The Cleanse

Tomorrow I will begin a 14 day cleanse from Natalia Rose's book "Detox for Women." (Check out her website http://www.detoxtheworld.com/) This will be the longest cleanse I've done and I am somewhat nervous.  Cleanses are important for our body for many reasons... The human body is designed to detoxify itself naturally. The issues are that processed foods, sedentary lifestyles, and pollutants cause toxins to build up inside the body’s cells.   The body then finds it difficult to dispose of environmental and metabolic waste and instead they become stored in our tissues.  This is encouraging for degenerative disease and premature aging to set in, robbing the body of vital nutrients.   Certain kinds of fiber found in vegetables and fruit are very beneficial for the detox cleanse, as they help rid the body from poisonous wastes, such as heavy metals and aluminums.

The necessities:

High Speed Blender & Juicer

FRESH & ORGANIC.

Among the spread:

Granny smith apples, lemons, limes, red peppers, cucumbers, zucchini, tomatoes, mushrooms, ginger, sweet potatoes, potatoes, fresh rosemary, cilantro, nori sushi wraps, shoyu, goat cheese, cage free eggs, marinara, red wine, and dark chocolate (72% cocoa).

Had to take a break to take a picture of my sweet potato covered bunch of cuteness!!

Pico de Gallo:

Pico de gallo is a fresh salsa made from tomatoes, chopped onion, jalapenos, lime, cilantro, minced garlic, and sea salt.  It's absolutely delicious and it only tastes better the longer it sits.. therefore I'm making it in advanced!

A few of my favorite kitchen utensils that I always have on hand are in the picture above: Garlic mincer, lemon press, large chopping block, knife sharpener, and my Rachel Ray garbage bowl.

And that my friends is Pico de gallo.

Picnic for 3.

"The basket."

A wedding gift... adorable.. but rarely used... until now. 

Why have we not used this treasure of a gift?!

Mara Mae on her very first picnic.  Sweet special moments like this are what makes a mother's heart beat harder.

A little Welch's Sparkling Grape Juice.. to enhance the experience of course.

Fresh marinated veggies! 

Red Peppers, Squash, Asparagus, Cucumber, and Red Onion.

Marinade:  Apple Cider Vin., Shoyu (Raw soy sauce), Hemp Oil, Minced Garlic, Sea Salt, Dill, and Pepper

THANK YOU MARA MAE.

"What did I do?"

First "go" at the swing.. big girl swing that is.

Yes.. our children dogs had an interesting time on the slide.

Mama love!

"Hey mama, look at me!"

My gymnist...

May we have many, many,more days just like this one..

Mama's girl.. (According to yours truly)

Creative Expression

Have you ever felt like you needed an outlet, a means to get all that's couped up inside of you..out?  I.feel.that.way.  I've teetered back and forth on the idea of having a blog... And in no particular order, the things I have battled with are as follows:  1.) Time commitment - "Is it too much?"  "Will I stay committed to this?"  2.)  Vulnerability- putting my thoughts and ideas out there for people to read and the critiquing that comes along with the territory.  3.)  The Liberation- Ohhh the freedom to say things and know that those who choose to read will do so...and if they don't...welllll so be it!!  4.)  The Challenge-  I think its a challenge to myself.. to be bold.. to be real.. to be resourceful.. and to capture different "happenings" in my life.  5.) To Advocate-  I have this deep passion for health, and anyone who knows me, knows this.  I spend  too much A LOT of time reading and researching about health in general.. well here is my outlet!!  And instead of forcing it on people via Facebook, now those who want to find the information can find it right here.  I can't tell you the countless number of emails, messages, etc... I get on the topic.  So in essence maybe I'll be saving some time??  
I'm sure that I have left out a thing or two, but for the most part that's that.  Now this post marks the beginning of a new journey for me.  A journey of blogging... follow me?