Goal Completed

Mostly Raw (Front Cover)

Hello Everyone!

Just a quick note to say that I completed one of the top items on my To Do List. Yay!!!

It is my first booklet on Raw Foods and Healthy Eating, entitled Mostly Raw.  I personally know how hard it is to transition over to a mostly raw diet, so I created the book to help others who are striving to improve their eating habits and make a Healthy Lifestyle change.
The booklet has been sent to the printer and I should be receiving my copies no later than the first part of next week.

My new website, EatRawYummies.com will be up and running soon. Copies of the booklet may be purchased on the website or at a local health store called Coffee Tea & A Healthy Me, which is located in Avondale Estates.
Join me in 2012 as I up my level of Health & Fitness. I would love to coach you through to success. More info to come about my New Year's Coaching Special and how you can receive a free copy of the booklet.


Have you completed any major goals this year? Please share your good news with our readers if you did.  We want to be excited and celebrate it with you.  
(Leave a comment in the comment section.)

Mostly Raw (Back Cover)

Hello Everyone!

I've been very busy working on my future plans.  I made one major accomplishment and that was completing my booklet, Mostly Raw. :)  I titled it Mostly Raw because my goal is to reach those people that want to become healthier, but end up feeling lost in the process. Mostly Raw is a beginners guide to creating a healthy balanced diet using raw & cooked foods.

Delicious Blooms

In my last post, I spoke about discovering what makes me happy.  While I loved making edible arrangements using fresh fruit, cookies, candies and snacks, my passion is all about HEALTH.  So I will be switching things up a bit. I've decided not to offer Candy, Cookie & Snack Bouquets when I re-open my business. However, I will continue to create fresh fruit bouquets and all of the chocolate dipped fruit items as I did before. 
I need to stay focused and true to my passion.  Of course it is okay to eat these things on occasion, but it will be much easier on me if I don't have them around me all day. Know what I mean? :) I just want to help others (and myself) to get and stay healthy by making small changes to our eating habits and by offering candy, cookies and snacks, I won't be able to do that.  As I stated in my last post, it is not about depriving yourself of your favorite foods. It's about making more healthier choices.

The year 2012 is only 1 month away!  During this month (December) a lot of people begin to think about changes they plan to make in the upcoming year. People make New Year's Resolutions and set goals to make a better life for themselves.  My goal for next year is to continue to get healthy and to stay that way. I want that for myself as well as for others.  Life is better, you look better, you feel better, you get more things accomplished and you are happier when you are healthy and feeling your best. You become more confident and more outgoing when you are loving the skin you are in. So let's all make plans to become a Healthier You in 2012.

Question of the day:
Are you making plans to  "Become a Better You" in the year of 2012? If so, what are some of your goals/dreams?

Future Endeavors

Hi There!
It's been a good while since I last posted (almost 2 months!).  So what have I been up to?  I've been in deep thought about my future endeavors.  Over the past few years, I've come to realize that life is not about money and material things. It's about Love & Happiness.  It is about Peace.  It's about Sharing.  With that said, I've been meditating on what truly makes me happy and what direction I should be going in, both in my personal and business life.

I've come to the conclusion that I should re-launch my company, Delicious Blooms.  Delicious Blooms provides edible fruit arrangements, candy & cookie bouquets, chocolate dipped fruit and a lot of other gifts for business & personal use.  I just love taking whole fresh fruit and making it bloom into an edible piece of art.  I do the same with individual wrapped candies and cookies, too.  Nothing makes me more happier than seeing the smile on a recipient's face when I personally make a delivery.  It reminds me that my work was not done in vain...that if only for a few seconds or minutes, my work bought joy into someone's life.  I just love it!

Another thing that has been on my mind is Raw Foods (fresh fruits, vegetables, nuts and seeds).  Last year I began a Healthy Lifestyle Journey and it changed my life.  I did the Master Cleanse for 10 days.  I enrolled in an online Raw Food course and I also took a Raw Food Chef course at a local raw food restaurant for a week.  I learned so much in the hands-on course.  It was well worth the money I paid for it.  I've learned so much about whole foods and the health & nutrition benefits of eating Raw Foods.  I've decided to make Raw Foods a part of my business.  I want to teach people how to take control of their health simply by eating more nutritious foods.  I want to share the benefits of eating Raw Foods and how it can change your mind, body & spirit.  I want to share what Raw Foods has done for me & my body.

Banana Soft Serve N'ice Cream

As part of my sharing, I've written a guide booklet on how to incorporate more raw foods into your diet.  It a start-up guide that was written to help you save money and time when embarking upon a Healthy Lifestyle Journey.  The booklet addresses both raw and cooked foods.  Yes, you can still eat cooked foods while adding more raw foods into your diet. :)  There is no need to deprive yourself to get the health benefits of eating more raw foods.  It is all about choices.  I share with you two(2) quick & easy changes you can make right now that will help you be healthier and feel better.  There are even a few simple recipes included in the booklet.  I'm so excited about this booklet!  I'm currently putting the finishing touches on it and it should be ready for release within the next few weeks.

So that is basically what I've been focusing on over the past two months.  I'm just trying to get my plans ready and in order so I can have an awesome 2012.  It's time for all of us to make the necessary changes in our lives to be a more productive and happier...to make a positive change & impact in someone else's life.  If you are already doing those things, then kudos to you.  You are much admired and appreciated.  If you are not, however, put on your thinking caps and make something happen!  Do something you love and share it with others. 

Oh, I almost forgot...I love to blog!  So I will be back to posting on a more regular basis as soon as I'm done with my booklet and setting up the re-launch of my business.  In the meantime, I'll be sure to stop by and post about what's happening in my world from time to time.

Thank you so much for reading my blog.  It really means a lot to me...It really does.  I appreciate you so much!  Peace & Blessings! -rena

Extreme Couponing

I was flipping through the t.v. channels last weekend and came across the Extreme Couponing show on TLC.  At first I bypassed it, but then decided to check it out.  I figured, why not, I'll probably learn something from it.

The show turned out to be very interesting.  It showed how these women would spend an enormous amount of time finding coupons, cutting them out and then logging them into their coupon system.  Each lady had her very own way of doing this.  Some of them used spreadsheets to keep track of it all.  Fancy, huh?  To get all of those coupons, they actually went through a lot.  One lady went dumpster diving for Sunday papers. 

I thought, "Wow, this couponing takes up a lot of time.  No wonder I always clip a few and then end up not using them.".  So as I'm sitting there watching and seeing how much money these ladies are saving, I decided that maybe couponing wasn't such a bad idea.  I mean I spend lots of money on paper towel and tissue...way too much...and I'm always paying more than I'd like to for everything else I purchase.    One lady on the show showed over 100 rolls of paper towel and said that she always get it for free.  FREE!!!  I was jealous and amazed. :)  One lady actually purchased over $1500 worth of food and other products and only paid $51 out of pocket.  I know...amazing right?!?!  So, yes, I now think couponing is well worth the extra time and effort.  Maybe I won't go to the extreme with couponing, but I will begin to use coupons to my advantage.  There are so many other things I can do with my money.

These ladies purchased every thing from dog food to pasta to cleaning products.  One lady got 150 candy bars, 218 boxes of pasta, over 40 bottles of mustard, boxes and boxes of cereal.  Really?  How can they possibly use all of that before the expiration date?  With as much stuff that these extreme couponers where purchasing, it gave me an idea.  I'll share it with you on a later blog post.

A few tips I learned while watching the show:

• Mustard never spoils.  Really?  This sorta makes me afraid to eat mustard now.
• Pre-order if you are planning to purchase a large amount (over 10) of any one item.
• If the store is out of something, ask for a rain check.
• Use your coupons with store coupons.
• Some stores offer double coupon days.
• Everything goes on sale at least every 30 months. (I'm not quite sure about the number of months but that is what I scribbled on my note pad.)
• Coupons can be found online in addition to those found in the Sunday paper.

One thing I didn't like about the extreme couponing was that the grocery carts were filled with mostly processed foods like cereal, pasta, candy, and sauces.  Of course, seeing all of that really turned me off because I'm trying so hard not to eat a lot of processed foods.  A couple of the ladies said they were able to buy produce, but I never saw any in the carts.  Then as I thought about it I realized there are a lot of things I can get by using coupons.  Things such as toilet paper, laundry detergent, trash bags, toothpaste, cleaning products, paper towel and deodorants are good items to go couponing for.

As I said before, I don't think I'll be an extreme couponer but I am going to begin using more coupons.  The holidays are fast approaching and I could sure use some extra money.  Besides, every little bit helps.

Question:  Do you use coupons?  If so, share your experience.  If not, do you plan to use coupons in the future?

Fashion Food & Friends

 

What I wore:
Occasion: Dinner with Classmates
Location: Evergreen's @ Stone Mountain Park
Cargo Pants: TJ Maxx
Top: Macy's
Necklace (charms): Stella & Dot
Gold Chain: Kohl's
Shoes: DSW

Fashion, Food & Friends
This past weekend I had the pleasure of meeting a couple of my high school classmates and their significant others for dinner. We dined at Evergreen's inside Stone Mountain Park. The food was absolutely delicious.  I didn't get a chance to take a lot of pictures of the food, but I did manage to get a shot of my favorite: crab legs.

Evergreens serves an awesome buffet on Friday nights that includes crab legs, a salad bar, a dessert bar and a hot bar. The hot bar for this past Friday had a delicious seafood gumbo, rice, catfish, collards, roasted vegetables, seafood chowder and a whole lot of other foods that I can't remember.
Alongside the crab legs (at the meat station), they served prime rib. My classmates said the prime rib was very good. It looked really juicy and moist, like it would melt in your mouth. I didn't eat any of it, but based on my observations, it must have been really, really good. :)
So if you are looking for some good food, buffet style, I suggest you check out Evergreen's on a Friday night.

Evergreen's is like a best kept secret. I don't think too many people know about it.
What are some of the restaurants you like to frequent that may be a best kept secret to others?

"To Do" List

Now that we are in the last days of Summer and headed into Fall, it is a good time for change. Let's all create a "To Do" list. Put things on your list that will help you to become a better you.

During the summer, I slacked off on doing my exercises and I allowed myself to eat a few more things that I wouldn't normally eat, like more sweets and eating out more frequently. So now that the temperature outside is dropping, I can get back outside and exercise. Walking outside is such a calming thing for me. I love just being one with nature and breathing in the fresh air. I have a treadmill, but it's just not the same.

I'm also making a commitment to get back to eating healthier. I was mindful of my eating habits all summer, but I did eat out a lot more than I had been. Traveling and spending time with family & friends will cause you to eat out more. Every one just seems to want to eat out all the time and because it is so hot in the summer, no one wants to cook (unless its a bar-b-que).  I'm proud to say that I've stayed away from eating pork and beef at the bar-b-ques this summer. Yay! No ribs for me and I didn't miss it at all.  Besides, I feel so much better when I prepare my own meals, because I know exactly what was put into them. When I cook/prepare, I eat a lot more veggies and I control the amount of sugar (if I even use sugar) and salt (I no longer use table salt, I use sea salt) that I put into my food.

I'm currently working on my "To Do" list for the Fall. Here is my list so far.
To Do List:
1. Exercise more
2. Cook most meals at home
3. Increase vegetable and fruit intake
4. Create a shopping budget
5. Get more sleep (i.e. go to bed earlier!)
6. Work on making the blog better
7. Go on a fast (juice or smoothie or master cleanse (I haven't decided yet. I may do a combo.))

I'm sure I have a few more things to add/change on there.  I'll be sure to share my completed list with you all when I'm done.  I'm gonna try to limit it to only 10 items so that it is manageable and I can complete everything listed.

What are some of the things you will be putting on your "To Do" List?

What's the most important meal of the day?

BREAKFAST!!!

Remember the saying, "Breakfast is the most important meal of the day."?
Well, I agree with that 100%.  I find that on days that I skip breakfast, I don't get nearly as many things done as on the days that I eat a good breakfast. I tend to get a slow start and be a bit sluggish throughout the day if I don't eat anything for breakfast. So with the season about to change (yeah for Fall!) I'd like to encourage each of you to make sure you eat a good breakfast every day. Put something on your stomach even if it is only a piece of fresh fruit. Breakfast does a body good!

In the above picture, I created an omelette using eggs, spinach, peppers, onions and cheese. Yum! Sometimes I will exclude the cheese. For the peppers, I use whatever I have on hand (red, yellow, green and orange).  I also sometimes add freshly grilled salmon or crab meat to my omelettes. So good!!!!
You can add whatever veggies and meats you have on hand to make it your own specialty and to fit your taste buds. My homemade omelettes taste so much better than almost any restaurant omelette I've ever paid for. :)

Omelette Recipe
Ingredients:
Eggs - 2 or 3 depending on your appetite
Almond milk - a splash (I use the Almond Breeze brand)
Onion - a handful of chopped small pieces
Peppers - 2 or 3 strips cut into small pieces
Cheese - desired amount
Organic baby spinach - a handful
Salt & Pepper to taste
Olive Oil
Optional items - cheese, meats (bacon, chicken, salmon, crab meat), other veggies
To prepare:
1-In a small bowl, combine eggs, salt & pepper (to taste) and a splash of almond milk (makes the omelette fluffier). Beat the egg mixture.
2-In a small fry pan (I think mine is 8"), add a small amount of olive oil and sautee your veggies until the onions begin to look a little opaque in color.  Add your cooked meat and sautee a few minutes more.
3-Pour the egg mixture over the veggies and let cook. At this stage, I like to place a lid over my pan.
4-Once the eggs cook a little, add the cheese and spinach. Place the lid  back over the pan and let it cook some more.
5-Once it looks as though the eggs have cooked on the bottom side, fold the eggs & veggies in half. Let cook about 2 more minutes then flip it over using a spatula so the other side can cook for another 2 or so minutes.

I sometimes add a tablespoon or two of salsa (I like the Tostitos brand) on the side for even more variety. Try the salsa, you'll love it!

Omelettes and Green Smoothies are two of my favorite breakfast foods.
What are your favorite breakfast foods (cereal, grits, smoothies, eggs, fruit, oatmeal, etc.)?