Time to write...

My personal life is imploding.



I am a pretty private person. Most people don't know my business unless they are in my "circle". And my circle is small.



Today I am *stressed about a personal situation that I am going through with someone. Well, it's really more than one person involved. But one person that is important to me. And I just felt the need to write. I know that some will ask what does this have to do with my weight loss. But this is the kind of stuff that can throw me off the wagon faster than a Krispy Kreme doughnut.



But today, I am not eating my way through the stress. I actually went on a walk. I loaded up my ipod with some new songs I've purchase, and I walked for 45 minutes. And although I feel somewhat better, I am still a little down. But I won't eat.



I am *SO* CLOSE to getting back under the 300 lb mark. I have hovered around 301 and 302 for a week. My eating has been really good except for margaritas and queso chips on Friday night. I did 40 minutes of cardio at the gym yesterday and along with my walk today I vow to start moving again. Hopefully that will get me off this plateau.



As far as my body goes, I feel great. My clothes are looser, and I still "feel" better. For the first time (probably ever) I feel like I am eating intuitively. I've heard other bloggers talk about it, but never felt like I could do it. I eat when I am hungry, and when I do eat I try to choose good food. And by good, I mean whole, clean, organic food. I try to keep my carbs and sugar to a minimum. But I don't follow a "plan". And for now, it's working. I've often been tempted to count my calories to just see about how many I am eating per day, but right now I am afraid to rock the boat.



With everything else going on, I am just glad that food is at the bottom of my list of things to worry about right now. I am conscious about what I eat and am making an effort to pay attention to everything. I have only had school lunch twice, and today I had a school salad. All three times it was because I chose to eat that day, not because I was unprepared. I actually keep some of my leftover Medifast shakes at school now with my mini blender. This way I am guaranteed SOMETHING good to eat even if I forget to pack my lunch. I always did like those Medifast shakes, and they do fill me up...



Well, thanks for letting me vent. I just felt like writing to get some of this anxiety off me. I am really praying a lot these days for clarity and direction. I know that God has plans for me, and that I am close to a big breakthrough in my life. But truth is, I am lonely. I don't want to be alone anymore. But I also don't want to settle for just anyone in my life. I did that with my ex-husband for 10 years. So I am going to have to be patient. And in the meantime, I will continue to work on me.

Babycakes NYC

Last Friday was a crazy day in NYC. Hurricane Irene was on the way and all the New Yorkers were zipping around town picking up water, food, beer, and any hurricane “essential” items they needed. I made a big grocery trip to Whole Foods but also made some time to swing by the Babycakes vegan bakery on the Lower East Side (LES). I’ve been dying to try them out for awhile now and I figured some fresh baked treats would make fabulous hurricane “supplies.”

Babycakes is a popular vegan bakery that offers all natural and organic baked goods free of wheat, gluten, refined sugar, dairy, casein, or eggs. With locations in NYC, LA, and even Downtown Disney in Orlando, FL, Babycakes is a favorite among celebrities such as Zooey Deschanel and Anne Hathaway and really anyone who loves to indulge the healthier way.

Here’s what I tried out:

• Chocolate Chip Cookies – These were crazy good. The perfect marriage of gooey and crunchy cookies. I loved ‘em.


• “Cheeze”/Herb Biscuits – These were loaded with herbs and onions that gave it a great savory flavor. The biscuits were soft and especially tasty after I warmed them up in the oven.


• Red Velvet Spelt Cupcake – The red velvet cake was topped with a creamy vanilla frosting. I loved the frosting but was so-so on the cake. It was a little dry, and I’m not a huge red velvet fan so I probably should have tried another flavor.


• Strawberry Icing Scone – These AMAZING scones were my favorite thing I tried. Imagine having a warm scone stuffed with strawberry jelly and vanilla frosting. Dream come true. They were so so so delicious.

I will definitely be back to Babycakes. I’m adding  it to my list of spots to take friends/family when they come into town. It’s just a few blocks away from the Essex Street Market, another fun spot to browse around when you’re down in the LES.

I couldn’t take any pictures inside the shop, but their website has some nice photos. All the employees were wearing these adorable pink and white apron 50s diner-style outfits, giving the bakery an adorable throw-back vibe and an extra dose of cool. I did manage to snap a pic outside the store and took some quick shots of my goodies I brought home.

Benefits Of Using A Healthcare Attorney

Tomato Sandwich

When I was little my Mom used to make tomato sandwiches in the summertime when the tomatoes were really red and ripe. We always ate them with plain mayo, salt, pepper, and fresh bread. It was a simple sandwich but something I always loved and looked forward to. I just had my 28th birthday, and I still love tomato sandwiches and really any sandwich that’s loaded with vegetables.

I used vegan mayo (Grapeseed Vegenaise) because it tastes great and has no cholesterol or dairy. If you’ve never had it, give it a shot, you may just love it. I didn’t think I was going to like it, but gave it a try and now I use it anytime I need a mayo substitute.

If you can, buy organic tomatoes. The thin skin on tomatoes is vulnerable to pesticides and the organic variety is often tastier! Tomatoes pack a generous punch of vitamin C and lycopene to help you fight cancer.

Summer Tomato Sandwiches

Health Concepts & Perspectives on Health

Metromint Giveaway

I’ve been a fan of Metromint waters for years. Metromint is unsweetened, purified water and real mint. I tried it one day when I saw it one the shelves of my local health food store back in Florida. My stomach was a bit upset and I thought something minty would make it feel better. Turns out I was right. The Metromint waters taste great, freshen your breath, and soothe your stomach. I love love love ‘em!

I typically stick to the peppermint and spearmint waters, but I recently had a chance to try some of the other new flavors including: lemonmint, orangemint, goodberrymint, cherrymint, and chocolatemint. Yum! Each of them has the great taste of Metromint with added natural flavors such as lemon essence or cocoa essence. The flavors are mild and you mostly taste the refreshing mint water with a nice aroma of the added flavor.

As such a big fan of Metromint, I am thrilled to announce a giveaway! To submit your entry to win a FREE case of Metromint, leave a comment on this blog post telling me why you’d love to try it. I’ll choose one winner to receive the free case. All entries must be complete by Wednesday August 17th, 2011 at 11:59pm EST. If you’re chosen as the winner, I’ll contact you by email to ask for your full name and address to give to Metromint who will ship you the free case from their offices in California. Open to U.S. residents only. Good luck!

UPDATE: This contest is now closed. Congrats to Shauna C. for winning a free case of Metromint!

Day 7: Raw Food Blogathon

For my last day of the Raw Food blogathon, I made the trek over to Caravan of Dreams in the East Village. This organic/vegan restaurant features lots of raw food fare (almost half of the menu is raw), and I’ve been meaning to check out this place forever. I didn’t have time to stick around, so I ordered a bunch of food to-go and was on my way.

The Pink Lady Smoothie I ordered was made with apple, orange, mango, strawberry, and plantain. It was sweet with a little zing and very refreshing for the ride back to my apartment. Ya know, the heat in NY has really been getting me this summer. I thought a NY summer would be no sweat for a Florida girl, but I was so wrong. Walking everywhere and riding the subways is no joke when there’s highs in the 90s! I’m melting! Anyways…back to the food.

For snack time I had the Almond Hummus with carrots, celery, cucumber, and chia chips. The pureed almonds were delicious and I loved it with the chia chips. I really want to know how Caravan makes these chips. They were light, slightly salty, and just overall yummy. The best raw food chips I’ve tasted.

The Omega Salad I ate for lunch was made with kale, sunflower sprouts, mixed field greens, avocado, spiced macadamias, hemp seeds, and a citrus hemp dressing. It was a really filling salad (even the smaller size portion), so I saved half to eat another time. I wasn’t crazy about the dressing (it was too thin), but the salad ingredients themselves were so good and fresh, that I still happily gulped it down. Next time I’ll probably just order a different dressing.

That’s it! Stay tuned for a summary post of the 7-Days Raw Food Blogathon coming tomorrow!

Day 5: Raw Food Blogathon

Day 5 already? Whoa, this week flew by. The weather’s been very hot, so I’ve been happily eating and drinking all the raw foods this week. It just made me feel refreshed, hydrated, and full of energy.

This morning I cleaned out my refrigerator and juiced a fresh batch of green juice with whatever I could find in my vegetable drawer. I used carrots, apples, spinach, celery, cilantro, cucumber, and a bit of basil from my herb garden. I love using carrots and apples in green juice because they sweeten it up and cut out the bitter taste you can get with plain greens. I had two wine glasses full of green juice for my mid-morning snacks. If you’ve never had a green juice, this may look a little crazy, but I promise it tastes good. Just fresh, sweet, and rewarding.

Day 3: Raw Food Blogathon

I thought I’d go out for lunch today and wanted to try some place new, so I hopped on the train over to 23rd Street to Bonobo’s, a raw vegetarian restaurant across the street from Madison Square Park in NYC.

First off, I was very impressed with how clean it was—the place was spotless. It was very busy at lunch, but they had plenty of staff on hand. Plus, they happily offered samples of all their foods so you can try before you buy. I ordered a salad with spring greens, cucumber, red onion, red bell pepper, sprouts, a scoop of curried almond pate, and mustard agave dressing. Man, was it delicious, and I really enjoyed the healthy scoop of curried almond pate. It made the salad feel like a meal. For the ride home I ordered a small coconut water and a banana pineapple frozen fruit pudding. The pudding was so fresh and perfect for a hot summer day and I loved that there were a few pieces of banana and pineapple still left intact. Ugh, I want some more!