Living Life Organically

How It All Started

In celebration of my best friend, partner and husbands birthday today, I decided it was time to tell the story of how we began living life organically. Adrian and I both grew up with parents that loved to feed us. Though they meant well, this food was not always the best thing to fuel our bodies with, as they often involved deep fryers, fatty meats and sugary drinks. As you can imagine, this caught up with us over the years. In our teens, we both suffered from being over weight, and over time we individually decided to do something about it. Unfortunately, our versions of doing something about it meant reduced calories and excessive excercise, not necessarily fuelling ourselves with nutritious, healthy, organic ingredients.

This definitely caught up with me, as I often felt lethargic, weak, and surprisingly dehydrated – even after drinking substantial amounts of water. I decided it was time to look deeper into what could be causing this. I started by visiting my doctor, and then a nutritionist, both of whom could not pin point anything about my diet that could be causing these affects. So, I started doing a little research on my own. What I found was articles on GMOs, pesticides, aspartame and various other chemicals found in our foods and the ill effects they can have on our bodies and minds. Right then and there, I decided I was going to treat my body the way it deserves to be treated, which meant nourishing it with real food, quality ingredients and no more chemicals. The results were amazing. Very shortly after making these changes, I began to have more energy, feel more hydrated and have way more focus when it came to day to day tasks.

My husband has never been much of a chef, so for him, he’d eat whatever was easiest to pull together at the end of a long day at work. That often meant canned tuna and avocado wrapped up in some sort of tortilla or other wrap. He would eat the very same meals for days at a time out of convenience, looking at food as more of a need than something to enjoy. With his past still fresh in his mind, food reminded him of being overweight so he didn’t want to enjoy it too much in fear of having history repeat itself.

Making Great Strides Together

When Adrian and I began dating, many of our initial dates revolved around sharing meals together, mainly out at restaurants. As many of you already know, restaurants can often be our enemies as there is no ingredient list on a menu, and no guarantee regarding the quality of ingredients being used. After a few of months of regularly eating outside of what I had become accustomed to, we decided as a couple to begin cooking meals together. It became an activity we enjoyed doing together, Adrian often watching me and helping where he could, and me experimenting with new recipes for an exceptional audience.

A few months later, we decided to move in together. Menu planning for the week became part of our routine. Going to the supermarket and picking out our weeks groceries together, prepping what we could on a Sunday to make putting together our meals during the week as easy as possible and always enjoying a big Sunday dinner together – something special as a kick off to the beginning of our work week.

Over time, our rituals became something we both very much looked forward to. They became part of our routine, and something we did together as a couple. Years later, 3 moves, a marriage and a fur baby together, we still share these rituals every week. Only now we are lucky enough to be the proud owners of an organic grocery delivery company together, Organics Live. With this new venture, picking out our weekly produce to be delivered that week each Sunday morning while enjoying a hot cup of tea has slightly changed our previous trip to the grocery store routine. The best part of receiving our beautiful produce box each week is the fun of unpacking it together, the ability to try new fruits and veggies, and the ease of planning our meals based on what will be coming in our box that week. What’s more is we now have more free time on a Sunday to do other fun activities we enjoy with the ease of knowing our box of produce will be delivered as scheduled each week.

What We’ve Learned

If you put your mind to it, anything is possible. Food is one of the most important parts of our daily lives, as it’s what keeps us healthy, nourished and full of energy. By planning meals in advance, you can save time and money. What’s more is by ensuring the food you eat is nutritious, real food, you will save loads of money on doctor’s bills later. Though people often complain about the price of eating organic, the price you pay for putting chemicals and pesticides in your body now will be much higher later.

Your body is your most prized possession and you only ever get one. So take care of it, and help those that you love take care of theirs as well. We pride ourselves in helping to make organic food more accessible to the people of our community, and in positioning ourselves as a knowledgeable resource for anyone interested in making a change to their own lives. Lead by example, encourage healthy eating, and remember, food is meant to be shared.