Days 2 and 3

Its not officially a juice feast yet! We are still easing into things around here. Especially today when I was obliged to keep a commitment to my mom's group and go blueberry picking with the babes. If you've ever had blueberries fresh off the bushes, you understand why it was important that I wait just one more day...

Day Two (Monday)

Early morning: ~ 12oz. Orange Juice
(Shared with Sebastian)

Late morning: 8 oz. almond milk banana smoothie (light on the banana)
(shared with Sebastian)

Throughout the day: 3 8 oz. jars orange juice
(Sebastian: 1 banana, 1/2 avocado)

Late afternoon: enema

Late afternoon / Early evening: 1 blended soup of avocado, carrot, tomato, bell pepper, cucumber (shared with Sebastian)

Sebastian nursed approximately every three hours

Day Three (Tuesday)

Early morning: 8 oz. orange juice (Sebastian had a sip)

Late morning: 1 quart green juice (Sebastian drank ~ 4 oz.)

Later morning
Blueberries all around!!

Late afternoon: Blended soup of avocado, cucumber, carrot, tomato, bell pepper
(I enjoyed this during Sebastian's nap)

Early evening: more blueberries - oops, bad combining and I am noticing it, too.
(Sebastian - 1/2 banana, 1/2 avocado)

Sebastian nursed about every three hours.

Please make sure to read my disclaimer if you are considering a cleanse or juice feast while nursing.

Juicy!

Here we are the last time there was a major juice activity in the house. This photo was taken on Thanksgiving. Enrique was in the second month of his yearly juice cleanse. I did about three days around this time and was eating a high-raw diet. Before Sebastian started crawling, I was doing yoga with him at least 2 times per week, walking with him in the stroller almost daily and generally in much better health. Sometime since the beginning of the year things got hectic and I have gone way off track with my health. I think I've probably gained a good 5-7 lbs. in the last three months. At this point I think I am about 25 lbs. overweight and my energy is very erratic.

In honor of summer, Enrique and I have embarked on another juice adventure! I will be juicing and continuing to nurse Sebastian. Contrary to many rumors about the dangers of juicing while nursing, this is actually a safe practice. The breasts are not a detox channel, and the body has safeguards in place for our babies during times of hardship. As I experience my female body in all its possibilities, nature continues to amaze me.

I began yesterday with a few gentle meals and juices.

Early Morning - 8 oz. orange juice

Late Morning - 1 quart kale, apple, celery, cucumber
(shared with Sebastian)
Dry Brush, shower

Afternoon - 8 oz. smoothie
almond milk with coconut water, banana, raspberry
(Sebastian - almond milk with filtered water, banana)

Late afternoon - 1 blended salad
avocado, spinach, carrot, celery, cucumber, dulse, lemon, sea salt, olive oil

Early evening - steamed carrots
(Sebastian - one avocado)

Energy - Great! It was 108 in Ojai today. Not much physical activity besides a few crunches with the pilates ball.

Nursed approximately every three hours.

Please see my disclaimer for more info on my history and juicing while nursing.

Juicing Disclaimer

I'm adding a disclaimer here because I know there are many people out there who are concerned about toxins in the breastmilk when juicing while nursing. There is strong evidence of toxins passing into the breastmilk and being ingested by a nursing baby. Of particular concern are PCBs, dioxins and other highly toxic chemicals that are more of a reflection of your environment than levels of personal toxicity. Please read this article for more information on toxins in breastmilk and what we can all do to lower the amount of these toxins in our bodies, a benefit to our babies and ourselves.

If you are new to a raw diet or juice cleansing and you are still nursing your baby, I recommend starting out slowly with a high raw diet and moving into a raw food diet. You will notice an incredible amount of benefit from this practice. If you want to speed things up a bit after a few months being 100% raw, replace one or two meals with juice. For those who are completely new to raw foods, Alissa Cohen offers excellent advice for women (and men, too!) on the transition to raw foods and transitional foods that are both delicious and filling -- important while nursing!

For children over the age of one year: Keep feeding your baby! Don't start replacing baby's meals with juice. Sebastian has always had a morning meal of juice. He is a raw baby.

Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions about my philosophy regarding raw transition, juicing, or cleansing while nursing. I do not claim to be an expert in the raw diet or nutrition and I do not offer medical advice. I can only tell you what I have learned from talking to experts and through my own experience.

My history:
I went from SAD to 100% raw overnight in April of 1999. I stayed 100% raw for two years. In 2002 I began eating cooked vegan food again. I have been 100% vegan and high raw since that time. I became pregnant in September of 2006. I had a vegan pregnancy, with my last month of pregnancy being 100% raw. The first three months of my son's life I was 100% raw. After that time I began adding some cooked vegan foods to my diet. My son is now one year old and has eaten a mostly raw diet since birth. I gave him some rice during the winter and immediately he began getting colds. He has had no cooked food since that time and is now in perfect health! He has six teeth, he began walking at 12 months and is in approximately the 50% for his weight and height. He nurses about every three hours round the clock.

Happy Birthday to You!

Sebastian's raw vegan birthday cake

This was the easiest cake ever! I blended bananas with blueberries poured it into a spring form pan and frozen. The stars are blended bananas that I poured into a shallow baking tray and put in the freezer then cut out with a cookie cutter. My family called it "smoothie cake."