Sometimes I forget how crunchy we are. I mean, I write about holistic health almost every day, so on some level I understand that we lean pretty green and natural…but I also surround myself with a lot of writers who also tackle similar holistic topics. So in my online work life, I’m pretty average on the granola scale. I have friends putting out amazing fermentation books and DIY Organic Cleaning eBooks…..I mean….I don’t even have any backyard chickens.
In my defense we did plant a container garden over Christmas break. That scores me a few green points, right?
Lately my son has been saying some pretty funny things. To us his statements and questions are amusing but not unusual. However, he’s been overheard by more than one innocent bystander these last few months and it’s been clear from the giggles and eyebrow raises that his questions are a bit unusual. I imagine if you are reading this post, you probably have a crunchy kid of your own. Does your child bust out with organic commentary at the drop of the hat? If so, you may relate to these recent quotes from my 6 year old son. Here are 10 things kids of crunchy moms say! What can you add to this list?
10 Things Kids of Crunchy Moms Say
1: “Does this have GMOs in it?”
I get this question at least once a day. Even my 3 year old asks about GMOs. He doesn’t completely understand the concept yet (I bet he’s not alone on that!) but he knows he does NOT want to eat them, UNLESS he’s really, really mad at me in which case he usually asks” “I HOPE this has GMOs in it because I LOVE GMOs–I am going to eat them EVERY DAY.” Okay then, son, knock your GMO-self out.
2: “Are these eggs pasture-raised?”
I credit this question to good old fashioned marketing. My son pays attention when I’m debating about the 40 egg varieties at the store. He keeps pushing for a pet chicken but Dad will not go for it.
3: “At school I only PRETEND to use the hand sanitizer because I don’t want all those chemicals.”
It’s always comforting as a mother to find out that your son has been pretending to use the hand sanitizer at school for fear of all the “chemicals.” Especially when we are smack dab in the middle of cold and flu season. But he has a point. I’d much prefer he wash his hands with soap and water then use commercial hand sanitizers. But his school doesn’t allow the kids time to wash their hands before snack, opting to use hand sanitizer instead. So we sent him to school with our homemade version using a blend of witch hazel and essential oils. The lovely smell helped him convert his fellow students to homemade hand sanitizer users one at a time. If fact today he said we will need to make some more because the entire class prefers his sanitizer….his teacher included. WINNING!
4: “Mom, can you put oil on my feet?”
My kids know when the going gets rough in the health department, I break out the essential oils for our feet. It works for us even if we do get oil stains on the sheets in spite of our sock wearing. It’s a problem for our bed sheets, but we are healthy so we don’t care.
5:“I ate so much for dinner, can I have a digestive enzyme?”
If I have to hear about digestive enzymes
6: “Are these strawberries organic? I don’t eat strawberries that aren’t organic.”
Yeah, I don’t eat conventional strawberries either. Those things are straight up scary.
7: “Today I want the cashew butter in my oatmeal. NOT the almond butter. I said cashew butter, please”
Another morning, another fight over what nut butter will grace their bowls of oatmeal. It’s a tough decision, I understand. Should you go for almond butter
8: “They use a lot of cleaning products with chemicals in it at school. We really need to teach them to make their own.”
One of the things I love about crunchy kids is that they know you can make homemade versions of a lot of things, including cleaning products. Once your home is free of common chemicals found in personal care products and cleaning products, kids get pretty sensitive to the smell of commercial products. Even my 3 year old is prone to walking into a newly cleaned store or classroom, scrunching up her nose and yelling asking, “What DAT SMELL, Mama?”
9: “Does that almond milk have carrageenan in it?”
I literally choked on my coffee the other morning when my son made this statement. I had no idea he knew the word. My husband made the mistake of buying a brand of almond milk with carrageenan in it one day and my kids have apparently never forgotten. A mistake he will likely never make again!
10: “EVERYTHING on this farm is ORGANIC, Mom. They don’t spray ANY pesticides!”
We live in California where a lot of our food is grown, both conventionally and organically. When we drive past fields being sprayed by men in large white suits with face masks on, even children understand those chemicals probably aren’t healthy to eat. I’m both happy and sad my kids are aware of the 2 very different farming methods that exist in this country. I hope when my children have children we no longer spray our food with poison. But in the meantime, my son will be sure to check with every farm we visit about their farming practices. 🙂
Now I would love to hear from you? What do YOU hear from your crunchy kid? Tell me in the comments below!!!
One of my favorites: “Mom, they served apples with lunch, but I didn’t eat them because they weren’t organic. I could smell the chemicals. Gross!!”
Things my 3yo has said……
“My belly hurts, can you put some oils on it?”
“I don’t want that candy. If I eat it, it will make me sick!”
“Is this Jersey milk?”
“Is that kombucha?”
He cracks me up all the time, and I love it! 🙂
LOVE IT!
‘Mom what’s in that aisle it smells?’
When going past the disposable diaper aisle at target… I have had to explain why some people throw their diapers away like 3x now.
Lengthy explanation about why we need a sheep…
‘Meat? Oh I don’t eat that, no get away with it… Help, its not for kids like me!!’
Conversation overheard at homeschool co-op last week or so…
Child A ‘can I eat this? Is it vegetarian?’
Adult ‘yes, its vegetarian, you can eat this!’
Child B ‘can I eat it too then.. I’m vegan!! Those are kinda the same.’
Adult ‘no, they have butter & eggs’
Child B ‘oh, that’s not vegan at all, what exactly is it Vegetarians eat?’
Child C ‘I’m vegetarian too!’
Child C’s mom ‘vegans don’t eat any animal products, vegetarians just don’t eat the animals’
Child B ‘good, no ones eating the animals’
All children are making horrified faces as my child joins in with
‘I don’t eat animals either!!’
They all run off and play together… Some of the kiddos and parents were giggling because we don’t judge and no only half of us don’t eat the animals 😉 but nice to have others who don’t just eat whatever.
‘Mom the chicken wants to peck my toes but I told her no, now I’m going inside to get boots…’
‘We harvested too much today… I’m
Too tired to eat any of that… Let’s make chocolate chip zucchini bread. I could eat that..’
People think we are strange and we just smile and keep talking.
These all made me smile!
This might not be what our three year old says, but he loves to eat avocadoes like they’re candy. He’s all around a healthy active boy.
Common comments/requests from my 4 year old:
“Mommy, I want kombucha too! Can I get the rainbow one?” {This one has been since she was 2 1/2 and she called it ‘bucha. You know it’s a rare request when the chick with her hair in dreadlocks working at Whole Foods looks up in surprise.}
“This is my good milk right? The other one tastes yucky.” {On Raw vs. Organic whole milk}
“Do these have gluten? Gluten makes my tummy wonky.”
“Mommy! I need my sleepy oils in my bath AND on my tootsies.”
“Daddy, when we get our chickens I’m gonna feed them and go get the eggs. They won’t bite me right?”
*Cough* *Sniffle* “I need some honey-berry medicine.” {Homemade elderberry syrup}
“Daddy, that’s the gross hamburger. We only eat the grass-fed. Right, Mama?”
The list goes on and on. She’s a trip and it makes me happy that she’s listening to me! …At least sometimes.