Farm Aid began as a rallying point for the farm protest movement during the depths of the farm crisis in the 1980’s. The farm organization for which I worked in 1985 even chartered a bus to ferry cash-strapped farmers to the first benefit concert in Champaign, IL, where Willie Nelson, John Melencamp and other musicians exhorted the crowd to fight to save the family farm.

Last night, as I circulated through the crowd at this year’s pre-concert gathering in Raleigh, NC, the atmosphere was much more like a homecoming reunion than a farm protest rally.  Conversations that years ago focused solely on political strategy were peppered last night with comments about children’s weddings, the arrival of grandchildren, and just a few references to impending retirements.

Cynics would say that the struggle to save the family farm since 1985 was largely futile. After all, the conventional agricultural landscape is dominated by a handful of chemically-intensive mega-farms.

I see it a bit differently.

Walking into the event, I ran into an old friend who has been at the forefront of legal and political fight to halt the erosion of Black and Native American farmers. His group successfully lodged a legal challenge that resulted in a multi-million dollar settlement to displaced minority farmers, and in several provisions in the last few Farm Bills to provide economic opportunities for farmers still on the land.

Inside, I caught up with several folks who waged the political battles in the late 1980’s that resulted in the passage of the Organic Foods Production Act; the foundation of today’s organic labeling program. The fact that organic food sales have reached $35 billion is due in part to the farm policy seeds these pioneers planted decades ago.

And, I made new friends with a North Carolina family who shared the story of how they built their North Carolina farm into a profitable enterprise with grass-fed beef and pastured poultry.

The American public is increasingly seeking out healthy food produced by organic and other environmentally sustainable farmers. Many of the people chatting over the locally-brewed beer last night are part of the reason those choices are available in today’s marketplace.

That’s something for the musicians to sing about.

I am not a breakfast person. I know, I know, as a dietitian I am supposed to say otherwise.

My normal routine goes like this: coffee with cane sugar, some sort of seasonal fruit and whole grain toast with some sort of cheese- which is still a balanced meal but boring and redundant. I could eat cheese at every meal. It is my favorite food in the whole world. But, I swore that if my significant other at the time bought me a fancy blender, I would vow to make us vitamin-packed green smoothies every morning.

And, he did! This crazy powerful liquefying machine arrived in a big box with flashy, lime green wrapping, here to challenge my promise to banish boring breakfast.

I discovered this miraculous appliance from literally a not-so-pleasant wake-up call one morning on a much needed vacation. It was 6 a.m. on a weekday, and I was sound asleep in the guestroom of my cousin’s home on the island of Oahu, Hawaii. A loud roar of an engine similar to that of a weed-whacker awoke me from my slumber. I walked out in to the kitchen to see my cousin’s husband wearing earplugs, blending up a mysterious dark green concoction. Liquidized salad for breakfast for the next two weeks. Great.

Ingredients included a variety of different fruits and vegetables, with lettuce as the primary staple. To be honest, the thing was pretty tasty. You can barely taste the bitterness of the greens if you sweeten up the mix with some mango or coconut.

And, it felt good to wake up on a tropical island and begin the day with extra confidence that I will meet my fruit/vegetable quota, especially when pretty much the only other fruit consumed daily was a maraschino-cherry-and-pineapple umbrella drink decoration.

Apparently, their teenage son did not feel the same love for his father’s daily offering. He was busted when the remains of green smoothie were found scattered over the bushes by the school bus stop. His father was so angry, probably because of the total discard of the time, energy and care that went into making that well-crafted beverage.

Currently, my cousin’s husband is taking the green smoothie to the next level with a hydroponic lettuce garden.

My conclusion is that any breakfast can be boring after a while. That is why it is always good to have a backup plan.

Bloody Mary, anyone?

Happy Mission Monday! Chances are that you are at least a few weeks back into the swing of things for the school year. By now, you’ve probably got a solid handle on what’s working and what’s not for your kids, their routine, their snacks and meals, and of course, your sanity! Tell us (okay, brag a little) about what you have done to make the back-to-school transition A+! We hope you take a moment to play along on Twitter or Facebook.

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Now that the school year is in full swing, the kids are coming home from school ready for an amazing after school snack (no pressure!). Fuel their growing bodies and minds with delicious, healthy natural products that they will love! Check out my recent segment on Colorado’s Best where I give some easy and healthy after school snack ideas!