EARTH DAY!!!

So for some reason I was all about Earth Day this year. I have to be honest and say that I have never celebrated it before in my life.

So to celebrate I planted myself a little indoor garden for my bay window. I am hoping that I can keep everything alive! I found some very pretty Impatients, Pansies, Ivy (which was on sale because for some reason the nursery didn't see fit to water it after Easter was over. But I think I can get it thriving again).

Did anyone else do anything for Earth Day? I know that there were little festivals around town over the past couple of weeks. I went to Coolidge part for one and had a picnic there. It was a very nice outting.

Found a Job

So I found another job. I was offered a position with Up Communications... They do the satellite installations for Dish Network. I got a job being a warehouse inventory assistant. I am actually pretty excited about the position. It is a lot of work and it require a lot of physical activity. I think it will be good for me. I really dislike sitting in an office all day. It allows for too many distractions and too much free time to snack and eat things that I shouldn't. Anyways...The pay is better than I was making, I get 100% of my benefits paid for, and I will be working a 4 days on and 3 days off schedule. I think in the long run it will be really good. I had to go for my drug test yesterday, so after they get the results of that in they will schedule a date for me to start working. I think my schedule might be from Sunday-Wednesday. 40 hours a week. So that is pretty fantastic.
In the meantime I am trying to keep busy. I have been knitting and am currently working on the sleeves to my sweater. :) Maybe I will get this thing done by the time next winter rolls around. haha.
I have also been working on my mother's christmas present. It is gorgeous and I think that she will really like it. I am going to have to get a new digital camera so that I can take pictures of all of these projects and post them. My phone camera is just crap. lol. So once I get a steady paycheck going again, and I get some money saved up, I will get a camera and start posting pictures that are worth looking at. :)
I have tried a few more raw recipes as well that I want to post pictures of, so I will be doing that soon too.
Keep checking back! Things are about to get better all around!

Laid Off / Therapy

So last Friday I received word that the office I am currently working in would be going to a part time office and my position will no longer be available. I was then informed that I had a week before the changes were in effect. Needless to say I am pissed and shocked. Nevermind that yesterday they called me and asked me to stay on another week. I am still going to be without a job come the second week in March. This is so not good. I have been applying for jobs like my life depended on it, and thus far have had two job interviews in less than a week. I guess that is good. I am trying to stay positive about it, but I can't sleep at night and I rotate from wanting to eat everything in sight to not wanting to eat anything. It is terrible.

To keep my sanity I have been sucked into various romantic "smut" novels so that I can read of a life the doesnt remotely remsemble mine. lol. And the other day I actually put together my terrarium. I got a pink mushroom farm to put ontop of the "mood" moss that I bought for it. The pink mushrooms came with a little pink worm/snake. So I put him in there too. I accidently popped off three of the mushroom caps so I will have ro reattach them in the next couple of days. Lets hope that I am able to keep the moss alive and growing.

Has anyone made a terrarium? I could use any tips that you might have! :)

Raw Food Lunch

So I have been making raw foods..... I am not 100% raw but I am working on it.

Todays Lunch... Green Soup and Bananas and oranges.

I wish I could say that the green soup was as good as it looks. I was not the biggest fan to be honest. I feel like it wasnt thick enough and that it was missing something. I am not sure what. Has anyone had any success with green soups? This one is basically a cucumber soup. I am open to try something else if someone has an idea that would work.

And the fruit was sooo good. I used honey tangerines instead of oranges. They were yummy!

Mr. Baggins

So..... I got a new friend!

I had told myself that after my pet cat (which I didnt get along with at all) that I was totally off pets. Then I came across a lady who had surprise half Giant Flemish bunnies and wanted to get rid of them as soon as possible. Apparently she had a female Giant Flemish and a male lionhead and because of the difference she didn't think that they could mate. So that is how Mr. Baggins came to be and how he came to be in my life.

He is growing faster than expected and I had to build him a huge rabbit cage. I made it out of those stackable wire storage cubes... I think they are Neat Idea Cubes (NIC). It was a pain in the butt doing it all by myself (Jesse and I are no longer dating). But I finally got all of the walls built, I laid black vinyl flooring on particle board for the shelves and floor of the cabe. I used the bottom of his old cage as his litter pan (he is totally litter trained) and he has a little tent at the top to sleep in. He is super cute! Since he is litter trained I let him out in the morning when I get ready for work and in the evening when I get home from work. He just hops around and when he needs to use the potty get goes back into his cage! It is awesome! He has discovered that he is big enough now to jump up onto the couch and my bed, so lately he thinks that he owns the house. We have had to have a few talking tos..... well as much as you can scold a super cute bunny names Mr. Baggins!. He seems to love his bigger cage too. Though it did take some getting used to. The first night he fell of the top floor all the way to the bottom. I am sad to say that I laughed first and then made sure he was ok... He is fine. He is a tough bunny... he slipps all the way down the stairs too, but it doesnt seem to slow him down.

In reading the breed specs for the flemish giant.... it appears that if he doesnt get enough of that lionshead breed in him I may be looking at a 20-30 pound rabbit. Lord help me if he gets that big! I will post updated pictures as he gets bigger!

I am looking at getting a little angora bunny too! That would be sooooo cute! We shall see what happens there.

Failed......

I dont know what is wrong with me. I am so mad at myself.

I can't seem to get into the swing of things with going Raw again. I don't know why I am having such a hard time. The first time I went raw I just did it. I had no issues right off the bat. What is going on?

I am really angry about this. I am just not feeling the motivation and I dont understand why. I need to figure out something that will get me back into the swing of things.

Even my coworker has gone raw because of our talking and she is loving it. You would think that would be enough to get my butt in gear!

Anyone have any suggestions? I am hanging on by a thread!

Have the New Website going with a couple Recipes

So things are going well. I am back into the raw swing of things. It is funny. This time around I do not feel the urge to weigh myself as much. That is a good thing I guess. I am just wanting to feel better, and I know that that will happen and the weight will gradually fall off when it needs to. I am just going to stick with this and not get discouraged.
With that said, Jesse, the boyfriend, has decided to go at this with me and he is doing famously. He is not super thrilled but he is working with it. It is a huge change and I know it is going to take some time for him to get used to the different foods we are eating.
I have logged some of the recipes we have tried on my raw in 2010 webiste so be sure to check it out. Last night we had Spicy Cilantro Pesto Stuffed Mushrooms that were amazing! :) You should give them a shot. There is also a recipe for a citrus green smoothie... It was amazing! and a creamy cashew citrus salad dressing. :)
http://rawagain2010.weebly.com/blog.html

Discovered Treasure Trove.....

So... Great things come from unexpected places! I fully believe this.

So I know that I can be a bit.... snobby....when it comes to certain things. So when Jesse told me that he wanted to go to the Flea Market over the Holiday break... I was like... "Oh, ok. That will be interesting." I just had the picture of this dirty place and people trying to sell their used crap. Then I thought that there might be a chance that I could find an old awesome blender or juicer (since I was looking for one to start my raw again 2010 challenge). So the day after Christmas we woke up semi early (The alarm went off at 6:00am but we didn't get out of bed until 8:00am) and then went to the flea market. There were not alot of vendors there, but we figured that once the holidays were over it will be back to its normal booming self. It was an outdoor market so it was freezing, but what I found was totally worth it. No, I didn't find a juicer or blender, but there were migrant workers there that were selling every kind of fruit and vegetable that you can think of! The carrots were the size of my head. There was fresh cabbages, raddishes, tomatoes, some fuzzy thing that I didn't know what it was. I had to ask! Apparently it is a squash of some sort. A little research and I discovered that it was a chayote squash. I think I might have to try one. I felt like they had almost anything you could imagine and the prices were fantastic. They were selling a huge bag of bananas for $1.00.
The Plan is to stop by the market again Sunday and stock up on food for the week. I take pictures and let you know what we get. (just excuse the phone camera pictures until I get a new digital camera).

I also did get my Juicer, but I went to the evil Walmart for it. :) It isnt the best juicer in the world but it will last me until I save up enough money for a high end one. :)

So only a few more days until the challenge starts. I am really excited!

Nookie Nookie

For an early Christmas present I received the Barnes and Noble Nook from my mother. My sister and I both got one. We actually got really lucky because I think that she ordered them on the first day they came available for pre-order. So we were not subject to the terrible February 1st shipping date that is now the standard for pre-odering. (If you are one of the ones waiting for your nook... it is worth it!) So after all the delays and push-backs that Barnes and noble had, I finally got my nook! I have to admit that it was totally worth the wait. Never having an e-reader before I was very worried that I would not like not having an actual book in my hands. But I was very pleasantly surprised!

It is light weight and does not feel awkward to hold. I find that reading in bed is nice too because my arms are not getting tired from holding up a heavy book while I lay down.

The book selection is great, and have yet to look for a book that I was not able to come across. I was even able to find a few raw books (http://rawagain2010.weebly.com/blog.html) on e-book, so that has been awesome. Barnes and Noble has also starting accepting gift cards for e-books which makes it a lot easier buy me presents. lol.

They also have the Nook set up to where you can put your own pictures on it as your screen saver and wallpaper (pic is of my niece Gabi on Halloween) I was able to put pictures of my sister and nieces. It is nice to see their pictures every time I go to read a book. I miss the terribly and am having a hard time adjusting to their moving away. (I went to visit them over the weekend and it was very hard to leave.) You can also transfer MP3's and PDF files to it, so I have started putting some knitting patterns and raw recipes onto it for easier reference. It really works out great from me since I do not have a printer. This is much easier!

There are also a lot of covers and accessories available on B&N.com. I was to get a back cover, but I am going to wait until they actually start carrying them in the stores before I get one. I want to make sure I can see the actual colors before I purchase them. My sister has said that she would make me a sleeve for it. I am excited about it because hers is absolutely awesome!. I should get that in the mail from her any day now! :) I will post pictures of it once it comes in.

Raw Again 2010 Challenge

Hello to everyone!

So I have talked with a couple of friends who have decided that they too are going to go raw in 2010 starting in January.... (The boyfriend might even give it a go... he is still skeptical.

I am super excited about this and I can't wait to see how I do. The goal is to stay raw for 365 days. This is going to be a very difficult task, but one that is so rewarding once completed.

To celebrate the kick-off of this personal challenge and to get me even more psyched and motivated I have created a website for it. This new site will track my progress, food prep, emotions, inspirational stories, readings, etc. http://rawagain2010.weebly.com/

Please feel free to check out the new site and post comments for any inspiration, books, etc that you have come across that you think I would enjoy. (Any little bit of support will help keep me going all the longer).

I will still post everyday life stuff here, and will do a quick update on my raw again in 2010 progress, so please keep checking back.

Christmas Time!

I was getting totally bummed out because Christmas was around the corner and I was not feeling the seasonal rush what-so-ever. My sister had moved away from me just in time for the holidays and I didn't have any Christmas decorations at all in my house. The only Christmas-y thing I did this season was to help Jesse (the boyfriend) put up his University of Tennessee Christmas tree that he loves so much.... Yes it is a White tree with orange ornaments, pom poms, and football ornaments. LOL. It is quite breath-taking.... and you can interpret that anyway you would like. lol.

Anyhow, I went to a work Christmas party at a nice restaurant in downtown Chattanooga. That got me feeling a little bit better. At the Christmas party the owner of the company got everyone a $50 gift certificate to Lowe's. I was really bummed out about it and asked Jesse "What the freak (trying not to actually curse anymore) and I going to do with a Lowe's gift certificate. So the next day I was feeling like I would go and look to see if I could get plants to do my terrariums.... Yeah, the ditzy Floridian in me did not take into account that it is winter and Tennesee... so all plants are practically dead (except for orchids and other ones that were kept in the humid indoor garden area. So that was a little bit of a bummer, but as I was walking around outside and freezing my bum off, I passed the christmas tree section and stopped short! They had mini christmas tress that were real! I know I should probably be very upset that a baby tree was cut down to be stuffed into a house, but honestly, The tree was too cute not to adore and I had to have it. It was only $15! SO I got the tree and then made my way to the ornaments sections.

You really would have thought that I was picking out a house, with how long it took me to decided what kind of ornaments I was going to get. Lowe's didn't have a huge selection and I didn't want a very tacky looking tree. So I decided to go with the Apple Theme. I found a tree stick full of apples then I found complimenting red and gold ornaments. I didn't find a tree topper because everything looked cheesy, but I did find mini red bells that I was able to hang all around the tree and all the way to the very top.

I got home and put my tree together, and am very happy to say that I love the result! It really worked to put me into the Christmas spirit.

I am also filling my movie watching regime with Christmas movies. I am planning on watching National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation (I have never seen it). I will have to find a Christmas Story so I can watch that. I have recently watched Love Actually (a wonderful movie for those of you who have not seen it), and I am going to sit down and watch It's a Wonderful Life. I have never seen the whole thing.... last year was actually the first time I had ever seen any of it, and it was the very end. I feel that at 25 years old... (soon to be 26 right after Christmas) this is a shame. So I will be watching the whole thing. I will make Jesse sit and watch it with me! :) He is a good boyfriend, and does not usually gripe about what kind of movies we watch... as long as they arent musicals. What is it with guys and singing?

So It is Christmas time again and though it has taken me a little bit to get into the swing of things, I am ready to go all out!

Raw Food- "Take 1" analysis

I did a little thinking and brainstorming..... The question on my mind was.... "How did I fall off of my raw diet?" I thought that this was important to go over before I dedicated myself to going 100% raw again. The reason being is that 1). If I don't recognize the elements that caused me to slip up then I could possibly slip up again, and 2). The detox symptoms are too severe going 100% raw that I do not want to repeat them again after my next round. I would like trial 2 to be the last/successful attempt at going 100% raw.

-So some things I have learned about my eating habits..... I eat when I am bored. I eat when I am stressed. I let others influence my eating. I have a big "comfort food" Problem (craving something warm and full of carbs), and I am addicted to Ice Cream.

The thing is, is that all of those cravings that I do have can ben satisfied through the raw diet. That was never an issue. I liked the food and I loved experimenting in the kitchen with prepping.

My huge problem was when I started dating. I know that may sound strange... but when you are getting to know someone how do you say to them "Oh I am sorry, I dont eat meat and I don't eat anything cooked..... So where would you like to go out to eat?" So to soothe the awkwardness that explaining my eating preferences would cause; I would go off my diet just for the date. Well, like so many have said... once you go off, it is like a snowball rolling down-hill-- and it doesnt take long to undo all of the hard work that was once done.

So the main thing to do it to start over. Do my reasearch again and make sure that I know everything that I need to know about going raw. My first attempt was a little haphazard. I watched and read the Alissa Cohen DVD and Book, looked online and read the stories of Angela Stokes and others... and was like. I can do that! Though I believe that was the right attitude, it was probably not the best timing or informed decision. I didn't know where to start and just flew by the seat of my pants.

In my recent search I have found Wendi and Jim Dee. Their success story is awesome and their website is even better. http://www.purejeevan.com/. She also has two eBooks for free... "Raw Foods 101"; and "Raw Food Recipes." Both of these are excellent! If you are looking for good motivation and a how to starting point you should check this out.

I have decided to start looking for raw food groups on the Chattanooga area. IF you know of any, please shout at me and let me know. The best way to stay successful with this, for me, is to surround myself with like-minded who will keep my on my path and talk me down from the ledge when I feel like falling off. If there is not a group in Chattanooga, I might see what I can do about starting one up. Just to get together and talk and go over things... then maybe once a month meeting for a potluck or something. Who knows, but it is an idea worth keeping right now.

My other thing that i am going to do is to keep myself busy. There are a lot of things that I want to get done. I want to work on my paintings... Maybe get an etsy shop up and going. My sister gave me her old sewing machine... so maybe it is time to try that out. I have knitting projects that I need to work on, and I have recently found a new love for terrariums that I am going to explore. I figure that While I am shrinking, I can watch things grow in my place. :) I am also going to make polymer clay figures to put in the terrariums. I figure with all of this craftiness going on it will be hard to think about food.

A couple Terrariums that I love. :)

Having a Hard Time

So Getting back on track has been harder than I would have imagined. When I first decided to gow raw, I just did it. I went 100% over night and ran with it. It was awesome and I felt great. Then for some reason I let boys, stress, and money issues throw me off track. I have recognized the issue and have stated that I need to get back on track, so when then is it so hard to get back to 100% raw when I know how easy it can be? I have this horrible little voice in my head saying.... "Just wait until after the holidays." I hate that voice! It is basically telling me.... "Just wait until you gain another 8 pounds that you released!" I am so mad at myself for letting myself go again.
I am working with a woman now that is motivating me to get back on track and she too is going raw, so I am thinking that between the two of us and the support that we can give each other I will be able to stay on track this time. I am cleaning out my cabinets and going grocery shopping this weekend. Hopefully I will have so fun stuff to post as far as recipes go and things that I am doing to keep me busy.
I have been writing a lot, so that has been a great distraction from food. :) I also just got an exercise bike. So I set that up in my living room in front of the TV and I will ride for a while while I watch a movie. The exercise is what needs to really happen right now. I am starting to feel a little sluggish again and I am bruising really easily. So I need to get he blood circulating again! Between the bike and my Gazelle I should be in good shape. It is too cold in the mornings to go out for a walk so hopefully this will help.
I have a recipe for raw cheese that I will be making. If I do it right I might be able to crackers out of it. We will see how that works out.

I will post more and update on my progess soon. :)

New Punk Haircut

Gotta new haircut... Loving it!

Back On Track!

So as many of you have messaged me about it........I know that you are well aware..... that I have not posted in a while. lol.

I want to lie to you and say that life has been so busy that I have been unable to keep you up to date with all of the fabulous things going on. lol

The truth of the matter is that I got laid off of my job and things snowballed from there. It was too expensive to stay on the raw diet so I have been off of it for a bit. It makes me sad that it is cheaper to eat in a less healthy fashion. What sense does that make?

Anyway.... I am going back on track, so please stick with me. I will be posting new recipes and even a few cooked vegan ones that I will be making on an occasion.

How I am feeling.... Not so great. I mean I don't feel awful, but that energy and happy go lucky outlook that I had every day when I was on the raw diet.... yea, its not there. My heart burn has returned and my fingers are swollen again in the morning. I think that this is important to share to anyone who is on the raw diet and thinking about going off. Yes, the raw diet can seem restricting and overwhelming, but your heath benefits in the long run are well worth the effort. I have gained about about 7 pounds in the month that I have been off this diet completely. So I am starting over and I am very excited about it.

I have found a new job, and it is going great so far. I am working with a woman who is a vegetarian and she is very interested in raw foods, so that is really helping me get back on track.

I have also finished my shrug that I was working on! yay! It fits perfect believe it or not. So for that I am grateful. I would have been very sad if I finished knitting that and it was too big, but the goal is for it to be too big this time next year. It is made from the yarn "Classy" by Dream In Color. It really is a great shrug and a very easy pattern to follow. I have gotten a lot of compliments on it so far.

I am sorry if I have disappointed you all, but know that I will be back and I will be on track. Please stick with me.

Produce Keepers

Sorry I have not posted in so long. I have moved and it has taken a while to get back in the groove of things. But I am almost all situated and will post pictures of my new place very soon. I love it and am very pleased with how things are coming along.

~~~~~So I was having problems with my produce, especially my lettuce going bad before I could finish it. The lettuce would turn soggy or my berries would get moldy. And though this is unpleasant to look at, it is also annoying cause, as many of you know, produce is not exactly the cheapest thing to live on.... and you want it to last as long as possible.

I found Produce Keepers. They extend the shelf live of your fruits and vegetables. I discovered these things while walking around the store in boredom. I thought these were the coolest things.... I know it doesn't take much to get me excited. They can be divided into two sections or not, and you can open the vent or close them. You put your lettice, berries, and just about anything esle (produce) that usually stores in the fridge. You put a little water at that bottom and put in the fridge. It works wonders. My lettuce is still crisp and has not shown the least bit of wilting. My grapes are amazing, and my strawberries are still bright red. I am loving these things. They run about $15 each but they are totally worth the investment if you want to give them a try. (And they look really good in the fridge as well.)

I find that making my salads is a lot easier and enjoyable now too. I just go in and take a handful of lettuce from the bucket and put on my toppings. So much easier then chopping it as i go. And fruit, It is all already clean, just grab and go. I love it! It is making life so much more simple.

I found these at Walmart, I am not sure where else they would sell them, but keep you eye out for them and give them a shot if you can. I am not sorry that I did.

What Under 200 Feels Like!

I am under 200 pounds! Holy Crap! I am amazed and so freakin happy I can't even tell you. Considering I started at my heaviest at 238 pounds. Started on raw when at 231 pounds. Now I am under 200 pounds! WOW!!!!

So How I look: (I think that I look healthy and beautiful...and that takes a lot for me to say)

How I looked: (uumm.... Lets not even go there...)

How I Feel: (Sassy and Sexy as Hell!)

Ok I am done with the photos I promise! lol. I am just so excited at the difference. Can you believe it? I feel great and I am totally psyched. I never really thought that I would be able to get this far and keep going.

Broccoli in Hoisini Sauce with Parsnip Rice

OMG. This was delicious! Russell James is an absolute genius. I subscribed to Russell James' The Raw Chef newsletter and I have not really tried to make anything before this recipe. This one seemed like it was easy enough for me to give it a go, and boy am I glad that I did. And who would have thought that parsnips instead of rice would be so yummy. I honestly cannot say enough good things about this recipe.

If you want to check out his other recipes, you can find them at: http://therawchefblog.com/category/raw-recipes. I am going to try many more. His desserts look amazing!

(And notice that I finally got plain white plates! haha)

Pistachio Pesto and Kelp Noodle Salad

I got this recipes from Ani Phyo's Ani's Raw Kitchen. It was really good. I was surprised how good the kelp noodles were. I am not going to lie, I was a little iffy about the whole thing. But the pesto and really tasty and the kelp noodles and mixed greens were a nice combination. I probably should have picked a different type of tomato to garnish, the cherry tomatoes I got were not ripe enough and they threw off the taste, but the dish was a lot better once I got rid of them. lol.
You can find this recipe and many many more at Ani's website, and the link is: http://www.aniphyo.com/2008/08/25/pistachio-pesto-with-kelp-noodles/ (See below for recipe)

Pistachio Pesto Makes 1 cup

1/2 Tablespoon garlic
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup pistachio
2 cups basil, fresh, lightly packed
1 Tablespoon lemon juice, from about 1 lemon
1/2 cup avocado, about 1/2 of an avo
1 Tablespoon olive oil

In your food processor, place garlic, salt, and pistachios, and process into small pieces. Next, add your basil, and process to mix. Add your lemon juice, avocado, and olive oil and process to mix well. Toss with your Kelp Noodle Salad, below.


Kelp Noodle Salad Makes 4 servings

4 cups Kelp Noodles4 cups herb or spring mix, lightly packed

Place noodles and greens in a mixing bowl, and toss with 1 cup of Pistachio Pesto.

Watermelon Tomato Gazpacho

I wanted to try to make soup. I was never one for a cold soup- always being afraid to try it. So I decided that I was going to try this Watermelon Tomato Gazpacho from Sarma Melngailis' book Raw Food Real World. The end result was AMAZING. It really was like summertime in a bowl. I was worried about mixing all of the peppers and onions with my watermelon, but it was a very nice combination, and the cucumber in the recipe added a nice cooling taste to the soup. I will definitely be making this often. It is one of the best things I have tried to make.

They have a very similar recipe available online at: http://www.peaceful-organic-planet.com/support-files/watermelongazpacho.pdf (See below for recipe)

No Cook Yummy Watermelon Tomato Gazpacho

Makes 4 cool and delicious servings

3 cups watermelon seeded/puree in blender
1 cup watermelon diced small
1 cup seeded tomato/diced small
1 cup peeled seeded cucumber diced small
½ cup red or green bell pepper/diced small
2 tbsp lime juice
1 small handful cilantro leaves
1 tsp minced ginger
1/2 small jalapeno seeded and minced
1 green onion, mince 1 inch of the green and all the white
1 tsp sea salt
fresh black pepper
Mix the pureed watermelon with the diced watermelon, tomatoes, cucumber,
bell pepper, lime juice, cilantro, ginger, jalapeno & green onion. Take a ladle
and put it into chilled soup bowls and serve.

I am sorry about the picture as well. I am going to have to get a nicer set of dishes to display what I make.