More ELaD Kindness to Share

We are so grateful!

The past week has been quite the whirlwind! We are so humbled that so many of you have enjoyed our book and have found it to be useful in your homes. Without the support of you guys, we’d never have made it this far!

Just to remind you, if you find our book helpful, a review on Barnes and Noble and Amazon would be extremely helpful! The more people that see great positive reviews of our book, the more people will find it, use it, and change the lives of their family members! We truly believe in the transformative power of ancestral health, paleo, primal, whatever you want to call it and we really want to share our experience with as many people as we can.

The Last Giveaway

On Monday we announced our last ELaD giveaway. In our Pay It Forward Giveaway, all you need to do is need the book, be unable to acquire it, and be willing to pass the favor along. We’ve already got at least 13 copies lined up to giveaway to needful families, so there’s a really good chance you could win! And if you’re someone who wants to sponsor a copy, let us know!

This Week’s Reviews!

We’ve got so many this week to share! To save space, we’ll be keeping each brief, but please check out these awesome people! At last count, we have fourteen reviews to share with you from just this week!

The Clothes Make the Girl

You may remember a while back when we reviewed Well Fed (spoiler alert: loved it!). Well Melissa returns the favor by reviewing our book! She tried a family favorite recipe: Halupki Casserole.

I was pretty excited when I saw the Paleo Parents recipe for Halupki Casserole, and it did not disappoint. It delivers all of the flavor of the original, without the fussiness of prepping individual cabbage rolls. Plus, I’m a sucker for any recipe that replaces rice with riced cauliflower. The texture was amazing! Exactly like a halupki. All hail that tricky cauliflower!

Read through the review to find out five cool things about our book and to enter to win a copy!

Urban Poser

You may remember Urban Poser from our New Year’s triple header post. Late Thursday last, she posted the most fantastic thing we may have ever seen: a video of her boys accompanied her review in which they made Anytime Cookies! You must check that out because it’s adorable.

Making cookies from “Eat Like A Dinosaur” by Paleo Parents from Jenni Hulet on Vimeo.

Eat the Cookie

If you haven’t checked out Eat the Cookie, we certainly suggest you do. As we’ve said before, spreading the word about new voices is something we really enjoy. We’ve enjoyed Liz’s blog for some time now (carrot cake pancakes, anyone?) and were happy to let her review us. She made our favorite non-egg breakfast!

this recipe was super easy to execute, and super easy to wolf down. it was hard to resist eating it by the hot handful as it came out of the oven, but somehow i managed to wait until the morning after i baked it. i ate it the old-fashioned way, the way that i miss most: with cold, drippy milk, and sliced up bananas.

We invented that recipe with the sole intention of replicating that morning bowl of cereal and we’re so glad people are enjoying it!

Mrs. Paleo

Stacy met THE Mrs. Paleo at PaleoFX in Austin and says that she is fabulous. This is the first of several completely unsolicited reviews. That is, Mrs. Paleo got our book, loved it and felt inspired to review it despite not being bribed with a free copy! In her review, she too made the Halupki Casserole.

The recipes were easy to read, easy to follow, and best of all – tasted GREAT. I tried the Halupki Casserole – mainly because it came with a cool family story and because i had never heard of it. I wanted to try something that I had never had before so that I could give it a fair shake. Had i made something that I already had a recipe for or had already tweaked into my own creation, i would have been biased (yes, hard to believe i know). Anyway, loved this recipe and so did the fam. Anything with only FIVE steps rocks in my book!

And simple, fun food was one of our goals while writing so we’re glad that came through!

Life as a Plate

Life as a Plate (and her adorable daughter Charlotte) seemed very excited to get their copy. They, too, know how hard it is for kids, due to dietary differences to feel included in a world of pizza and crackers. She really captured our philosophy in her review.

I look at these kids and try not to feel sorry for the birthday pizza they won’t have and instead focus on the healthy food they CAN have and teach them to be proud of their differences. This book really helps Paleo kids or children with other dietary restrictions feel included in a world that often shuts their eyes to health and wellness as coming from a place of how we eat.

Positivity is the key to diet change in kids. Cole didn’t start out yelling at the cereal commercials on TV (“You call that HEALTHY?! That’s not healthy!”), but got there because us, his parents, never shut down his requests for non-paleo foods, but instead got him excited about new foods!

(An aside. When I was a young teen, I was amused to discover the fact that, off stage, pro wrestlers refer to each other by their stage names. So Hulk Hogan is Hulk to everyone, even his friends, instead of Terry Bollea. Triple H is Hunter, instead of Paul Levesque, even to his own wife. Dwayne Johnson is Rocky and Steve Williams is Austin. This was really fascinating to me, the idea that someone could so embody a persona that it becomes who they are. Bloggers, seemingly, are the same way: I just referred to several grown women by the title of their blog.)

Gluten Free Goodness/Cheryl Harris

We had heard of Cheryl Harris well before we realized that she practiced practically next door in Alexandria! Then Stacy got to meet her at a Holistic Mom’s Network meeting! She is a practicing nutritionist specializing in gluten-free eating! We really like that she took the idea of cooking as a learning experience from our book. In her review she says:

But one of the things I see is so much of our culture regarding eating as another chore to rush through on your way to xyz, rather than an opportunity to nourish, educate, and probably set habits for the next generation, too.  Even setting one meal a week to play with your children in the kitchen can be such a gift…and the kitchen is an idea place to play and learn.

I can’t say that (even in our house) cooking is never a chore, but we truly aspire to educate the boys every chance we get!

Paleo Geeks

Another unsolicited review! Paleo Geeks is a brand new blog by a pair of really talented storytellers. We think they’re definitely worth checking out. In this review, they talk about our recipe layout.

The best part, though, for me is the recipes. There are drool-worthy pictures of every recipe, and clear allergen guides, both with each recipe and as a quick-reference guide in the back. They organize the recipes a little differently, using categories like “Main Dishes” and “Side Dishes” instead of separating by ingredient type or meal type (breakfast, lunch, dinner), and they encourage you to think outside the box. Omelets for dinner? Sure! Hamburgers for breakfast? Go for it! I hope to find a bunch of new “family favorites” among these pages, and that I can learn to let the kids in on some of the action in the kitchen.

I know that if you ask Finian he’ll tell you that “hanglers” are an anytime food!

Primal Belly

Another discovery! They keep coming out of the woodwork! Primal Belly is another fantastic blog you ought to check out. When we found it, I took one look at the chalkboard pig logo and decided it was a keeper! Apparently, our book was quite anticipated by this family!

The “Boring Chapter for Parents”  lit a fire under me that I have been needing.  I have been slowly trying to convert the kids (Garrett is 6 and Mina is 15), but it has not been very easy.  Stacy and Matt state quite simply, “transition quickly; be prepared to make concessions”.  Being a nurse, it makes me think of pulling a band-aid off. Just rip it off…it’s done, and the pain is over much quicker!

We are so proud to have inspired you and wish you much success in your journey!

So Simply Good

So Simply Good has decided to base her entire week around ELaD! Check out her meal plan featuring some serious dinosaur food! We’re looking forward to seeing her review of how it turns out!

Eat Like A Dinosaur by the Paleo Parents is a fabulous resource for anyone attempting to “paleo-ize” their kids and turn them toward a grain-free, whole foods based diet. I’ll try to get up an actual review later this week, but it gets 4 big thumbs up from our family.

Four thumbs? Score!

The Primal Parent

We are even getting the approval of people who don’t even enjoy cooking! Peggy Emch, the Primal Parent, decided to break her own rules to cook up some grain-free Nut Butter Cups with her daughter. We were happy to hear they were enjoyed, nonetheless!

The first recipe we decided to make is called Nut Butter Cups which came out of the ample dessert section of the book. Ours didn’t exactly turn out like theirs, but we weren’t exactly unhappy about it either. The cups turned out tasting just like banana bread! The flavor and texture were amazing.

What’s great to us, is the seemingly universal realization that all kids just want to “feel normal.” And that’s what our book is all about. Is 1/4 of it “sweets & treats”? Yes. But guess what, that’s what parents struggle with most! Surviving birthday parties, play date snacks and replicating the packed lunch of friends is what we only hoped ELaD could “fill”. Of course, the addition of organ meat and bone broth balances things out a bit!

Host Daily Yoga

Over at Host Daily Yoga, we’ve inspired people to make their own ketchup, a favorite of mine! Then she goes on to say:

This book is a must have for the mom of a dairy and gluten-free kid. It’s fun, simple, yummy and gets the kids involved! Yay! Ella knows she is special because she eats like a Dino (meat, veggies)…though she also thinks when we go to the store that we are actually shopping for dinosaur.

Well, we can’t eat actual dinosaurs, but if you cook up our Fool’s Gold Chicken Nuggets, you’ll be eating the next best thing!

Jan’s Sushi Bar

At Jan’s Sushi Bar you get a very thorough and evenhanded review that was quite well reasoned. We do understand every one of her concerns (but would also argue that there are affordable recipes and plenty of nut-free options), but we did like this part:

The next section is a story, complete with colorful illustrations, directed at the kids for whom the book is intended.  Told from the perspective of the oldest son, Cole, it explains in an entertaining and very understandable manner why the family eats the way they do, how the boys reacted to it, and how their new diet has made everyone feel better.  For an older child, the concept of eating like a dinosaur might be stretching it (dinosaurs don’t eat cookies, even if they might eat the ingredients used to make them), but young children will most likely embrace the idea – it was a stroke of brilliance on the part of Matt and Stacy.

Well, I don’t know how brilliant it was, but we did really like writing about it! Jan was so excited by our book that she is giving away two copies of it from her own dime! How awesome is that?!

Go Dairy Free

As you know, we are pure, dairy-free paleo. Yes, even butter and heavy cream. We’ve experimented and it just doesn’t work for our family, nor do we see the health benefits outweighing the negatives. So, keeping that in mind, we sent a copy to Go Dairy Free. We’re so happy to know that our efforts were appreciated!

For my readers, I think what is most exciting about this cookbook is that it is actually dairy-free. Even though the Paleo diet is dairy-free in theory, many variations, including Primal, allow grass-fed butter, cream, and even cheese. Unfortunately, many paleo and primal cookbooks take full advantage of this “allowance” tossing cream and cheese into every other recipe. But in their new book, Eat Like a Dinosaur, the Paleo Parents keep it milk-free (a few recipes have butter as an option, but a dairy-free alternative is also available), and very, very simple.

We truly believe in going dairy-free (The Paleo Mom gives another reason why with her Leaky Gut series too), so this was quite appreciated!

Cave Girl Eats

Finally, perhaps the godmother of Eat Like a Dinosaur, Liz Wolf of Cave Girl Eats. Way back in the day, Liz insisted that we submit the germ of an idea we had for Eat Like a Dinosaur to our publisher. And here we are, gifting back a copy to her, which she reviewed.

It’s the illustrated opening story, however – told by Cole – which truly moved me the most. It ends with the most innocent and sweet statement, “Now we enjoy going out and doing fun stuff instead of feeling sad inside our house.” This is a beautiful, beautiful thing.

So happy to have moved you, Liz! If you go to Cave Girl Eats, you can enter to win a free copy as well!

 

Book Signings

Saturday March 31, 2012 10:30 AM at Barnes & Noble in Fair Lakes, VA – The entire family AND our illustrator, Amanda Gates, will read Eat Like a Dinosaur, the illustrated children’s story, answer questions and sign books. Please come out, eat FREE SNACKS and see us if you’re in the area!

Saturday April 21, 2012 at Capital CrossFit 2 @ Capital MMA & Elite Fitness in Dulles, VA – At least Stacy (if not the whole family) will come to sign books and answer questions while the Capital Games goes down!

June 10th at 2PM at the King George Gluten Intolerance and Celiac Support Group The entire family will join Shirley from GFE at her support group – this is an annual celebration at a farm where children can run wild among nature and food at it’s most pure. More information coming soon!

We’ll also be attending the Low Carb Cruise in May and the Ancestral Health Symposium in Boston, MA in August.

You Can Listen To Us

We were featured on the Livin’ La Vida Low Carb Show and the Latest in Paleo Podcast last week! Download them at those sites or on iTunes. Hear what we sound like while we trip over our words!

Seminar Coming Soon!

We’ll also be launching the Eat Like a Dinosaur: Paleo Parenting for Healthy & Happy Kids seminar series in the DC Metro area starting in June! If you run a cross-fit kids program or want us to come talk to people you know, please send us an e-mail through the contact form. We’ll be keeping it local for a while with all the stuff we have going on, but eventually we’d love to help spread the word to whomever is interested in hearing it!

 

You Might Also Like

Shop with Stacy Toth for 20% on Clean Beauty use codeCLEANFORALL20 here