Whole. New. Mom.
That's me up there in the funny green car with the men in my life (more than a few years ago).
My name is Adrienne and I am the voice behind Whole New Mom.
I'm:
- a writer.
- a researcher (sometimes I research way.too.much a lot.)
- whole food and healthy minded
- willing to admit when I am wrong.
- a real mom
- recovered from chronic fatigue
I Write About:
- Whole Food that is special diet and allergy-friendly:
My recipes are all sugar free and mostly adaptable to dairy free, egg free, gluten-free and low-carb diets. I write a lot of grain free and autoimmune recipes coming too.
I think it's important to be able to make recipes work for you--and for those you love. So I'm here to help with that.
- Healthy, Non-Toxic Living: stuff like personal care, home care, etc. that is free of all the chemical ickiness that really makes me (and the whole world) sick.
Got sensitivities? This is the place for you.
Don't have 'em? This is still the place for you. 'Cause there are 82,000 synthetic chemicals being used in the U.S. alone. Ick!
Check out my posts on No Streak Glass Cleaner, Natural Dishwasher Rinse Aid and The Battle of the DIY Eye Makeup Removers - and The Winner for a taste of these kinds of things.
- Health topics: toxins, GMOs, special diets, essential oils - kind of "you name it". If it's health-related, I probably have something to say about it--I just might not have written about it yet.
- Frugal, Simple, and Sustainable Living: That means doing things quickly and without a lot of money or waste. My Easiest Coconut Milk is a great example of this.
-Things I Love. Looking for the best water filter or a way to prevent flooding in your home or safer skincare that really works and is trustworthy? I've researched the heck out of a lot of things--so you don't have to!
I've always been interested in healthy and healthy living. I was Pre-Med in college, but changed that up since I thought it would be hard to both be a physician and have a family. I was right--especially when autism, chronic fatigue, and thyroid issues came to roost in my life.
I started Whole New Mom to share what I've learned so that you can live a healthier life--and so we can all learn together.
A Little Bit About Me:
- Our oldest was born at home. We completed a natural childbirth & pregnancy course under a leading home birth doctor who was a genius. His enthusiasm for natural living was contagious and part of what got me here.
- I have 19+ years of experience researching healthy living. I studied nutrition in college, but the experience that I gained studying and living through our health issues has been invaluable. I've managed our oldest's multiple life-threatening food allergies for 18 years, working closely for much of that time with experts in allergy and immunology.
- I'm a teacher. I tutored for over 7 years, taught in US schools, and taught overseas in Japan for one year from elementary to adult. I was a cooking class instructor and have led a few classes on gut health and personal care product safety on the local level. I also ran employee benefits meetings for a high-powered insurance firm for several years and taught in an international bank. See below for more on that.
- I am a strong advocate for natural parenting and breastfeeding. I was an active member of the La Leche League.
- I served on the board of the Weston A. Price Foundation, WAPF.
- I LOVE learning. I'm enrolled in the Aviva Romm Herbal Medicine for Women course as well as another online course where I am studying Detox, Anti-aging, Weight Loss and more.
- My husband and I completed a Natural Family Planning, course, which greatly influenced our understanding of hormones and the importance of protecting the delicate reproductive system in both men and women.
- I have Special Sons. One of my sons has life-threatening food allergies as well as Asperger's Syndrome. My other son has dyslexia and is a serious genius with fixit stuff.
- Special Diet Experience: I've worked with many special diets over the years. My son is deathly allergic to dairy, egg white, peanut, most tree nuts, and sesame, so I've become pretty good at cooking without those ingredients.
We eat gluten-free and mostly keto, but have dabbled in the GAPS diet, paleo diet, AIP, THM, used to eat vegan, and our style fits whole30 mostly.
- My husband is a full tenured English professor and we homeschool.
- I worked as a tentmaking missionary in Japan for 1 year and served in parachurch ministry throughout college. Interestingly enough, my husband taught in China for 2 years at the college level. We both sang with black gospel choirs in college. And LOVED it.
- I was an Echols Scholar at the University of Virginia, graduated near the top of my class, and am a Phi Beta Kappa member. I write this not to brag, but because some accuse me of not being interested in real research (check out the comments on that post) or even have gone so far to say that I am an idiot.
Not nice--if you disagree with me, try saying it without being rude, please.
Where I Learned About Allergy-friendly Cooking
Most of what I learned has been sort of self-taught in the kitchen of Food Allergy Hard Knocks.
When our oldest was born with multiple life-threatening food allergies, I needed to figure things out, and fast.
We didn't have much money (we qualified for WIC at the time) and I needed to make things without eggs, dairy, or peanuts, and we soon had to add almost all nuts and sesame to the list.
It's now been 19 years that I have been cooking this way.
My Frugal Living / Financial Background
Our family of 3 lived on an income of 12,500 for 1 year while my husband was finishing his PhD and we still made it through 2 master's and a doctorate without debt. Ask me sometime our frugal date nights :-).
I also have a background in the financial services industry:
- I worked in the financial industry for 10 years including on an equity options trading floor. Ask me sometime about my nickname "the hammer." My work included teaching Options Valuation Theory and trading at the Chicago Board of Trade at Swiss Bank Corporation, where I was in charge of their Main Trading Course.
My students included bond, stock option, and futures traders, as well as bank executives.
- For 9+ years, I was an independent life, health, and disability insurance agent. I was a Senior Benefits Coordinator for a top insurance firm where I led employee benefits meetings and made proposals to numerous corporate executives. Later on, I was in a management position in a small insurance firm.
I think, however, that my highest accolade came from a financial planner who said to my husband after seeing our budgeting practices, "Do you know what a treasure you have :)?"
Where I've Been Featured:
I used to be a featured writer on The Better Mom and The Balanced Platter.
I've been featured in numerous places, most notably on:
Forbes
Healthline
Country Living
Feedspot (Top Healthy Mom Blogs to Follow in 2018)
Marie Claire
Fox News
Huffington Post
Parade
Culinary Nutrition (here and here)
Wellness Mama
Perfect Supplements
Greatist (here and here)
Buzzfeed
Mamavation (Top 100 Healthy Mom Blogs to Follow)
Kitchen Stewardship
Home Business Mag
Noom
The Nourishing Gourmet
Whole New Mom’s Medical & Technical Advisory Team
In an effort to be accurate with the health related articles found here on Whole New Mom, I work with the following advisors.
Throughout my site, you will see posts that have had their content approved by the following.
Dr. Stephen O'Connor
Stephen L. O’Connor, MD is the former Director of Emergency Medical Services at two major medical institutions. His experience includes three years of aeromedical flight experience as a flight physician. Dr. O’Connor is certified in Advanced Trauma Life Support, Advanced Cardiac Life Support, Advanced Pediatric Life Support, and a NIHSS provider. He was the Director of Emergency Medical Services for a University Paramedical training program. Currently, he is the Chief Medical Officer for the Salutem Health Group, an Integrative Medicine Clinic in Indianapolis, Indiana.
- Medical Doctor with over thirty years experience in Emergency Medicine.
- Professional interest in Integrative and Preventative Medicine.
- Ultra distance athlete. Completed seven Ironman Triathlon events, including two Ironman World Championship Triathlons in Kona, HI.
- Completed many Ultramarathons including the Leadville Trail 100 mile run.
- Multiple Medical Mission trips to Haiti, the Dominican Republic, Jamaica, Guatemala, and Ecuador.
Dr. O’Connor’s interest in Preventative Health Care has given him a unique perspective in leading edge Medicine. His pragmatic and common-sense approach with his patients and clients provides creative health solutions. Cost containment and value solutions are his professional interests. As a medical consultant for WholeNewMom.com, Dr. O’Connor shares their mission to help others live healthier lives.
Moving Forward:
I forgot to mention one thing. I also am a reforming (emphasis on the "ing") Type A personality.
All my life I have pushed myself to do more, get straight A's, exercise enough, cook the right way, be with my kids enough, be involved at church enough, have a solid family life. You too?
One thing that has never been perfect about me is having a neat house. But that's probably because I had chronic illness, and I'm passionate about life and so many things. I am thinking about starting a Messy Mom's Club at our church. If you clean before having friends over, you are kicked out :-).
Somewhere after Asperger's and before today, I crashed into the world of chronic illness. It took 10+ years for me to come out of that!
The Car
The car up top is part of our life too. The mascots from our favorite local ice hockey team drove around in it before each home game. See why we're so happy to be sitting in it?
According to my son, life without hockey would be--well--pretty rough.
Welcome!
Hope to see you around more and more!
