and stress levels play a huge part in the chickens health and therefore the quality of the egg they can produce. 

I've discovered in parenting my boys, parenting is very similar to picking eggs. First, theres the knowledge that you have options and their is a difference between options, and then is the process of aligning where your family is at and what works for your family and where you're at right now. Budget, time, family structure, even ethics come into play.... there are tons of variables that lead into the choices we make. I'm not in a place where I can raise my own chickens right now. I did it in the past, but our current living situation doesn't allow for it. And so I am in the place of making choices and decisions agin for what works best for our family as well as ethics ( I won't get into it here, because this isn't the point I'm trying to make, but I do suggest doing your own research on this subject and how chickens are treated in mass production facilities). In my research I looked at all the factors that play into what is what and what it all means and made my choices. It's not cut and dry, but we need to know that there are options, what they are, and decide what works best for our family. This, also, changes. I am very much looking forward to the day when I can have my own chickens again. 

In summary, I'm starting a parenting blog. The picture that just popped into your head.... yeah, it's not that kind. It's where I document my research and ponderings. I love asking why and how come? Things I have learned through the research that I do and consolidate it in one place. It's not a place where I will tell you how to parent. It's not a place where I will tell you how together I have it. I'm not even going to touch the subject of discipline. I'm digging into shoes and movement and diet and whatever the next subject  is that comes along. I'm looking at all the different 'cages' that we live in, whether we're aware of them or not, and to dig into different choices there are. It's not my hope to ever make anyone feel like they're not doing enough. Ever. You're amazing. If you have a kid and you care and are doing your best, however that looks, high five! I also believe that information is very powerful and so I research, dig in, ask questions, and process options. Even if I make no change, I love the empowerment of standing behind my decision and knowing my why. 

So here we go. Onward.