The Grazer

My name is Jessie and I started this blog because I have a passion for fresh and healthy REAL food.  In my posts you will find a sprinkle of my favorite recipes, a handful of my meals and most importantly - a big dash of random.  I started this blog a few months before my wedding and chronicled my daily meals and exercise for over a year.  Currently, you will find more posts about me, my experiences now as a stay at home mom and some of my favorite foods.


I married my husband, Dave, on May 31st, 2009.  You will read a little about him now and again - he owns an automotive repair shop here in Fort Collins, Colorado.  We have two cats, sisters, his (Vern) and hers (Pepper).  We also recently became first-time parents to our adorable baby girl, Lyric Charlotte, on September 19, 2011.

A Little Background
Growing up as an only child in a small town I was raised a little differently than most people my age.  I was born at home, fed homemade baby food and spent my free time playing in the garden or making tree forts.  My husband calls me a hippie.  :)  I rejected that label for some time but I guess I am what I am.

As a child and a young adult I didn't think too much about food.  We had a giant garden, fruit bearing trees and chickens at home.  Every meal was 99% homemade and we always ate together as a family.  I learned how to cook and bake from my mom and grandma.  Snacking and grazing all day was always encouraged and fruits and vegetables a staple of my diet.  My parents and I ate when we were hungry and stopped when we were full.  Soda and fast food were never forbidden foods but seen more as a treat.  If I wanted sweets, my mom made homemade brownies or chocolate chip cookies.  Of course as a child, I sometimes wanted what my friends had.  Little Debbie snacks, Miracle Whip, white bread and Pop Tarts.  My mom wouldn't buy most of these but I always managed to get my hands on some at a friend's house after school.  Oddly enough, those same friends would always ask to be invited to dinner to experience my mom's wonderful homemade cooking.

I am fairly tall (5'8") and slender - my body type is an ectomorph.  This means I have very little muscle mass and am generally always cold.  I never exercised on purpose when I was growing up.  In fact, I still firmly believe that hiking is a form of medieval torture.  I played volleyball in 7th and 8th grade, until it stopped being fun.  That coupled with the fact that I'm a klutz meant that I never played sports in either high school or college.

Oh right, COLLEGE.  Freshman 15??  I was not immune.  Sending an only child from BFE (please tell me you know what that stands for) to a college town on the other side of the state only means one thing:  I turned all my good eating practices into bad ones.  Beer (sorry mom), fast food, dorm food (blech), chicken wings, chocolate milk, Reese's pb cups and pizza were staples for my entire freshman year.  I kept at it for a long time.  Too long.  As soon as I habitually started cutting the waistbands of my jeans so they would fit, I knew I had a problem.  Not able to afford a whole new wardrobe on my minuscule college budget I tried to find a solution.

Eventually I rented a condo my sophomore year, met my future husband, (we bought a house together a year later, in 2005) and developed a better outlook on food and nutrition.  My life changed when I learned about good nutrition and how to take care of myself.

Currently, I am a stay at home mom who is just trying to get through her days with a new baby! I am a self-proclaimed grammar Nazi, an introvert and I think there is nothing better than getting lost in a good book.

Nutrition and exercise are and always will be important to me and never put on the back burner.  I feel that moderation, whole foods and exercise (just not hiking) are the best way to maintain my weight and live a happy and healthy lifestyle.

Thanks for reading Graze With Me.