Funky to Fresh

Why hello there... sweet blog of mine!

It has been awhile! I did not abandon you! I was looking over past posts and we have been on a bit of a roller coaster since I started you!!

Soo, I suppose I should update you....... Well, it's not been good! Not good at all! My diet has consisted of Pop, Scooters, Fries, Ranch, Cheese... McDonald's, Runza.... It's just been bad!!! So, what have I been feeling because of this.. TIRED, ANGRY, NEGATIVE! I have been irritable.. crabby... negative... I just have felt inside that I have been going through the motions.

I of course tried a couple times to "diet" "eat healthy" whatever you want to call it... give up pop for the 40th time this year.. NOTHING was getting me out of this FUNK I was in!! I was talking to Liz and Lindz and I would have great ideas and concepts, but I was just not following through!! I got the book A Course in Weightloss 21 spiritual lessons to losing the weight forever by Marianne Williamson (One amazing lady!) This is where things began to click!!!!

This book is helping me to look into why I have issues with eating, weight, and being healthy. I have recently discovered that I like to run away from things! My apartment is messy... I just keep running away from the problem instead of cleaning it! I am doing this with EVERYTHING I don't want to deal with.. Work, Money, etc..... I realized with some of these things I have been running for a couple years... and the problem is not getting better! I am not magically getting money in my account, by not addressing the problem!

Soooo... I set a date and said I am starting with my health because I need to feel good to tackle the other things! So, Monday November 29th I made the change! I decided I needed to go strict for awhile or I would just fall back into the cycle... So, NO pop, NO caffeine, NO chips.. and then I am trying hard to say NO to bread, noodles, tortillas, milk, cheese, eggs...

Day 1-4 were the hardest because of the caffeine headaches! I also had to tackle 4 out to eat experiences. I had a thin crust veggie pizza with NO cheese at pizza hut... soup and salad at olive garden.. eggs and hash browns at ihop.. and a pretzel at the mall! Soo, I tried to make the best decisions at each place. and I feel good about my decisions!!

I am now on day 9 with NO CHIP, POP, or CAFFEINE which hasn't happened in... well EVER!! haha!! Even when I was cleansing last year I had corn chips!! Soo this is huge!!

How am I feeling now.. OMGOSH! MUCH BETTER!!!!!!!! My tiredness has decreased GREATLY!! I am feeling like I have soo much more energy!! My plan is to stick with it until December 23rd, and then pick back up again December 27th. Then December 31st- January1st off and then January 2nd to the marathon.. back at it!

I am glad to be back!!!
I missed you!!!

Peace and Love,
Heen

Operation NiCE!

One of my favorite blogs to stalk is Operation NiCE. Melissa is the blog master who posts about all things NiCE!!! Her consistent positive NiCE-ness is such an inner spark ignitor! She posted a couple days ago about a woman named Michelle who was turning 34, and for her birthday did 34 Random Acts of Kindness!! Which sends shivers of excitement down my spine when I think about my 26th birthday... because I am totally copying Michelle!!


Operation NiCE is turning TWO!! To celebrate Melissa challenged her blog readers to place NiCE Notes around for others to find! She also said to take pictures and email them to her to be posted!! So here is one of my NiCE notes, combined with a little Random Act of Kindness! :)

Random Act of NiCE!

Peace and Love,
Heen

My new found love.... Coconut Oil!

I just discovered the dirty talking, coconut oil!!! I have been using it as a moisturizer for a couple weeks now. Applying it liberally when I get out of the shower, and dabbing it off with a towel. I can already feel a difference in my skin!!

I have been hearing coconut oil is also a great oil to cook with. I have not had much of a chance to try it until tonight... and WOW!! So I made green bean - mushroom stir-fry you could call it, and roasted beets!

Green Bean and Mushroom "stir-fry"

So I heated up the wok with a little EVCO as Rachel Ray would say... aka extra virgin coconut oil.
Then cut up my green beans (fresh and organic from my fave CSA Fox Run Farms!)
Then my mushrooms (not local unfortunately)
And then did the stir fry thing for awhile.
Then pressed two cloves of fresh garlic into the deliciousness.
Then stir and fryed until everything was cooked!

I feel like the coconut oil made it cook differently, and enhanced the flavor differently. I felt when I cooked with olive oil it made the food taste heavy, if that even makes sense. I am now in love with cooking with Coconut Oil!!!

Yo, dj... Give me a beet!

So, this is where the dirty talk really happens!

slice the raw beets.

dollop of coconut oil.

roll the slices in the dollop.

splash of salt.

cook at 425 for about 20ish minutes.

enjoy.

Just beet it.

beet it.

beat it.

beat it.

No one wants to be debeeted!

Peace and Love,

Heen

Guess who's back with a brand new rap!

HEY!!!

So... I always have my blog in the back of my mind, and recently I have been thinking about it more and more!!! I love blogging, but I keep struggling with where I want to go with my blog.... and today it hit me... I want my blog to just go with me! I want my blog to represent me, and all of me! The ups and the downs!!!

I have tried to post a couple times, and it was always feeling like I was repeating myself... or I have already blogged about this struggle! So, I wouldn't write it, or wouldn't post it! But one of the dreams I have for my blog is that it will be relatedable, and people will find comfort in my struggles being similar to theirs and will then find motivation that they to can do anything they dream of!!

Soo, my blog is going to come with me for the ride! Up and down! And I am very excited because we have some great things coming up in the future!!! 8 to Great training in 5 days!! Salt Lake City in a week!! Raw veggie cleanse in a week and 4 days when i get back from UT!!! 10k training for September!! Taking classes online through Clayton College of Natural Health!!!!

SUPER PUMPED!!!

Soo, I will be in touch!!!!
Peace and Love,
Heen

i. feel. like. an. addict.

Ok.. I am going to ramble.. I am tired, but I want to get this out of my head!!!

I am scared! I want to be healthy.. I want to be thinner, a healthy thin! I want it... I want it really bad (so I think), but why do I keep self sabatoshing??? What is the reason I keep making poor food choices?!? When I eat healthy, I don't feel deprived of food! I actually feel full of energy! So why then am I able to talk myself into McDonalds or pop? I literally HATE both those things morally for soo many reasons! But yet I support them... I feel like a drug addict in a way! I know better, but I can't stop!!! I need a plan, but I have made them before? What do I need to change??? I don't have a very "supportive" environment.. and it is no ones fault... I am just constantly surrounded by people making food choices, that are opposite of the ones I would like to make... But maybe this battle is this way so it helps me to find the strength to do it on my own!

I walked/ran the half marathon today and I was soo happy running it, but crossing the finish line didn't do it for me.. I felt like a faker.. I wasn't proud of myself at all.. I am ashamed because I know I can do it and I have been making TERRIBLE food choices, and have been SUPER lazy! I didn't deserve to be proud!!! I really didn't!!!

This has been a 7 year battle... when will it end! Maybe thats just it... When will I make it end!?! I just needed to get all that out... I love motivating and supporting others... why can't I do it for myself?? I want that amazing euphoric feeling I had last July/August!!

peace and love,

frazzled heen

simple. thoughts.

blog.

blog.

blog.

I have not abandoned you.

Honestly, I have had soo many different thoughts going on! Good thoughts. Just a lot of them. A lot of soul searching thoughts... What do I want to be.. What do I want to stand for... All things I want to blog about, but it seems they just flood my mind and when I start to blog I can't focus... And it just becomes a rambling.... Which is what they are doing to my head which is making it hard to focus on anything!! I catch myself just like starring off a lot.. Like I am not really with it... Soo, I have decided to try and just focus on some small simple things....

healthy food choices. vegan.

not spending money. thrifting.

getting active. not focusing on "working out" but being active.

positivity. surrounding myself with positive people.

gratitude.

peace and love.

heen.

Mother Teresa

Hola!! I apologize I have not been blogging lately!!! I have been super busy trying to be outside as much as possible because I am in love with this weather!!!!!!!!!!!

So I was checking Operation NICE today, and she had a post about the yes yes blog and karama cards (which I recommend checking out! GREAT idea!!) So, I was checking out the newly found website and was looking at some past blogs and she had one about my fave Mother Teresa, she had posted a poem that is inscribed on the wall of Mother Teresa's home for children in Calcutta. I had to share it, because it is simply amazing!

People are often unreasonable, illogical, and self-centered;
Forgive them anyway.

If you are kind, people may accuse you of selfish ulterior motives;
Be kind anyway.

If you are successful, you will win some false friends and some true enemies;
Succeed anyway.

If you are honest and frank, people may cheat you;
Be honest and frank anyway.

What you spend years building, someone could destroy overnight.
Build anyway.

If you find serenity and happiness, they may be jealous;
Be happy anyway.

The good you do today, people will often forget tomorrow;
Do good anyway.

Give the world the best you have, and it may never be enough;
Give the best you've got anyway.

You see, in the final analysis, it is between you and God;
it was never between you and them anyway.

I just LOVE it!!!
Peace and Love,
Heen

Green Lemonade!!!!

Last summer I bought one of my favorite inventions... The Juicer!!! Lindsay had went to a local raw foods "cooking" class and had learned about Green Lemonade. While visiting her she whipped me up a cup and at first I was not in love... She had put fresh ginger in, which I haven't been able to get my tastebuds to enjoy. I got a juicer of my own and made a green lemonade with no ging... and that is when I fell in love!!!

GREEN LEMONADE

Today I juiced: Kale, Celery, Romaine, Lemon, and Apple

Look at the love flow out of the juicer!!

Here she is folks......... Green Lemonade!!!

:)

Peace and Love,

Heen

Today I am grateful for the wonderful day God has given me... The beautiful sun shining through the windows and the sound of birds chirping outside!!!

I am grateful for Pandora radio!!

I am grateful for Green Lemonade and the energy it gives me!!

I am grateful for the outlook of a great day of volunteering, and then running with Nikki!!!

I am grateful I am the oldest sibling, and I get to watch Kendra, Alexa, and Andrew grow.. learn.. and become wonderful people!! I have the best seat in the house!!

From Anti to PRO!

I heard the most profound thing today!! I was watching the movie The Secret, which is a post in itself so I won't go into too much... But they said we put a lot of focus on the negative, when we should be looking at things in a positive way... They said people would try to get Mother Teresa to attend Anti-War rallies... and Mother Teresa said if you have a peace rally, then invite me!!

I can't stop thinking about this!! This is soo true!! In the last year especially I have spent a lot of time saying I am anti-this and that!! For example, I have said I am anti-meat.. I am quick to tell everyone all the bad things about meat.. and it has been a battle that has gone no where!!! I have not gotten anyone to eat meat any less. Not that my goal is to get people to quick eating meat, but I thought if people really knew the bad things about meat why would they even eat them!! But now I am choosing to be Pro-Veggies!!! Looking back, the real reason I was attracted to my current lifestyle was all of the great things fruits and veggies have to offer!!

Another thing I have been very Anti is smoking.. So I am no longer going to be Anti-Smoking but Pro-Breathing!! There is nothing better than taking a deep breath and feeling your blood pump through your body and fill it energy! Just like smokers take smoke breaks.. I am going to take breathing breaks!! Five minutes every couple hours to just STOP everything and BREATH!!!

I challenge you to look at your anti's.. and how you can make them PRO's!!!

HAPPY FRIDAY!!! :)

Peace and Love,
Heen


Today I am grateful for this insight into a whole new perspective on things!!!
I am grateful for the sun shining in my office and filling the room with light!!!
I am grateful for my sense of humor, and surrounding my self with people who love to laugh as much as I do!!!
I am grateful to work in an environment where we get to help individuals with disabilities to reach their goals in life and empower them to strive for more!!
I am grateful for technology and the ability to keep in touch with my friends near and far!!!

Joie de Vivre!!!!

So my cousin is an amazing writer! He has written one book, and it working on two others.. I had sent him an email a couple weeks ago asking about life.. How things were going... I told him about my move and what I was up to.. had to name drop my blog so he could check it out! Since he was a writer I was a little nervous for him to read it!! He writes letters to all the family every couple weeks putting a quirky twist on his life in Cincinatti! They are always enjoyable to read.. Sometimes he does go on tangents where I get super lost in his intellectual ramblings (I say ramblings in a good way!!) sooo sometimes for me they are very educational!! Soo I got an email back from him today which was great, but what was even greater was in the email he gave me one of the best compliments! He said he read my blog and it was full of joie de vivre.. which I of course googled means enjoyment of life!!

I love it!! Thanks Dan!!

Peace and Love,

Green Heen

Gratefuls:

I am grateful for the wonderful email and kind words from my cousin Daniel I recieved today!!

I am grateful for a wonderful time at Fox Run Farms yesterday!! I love the Baileys!! I also love f. tv!

I am grateful for a great night of volleyball!! We were pretty rough around the edges when the season started, but we came sooo far!! It was a lot of fun!!!

I am grateful for a healthy lunch!!

I am grateful for my friend Jerome who will send random texts that always make the day even brighter!!

I am grateful Lindsay and I started emailing each other each morning a list of our gratefuls!

Today I am grateful for....

My friend Lindsay got to listen to a speaker one day named MK Mueller. She has a book and program called 8 to Great. One of the things she talks about it being grateful. MK Mueller suggests starting your day off with at least 3 things you are grateful for. I love it!!! We often find ourselves sharing all the bad things going on when we talk to those around us, and we tend to leave out all the great things!! I get emails from TUT everyday, and in every email is Thoughts become things, choose good ones!!

So I would LOVE to share what I am grateful for today:

I am grateful for the sun!!

I am grateful for a wonderful day!!

I am grateful for a great conversation with Lindsay today!!

I am grateful for great employees!

I am grateful I cleaned my juicer so I can make juice in the morning!!

I am grateful for a wonderful and safe weekend!!!

Peace and Love,

Green Heen

Kiss me.. I'm Irish!

Happy St. Patrick's Day!!!

Today is one of my favorite holidays!! I have been talking about it for the last couple days, and I have encountered a couple St. Patty's Day scrooges you could say... They are sort of bahh hummbugish about it! It's just another day... Just a reason to drink... I don't see the point... I have heard this about Valentine's Day.. Birthdays... and other holidays as well... What's the point?

Well, if we didn't have holidays and birthdays would we make time to celebrate and get together? In a world like today when some families are too busy to sit down and eat as a family together at night, would they make time to stop everything and spend time with each other and have a good time if there were no holidays??? Think about certain relatives that you have that you only see at Christmas.. thanksgiving... graduations... If we didn't celebrate those occasions would you see them?!?!

I love holidays! I love birthday!! I love it all!! I love them because they are always full of positiveness!! I work with individuals with disabilities. Everyday I walk into the workshop and see everyone doing their normal everyday tasks, I always get some hellos, but usually people stay on task and keep to themselves... I walk into today, keep in mind I have my sweet blinking shamrock earrings on, and I see smiles EVERYWHERE!! People showing me their green attire, saying Happy St. Patty's Day, everyone is talking about the special corn beef and cabbage lunch we are having, everyone is smiling... They get it!! They get the point of the day!! They get that day isn't really about St. Patrick who drove the snakes out of Ireland... The point is to stop our normal face paced, have to do a million things at a time to get things done attititude and talk to each other.. laugh with each other!!! The day is about celebrating life and having a good time!! Not once today did I see someone frown... THAT'S THE POINT!!!

Happy St. Patty's Day!!
Peace and Love,
GREEN Heen!

We are the world!!!

So I stumbled across this AMAZING video on youtube... It is an fabulous version of We Are The World sung by undiscovered youtube talent compiled together by Lisa Lavie! Check it out!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9hhX0KkQBW4&feature=player_embedded

I tried to post the video right here, but it would only display half of the screen... So just hit up the link!

Peace and Love,

Green Heen

Operation NICE

I recently stumbled across the blog http://www.operationnice.com/ and it has quickly become my new stalking grounds!! A whole blog dedicated to all things NICE!!! What a concept!! LOVE-LOVE-LOVE!!!!

Check it out!

Here is the first post which explains how Operation NICE got started!! I encourage you to check it out!!! http://www.operationnice.com/2008/07/welcome-to-operation-nice.html

Peace and Love,
Green Teen

Pop... We need to talk.......

Dear pop,

I want to start by saying how much I love you and all your different flavors... Dr. Pepper, Mountain Dew, Pepsi, Sunkist... We have had some really good times together over the years!! We've laughed, we've cried... We've spent many nights staying up until the wee hours together!!! You have always been there when I needed you..... But it hasn't always been great, you have made me feel shaky, you have given me heartburn, you have made me gain a lot of weight, and who knows what you have done to my organs!!! I just can't keep doing this to myself anymore!! It's time to end our 24 year relationship together.

I just can't drink you anymore!! It's not you it's me...... Okay, really it is you. You mean well, trying to say you are "healthy" with your diet options.... But we both know the truth... You just aren't natural with your high fructose corn syrup, your phosphoric acid, your sodium benzoate, your gun arabic, and your thiamin hydrocholride...

This isn't going to be easy, because we share a lot of the same friends. I don't want things to be awkward between us. I have been kind of drinking something else on and off for awhile now.... So, I just want you to be prepared when you see us together.

It has been great getting to know you over the years!! I am going to miss you A LOT!! But, it's for the best!!!

Sincerely,

Green Heen

Herbivore?

"Nothing will benefit human health and increase the chances for survival of life on earth as much as the evolution to a vegetarian diet." —Albert Einstein

The first book I ever read about vegetarianism what a book by Kathy Freston titled, Quantum Wellness. Before reading this book I had thought vegetarians were only in it for animal rights.. I had no idea of the health issues related to an omnivores diet such as heart disease, diabetes, and cancer.... I was super excited to see Kathy wrote today's post on www.crazysexylife.com!!

Here is a little excerpt from Kathy Freston's post today on http://crazysexylife.com/2010/shattering-the-meat-myth/, Her piece was titled Shattering the Meat Myth.

"There is no more authoritative source on anthropological issues than paleontologist Dr. Richard Leakey, who explains what anyone who has taken an introductory physiology course might have discerned intuitively: humans are herbivores. Leakey notes that “[y]ou can’t tear flesh by hand, you can’t tear hide by hand… We wouldn’t have been able to deal with food source that required those large canines.” (Although we have teeth that are called “canines,” they bear little resemblance to the canines of carnivores).

In fact, our hands are perfect for grabbing and picking fruits and vegetables. Similarly, like the intestines of other herbivores, ours are very long (carnivores have short intestines so they can quickly get rid of all that rotting flesh they eat). We don’t have sharp claws to seize and hold down prey. And most of us (hopefully) lack the instinct that would drive us to chase and then kill animals and devour their raw carcasses. Dr. Milton Mills builds on these points and offers dozens more in his essay, “A Comparative Anatomy of Eating.”

The point is this: Thousands of years ago when we were hunter-gatherers, we may have needed a bit of meat in our diets in times of scarcity, but we don’t need it now. Says Dr. William C. Roberts, editor of the American Journal of Cardiology, “Although we think we are, and we act as if we are, human beings are not natural carnivores. When we kill animals to eat them, they end up killing us, because their flesh, which contains cholesterol and saturated fat, was never intended for human beings, who are natural herbivores.” "

It just makes you wonder... Would you eat beef if you had to kill a cow by hand??

Peace and Love,

Green Heen

The Three Thriftateers!

J-Rock and Kirstin Day!!!

This Saturday Jett Rocket (J-Rock) and his Momma Kirstin came to visit their Heen!! Which is ALWAYS something I enjoy!! We did one of our fav activities and that was thrifting! We hit up our fav thrift bookstore, Half Priced Books. Then we hit up the fab Big Wheels to Butterflys which is a kids clothing thrift store. Then we hit up Thrift America, and that place had some gems! If you were looking for a glass horse head statue, a welcome home sign made with acorns, or an electric porcelain tea pot.. Thrift America had it!!!! Moral of the story... Great Day!!

Aunt Heen and J-Rock!!!

LOVE!

LOVE!

LOVE!

Showstoppin'

Jett gives recycling green baby the Thumbs Up!

J-Rock heart melting like he does!!

He's bring droolin' back... yep!

Thanks for a great day K & J!!!

Peace and LOVES!!

Green Heen

New Fav Quote!

My Best friend Jerome says to me tonight, and I PROUDLY quote.... "Don't let your dreams keep you up at night, let your dreams be what makes you wake up in the morning" ~Jerome Staab

There isn't much to blog about after that quote... It just says it all!!

Peace - Love,

Green Teen

Almond Butter Carob Chip Cookies!!

So, I had picked up the Clean Eating magazine in hopes of finding a fun new recipe to cook!! So I read magazines from back to front.. So I flip open the back cover and there was a recipe titled Almond Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies!!!! SUPER EXCITED!!

Preheat the oven to 350.

In a bowl add:

1 cup almond butter

3/4 cup sucanat

1 large egg

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp sea salt

Chocolate Chunks - Dark chocolate, carob chips, or chocolate chips which ever you prefer. I made these cookies with vegan carob chips.

Mix!

Place on a cookie sheet and bake for 10-12 minutes....

ENJOY!!!

Peace and Love,

Green Teen

Love thy self....

A tale for the "unloved".... That is what I have been letting myself feel like for the last 8 years. Unloved... This tale started around the time I graduated from high school. I had put on a little weight so my nice four-pack abs were no longer visible... and this really cool thing called a muffin top began to grow.. I began college in the fall and was soo excited because all I could think about was what one of my high school teachers had said... They talked about college being more than the education, it was about the experience. The growing up, the gaining of responsibility and independence, and FINDING THE ONE!!

I had had a couple cute innocent boyfriends in high school, and I was looking forward to dating, flirting, all the wonderful fun things you see on the movies!

Us girls would get all dolled up in the dorms rooms.. filling the tiny space with the smell of perfume, hairspray, and mushroom pepperoni pizza!! We would get the heels on and hit the town... Guys would come up to me.. but they would say, "Your friend is cute!" "Who's your friend?" This mixed with a slow gain in weight lead to a very low self image... I didn't know how to handle it... How are you supposed to feel when you are never getting hit on, and the only attention from guys you get is to ask you about your friends?? They don't cover this in Cosmo... So I began to feel like I was unworthy... It became a somewhat annoying joke with my roommates but I would often say, "Nobody loves a fat girl". I truely in my heart began to feel that!! I had days where I felt soo cute! I felt so good about myself!! I couldn't wait to go out, because I just KNEW guys were going to think I was as cute as I thought I was... And, nope.. didn't happen... This only made me question more.. WHAT IS WRONG WITH ME?!?!

I would talk about it, and I would hear a lot of you need to love yourself, you need to know how to flirt, you need to talk to guys first, you need to be aware of how you are coming across to guys, just be yourself.. hes out there... BLAH BLAH BLAH is really what I thought of all that!!

Couples... They follow me EVERYWHERE!!! It seems like no matter what, when I am around people.. they are dating someone... I began to think I had the curse of cupid.. Always shooting the arrows... never getting hit... It would get to the point where I would get soo sad that I would get mad at the site of a couple.. It didn't matter how happy I was for them, and how great I thought they were together I couldn't shake the anger/jealousy/sadness...

I just hated how I felt... low.. unwanted.. unloved... I felt like when people were in couples they always had someone who had their back... Someone who would be there for them no matter what!! Someone who thought the sun shined out their ass... Okay, now I know what you are thinking.. it isn't always that great. There are fights, guys just want one thing, blah blah... To me I was weighing my self worth on the attention I was receiving... I will never forget a roommate my senior year talking about this guy she had talked to in class and she was talking about how she felt sorry for him because he hadn't had a girlfriend since he had been in college..That made my stomach drop and it took everything not to let the tears stream in...

Then in my seventh consecutive year the curse was broken! I got a boyfriend!!! It was a semi-long distance relationship so we didn't see each other all the time.. This being my first boyfriend in what seemed like eternity it pretty much felt like the first.... We ended up breaking up after 4 months.. Most of the relationship was good and innocent. There was just one thing that continued to haunt me... He wasn't good about complimenting.. There were no, "you look good todays" No, "You are soo prettys".... For me this only fed into my already low self worth...

I finally began to realize that I need to look inside.. I began losing weight and feeling great... I began getting attention from guys... Was it because I looked different.. or because I was beginning to love myself and I was wearing it on my sleeve.. Idk! But I didn't know what to do with the attention and made a couple decisions I was regard to as poor... Like all things in life we have a choice... I had been choosing to embrace the sadness... I was choosing to give guys the power to make me feel like that!! I also had let my love for myself be decided by someone else... Not only was I choosing to feel "unloved" I was disregarding the love that is all around me everyday!! I am a LUCKY person! I am not smighted by God for not having guys hit on me and want me.. I am gifted to have some of the greatest people on earth as my friends!!!

This tale is one that needs no pity.. This is a tale that I think we all can relate to in some way.. We all have that something we want, but just can't have right now. Which is what makes it taste that much sweeter when we get it!!!

Where am I now? I am dating.......... myself. Getting to know who I really am... And you know what... I think I am starting to fall for me!!!

Peace and Love,

Green Teeney

Lenten Journey

For lent I decided to give up Facebook. There are some people out there who don't even have facebook... so YES, I know you can survive without facebook.. and YES, I know it is not a necessity in life! But... I enjoy it!! I love being able to keep up with friends and family on an almost daily basis!! But, like anything there comes a point where we can take things a little far... I had facebook on my phone and would check it numerous times a day.. and when I say numerous.. I mean there have been times where I prlly checked it 6-7 times in a 10 minute span!! At a restaurant... in the car... sitting there talking to friends.. and then I would come home and sit on the computer on facebook for 3 to 4 hours... Soo I guess we can come to the conclusion that I was OBSESSED! ha ha!!

Soo when I began to think about Lent coming up I started to think about the documentary, No Impact Man which I had recently watched. The movie was about a husband and wife and their two year old and they phased out everything that was having a negative impact on the environment. They stopped buying anything except local produce grown within 250 miles and not in packaging.. they walked or rode bikes where ever they needed to go..they phased out electricity.. They took a very radical approach to raise awareness for the environment. There were so many things about the movie I enjoyed, but the biggest thing I got out of it was once they cut out big things like T.V. and electricity they began to lead such a simpler life and grew closer as a family. They got out of the house and went to parks and played family games!

So After watching it I began to think a lot about "simplifying". Since moving to Omaha I haven't had t.v... Well, I have a t.v. but we don't have cable and we don't get local channels because we have no cable box... And I LOVE it!!! I still watch dvd's but I am not imprisoned by a t.v. show every night!! I am looking back and realizing how much I worked my life around t.v.! So when I began thinking about lent, I was thinking about the purpose of giving up something, and the purpose is to Lent is about conversion, turning our lives more completely over to God and his way of life. Conversion means leaving behind an old way of living and acting in order to embrace new life in God. Which to me goes right along with simplifying our lives! Just like No Impact Man gained more quality time with his family. So, along with with more time for family and friends I am hoping to to build a strong relationship with God!!

I understand that cutting out facebook and t.v. doesn't just build your relationship with God, and it doesn't make you spend more time with family and friends.. Because even when you give up one vice in life there is always another waiting for you to pick it up... I found this true when I first became a vegetarian. I was giving up meat for my health... but I often found myself eating processed greasy bad foods! So when you make a choice to abstain from something negative in your life, you need to have the positive things in mind and be ready to embrace them.

So like every little journey in life, I am excited to see where my lenten journey brings me!!!

Peace and Love,

Green Teen!!!

Pizza - Lavash Style!

My co-worker Rickalicious introduced me to two wonderful things on Friday. M's Pub in the old market, and Lavash!! So, I decided to take my new found love for lavash and see what I could do.... So here it is!!

Veggies!!

I chopped up mushrooms, Roma tomatoes, spinach, and some fresh garlic and roasted it at 400 degrees for about 15-20 minutes.

LAVASH!

I found it in the cracker section of Hy-Vee.

Top the lavash with roasted veggies.

Add cheese. I added Rice cheese vegan style!!

ENJOY!!!

Ab & J Roll-Up

A great quick snack is a Almond butter and Jelly roll-up!! Super easy, Quick, and Delish!! Switch it up and use Agave Nectar instead of jelly!!

Ab&J Roll-Up

Jelly Shout-Out: This jelly was homemade from the Bailey's! They used grapes from their vineyard!! This particular jelly is Marquette Jelly!! DELISH!! Thanks Bailey's!!!

Corn Chowder's gone vegan!!!!!!!!!

Soo... one of my favorite soups of all time is Panera Bread's Summer Corn Chowder.. I just LOVE it... So, when you decide to start the vegan transformation you begin noticing that more and more things that you love and crave aren't in the realm of foods that your new lifestyle allows... Summer Corn Chowder was one of those things.. it is a cream based soup... cream means milk.. milk means, blood, pus, casien.... no need to go on!!! Soo.. I happened to catch an episode of Oprah where she had a famous vegan chef named Tal Ronnen, who just came out with a book called the Conscious Cook. While on the show he cooks one of his soups and uses cashew cream.. also known as my new found love!!!!!!!!

So I decided I wanted to make a corn chowdery soup made from the cashew cream. So to make Cashew cream you need to soak raw cashews in water covered overnight... You then rinse the cashews and place them in a blender and pour in water to cover the cashews with an inch of water above them... then blend and WAA LAA.... Cashew Cream!!!!!! You then use cashew cream like you would a normal milk cream...

Cashew Cream!!! :)

Okay.. Now to the soup... So you have your cashew cream made, we need to work on the soup...

I cut potatoes, carrots, and butternut squash into cubes. Chunkily diced an onion. Then drizzled with olive oil and S&P.. (I am still new at this so I didn't really know what other seasonings to add...) Then I baked them at 400 for about 25 minutes, cooked all the way through.

My veggies roasting so nicely!!!!!!

With the veggies a roastin' I began to work on the base of the soup.. I took and added a thing of veggie broth and then added the cashew cream and boiled. Then added corn, I would have liked to add the frozen sweet corn my parents bag every year but I didn't have any so I settled for yellow and white frozen corn.

Stir.. Stir.. Stir.....

Now that your base is going all Colbie Caillat, and getting all bubbly.. Time to add the veggies!!!

I just added Tastefully Simple garlic garlic, and S&P.. I need to work on the seasonings part!

Just stir and enjoy!!!!!!!

There she is folks!!!! Delish Corn Chowder with not an animal product in sight!!!

Loves!!

Cashew Creameeney!

Roasted Romas!

The hardest thing about being a vegan is cooking!! Yes, there are GREAT recipe books out there.. and if I live in LA our NYC.. I may be able to cook a recipe from one of those books!! But I am 25 years old.. busy.. and living in the midwest... Sooo this along with a common question, "soo.. if you can't eat meat.. or animal products.. what can you eat?" I have decided to start posting some recipes of delish vegan delights!!!

Roasted Romas

Bad picture.. took it with my cell phone...

Tonights menu:

Roasted Roma Tomatoes and Mushrooms over Olive oil, Basil Angel hair pasta.........

Preheat oven to 375-400

Slice mushrooms and Roma tomatoes and lay them on a cookie sheet.

Sprinkle with olive oil, salt, pepper, and basil.

Bake for 15-20 minutes...

Cook angel hair pasta.

Toss pasta with a lil olive oil, salt pepper, basil. (You may add other seasonings you enjoy such as garlic salt.)

Dice fresh chives. (If you would like.)

Top with roasted tomatoes and shrooms.. and ENJOY!

Light it up!

August was my favorite month in 2009 because that was the peak of my healthiness! I was soo focused on training and eating right! I had this euphoric energy that was like a high!!! It was AMAZING!!

How am I feeling now.. bleh... Those feelings of yuck about myself are coming back.. That feeling of comfortablity in my skin are disappearing.... My energy level looks like a heart monitor... up and down.. up and down... Not the energy I was feeling in August for sure!! :(

Soo.. now what? How did this happen when I thought it was fool proof not to!!

Well, I know that little spark is in there.. It may be dim, but we are 'bout to light it up!!

The amazing Kris Karr's blog/website www.crazysexylife.com (which is about to take over facebook's spot as first website I check in the morning) has a new blog everyday from different people, mothers, raw foodist, nature lovers, motivational and spiritual guiders... Well lately things have really been just what I need to hear....

I have been thinking a lot about needing to get back into things... and dwelling on how did I let this happen again... So, today I go to check the crazysexylife.com and Natalia Rose was the writer of todays piece. Natalia wrote a book I have read called, Raw Detox Diet. Natalia's book was a HUGE spark lighter for me in July, so I when I read the title of her piece today, Just Jump.. I knew she could help me relight that spark...

She started off by telling the story of the frog in the pot of boiling water... (which oddly I had just read in Total Money Makeover by Dave Ramsey) So the story goes, If you drop a frog in boiling water he is going to jump out immediately to get away from danger. But if you drop a frog in warm water and gradually increase the heat the frog will not be aware of the danger until it is to late...

REALLY!! Am I really reading this right now!!! Talk about "just what I needed to hear"!!! What a perfect analogy!! This is exactly what got me to 225 pounds in the first place... And now I am back in a pot of warm water as the heat is beginning to rise... Sure it is nice an warm and cozy in this hot tub of life and I don't want to get out, but if I don't I will end up a fat boiled mess! And you know what.. I DON'T WANT THAT FOR MYSELF!!!

Soo... lets back up a week. I had just finished watching one of the most amazing, inspiring, and life changing documentaries I had ever seen!! It was called Crazy Sexy Cancer... okay I am a little obessed with Kris Karr but she is too amazing not to be! So quick bio, Kris was diagnosed with stage 4 cancer on Valentines Day 2003. She had 24 tumors in her lungs and liver. The cancer she had was a tricky little guy because it grows super fast and spreads right away and then slows way down and then sits and waits to attack again! Well Kris wasn't going to have any of that!! So Kris researched and spoke to anyone she could get her hands on about facing this cancer head on with no medical drugs!! I know.. she rocks!!! So this documentary follows her through her journey.

I have been going over that movie numerously since I watched it! Kris was faced with stage four cancer, and like she says... There is no stage 5!! But she continued to get up everyday and fight for her life... and isn't that what we are all trying to do!! We are all here on earth for X amount of days... We are all going to die of something... But don't you want those X amount of days to be the best X amount of days they can be!!!!!!! I think about my faith a lot and I believe God has a plan for all of us! Even when the plan seems cruel ie: cancer, disablites, miscarriages, accidents... Everything is part of a big plan that we don't always understand... I feel like part of my purpose on earth is to be a good person and to help others. Through watching Kris's journey I began thinking about how food hasn't always allowed me to do that... When I weighed 225 pounds I was LAZY! I would lay on the couch every chance I got... How is that living out God's plan?? How am I being the best I could be laying on the couch!!! There are many dieases today that are directly correlated to our diets... Look at diabetes, very debilitating! It could be hard to be everything you wanted to be when you are contanstly having to worry about your blood sugars, cirrculation issues.... ect... Eating unhealthy, and getting fat affect more than just in the mirror!!

These last couple weeks I have done a lot of thinking, evaluating, planning, and preparing!! I have been sitting in this warm pot of water to long and it is about to be too late... So it is time to light that spark and jump!!!


Loves!
Heen de la Green!

2010... My Vision!

Here is a picture of my Vision Board for 2010!!!

Peace, Love, and Challenges!

Ok... Sooo... Things were going well! I was going on veganism day five and another snow storm hit! I am super poor the way it is, so conditions to start this vegan journey are not ideal, but I was making it work! After all I had found my spark within... Well, the spark went out when the snow came in! Long story short.. shells and cheese got the best of me!! So I try to think of what made me weak enough to say yes! I remember seeing the shells and cheese in my roommates cupboard, and pretty much.. That was it! I was set on having them! I some how manage to talk myself into thinking it is okay... I did this somewhat when I became vegetarian, only it was with seafood.. I would flirt with seafood a lot... But the vegan thing is a lot harder!!!

I had someone say to me, " I have decided you aren't going to become a vegan" So I thought about that a lot! I also think about those who say, "why would you become a vegan?" It all makes me think about why I do want to be a vegan.. and that is my health!!!!!!!! Cheese is no better than red meat.. Sooo why am I not eating red meat if I am eating cheese??? I have read many many many more bad things about milk and cheese than good... I don't want to eat it anymore and I would be completely fine if I never had it again!! Sooo.. WHY is it soo hard!!!

I have identified the challenges I am seeing in hopes that identifying them will help me to overcome them! The biggest challenge for me right now is money! I need money to buy my healthy energy! But lets face it.. I live in the heart of the midwest and produce isn't the cheapest thing at the store!! So... How am I going to overcome this... I need to focus on the cheaper produce. Maybe chose "cheaper" produce like bananas and oranges. Buy a couple sets of greens so I don't waste them. Maybe I go to the store a couple times a week buying small amounts at a time!

Challenge number two for me I have already mentioned, I live in the heart of the midwest! A vegan here is like an alien!! Now things are a lot better since I have moved to Omaha, but still slim pickin's where ever we go! Unless it's McFosters which is AMAZING!! So how can I overcome this challenge? Well, one thing I need to do more is pack a lunch! I either make it and forget it at home, or I am too "lazy" to make one!! Which packing a lunch would be helpful not only to my healthy, but to my pocketbook! GENIUS!

SOOO... This week I am going to have two goals! Green Smoothie EVERY morning, and bring my lunch EVERYday! That is it! That is the only two things I am going to focus on for the week! Food wise anyways!! ha ha!! Let's face it.. I am a girl of many goals!!! But I do need to focus in on my goals and make mini goals/plans to achieve the goals! You can't just have a goal to run a half marathon with out training.. So each goal needs a plan!!!


Hope everyone had a great weekend!
Loves!
Green-Teen

Finding the strength within!

Day 7 of the 2010 is a COLD one!!!


My 2010 started on New Years Eve which I celebrated at my friend Lindsay's boyfriends and we had a delicious vegan feast!!! Lindsay made vegan tacos! We had Chips and Salsa!! Ryan made a delish Salad! And I made a delicious dip from Alicia Silverstone's book, The Kind Diet. It is called Cheesy, Oozy Guacamole Bean Dip! Get the book and check out page 207!!!!!! Even non-vegans LOVED it!! I also enjoyed some Organic Wheat beer from New Belguim Brewery called Mothership Wit!!!! The night included dancing, games, and lots of laughter!! Nothing better than starting 2010 with great friends and great fun!!


I have been pumping myself up for a wonderful 2010 and was super excited to begin the year and continue on the road of personal growth! Although it has only been a week, there has been some triumphs and set backs! One of the biggest goals for 2010 is to continue towards healthiness, and make the vegan plunge! Unfortunately, I had a couple flirts as a Alicia Silverstone would call them... But on Monday, January 4th I made a decision and here I am four days vegan!!!



Since I have quit my job in December I have not had healthy eating habits and it is beginning to wear on me! I feel like I am back at square one!! I am beginning to feel that lazy feeling! I am beginning to get a little bit sluggish! Over the Christmas break especially I overloaded on white carbs, sugars, and BUTTER!!! So it is almost like I need to cleanse and start over!! With starting a new job.. Moving away from my family and best friend Holly, moving to a big new city... I have just had such a hard time focusing, and have had a lot of anxiety!! I am learning a new job, dealing with homesickness, learning to live on my own (aka, dealing with a car that won't start - but I do have a new set of sweet jumper cables), hanging out with all my friends that live here, and being super poor!! I have been super busy, and i am STRUGGLING majorly to get into the mode!! I haven't been making my green smoothies everyday.... I haven't been able to work out because I can't afford a membership right now!!! I am wanting to start training for the Lincoln half.. Sooo... How do I get back into it???? What am I waiting for?? How do I get back into it when I can't afford it!!

I think about some people who have come to me and they say well I just need to wait until things in my life settle down.. I need to wait until after a certain event... And I always say to them, there is never a right time.. There is always going to be something that you could wait for. Sooo why am I not taking my own advise??



Well http://www.crazysexylife.com/ saves the day!! I really encourage everyone to check out the post from January 6th! Colin Beavan wrote today about Trusting the Spark within and finding your own path! In his post he talks about how we often wait for something or someone to help us get started with something! I think to myself.. What am I waiting for?? Who and I waiting for?? Am I letting money control my health? Then Mr. Beavan writes, To be inspired means to have the breath within us! I loved reading this!! He is soo right! The breath is inside! I am the only one who can control my destiny!



I am inspired! I do have the breath within me!!



I did a little research on Mr. Beavan.. turns out he has an AMAZING documentary coming out called No Impact Man! He and his wife and child decide to turn to have as little carbon footprint as possible. No TV, No cell phone, no car, no elevator, nothing in plastic, nothing that has ever been wrapped in plastic or paper, only buying from thrift stores, only purchasing locally grown produce... You get the point! I encourage you to check out the trailer!!!


Last night I was thinking about Beavan's post and I felt that spark within... I did all my dishes which have been piling up since I moved here! I also did a Jillian Michael's work-out DVD, which TOTALLY kicked my ass!! It was AWESOME!

So week one of 2010 has taught me to look to that spark with in and you will find a strength inside you that you didn't know you had!!!

Loves!!
Green-Teen