Being Thankful

I am now 38 weeks pregnant and starting to feel a bit like a stuffed turkey with all the fixings.... how apporpriate as Thanksgiving is just around the corner!

My back aches, my feet hurt, I am not sleeping well, my pants are tight, I have to pee every 5 seconds, and I can't seem to ever get comfortable. It easy to focus on all the things that I don't like right now, but in the spirit of THANKSgiving I have been trying to remind myself all I have to be thankful for instead of focusing on the negative.

Once you start having an attitude of gratitude, it is amazing how you can be happier and healthier.

Gratitude is the simple act of being grateful/ thankful, is more than just a feeling, and only works when you are actually truly feeling grateful for something.

When we express and feel gratitude, we can actually change our vibration and that is when we start attracting more of what we want in our lives.

Like attracts like, so what ever your feeling.... joy, anger, love, distress, or gratitude, we create an energetic force that will always attract circumstances that parallel how we are feeling.

It is not always easy to get to a place of feeling grateful, but in a world where the only thing we actually have control over is our thoughts... it is important that we try to chose the best possible thoughts at all times, and being grateful helps us be in the flow of accepting all the love and gifts the universe has to offer.

Sound Deep? It is, but it doesn't have to be complicated, or mean that you have to be in denial when things don't go the right way! Stop for a minute and think of some simple things you are grateful/ thankful for and notice how your mood, energy and vibration changes.

Even though I am feeling a bit uncomfortable, I am grateful for a healthy growing baby, and a big belly that provided a fun evening of painting and bonding with my 4 yr old son, Evan!

Happy Thanksgiving! What are you thankful for?

Chia Seed Kombucha

A few weeks ago I was shopping at my local health food store when I noticed a new version of GT's Kombucha for sale in the cooler. I love GT's Gingerade and Multi-Green Kombucha, so when I saw the chia seed version, I knew I had to give this nutritionally power packed drink a try.

Chia Seeds are filled with fiber, protein, minerals, vitamins, omega's and antioxidants, and I use them frequently in my smoothies. Kombucha is a fermented "tea" that aids in digestion, boots immunity, is filled with healthy probiotics, cleansing, and energy boosting!

Combine these two super ingredients you have a super nutritious elixir, but I was still a bit skeptical, not because of my doubt of the health benefits... but because.... it looked a little gross to be honest. My curiosity outweighed my hesitation and I bought the raspberry version and gave it a whirl.

My thoughts?
Well, at first there was that slight fizz (as to be expected with kombucha) but not as much as usual. As I took my first sip I closed my eyes, held my breath, and prepared for the worst. It was a little fizzy, a tiny bit tart, kinda chewy, and a bit of a slippery texture.

Sounds disgusting right?

I wasn't sure what to think at first - it was all new, and my senses where a little thrown, but after my 3rd or 4th sip I was kind of digging it, and the tapioca like texture.

Unlike the other bottles of kombucha, which I can finish soon after opening, I had to stop about halfway though the chia seed version because it is quite filling.

Although I will probably stick to the non-chia versions for the most part when I purchase kombucha, I encourage you to try this elixir and see what you think for yourself.

When I first tried the regular kombucha I wasn't an instant fan.... yet I kept drinking it, acquired a taste, and actually ended up loving it.  I am certainly going to give the chia seed kombucha a few more tries, and I just may end up hooked on this new drink too!

Have you already tried it? What did you think?

Quinoa stuffed squash

Fall has so many great foods to offer, and if you haven't already.... stuff a squash! It is easy, tasty, and good for you if you stuff it with the right stuff.

I stumbled across a recipe for quinoa stuffed acorn squash, and adapted it to make it a bit easier as I don't like to spend too much time in the kitchen.

Here is the recipe:

Quinoa Stuffed Squash

Ingredients:

1 acorn squash

1 tbsp coconut oil (olive oil works too)

1 tsp maple syrup

1/4 cup raisins

1/4 cup sliced almonds 

Sea salt & pepper to taste

1 cup quinoa

Optional extras for flavor:

chopped onion, garlic, mushrooms

Directions:

Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees

Cut acorn squash in half, and scoop out seeds

Coat squash halves with oil, maple syrup drizzle, salt & pepper, and fill with almonds and raisins. Bake for about 1 hour or until soft when pierced by a fork.

Cook quinoa 

If you are adding extra veggies... saute them in a little oil until tender, add them to cooked quinoa, and mix thoroughly. 

When squash is cooked, remove from oven and carefully, and add a scoop of quinoa. Use fork to scrape some of the squash from the edges, and mix with the quinoa until you have a nice mixture of squash, almonds, raisins and quinoa!

Enjoy!

Healthier Halloween... tricks to avoid too many treats!

Halloween is great!  You get to dress up, attend festive parties, and can be loads of fun, but it is also a time when we can go overboard on treating ourselves with those cute mini candies that seem innocent and small, but who eats just one?

Halloween doesn't have to = eating loads of candy. There are plenty of other ways to enjoy the holiday without over indulging in sweets - think pumpkin carving, bobbing for apples, haunted houses, and costume parties with healthy fall foods!

Nobody really wants to be the one who ends up sneaking candy from their kids loot, eating 10-20 mini candies at a time for an afternoon pick me up, and left feeling sluggish, overweight, tired and craving more sugar.

This season I have a few suggestions to keep you happy, healthy and feeling good.

Candy, Candy, Candy....

• If you are going to hand out candy, buy something that you don't particularly like. For me, being a chocolate lover, I would be less likely to dig into the candy bowl if it was filled with things like skittles, or smarties (although once upon a time I did love those).

• Even better hand out something besides candy. I personally feel awful about contributing to kids eating mass amounts of junk candy, so I like to pick things as an alternative to hand out, and I am NOT talking boxes of raisins becasue nobody like getting that. I am talking about fun stickers, temporary tattoos, or glow sticks - those are all fun non-food items that kids actually like. For upgraded treats try organic lollipops (made w/o HFCS and artificial colors/ flavors) - Yummy Earth has a selection of "better" candy.

• A little sweet treat can be great, don't deny yourself totally - buy a dark organic chocolate bar for your private stash. When you have a better version to chose from you can enjoy a sweet treat, and it will be easier to pass on the mini snickers bars.

Trick-or-treat...

No one likes to be the parent that says "no"to trick-or-treating fun, but kids don't have to suffer from sugar shock.

• Before going out to knock on doors make sure your whole family fills up on a nutritious balanced dinner. Once bellies are filled with good food there is and less room or desire to eat too much candy while you are out.

• When you come home, allow kiddos to pick a 3-5 pieces to enjoy that night, and then put the rest away. You can then either allow a certain number each day, OR

• Have you heard of the pumpkin fairy who comes and collects candy on Halloween night and in exchange for all the candy leaves  a cool toy behind? Kind of like the tooth fairy and works great with younger kids.  For bigger kids that won't buy the pumpkin fairy... they will probably be happy to trade in candy for some cash, so buy it off them! Here is where you have to make sure you give or throw away the candy... don't take away from the kids to only to eat it all yourself

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Happy Halloween! Do you have any healthy suggestions to share?

One step at a time

I have been feeling totally overwhelmed with cleaning lately. Have you ever been lacking motivation, feeling overwhelmed, and not knowing where to start? Well, that has been me for the last week and each day I kept getting more frustrated as I looked around and saw everything that needed to be cleaned, organized, or put away. With life feeling a little cluttered and me feeling a bit stressed I observed that my eating habits were not the best, and I was not feeling inspired to make much of anything for dinner.

What can you do when you feel stuck in a rut?

The only way that ends up working for me is to start small, tackle one thing at a time,  and then before you know it I am vacuuming, cleaning the sink, organizing paperwork, clearing off my dining room table (which often ends up being the dumping ground for lots of papers and mail), and inspired to make an easy fall supper that the whole family enjoyed.

I have been reminded of a few things through this process.

1.  When you want to make a big change, remember the steps it takes to get there. For me wanting to have a clean home I needed to start small... organize my junk drawer and shoe rack one day, do laundry another day etc... Each time I felt accomplished and motivated enough to complete a small task, and ready to do a little more the next day.

2. When we feel overwhelmed, and our home environment feels cluttered or not organized then it has a huge impact on the foods that we chose to eat. If our life feels chaotic, chances are we might not be making the healthiest food choices which in return leaves us feeling more run down and unmotivated.

3. It's all connected! When one thing is lacking it can effect other aspects of our lives for sure.

So.... if you are feeling overwhelmed with cleaning, cooking meals, eating healthy or making time to exercise, remember to start small, build your confidence and your motivation and before you know it, things fall right into place and it all becomes easier and more manageable and almost effortless like a waterfall flowing down the mountainside.

Is there something that might be overwhelming you? What small step can you take to start tackling your goal and get things flowing the right way again.

Be Well,
Courtney