i'm in love...

Source 

I'm going to tell you a little story about how much I adore my fruits and vegetables. 

 Yeah, I just said that. So pull up a chair, grab a stalk of celery, and read on!

My family on my Dad's side come from a line of farmers. My Grandpa owned his own flower farm and grew his own strawberries. My Dad owned his own tomato farm, and later owned his own produce market. One of my earliest memories as a little girl is of riding in the bed of my Dad's blue pick-up truck down the dirt pathways at the  tomato farm and having my Dad hand me my own tomato to snack on. The juice that ran out of those tomatoes and dribbled down your chin...mmm mmm. The messier they were, the better. 

Then there are the many many MANY memories of days spent at "the market". Since my Dad owned the market, we spent a lot of time there. Weekdays, weekends. The regulars knew who my brothers and I belonged to. Sometimes I'd get to help ring customers up, but I'd mostly just bag their produce and bread for them. I learned when I was in 2nd or 3rd grade to never over pack their bags, and to NEVER put the bananas on top of the bread. To this day, those bagging rules have stuck with me. Like when I'm in Publix and there isn't a bagger around. It just comes second nature. 

Like those bagging rules coming second nature, so has my love for fruits and vegetables. Growing up, my Dad was a vegetarian for most of my childhood. When we would stay with him over the weekends, we weren't allowed to eat meat. It didn't bother me that much. We always had plenty to eat, and it was all pretty delicious. 

Since I grew up eating fruits and vegetables on a regular basis, it has had a huge impact on the way I eat today. Not only has it made me make healthier choices, but I'm not such a picky eater either. I've never been a picky eater, really. Aside from seafood, I like all other types of food. As long as I know what's in it. 

So, does that mean I'm an organic food freak? A little bit. Food is wonderful and I love it a lot! I think about it all the time. BUT! I want to know that what I am putting in my body is good for me. That means I don't want no stinkin' pesticides on my fruits and vegetables. Since I grew up having fresh produce all the time (before there were organic labels), I didn't have to worry. Plus, I was a little kid so I didn't care either way. As long as it was entering my mouth. Now that I'm an adult (haha! Look at that!), I do care. 

I like my strawberries, carrots, and lettuce with the dirt still on them. Who cares? You can wash it off in the sink! That dirt means that it is fresh!

I like my vegetables to look ugly and deformed. Not like they just got a nice wax job at the car wash. 

Most importantly, I like for my fruits and veggies to taste down right good. So good that they make your taste buds tingle a little bit. 

The difference in taste between the stuff that I've tasted from the store, and the stuff from the produce market is so drastic. I had a sweet potato the other night that made me want to cry it was so delicious. I'm telling you...it's THAT good. 

 I'm not trying to tell you that you have to go out and buy organic produce. That has to be your own decision. I'm just talking about something that makes me and my belly super happy.

Keep an eye out for more posts about my love for fruits and vegetables. 

Next up: What I eat now that I didn't eat then.