For most of us, life could be considered messy, chaotic, and sometimes confusing — especially when it comes to what foods to eat. This often leaves us looking for sources we can to turn for encouragement, insights, and voices we can trust. The heartbeat of The Graceful Table is to help you gain a little more clarity in how to practice healthy living and hospitality at the same time. And yes, it can be done! We’re so glad you’ve joined us here at The Graceful Table — all are welcome!
Wanna Dance?
It’s Valentine’s Day, and many of us are hoping to be enjoying dinner at our favorite restaurant by candlelight, right? That’s how I used to spend...
Valentine’s Dinner — How to Fill a Plate
It’s Valentine’s Day, and many of us are hoping to be enjoying dinner at our favorite restaurant by candlelight, right? That’s how I used to spend...
20/20 Vision
Most of us are starting the new decade wondering where to start. We come off of the holiday season running to catch up to the days that are already...
The Symbol of Simplicity
When you hear the word simple, what comes to mind? Does the concept of living with simplicity seem impossible? Simplicity is a word that we probably...
Ringing in the New Year!
It’s New Year’s Eve and I’m still reeling from the Christmas holiday. I’m sure you feel the same way! This time of year we move so quickly between...
Mulled Wine — A Christmas Tradition
at ’Tis the season for mulled wine. What is mulled wine? It is a flavor explosion of winter spices, all packed into a warm wine drink. Sounds...
Christmas Traditions
It’s New Year’s Eve and I’m still reeling from the Christmas holiday. I’m sure you feel the same way! This time of year we move so quickly between...
Don’t Look Down!
As I end another crazy day in my kitchen, I light a Christmas candle, take a deep sigh, and revel in my accomplishment of having clean and beautiful...
The Thanksgiving Table
It’s the day before Thanksgiving, and I sit amidst ordered chaos. In one day, our house will be a bustle of energy as friends and family of all ages...
Who’s Making Cranberry Sauce?
Is it me, or is cranberry sauce the one thing that people will either ask for or assume it will be served with turkey for Thanksgiving but no one...
Coming to the Table “Full”
I woke up this morning and started my day on the treadmill listening to a podcast. The topic? The importance of the table to the family. Such an...
Does Sleep Matter?
This season of life has me busier than I have known in a long time. I feel as if I can’t do anything really well, and so I’m just getting by. I know...
Alopecia is an Autoimmune Disease?
It’s Alopecia Awareness Month. Do you know someone who suffers from a form of Alopecia? I do. My husband. He has been bald since his early 20s,...
Starting Somewhere
I had a conversation with a dear friend yesterday who is trying to figure out which direction to go with feeding her family. As she spoke, I found...
Eating When You’re Hungry
As I drive around town, I continually see people coming and going from restaurants at mealtimes. Business workers of all kinds are filling their...
Are Green Beans Actually a Vegetable?
It’s August, and green beans abound in gardens across America. Most people have fond childhood memories of picking green beans in Grandma’s garden,...
To Wash or Not to Wash? That Is the Question.
Does it seem to you that the dishwasher is always running? Mine is. Sometimes at our house it can run as many as 3 times per day, depending on the...
Meat Rotation
We all struggle with how to manage grocery shopping, keeping a well-stocked refrigerator, and making food for our family. What works for one person...
Am I Called to This Life?
People talk about a “calling” as if we all understand what that is. Most of my life I have not understood this concept. But now that I am a wife, a...
Thyroid Hair?
Have you been noticing a bit more hair in your brush these days? Or has your stylist been telling you that your hair is a bit brittle and needs to...
What is a Nightshade?
Many people are throwing out terms these days that many of us simply didn’t grow up hearing in our daily life. We grew up with simple terms,...
Finishing What We Start
It’s Monday after a holiday. For many it’s also a Monday after a week of vacation. Back to the grind, but how do we pick up where we left off? And...
What’s Special About an Instant Pot?
Have you joined the masses in purchasing an Instant Pot, aka electric pressure cooker? I’m not one who easily follows trends, and if I do, it’s...
Eating Paleo ≠ Instant Weight Loss
When I first encountered the Paleo lifestyle of eating, it was when we had some friends over for dinner more than 5 years ago. They were losing...
Vegetables for Breakfast?
It probably won’t surprise you, but most of us are living life with a vegetable deficit. The food pyramid tells us that we should have 5–7 servings...
Are Autoimmune Diseases the New Reality?
What has your week looked like? Between experiencing a flare up in my own symptoms, sending off my husband’s lab for SIBO, and a son with developing...
Can We Ever Get Off This Ride?
Sometimes trying to move toward healing and wellness feels just like the photo above. So many ups, down, twists and turns. We’re left wondering when...
Open Up Your Door
Have you taken the time to notice that we’re all feeling a little lonely these days? The world is full of people, and we’re more connected than...
I Cook? They Cook? He Cooks?
How is it possible that we just left May behind and it’s already Father’s Day weekend? This is the evidence that the summer slips by faster than any...
Snacking On The Go
You know those days when you simply cannot seem to shorten your list of stores to visit or errands to run? I had one of those days yesterday. As...
Rice!
One of the big hurdles people have difficulty overcoming with the Paleo diet is the removal of grains, like rice. Why do we remove grains? One of...
Coconut Milk, Really?
Yes, coconut milk. It seems to be everywhere, but we are probably wondering why. When non-dairy milks became mainstream, coconut milk became an...
What’s the Big Deal About the “Mother”?
Most of us have kept apple cider vinegar in our pantry over the years, but until the past few years, other vinegars won out as we did our cooking....
A Different Approach?
I have been hearing story after story of families who have faced medical challenges that seem as if there is simply no way through. They cannot...
Memorial Day — Is It Really About Food?
Memorial Day is upon us. It serves as a marker for the end of the school year, the beginning of summer, and a day off of work. We break out the...
Feeling “Normal”
Normal, [ nawr-muh l ] adjectivedef. Conforming to the standard or the common type How would you define normal? We all want to be unique, but only...
You Win Some, You Lose Some
Some days life in the kitchen does feel like a game of chess. We strategize and make moves that we think are good for our families, only to find...
Almond Milk — Quick and Easy?
If you haven’t tried almond milk yet, you should. It is a fabulous non-dairy alternative and is even better with a good chocolate brownie. It is...
Messy Kitchen!!
I don’t know about you, but my kitchen often looks like this way more than I’d like to admit. And there might even be nights when I go to bed and it...
Should I Take A Probiotic?
Most of us haven’t even heard about probiotics until just the past few years. Did you know that probiotics are one of the fastest growing searches...
How Does Mom Get a Break on Mother’s Day?
Mother’s Day is Sunday, and if you’re a mom, you find yourself wondering, can I really get a break that day? It is possible if you make the choice...
What’s Wrong with Oatmeal?
What’s wrong with oatmeal? Isn’t it healthy? I get asked these questions often, but I haven’t always had great answers. I encourage you to read this...
Farm Fresh Produce!
Welcome to spring! The season is just getting ramped up for farm fresh produce. Sometimes going to pick your own produce just seems like one more...
Why Cast Iron?
Do you have a cast iron skillet in your kitchen? I do, but I haven’t always used it. I own one large cast iron skillet, which I received as a shower...
Dream Board—30 Days In
What is a dream board? It is a place where you post pictures, photos, words, or phrases that are your inspiration for accomplishing those otherwise...
Planting a Garden?
We’re in a new home with a backyard that is a blank slate. Endless opportunities to use the yard for work and play. So where do I start—a garden of...
Leftovers For Breakfast?
Here in America, we are consumed with our convenience breakfast cereals. Have you stopped to thoughtfully consider the cereal aisle? It has grown...
Giving Up or Finding Another Way Through?
Have you ever gone after something new in your life but found it so incredibly difficult that you gave up? What was that thing for you? For me it...
Where Does Dairy Hide?
If you read my article yesterday, I wrote about the sources of calcium. So, we have established that there are fabulous alternatives to traditional...
How Do I Get Calcium?
I just read an awesome article from one of my favorite sources, Dr. Sarah Ballantyne, author of The Paleo Mom. She was the first source I ever found...
Quit Sugar? What?!
We all probably had at least one too many jelly beans or cookies yesterday, and if we didn’t, our kids did. I’m not sure about your little ones, but...
It’s Easter! What Do I Bring?
We all know how it goes. We’re going to someone else’s house for Easter, and we’ve heard there will be other guests that have food limitations. What...
Can Food Choices Improve Allergies?
Here in the southeast, pollen comes in waves…literally. Bright yellow dust covers everything! It is impossible to ignore allergy season here, as...
The Graceful Table
Graceful [greys-fuhl] adj.Characterized by elegance or beauty of form, manner, movement, or speech; elegant. Table [tey-buh l] n.Such a piece of...
Which Restriction Will You Choose?
Restrictions are inevitable. Which one will you choose? The restrictions that diet change brings or the restrictions that limit because...
Time to Try Something New?
I hadn’t realized it, but as we started our family, it became much more difficult to change and try new things for myself. I hadn’t realized that...
Where Does the Journey Begin?
As we know with any journey, not a single one of them is forged in a straight line. And, does every journey even have a destination? Maybe not, but...
Waffling Back and Forth?
I have decided. Waffles will be the end of me. My children will grow up deprived! Or so I thought. I never would have guessed in a million years...
Is AIP Coffee Possible?
I have determined to give up coffee for a season, hopefully. Before I had kids, I remember the 5 am drives through Starbucks on my early work...
My Story
I am the mother of two beautiful boys and a wife to a fabulous husband who make my life full in every way. Until my boys were born, I went...