It has been over two months since I posted to my blog. Isn't it amazing how time flies? So many exciting things have been happening during this time!
My Blendtec™ Blender finally arrived! I LOVE it! Laurie was right. I am using my blender many times a day. I have been using Nature's Knockout's recipe for Green Smoothies. They are delicious! I think I could drink an entire pitcher in one sitting if I allowed myself to do so. My daughter, Raye, and several of my younger daughter's friends love the green smoothies. Even the 8 year old and 11 year old neighbor girls like them. Each time the 11 year old comes over, she asks me to make her one! Now, my three younger children don't even want to try it, only because of its color. I will get them to try it one of these days!
The blender was such a wise purchase. Blendtec™ is a little bit pricey, but it has already paid for itself several times over. I have seen this brand of blender in several local Starbucks™locations. Used properly, this will last me for years, unlike some of the other brands that can be purchased at a local discount store.
I have been doing most of my grocery shopping at Whole Foods Market. My diet is consisting mostly of fresh fruits and vegetables, whole grain breads, raw honey or SweetLeaf Stevia® Sweetener instead of white sugar, organic, fat-free yogurt, and very lean cuts of beef, skinless chicken breasts, and fresh tuna and salmon. The fish is Pacific, wild fish. The beef is grass fed. I didn't think to find out about the chicken. I'll have to do that. I am cutting out all foods that are "white," for example, bread, rice, pasta, sugar, and flour, just to name a few.
I have substituted cold pressed extra virgin olive oil with organic red wine vinegar for store bought salad dressings. The oil and vinegar dressing I have made is very tasty. I don't miss the creamy dressings at all. I have found that I actually like to taste the greens and other vegetables in my salad. The new dressing just gives the salads a little bit of an enhanced flavor. Tonight's dinner was my healthy version of tuna salad. I used fresh baby spinach, uncooked, two cans of tuna packed in water, two tablespoons of Flaxseed Oil, a sprinkle of unground Flaxseeds, one tablespoon of my homemade dressing, and a dash of sea salt. Wow! This was the first time I made tuna salad without mayonaise, and I like this new recipe so much better! My 14 year old daughter refused to try the tuna salad because she said that tuna and spinach don't go together! That's her excuse and I guess she's going to stick with it!
The hardest part about my dietary changes is my children's attitudes. All but the oldest are complaining about not having the junk food in the house. I'm hoping that in a few years they will realize what I have been trying to do and thank me for it. I won't hold my breath though! Another thing I need to keep working on is getting off of the diet soda (I like the carbonation) and drinking healthier beverages. I'm thinking about looking into seltzer water with a squeeze of lime. That might satisfy my craving for the carbonation. I'll let you know what I find out.
As crazy as the weather has been, I have to admit that my exercise program has been a flop. BUT, I am not going to give up. I just have to bite the bullet, so to speak, and check with my local community center to see what kind of facilities are available and what the price of a membership would be. I still believe that walking, even if just for 5 minutes a day and working up slowly to 30 minutes or more per day would be of great benefit to me. I STILL need to look into Yoga classes. I know that Yoga is great for reducing stress and balancing out the physical and mental realms of life.
My daughter, Raye, had commented on my last post with a question and a discovery that she and some of her "Mock Trail" teammates made while looking at some makeup. I have invited Raye to write a guest blog about the legal case her team had learned about that raised the red flag while they were out shopping. She will also talk about what she thinks of the products she has tried so far, and of my idea of having this blog and YouTube channel.
Speaking of the YouTube channel, my channel is FINALLY up and running! I had started it a couple of months ago, and made a video that I only wanted Tiffany and Laurie to see in the beginning. Now that I have a new, working camcorder, Raye and I made a video to explain what the channel is about. I then opened up the video made for Tiff and Laurie to the public so that everyone can see what I looked like in the very beginning of this project. I hope you like my new channel! I will be posting videos that show the products I am now using, as well as a "product toss out" video where I get rid of all of my old, toxic products! My channel will also document the visible changes during this journey. You can link to my YouTube Channel here: Mommawins' on YouTube Please don't forget to subscribe to my Channel as well as this Blog! Also, please leave comments! I'd love to hear from you!
As soon as I double check with Laurie and Tiffany to make sure it is all right with them, I will be posting links to their YouTube Channel. In the meantime, it is very easy to find both if you click on the link to their website.
Next time, I will be discussing in-depth the new products I am using for my hair and skin, and how well they are working for me, as well as other exciting changes! If I can do this, anyone can! Until then, here's to good health for everyone!
