Grow Your Family Healthy

First and Foremost, Forever and Always,
we thank the Lord Jesus Christ

           I am truly on my face, humbled with what I feel has been entrusted to me, to us,
our healthy line of scrumptious treats.

About 12 years ago, in my early 30’s, I was hit with quickly accelerating and very painful joint and muscle inflammation. I was in denial that it could be arthritis because I was too young. Just when the pain was getting severe, a friend introduced me to a product, OPC-3 (see “The Best Business Decision I Ever Made”) that eliminated the pain as well as the aching I was having in a couple of teeth. The OPC-3 bought me ten painless years. However, I was on a crash course as I continued my unhealthy eating habits. In my early 40’s, practically overnight, I was in acute pain. The pain was so bad it felt like the venom of a 100 snakes was coursing through me. I couldn’t move without extreme, intense pain. I couldn’t sit still without intense pain. I couldn’t lay down either. If I wasn’t so happy in life, I would have wanted to kick the bucket it was so excruciating. Doctor’s said I had Rheumatoid Arthritis but my research said it was something more. I had gone a lifetime of eating devitalized, chemically laden, processed stuff. For years my morning caffeine kick was a Pepsi.

I had a lifetime of unhealthy eating habits and addictions. It was time for me to grow up. I started researching what the Bible had to say about nutrition and became a Nutritional Consultant. I eliminated cow’s milk, junk food, a lot of animal flesh products and mainstream wheat out of my diet. I had to rebuild my body from a cellular level.

As I learned about nutrition, it broke my heart how, in my ignorance, I had been feeding my family. I started asking the Lord to go before me, to enlighten me as to how to take unhealthy foods (“Death a Bite at a Time”) and transform it, without compromising taste, into something healthful. I wanted to minimize flesh foods so I developed recipes that tasted meaty but either had little or no meat in them. I started buying sprouted grains to cook with and sprouted grain breads. I came up with ways to “recreate” unhealthy treats. These included cinnamon rolls, frosting (made with powdered erythritol), triple berry crisp and more. I found a crazy delicious erythritol sweetened chocolate that I would melt and make chocolate covered nuts, cherries and whatever else sounded good smothered in chocolate. Then I began to teach others. I love ice cream but never had it much. As poorly as I ate growing up, somehow I knew that commercial ice cream with all of the animal fat, sugar and chemicals was one of the worst things I could put in my body. So I only had it once in awhile. My kids range from 7 years old to 26 years old. Our four oldest are adults and have left the nest. That leaves Adam, our special “Chunk of Heaven”. It has been during his formative years that I have become so health conscious (poor thing). Actually, he loves how hard I love him with my nutrition demands as it makes him feel especially cared for. Though we are not lactose intolerant, I have come to believe that cows milk is not good for humans. You are talking to a former milkaholic here. So, I purchased some dairy alternative ice creams for Adam but was never very happy with the ingredients.

Soooo, I prayed. I truly believe that there is nothing that man has devised that God can't improve on. I asked the Lord to go before me and show me how I could create a healthy ice cream that Adam would like more than the stuff we got at the stores or ice cream shops. On my first attempt with my little Cuisinart machine, Adam said he liked it better than the ice cream we got at the two shops downtown (as a very occasional treat, of course). My VERY analytical and picky husband said, “you could sell this”. With three businesses, I really didn’t want another and very consuming one. I was just happy to have it for friends and family without the ingredients in it that I felt were controversial like carageenan, canola oil and other sweeteners.

My assistant Sheri also loved it. My UPS driver Kim really went out of her way for me one day, so I gave her some of our frozen confection as a thank you. The next day she said that she thought it would sell and that she would buy it. The judges kept coming. ALL of my son’s friends went crazy over their healthy ice cream. When I picked up a couple of Adam’s friends from their parents restaurant, the first thing they said was, “do we get ice cream today?” Boy was my heart singing. Adam was so proud of his mommy’s healthy ice cream. When I took it into his school, Adams classmates were getting in line for seconds and even thirds. One little boy ran across the school yard in front of me and said, "that's the best ice cream I've ever had". Can you imagine what it did to my heart when I brought it to one of Adams best friends birthday parties, Nathan, and the kids were trying to dig out the last drops in their bowls! I could give these children this treat, AND IT WAS GOOD FOR THEM! Oh, my goodness!!! As I shared with other neighbors and friends, they ALL said I needed to bring it to market. As busy as I am, it just seemed crazy to take on something so huge.

I had so many things going through my head like, “what about all of the diabetic kids and people that can’t have ice cream for their birthdays”. I was also feeling convicted about keeping such a good thing for just my family and friends.

Though everyone in my circles raved about it and my family LOVED it, I wasn’t sure if the world would be interested. I currently sell a few “GROW YOUR FAMILY HEALTHY” products in our two local co-op stores so thought I might see how they would feel about my frozen confection. The head buyer for the two First Alternative Co-ops here in Corvallis, Oregon, Sheila very kindly said she would gather up some of the other buyers and meet with Sherri and I. Their generous reaction once they tasted it really put my head in a spin. There was SO much to do to consider retailing this. Sheilah VERY GENEROUSLY said to use here name however we needed to get it on their shelves. Without her enthusiastic encouragement, I really doubt I would have gone forward.

Our journey has been one of many, many miracles…events and inspirations that are beyond the realm of chance or my own capabilities. It is beyond incredible how I have felt the Holy Spirit shoulder to shoulder with me many times as I have worked through our recipes. Like you, I feel as much a recipient of this treat as you do and am very humbled by it.

One night I was struggling as to how to express to others how I have felt in being given stewardship of this treat. I got up and wrote the following:

“On a recent visit to Heaven, The Lord set before me an incredible banquet. I had a problem however. I have a difficult time enjoying treats that I can not share with my loved ones. Gazing longingly at this beautiful banquet, I looked up at the Lord. He looked into my eyes, my heart, and said, "pick one". We sincerely hope you enjoy with us the taste and uncompromised nutrition of “Heaven Sent” Gourmet Non-Dairy Frozen Confection…and coming soon, we hope, Creamers, Gourmet Coffee Drinks, Puddings and more.

With Lots Love from Above & from me,