Growing up in Jamaica, almost everything my family ate came from the land. At a young age, I learned how to grow food, and how to know what foods were safe. If eggs were needed, my sisters and I would go in search of a nest. Yams, potatoes, and corn came from our garden. For a mid-afternoon snack, we would walk over to the nearest fruit tree and pick what we wanted. It was paradise!
My parents believed a life in North America would provide us with more comfort, higher education, and a safer and more prosperous life. So, in the early 90’s they left their dream behind to put their children first and we moved to Canada. Now that I have children of my own, I know how they felt and why they made the choices they did, so I am trying to do the same for my own children. I have to admit, I always feel like I'm a few steps behind on nutrition in comparison to the way I was raised. The way we were raised with the vast variety of fresh foods sometimes makes it hard to provide better nutrition for my children the way my parents provided for us.
While I grew up as a country mouse, I now live in the city, so there is no chance of raising my own chickens, but I can do the next best thing. I can buy products from other farmers that are free of hormones and antibiotics. What we put into our bodies is very important to me because I was taught from a young age the correlation between nutrition and health.
There is one day of the week I allow my daughter Katelyn to have full control of her lunch choice. Some days she makes a great choice, other days...not so much. But I do want her to feel like she has some control and also to see the difference in the way her body feels with good food vs. snack food. Providing good, nutritious food is a vital part of my job as a parent, and this mama is the one stocking the fridge. She chooses when and how much she wants to consume but when it comes to the product, right now, it's the parents who decides what will be purchased.
Not long ago, Katelyn and I attended the Maple Lodge Farms #FamilyFirst event with YMC. I was interested in attending because I already use Maple Lodge products and I was also curious to learn more about their Naturally from the Farm line.
While at the event, I learned how Maple Lodge Farms was founded, and how they produce and package their products. One thing that especially stood out to me was that they are still a family-run farm with three generations still working in the business.
Throughout the event, we also tried a lot of yummy food. From chicken franks and chicken bacon to delicious grilled chicken for lunch. The highlight was when we got to make sandwiches. We made two sandwiches, one to have for lunch and one to showcase as our "signature sandwich."
I try to engage my kids in meal preparation as much as possible. This usually happens at dinner time because in the morning, we are trying not to miss the bus, and no one ever seems to know where their second shoe is! I explain why we are eating the foods we do, as often as possible. When we go grocery shopping, the kids get to choose the fruits of the week and when we walk through the store, I explain why we will or will not get a product.
The first sandwich we made together is the one we had for lunch. Pumpernickel bread with three products from Maple Lodge Farms: chicken bacon, oven roasted chicken breast, and jalapeño chicken topped with avocado, ranch dressing, and arugula. YUM!
The second sandwich, our #FamilyFirst signature sandwich, was pure Katelyn. A Snoopy Grilled Cheese on top of a Chicken BLT. It's called "snoopy riding an alligator." She made it with Maple Lodge's chicken bacon, oven roasted chicken, black garlic & peppercorn cooked chicken breast, and lettuce.
The final touch was to pan fry the entire sandwich to make the bread extra crispy (if we were at home, we would just popped it onto the grill). To go along with the sandwich, we made a side salad of chicken bacon pieces, avocado, lettuce, carrots, gummy worms (who live in a strawberry house with snoopy and woodchuck), and ranch dressing. This is something she would make at home for herself. Can you tell she has a creative flair?
I am glad that there are healthy and natural products available to me that I can feel good about. I feel good about Maple Lodge Farm's Naturally From The Farm Products.
I feel good because when I look at the ingredient list I know exactly what's in the product and I don’t have to research ingredients I can’t pronounce.
I feel good because the products are gluten free so if friends with gluten sensitivities are over, I'll be comfortable sharing with them.
I feel good about companies that are ethical and provide equal opportunities to employees.
On the personal side, I feel really good knowing that Maple Lodge Farms follows the Ontarians with a Disability Act.
I already felt good feeding my family products from Maple Lodge farms and after learning more about this company, I feel even better.
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