Tag: Life

It’s Cleansing Time: 21-Day Clean Program

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So it’s January and I’m super original so I’m trying this cleanse rigmarole again. I knew over the holidays that I was going for it which was most convenient. Oh yes, I’ll have another cookie. A bucket of sausage balls. Another bottle of champagne. You see, it’s all good. I’m cleansing in January. I might have used it as an excuse to be indulgent over the holidays, but I was excited to take on the 21-Day Clean Program. After an attempt that wasn’t so stellar with another program, I’m thrilled to find the right fit for me. It’s basically the elimination diet that I completed in the Spring with an element of detox. I’m over halfway through the program and feeling pretty spectacular!

I have shakes provided through the program for breakfast and dinner complimented with additions such as avocado, blueberries, carrots, peaches, pineapple or whatever strikes my fancy that can be tossed in the blender. Continue reading “It’s Cleansing Time: 21-Day Clean Program” →

Road Tripping

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I was driving through Virginia recently on my way home from a meeting in Annapolis, Maryland. I found Virginia to be quite an entertaining place. I came away with some questions, saw some interesting things and had A LOT of time alone in the car. Here’s a rundown. So I may or may not have been extremely sleep deprived. You can be the judge of that. Continue reading “Road Tripping” →

Tea Tree Oil-1 Me-0

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I keep wondering why I seem to have so many random mishaps happen. Then I have an ah-ha moment and realize that I’m meant to share them all here with you. In my what will one day be a famous series a la Emily Post. Except I’ll tell you what you need to know before you even know you need to know it. Pretty clever.

So the latest mishap occurred when I decided to try out the merits of tea tree oil for a pesky scalp issue I’ve been having. (Yep full disclosure here) I purchased a bottle of must be amazing cause it’s from Whole Foods tea tree oil and was on my way.  Continue reading “Tea Tree Oil-1 Me-0” →

My Life These Days…

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Me: This tea is pretty tasty. (as I happily sipped from my tea mug)

Garett: Oh. So you finally added the tea.

Me: What??

I was drinking a mixture of coconut oil, cinnamon and hot water that was also supposed to contain Earl Grey tea. In my frazzled state, the tea bag didn’t make it into the mug. I didn’t even notice that I wasn’t actually drinking tea. It was hot, comforting and hitting the spot. Sometimes almost is close enough.

 

tea

Kitchen Tales

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I’m prepping to make a crock pot and thought I’d share a cautionary tale. Yep another one. They keep coming so I’m going to keep sharing in the hopes I’ll provide some sort of helpful advice. One of my favorite mainstays on the elimination diet was chicken breasts cooked in the crock pot with taco seasoning. Of course I couldn’t use my normal go-to taco packet seasoning as it wasn’t diet approved so I was pretty proud of myself for putting together my own. Who knew the taco seasoning packet was merely a tasty mix of cumin, paprika, chili powder, garlic powder, red pepper flakes, onion powder, salt and pepper (and probably some other weird preservatives that I definitely do not need). Pretty fool proof and no chopping required which made it an A+ recipe in my book. Continue reading “Kitchen Tales” →

Better Late Than Never-Happy Father’s Day!

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It appears that I’ve started “gifting” through my blog. As in, I’m so sorry that I couldn’t get you an awesome present for said holiday, BUT I dedicated a post to you on my blog. It seemed to work great for Mother’s Day so I thought I’d give it another whirl and dedicate this post to my Dad. And it’s not even very, very belated. I always wanted to use my writing for something… Continue reading “Better Late Than Never-Happy Father’s Day!” →

Figure it Out Friday

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I’m working to make sense of the smorgasbord of posts on this little jewel of a blog, and thought I’d come up with a few categories to make some sense of it all and to help me develop a series of posts.

Especially since I see some reoccurring themes like cautionary tales. Maybe, possibly even get on some sort of posting schedule? Sounds crazy, I know.  Continue reading “Figure it Out Friday” →

Happy Mother’s Day!

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In honor of Mother’s Day, I’d like to dedicate today’s post to my brilliant, amazing mother. Yes, I know that was last week, but better late than never and she’s awesome every day so here goes! She believes in me, has my back always and is super duper supportive even when I’m falling flat on my face. When I was in high school and had my learner’s permit we went shopping at Sam’s Club. She wasn’t thrilled with my parking job, so she requested that I do it again. She just knew that I could do it better. She was so confident in my abilities that she went ahead and began walking into Sam’s Club leaving me to park the Suburban.

It was thrilling and exiting so of course I got flustered. Then my feet got confused and I rammed a parked car. Since ramming a car without a license could have been very detrimental to my future, Mom came to the rescue. I mean she really, really wanted me to get my license on time and stop making her cart me around so she did what any mother would do. She swept-in and fixed it.

She might have batted her eyelashes and smiled which works because she has great style, always looks like a million bucks and doesn’t age. Which in turn makes me look like a million bucks as in “Yes, that’s my mom. Great genes I know. Yep, she could pass for my sister.” While this might have been annoying when I was younger, now that I’m older I find this very comforting. Also, she is generous with her belongings and is happy to let me raid her closet. And many times take home a few choice items.

She is patient with me. Seriously. We are not patient people. But somehow she can listen to me moan and groan for hours on end with the utmost patience. It must be maddening, and I even drive myself crazy half the time, but she is always willing to have another one-sided chat session. And every now and then when I really need to get a grip she calls me out and puts things in perspective. She is honest and soothing at the same time which is a hard line to balance. She oftentimes gets the worst of me, but still makes me feel like I’m the best and never complains. She has never failed me and I know that she never will. Thank you, thank you, thank you my beautiful, sometimes sassy, always loving, very funny and wise mother. You mean the world to me!

Helmet Advised

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Soooo, have you guys been missing me? In case you haven’t noticed, I’ve been a bit MIA. Or did you think I was on an intentional hiatus? Or possibly a vacation? Hard to tell around here I know. Consistent posting is not my strong point, but I promise this is not a case of the dog ate my homework. It’s more of a hijacked by the roller coaster of life kind of situation.

Well I guess you can decide for yourself. Rewind to last week. I was on the verge of leaving my job so life was a bit hectic. Basically, I decided to quit my salaried position in event management and take a part-time job in development at the local university. So, it was a week meant to be spent dealing with the transition and preparing for my new job.

Things were moving right along until Wednesday evening when I began to feel sick. I didn’t have time for that so I picked mind over matter and willed myself to be better. I went to sleep ok, but had to go to the bathroom in the middle of the night. That’s when a curve ball came hurtling my way and knocked me on my ass.

Literally. I remember feeling disoriented, nauseous and like I was about to pass out. And then I did pass out and managed to fall out of the bathroom, down the stairs and hit my head on the tile floor. Thank goodness Garett heard the thump and my subsequent moaning and came to the rescue.

Before I knew it I was bundled up in the car and we were headed to the emergency room to get my head all stitched-up. After much poking and testing, it was determined I had a run of the mill virus, was dehydrated and probably suffering from a concussion. Oh and should not be allowed to use the restroom in the middle of the night without a helmet or escort.

So the moral of the story is just when you think that life can’t get an crazier it can and will. Oh, and be careful what you wish for. If you entreat the universe to shut-up your brain and constant mind chatter it just might happen. During the recovery period my brain was strangely empty and quiet. I’m happy to report I’m feeling better every day and that my brain seems to be working. I still think the concussed excuse is legitimate for a while longer. Also, you are never too young to consider wearing a Life Alert device. Or too cool to consider a permanent helmet. Especially if you are starting to notice that “Cautionary Tales” is coming up quite frequently in life and on your blog.

Observation

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I watched as he crouched to the ground peering at something I could not see. I moved closer, and saw it was a green inch worm crawling toward the restaurant door. It had taken a tumble from the tree behind it, and was disoriented. Lacking the camouflage of the tree, the worm glowed green against the red stones of the sidewalk, cementing his status as prime bird bait.

The man hesitated, looking around before placing his hand in the path of the worm. The worm inched its way onto his open palm. The man cradled the worm before returning him to the relative safeness of a leaf. A safer spot than the ground, but no guarantees. An intrepid bird, a gust of wind, an aggressive rain drop–anything could wreak havoc on his existence.

I hoped that one day if the man ever needed it, someone would return him to his leaf.