Happy Valentine's Day: Treats for Your Sweet

(Photo courtesy of André Karwath)

I got this email from Garden of Life's Extraordinary Health newsletter, and had to pass it on- there are three scrumptious recipes for chocolate covered strawberries, truffles, and chocolate cheesecake! YUM! Enjoy these recipes with your sweet one this coming Monday!

http://www.extraordinaryhealth.com/extraordinary-health-newsletter/02102011/sweeeet/tabid/2038/Default.aspx?ContentPubID=682

And don't forget you still have time to enter the Vitamin Code Perfect Weight formula giveaway!

Have a great weekend everyone!

Toxin Free Body: Homemade Crackers from The Nourishing Cook.com

While hunting the web looking for a recipe for homemade crackers that can be made in a dehydrator, I found this AWESOME website of a lovely woman who blogs about making all the recipes in the Nourishing Traditions cookbook, written by Sally Fallon of the Weston A. Price foundation.

Check out her recipe for homemade crackers: (which can be made in a dehydrator OR an oven) and her other awesome recipes too!

http://thenourishingcook.com/2010/03/how-to-make-homemade-whole-grain-crackers/

Enjoy!

We Did It! Announcing the Vitamin Code Perfect Weight Formula Giveaway!

Congratulations everyone! We completed our series on Perfect Weight America and how you can achieve and maintain YOUR body's perfect weight in 2011!

Let's celebrate with a giveaway, sponsored by Garden of Life!

This week's giveaway is for an awesome Garden of Life product that will help you achieve- or maintain your body's perfect weight! Whether you are still in the middle of reaching your health goals for this year, or have already achieved your body's perfect weight, (or are really close!) the Vitamin Code Perfect Weight multivitamin is perfect for you!

With nutrients that support your metabolism, immune system, and your body's response to stress, it's great for men and women, those trying to lose weight, or those already happy with their weight and looking to stay healthy!

To enter, leave a comment letting me know how your health goals for this year are going so far. And of course leave your name!

Get an extra entry for becoming a fan of Garden of Life on their facebook page:

http://www.facebook.com/home.php#!/GardenofLifeWPB

Just be sure to come back and leave a comment letting me know you did!

The giveaway is open until Friday night at 12 a.m. CST! The lucky winner will be announced on Monday's blog and will have three days to contact me, or another winner will be chosen.

May this year be the year you reach and maintain your perfect weight, everyone! Happy winning!

Announcing the Go Raw Live Web Event- Tonight!!!

Everyone, I just wanted to make sure you all know about the awesome live web event that Jordan Rubin will be doing this evening!!! Jordan will be talking about Raw Foods and will give you tools and tips you need to use raw foods to improve your health this year!

There will also be free products given away tonight, so make sure to register and get on the webinar tonight!

See this link to register and for more info:

http://www.gardenoflife.com/AWayofLife/LiveWebinars/tabid/2031/Default.aspx

(And check back tomorrow for more details on a giveaway in celebration of finishing our Perfect Weight America series!)

Perfect Weight America: Component 9: Take Weight off the World

Well, we're wrapping up our Perfect Weight America series! We've looked at many ways you can achieve your perfect weight, and this week we'll be announcing another exciting giveaway to help you do just that! Today let's look at the final component of the program:

Take Weight off the World

In Perfect Weight America, Jordan Rubin gives a list of a dozen ideas for a "greener" home- the idea behind taking weight off the world. The great part is that when we all do a little, it can add up to a lot! Check out this list to see how many you can do:

(Taken from page 203 of Perfect Weight America by Jordan Rubin)

• Change your incandescent light bulbs to compact fluorescent. Fluorescent light bulbs burn twelve times as long as regular light bulbs and consume 50 to 80 percent less energy.

• Bring your own shopping bags or reusable canvas bags to the health food store or grocery store. Plastic bags, made from toxic polyethylene, are not biodegradable and litter the landscape whenever the wind kicks in.

• Use rechargeable batteries. Did you know that you're not supposed to throw your old batteries in the trash? Batteries contain a high concentration of metals that seep into the ground when the casing erodes. Used batteries are considered "e-waste" just like old computers and TV sets.

• Recycle your newspapers, junk mail, and plastic bottles.

• Watch the thermostat.

• Clean out the bathroom cabinet, full of toxic personal care products containing parabens, phthalates, and other synthetic chemicals.

• Unplug cell phone chargers when not in use. Electrical devices continue to draw electricity when plugged in.

• Think green in the laundry room. Conventional fabric softeners and static cling products use formaldehyde to make cloths softer. You can substitute a half-cup of vinegar to your wash or drip your favorite essential oil on a cloth and dry with your clothes.

• check your cookware. Nonstick pans are coated with perfluorooctanoic acid, or PFOA, which has shown up in trace amounts in blood samples taken from people across the country. The CDC estimates that PFOA is in the blood of 95 percent of Americans, and the EPA has labeled PFOA as a likely carcinogen in humans. (Causes cancer) Environmentally acceptable cookware is stainless steel, ceramic coated, or stoneware.

• Choose paper products from recycled ingredients.

• Use air filters.

• Start your own compost pile.
  

I hope this gives you some great ideas on how to get started taking "weight off the world." Check back tomorrow for details about an exciting giveaway!

What Do You Do?

Hey Everyone!

Yesterday, in the midst of an extremely busy few days, my husband and I passed by a McDonald's on the way home from WalMart. Next to it was a Starbucks, and a Taco Bell. I have to admit that I was envious of all the diners who could pull in and leave with a "meal" ready in less than 5 minutes!

When I am exhausted and life is busy with the little ones, I become so weary of getting food on the table. We ended up with dinner from Whole Foods last night, but I totally understand why anyone would choose fast food in moments like these!

Planning ahead helps a lot, but sometimes, life just gets too busy. Whole Foods prepared food bar is our fallback in moments like these, but we're hoping for some closer, healthy organic restaurants and "fast food."

When we lived in California there were places like this springing up all over the place- are there any near you?

What do you do to stay healthy when times get crazy?

Have a great (and relaxing) weekend everyone!

Perfect Weight America: Component 8: Think For Your Perfect Weight

We're almost done! Today we will discuss one of the most important elements of the whole Perfect Weight America program: thinking for your perfect weight.

Most of us underestimate just how powerful our thoughts are. The Bible says, "As a man thinks in his heart, so is he." Our thoughts are indicative of our beliefs, which we are living out every day, whether unconsciously or consciously.

When it comes to weight loss, nothing can be more important than what we think. I love an example from Dani Johnson, one of my favorite businesswomen and success coaches. She says that she was an athlete all her life, but her father told her she was fat, so she believed him.

In a rough point in her life, she actually did become 50 pounds overweight. Finally, she got fed up and decided she was going to stop believing she was fat, just because her Dad had always told her that she was.

She says, "I decided to start walking like I was a Barbie, even if I had something following me!" Once she stopped believing she was fat, and agreed with the truth that she was healthy, and attractive, she lost that weight that was hanging on to her, and never regained it.

In fact, she is now in her early 40's, a mother of 5 and grandmother of 3, and is truly one of the most attractive women I have ever seen. She is in fabulous shape and very healthy, and she's not killing herself to do it.

What beliefs do you have about your self image? Have people told you your whole life that you were overweight, or did your parents or peers criticize you whenever you gained a few pounds? If so, it's likely you are believing a few lies about your body image.

I would encourage you to ask God what the truth is about how He sees you, because the truth will set you free! Once you can come into agreement with what he says about you, I bet you your weight issue, which is now a mountain in your life, will come tumbling down, just like it did for Dani.

Check out chapter 11 of Perfect Weight America for more on this important issue! I encourage you to start believing the truth about yourself today, even if it seems you are "calling things that are not as though they were." ;)