Recipe for A Balanced Mom - An Inspirational Cookbook

Introduction: A Note from the Authors

“As between the soul and the body there is a bond, so are the body and the environment linked.”  Kahil Gibran.

After working in the field of Social Work for ten years, I took a maternity leave to give birth to my first child.  I loved my job, and along with feeling competent and accomplished, I enjoyed the interaction with my co-workers.  I gave notice for my leave and had all intentions of returning after six months.  However, after my son Jared was born, my husband and I decided that if we could financially manage things, I would not return to work and instead raise Jared.  I realized at this point our lives would change drastically, due to the fact our income would be reduced. However, it was important for me to be home with my child and be his primary caretaker.   This was a huge transition for me.  I missed working, but tried to ease into this new role of mother.  In the beginning, I didn’t feel I was very good at it and met many women struggling with the same feeling of incompetence.  I quickly found out there wasn’t any blueprint or book of rules, which was going to teach me how to be a good mother or even how to be comfortable with being a mother.  Many of the new mothers I met had a difficult time adjusting from workingwoman to full-time mom and would share feelings of “losing themselves” or not “having a sense of identity without their jobs”.   One day you are in control of your life with purpose, focus and confidence.  Suddenly, you are a mother.  You are in uncharted territory, trying desperately to maintain that person you were, while being the “ideal mother”.   Although I also experienced some of these feelings I was able to turn to my training in yoga and meditation.  What helped me the most was my ability to center myself through meditation and my personal sense of spirituality.  I was also conscious of my need to maintain balance even when I was unsure of my new role and responsibilities.  In my early twenties, I studied yoga and taught classes, on a part time basis. Because of this practice, I realized that I needed to look at this new role I had chosen in the same way I approached my job and life in the past.  I needed to continue to incorporate all of the aspects of who I was as a woman along with my new role of mom.  These aspects primarily included that of Body, Mind and Spirit.   I started to write my thoughts down and journal both my feelings and insights.  After a while, it occurred to me these insights could possibly benefit other women with similar feelings. The idea of a book was born.

It was at this point I decided to ask my friend Lisa to collaborate with me on this idea.  Not only did I want other views and ideas, but also I knew that by working with someone, it would be easier to keep my focus. I thought of Lisa who is task oriented (Something that is not usually one of my strongest points). Lisa, then a mother of two young children, had worked as a teacher and speech therapist before deciding to quit her job and raise her kids. I knew this was a good idea when our ideas quickly developed into a book concept.  This idea included eight aspects that we felt were important for women to maintain a sense of balance in their lives.  These aspects were Spirituality, Meditation, Healthy Eating, Nurturing, Fitness, Meditation, Intimacy, Fun and The Mind.  While writing the chapter on Healthy Eating we were reminded nutrition was not only important to the body but also to the mind.  We also were aware that we tend to overlook our need for good nutrition due to the fact that our focus is so often on our children’s needs before our own.   We decided if we included healthy recipes in each chapter the importance of proper nutrition could be stressed all throughout the book.

This was when we decided to include Elaine, my friend of twenty years, and the best cook of healthy cuisine I knew. She was working at a local college while raising her two children.  Elaine also has an extensive history in the practice of yoga and meditation and teaches yoga part-time.  Ironically, at the time we approached Elaine about this idea, she was in the process of compiling her recipes on computer disk.  She was more than happy to participate and we began to merge the original book idea with that of a cookbook and created what we like to call an inspirational cookbook.  Each section would contain nutritionally balanced recipes, dietary advice and inspirational meditations to promote positive thinking.  Also, included at the end of the book are blank journaling pages so you (the reader) may begin to record your own thoughts and insights. Following each chapter are also blank pages so you can create your own healthy recipes.

We have learned that to be balanced, it is important to integrate body, mind and spirit.  Each section represents a quality of who we are and what we need to maintain in our lives to be complete individuals.

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Softcover

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£10.75

Hardcover

£21.99

£17.00

Softcover

£10.75