cleanse

Soo, I'm kinda a health junkie. The problem is, I'm kinda a food junkie, too. Oh, and I don't really always love to exercise.

So, last week, after realizing that the food junkie part had taken over my health junkie part, and the exercise lover in me was hibernating, I decided I was sick of it and committed myself to embark on a quest to be healthier!

...It's not that I'm unhealthy either, it's just that I'm ready to make myself feel better inside, and maybe look better outside... ;)

Anyway, to jump-start this quest, I'm doing a (semi-insane) cleansing diet!

It goes like this:

(you only eat what is listed, then add in what is listed every week after)

Week One:
eggs
chicken
turkey
veggies
nuts
water (lots and lots of water!)

Week Two:
add fruit

Week Three:
add legumes (beans and peanuts)

Week Four:
add whole grains

Week Five:
add red meat

Week Six:
add dairy

Sounds pretty basic, and maybe not too hard, but it is! This first week has consisted of A LOT of carrots, pistachios, chicken, and crystal light drink mixes (my new obsession!) to make be feel like I'm getting something kinda fruity.

So, if any of the three people who might ever stumble across this little blog decide they want to do this cleanse (or if I ever want to look back and do it again), here's some of my week #1 tips:

• celery with almond butter is delicious
• sauteing veggies (like asparagus, peppers, onions, avocado, etc) with scrambled eggs and topping with salsa makes a descent dinner
• sauteing veggies and grill chicken in Hendrickson's salad dressing is a good lunch or dinner 
• add seasonings to everything
• don't overdo it on the sodium
• giving up carbs is hard, so try making sweet potato chips or fries to substitute with
• spending the time to make the healthier food for snacks (ie: shelling pistachios, sauteing veggies) somehow makes them yummier
• eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a queen, and dinner like a pauper, but don't limit yourself to three meals
• eat when you're hungry and don't worry about counting calories, your body will tell you what you need
• don't expect to exercise much the first week, maybe just 2 or 3 days of light exercise, because you won't have as much energy.  you'll also want more sleep.
• you can limit the time frame to 3 or four days for each phase if you don't want to spend a month and a half on it
• it's your diet.  so if you feel like you need to change or adapt it to your lifestyle, do it!
• stick it out.  YOU CAN DO IT!

And trust me, you will feel so much better after just one day!

you have to

WORK HARD

to

DESERVE

what you

WANT

Wishing us luck,

Until next time,

A

my own little miracle

God works in mysterious ways.

Who would have known that driving around at eleven o'clock at night, windows down, heat flaming, music blasting, would become my own little miracle?

It wasn't a big miracle. It was just one of those, thank you God, for watching over me, kind of miracles.

I was discouraged, frustrated, confused, sad, tired. I was tired of trying to be perfect for everyone. Facing a decision that left me confused and unsure. Discouraged by a upcoming situation I wasn't sure I wanted to go through with. Frustrated with my doubts and sorrowful attitude about it all.

I desperately needed peace. Comfort. Hope. Reassurance.

So I took my dad's car, and drove. Drove and drove and drove. I didn't know where I was going, or what I expected to find, but I needed to put my life on hold and escape for a little while.

I turned the music up, put down the windows and the sun roof, and drove. I let myself stop thinking and just feel. I felt the cold air blowing all around me, and turned on the heat. I felt the speakers vibrating, the pulses hitting my legs and chest. I felt myself singing loud, and heard how off pitch I was, but I didn't care. It felt good.

I had no idea where to go. I drove past my favorite hiking trail head. I drove up big hills and back down other ones. And then I decided to go to the lookout point. A place where I hoped it would be quiet and peaceful. And it was.

I got to the lookout and gazed over the valley. The lights shining below me, my home. I turned off the car, set my phone aside, disconnected, and sat on the hood, hugging my knees to my chest. I looked at the beauty that was around me, how had I forgotten how very blessed I am? Then I leaned back and looked up. Gazing back at me was a pure, clear, blanket of stars, seeming to shelter me from everything I had stressed about.

I allowed myself to open my mind again, and think. I thought about where I should go? Who I wanted to be? Why I was so discouraged? Everything. I let the thoughts and answers creep in to my mind slowly. I found myself praying after a while. Asking God what to do, sharing with Him all my petty high school problems, my questions and worries about the future, my hopes and dreams, my passion to do the things I love, my desire to become who He needs and wants me to be.

I didn't have any amazing revelations, or divine answers. Just a reassurance and peace, that God is watching over me. That through one of those bright stars above me, God is looking down and making sure I don't mess things up too bad. That Jesus is looking after me, like a protective big brother, whispering everything will work out in the end, and, I understand what you're going through like no one else in the world does. Maybe even my ancestors, my great-grandparents and my friends in heaven are keeping an eye on me, being my guardian angels.

I felt calm and content with life, and growing up. I realized that I can't be perfect for everyone.

I can't be a perfect daughter
a social butterfly
a deep thinker
an inspired scholar
a spiritually enlightened example
an intimate friend to everyone.

I just can't, and that's okay. I can only be me.

Just little ol' me with my perfectly imperfect flaws. With my wild dreams and plans. With an urge to do something spontaneous every once in a while. Who loves the wind blowing through her crazy curls and singing at the top of her lungs, completely off key.  Who day dreams about love and going to Africa. Who wants to have a six pack. Who loves God and the mountains. Who wants the back drop of her first kiss to be a sunset. Who is learning more and more about herself each day.

And maybe to God, I am perfect in my own way. That I am perfect for whatever he needs me to do and be. And that every day I do my best to be my best, I am making Him proud.

That's my own little miracle.

Until next time,

A

extraordinary.

I am in an EXTRAORDINARY mood.

 

 

You know those moments?  The ones where you're just completely living in them?  Where you are immersed in happiness and soaking it all in? 

 

That's right now for me:)

 

It's that moment driving home from volunteering at the hospital.  Having spent two hours doing something for someone else.  Not thinking about how it would help me, but how it would help them.  Clearing my mind of all my stress and worries, leaving them at home when I walked out the door.

 

The moment driving home when I look out my window and see the sky fading from bright blue to deep purple as the sun sinks behind the horizon.  Watching as the clouds turn from white to pink and orange, the color only a sunset can make.  And being thrilled that I would get to watch it in my rear-view mirror the whole way home.

 

That moment when I'm driving on the freeway, fast, with the windows down.  Feeling as the wind whips my hair around my face and tugs and pulls at my clothes, pressing and releasing them on my body.  Inhaling the air that is swirling around me and smelling the faint scent of rain in it, my favorite smell in the world.

 

Blasting the music so loud that there is no room for thoughts in my head.  Feeling the vibrations of the speakers flow through my body as I yell the lyrics at the top of my lungs, not caring that my sick, croaking voice would probably make a child cry.

 

Looking at people driving by, staring at me.  Shaking their heads and smiling as I picture how foolish I must look, and I laugh at myself.  But I don't care.  Because in this moment, I feel confident, and I want them to see how happy I am, I want them to feel it, too.

 

Smiling so hard my cheeks hurt as I round my protective mountains, turning to fall as the leaves change color, and catch another glimpse of the sunset to my right at the same time that I watch the city below light up and glow in the night.  Feeling so at peace and blessed.

 

Feeling.

Breathing.

Singing.

Yelling.

Smiling.

Laughing.

Living.

Loving.

Hoping.

Invigorated.

Energized.

Thrilled.

Extraordinary.

 

You know the moments I'm talking about?

 

THOSE moments.

 

The moments that make life worth living.  Where you see the beauty that God has created and blessed you with. 

 

The moments you soak in and treasure.  The moments that take your breathe away. 

 

Those most EXTRAORDINARY moments.

 

"Life is not about a new car or fancy clothes. It is about being able to enjoy your family and friends, to help others, to find pleasure in the smell of a rose or in watching the rain...So stop pacing the aisles and counting the miles. Instead, climb more mountains, eat more ice cream, go barefoot more often, swim more rivers, watch more sunsets, laugh more-cry less. Life must be lived as we go along."

-Grandma Betsey

 

Have an EXTRAORDINARY day!

 

Until next time,

 

A