Happy New Year!

Well the New Year is upon us...

As I reflect on 2013, I find that we had a really great year. We did some traveling (Hannah to Uganda, Joe in Germany, Luc to Colorado, Hal and me to Naples FL., Pete and me to Germany). What great memories! I started my health journey. Hal and I have collectively lost 55 pounds. We are beginning to de-clutter. We will set monthly goals to get this accomplished.

Now lets talk about Detoxing...

Although we have been really eating clean since June, the holidays have afforded times of a little too much "not so healthy" choices.

Here are some suggestion for Detoxing your life as the New Year begins:

Take a break from technology.

I know that might seem too hard. We live through technology. We get messages from school and our boss  and our friends... What is a person to do?  Try limiting your self for two weeks. Look at Facebook once a day. Check email once in the morning and once at night. Give yourself a time limit too so you don't just hang out there. I am looking forward to extra time to read, and study.

Detox your vocabulary

James 3:5-6
Be mindful of the words you say. Someone said, "Watch your thoughts; they become words. Watch your words; they become actions. Watch your actions; they become habits. Watch your habits; they become character. Watch your character; it becomes your destiny."
Try to avoid using absolutes like always and never. These words keep you stuck in a rut. Think before you speak ( I am talking to me). Words can be hurtful. Try to be uplifting in your words to others and yourself.

Detox your emotions.

Give yourself permission to cry. Crying tears of joy, gratitude, pain or sadness can be a great catharsis and can lighten your emotional load. It also makes us more compassionate toward others and gives them space to cry and cleanse as well.

Detox your body.

Join me as I continue to lift the toxic load on my body and eat clean in this New Year. I have a great 30 day plan with menus and grocery lists if you are interested. You can message me your email address and I can send you a copy of the plan.

Blueberry Smoothie
1 scoop rice based protein powder
1/2 cup blue berries
1/4 frozen banana
3 brazil nuts ( these help remove heavy metal from your cells)
1/3 cup parsley or cilantro ( this binds with the heavy metals to remove it through your digestive tract)
1 teaspoon coconut oil
1 cup almond milk or coconut water
Blend well in a Nutri-bullet or blender. We sometimes have to add more liquid. This makes two servings.

Let's think about "De-Clutter"

Clutter is a problem for me...

As I put  out the Christmas decorations and put a few things away to make room, I realized how cluttered my house is.
This clutter slows me down. I feel like I can't move forward because of so much stuff.
Hannah is reading/using a book to de-clutter her life. It is called 7 by Jen Hatmaker.
This month she is giving away things that she no longer needs or she has not used in a while.
This summer when my clothes no longer fit, Hal helped me de-clutter my closet. It was so refreshing.
Yesterday I cleaned out both refrigerators. (Yes I have two and they both have a lot of "stuff" in them). This was very rewarding.
But what about the other "stuff"... Things lying around, piles of paper, old emotions that the holidays invariably will bring to the surface, regrets...

Max Lucado reminds us in his book In the Manger, that God came to us.
John 14:20 "I am in you"
Ephesians 3:17 "that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith"
Colossians1:27 "Christ in you , the hope of Glory"
Revelation 3:20 "Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me."

What a great reason to de-clutter...more room for Christ to come in. Lucado also reminds us, "with God in you, you have a million resources that you did not have before." Philippians 4:13 "I can do everything through Him who gives me strength."

Dana Cloudat-- A blogger on "Mindbodygreen" suggested these reasons to de-clutter
You will feel less anxious
Your days will be productive
You may lose some weight ( start with your kitchen, clean out cabinets and pantry, get rid of food and stuff you no longer use or find healthy)
You'll feel free of emotional stagnation
Your mental focus will sharpen
Your creativity will flourish
You may get allergy  relief (dusty, moldy old things lying around)
You'll be open to opportunity
You'll get a boost of self esteem
You'll have more energy and be happier.

As you de-clutter and let the love of Christ flow through you, may you experience the Joy of Christmas. Blessings to you this Holiday season.

Rising above Holiday Stress

The holidays are here. It seems like I have just gotten used to writing 2013. If you are like me, the holidays are much anticipated but can also be the cause of much stress. Here are some tips to rise above the holiday stress.

1. Have an attitude of gratitude. Every morning write down your first thoughts of the day and try to be positive.
2. Spend time in prayer. Start your day reading God's word. Praise God. Express your gratitude to Him.
3. Stay hydrated. Stress intensifies if you are not well hydrated. Try to drink water throughout the day. Make a conscious effort to drink 8-12 glasses of water a day.
4. Make a list. Write down what you need to do and follow the list. Make a master list then break it down into doable segments for each day.
5. Eat healthy. I am working on the 90/10 plan. 90 percent of the time I am eating healthy and 10 percent of the time I am going to allow myself some of the traditional holiday fare.
6. Ask for help. Luckily I have an amazing husband that cares for me and takes care of me. He is more than willing to jump in and  help so I will not "stress out".
7. Get some exercise.  Just move. Take a walk, do some yoga, rake leaves...
8. Get quality sleep. Try this little exercise... Just before bed write down three things that went good that day. Write down how and why those things happened like they did. You will go to sleep with a positive attitude instead of worrying about what you have left to do.

I hope you all have a Happy Thanksgiving!

Self Care

Wow! Today I must need to talk about self care....
One of my daily devotions reminded me that sometimes we do and do and do for others and forget to do for ourselves...
This is hard to balance at this time---On one hand we are taught to give of ourselves to others. This is the Christian thing to do. Then on the other hand, if we give and give and give we may not take the time to nurture our relationship with the One who fills us... Jesus Christ himself in the Holy Spirit.

Another article I read today was talking about people who drain you...when you are around these people you just feel negative. I have been dealing with this lately... The article again went back to self care. We are responsible for our own emotions. I AM NOT GOING TO BE ABLE TO CHANGE ANYONE!

So what to do?

Nurture my spirituality--- Spend time with the ONE who loves me the most. For me I need to get into the Bible--soak up the word of God... Maybe a day retreat for myself would be good.

Exercise--- I am going to walk today and do my beginning Yoga. This helps me feel better so I can keep a positive attitude.

Work on my relationships---Support from people who love me and care about me will help to strengthen me and help me to have confidence in me.

I hope this helps you too.. Have a great day!

National Eating Heathy Day

Hi...

I won't normally be posting this often, but today is National Eating Healthy Day sponsored by the American Heart Association....

I had to share.

Try Adding these things to your diet:

12-14  8oz glasses of water
Dark Green Leafy vegetables
Eat your colors--- Eating a variety of colorful food helps insure you get the right vitamins
You need healthy protein like nuts, beans, wild caught fish and organic free- range chicken .

Try crowding out these things:

Sugar
Artificial Sweeteners
White flour products

Try this delicious Grain Free pumpkin Muffin recipe

Yummy Grain-free Muffins

2 eggs ( you can substitute 2Tbsp Chia seeds mixed with 3/4 cup warm water, let sit 5minutes to congeal)

1 ½ cup almond milk (may need more to help with consistency, muffin dough should be wet but not runny)

1can (15oz) organic pumpkin puree

1/2cup melted coconut oil

1 tsp vanilla extract

2/3 cup garbanzo bean flour

1/3 cup coconut flour

2/3 cup Almond flour

3 pkgs (individual ) Stevia

¾ tsp baking soda

½ tsp pink sea salt

½ tsp baking powder

1 tsp cinnamon

¼ tsp all spice

¼ tsp nutmeg

½ tsp cardamom (optional)

½ tsp fenugreek (optional, my husband likes this spice in there. It gives it a maple taste)

½ cup chopped walnuts

1/3 cup dairy free gluten free chocolate chips( you can also add dried fruit like raisins or cranberries; pumpkin seeds)

3Tbsp flax meal

2Tbsp chia seeds if you did not use this to substitute for the eggs

Makes 18 medium muffins. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Whisk together ingredients. Line muffin cups with paper or prepare with coconut oil. Fill each cup with batter. Bake for 30 minutes. They are ready when tooth pick comes out clean from center of muffin. I refrigerate after cooling. I also mix up the wet ingredients  using pureed zucchini and spinach instead of pumpkin sometimes. You could use the spices for your favorite zucchini bread. You could also use banana instead of the pumpkin… about 1 ½ cups mashed banana. Play with it

Welcome

Welcome to my journey to Joyous Health... 11-4-2013

My inspiration is- My Heavenly Father 1Corinthians 3:16-17 I am God's temple.
My Godly and caring husband who wants me around when we retire.                     
My seven active, involved, adventurous children(6 are mine and one daughter-in-law)                          My two wonderfully active, precious , growing grand children-- They need Mam-ma to be able to get up and go.
My Parents-- 78 and almost 80-- who have always tried to be healthy . They have an amazing spiritual life. My mom is a great cook and has always tried to cook  healthy food. My dad has exercised faithfully for the last 30 years. They have great relationships.                       
My brother, who is fighting the battle of his life right now, but who will ultimately win the war because he is a great spiritual warrior.
My sister, who is also a faithful spiritual warrior. She has taught aerobics class and she is an awesome cook.
I also have to say that my journey started this summer with Birmingham Integrative Health. They are great if you are looking for a good Doctor.

Today is a beautiful day in Alabama. I want to share five healthy tips for today.....

1. Exercise- Get up out of that chair. Take a walk, even if it is just to the mail box.. go.
2. Pray or meditate-This is the day that the Lord has made, Let us rejoice and be glad in it.
3. Eat mindfully- What are you eating today that is good fuel for your body? I am having "Grain- free " muffins for breakfast; Tilapia, asparagus and salad for lunch; and Organic Beef , salad and a baked sweet potato for supper. I have to snack a little, so that will be nuts.
4. Nurture your relationships-  Spend time with your significant other, even if it is just 5 minutes of meaningful conversation. Spend time with your children; read a book, play a game.  My boy loves a back rub.
5. Crowd out one unhealthy food- Choose healthy options like raw nuts, water, green vegetables, healthy fats like coconut or avocado.